Major Fantasy Football Injury Updates: CeeDee Lamb In, Deebo Samuel Out

News came down this weekend on several prominent fantasy wide receivers who are either slated to return or have been ruled out for Week 7. The Washington Commanders will be without their top two receivers while the Cowboys are getting back their star.

Let's run through some of those major injury headlines of the past few days and what it means for the teams in question. We'll look at the real-life implications and the fantasy football impact on the injured players and those affected in fantasy.

Check FantasySP's injury roundup each week to see all the players in danger of missing games.

Washington Without Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel Sr.

McLaurin was ruled out earlier in the week for the fourth straight game, but Samuel now joins him on the shelf with a bruised heel. Samuel has been leading the way without McLaurin, combining for 14 catches, 168 yards, and two touchdowns in Weeks 4 and 5 before just four receptions and 15 yards last week.

Samuel was the lead pass catcher by far in those first two games, with receiver Chris Moore and tight end Zach Ertz doing more work in Week 6. Ertz will likely keep a bigger role as the most experienced pass catcher while the young receivers will look for someone to step up.

Moore has played the most snaps at receiver other than Samuel, followed by Jaylin Lane and Luke McCaffrey. None of those players has more than 15 targets or eight receptions, though McCaffrey has been on a bit of a hot streak, reaching 50 yards twice in the past four games and scoring three touchdowns in that time.

Fantasy Football Implications

Fantasy owners are surely bummed to be missing the two top receivers in one of the best matchups available for passing games. The Cowboys have allowed the most yards per pass attempt and the second-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers.

Moore, Lane, and McCaffrey will benefit from the matchup, but it's hard to know who will get the most work in this game. Moore has played the most snaps of the group; Lane has the most targets. And yet McCaffrey has been the most productive, catching eight passes for 179 yards and three TDs.

Any of the three players can be considered for your WR3/4/flex spot depending on your roster strength at receiver. McCaffrey probably has the most fantasy value, followed by Moore then Lane. Don't count on these guys to save your week just because of an expended role and great matchup, but they can fill a hole at the bottom of your lineup if you're searching.

Jayden Daniels is negatively affected by missing his top guys. He is still a must-start fantasy player nearly every week, especially with such a great matchup, but his ceiling is lower here than it usually is. Ertz might be the biggest winner of this news, as he will surely be a welcomed steady hand among an inexperienced group.

Lamb Returns for Dallas

CeeDee Lamb suffered a high ankle sprain early in Week 3 and hasn't played since. He has been cleared to return, though, surely exciting both Cowboys fans and Lamb fantasy owners.

The Cowboys are 2-3-1, and after it looked like the Eagles could run away with the division, Philadelphia has dropped their past two, leaving Dallas within two games of first place. There's a long way to go, so getting their best players on the field healthy is the most important thing right now.

Dallas lost to the Bears in the game in which Lamb got hurt, then they tied the Packers, beat the Jets, and lost to the Panthers. That could have been a successful stretch if they would have beaten Carolina, but it still keeps the Cowboys well within the hunt after a month and a half.

Fantasy Football Implications

Studies have shown that players who suffer high ankle sprains often return as a shell of their former selves, taking weeks to get back to pre-injury form. A guy as skilled as Lamb is still an effective player at 75%, but he's a different player from the one who can dominate on any given play.

Fantasy owners aren't benching Lamb, and I'm not suggesting that you should, but beware that he could have a few quiet games in his return as he keeps working back to full strength. Lamb might just be a good receiver and not a top player at his position for a few weeks.

Dak Prescott sees a boost from Lamb's return with the same caveat that he might not be an instant star in the lineup. Again, Lamb's hampered form is still better than the fourth and fifth receivers on the depth chart.

George Pickens and Jake Ferguson probably feel the most hurt. Pickens' 525 receiving yards are fourth among wide receivers, and his six touchdowns are tied for the top spot with Amon-Ra St. Brown. In the four games that Lamb missed (including Week 3), Pickens caught 24 passes for 427 yards and five touchdowns; he was WR1 in both standard scoring and PPR over that time.

Ferguson is a PPR darling, scoring 7.5 more points than any other tight end during Lamb's four-week absence while ranking second in standard. His season-long rankings are the same in both formats. Ferguson has subsisted on volume, catching 44 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns and excelling both with and without Lamb.

The return of the star receiver inevitably lowers the fantasy value of his fellow pass catchers, but going back once more to the injury, if Lamb is less than 100%, there will still be plenty to go around for the other guys. I'm not giving up hope on big weeks just yet.

The matchup here is also in their favor, as Washington has allowed the third-most yards per pass attempt and the 12th-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers. The Commanders are dealing with a mix of injuries and ineffective play, dragging their defense to a below-average level.

Start all of the above: Lamb, Pickens, Ferguson, and Prescott. It could be a big week offensively for both the Commanders and Cowboys despite their respective injury woes.