NFL Breaking News: Joe Burrow Injury Update & Fantasy Football Impact on Cincinnati Bengals
Oof, the hits and NFL injury news just keep on coming. Earlier on Friday, we found out that Baltimore Ravens star tight end Mark Andrews is likely out for the season after suffering a cracked fibula and a torn ligament in his ankle. Now, we have more bad news. Cincinnati Bengals star quarterback Joe Burrow is out for the season after suffering a torn ligament in his wrist in the first half of their Week 11 Thursday Night Football matchup against the Baltimore Ravens. This obviously has major impacts all across fantasy football, not only for Burrow managers, but for Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd, and Joe Mixon. Let’s break down the implications of a backup quarterback in Cincinnati as well as potential lineup replacements and fantasy football waiver wire pickups following this NFL breaking news.
Joe Burrow Injury & Fantasy Football Impact
Impact on Bengals Pass-Catchers
We can’t judge just by one game (or better yet, one half), but the usage was not great for any of the Bengals wide receivers. Instead, backup quarterback Jake Browning gravitated more towards the tight ends, with Drew Sample and Tanner Hudson combining for 68 yards on six receptions. Meanwhile, the leading receiver was backup receiver Trenton Irwin, with Tyler Boyd and Ja'Marr Chase only combining for five receptions and thirty four yards. While Chase did salvage his fantasy day with a touchdown, it’s not looking good for the Bengals receiving options. We don’t know a lot about Browning, despite him taking the reps during training camp after Burrow injured his calf, but only throwing for 68 total yards in a half isn’t a good indication. There’s currently no one else listed on the Bengals depth chart at quarterback behind Browning, so they may opt to call one of the veteran free agents on the market like Colt McCoy or Matt Ryan. Even then, it craters the fantasy value of everyone in the receiving room.
Potential Fantasy Football Quarterback Waiver Wire Pickups
The waiver wire is pretty barren at this point in the season, but let’s take a look at some of the options who are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues and rate them as a replacement.
Baker Mayfield, QB Tampa Bay Buccaneers
FAAB Bid of 25-30%
While it may feel a little gross considering his performance last season, Mayfield is actually higher ranked in both season-long and on a points per game basis than Burrow is through the end of Week 10. He has a 64.6% completion percentage, and he ranks 11th among all quarterbacks in adjusted yards per attempt. The schedule is fairly favorable for the rest of the regular season, with matchups against the Indianapolis Colts, Carolina Panthers, and Atlanta Falcons to close out the regular season of fantasy.
Jordan Love, QB Green Bay Packers
FAAB Bid of 20-25%
Love has gone through a small lull in production through the midway point of the season, but he’s still been consistent enough to be sitting as the QB13 on the season. He has a decent schedule to round out the season, with the Detroit Lions, Kansas City Chiefs, and New York Giants, and while the Lions and Chiefs have been stingy to opposing quarterbacks, the volume and deep ball attempts should put him in the low-end QB1 range. If Christian Watson gets healthy, it helps him even more.
Matthew Stafford, QB Los Angeles Rams
FAAB Bid of 15-20%
Even with Cooper Kupp back in the lineup, Stafford has been a little disappointing, only averaging 14.8 fantasy points per game, but maybe we can chalk that up to injury. What worries me about Stafford, however, is the end of season schedule. In Weeks 13 and 14, the Rams face the Cleveland Browns and then the Baltimore Ravens. If you’re on the cusp of the fantasy playoffs, Stafford may do more harm than good in your lineup.
Player News
Ravens signed DT John Jenkins to a one-year contract.
The 35-year-old 13th-year pro slides in as a 1-for-1 Michael Pierce replacement after the former Raven retired in March. Although strictly a two-down player, Jenkins actually played a new career high 606 snaps for the Raiders last season. He probably won’t reach that total in Baltimore, but he should see plenty of work as a run-stopper.
49ers signed K Greg Joseph.
The 30-year-old journeyman spent time with each of the Giants, Commanders and Jets last season. He’ll serve as a veteran, in-house option should third-year pro Jake Moody look shaky this summer after an underwhelming 2024.
49ers signed Brock Purdy to a five-year, $265 million contract extension.
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Purdy gets $181 million in total guarantees with $165.1 million in the first three new years. He is now under contract through 2030. The 2022 Mr. Irrelevant flashed in a handful of starts as a rookie and immediately proved to be Kyle Shanahan’s next efficiency phenom in 2023 with 4,280 yards and 31 scores. Purdy’s numbers fell in 2024, but he did enough to keep the offense on the tracks despite a rash of injuries, even if the 49ers lumbered to a 6-11 record. Purdy managed 3,864 yards and 20 scores in 15 games and showed an improved ability to work out of structure and under pressure. Though he may not have a truly elite ceiling, Purdy is beginning to beat the system quarterback allegations after just two seasons as the full-time starter. With the league’s easiest schedule on tap for 2025, expect a rebound from Purdy and the entire team this year.
Jets released K Greg Zuerlein.
Defensive end Michael Fletcher was signed in a corresponding move. Zuerlein has kicked for the Jets since 2022. He suffered a knee injury last year and briefly returned before being placed back on injured reserve. Zuerlein appeared in eight games and went a dreadful 9-of-15 on his field goal tries. The 60 percent hit rate was by far the worst of his career. Now 37 years old, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Legatron hang up the cleats for good after being released. If he wants to keep kicking, another team will be more than willing to at least give him a camp battle to win.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter said his guess is that the NFL will ban the tush push during next week’s owners’ meeting.
Schefter didn’t cite any sources directly but reiterated the point later in the latest episode of The Adam Schefter Podcast, saying he “wouldn’t be surprised” if the owners voted to outlaw the play. Losing the free touchdown play would undoubtedly hurt Philly’s offense and Jalen Hurts’ fantasy outlook, but it’s hard to imagine a team with Hurts, an elite offensive line, and Saquon Barkley not finding other ways to get in the end zone from a yard out. If the tush push is banned, it would likely just shuffle some of Hurts’ touchdowns to Barkley. Other teams including the Bills have experimented with similar plays, but no one has found as much success as the Eagles. The owners will also be voting on a change to the playoff seeding rules. The proposed change would seed teams based purely on their record instead of each division winner earning a top-four seed. While that may be a more logical way to do things, it’s certainly less fun.
Steelers beat writer Nick Farabaugh reports the team has called the Saints about a possible trade for Chris Olave.
According to Farabaugh, one source described the Steelers’ inquiry as “a due diligence call” while adding that a trade “doesn’t seem likely to happen” at this time. The Steelers trade George Pickens to the Cowboys just over a week ago, and are now looking at DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson, and Calvin Austin as their top options in three receiver sets. Of those three, Metcalf is the only receiver with notable NFL success, while Wilson effectively redshirted his rookie season due to injuries. Olave caught 32 passes for 400 yards and one touchdown for the Saints last season, but missed nine games due to multiple concussions he suffered. The four-year receiver posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons during his first two years in the league, and would provide an immediate upgrade to an underwhelming Steelers receiving corps. Farabaugh reports that in addition to a trade being unlikely, that the Saints do “not seem interested in trading Olave” at this time. The Saints picked up Olave’s fifth-year option last month, and will likely look to extend him in the not too distant future.