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LANDOVER, MARYLAND - NOVEMBER 08: Puka Nacua #12 of the Los Angeles Rams runs the ball against the Washington Commanders during the fourth quarter at Northwest Stadium on November 08, 2026 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Getty ImagesWe’re about one month out from the start of the fantasy football playoffs. If your roster isn’t being held together by duct tape right now, you’re in great shape.
The 2026 NFL season has been brutal from an injury standpoint, and Week 9 brought another onslaught of notable ailments. A handful of starting quarterbacks suffered injuries that could jeopardize their availability for Week 10 and beyond. A pair of starting running backs went down with injuries that will sideline them for at least one week. And a number of fantasy-relevant wide receivers are also on the mend after suffering injuries on Sunday.
Every week, we’ll be breaking down the biggest injury news that could shape your fantasy football lineup moving forward. Let’s dive into all of the most notable updates ahead of Week 10.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ season nearly went off the rails Sunday. Late in the second quarter of their eventual blowout win over the New York Jets, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes left the field holding his elbow after getting hit by Jets edge-rusher David Bailey as he was attempting a throw. Luckily, he was able to return to the game on the Chiefs’ next offensive possession.
Mahomes underwent an MRI after the game, and sources told NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport that the tests “did not reveal a major injury.” Rapoport added that “Mahomes’ elbow strain/sprain will be monitored over the next few days for pain and swell. But so far, so good.”
For now, it seems as though Mahomes should be able to suit up in Week 10 against the Atlanta Falcons. But pay close attention to the Chiefs’ injury reports at practice, as it wouldn’t be surprising if Mahomes is limited, especially early in the week.
Just when you thought the Los Angeles Chargers’ season couldn’t be going any worse, quarterback Justin Herbert left midway through the fourth quarter of his team’s blowout loss to the Houston Texans with an injury to the middle finger on his left (non-throwing) hand.
According to ESPN, Herbert “said he wanted to stay in the game, but coach Jim Harbaugh said he overruled him.” However, Harbaugh told reporters Monday that X-rays on Herbert’s hand came back negative for a fracture, “so he should be good to go.”
Even with Herbert active, there might not be a single Chargers skill-position player who should be in fantasy lineups in 10- or 12-team leagues. They’ve been that much of a mess this season.
New York Giants quarterback left his team’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles in the third quarter with a hip injury after taking a big hit from Eagles linebacker Zack Baun. He missed the Giants’ ensuing drive—and backup Jameis Winston went 6-of-8 for 71 yards and a touchdown on said drive—before returning to finish out the game, albeit hobbled.
After the game, McCarthy told reporters that he felt “good” and that “we’re going to do our best to make sure we turn over as fast as possible and do whatever we can between now and then and make sure we’re as close to 100% leading up to a great opponent against Washington.” Unfortunately for McCarthy, the Giants are facing the Commanders on Thursday Night Football in Week 10, so he’s facing a tighter-than-usual turnaround.
On Monday, Giants head coach John Harbaugh told reporters that McCarthy is “doing well” and it “does look like he’s going to play” against Washington. But regardless of whether McCarthy or Winston starts under center, Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers and tight end Isaiah Likely should be in all fantasy lineups.
Seattle Seahawks starting quarterback Sam Darnold missed his team’s Week 9 win over the Arizona Cardinals with a quad injury and a cracked rib, and he’s not expected to return their Week 10 game against the Las Vegas Raiders, either. But he isn’t the only Seahawks quarterback who’s nursing multiple injuries.
Drew Lock, who started in Darnold’s place on Sunday, came into the game with an elbow injury and suffered an oblique injury during the game as well. But during a radio appearance Monday, MacDonald said the Seahawks got a “good exam for Drew” and “I think it’s something we can manage,” according to Seahawks reporter John Boyle.
Lock’s availability for Week 10 is great news for fantasy managers who’ve been relying on star wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The Seahawks otherwise would have been down to third-string quarterback Jalen Milroe, who has attempted only three regular-season passes thus far in his NFL career.
On Friday, the Arizona Cardinals officially traded quarterback Jacoby Brissett, whom they benched for Gardner Minshew in Week 8, to the Baltimore Ravens. Three days later, they might be having some seller’s remorse.
