Inside The Medical Tent: Regular Season Week 1

Presented by The Injured List Podcast and That Sports Podcast Network

Written by Brian Scott and Andrew Leduc

Welcome to The Medical Tent

Welcome back for the third year of “Inside The Medical Tent.” Each week I, Andrew Leduc, will be asking Brian Scott, of “The Injured List Podcast,” injury questions that could have a fantasy impact. Brian will be giving his professional analysis of the injury and potential timelines. I will then turn that around into what you should do with that player and who could be a possible replacement. Check back every Wednesday during the season for all the necessary information before hitting your league’s waiver wire.

Mark Andrews - TE (BAL)

Andrew Leduc - Why all of the "hush" surrounding his status?

Brian Scott - Mark Andrews is going to be 29 years old at the tight end position and over the last two seasons he has missed some significant time, including 7 DNPs last year due to fractured fibula in week 10. Despite this he did make a comeback for the playoffs. For most of his career he has been durable and very effective when on the field with Lamar Jackson. There have been reports he was involved in a “minor” car accident a few weeks ago, but what is concerning is that he has yet to practice this week. Despite this head coach John Harbaugh has told the media that he is fine and will be ready to go week 1. It is not unusual for people to come out of car accidents with no major injuries. However, it is also not unusual for them to have a lot of generalized aches and pains from bumps and bruises due to air bags and other safety features in cars today which while doing their job, can still lead to minor injuries. Andrews is a veteran of this team and does not need much time to prepare, however, lack of time on the field in preseason means he will likely get off to a slow start and could be at risk for soft tissue injuries early in the season until he can work his way back into game shape. 

Andrew Leduc - The dreaded "soft-tissue" injury. That potential worries me, but it worries me with everyone these days. Having been in a car accident myself before, the general aches and pains caused by whiplash and airbags is a real thing. This certainly does feel like a situation where he is just resting up for the season at this point. Currently Andrews is being drafted as the TE4 and around 50th overall. What is interesting this year is that he might be at the best value you have been able to get him in years, yet there is risk beyond the injury.

The tight end position this year feels like an even race at the top for the first time in a while. With Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, and Mark Andrews all hanging right around the same production and expectations as Travis Kelce. Both Kelce and LaPorta are currently going around the start of the 3rd round with McBride and Andrews going at the start of the 5th round. Given the lack of serious concern on the injury front here for Andrews, I would much rather draft him or McBride at their current ADP than the first two as both have just as much a chance to finish TE1 in my opinion. McBride will have a fully healthy Murray throwing him the ball in an offense that should find a stride. Either way, the premium you have to pay for Kelce and LaPorta does not seem worth the risk on return when I can grab studs at other positions in those rounds instead. Hell, taking George Kittle at the end of the 5th round could also still be better than any of the above options. Either way I believe Andrews has the chance to return some serious value and is definitely worth the risk.

Jacoby Brissett - QB (NE)

Andrew Leduc - Now named the official starter in Week 1, should we be concerned by the shoulder injury sustained in the final preseason game?

Brian Scott - He played only one drive this past preseason game and was removed due to a shoulder injury. He has repeatedly stated in media reports that he is “fine” and is expecting to be the Patriots starting QB week 1. He blames the injury on not taking any significant hits over the last 8 months and that he was “surprised” by the hit that caused his shoulder injury, but that he was removed more for precautionary measures. Again he has stated that he is “100% fine” and could have kept playing in the team’s preseason finale, but was removed as a precautionary measure. Of course, this is what I would expect to hear from a veteran backup QB with what could be one of his last chances to secure a starting spot on an NFL roster. 

Andrew Leduc - Let's be honest. This was my excuse to talk the Drake Maye situation given there won't be many fantasy relevant injuries on this team this year. Brissett has officially been named the starter for the New England Patriots and fans in these parts have a variety of mixed feelings. What it comes down to in the end is the lack of trust in the organization that the right people are in place to make the right moves. The message has been unclear and the results have been surprising. Drake Maye outplayed Brissett by the end of the preseason. Unfortunately though, the team has not spent enough time prioritizing Maye to the point where he is probably ready to start a full season. It also does not help that this offense may have the worst offensive line in the league.

