Julio Jones, Ryan Tannehill’s Fantasy Outlook After A.J. Brown’s Injury

Wade Payne/Associated Press

Tennessee Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown has been ruled out for the remainder of his team’s Week 3 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts with a hamstring injury, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. 

Brown, a third-year NFL veteran, has eight receptions for 95 receiving yards and one touchdown in three games.

The 2019 second-round draft pick has been sensational since joining the league. He caught 52 passes for 1,051 yards (20.2 yards per reception) and eight touchdowns during his rookie year before following that effort up with 70 receptions for 1,075 yards and 11 more scores. Brown racked up those 2020 figures despite missing a pair of games.

Thanks in part to Brown’s efforts, the 2019 Titans made the AFC Championship Game, and the 2020 team won the AFC South.

It’s unknown whether Brown will be out for more games, but losing him for any amount of time is a tremendous blow to the Titans as they search for back-to-back division titles.

Julio Jones, who arrived in Tennessee after starring for 10 years with the Atlanta Falcons, would be the No. 1 wideout if Brown sits.

From a fantasy football perspective, Jones figures to see a sizable target boost at minimum.

Jones, who likely has a spot reserved for him at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, snagged nine passes for 157 yards through two games. He was already a great option to start in season-long leagues prior to Brown’s injury, but now he’s a lock there. In daily-fantasy competitions, Jones should be one of the best plays on the board simply because of the expected usage increase.

As far as quarterback Ryan Tannehill’s fantasy stock, there’s a few schools of thought.

On the downside, the Titans offense as a whole may not be as productive without their star wideout. The Titans have some talented pass-catchers outside Brown and Jones (e.g., Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Cameron Batson), but Brown is an elite talent who has established an excellent rapport with Tannehill.

Simply put, any quarterback is going to be downgraded in fantasy after losing his No. 1 wideout, and Tannehill is no exception.

However, the veteran has proved to be an excellent, efficient signal-caller for the Titans. The Pro Bowler notably tossed 33 touchdowns last year en route to completing 65.5 percent of his passes for 7.9 yards per attempt. His talent alone makes him a borderline start option every week, and he’s an intriguing option to pair with Jones in daily fantasy competitions if he can be drafted at a salary discount.

The devil’s advocate take on Jones and Tannehill here is that running back Derrick Henry is still the centerpiece of this offense. He very well could carry the load with a ton of touches before Brown gets back.

However, if the Titans fall behind, they’ll eventually have no choice but to pass, so that may not be the case.

Ultimately, the hope here is that Brown returns back as soon as possible to reestablish one of the best pass-game trios in football.