Injury analysis for week 8 of NFL DFS on FanDuel and DraftKings

Welcome to our weekly injury analysis article! It's an odd week with injuries, and a lot of decisions that might come down to the wire. Let's jump in.

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Running Back

Dalvin Cook FD 9200 DK 7500
Opponent GB
Proj Points FD - 13.55 DK - 14.55

Cook has practiced in a limited fashion this week, but the Vikings' offensive coordinator has said that he "won't need a pitch count" this weekend against the Packers. Cook is still too expensive for my tastes, even in a good match-up with Green Bay, and Mattison is still there threatening to take some of the workload. I'll be staying away from Cook this week.

Aaron Jones FD 8500 DK 7300
Opponent MIN
Proj Points FD - 2.09 DK - 2.48
Aaron Jones has been ruled out for Sunday's contest against the Vikings, and after a week of seeing how the Packers plan to approach the running game without Jones Williams seems like an automatic cash game inclusion, even at the advanced price. He paid these prices handily last week, compiling 114 total yards and a touchdown on 24 opportunities against the Texans. Perhaps more importantly, he played 55 of the 60 offensive snaps, leaving AJ Dillon as an afterthought. Don't be scared by the increase in price whatsoever.

Chris Carson FD 7600 DK 6200
Opponent SF
Proj Points FD - 1.85 DK - 2.26
Carlos Hyde FD 5000 DK 5300
Opponent SF
Proj Points FD - 13.37 DK - 15
Right now Carson is considered questionable, and Carlos Hyde is considered doubtful for Sunday's contest with the Niners. I don't think you want to run Carson even if he's healthy, but both of these guys missing Sunday's game would carve out a huge swath of opportunity for either Travis Homer or DeeJay Dallas. Right now I'd guess it will be more of a time share, though, and with some other value opening up I don't think this is where you ultimately want to land in cash games.

Joe Mixon FD 7400 DK 6300
Opponent TEN
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
Mixon has been ruled out of Sunday's game against the Titans, and like the Green Bay game, we know how the Bengals plan to approach this situation based on last week. Bernard was effective against the Browns, touching the ball 18 times for 96 yards and a score. He certainly warrants consideration in all formats against Tennessee's uninspiring defense.

Jeff Wilson Jr. FD 6200 DK 6000
Opponent SEA
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
We know Wilson, Mostert, and Coleman are out, but do we know where the opportunity is going? I don't think so. Jerick McKinnon appeared to be the heir to the 49ers carries earlier this season, but doesn't appear to be trusted well enough to take on full time running back duties. JaMychal Hasty might be ready to take on a full workload, but he's touched the ball just ten times in each of the last two games. I don't think either of these guys are cash game plays with the options we have available to us, but either is absolutely worth a flyer in a big tournament.

Phillip Lindsay FD 6000 DK 5000
Opponent LAC
Proj Points FD - 3.71 DK - 3.91
We move into the "lesser news" category pretty quickly, but it's still worth noting that Lindsay missed the Broncos' last practice with a concussion. His absence would mean Gordon would be the clear RB1, and while the Denver running game hasn't done a whole lot this year Gordon could be worth a big tournament flyer.

Adrian Peterson FD 5400 DK 4000
Opponent IND
Proj Points FD - 7.02 DK - 7.4

After practicing in full on Wednesday, Peterson was limited on Thursday with an abdominal issue. Right now I'm going to assume he plays, but if he happens to sit DeAndre Swift immediately becomes a super fascinating option in basically every format. He's been pushing the envelope in Detroit as it is, and Peterson's absence could turn Swift into a $7k back in short order.

Wide Receivers

Michael Thomas FD 8600 DK 7300
Opponent CHI
Proj Points FD - 15.13 DK - 18.94

Emmanuel Sanders FD 6000 DK 4900
Opponent CHI
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
Marquez Callaway FD 5000 DK 3400
Opponent CHI
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Well, this week is getting ridiculous in a hurry. Thomas and Sanders are set to miss yet another game, and joining them is last week's target leader Marquez Callaway. Bennie Fowler missed last week as well, and now he's on the IR. So where on Earth are all these targets supposed to go? Tre'Quan Smith and Jared Cook are obvious beneficiaries, but could we see Deonte Harris become cash game viable as well? Will Alvin Kamara see 15 targets? I'm ready to believe anything when it comes to how the Saints will spread things around this week.