When Drake Maye starts this year I would temper expectations. He is still very green and needs to sharpen that god given natural athletic talent he has and has shown. In the meantime, I expect Rhamondre Stevenson to be the most relevant fantasy asset on this team followed closely by Hunter Henry as a huge steal and value at TE. The problem with both is that their ceilings are capped due to the expected lack of touchdown opportunity. Given this, both will be useful from a flex standpoint for the most part. As far as the future goes, Ja'Lynn Polk has the best chance to make an impact earlier even with Brissett at QB. With Bourne starting the season on the PUP list, Polk and Demario Douglas have the skill set to work the short and intermediate areas of the field. I do not expect Brissett to be pushing the ball deep to often on the outside. This is unfortunate for someone like Javon Baker who has a much higher success rate when using his speed and size on the edges. In the end though, I would just avoid this team all together until they show us miracles do exist.

Josh Downs - WR (IND)

Andrew Leduc - Making good progress after high ankle sprain

Brian Scott - This injury happened in early August, so I think it is a little presumptuous to think that he can be ready to go week 1 given that he has a high ankle sprain. The Colt’s head coach Shane Steichen would not give a timetable as to Down’s return. This is a very clear sign to me that Down’s will NOT be ready week 1. With high ankle sprains, it is not uncommon for players to take anywhere between 4-6 weeks to make an adequate recovery. I tend to lean more towards the 6 week mark when you can expect players at the skilled position to return and make any meaningful impact on the field. Think Saquon Barkley a few years ago with the NY Giants. They tried bringing him back way too early and it ended up costing him a few more weeks. It is not that head coach Steichen did not want to put a time table on Down’s return, he simply Can’t! Why? Simple, he is barely 4 weeks into his injury and recovery, which tells me that he will need more time. 

Andrew Leduc - This is not good news at all for a team that I think has some overrated fantasy values on. Anthony Richardson has not look as sharp with his throwing so far. I am very weary of the hype on Johnathan Taylor. I like Michael Pittman, but I feel as though his numbers last season were inflated by a pass happy Gardner Minshew and a touchdown stat line that most likely won't be replicated. This team just seems to have a potentially sneaky depth issue. It is not that I don't like someone like Adonai Mitchell or Alec Pierce, but I like them in their roles as the 3rd or 4th receiver. With Downs most likely missing some time there is no real threat to counter Pittman's skill. The lack of high-end talent at the TE position only makes the situation worse. This offense just feels like it is going to be easy to prepare for and have a lot of high-risk playing styles.

CeeDee Lamb - WR (DAL)

Andrew Leduc - Will Lamb have a higher injury risk after the hold out?

Brian Scott - Reporter Mike Florio seems to think that CeeDee is at risk for pulling a hamstring due to his contract holdout. I did not know he had a medical degree…oh wait, he does not! While inactivity can certainly increase the risk for soft tissue injuries, one has to be careful to project this onto a player that has not suited up during the preseason due to a contract stalemate. Lamb by all accounts has come into this season with a clean bill of health and we can assume that as a skilled position player who is a valuable asset on a high profile team like the Dallas Cowboys, he has kept himself in top shape this offseason. Just because he has not suited up on the field with the team, does not mean he has not been in the gym, or out somewhere on the field running routes and getting ready. It simply means he was not doing it with the team. As with any practice session, it can be difficult to simulate game like conditions and movements when training, but it does not detract from it’s importance.  Let’s give CeeDee the benefit of the doubt on this one as he has shown no signs of neglecting his physical health so far in his young career.  If we were to extrapolate this situation to a player coming off injury, then different story. Lamb does not fit in that category. 

Andrew Leduc - This is our yearly cautionary tale about using your own common sense when deciphering the news you take in from the mainstream sports media. Remember, their job is based on consumers having a reason to tune in and listen, watch, or read. They need to fill the news cycles with story lines. This does not mean they are lying, but it does mean they may stretch out the scenario a bit to be able to fill an entire segment on a show. CeeDee Lamb has since signed his contract and should have no reason to not show up and be the receiver he has been hyped up to be all off-season. Fire him up confidently as the WR2 and overall 3rd player in current ADP.

The Discharge

Come back every week for all of the latest injury updates. If you have other questions we didn’t get to in this week’s edition you can follow us on Twitter below and message us directly.

Brian Scott - The Injured List Podcast - (@injuredlistpod)  https://twitter.com/injuredlistpod

Andrew Leduc - (@theRealMrMallard) https://twitter.com/realMrMallard

If you are interested in Andrew’s weekly rankings as well, follow the link below to TSS Fantasy.

Andrew Leduc’s (Mr. Mallard) Rankings - https://tssfantasy.com/andrews-rankings