Injury analysis for Week 1 of NFL DFS on FanDuel and DraftKings

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Quarterbacks

Carson Wentz FD 6500 DK 5600
Opponent SEA
Proj Points FD - 16.33 DK - 17

This has been known, but it is worth clarifying before starting the season. Wentz will be under center for the Colts in his first regular-season snaps for the new team. After dealing with off-season injuries and some Covid concerns as well, he is a full-go for Week 1. That is a boost to the pass catchers (who we will get to in a second). Against the Seahawks, I like Wentz as a flyer play here especially if he can return to any semblance of the better version of himself. Remember, this was a guy in 2018 who had a 69% completion percentage and over 3,000 passing yards in just 11 games.

Running Backs

Austin Ekeler FD 6900 DK 7000
Opponent WAS
Proj Points FD - 14.74 DK - 17.06

This is one of the biggest situations to monitor heading into Sunday. He didn’t practice on Thursday and though there is some “optimism” that he is cleared by Sunday he might not be 100%. It is an inauspicious start for a guy who was one of the very best per-touch fantasy running backs when healthy. But the “when healthy” piece has been the operative wording we’ve had to incorporate with Ekeler. Projected to be a three-down fantasy stud, that is in jeopardy here. If he were to sit we would probably see some kind of committee between Justin Jackson and Joshua Kelley.

Gus Edwards FD 6500 DK 5600
Opponent LV
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

With torn ACL Gus Edwards capped off one of the unluckiest team injury runs in recent memory for the Baltimore Ravens. In the span of just a few weeks, the team lost J.K. Dobbins, Justice Hill, and now Edwards for the entire season. It’s left their running back situation in major flux. Heading into Week 1 the Ravens' backfield is pretty much a mess. For a team that almost wants to solely run the ball, they now have all kinds of question marks. Ty'Son Williams actually got reps in the preseason so he is a likely candidate to start. But Baltimore also just signed Latavius Murray and added Le’Veon Bell to the practice squad. It likely means something of a committee once again with Lamar Jackson maybe being the biggest beneficiary on the ground until it is all sorted.

Saquon Barkley FD 8500 DK 7800
Opponent DEN
Proj Points FD - 13.68 DK - 15.14

After playing possum about Barkley’s health all preseason, the Giants went ahead and gave him the full clearance to go in Week 1. One of the most dynamic backs out there, Barkley has huge upside when right, even in a possibly anemic Giants’ offense. The question this week is if the full clearance also means a full workload. That doesn’t feel like it will be the case. It’s hard to imagine the Giants feel comfortable just fully unleashing him to start the season. I think we have to take a wait-and-see approach on Saquon here.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

Odell Beckham Jr. FD 6500 DK 5400
Opponent KC
Proj Points FD - 10.47 DK - 12.47

Odell Beckham is recovering from an ACL tear last season, though is looking healthy to start the season. He’s been slapped with the questionable tag to start the year, but all signs are pointing to him as a full go for Week 1. He could be an excellent upside play against the Chiefs especially if the Browns have to get into catchup mode even a little bit.

Kenny Golladay FD 6200 DK 5600
Opponent DEN
Proj Points FD - 11.62 DK - 13.64

Evan Engram FD 5100 DK 4100
Opponent DEN
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

It’s an inauspicious start for Golladay who was one of the Giants’ big signings of the off-season. He’s spent much of the preseason banged up and his status for Week 1 is just a bit up in the air as of this writing. While I think Golladay does end up taking the field, there is some upside for Sterling Shepard here. The latter saw double-digit targets in each of the last two games of the season last year and does have plenty of reps already with Daniel Jones. Considering Golladay’s questionable status and Evan Engram trending towards doubtful, Shepard could be a solid floor cash game target. Additionally, if Engram were to sit we could see Kyle Rudolph slot in there, but he would be a speculative, low-ceiling play.

T.Y. Hilton FD 5600 DK 4700
Opponent SEA
Proj Points FD - 0 DK - 0

T.Y. Hilton is out for Week 1, leaving the Colts’ wide receiver corps a bit en flux but with plenty of upside as well. It looks like Carson Wentz is going to be under center and we could see Michael Pittman with an increased target share. The latter is coming at the minimum on DraftKings and would make for a higher-floor WR play there even with the new QB pairing to start the season. I think the risk on Pittman is relatively low considering the price points on DraftKings and FanDuel.

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