According to Rapoport, Minshew “is feared to have suffered a torn UCL in his throwing arm” against the Seahawks. He suffered the injury before halftime and played through it in the second half, but Rapoport added that he now might be out for the rest of the season.
If that’s the case, rookie quarterback Carson Beck will now be in line to start, albeit with a depleted pass-catching corps. (More on that later.) Beck will have little choice but to pepper tight end Trey McBride with targets moving forward, although McBride’s chances of racking up touchdowns might go down exponentially if Minshew is done for the year.
Josh Jacobs’ return to the Green Bay Packers lineup didn’t last long. In only his third game back after a six-game suspension, Jacobs suffered a fractured finger in the first quarter of his team’s blowout win over the New England Patriots and did not return.
After the game, head coach Matt LaFleur told reporters that “hopefully we can do something to allow him to go out there, but he was just having a hard time gripping the ball.” However, CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported Monday that Jacobs is “set to undergo surgery on his injured finger this week and is expected to miss a maximum of three weeks.”
With Jacobs sidelined, Kaleb Johnson led the way in Green Bay’s backfield with 14 carries for 68 yards and a touchdown, while Pierre Strong Jr. added eight carries for 22 yards. If Marshawn Lloyd returns this week—he missed Sunday’s game with a knee injury—the Packers could be right back to a three-headed backfield that is a fantasy football quagmire.
With fellow New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson dealing with an “unexpected and unusual medical emergency,” Rhamondre Stevenson dominated the Patriots’ backfield in Week 8 with a season-high 19 carries for 82 yards. He was on pace for another hefty workload against the Packers—he had six carries for 32 yards and three catches for 46 yards—until he suffered a knee injury in the third quarter and did not return.
On Monday, Schefter reported that Stevenson “is dealing with a knee tendon issue that is not expected to require surgery but could sideline him for a short period of time.” Rapoport added that “the injury is to the back of Stevenson’s knee and is expected to keep him out the next few weeks.”
Corey Kiner led the Patriots with eight carries for 55 yards and a touchdown against the Packers, so he figures to get the first crack at the starting job with Stevenson and Henderson sidelined. The Pats could always pursue an upgrade on the trade market ahead of the NFL trade deadline at 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, too.
With Davante Adams sidelined for the past few weeks, Puka Nacua has become the clear focal point of the Los Angeles Rams’ passing attack. He hauled in 14 catches for a season-high 150 yards and one touchdown against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, although his final touch of the game proved to be costly.
On Monday, head coach Sean McVay told reporters that Nacua suffered MCL and PCL sprains along with turf toe and is likely headed to injured reserve. The Rams have a bye in Week 11, so Nacua won’t be able to return until Week 15 at the earliest, which is the start of the fantasy playoffs in most leagues.
Nacua was a consensus top-five pick this year, so this is a devastating blow to fantasy managers who’ve been relying on his preposterous output as of late. It remains to be seen how the Rams distribute his targets moving forward, but no one player is likely to come anywhere close to replicating his level of production.
Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson showed up in last week’s injury report because of two broken ribs. Unfortunately, he suffered another injury on Sunday against the Seahawks, and this one is of the season-ending variety.
On Monday, Rapoport reported that Wilson suffered a neck injury that will sideline him for the remainder of the year. With Kendrick Bourne (leg) already on IR with a season-ending injury and the Cardinals having traded Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Houston Texans, their receiving corps is suddenly decimated.
At this point, tight end Trey McBride is the only Cardinals player who should be in fantasy lineups in 10-team leagues. Running back Tyler Allgeier is worth a look in deeper leagues if you’re desperate, but he figures to be seeing plenty of eight-man boxes until Carson Beck proves he can beat teams through the air.
Late in the fourth quarter of their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night, the Chicago Bears were trying to bleed the clock with an eight-point lead. They set up a wide receiver screen to Luther Burden III on 3rd-and-7, but he fumbled the ball after a major hit from Bucs edge-rusher Rueben Bain Jr., setting the Bucs up with a short field.
While Bain wasn’t flagged for it, replays showed that it was a clear helmet-to-helmet hit, which is seemingly what caused Burden to fumble. After the game, Bears head coach Ben Johnson confirmed that Burden suffered a concussion on the play.
