Week 4 Injury Report
A quarter of the season is in the books and it seems like there are more injuries this year then there ever has been. Whether it’s due to the lack of an offseason or just pure luck (or lack thereof), injuries have already thrown fantasy managers in a loop this year. Luckily, week four seems to be the calmest week so far when it comes to injuries. Week 4 fantasy injury report is here.
Nick Chubb, Running Back for Cleveland Browns
I can imagine Chubb managers are extremely disappointed after watching Kareem Hunt go off against the Cowboys while Chubb is sidelined with a knee injury. Unfortunately, Chubb went down in the first half and never returned to the game. The Browns rushed for over 300 yards against the Cowboys even with Chubb sidelined for over half the game. Chubb was rolled up upon by a Cowboys defensive lineman while pass blocking. He looked to be in severe pain but was able to walk to the locker room on his own.
The team announced that they are placing Chubb on the injured reserve with an MCL injury. Head coach Kevin Stefanski has stated that they are expecting to miss Chubb for several weeks but he does expect to see Chubb back by the end of the year. It was a relief for Browns fans and Chubb managers to hear that this was an MCL injury and not an ACL injury. Injuries to the Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) do not require surgery and can heal with conservative treatments. The severity of the injury determined by an MRI will, however, leave Chubb sidelined for at least three weeks if not a little longer.
If you are the Browns, why wouldn’t you take time for Chubb to fully heal? Kareem Hunt is arguably the best backup running back in the league and has shown to take a full workload in the past. Hunt slides comfortably into the starting back for the Browns. He becomes an instant top 10 fantasy running back. Hunt was a reliable flex start each week before the Chubb injury and his fantasy value only skyrockets with Chubb missing time. Backup running back D’Ernest Johnson also took advantage of his extra touches turning in 95 yards on 13 rushes. Johnson had more touches then Kareem Hunt, however, Hunt received the more valuable carries in the redzone and converted them into two touchdowns. Johnson is worth a speculative addition to fantasy managers rosters. Hunt, however, is still clearly the back to have in Cleveland without Chubb.
Austin Ekeler, Running Back for Los Angeles Chargers
Austin Ekeler went down early in Sunday’s matchup against the Buccaneers with a hamstring injury. Hamstrings have hindered many wide receivers so far this season. Now, the hamstring bug has hit the running back position. Ekeler hurt his hamstring in the first quarter on Sunday’s loss to Tampa Bay. Ekeler was unable to put any weight on the leg after the injury. He even struggled to get on the cart due to the amount of pain he was in. He was carted to the locker room and later was seen leaving the stadium on crutches and in a brace.
An MRI revealed a grade two hamstring strain, which means no surgery is needed, however, it’s a pretty lengthy recovery time. Hamstrings have held players out for multiple weeks so far this season. The hamstring injuries that we have already seen this year were likely grade one hamstring strains. Expect the Chargers to be without Ekeler for many weeks.
With Ekeler bound to miss time, Chargers will rely heavily on rookie running back Joshua Kelley. Kelley won a training camp battle with Justin Jackson and has already seen significant playing time this year. Sunday, however, in Ekelers absence Kelley did not look good. Kelley had less than a yard per carry. He also fumbled again but the Chargers coaching staff showed faith in the rookie and kept him in the game. Justin Jackson will be the change of pace back in Los Angeles and worth a stash on the bench to see what his usage is with Ekeler missing time. If Kelley continues to struggle, Jackson could also see more touches that way. Kelley will be locked in to a low end RB2/flex option while Ekeler is out as long as he doesn’t fumble away his opportunity.
OJ Howard, Tight End for Tampa Bay Buccaneers
OJ Howard left Sunday’s game against the Chargers with what seems to be a significant achilles injury. Head coach Bruce Arians revealed after the game that he believes Howard will be done for the rest of the season. Achilles injury that leads to missing the rest of the season means that Howard likely ruptured his Achilles tendon. This is devastating for a young tight end looking to turn around his career with a legendary quarterback in Tom Brady. An MRI will reveal the extent of the injury and see if the scares of a season ending injury is true.
Howards injury does not mean much for fantasy purposes. Not many fantasy managers had Howard or any Tampa Bay tight end on their roster for good reasons. This news does not make me excited about getting Rob Gronkowski from the waiver wire. Gronkowski has looked like a shell of himself this year and does not look like he can sniff fantasy relevance. Cameron Brate has been completely irrelevant coming into week four. Brate will not be a consistent fantasy player this year. Continue starting the Tampa Bay wide receivers this year when they are healthy.
Julio Jones, Wide Receiver for Atlanta Falcon
Julio Jones came into this game as a question mark due to a hamstring injury. He didn’t return to the field after halftime due to the same hamstring injury. Whether it was due to precaution or he reinjured the same hamstring, this isn’t good news. He missed a week with this hamstring injury, it is likely he will miss another. The Falcons will want to make sure the next time he is on the field his hamstring is truly 100% healthy. As a Julio Jones fantasy manager, I will be waiting to see at least one full game of Julio before I am comfortable starting him. This is based on how hamstrings have hindered fantasy options this year and years prior.
Calvin Ridley is already a top fantasy wide receiver option this year when Julio is on the field. He has been arguably the better fantasy option this year then Julio Jones when they have both been on the field. In week three, Calvin Ridley had five receptions for 110 yards against the bears as the clear WR1 for the Falcons. In week five the Falcons play the Panthers where Ridley has averaged 93 yards in the air against. Expect another huge Ridley fantasy day against the Panthers even if Julio plays. If Julio misses week five, Russell Gage is an intriguing flex option against the Panthers. The Falcons offense has produced many fantasy relevant wide receivers this year already. I expect nothing less against a young Panthers defense.
