Week 8 of the NFL season is here, and fantasy football managers are scrambling as another wave of key injuries shakes up lineups. From Lamar Jackson and Jayden Daniels battling hamstring issues to A.J. Brown, Jaylen Waddle, and D'Andre Swift nursing muscle strains, player health will once again shape the fantasy landscape. As a physical therapist, I break down each player’s injury, what it means for their recovery, and how it impacts your fantasy outlook for Week 8 and beyond.

Quarterbacks

Lamar Jackson

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Despite four weeks to rehab, Jackson will miss another game with his right hamstring injury. Four weeks puts him in the latter portion of the repair phase of healing, where pain and elasticity are largely normal, but strength is likely not yet back to 100%. The critical pieces here that make Jackson's injury different from other quarterbacks are that it involves his right hamstring and his elite rushing upside. A right-handed passer powers through the right leg to throw. By now, Jackson likely has enough strength (while possibly not 100%) to make all the throws, but the repetitive throwing will put strain on the muscle that can increase the risk for re-injury. Jackson's rushing upside would also be curbed. With another week off, hopefully Jackson is ready to go in week nine.

Jayden Daniels

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Daniels will miss Monday night as he rehabs his right hamstring injury. Functionally, his injury is nearly a clone of Lamar Jackson's as the two have similar playing styles. This is also Daniels' right hamstring, which means throwing will stress it, and Daniels' rushing upside will be restricted upon return. NFL quarterbacks average missing 1.7 games with a hamstring injury, so hopefully, we get Jayden back soon.

Brock Purdy

Injury: Toe injury

Analysis: Purdy will miss another game, the third in a row and fifth all season, with a right big toe injury. As I've stated in this article every week, the right big toe is critical for a right-handed passer. The right big toe is the last point of contact from the groin as the passer throws the ball, and the ability to powerfully and confidently push through the big toe is critical. With Purdy already experiencing one setback with this injury, San Francisco is taking things cautiously, as they should with Mac Jones playing so well.

Bryce Young

Injury: High ankle sprain

Analysis: Young won't play in week 8 as he rehabs a right high ankle sprain. I wrote in detail about Young's ankle earlier this week, and the important thing to note is that this is his right ankle. A high ankle sprain occurs when the tibia and fibula bones of the shin are pulled apart by an eversion force. This creates some degree of injury to the interosseous ligament and other ligaments that hold the bones together. In a normal functioning ankle, the congruency of the tibia and fibula is critical to maintain proper ankle stability when running, cutting, or even pushing off the ground for passing.

As such, playing with a high ankle sprain is much more than just pain tolerance; Young will have to regain the stability needed to properly push off the ground to throw. With his estimated timeline to return being 2-4 weeks, it is unlikely this is a major injury, and it is unlikely there is much stability lost, so it should not be hard for him to regain his ability to push off the right leg to throw.

Baker Mayfield

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Baker was initially on the injury report with a knee, but has been cleared. This will likely be the case for much of the season for Baker, and to date, the mild injuries early in the week have not stopped his excellent play. He's a great start this week.

Michael Penix

Injury: Knee Bone Bruise

Analysis: Penix will miss week 8 with a knee bone bruise. These are generally not long-term issues and heal very well. Look for Penix to push to play next week.

Tyrod Taylor

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Tyrod is dealing with a knee bone bruise that limited him in practice all week, and it has been reported that Justin Fields will start as Taylor is ruled out. Taylor is not a juicy fantasy starter anyway, but we will monitor his status next week.

Running Backs

Breece Hall

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Hall is dealing with a mild knee injury, but logged a full practice Friday, indicating this injury should not limit him. Teams often will just list a player's injury as "knee" with no description of what exact tissue is injured when it is mild enough not to warrant much more explanation. Mild knee injuries do create soreness and stiffness, but this is easily normalized when the athlete is warmed up. This should not impact Hall's ability to play well on Sunday; however, the Jets stink out loud.

Saquon Barkley

Injury: Shoulder injury

Analysis: Saquon appeared to injure his left shoulder last week but has not been limited in practice this week and carries no injury designation. While running backs typically average a 19% dip in fantasy points after a shoulder injury, this should not apply to Barkley.

