Week 4 Fantasy Football Injury Report: AFC

Week 3 of the 2022 NFL season is officially over. Injuries are starting to affect many managers’ start sit decisions. The week 4 fantasy football injury report for the AFC will take a look at many players and what to expect out of them going forward.

Week 4 Fantasy Football Injury Report: QBS

Mac Jones

Jones suffered what appeared to be a severe ankle injury during the Patrioits week 3 loss to the Ravens. He hopped off the field, and then was photographed being carried into the locker room in severe pain. Luckily for Jones, initial X-Rays came back as negative and he has not yet had surgery.

It sounds as though Jones wants to try to rehab his ankle prior to considering surgery. My best guess is that since there were no fractures, he did not require immediate surgery for bony stabilization. However, if he is unable to regain full function of his ankle with rehab, he will likely require an ankle stabilization surgery called the “tightrope procedure”.

According to our data, on average, QBs miss 1.9 games after a high ankle sprain. Upon return to the field QBs do not see a significant decline in fantasy performance. Based on the severity of the injury, I would be very surprised if Jones is able to return within 2 weeks. If you have Jones on your roster, you should plan to be without him for at least a month.

Justin Herbert

Herbert continues to deal with a rib cartilage fracture, after playing through his injury in week 3. Herbert (and the chargers in general) did not put up a good performance. Heading into week 4, I would expect Herbert to continue to push through the pain. He will likely continue to be limited by his pain levels. I would continue to expect decreased depth during pass attempts and a general decrease in performance across the board for the Chargers.

Tua Tagovailoa

If you are reading this page, you likely have already seen the video of Tua stumbling to the ground in the first half of their week 3 matchup against the Bills. Tua’s head hits the ground, and he subsequently stumbles/collapses while trying to get back to the huddle. Tua cleared concussion protocol and returned to the game, citing a previous “back injury” that caused him to collapse to the ground. There is certainly skepticism into whether or not Tua suffered a concussion, as the NFLPA started an investigation into the concussion return to play protocols of game day injuries.

Heading into week 4, it is difficult to predict if Tua will be ready to go as we don’t fully know what he is dealing with. McDaniel said Tua is questionable for week 4 with a back/ankle injury. Assuming his injuries are minor, I would expect Tua to play with minimal limitations next week. As we have seen already this season, Mac Jones was able to return within 1 week of suffering back spasms, and Jameis Winston has been able to play the past 2 weeks despite having 4 fractures in his lumbar spine.

Zach Wilson

Wilson is meant to play for the first time in the 2022 season during week 4. He should be fully recovered after his meniscus tear and surgical debridement. We do not have a large sample size with QBs, but at other positions there is no decline in performance upon return from meniscus debridement. The biggest question will be whether or not Wilson is able to perform at a high enough level to support a fantasy relevant receiving core.

Week 4 Fantasy Football Injury report: RBs

J.K. Dobbins

Dobbins returned to play for the first time since suffering his ACL, LCL, and Meniscus tear. There were no reported set backs during his return and he played 26 snaps, while Justice Hill played 29 snaps. In terms of rushes, Dobbins had 7 carries for 23 yards, while Hill had 10 carries for 60 yards. Dobbins also hauled in 2 catches for an additional 17 yards.

I would advise fantasy managers to continue to hold Dobbins on the bench until he can prove he is effective in game play. Our data continues to show limitation upon return from ACL injuries up to 6 games after return. He should continue to see increased snaps and carries, but he likely won’t see a full workload for at least another week or two.

Joe Mixon

Mixon suffered a “minor” ankle injury while rushing only 12 times in the Bengals week 3 win against the Jets. Head coach Zac Taylor has already said Mixon will be good to go for the Thursday night matchup against the Dolphins. Assuming he does not suffer any set backs in practice, he should see a full workload for week 4.

Week 4 Fantasy Football Injury report: WRs

Keenan Allen

Allen is reportedly going to return to practice this week with the goal of playing in week 4 against Houston. This sounds promising as the receiver has been sidelined since week 1 with a hamstring injury. I am still skeptical at his return this week. However, if he is fully active he is a must start. The Chargers have been struggling without him in the lineup. The fact that Allen needed an MRI on his hamstring leads me to believe this may be a more serious injury. I would not be surprised if he misses one more week, or is on a snap count in week 4.

Jaylen Guyton

Guyton reportedly suffered an ACL tear during week 3. He will be out for the remainder of the season. He will have to begin rehabbing his knee to prepare for the 2023 season.