Key NFL Injuries for Week 1, 2026

NFL training camps carry a brutal dichotomy for fans. It can be a time of optimism, right up until an injury alert for a key player turns that hope into devastation. The 2026 season has already claimed some casualties to season-ending injured reserve, while other players are working their way back to full health as they get their legs under them for the year ahead.

Our NFL injury report helps you parse players’ limited participation, full participation and “mixing into drills” and ultimately, helps you decide if you should start ’em or sit ’em in fantasy football.

Below is the full injury status breakdown for key fantasy starters heading into the 2026 season.

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Key NFL Injury Updates Ahead of Week 1, 2026

As fans prepare for the start of the 2026-27 NFL season, here’s where the injury report of some of the game’s biggest names stands heading into the new season.

Quarterback

Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs (ACL)

Mahomes missed the final handful of games of the 2025 season after tearing his ACL to cap off an already disappointing year for the Chiefs. All signs indicate he is on track to be ready for Week 1, but being ready and playing are two different things. It’s unclear whether he’ll be the starter in Week 1 or whether the team will opt to bring him along slowly to get the rest of the roster healthy.

Michael Penix – Atlanta Falcons (ACL)

Penix missed the latter half of the 2025 season with a torn ACL, his third such injury between his college and pro career. He’s in a full-on quarterback battle with Tua Tagovailoa for the starting job, so he appears healthy enough to be in the mix. Now he just needs to go out and win it. It’s yet another QB battle for new head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Running Backs

Cam Skattebo – New York Giants (Knee/Ankle)

Skattebo suffered a terrifying season-ending ankle injury in October after impressing in the first few weeks of the Giants’ season. He’s currently getting first-team reps in New York, an indication he’s on track for Week 1 barring any setbacks.

James Conner – Arizona Cardinals (Foot)

Conner is coming back from a foot injury that ended his 2025 season early, and he finds himself in a tense position battle at running back with rookie Jeremiyah Love, drafted third overall, and Tyler Allgeier, signed in the offseason. Even if Conner is good to go for Week 1, he might not be as heavily featured in the offense as in past seasons.

Jeremiyah Love – Arizona Cardinals (Ankle)

Speaking of Love, the Cardinals new top draft pick is also nursing an ankle injury and has not been practicing. He’s listed as questionable, but seems likely to play in Week 1.

Ashton Jeanty – Las Vegas Raiders (Ankle)

Pangs of fear rippled across the fantasy community for anyone who drafted Jeanty high as their RB1 when he left practice with what appeared to be a potentially serious injury, prompting his teammates to take a knee as he was helped off the field, but it looks like it was just a sprain and he’s been practicing. He’s expected to miss limited time.

Isiah Pacheco – Detroit Lions (Back)

Pachecho was placed on IR by the Lions due to lingering back and MCL issues, and he’ll miss at least the first four weeks of the season.

Josh Jacobs – Green Bay Packers (Exempt List)

Though not technically an injury, Packers starting back Josh Jacobs is expected to miss large parts of the season after being placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt list due to his recent criminal charges.

Wide Receivers

Malik Nabers – New York Giants (ACL)

Nabers continues to progress from the knee injury that ended his 2025 season. Unlike Skattebo, his availability seems much more in question. Coach John Harbaugh has indicated the young wide receiver is progressing and being brought along slowly, but questions remain about whether he’ll be be a game-time decision week 1.

Ricky Pearsall – San Francisco 49ers (PCL)

Pearsall has had an injury-plagued start to his career, and another difficult chapter is being written after he was placed on season-ending injured reserve. A flare-up of a previous PCL injury now requires surgery, another setback for the promising wide receiver and another injury for a 49ers team that has struggled to stay healthy in recent years.

Jordan Tyson – New Orleans Saints (Hamstring)

Saints rookie Jordan Tyson has generated some of the loudest buzz ahead of the season, but he suffered a right hamstring injury in practice that will see him start the year on injured reserve. He isn’t expected to play until October at the earlierst.

KC Concepcion – Cleveland Browns (Neck)

The first-round pick in the 2026 NFL draft appears to have avoided a serious injury scare after landing awkwardly on his shoulder and tweaking his neck. He’ll likely be held out of the next couple of practices as the team makes sure he’s fully ready for the official start of the preseason. He is expected to be a major factor in the Cleveland passing offense.

Tank Dell – Houston Texans (ACL)

Dell suffered a brutal knee injury in Week 15 of 2024 and missed all of last season. He appears finally ready to get back to football, having put on pads for the start of training camp while avoiding the physically unable to perform list.

Jaylin Noel – Houston Texans (Finger)

Noel suffered a finger injury in camp that could cause him to miss a few weeks, though he’s likely to be ready for Week 1. His absence in the meantime opens up opportunities for other wide receivers on the depth chart, especially Dell, who is also working his way back from injury.

Alec Pierce – Indianapolis Colts (Ankle)

Pierce is still rehabbing from offseason ankle surgery that came with a four-to-six month recovery timetable. With the surgery happening in March, that timeline could mean he isn’t fully back until September, right around the start of the season.

