Team | Player | POS | Status | Date Reported | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlanta Falcons | Calvin Ridley | WR | Out For Season – Suspension | Mon, Mar 7 | Ridley has been suspended for the entire 2022 season, due to betting on NFL games in the 2021 season. |
Baltimore Ravens | Tyus Bowser | LB | Ques Week 1 – Achilles | Mon, Apr 25 | Bowser has a torn Achilles, and it is unknown if he will be available for Week 1. |
Baltimore Ravens | Ronnie Stanley | T | Prob Week 1 – Ankle | Mon, Apr 25 | Stanley is on the mend from ankle surgery, but he is expected to suit up in Week 1. |
Carolina Panthers | Shi Smith | WR | Ques Week 1 – Poss. Suspension | Fri, Mar 25 | Smith is facing a potential suspension due to an off-field incident, and it is unknown if he will be active in Week 1. |
Carolina Panthers | Damien Wilson | LB | Ques Week 1 – Poss. Suspension | Tue, Apr 19 | Wilson is facing a possible suspension for an off-field incident, and it has yet to be established if he will line up for Week 1. |
Chicago Bears | Byron Pringle | WR | Ques Week 1 – Poss. Suspension | Mon, Apr 25 | Pringle is facing a potential suspension for an off-field incident, and it is unclear if he will be available for Week 1. |
Cleveland Browns | Deshaun Watson | QB | Ques Week 1 – Poss. Suspension | Thu, Mar 24 | Watson is facing a potential suspension for an off-field incident, and it is unclear if he will be available for Week 1. |
Cleveland Browns | Jack Conklin | T | Ques Week 1 – Knee | Sun, Apr 24 | Conklin is recovering from a torn patella tendon, and it is unknown if he will suit up for Week 1. |
Dallas Cowboys | Michael Gallup | WR | Ques Week 1 – Knee | Fri, Feb 18 | Gallup is having surgery to repair his torn left ACL, and it has yet to be established if he will be active for Week 1. |
Dallas Cowboys | Kelvin Joseph | CB | Ques Week 1 – Poss. Suspension | Sun, Apr 17 | Joseph is facing a possible suspension for his involvement in an off-field incident, and it has yet to be determined if he will be available for Week 1. |
Denver Broncos | Kj Hamler | WR | Ques Week 1 – Knee | Sun, Apr 24 | Hamler is recovering from a torn ACL, and it has yet to be determined if he will be available for Week 1. |
Detroit Lions | Jerry Jacobs | CB | Doub Week 1 – Knee | Fri, Feb 18 | Jacobs is tending to a torn ACL, and it is unlikely that he will suit up for opening day. |
Detroit Lions | Romeo Okwara | DE | Ques Week 1 – Achilles | Fri, Feb 18 | Okwara is dealing with a ruptured Achilles, and it has yet to be established if he will be active for the season opener. |
Green Bay Packers | Elgton Jenkins | G | Out Indefinitely – Knee | Thu, Mar 3 | Jenkins is recovering from a torn ACL, and there is no timetable for recovery. |
Green Bay Packers | Robert Tonyan | TE | Out Indefinitely – Knee | Fri, Apr 1 | Tonyan is on the mend from a torn ACL that ended his 2021 season. It is unknown when he will make his season debut. |
New Orleans Saints | Alvin Kamara | RB | Ques Week 1 – Suspension | Fri, Feb 18 | Kamara is facing a possible suspension for an off-field incident, and it is unknown if he will be eligible to play in the season opener. |
New York Giants | Sterling Shepard | WR | Out Indefinitely – Achilles | Thu, Mar 3 | Shepard is recovering from a torn Achilles, and he will miss an undetermined length of time. |
Philadelphia Eagles | Shaun Bradley | LB | Ques Week 1 – Neck | Fri, Feb 18 | Bradley is having surgery for his neck injury, and it has yet to be determined if he will be active for Week 1. |
Seattle Seahawks | Chris Carson | RB | Ques Week 1 – Neck | Fri, Apr 22 | Carson is recovering from disc-fusion neck surgery, and it is unclear if he will be available for week 1. |
Washington Commanders | Logan Thomas | TE | Ques Week 1 – Knee | Sat, Apr 23 | Thomas is recovering from ACL surgery, and if has yet to be determined if he will be available to suit up for Week 1. |
If you are going to have success handicapping the NFL, you have to pay attention to the injury report on a consistent basis. A lot of amateurs make the mistake of focusing only on the injuries to star players and overlooking the guys who don’t receive a lot of attention from the media. Plus, they don’t know the point spread values assigned to the players that are missing.
It’s no secret that the most important position in regards to how an injury can impact a game is the quarterback, especially if we are talking about a top level signal caller. The elite NFL quarterbacks can be worth anywhere from 4-points to a touchdown on the spread. The thing to keep in mind, is that oddsmakers are almost always going to over-adjust the line in these circumstances, as few are willing to lay their hard earned money on a backup quarterback. So before you jump to fade a team that just lost their starting quarterback, keep in mind that you are betting into an inflated line.
It’s easy to pay attention to injuries to quarterbacks, as the media outlets are quick to bring these to our attention, but it’s not the only position that can have a huge impact on the outcome of a game. On the offensive side of the ball, injuries to wide receivers, tight ends and fullbacks are definitely ones that you want to focus on when it comes to the skill positions, while injuries to running backs aren’t all that important.
This is where a lot of people get in trouble, as it’s easy to over-react to a team that just lost a star running back. In reality it’s not all that important to the overall success of a team. Almost every NFL team has a capable backup running back who can quickly step in and put up similar numbers to that of the starter, but that’s not the case for wide receivers, tight ends and fullbacks.
If you think about it, it makes sense. A teams’ starting wide receivers spend countless hours forming chemistry and most importantly timing with the starting quarterback. Rarely do the backup wide outs get time with the starting unit in practice. When they get forced into action, the chemistry and timing simply isn’t there. An injury to a starting tight end can be even worse, as many times these are the guys that quarterbacks count on being open when under pressure. You might be asking why an injury to a fullback would matter all that much. The key thing to remember here is that few teams carry more than one fullback. If there’s not a capable backup, those formations that require a fullback may be thrown out of the game plan entirely.
It’s also worth noting that injuries to exterior offensive linemen (tackles) typically have a larger impact than that of interior offensive linemen (guards and center). This also makes sense, as it’s a lot easier for a quarterback to avoid pressure up the middle, than on the outside. Also, if the offensive line can’t set the edge on the outside, it will also hurt their ability to run the football.
As far as the defense is concerned, injuries on this side of the ball historically don’t have all that big of impact in the outcome of a game. In terms of importance, linebacker and safety are the two positions that you want to pay attention to, while injuries up front on the defensive line and at cornerback aren’t something you need to be overly concerned with.
While evidence suggests that some positions are more important than others, in order to take full advantage of the value that may or may not present itself when a team suffers an injury to a key player, you need to make sure to check the depth charts of the team in question. Some teams may have a more than capable backup at a key position, where an injury to a starter won’t hurt them. Others may not have adequate depth at some less important positions, where an injury could drastically reduce their chances of winning.