Injuries

The injury to Dak Prescott is devastating on many levels, but this won’t kill the fantasy value of the skill players. Is backup Andy Dalton some sort of Cowboy savior? Unlikely, but he has proven in the past that when he has weapons (and boy does he have them in Dallas), that he can provide very good quarterback play. Ezekiel Elliott may be a bigger part of the game plan going forward with Dalton, but there should be little drop off with the receivers.

Drew Lock has a good chance to start; he will be missing some weapons, however. With Noah Fant, Melvin Gordon and K.J. Hamler all out for this week, Lock will have to rely on Phillip Lindsay, Tim Patrick and rookie Jerry Jeudy. Being down weapons against a Bill Belichick-led defense isn’t exactly ideal, particularly for a second-year quarterback coming off of an injury. Lock is better off returning next week.

The Broncos continue to pile up the beaten bodies, with K.J. Hamler the next man down. Though Tim Patrick has played well with the opportunity afforded to him, Jerry Jeudy is the receiver to roster. If Drew Lock returns, he’ll do so to a depleted receiver group; so don’t sleep on Jeudy going bananas over the next few weeks.

In what has become rather routine for the Eagles, they will once again be short handed at wide receiver (and tight end, for that matter). Sure, Zach Ertz will get his, but another receiver needs to step up. Greg Ward has been solid, but nothing spectacular in his run as the top guy. The interesting name here is Travis Fulgham. Promoted from the practice squad, Fulgham stepped in and made two big catches last Sunday. Monitor this situation.

A big question mark for Monday Night, Davante Adams practiced in limited fashion on Saturday. In addition to the Allen Lazard injury, this may leave quarterback Aaron Rodgers with a cast of wideouts led by Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Robert Tonyan anyone? He’s caught a touchdown each of the last two weeks, garnering five targets for five receptions including the TD in Adams’ absence versus the Saints. It appears he’s earned some semblance of Rodgers’ trust, which could be huge come Monday Night.

Plenty of teams are suffering multiple injuries, a few nearly decimated at one position. The Eagles, for example, continue to play thin at wide receiver and the injury to Dallas Goedert exacerbates the situation, given he’s out multiple weeks. Greg Ward needs to be in lineups this Sunday, if it wasn’t already obvious. However, don’t forget about Philadelphia’s two rookie wide receivers, John Hightower and Quez Watkins, the latter of which is set to return from I.R.

Kenny Golladay and Julio Jones are tricky this week. The Detroit offense badly needs a playmaker, but in a late-afternoon game it’s difficult to stay hopeful for this game-time decision. Let Golladay ride the pine another week. As for Jones, this isn’t unfamiliar territory for those who roster the Falcons star receiver. It’s a much tougher sit if he does play, but the fear of a donut is a strong motivator. Oh, and play Russell Gage with confidence, if you weren’t already.

The top wideouts to miss this week will be Michael Thomas and A.J. Brown. For New Orleans, Thomas’ injury is clearly devastating to the offense and the aging Drew Brees. Tre’Quan Smith is still a great play, but expect the team to rely heavily on Alvin Kamara. As for Brown, the Titans will be fine this week without him. Derrick Henry will lead the way against a banged up Vikings defense while Jonnu Smith and Adam Humphries (that’s right, no Corey Davis fawning here) handle receiving duties.

Alshon Jeffrey will vacate a 22.6-percent (No. 23 among qualified wide receivers) Target Share and 15.4-percent (No. 20) Hog Rate while he recovers from his Lisfranc injury. Dallas Goedert exceeded an 80-percent Snap Share five times from Week 11 to Week 17 while Jeffrey was out last year. During that time, Goedert had four games with 30-plus routes run and finished as the fantasy TE13 or higher in all four.

The Dolphins turned to two players to carry their passing game when Preston Williams was placed on IR. DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki combined for 41-percent of Miami’s targets from Weeks 10-17 last season. Gesicki finished as a top-15 TE in five of the eight games that Williams missed, and Parker finished as a top-24 WR in six of those games. If Williams struggles to perform in his post-ACL season, look for Parker and Gesicki to pick up the slack in the receiving game.