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Luckily, as far as injuries are concerned, it was a very good Week 1 in the NFL. For the wide receiver group, the one we’re focusing on here, we’re only tracking two new injuries. The football was sloppy, but our primary pass-catchers came out unscathed for the most part.
We’re still keeping tabs on three big names who missed Week 1, but several other receivers who seemed questionable last week -- Jaylen Waddle, Terry McLaurin, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Treylon Burks -- all played without any limitations or any re-injuries, which is excellent news.
Let's look at some of the biggest receiver injuries fantasy managers should be tracking for Week 2. As always, if you have any start/sit questions, please give me a follow @RobFFSlayer on X, formerly known as Twitter. My DMs are always open and I am more than willing to answer any fantasy football-related questions. Good luck this season to everyone reading!
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Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams
Kupp continues to dominate the injury landscape of the NFL, especially in fantasy football circles. Prior to Week 1, the Rams elected to put him on IR, which means he’ll be required to miss the first four games of the season. He’ll be eligible to return in Week 5. As of right now, there’s been no word about the possibility of that happening. Fantasy managers are still in wait-and-see mode right now with Kupp.
Jerry Jeudy, Denver Broncos
Jeudy suffered a hamstring injury on August 24 during practice. He had to be carted off and the initial reports had fantasy managers bracing for the worst. Following an MRI, it was reported Jeudy would miss “several weeks” with what was described as a “moderate hamstring injury.”
Even just a mild hamstring injury can cost players 1-2 weeks, but a moderate one could be 3-5. As we saw with Kupp and Keenan Allen last season, soft tissue injuries like hamstrings can be incredibly tricky.
Denver elected to play it safe with Jeudy, with Week 1 having been just a little over two weeks since the initial injury. He’ll have a good chance to return in Week 2. He was a limited participant leading up to Week 1 and a game-time decision, which bodes well for his chances to return this upcoming weekend. He could be on a snap count if he does return.
Fantasy managers will need to check his practice schedule throughout the week and be sure to follow Denver beat writers to get a better idea of what his role might be should he be active. Last week, we got word Packers receiver Romeo Doubs would be active following his hamstring injury but would be limited. That kind of information will be important in knowing how to value Jeudy if he makes his return this weekend.
Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers
Watson popped up with a hamstring injury leading up to the team’s first game against the Chicago Bears. He did not participate in any practice throughout the week, not even in a limited fashion, possibly alluding to the fact that this could be a multiple-week absence.
When asked about the injury, head coach Matt LaFleur said, “Hopefully just week to week.” That’s not very encouraging. The Packers also tend to be more conservative with their players, oftentimes holding them out longer. Based on his practice schedule last week and LaFleur’s comments, Watson would seem to be on the wrong side of questionable.
If his hamstring injury was similar to Jeudy’s (which the week-to-week comment would somewhat seem to indicate), hopefully he’ll return to being a limited participant this week, be held out of Week 2 for precautionary reasons, and then return in Week 3. Watson struggled with a hamstring injury to the same leg last season, another sign indicating the Packers are likely to be very conservative with this one.
Diontae Johnson, Pittsburgh Steelers
Diontae Johnson left his team’s Week 1 loss to the 49ers early due to a hamstring injury. He had been off to a good start and looked as though he was going to be a selection at his offseason ADP. Unfortunately, the injury seems to be of moderate severity. Early reports have indicated he’s likely to miss “a few weeks.”
That kind of timeline all but rules Johnson out this week. Fantasy managers should be expecting to be without Johnson for Weeks 2 and 3, with a possible but not guaranteed return in Week 4.
Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders
Meyers entered the concussion protocol after a monster 10 targets, nine receptions, 81 yards, and two touchdowns performance. Meyers could return to play in Week 2 or he might not. Unfortunately, when it comes to concussions, there’s really no way to predict what will happen because everyone responds differently.
He’s now in the concussion protocol, which requires him to pass certain tests before he can return to certain stages of activity. His practice involvement throughout the week should give fantasy managers a good indication of what his availability will be, but we won’t know before then.
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