Fantasy Football: Week 7 Injury Report

Injuries are an unfortunate part of football. It's one thing we hate having occur to not only the players we roster but within the game itself. With that said, this does create opportunities for teammates, opening up potential pickups in season-long leagues while also producing value plays in daily fantasy football.

Using the practice report, we can glean a lot of information based on who's available and what coaches are saying from press conferences. This knowledge can allow us to make emergency plans to pivot or change our lineups come Sunday morning when inactives are announced.

Based on this week's practice reports, here are a few quick-hitters to give you a leg up on lineup decisions as crunch time approaches for Sunday lineup lock.

Who's In

C.J. Uzomah (shoulder) has been limited in practice this week, but should be available to play. Uzomah is in a prime spot and certainly worthy of streaming this week. The Cincinnati Bengals are playing the Kansas City Chiefs, who are third in tight end targets allowed and worst in yardage. In a game where the Vegas total is highest for the week, Uzomah is viable across all fantasy platforms.

T.Y. Hilton practiced in full on Wednesday, which is a great sign, but was limited the following two days. The Indianapolis Colts seems optimistic that he will play. Obviously Andrew Luck is the biggest beneficiary here, after throwing to a not-so-electric bunch of receivers that includes Chester Rogers, Zach Pascal, and Ryan Grant. Hilton will likely be suiting up, he should be placed up on the top of the target totem pole, but bear in mind the Buffalo Bills are top three in numberFire's passing defense.

Who's Probable

Evan Engram (knee) has missed most of the past month but is on track to play against the Atlanta Falcons. Owners should temper expectations if Engram plays because of the long layoff, but he's not in a bad matchup. The game sets to be one of the higher scoring ones for the week against a porous Atlanta Falcons defense, currently ranked 25th in Adjusted Passing NEP per play.

Cameron Meredith (knee) was limited in Wednesday's practice but upgraded to full participant the following day. In case you missed it, Ted Ginn Jr. was placed on the injured reserve late in the afternoon on Thursday, which could mean that Cameron Meredith gets an increased role. Meredith has yet to play 50% of the New Orleans Saints snaps in a game, whereas rookie Tre'Quan Smith played in Ginn's role in Week 5 and exploded for 111 yards on 3 catches, with two going for a score. Both players usage will be something to monitor come Sunday.

Who's Questionable

Teammates Mohamed Sanu (hip) and Calvin Ridley (ankle) have been limited in their first two practices, with Saturday left to go. With the Atlanta Falcons slated to play on Monday night, owners should be planning ahead and checking the Saturday practice reports if either miss. Justin Hardy and Russell Gage came off the bench for them last week, with Hardy getting seven targets on 54% of the team's snaps. They would be the first to get snaps, but the available targets should benefit Austin Hooper, who has recorded back-to-back 9 target games and makes for a nice tight end streamer.

Allen Robinson was a mid-week downgrade to DNP on Thursday, which is never a good sign, but it sounds like it was for precautionary reasons. Robinson is the current target leader for the Chicago Bears, but only narrowly -- Taylor Gabriel trails him by 4 targets. Josh Bellamy is the likely candidate to take Robinson's snaps, but his 7.6 targets per game probably gets re-distributed fairly evenly if he can't go.

Isaiah Crowell (foot) did not practice for the first two practices of the week, but did show up on Friday. It sounds like he will be a game time decision for the second straight week. The New York Jets have primarily been a two-man backfield, with rookie Trenton Cannon getting limited playing time. Bilal Powell, who has been the complimentary player to Crowell, should get the start and the majority of running back snaps and touches. If Crowell sits, Powell is a nice value ($5,600 on FanDuel) for the DFS slate, given the lack of cheaply priced running backs that have secure volume.

Adrian Peterson (shoulder, ankle) and Chris Thompson (ribs, knee) were limited in practice in week and both questionable. Despite injuries, Peterson played last week and had a 53% snap share with 17 rush attempts. Kapri Bibbs and Samaje Perine played behind Peterson, but only combined for 5 touches. If Chris Thompson can't go, we can expect the same for Peterson, but is very dependent on game flow in this matchup. The Dallas Cowboys boast a very strong rush defense, ranking third in Adjusted Rushing NEP per play at 0.17. Despite missing one game and having played one fewer than some, Thompson is sixth in target market share for all running backs.

Who's Out

A surprise DNP, Theo Riddick showed up on the injury report with a knee injury despite the Detroit Lions being on bye last week. The Lions backfield has been a time share this season, with LeGarrette Blount averaging 10 rush attempts per game and Kerryon Johnson averaging 12.6 touches per game while being more involved in the passing game than Blount. Ameer Abdullah is still on the roster but has been a non-factor this season, being inactive for three out of the five games played and having yet to play an offensive snap. Detroit has yo-yo'd Kerryon's usage, but with one less running back in the committee they might choose to commit to him on passing downs, where he could excel in PPR formats.

Final Reminder

As is with all injuries, each individual situation is fluid. Make sure to keep tabs throughout the weekend and keep up with our numberFire player news feed for up-to-date reports prior to kickoff. Good luck this week!

Gabriel Garrido is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Gabriel Garrido also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username guhreedoe28. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.