DeAndre Hopkins Injury: Will He Play Week 1? (Fantasy Football)

Another weekend of NFL football has arrived! Unfortunately, the injury watch for fantasy football managers is also here. Players who appear on the injury report and haven’t practiced much during the week can often lead to trepidation for managers trying to make fantasy football lineup decisions and/or waiver claims. Don’t fret, though – FantasyPros is here to provide you with all of the latest news and updates on the players who are questionable heading into this week. So, will DeAndre Hopkins play in Week 1? Here’s what we know.

Fantasy Football Outlook

DeAndre Hopkins (knee) questionable for Sunday
DeAndre Hopkins (knee) is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears.

Fantasy Impact

Hopkins will be listed as questionable to play heading into the weekend. He is still working on recovering from a mildly serious knee injury, but HC Brian Callahan noted that his conditioning is what they are being cautious with at this point. If the veteran is unable to play, Calvin Ridley will be in line for a lot of work in the team’s season opener.

Leo Sells

Fantasy Football Injury Outlook

Data slightly favors playing (60%) but with a sizable dip in production of ~20%. Hopkins will also carry a high re-injury risk for most of the season. He does however have a long history of playing through injuries.
– Dr. Deepak Chona

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What the Experts Are Saying

Hopkins is dealing with a knee injury, but he’s expected to play in Week 1, according to the latest reports I’ve read. He practiced on a limited basis all week and has been listed as questionable. Last year, he was the WR29 in fantasy points per game. With Will Levis under center last year (Weeks 8-15), he saw a 26.9% target share, a 46.1% air-yard share, and produced 2.40 yards per route run as the WR18 in fantasy points per game. Those market share numbers will drop some with Calvin Ridley in town. Hopkins was the only main show in town last season. Last season, Chicago, in Weeks 11-18, was playing lights-out defense, and a large part of this was their move towards heavy Cover 3 and Cover 4 usage (56.7%). While they changed defensive coordinators this offseason, it’s tough to see them change the model much this season. Last year, against Cover 3 and Cover 4 with Levis under center, Hopkins had a 29.8% target share, 3.0 YPRR, a 37.6% first-read share, and 0.102 FD/RR. Hopkins will run about 79% of his routes against Tyrique Stevenson (65.5% catch rate and 100.4 passer rating) and Jaylon Johnson (50% catch rate and 33.3 passer rating).
– Derek Brown