Fantasy Football Injury Discounted Players to Draft in 2024

by Joshua Larky · Draft Strategy

Josh Larky details five fantasy football injury discounted players to target in 2024 fantasy football drafts. All of these players suffered injuries in the 2023 season. 

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Jaylen Waddle

Waddle played all 16 games during his 2021 rookie season, setting a then-rookie record with 104 receptions. He averaged under 10 yards per reception though with an average target depth of just six yards downfield. The next season, Tyreek Hill joined the team, and Waddle was asked to play more of a deep threat role. His average target depth doubled in 2022, and he led the NFL with over 18 yards per reception. That year, he totaled 1,356 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, once again playing in every single game.

Last season, Waddle suffered through multiple injuries, and still finished with 72 receptions and 1,014 receiving yards. He missed three games, but he also played under 50-percent of the snaps in two others. Tyreek Hill is 30 years old and coming off a late season ankle sprain of his own. There is massive contingent upside for Waddle, too. He scored 28 fantasy points in the one game Hill missed last year. Waddle is a player to target in Round 2 of 2024 fantasy football drafts.

Jaylen Waddle Injury History

Josh hosts The Dominator on the PlayerProfiler podcast network, and Waddle is one of his favorite targets in the early rounds of fantasy drafts. He outlined his 22 favorite players in this range in just 22 minutes here.

Marquise Brown

Hollywood Brown played all 16 games in both 2020 and 2021 before struggling with injuries the past two seasons. Yet, he’s still commanded at least 100 targets each of the past four years, with target shares of at least 23-percent each season, too. His healthy 2020 and 2021 seasons were overshadowed by dampened passing volume in Baltimore before Arizona began unleashing him whenever he was healthy.

Marquise Brown Injury History

Now, he joins Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City where he has a real chance to lead the team in targets per game. Travis Kelce turns 35 soon, Rashee Rice is about to be suspended, and one of rookie Xavier Worthy‘s best comparable players is actually Marquise Brown himself. Worthy hasn’t had a chance to practice much due to a hamstring injury, so Brown is in great position to begin the year as the team’s WR1. Brown had a 26-percent target share in 2020 and 2021 with the Ravens, a similar number to what Tyreek Hill had when he was with the Chiefs. The upside for Brown is top-12 in fantasy this year.

Anthony Richardson

Anthony Richardson was a fantasy cheat code as a rookie, and the below tweet outlines the easy upside case for him.

Yes, Richardson may need to adjust his play style to stay healthier in 2024, but he was also a rookie QB on an offense missing Jonathan Taylor early in the season due to injury. Defenses will no longer be able to key in on Richardson in Year 2, and he’s the latest-drafted QB who has THE overall fantasy QB1 in his range of outcomes. Buy into Richardson and head coach Shane Steichen’s Colts offense in 2024.

Kyle Pitts

Pitts had over 1,000 receiving yards as a 2021 rookie playing with QB Matt Ryan. The past two years injuries and poor QB play have given Pitts the damaged goods label. While Pitts did play in all 17 games last year, he revealed after the season that he had surgery on multiple knee ligaments (MCL and PCL) prior to the 2023 season. No wonder he looked un-explosive at times last year while catching passes from Desmond Ridder.

Pitts now gets a massive QB upgrade in the newly-signed Kirk Cousins, and he should benefit as well from a higher volume passing attack. Pitts’ rookie season only featured one receiving touchdown despite 1,026 yards. If he can put the yardage together again with a few more touchdowns, he can finish as the TE1 overall in 2024. For context, George Kittle was the only tight end to eclipse 1,000 yards last year.

Jonathon Brooks

Jonathon Brooks didn’t break out until his junior season at the University of Texas for good reason (he was playing behind Bijan Robinson). In the recent NFL Draft, the Panthers traded up to select him at pick 46, making him the first running back off the board. New head coach Dave Canales saved Geno Smith‘s career in 2022 before resurrecting Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay last year. His next project is Bryce Young and Carolina’s offense.

Brooks excels between the tackles, in space, and as a pass-catcher. Reports also indicate he should be ready for Week 1 of the season after tearing his ACL late in his junior year. This year’s Rachaad White could very well be the ultra-talented rookie who was hand-picked in the NFL Draft by White’s 2023 offensive coordinator in Canales. Brooks draws play style comps to Tony Pollard and Aaron Jones, and Round 2 rookie running backs are usually off the board in Round 5 of fantasy drafts, rather than lasting until Round 8. Buy the injury dip in redraft.

Josh hosts The Dominator on the PlayerProfiler podcast network, and Brooks is one of his favorite targets in the middle rounds of fantasy drafts. He outlined his 20 favorite players in this range in just 20 minutes here.

For more articles from Josh, click here – Underdog Fantasy Best Ball Game Theory – 2024 Fantasy Football (playerprofiler.com)