D’Andre Swift

Injury: Groin strain

Analysis: Swift, who is enjoying a nice start to the season, is still on the injury report with a groin strain. He played through the same injury last week on the way to 124 rushing yards and a score. His week 7 output fits the historical trend for running backs, where groin injuries don't show any negative impact on their stat lines. The groin is a strong, powerful muscle group that helps with sprinting and single-leg stability, but there are plenty of other powerful muscles that can power the legs during sprinting, and the groin is on the inside of the hip; therefore is not responsible for lateral change of direction. As long as Swift does not suffer any setbacks that would hold him out in week 8, he remains a solid start.

Alvin Kamara

Injury: Ankle sprain

Analysis: Despite the limited tag in practice all week, Kamara has no injury designation for this week. When more significant, ankle injuries can impact change of direction and carry very high re-injury rates. Kamara has been playing through an ankle injury for a few weeks now and has only seen a mild 9% dip in fantasy production. Don't expect this injury to slow him down enough to hold him out of your lineups.

Bucky Irving

Injury: Foot / Shoulder Injuries

Analysis: Irving will miss again as he continues to rehab his foot sprain and shoulder subluxation. The foot is an adaptive structure that quite literally changes its shape while running, and when injury is present, its ability to change shape to adapt to terrain and demands is challenged, making runners slower and less able to change direction. The good news is that whenever Bucky does return, running backs average just a 6% drop in fantasy points.

The shoulder subluxation is another story. A subluxation is a mild version of a dislocation; the head of the humerus does not fully disconnect from the shoulder socket, and less labrum damage occurs, but instability now exists, and re-injury risk will be elevated when he returns.

Kareem Hunt

Injury: Left ankle injury / Knee Injury

Analysis: Hunt is expected to play in week 8 after playing just 19% of snaps last week following an early high ankle sprain. This is a fast turnaround for an older player dealing with both a high ankle sprain and a knee injury, and it is unlikely he will be near 100%. Hunt has not been reliable this season to begin with; this injury puts more doubt in his ability to produce for fantasy.

Tyler Allgeier

Injury: Knee / Hip Injury

Analysis: After logging limited practices all week, Allgeier presents as questionable for Sunday. Mild hip and knee injuries can lead to stiffness and soreness, and functionally, these usually impact change-of-direction players more so than downhill runners like Allgeier. If he is able to play, he likely won't be much affected by these injuries.

Roschon Johnson

Injury: Back injury

Analysis: Johnson has been ruled out for week 8 with a back injury. We will check his status for week 9.

Wide Receivers

AJ Brown

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Brown did not appear injured in Sunday's win over Minnesota, but apparently picked up a hamstring injury during the game and has been ruled out for week 8. Hamstring injuries are critical for wide receivers, and this is Browns' fourth documented hamstring injury. Brown is a do-it-all type of wide receiver, and getting deep down the field is one of his best attributes. The hamstring is maximally stressed with top speed, so an existing injury can limit a receiver's ability to get open deep. Receivers average a 15% dip in fantasy points in the first game after a hamstring injury.

Jaylen Waddle

Injury: Hamstring Strain

Analysis: Waddle logged some limited practices this week due to two "sore" hamstrings, but is expected to play on Sunday. The description of soreness versus injury and being on both sides does make me believe that his limitations in practice are more precautionary rather than due to a true injury, and makes this unlikely to be an issue for week 8. While receivers typically average a 15% dip in fantasy points following a hamstring injury, Waddle is the only true receiving threat in Miami and should be a decent start.

Emeka Egbuka

Injury: Hamstring Strain

Analysis: Egbuka returned extremely quickly from a hamstring injury in week 6 and managed to play in week 7, albeit not his best performance. With another week to rehab a mild hamstring injury and no reported setbacks, expect him to look better. What needs to be considered, however, it's unlikely he is fully healed yet; muscle strains take longer than two weeks to fully heal, so while performance is likely back to his norm, re-injury risk will be elevated. He should still be started as usual.

