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Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London was drafted 8th overall as the first receiver off the board this year.
London was in the midst of a monster season in his Junior year before fracturing his ankle, which ended his collegiate campaign. He entered the offseason healthy and fully recovered from that injury, but unfortunately experienced another one in the Falcons preseason opener.
This leaves fantasy managers wondering if he will be ready for Week 1 and if they should be drafting him. Let's dig in.
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Drake London Injury Update
London made his NFL preseason debut against the Lions and had just finished making his first career catch when he went down with an injury, prompting him to be removed from the game.
Knee injuries are always concerning but luckily head coach Arthur Smith reported he was "not too concerned," shortly after it occurred. He did report that he expects London to miss some practice time though. This initial report was followed by a further update on Saturday.
This is great news for London's Week 1 status. This does mean he will likely miss some practice time as well as their preseason finale against the Jaguars, which will negatively impact his ability to build chemistry with new quarterback Marcus Mariota but the reports have been very positive thus far, indicating he is already well-established in the offense.
Should He Be Drafted?
Typically, when a rookie gets injured in the preseason it opens the door for other players, often veterans, in the depth chart to overtake them. However, in London's case, the options immediately behind him include Bryan Edwards, KhaDarel Hodge, and Geronimo Allison, all of whom are very unproven and unlikely to prevent him from becoming a top-two target to begin the year, along with tight end Kyle Pitts. London will see plenty of targets in an offense that desperately needs offensive playmakers, plus he profiles as a true red zone threat given his size.
At full health, as the top receiver and second target behind Pitts, London is still a player to target, especially if this injury causes a dip in his ADP.
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