Fortunately, the Bears have a bye in Week 10, so Burden will have two weeks to clear the NFL’s concussion protocol. While concussion symptoms last longer in some players than others, fantasy managers shouldn’t be too worried about Burden’s availability in Week 11 for the time being.
Burden wasn’t the only notable wide receiver who suffered a concussion on Sunday. Denver Broncos wideout Jaylen Waddle also left his team’s win over the Carolina Panthers at the end of the first quarter after a big hit on a deep pass and did not return.
With Waddle sidelined, Pat Bryant—who just returned from injured reserve due to an ankle injury—finished with four catches for a team-high 56 yards and a touchdown, while Courtland Sutton had a team-high five catches for 45 yards and a touchdown. Broncos quarterback Bo Nix completed a pass to nine different players, including Waddle, and five Broncos finished with at least 30 receiving yards.
That type of a wide target tree makes it difficult to predict which Broncos pass-catchers should be in lineups each week. If Waddle misses Week 10, though, both Sutton and Bryant would be worth a look in deeper leagues.
Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey wasn’t even on his team’s injury report heading into their Week 9 game against the Texans. However, he had back spasms during pregame warmups and wound up not playing a single snap in the blowout loss, according to Noah Furtado of The Athletic.
McConkey returned from a one-game absence in Week 8 and hauled in four catches for a season-high 86 yards, but in true 2026 Chargers fashion, nothing good could last. It’s now unclear whether McConkey will be available in Week 10, as head coach Jim Harbaugh told reporters Monday that he’s day-to-day.
Since the Chargers are playing on Monday night, fantasy managers should be exploring alternative options. Unless you’re desperate, McConkey should not be in lineups in 10-team leagues until he has another prove-it game.
Patrick Mahomes wasn’t the only notable Chiefs player to suffer an injury against the Jets in Week 9. Wide receiver Xavier Worthy left early with a hamstring injury as well.
Prior to departing, Worthy hauled in six passes for 48 yards. On Monday, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters that both Mahomes and Worthy are considered day-to-day, although a hamstring injury can be particularly fickle for a speedster like Worthy.
Worthy is likely on the doubtful side of questionable for now, although fantasy mangers should pay close attention to the Chiefs’ injury reports at practice throughout the week. If he can’t suit up against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 10, the Chiefs’ passing offense figures to revolve around wideout Rashee Rice and tight end Travis Kelce, while Cyrus Allen and Jalen Royals would be in line for more work as well. They wouldn’t be realistic fantasy options in 10- or 12-team leagues, though.
Dallas Cowboys tight end came into Week 9 questionable with an ankle injury that he suffered against the Cardinals in Week 8, but he tried to gut through it after missing practice on Wednesday and Thursday. He did catch two passes for 21 yards and a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts, although his second catch proved to be costly.
After hauling in an 11-yard pass late in the third quarter, Ferguson took a hard shot to his knee and had to leave the game. On Monday, head coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters that both Ferguson and backup running back Tyler Goodson (knee) are expected to miss “multiple weeks.”
Fellow tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford has quietly carved out a role for himself in recent weeks, although wideouts CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and Ryan Flournoy will remain the heart of the Cowboys’ aerial attack with or without Ferguson.
Giants running back Cam Skattebo missed his team’s win over the Eagles on Sunday because of a hamstring injury, but he’s expected to return this coming week. Giants head coach John Harbaugh told reporters Monday that he’ll be “full go” against the Commanders on Thursday, per ESPN’s Jordan Ranaan.
Devin Singletary may still siphon off some work from Singletary, particularly on third downs. But with Tyrone Tracy Jr. still on IR, Skattebo should be the main option in the Giants’ backfield on Thursday night, so fantasy managers should get him back into their lineups.
The New England Patriots are headed to Munich, Germany to face the Detroit Lions in Week 10. Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters Monday that wide receiver A.J. Brown is expected to travel with the team, although it’s unclear whether he’ll be able to suit up for the game.
Brown has appeared in only three games thus far because of ankle and knee injuries. The Patriots have a bye in Week 11, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they erred on the side of caution and held Brown out against Detroit to give him two more weeks of rest before the stretch run.
If Brown can’t go, DeMario Douglas would be worth plugging into lineups again, as he hauled in five catches for a team-high 102 yards in Brown’s absence against the Packers in Week 9. He had at least 60 yards and a touchdown in three
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