Injury analysis for week 9 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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Quarterback

Matthew Stafford FD 7500 DK 6600
Opponent MIN
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Stafford's situation is actually pretty complicated right now. He hasn't had a positive COVID test, but was around people who did. He can still theoretically be activated for Sunday's game, but we won't know until Sunday. His status is pretty important for potential cash game options TJ Hockenson and Marvin Jones Jr., both of whom become unplayable if Stafford doesn't suit up here.

Gardner Minshew II FD 7000 DK 5800
Opponent HOU
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Minshew has already been ruled out of the Jags' game against the Texans, leaving an already bad offense without their starting quarterback. Perhaps this leaves extra touches for James Robinson? Robinson isn't priced for cash game consideration, though, and this move should really only impact your big tournament lineups (if that). Jake Luton is not playable.

Running Back

Christian McCaffrey FD 9500 DK 8500
Opponent KC
Proj Points FD - 17 DK - 18.69

Well, this is news! Everyone's RB1 heading into the year looks to be returning for the Panthers' tilt against the Chiefs, which should at the very least excite season-long fantasy owners. For DFS purposes, though, I'm not sure how much we should read into this. The Panthers are 10.5 point underdogs, and Davis has been reasonable in McCaffrey's absence. Adding all these factors together has me wanting to leave C-Mac on the shelf, and I'll be closely monitoring how he is used here to see if I should consider him in future weeks.
Ezekiel Elliott FD 8000 DK 6600
Opponent PIT
Proj Points FD - 13.44 DK - 14.84
Zeke was limited in practice throughout the week, and there is interesting phrasing around his status, which suggests that his "workload" is a gametime decision. That's a red flag to the max if you're considering playing Zeke in this horrendous match-up, but also implies that you can't consider his back-ups either.

Josh Jacobs FD 7700 DK 6300
Opponent LAC
Proj Points FD - 16.36 DK - 18
There were questions around Jacobs' status throughout the week, but he returned from his illness on Friday and practiced. He's a reasonable big tournament play even if he's not really there for cash games.

Chris Carson FD 7600 DK 6500
Opponent BUF
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
Carlos Hyde FD 5700 DK 5100
Opponent BUF
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
With Carson and Hyde already ruled out for this one, it's looking like the Seahawks will turn things back over to DeeJay Dallas in what looks to be a high scoring affair against the Bills. Dallas got 23 touches last week, and while he wasn't especially effective (he turned those touches into 68 total yards), he did score two touchdowns. On a week with next to know value, I'm ready to sign off on Dallas in any format.

Kenyan Drake FD 6000 DK 4700
Opponent MIA
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0
Drake has been ruled out, and as we've discussed in other articles this week, Chase Edmonds is a fantastic play in every format.

Myles Gaskin FD 5900 DK 5900
Opponent ARI
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Gaskin has been placed on IR, leaving a number of carries up for grabs in Miami. Matt Breida was presumed to be the back-up, but he's banged up and will potentially miss this game as well. That would theoretically leave Jordan Howard with the majority of the carries, but Patrick Laird and Salvon Ahmed are still lurking. Can you feel my uncertainty? I don't think I'll be taking a stab at this one for cash games.

Phillip Lindsay FD 5700 DK 5200
Opponent ATL
Proj Points FD - 6.56 DK - 6.75

Lindsay appears to be on track to play on Sunday after practicing in a limited fashion this week, and his presence would kill whatever interest anyone has in the Denver running game this week. He took 29 snaps last game (compared to Gordon's 36), and a timeshare in a bad offense just looks like a bad deal to me.

Devonta Freeman FD 5500 DK 4600
Opponent WAS
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Freeman returned to practice on Thursday for the first time since week 7, and his return would make an already unimpressive Giants' backfield even less attractive for DFS purposes.

Wide Receivers

Calvin Ridley FD 8000 DK 7000
Opponent DEN
Proj Points FD - 1.63 DK - 1.97
Ridley missed all three practices for the Falcons this week, but is currently listed as questionable as we head into the weekend. His absence would make Julio Jones nearly a must in cash games, and open up opportunity for the down-ballot receivers as well. All we can do is wait until Sunday to see where the Falcons are headed with this, though.

Kenny Golladay FD 7300 DK 6400
Opponent MIN
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

Golladay has been ruled out of Sunday's game against Minnesota, leaving WR1 level targets available for redistribution. If Stafford plays, we like Marvin Jones Jr. and TJ Hockenson quite a bit, but the whole passing game is unplayable if Stafford sits.

T.Y. Hilton FD 5300 DK 4600
Opponent BAL
Proj Points FD - 7.54 DK - 9.2

Hilton is doubtful, but how much does it matter for cash games? He's gotten 5 or fewer targets in 5 of his last 6 games, and just really isn't a compelling part of the Phil Rivers offense. I suppose this opens up a couple more targets for Zach Pascal, but in a terrible match-up with the Ravens I can't imagine considering him in cash games.

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