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Unfortunately, some players get injured more than others, hugely impacting both their team and your fantasy football roster. Take Ricky Pearsall for example. The San Francisco 49ers’ former first-round pick has been shut down for the 2026 season before it has even begun, meaning he’ll enter a vital 2027 campaign having suited up for just 20 regular-season games.
But every year, there are a cadre of players who shake off the bad injury luck and put together a full season. When that happens, they’re usually fantasy-relevant.
Here are three players who can help your fantasy team this season who usually spend a lot of time on your IR list.
RB J.K. Dobbins, Denver Broncos
Dobbins’ career has been filled with brutal bad injury luck, but every time he is on the field, he is highly effective. The presence of second-round pick RJ Harvey in Denver didn’t change that.
Through Week 10, his final appearance of the 2025 season, Dobbins was the RB18 — a solid RB2. The former Baltimore Raven averaged 5.0 yards per carry for the third time in his career for 772 yards and four rushing scores on his way to a 80.8 PFF rushing grade, the seventh-highest through 10 weeks of the 2025 regular season.
Harvey’s presence will ensure Dobbins’ receiving work will be minimal. But as a tough-nosed runner who will squeeze out an extra yard, Dobbins is well worth being on your fantasy roster — and he’s pinky-sworn to reporters that he’s going to play 17 games this season.
WR Christian Watson, Green Bay Packers
Watson has yet to feature in every game for one season. Early in his career, he battled hamstring injuries, and last season he stepped in mid-season after recovering from an ACL tear in 2024. Yet the Packers gave Watson a new four-year, $110.5 million contract in the offseason, traded Dontayvion Wicks and let Romeo Doubs walk in free agency to open up the path for Watson and others.
The former North Dakota State product was the WR16 from his return in Week 8 until the end of the season. That fantasy production came on just 55 targets — 31st in the NFL between Weeks 8 to 18. Yet Watson produced the 14th-most receiving yards (611) with the second-highest yards-per-catch average (17.5) behind only Alec Pierce.
Watson’s 88.5 PFF receiving grade was a career high last season. With a new contract in hand and a receiver room that is much clearer, he’s a sneaky candidate to finish as a legit WR1 in fantasy.
Watson’s Sleeper ADP in superflex leagues is currently 81.2 — lower than Carnell Tate, Mike Evans and DJ Moore. All of them are fine receivers, but each has their own concerns from a fantasy perspective. If Watson can stay healthy, he’ll blow his ADP out of the water.
RB Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings
Injuries — or the threat of them — have always impacted Jones’ fantasy standing. The former Green Bay Packers runner has a current superflex ADP of 130, and yet he is set to open the season as the Vikings’ starting back.
Jones did miss five games last season and six games in 2023, but sandwiched between them was a 17-game slate during his first campaign in Minnesota.
Jones was the RB41 last term, and his 69.5 PFF rushing grade was the lowest of his career. In addition to that, Jones will be 32 in December, and his 4.2 yards per carry were the lowest of his NFL tenure. It is easy to see why his time as a fantasy-relevant asset would be fading.
Having said all of that, Jones is still slated to be the Vikings’ starting back, still has pass-catching chops and is part of a good offense likely with an upgrade at quarterback in Kyler Murray — who himself can help open up things in the run game.
Given Jones’ ADP is 130, it’s a really minimal risk for potentially week-winning rewards, even if you have to commit to seeing him out for a month.