After signing a four-year, $114 million contract this offseason to essentially become the Colts’ No. 1 wide receiver by cap hit, Pierce seems likely to miss at least a week or two, or at minimum work on a snap count as he regains his conditioning from the ankle injury.

Xavier Legette – Carolina Panthers (Neck)

Legette suffered a shoulder stinger that was nearly a concussion after a hard fall in practice. He was carted off, but that appears to have been precautionary given the sweltering Carolina summer heat. With no indication of concussion protcol, it doesn’t appear to be a serious injury, but he does have a serious battle ahead of him to claim snaps in this Carolina offense.

Chris Brazzell II – Carolina Panthers (ACL)

The rookie third-round pick out of Tennessee is lost for the year to a season-ending knee injury, a devastating start to a promising career on a Carolina team that’s on the upswing.

Tyreek Hill – Free Agent (ACL)

Hill is working his way back from a gruesome knee injury suffered last season and remains unsigned as a result. Reports indicate he’s still firmly in the rehab process, and he’ll need to show teams flashes of his old ability before finding a new home.

Xavier Worthy – Kansas City Chiefs (Shoulder)

It’s nearly become tradition for Worthy to pick up some kind of injury in training camp, and the Chiefs wide receiver checked that box again with a sprained shoulder in practice. He doesn’t appear to be in jeopardy of missing significant time, but it’s certainly one to monitor.

DeVonta Smith – Philadelphia Eagles (Hamstring)

In his first season as the Eagles’ clear No. 1 receiver, Smith has missed a couple of practices with a hamstring injury. The coaching staff has indicated it isn’t considered serious or long term, but it’s less than ideal for the team’s most prominent pass catcher to be missing reps as a new-look offense tries to find its identity.

Makai Lemon – Philadelphia Eagles (Hamstring)

Like his fellow receiver Smith, Lemon has missed practice with a hamstring injury. The rookie, drafted 20th overall in this year’s NFL Draft, carries major expectations heading into his first season, but thankfully his injury isn’t considered serious or long term.

Mike Evans – San Francisco 49ers (Quad)

Evans is no stranger to injuries throughout his career, and almost as soon as he arrived in San Francisco he’s again battling a soft tissue issue, this time a quad tweak. He currently has no firm timetable for return, which could push his debut with his new team deeper into the regular season.

Christian Kirk – San Francisco 49ers (Calf)

Kirk joins Evans in the 49ers’ receiver room on the sidelines with a calf injury. Calf injuries can be especially tricky to come back from, and the severity wildly impacts recovery time. A slight tweak might cost him a couple of days or a week, while something more substantial could lead to a six-to-eight week absence.

Jalen McMillan – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Knee)

McMillan missed all of the 2025 regular season after suffering a serious neck injury in the preseason. While that appears to be behind him, he’s back on the injury report with knee and calf issues. The young receiver has a chance to carve out a significant role after showing promise in 2024, but he’ll need to stay healthy to do it.

Tez Johnson – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Groin)

Johnson left practice early with a groin injury and was held out as a precaution. He’s one of several Tampa Bay receivers easing their way into training camp.

Tight Ends

Tucker Kraft – Green Bay Packers (ACL)

Kraft had his 2025 season ended early by a torn ACL in November and has officially made his way back onto the practice field for the start of camp. While not yet off the physically unable to perform list, it’s likely the Packers will bring him along slowly to start the year, with all signs pointing to him being ready to play Week 1 and once again serve as one of Green Bay’s top pass catchers.

Kenyon Sadiq – New York Jets (Abdomen)

The first-round pick in the year’s NFL Draft is set to miss an undetermined amount of time after a setback from offseason hernia surgery. There doesn’t appear to be serious concern on the Jets’ part, but they’ll certainly want to bring their young rookie along slowly if he’s still working through it.

George Kittle – San Francisco 49ers (Achilles)

The often-injured Kittle is working his way back from a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in the playoffs last season. Given the timing of the injury, he’ll likely miss at least the first quarter of the season, but the 49ers hope to have their All-Pro tight end back at some point as they fight for their playoff lives in the NFC West.

Michael Mayer – Las Vegas Raiders (Nose)

Mayer has yet to play a full season in the NFL and a tough nose injury could put him in jeopardy of missing time once again. It doesn’t seem too serious, but his nose busted wide open is certainly graphic imagery.

Defense

Micah Parsons – Green Bay Packers, Linebacker (ACL)

Packers star pass rusher Micah Parsons tore his ACL last season. It was a massive loss to Green Bay’s defense, and he isn’t expected to make his return until Week 5 or 6 of the 2026-27 season.

Jalon Walker – Atlanta Falcons, Linebacker (Knee – ACL)

Walker seems like he is set to hit season-ending IR. The second-year pro is going for a second opinion on what looks like a torn ACL. It would be a devastating blow to the Atlanta defense.

Brian Branch – Detroit Lions, Safety (Achillies)

Detroit’s Branch is recovering from an Achilles injury and will miss at least the first four games.

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