Fantasy Football Week 1 Injury News: Brown, Darnold and Kittle

The NFL regular season is underway after the Seattle Seahawks defeated the New England Patriots on Wednesday.

There were two notable injuries in that contest, and there's another noteworthy fantasy football item to discuss here today. Let's jump right in!

Fantasy football injury news can be found all season on FantasySP. Use the start/sit tool to help with your fantasy lineup decisions all season!

Brown Dealing with Ankle Sprain

New England wide receiver A.J. Brown injured his ankle in the third quarter of Wednesday's game. He is believed to have suffered a high ankle sprain.

X-rays were negative for an ankle fracture, so that's at least a bit more promising news.

Brown finished the night with four targets, hauling in three for 26 yards. So it was an underwhelming debut with his new team, and now fantasy owners have an injury concern to contend with for Brown.

Luckily, the early start to the season gives Brown more time to heal. We'll need to get a definitive timetable for his return before being able to fully assess him, but his fantasy owners need to be thinking about how to replace him in case he misses some time.

DeMario Douglas ended up leading the Pats with seven targets, but caught five for only 20 yards. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson got six targets, catching five for 44 yards - he also rushed for 51 yards across 18 carries, but his workload could change if TreVeyon Henderson is active moving forward.

Mack Hollins got five targets in the opener, making four grabs for 51 yards. Tight end Hunter Henry caught all three of his targets for 26 yards. Romeo Doubs' first game with the Pats was a dud, as he failed to catch any of his three targets.

Hollins played 50 of the team's 71 offensive snaps, while Douglas was at 44 and Doubs 40. Kyle Williams logged 12 snaps only, but could play more if Brown is out.

There's not a must-add guy to go after on the waiver wire after the Brown injury, and everyone is a better deep-league asset. Following the numbers, Hollins and Douglas are the top options, with Doubs likely to be better moving forward too. Henry becomes a better fantasy option if Brown misses time, as do the running backs. The injury to Brown hurts quarterback Drake Maye's stock, but you should still confidently start him almost every week.

Darnold Avoids Fracture, but Still Will Miss Time

Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold left the game after just a few plays. He was later ruled out with a hip injury.

He's still having tests done, but a fracture has been ruled out. The team still doesn't know the extent of the injury though, so it's still a bit concerning. He's expected to miss Week 2, but could be back for Week 3.

Darnold was a fantasy bust in the opener after only playing a handful of snaps. He completed one of his two passes for 13 yards. Drew Lock replaced him and went 16-of-22 for 187 yards and a touchdown - he rushed twice for 13 yards.

Darnold isn't a massive fantasy asset, but he's a stream-worthy guy in the right matchups, while being a solid deep-league option. Lock is a level or two below that, if he's forced to make some starts.

The injury to Darnold is a slight downgrade for the Seahawks' offensive playmakers though.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba still went off for 122 yards and a score across eight receptions and 11 targets, so he's still an easy start every fantasy week. 

The Seahawks' backfield was a committee in the opener. Rookie Jadarian Price got 12 touches for 58 total yards, while George Holani had eight touches for 29 yards. Emanuel Wilson got two touches, gaining just three yards.

Tight end AJ Barner played 88% of the offensive snaps, but only hauled in two passes. Cooper Kupp and Rashid Shaheed played over 50% of the offensive snaps, but also didn't do much.

We'll update you next week on Brown and Darnold.

Kittle Good to Go in Week 1

In other news, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle is off the injury report and ready to go for tonight's game against the Los Angeles Rams.

He's been working his way back from an Achilles tear, and appears ready to go for the season opener. Kittle might have his snaps monitored a bit, but the fact that he's playing is a big deal for fantasy owners, and the 49ers of course.

His matchup against the Rams is pretty average based on a season ago. LA's defense improved over the offseason, so I'd call this a below-average test for Kittle.

Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr. and rookie De'Zhaun Stribling are the projected starting wideouts, while star running back Christian McCaffrey is still around too. All those playmakers around means the Niners can ease Kittle back into things.

I'd be tempted to start Kittle anyways, just because he's a high-end fantasy TE when healthy, and he has a good connection with quarterback Brock Purdy. Truthfully though, Kittle is a better deep-league option in Week 1, while being someone to skip in standard leagues if possible.

Assess all your tight end matchups and see if you can find a safer option than Kittle. If they are all close, the fantasy ceiling of Kittle still makes him a good starting option.