As any one of my three children will tell you, I’m old. I take a second to stretch when I rise from the couch or get out of bed. I’m definitely not as fast as I used to be circling the baseball field. An “injury” to me is a papercut or stubbing my toe on an ajar door. And those take me long enough to recover from, let alone dealing with anything serious (throwing out my back from sneezing too hard or stepping on Legos immediately comes to mind).
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I can’t fathom being able to recover from a hamstring pull in short order. Or the amount of rehab that it takes after tearing one’s ACL. Bumps and bruises are enough for me, so I’ll always give these athletes plenty of grace when it comes to timetables and estimated return windows.
If their body is a brand-new Ferrari, mine is an old Honda Civic with muffler issues.
Here is a quick rundown of Week 7’s injury news.
Fantasy Football Injuries to Know
Quarterback
Jayden Daniels (QB – WSH)
In the midst of being strip-sacked on Washington’s first possession in the second half against Dallas, Jayden Daniels was rolled on by a defender and limped off the field. After being in the sideline tent for a moment, he was able to jog to the Commanders’ locker room and was later ruled out with a hamstring injury. A subsequent MRI taken on Monday morning thankfully came back clean, and head coach Dan Quinn said that his injury “isn’t considered to be significant or a long-term issue, but his status for Monday Night Football is uncertain,” per Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post.
Fantasy Impact: Marcus Mariota would start against Kansas City should Jayden Daniels need time to recover from this injury. The fact that they are playing the final game of the week definitely complicates matters, as an “official” ruling will likely not occur until Monday afternoon (barring a setback). Mariota is a mid-range QB2 as a pivot option for those managers willing to wait for a status update, but the hope is that Daniels will be able to log at least a limited practice in the coming days to give us hope.
Brock Purdy (QB – SF)
Brock Purdy continues to recover from a turf toe injury that has kept him off the field since Week 4. As these are notoriously slow to heal and require plenty of time to rest, San Francisco has been understandably cautious to rush him back. The latest updates from head coach Kyle Shanahan on Monday stated that the team will continue to monitor his progress, but his chances of playing in Week 8 on the road against Houston are iffy, at best. Purdy was at least able to log a limited practice last week before being ruled out, so this is a “slow and steady” return to action.
Fantasy Impact: Should Brock Purdy be ruled out, Mac Jones would continue to operate as the starter for the 49ers. After three terrific starts as a fill-in during Weeks 2-5, Jones has been held in check recently, with subpar outings against Tampa Bay and Atlanta, in which he threw zero touchdown passes and three interceptions. The healthy return of George Kittle is a significant plus for pass protection with chipping defenders, but getting wideouts Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings back to full strength would be a major boost for Jones’ value.
Lamar Jackson (QB – BAL)
Baltimore’s bye week couldn’t have come at a better time, since it afforded Lamar Jackson another opportunity to rest his injured hamstring that he suffered in Week 4 against Kansas City. The latest news reports out of Ravens’ camp said that the team is “hopeful” that Jackson will be able to return in Week 8 against Chicago, but his inability to log even a limited practice on Monday with the team is concerning. This is a situation where Jackson doesn’t need the additional reps to play, and Baltimore is likely just taking a cautious approach to not push him back before it is necessary. The Ravens currently sit in the AFC North basement with a 1-5 record, and need to win out to have a chance at a Wild Card bid.
Fantasy Impact: I’m hopeful Lamar Jackson will be able to return for this game against the Bears, but if he sustains a setback or is unable to go, veteran Cooper Rush would start under center. Rush has been (to put it kindly) horrific since being given the starting opportunity, and the team can’t afford to lose any additional games.
Bryce Young (QB – CAR)
While trying to evade the pass rush on Sunday, Bryce Young had his ankle stepped on, and it got stuck awkwardly in the disaster that is the turf at MetLife Stadium. Young was later diagnosed with a high-ankle sprain and is expected to miss Week 8 and “possibly beyond,” per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Fantasy Impact: Andy Dalton will start in Bryce Young’s absence against Buffalo in Week 8. All Carolina receivers will see a moderate downgrade in their projections without Young, given Dalton’s Jekyll-and-Hyde tendencies. Tetairoa McMillan and Xavier Legette experience the biggest slides in our rankings. We expect Carolina to revert to a very run-heavy style in the short term.
