Fantasy Football Impact of Patrick Mahomes Injury

What does Patrick Mahomes expected absence mean for fantasy football?

Injuries happen all of the time, unfortunately. There have been a few quarterback injuries this season, including Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees and Cam Newton. We can add one more to the list, Patrick Mahomes. He suffered a knee injury in the second quarter on a QB sneak, sending the fantasy football world into a tailspin.

Early reports say there is no fracture but he still has to undergo an MRI to see if there is any ligament damage. Ian Rappaport of NFL Network says Mahomes is expected to be out for at least three weeks and that the MRI will reveal if he’ll be out longer.

Backup quarterback Matt Moore came in relief. He completed 10-of-19 passes for 117 yards and a touchdown. The touchdown came on a 57-yard pass to Tyreek Hill.

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The Chiefs should be fine with Moore under center. They have enough weapons to make him successful, Hill, Travis Kelce, Mecole Hardman, Sammy Watkins and Demarcus Robinson. Though, I wouldn’t trust Moore on my fantasy team. He hasn’t played a full season since 2011 when he played in 13 games for the Dolphins.

If you have Mahomes on your fantasy team, you should have a few replacement options available to you on the waiver wire. You likely started Mahomes this week, so you need a replacement for weeks 8 to 10. I wrote a piece recently, highlighting three quarterbacks with favorable schedules.

Sam Darnold is at the top of the list. The Jets offense looked like a different offense with Darnold back under center. He has a great list of opponents coming up with a solid group of weapons to target. Jacoby Brissett and Kirk Cousins are also widely available.

If Mahomes is out for just three weeks, your team should be good enough to survive with one of those quarterbacks with the rest of your team. If not, then maybe your team wasn’t good enough even with Mahomes in the lineup. But the MRI will let us know a better timetable for his return.

As far as the Chiefs skill players, Kelce and Hill should be fine. I think the secondary players, like Hardman and Robinson take a hit to their value. The running game should see an increase in usage. The Chiefs ran the ball 27 times, with LeSean McCoy leading the way with 12 attempts.

I think McCoy and Damien Williams see a boost in production with Moore at quarterback.

The Chiefs play the Packers, Vikings, Titans and Chargers in their next four games. The first two games are going to be tough on the offense. The Chiefs are going to need help on both sides of the ball in those two games. The Titans and Chargers matchup should be a bit easier from a fantasy football perspective.

The Chiefs have a bye in week 12. I think we’ll see Mahomes back in week 13 in the game against the Raiders. If the Chiefs go 2-2 in those games, coming out of the bye at 7-4 should still have them in the playoff conversation. Having Mahomes come back at 100 percent is the ultimate goal for the Chiefs.

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The Chiefs may fall behind some of the other top AFC teams during Mahomes’ absence, however long that may be. For fantasy football, their owners need to make a move now for a reliable quarterback if they are still in the playoff hunt. The options are limited for good replacement value.

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