Games Played and Positional Volatility

This article is a comprehensive breakdown of injuries in the NFL and their impact on fantasy football production. It provides insight on how likely a player is to play based on practice participation, injury specifics, and position. There is also data on fantasy point production following different injuries.

Adam Hutchison's Games Played and Positional Volatility Adam Hutchison Published 09/01/2024

The Footballguys Injury Index contains injury timelines and fantasy performance outcomes for quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends from 2017 to 2023. The database contains over 2,000 injuries. However, to avoid any confusion, it is important to lay some ground rules. I am not saying that this is exactly what will happen. I do not have a crystal ball, nor should this report be used as one. Like most things in life, context is important. Every injury is unique.

Enjoy.

Sections of the Footballguys Injury Index

Chance to Play, Questionable vs. Doubtful
Chance to Play, Practice Participation
Games Played and Positional Volatility
Fantasy Performance and Re-Injury Rate by Position

Positional Volatility

You have likely heard that running backs are more susceptible to injury and that wide receivers are safer picks. It’s one of the foundational pieces of the "Zero RB Strategy." It would appear there is some truth to that theory.

These graphs show the range of outcomes for QB, RB, WR, and TE to play a full-season game merely based on historical comps for fantasy-relevant players, not considering ADP or injury history.

injury games played

Here are the probabilities for players at each position to play at least 12 games or a full 17-game season.

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