Fantasy Football Injury Report: Week 11

It would be great if we could get through one week without massive injury issues, but Week 11 has only played one game and flunked. We’ve seen major injuries with cascading effects for two offenses already, and the week hasn’t truly even started yet. 

(Check at bottom for the original Monday injury report.)

Week 11 Fantasy Football Injury Report

Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals 

The Bengals will be without Joe Burrow for the rest of the season as he suffered a wrist injury Thursday night. It didn’t look great when it happened, so sadly, this is not a surprise. Jake Browning came into the game and threw for 68 yards on 14 attempts but also took three sacks. The ceiling for Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins (when healthy) and Joe Mixon is going to be severely hampered for fantasy the rest of the way. They aren’t players you want to bench, but you have to adjust the expectations moving forward. 

Deshaun Watson, QB, Cleveland Browns 

Deshaun Watson was banged up early in the Browns’ win over the Ravens in Week 10, but he returned to the game, so the thought was that he might have avoided serious injury and be able to finish the season. That turned out not to be so, however, as news came out this week that Watson will miss the rest of the season after surgery to repair a fracture in his shoulder. The Browns will turn to Dorian Thompson-Robinson as the starter for Week 11 and beyond, which means the entire offense takes a big hit, even if Watson wasn’t playing to his potential prior to the injury.

Mark Andrews, TE, Baltimore Ravens 

There is no confirmation Mark Andrews is out for the rest of the season yet, but it will be a long-term injury. He’s dealing with an ankle injury and a hairline fracture in his leg, so the outlooks for Odell Beckham and Zay Flowers have to raise a bit. We should also get more production from Isaiah Likely, although he only saw two targets against one of the best matchups in the league. Maybe a week of practice gets him more involved in the offense but it was a bummer to see the immediate results. 

Noah Brown, WR, Houston Texans
Dameon Pierce, RB, Houston Texans 

Both Noah Brown and Dameon Pierce are out for the Texans this week, although they do get Nico Collins back. For this week, you have to feel great about starting Devin Singletary since he’s coming off the best game of his career and faces the Arizona Cardinals. Singletary should be in line for 20 touches if this game stays close, and it has the highest total of the main slate for DFS. Robert Woods should slide into the third receiver role behind Collins and Tank Dell as he played 60%, of the snaps last week. That was his first game after missing two contests, but Dell and Collins should carry most of the load here. 

Hayden Hurst, TE, Carolina Panthers 

This is likely more for the DFS side of things, but Hayden Hurst will miss this week against the Dallas Cowboys, which should put Tommy Tremble into more of a pass-catching role. It’s nothing more than a dart throw since Tremble was only playing 39% of the snaps but someone has to fill in for Hurst.

Gerald Everett, TE, Los Angeles Chargers 

The Chargers have been a nightmare to try and guess which tight end could score in any given week, but Gerald Everett is out for Week 11. They’re missing weapons in the offense all over the place, so Donald Parham should have a bit of a higher floor, but that’s still not a high bar. He’s only seen more than three targets in a game once this season. 

Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks 

This is a situation to monitor as Tyler Lockett hasn’t practiced all week and is in danger of missing with a hamstring issue. If he does miss, DK Metcalf, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and even Jake Bobo all get more interesting. When Metcalf missed earlier this year, Smith-Njigba saw seven targets and scored a touchdown. He would certainly be very intriguing against the Rams this week. 

Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
Alexander Mattison, RB, Minnesota Vikings 

We’re not sure yet if Justin Jefferson is going to play this week, but he is listed as questionable. The Vikings will have to activate him, so we’ll know by Saturday if that’s going to happen. If he’s out, T.J. Hockenson and Jordan Addison will continue to be the main targets. Alexander Mattison still has to be cleared from concussion protocol — if he’s not, it’s likely to be the Ty Chandler show, as he handled 15 touches last week when Mattison was forced out of the game. 

Original Injury Breakdown

It has seemed to be the case every week this year, but quarterbacks took a lot of punishment this past week in the NFL. That’s traditionally been the “safest” fantasy football position, but even pocket passers haven’t been immune to injuries this season. Let’s get into it and figure out who’s hurting heading into Week 11. 

Derek Carr, QB, New Orleans Saints
Michael Thomas, WR, New Orleans Saints 

Derek Carr was forced from the matchup against the Vikings with a shoulder injury and concussion, but he is not expected to miss significant time. If he does miss the next week or two, Jameis Winston will fill in, and he was certainly a fan of Chris Olave Sunday, peppering him with targets and throwing him a touchdown. It also helped Olave that Michael Thomas left this game quite early, but that also helped Rashid Shaheed. He checked in with a season-high nine targets and even though he finished with just 5/27, Winston just missed him on at least one deep ball. Shaheed would be a very interesting flex play if Thomas were to miss since he already has shown he can be an elite deep threat. 

Deshaun Watson, QB, Cleveland Browns 

The quarterback roulette wheel may continue to turn in Cleveland. Despite a gigantic win in Baltimore, Deshaun Watson was seen wearing a boot and he’ll have testing done on his ankle Monday. If he misses time again, P.J. Walker will be the starting option, and that lowers the outlook of the entire Cleveland offense. 

Taylor Heinicke, QB, Atlanta Falcons 

The Falcons have their bye week this week, but who knows who will be the quarterback when they come back into action. Taylor Heinicke was forced from the game late against Arizona and Desmond Ridder came back into the game, driving the Falcons down the field for a touchdown. If Heinicke is healthy, he may still be the starter, but it’s impossible to predict coach Arthur Smith. 

Baker Mayfield, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

Baker Mayfield was able to play every snap Sunday, but he hit his thumb on a helmet late against the Titans. Those plays can sometimes lead to serious thumb injuries but nothing is known for sure yet. If Mayfield missed time, Kyle Trask would be next in line, but that would likely be a big negative for everyone, especially Mike Evans. He’s on track for another 1,000-yard season and is averaging over 80 yards per game currently. 

Alexander Mattison, RB, Minnesota Vikings

The running back room for Minnesota is starting to get thin. Alexander Mattison is in the concussion protocol, and they lost Cam Akers for the year last week, so Ty Chandler is currently the lead back (the team did sign Myles Gaskin Monday). It was tough sledding for Chandler against the Saints with 15 carries for just 45 yards, so we should expect Minnesota to bolster their running back room with someone from the practice squad or a free agent. Concussions can be tricky so the timeline is nebulous as of now.