Running Back
Kendre Miller (RB – NO)
It pains me to include Kendre Miller in this column, since I was keeping my fingers crossed that he would be able to stay healthy and make a significant contribution for New Orleans this season. During the first half of Sunday’s contest against Chicago, Miller left with a knee injury and was later ruled out. Imaging performed shortly after confirmed the worst — a torn ACL. He will miss the remainder of the 2025 season.
Fantasy Impact: Sixth-round rookie Devin Neal will slide into the backup role for the Saints behind Alvin Kamara, who appears to be several steps slower this season. Neal is an intriguing pickup off the waiver wire. New Orleans has little hope of making the playoffs and can provide him with extended opportunities in the back half of the season. Kamara hasn’t logged a rushing touchdown since Week 1 and looks to be a shell of his former self.
Wide Receiver
Mike Evans (WR – TB)
Tampa Bay truly cannot catch a break this year with the injury bug. After missing the three games prior with a hamstring injury, Mike Evans was able to return to action on Monday night against Detroit. During the second quarter, Evans stretched out to grab a deep pass from Baker Mayfield, then landed awkwardly after bouncing his knees off the turf and slamming his head/neck area. Initially, it appeared that Evans was concussed, as he lay motionless for several moments and then was woozy after requiring aid to stand. It was revealed later that he also broke his right clavicle (collarbone), and surgery is necessary, which will require a lengthy injured reserve (IR) stint. Expected to miss the next eight weeks, at a minimum, Evans’ 2025 season is likely finished.
Fantasy Impact: If there is a silver lining to this injury, perhaps it is that managers were already aware of how targets would be distributed in Tampa Bay’s offense without Mike Evans on the field, since he missed time earlier. Rookie standout Emeka Egbuka will operate as the alpha figure for the Bucs, with Sterling Shepard and Cade Otton seeing a modest target share. Speedster Tez Johnson has also emerged as a deep-play threat over the last two weeks, and he is a brilliant addition in deeper formats as a breakout option.
Nico Collins (WR – HOU)
Some managers may have missed this one, since the second Monday night game didn’t kick off until late in the evening. During the second half against Seattle, Nico Collins hit his head on the turf and was brought off to be evaluated for a concussion. Tests concluded that he sustained the injury, and Collins was immediately ruled out and placed into the league’s concussion protocol. Over the last several years, the majority of players have missed at least one game while completing the multi-step return process, so Collins will likely miss Week 8 (especially since Houston played on Monday night).
Fantasy Impact: Nico Collins’ absence will shift a fair number of targets to other options in Houston. Tight end Dalton Schultz and wideout Christian Kirk are both favorite options for C.J. Stroud to utilize, and Woody Marks could see additional dump-offs in the passing game.
Brian Thomas Jr. (WR – JAX)
Jacksonville’s defense immediately placed the team in a massive hole against Los Angeles during their overseas game in London, forcing the Jaguars to go into pass-first mode in short order. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence attempted 48 passes, constantly looking for Travis Hunter, Parker Washington and Brian Thomas Jr. Already entering the contest with his fair share of bumps and bruises, Thomas seemed in obvious discomfort during the second half, culminating when a defender jammed him out of his break. Thomas immediately grabbed his shoulder and was writhing in pain, unable to retake the field.
Fantasy Impact: Jacksonville catches a break with this injury, as they happen to have a bye in Week 8. No immediate updates were provided regarding the extent of Brian Thomas’ injury, but injury analysts are hinting that he might have already been playing through a labrum tear, and this just flared it up. Expect to receive more information next week, if this is indeed anything serious.
Tight End
Darren Waller (TE – MIA)
I’ll be the first to admit — I didn’t expect Darren Waller to make any fantasy impact this season, even if given a starting role with Miami. Mea culpa. Waller proved me wrong by catching four touchdown passes from Weeks 4-6, and appeared to be the new 1A option for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to utilize in the red zone. Unfortunately, Waller sustained a pectoral strain during the Dolphins’ 31-6 blowout loss to Cleveland, and he is now considered “week to week” in his recovery. Pinning an exact date of return is difficult, since Miami plays on Thursday Night Football in Week 9. With the Dolphins not in contention this year, it makes little sense to push Waller back earlier than necessary.
Fantasy Impact: Since Darren Waller was exclusively used as a red-zone threat, his absence doesn’t have a significant impact on any one Miami player specifically. Waller’s snaps will be split between Tanner Conner and Julian Hill, and both players are off the fantasy radar. De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle are the lone options worth consideration on this team.
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