Fantasy Football Injury Roundup from Week 9: Jayden Daniels, Tucker Kraft and More

Week 9 of the NFL regular season has proved to be a costly one for fantasy football players.

Let's take a look at some injuries to notable offensive fantasy players before the Monday night contest.

Fantasy football injury news can be tracked all season on FantasySP.

Jayden Daniels Out Several Weeks

Daniels has been injured on and off all season. On Sunday night, he suffered a dislocated left elbow, which will keep him out for several weeks.

What really hurt with the injury is that it happened with the team losing 38-7, so it was puzzling to people why Daniels was in the game at all.

Anyways, this could be a devastating blow to fantasy owners who rostered Daniels. He already underperformed and was inactive several games, so the fantasy teams that chose him earlier in drafts probably were already not performing too well.

With him out several weeks, he can either be put in an IR spot, or dropped entirely. I'd prefer to only drop him after we know the full extent of his absence, but I think there's a chance this injury ends Daniels' season.

Washington is 3-6 now, and by the time Daniels might be ready to return, the Commanders might be out of the playoff hunt, so bringing Daniels back wouldn't make any sense.

We'll keep tabs on Daniels, but he might end up being safe to drop in most fantasy formats depending on how long he's out, and with each Commander loss.

Marcus Mariota will start in Daniels' place, unless the team makes a trade for another quarterback. Mariota, or whoever quarterbacks the Washington offense, is unlikely to be any more than a deep-league fantasy asset the rest of the season.

Tucker Kraft Likely Done for Year

Kraft was in the midst of a breakout year, but went down with a knee injury in the team's loss to Carolina on Sunday. He's believed to have suffered a torn ACL, which would end his season.

That's a huge blow for the Packers' offense. They have several pass catchers they can turn to, but Kraft was leading the pack this season, and his absence will be massive.

You can expect more on the plates of Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson and Matthew Golden - Golden left the game with a shoulder injury, so his status will be one to watch as well. Eventually, Jayden Reed will re-enter the fold and provide some much-needed help, but things could be shaky offensively over the next couple weeks as the Packers learn to roll without Kraft.

Luke Musgrave will be the tight end who helps replace Kraft. Musgrave hasn't done much this season, but I wouldn't write him off going forward. He's worth an add in some deeper leagues, and could work into standard leagues with a couple solid fantasy outings.

You can expect running back Josh Jacobs to keep his big offensive role, and maybe even be a better fantasy asset going forward after the Kraft injury. Emanuel Wilson could maybe take on a bit more in Kraft's absence, so he's another guy to watch.

Dontayvion Wicks is another receiver who could help pick up some slack, but he's already dealing with an injury of his own.

The Kraft injury hurts the fantasy outlook for Jordan Love a bit, but not all that much. He's still a borderline top-10 fantasy option every week.

C.J. Stroud Dealing with Head Injury

Stroud was ruled out after going down with a concussion. It was a pretty violent hit, so his status for the next game is definitely in jeopardy.

If Stroud cannot start in week 10 against the Jaguars, then it will likely be Davis Mills getting the start. He's just a deep-league fantasy option, but is a capable backup at least, so the Texans' offense shouldn't flounder with him leading the charge.

If Stroud does miss the next game, more could be put on the plates of running backs Woody Marks and Nick Chubb. 

The fantasy outlook for Nico Collins will be a bit down, but as the go-to pass catcher in Houston, I'd still trust him in most fantasy lineups.

Dalton Schultz fared pretty well on Sunday with Mills at QB, so he will be a pretty solid option for week 10, regardless of who starts at QB.

Outside those two, nobody is a big standard league fantasy asset. Xavier Hutchinson, Christian Kirk and Jayden Higgins played the next-most snaps among the pass catchers, but none of them stood out.

Running Back Injuries

Minnesota's Aaron Jones Sr. and Cincinnati's Samaje Perine left games on Sunday with injuries. Jones has a shoulder injury, but it's believed to be minor, and he hopes to play in week 10. Perine has an ankle injury, and his status is unknown.

Jordan Mason is the back for the Vikings who would pick up the slack if Jones were to miss more time with an injury. If Jones is active, you can expect him and Mason to split the backfield work.

Mason played more this week, but Jones was the better fantasy asset, by a long shot. I like Jones over Mason at this point, but we'll track Jones' injury and see if it changes my thoughts at all.

The Bengals have a bye in week 10, so Perine might not end up missing any more games, depending on the severity of the injury. 

Chase Brown would have a firmer grasp of the backfield if Perine ends up missing additional time. If it's a multi-week injury, Cincinnati might look to bring in more help at running back.

Perine was gaining some deep-league fantasy traction, but this injury could slow his progress.

Pass Catcher Injuries

Along with the injuries to Kraft and Golden, LA Rams' Puka Nacua, New England's Kayshon Boutte and Washington's Luke McCaffrey left games with injuries.

Nacua left with an injury to his ribs, although coach Sean McVay said he could have returned if the game was closer. I think that means Nacua will be good to go for week 10, but his status will be one to watch again.

If Nacua ends up missing another game, Davante Adams will become an even better fantasy asset. Nobody else is really worth a fantasy start outside really deep leagues.

Guys like Terrance Ferguson, Davis Allen, Tyler Higbee, Xavier Smith and Colby Parkinson helped out this week, and would probably all contribute a bit again if Nacua missed any time. Adams would be the only worthwhile fantasy starter though.

Kyren Williams would become a better fantasy option at running back, and his backup Blake Corum could also be a decent fantasy asset. Again though, I don't anticipate Nacua missing any time.

Boutte has a hamstring injury. That could hurt Drake Maye and the outlook for the Patriots' offense.

Without Boutte doing much this week, it was DeMario Douglas who stood out. Hunter Henry and Stefon Diggs also helped out some, and would be the best starting options if Boutte missed any time.

More could be put on the plate of TreVeyon Henderson, and Terrell Jennings, if Rhamondre Stevenson isn't cleared to play in week 10.

McCaffrey has a shoulder injury that could cost him the season. He's helped out a bit this season, but the injury won't have a huge impact on the Washington offense.

Deebo Samuel Sr. will be the top pass catcher, with help from Zach Ertz and Jaylin Lane. It would help if the Commanders got Terry McLaurin back, although no pass catcher will be a safe fantasy starting option without Daniels around.

I'd look for Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Chris Rodriguez to take on a bit more. Really though, I'll be trying to stay away from most of the Commanders after the Daniels' injury.