Calvin Ridley

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Ridley continues to battle a hamstring injury and will miss another week. A 30-year-old will have a much harder time bouncing back from a hamstring injury than an early 20s athlete. Ridley has been a deep threat his whole career, expect his ability to get deep to be a struggle when he returns, and the typical 15% dip in fantasy points for receivers after a hamstring injury will likely apply. The fortunate thing is this is Ridley's first documented hamstring injury, and while re-injury risk is still a factor, it won't be as significant as for an athlete with numerous hamstring injuries.

Christian Kirk

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Kirk is trending towards missing yet another game with a hamstring injury. Hamstring injuries kept him out in weeks 1-2, as well as week 7. Kirk has a lengthy injury history, and while he has been very productive out of the slot in the past, this season has been difficult for him to get on track. As a primarily slot receiver, if he does play, he is less likely to be impacted on the stat sheet than would a deep threat, but he has not shown the ability to be a reliable starter yet.

Terry McLaurin

Injury: Quad / Core

Analysis: McLaurin is set to return from a quad and/or core injury that kept him out for four weeks. There is still a mystery around his injury, and it's not likely a pure quad muscle belly injury, but could have been a rectus femoris tendon injury or sports hernia. We don't have the answer, and won't speculate which it is. A whole month to rehab should have him feeling quick and fast, and receivers historically average no drop in fantasy points after similar injuries; however, re-injury is a big risk.

Garrett Wilson

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Wilson will miss another game after hyperextending his knee. I talked last week about how "knee hyperextension" is not a medical diagnosis, but hyperextending the knee often leads to bone bruises, PCL injuries, and meniscus injuries. The Jets won't tell us which is the case for Wilson, so for now, we will have to continue to monitor for updates. A bone bruise and mild meniscus injury would not project to negatively impact his stats the rest of the season, but a grade I-II PCL injury could.

Chris Olave

Injury: Ankle sprain

Analysis: Olave is set to play through a mild ankle injury. These injuries will often impact a receiver's ability to shake their defender while running a clean route, but the negative impact is usually mild, with receivers averaging just a 10% dip in fantasy production in the first game after injury. With Olave being completely removed from the injury report, don't expect this to slow him down much, and he should be a solid start.

Deebo Samuel

Injury: Heel injury

Analysis: Deebo will be active this week after missing week 7 with a heel injury. Heel injuries are challenging, as they often nag all season long and require true rest in addition to rehab to heal. Taking last week off will let some pain and irritation calm down, and Samuel should be able to play at a high level, but expect him to be on the injury report next week with the same issue.

Matthew Golden

Injury: Hip Injury

Analysis: A late-week hip injury has Golden's status in question for week 8. The exact details of his hip injury are unknown, but generally speaking, a hip injury can put some limitations on a player's ability to create separation as well as get deep down the field. With this being a late-week add to the injury report, this likely would impact his production.

Christian Watson

Injury: ACL Tear

Analysis: Watson is slated to make his season debut this week after a late-season ACL tear. Great news for the Packers and the fourth-year veteran, but should fantasy managers be excited? Historically, receivers average a 28% dip in fantasy points per game in year one following an ACL tear. Watson has never finished in the top-30 scoring for wide receivers. Great news, and we hope he can buck the trend, but this is not one I am particularly excited about this season.

Chris Godwin

Injury: Fibula injury

Analysis: Godwin will miss again with a fibula injury to the same fibula that he had surgery on. While this injury is not in the same location as the fracture from last season, this is likely a compensatory injury due to altered mechanics from the serious injury last season. Hopefully, Godwin can return soon, but re-injury rates will be very high all season.

Jerry Jeudy

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Jeudy was dealing with a mild knee injury, but is good to go for week 8. He failed to log any full practices, so his knee injury could limit his ability to separate. Jeudy has been struggling all season and is not a great start this week.

DJ Moore

Injury: Hip injury

Analysis: Moore is still dealing with his hip injury from week 6, when he landed directly on his side after taking a hit. He played 87% of snaps last week, and while he did not have a flashy stat line, that has been the norm for Moore this season. Another week out from injury should allow more bruising to subside and muscle function to restore to normal. His injury should not be the reason if he struggles this week.

Nico Collins

Injury: Concussion

Analysis: Collins has been ruled out with a concussion. We will check on his status next week.