Allen Robinson II FD 6800 DK 7000
Opponent NO
Proj Points FD - 12.49 DK - 15.38

Robinson was downgraded to doubtful on Friday, leaving the Bears with a real lack of impactful skill position players. Our model sees Darnell Mooney and Anthony Miller stepping in to attempt to fill the void, but none of these guys are cash game plays. Still, there is a lot of opportunity here, and the Bears shouldn't be ignored for big tournaments.

Odell Beckham Jr. FD 6700 DK 5900
Opponent LV
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Doug discussed what Beckham's absence could mean in our cash game article this week, so rather than paraphrase, I'll just give you what he wrote:

"The Browns lost Odell Beckham Jr. for the year with a torn ACL and now need to fill in that target share and usage. It wasn’t like OBJ was a monster in the target share, but it worked out to roughly 22% for a team that admittedly doesn’t throw that often. In steps Higgins who tied Jarvis Landry for the most targets (6) in Week 7 and converted all of them for a 6/110 line. The price didn’t have time to adjust for what is presumably the new role and it’s a great sign that he led all Cleveland WRs in snaps on Sunday with 44.

Meanwhile, Landry has been steady if unspectacular this season with the team’s second-most targets (39) after Beckham and inhabiting his typical possession receiver role. The target share should tick up just a bit over the 5.5 per game which, at his lower-middle tier price points would give him some cash game safety. Last season, he saw double-digit targets in six games and nine or more in eight games. We could see a return to that usage with Beckham out of the mix."

Jamison Crowder FD 6300 DK 5800
Opponent KC
Proj Points FD - 1.26 DK - 1.56
Crowder is doubtful for Sunday's game against the Chiefs, but does it even matter? The Jets have an implied total of 14.5, and outside of Crowder really haven't supported any fantasy production whatsoever this season. I suppose there is a case for a Braxton Berrios flyer in big tournaments, but that's about it.

Julian Edelman FD 5700 DK 4400
Opponent BUF
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
N'Keal Harry FD 5100 DK 3400
Opponent BUF
Proj Points FD - 3.22 DK - 3.72

There was a time when Edelman's absence could headline an article like this, but sadly, that time probably isn't 2020. Edelman has garnered roughly 6 targets per game in normal game scripts, and while that's something, it's potentially not very significant on a team having this much difficulty moving the ball.

Harry has missed practice this week thanks to a concussion, and if he's out we might be left to see what Damiere Byrd can accomplish as the team's top pass-catching threat. If Harry misses this one, Byrd would be worthy of cash game consideration at his bargain basement prices.

Tim Patrick FD 5400 DK 4700
Opponent LAC
Proj Points FD - 5.77 DK - 7

Patrick wasn't going to win any season long leagues or anything, but he did have two straight seven target and 100 yard games before leaving last week's game against Kansas City with a hamstring injury. If he winds up sitting we could see Jerry Jeudy finally have the breakout week that many have been waiting for.

TIGHT ENDs

Tyler Higbee FD 5700 DK 4500
Opponent MIA
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Tyler Higbee has been practicing in a limited fashion after missing last week's game, and his return would mean a committee that would make the tight end position in LA obsolete. If he happens to miss another week I could see Gerald Everett earning some cash game consideration given that he's the minimum price on FanDuel this week.

Austin Hooper FD 5200 DK 4000
Opponent LV
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Hooper has been ruled out after being entirely absent at practice this week (he wasn't even seen with the other injured players) it looks like the Browns will turn things over to the combination of Harrison Bryan and David Njoku once again. Njoku and Bryant combined for 3 touchdowns last week, with Bryant managing two scores on his four catches. Bryant would almost certainly be a cash game option if Hooper joined Beckham on the sidelines for this one.

Mo Alie-Cox FD 5000 DK 3400
Opponent DET
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Mo Alie-Cox's potential return doesn't mean a whole lot in terms of playing Alie-Cox himself, but it would crowd things for upside play Trey Burton. With Mo practicing this week and looking likely to return we'll likely pass on the Colts tight end situation this week.

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