As we all know, football is a game with many injuries. There is a huge edge if you can value injured players more accurately than your league mates.
I am a physical therapist who will be doing injury breakdowns this NFL season. This article will assess injuries that occurred throughout preseason so far and how you should adjust your draft strategy. Here is a closer look at a few players.
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Fantasy Football Injury Round-Up
Cooper Kupp (WR – LAR) | Overall ADP: 5
Cooper Kupp suffered a hamstring strain on Tuesday, Aug. 1. The latest reports state that he is day to day, leading me to believe it is a grade 1 injury. The median time to return to play (RTP) for a hamstring injury is around two weeks, with grade 1 strains taking less (3-10 days) and grade 2 strains taking longer (3-8 weeks). With Kupp being a veteran, don’t be surprised if they ease him in very slowly. While hamstrings are known to have a high re-injury risk in the fantasy community, this risk is significantly lower in injuries that are allowed to fully heal.
Concern level: Low
Jonathan Taylor (RB – IND) | Overall ADP: 19
Jonathan Taylor injured his ankle multiple times throughout the 2022 season and had an arthroscopic debridement, which is commonly known as a cleanup, on Jan. 29. This is a relatively minor procedure, and he should be 100% fully recovered by now. He has not been present at camp this week due to rehabbing off-site. It’s impossible to say if this is because of his contract situation, his ankle or a different injury, but all I can say for sure is that his ankle should be fully healed by now.
Concern level: High; it’s a very murky situation.
Breece Hall (RB – NYJ) | Overall ADP: 32
Breece Hall suffered an ACL tear on Oct. 23. Although the date of his surgery is unconfirmed, he will likely be around 9-10 months out from surgery by week 1, which is a big deal. The 9-month mark is significant when it comes to RTP from ACL injuries, as there is a significantly decreased risk for reinjury if you wait until the 9-month mark.
Hall has been doing cutting drills in practice, which is a good sign, but he still has an uphill battle to get reps with contact and in-game reps. Even if he does start week 1, it may be a limited workload, and he may not look explosive. Don’t panic, as his injury was a simple ACL tear, and these are generally quicker to recover from than multi-ligamentous injuries.
Concern level: Moderate
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Eric Hund is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joe, follow him on Twitter @TheDynastyPT.
