Patrick Mahomes Injury: Who To Target In Fantasy Football With Chiefs QB Out

Patrick Mahomes is going to be out for a little while, though the exact length of time remains to be seen.

In the second quarter of the Kansas City Chiefs’ win over the Denver Broncos on Thursday,the star quarterback left the game due to what has been described as a right patellar, or kneecap, dislocation. The best-case scenario is he’s out three weeks, although an MRI should soon reveal more.

In many fantasy football leagues, Mahomes was the first quarterback taken off the board, and typically those who selected him were making sacrifices at other positions in order to pick him. Because of that, owners who took Mahomes are in a bit of a bind right now. Matt Moore likely will take over for Mahomes (the Chiefs do need to find another signal-caller since they only were rostering Mahomes and Moore), but he shouldn’t be relied upon for fantasy purposes.

So what now?

Here are a few players to consider picking up that might be available in your league. Some are other quarterbacks around the NFL, while there’s also one Chiefs player that may see an increased role tossed in here as well.

Gardner Minshew, QB, Jaguars (owned in 51 percent of Yahoo leagues)
It took six weeks for the rookie quarterback to finally have a truly bad showing. Minshew doesn’t typically put up eye-popping numbers, but he has thrown for at least two touchdowns in all but two games this season and he only has a pair of picks to his name. His four fumbles are a little concerning, but three came in the same game, so for now let’s think of that as an aberration.

The biggest problem with Minshew is that Nick Foles is eligible to return in Week 11, and there’s a chance he might reclaim his job. Furthermore, the Jaguars’ bye is in Week 10, so assuming you started Mahomes this week, you’d only get Mineshew for two weeks before the bye and Foles potentially returning to start.

Jacoby Brissett, QB, Colts (owned in 46 percent of Yahoo leagues)
Don’t sleep on Andrew Luck’s replacement. Brissett’s last showing, which was against the Chiefs in Week 5, was underwhelming, but he has thrown 10 touchdowns to three interceptions in five contests. Though the Colts will face the Denver Broncos and their quality defense in Week 8, their upcoming opponents beyond Denver include the Miami Dolphins, Jaguars and Houston Texans. That puts Brissett in position for a few big games over the next month.

Sam Darnold, QB, Jets (owned in 28 percent of Yahoo leagues)
As evidenced by their win over the Dallas Cowboys last week, the Jets are a significantly better team with Darnold under center. Because of his bout with mononucleosis, we really haven’t seen Darnold a ton this season, but his skill is tantalizing and he’s about to play some really bad defenses soon.

The Jets do take on the Patriots this week, which is a major deterrent, but that shouldn’t impact you as a fantasy owner if you played Mahomes already.

Darrel Williams, Chiefs (owned in 12 percent of Yahoo leagues)
Williams is set up to be the only Chiefs player that might actually benefit from Mahomes’ absence. The receivers certainly won’t, which means the running game could be leaned upon more. LeSean McCoy and Damien Williams all but certainly are on a roster in your league, but there’s a good chance Darrel Williams is not. He delivered good performances in Weeks 3 and 4 with Damien Williams out, showing, at least in a win over the Baltimore Ravens, that he can contribute on the ground. Otherwise, look for Moore to maybe keep an eye on him in short passing situations, as he’s a fairly useful receiving back.