Ricky Pearsall

Injury: PCL sprain

Analysis: Pearsall will miss another game as he rehabs a PCL injury. As written last week, playing through a PCL injury is difficult until the stability within the knee has been regained. This usually takes 4-6 weeks, and we have seen numerous times that if a player returns too soon, a performance dip is seen. San Francisco is cruising along even without Pearsall (and many others) and would be wise to continue to let the second-year receiver get all the rehab he needs before returning for a playoff push.

Josh Palmer

Injury: High ankle sprain

Analysis: Palmer will miss another game with a high ankle sprain. The video looked bad, expect Palmer to miss several games.

Stefon Diggs

Injury: Chest injury

Analysis: Diggs is still dealing with a mild chest injury and should not be negatively impacted. He played through this injury last week and had a solid (though not spectacular) day. Chest injuries are almost always synonymous with a rib injury. The average fan is under the impression that playing through a rib injury is merely a pain management issue, but there is more to it. Several key muscles involved in running, catching, blocking, and rotating the torso to make a catch attach to the ribs, and when a rib injury is present, these muscles will tense up to protect the injury. Through rehab, the athlete must regain full function of these muscles and full motion of the shoulder and ribs in order to play. Assuming Diggs plays in week 8, he should be far enough along in the healing and rehab process that his injury has no more than a mild negative impact.

Josh Downs

Injury: Concussion

Analysis: Downs will return from a concussion this week. There is no expected decline in fantasy production after a concussion.

Tight Ends

George Kittle

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Kittle did not record a catch in his first game after a lengthy absence due to his hamstring injury. Expect him to play much better this week. Re-injury rates will continue to be high all season, but while on the field, he should help fantasy managers.

Dallas Goedert

Injury: Calf strain

Analysis: Goedert's injury tag has been removed, and he will play with a mild calf injury. Calf injuries will impact his ability to accelerate and get down the field, but his big catch radius should still allow him to have a nice game. Tight ends average a 12% dip in fantasy points after a calf injury. With AJ Brown ruled out, I would not expect Goedert to see any drop off in production and actually may see an increased target share.

David Njoku

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Njoku remains limited after hyperextending his knee in week 6 and missing week 7. Cleveland never told us what tissue he injured while hyperextending his knee, but the common culprits are a bone bruise, mild meniscus, and mild PCL injury. Without knowing the details, it's hard to fully assess the injury's impact on his week 8 production levels (if he plays), but I would lean towards a negative impact versus no impact if he does play. He hasn't been great this season, even when healthy, and is best left on the bench.

Cole Kmet

Injury: Back injury

Analysis: Kmet has been ruled out with a back injury, paving the way for a potential big Coleston Loveland game on national tight ends week. We will check in on Kmet's status next week.

Dalton Schultz

Injury: Back / Shoulder injury

Analysis: Shultz is cleared from the injury report and ready to play through a mild back and shoulder injury. Mild back injuries typically respond well to treatment, and the athlete warming up properly should not be an issue. As long as his shoulder has the range of motion and stability needed for overhead catching, this shouldn't limit him either. With Nico Collins and Christian Kirk out, Houston will look to Schultz to provide some stability in the passing game, and is a sneaky play this week.

Dalton Kincaid

Injury: Oblique strain

Analysis: Kincaid's week 8 status is still cloudy as he rehabs from an oblique injury. The oblique muscles are large, powerful muscles, critical for bracing the body for impact, such as with blocking or taking on a hit, but also rotate the torso for a tight end to twist and make a catch. Generally, they heal well, and minimal time is missed with minimal negative impact on player performance. If Kincaid can play, expect him to look good and be a solid fantasy start.

Juwan Johnson

Injury: Neck injury

Analysis: Johnson is dealing with a neck injury that is not believed to be serious. With neck injuries, if it is a fracture or a disc injury, that's a big deal. If it is just a muscle strain, it's usually not a big deal, and the player can play well. Teams usually won't tell us exactly what they are dealing with, and we have to rely more on practice status and the anticipated timeline to return. With Johnson not expected to miss much (if any) time, this is likely a muscle strain, and if he can play, he should not be limited.