Taylor Bicht
2 min read • August 21, 2024
Posted in
With the NFL season rapidly approaching, our team at Sports Injury Central has you covered with all the injury insights you need when deciding which players to target or avoid in all formats of Fantasy Football.
This is a preview of our 2024 NFL Preseason Injury Guide, which is now available for our registered free account holders. Sign up for our newsletter here to receive a copy of the guide and free injury-based picks for the 2024 NFL Season as they are released.
Here’s a closer look key players moving in the Average Draft Position (ADP) rankings due to their current or previous health concerns.
Note the ADP's are from Sleeper. If you haven't tried it for your Fantasy Football league, we recommend using it this year for the best experience!
Anthony Richardson has been dealing with shoulder soreness during offseason workouts and OTAs. He underwent season-ending shoulder surgery after suffering a severe AC joint sprain. Our panel of Pro Football Docs maintains that Richardson will be fine for the beginning of training camp and he has operating at full capacity. The shoulder soreness is unrelated to his AC joint injury, stemming instead from throwing a football and the culmination of offseason activities after months of inactivity. Fully healthy going into 2024 season but worry that he can sustain play style for a 17 game season without getting injured.
Jonathan Brooks suffered a torn ACL in his right knee last November. It's challenging for any rookie to be productive in their first season back from an ACL tear, especially when also adjusting to the increased competition in the NFL. Therefore, expectations for Brooks' immediate contributions should be tempered, given the difficulty of returning to peak performance after such an injury.
Nick Chubb played only two games last season before sustaining a major knee injury that led to two separate surgeries. Following his injury, Chubb underwent successful knee surgery on September 29, 2023, to repair his medial capsule, meniscus, and medial collateral ligament (MCL). Later, on November 14, 2023, he had another successful surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Recently, Chubb has been seen on video squatting over 500 lbs. Although he has not yet been cleared for football activities, he has reportedly been progressing positively toward a return this season. Unfortunately Chubb carries one of our lowest individual scores going into the new season as we find it difficult seeing him producing in any capacity. Squatting video looks great but is not the proper view on how he is recovering as we have had worry since initial injury that he will be unable to find his past high level of play.
TJ Hockenson suffered a torn ACL and MCL in Week 17 of the regular season last year. He is currently on the PUP list rehabbing that injury but is considered ahead of schedule, according to head coach Kevin O’Connell. The expectation is that he will be ready sometime after the September 8th opener. Hockenson, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, had a career-high 960 receiving yards in 15 games last season. 2024 will be a lost year for the TE as he will not be a viable fantasy option. Recently on our PFD Podcast, fantasy expert Evan Silva mention Hockenson will not be in his top 150 pre-draft rankings for the 2024 season. Avoid him at all costs as he will not be fully effective until late season if not next year entirely.
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Aaron Rodgers tore his left Achilles just four plays into his Jets tenure. Pro Football Docs expect him to be fully ready for training camp with no restrictions. He did not participate in team minicamp, which head coach Robert Saleh explicitly deemed an "unexcused absence." There is no concern over the blister scare he dealt with during OTA’s and should be a fantasy asset this year with the Jets revamped line and fully healthy RB.
Deshaun Watson has yet to regain the form he displayed during his height in Houston. Last season, he dealt with various shoulder ailments that ultimately ended with a glenoid fracture in his shoulder. He has yet to eclipse 1,200 yards passing since his time in Houston but is on track to be fully healthy and produce at full effectiveness in 2024.
Kyler Murray spent the first half of last season recovering from an ACL tear sustained on December 12, 2022. He returned in Week 10 and played nearly all the snaps for the remainder of the season. In the 10 games he played, Murray primarily operated from the pocket, rushing only 44 times and throwing for 1,799 yards and 10 touchdowns, despite not being considered 100%. At the start of training camp, he is expected to be fully healthy and will face no restrictions for the upcoming season as his rushing ability is now back to full strength.
Edwards played in all 17 games last season and was very productive, rushing for 810 yards and scoring 13 touchdowns on 198 carries. Although he was evaluated for a concussion in Week 3 and listed on the injury report with a toe injury in Week 9, he missed no games. There is speculation on whether he had offseason surgery regardless of the case is likely minor according to our staff at sicscore.com. With Dobbins likely not 100% effective due to his second major knee injury, expect Edwards to be the main source of carries in new Chargers offense that is expect to run the ball more than 2023. Value in getting a RB1 deep in the RB rankings.
Jonathan Taylor has dealt with a laundry list of injuries over the past two seasons but enters this year with a clean bill of health from our Pro Football Docs. In 2022, Taylor suffered a right ankle injury that caused him to miss six games and required offseason surgery. In 2023, the same injury caused Taylor to start the season on the PUP list, missing the first four games. Once off the list, Taylor was awarded a new contract by the Colts but then suffered a torn UCL in his left thumb in Week 12, causing him to miss three more games and finish the season with a career-low 741 rushing yards. Entering this season, our Pro Football Docs expect Taylor to be fully healthy for the start of training camp and ready to be a workhorse RB beginning in Week 1.
This will be Wan'Dale Robinson's second season since tearing his ACL in late November 2022. As a speedy player, Robinson wasn't fully recovered during his first year back, finishing the season with 60 catches for 525 yards and just one touchdown. With this being his second year post-ACL tear, he is expected to move quicker and be more effective. A fully healthy Robinson could be in line for career highs across the board in his third season in New York. With many ranking Robinson outside the Top 200 players to draft, he is a deep sleeper that could surprise if Daniel Jones and Co. can operate anything close to an efficient offense.
For the complete list of Injury-Based Risers and Fallers keep tuned for our 2024 NFL Preseason Injury Guide coming soon…
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Written by Taylor Bicht
