Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey (knee) was diagnosed with a sprained left MCL and could miss multiple weeks of practice time, according to ESPN.com's Chris Mortensen on NFL Insiders.
Darrius Heyward-Bey diagnosed with sprained MCL, T.Y. Hilton to see more snaps and fantasy value
Darrius Heyward-Bey diagnosed with a sprained MCL in his left knee and could miss regular-season time. We break down the fantasy implications.
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"He's definitely gonna miss a lot of time here," Mortensen said. Heyward-Bey signed a one-year deal with the Colts following his combined 105 catches in his last two seasons with the Oakland Raiders. Last season, DHB finished with 41 catches, 606 yards and five scores in 15 games.
Fantasy Impact: DHB was reportedly leading the way to be the second receiver in two-WR sets for the Colts, alongside Reggie Wayne. Heyward-Bey hasn't dealt with many knee injuries since 2011, but he did miss some time. The former top-10 pick has yet to live up to the billing and he drops way too many balls. In fact, his aforementioned 105 catches were on a whopping 195 targets.
The discouraging news for DHB opens the door for second-year receiver T.Y Hilton. Hilton had four 100-yard games in the last nine outings in his rookie campaign and was Andrew Luck's favorite deep target. His route running should diversify with a full offseason and the new offensive system sans Bruce Arians could help his overall target count rise. Hilton makes sense as a high-upside WR3 and Heyward-Bey moves out of the conversation as a pick in 10-team leagues for now.
