FANTASY FOOTBALL NEWS

Justin Herbert Has Foot Injury, Should Be Ready For Week 1

By Jared Smola | Updated on Thu, Aug 1 2024 7:37 PM UTC

Chargers QB Justin Herbert has been diagnosed with a plantar fascia injury in his right foot, the team announced. "Doctors have recommended approximately two weeks in a boot — followed by a graduated return to play protocol — with the expectation that he will be ready for the start of the regular season," the team said in a statement.

2024 Fantasy Football Impact

We're a little over five weeks from the Chargers' season opener. Herbert will have three weeks of out his boot before then, although it's unclear how much he'll be able to practice initially.

It's obviously not ideal as Herbert works to settle into a new offense under HC Jim Harbaugh and OC Greg Roman and with new WRs Ladd McConkey and D.J. Chark. Then, of course, there's the risk that this injury lingers into the regular season.

We'll keep you updated on Herbert's progress over the next month. But, in a likely run-leaning offense with a shaky group of pass-catchers, he wasn't a priority target in fantasy drafts even before this injury.

Rankings Movement

With the expectation that Herbert will be available for Week 1, we're not lowering his baseline projection. But we are docking his floor projection a bit to account for this new risk factor. See where Herbert lands in the updated QB rankings.

Projected ADP Movement

We're expecting at least a slight dip in Herbert's ADP on this news. Drafters haven't seemed excited to take him even before this injury. Herbert's recent Underdog ADP sits in Round 12 as the 17th QB off the board. If he dips considerably from there, he could turn into a value.

Jared Smola, Lead Analyst

Jared has been with Draft Sharks since 2007. He’s now Lead Analyst, heading up the preseason and weekly projections that fuel your Draft War Room and My Team tools. He currently ranks sixth among 158 analysts in draft rankings accuracy.