Ryan Clady may miss season due to Lisfranc injury, but should not impact Broncos’ fantasy value

Broncos left tackle Ryan Clady may need season-ending surgery after sustaining a Lisfranc injury versus the Giants on Sunday.

The team is still evaluating the severity of the injury to their All Pro left tackle, but severe Lisfranc injuries can take an entire season's worth of games to recover from. Santonio Holmes and Maurice Jones-Drew are players who recently suffered similar injuries, and both missed significant time. The Broncos have the option of placing Clady on the team's injured reserve list with the designation to return, meaning he would return at Week 11 at the earliest in that scenario.

Fantasy Spin: While the Broncos offense certainly isn't better without Clady, there is still plenty enough talent available to overcome the loss. Peyton Manning thrived for years by masking average and below-average offensive lines with quick decisions and a superior ability to diagnose coverages and blitzes. Should those quicker routes need to happen on order to compensate, short-route specialist Wes Welker could see a boost in value in PPR leagues, as could popular screen target Demariyus Thomas. Where Clady's presence could especially be missed is in the running game, although the Broncos backfield is a toxic situation as is due to its committee approach. The Broncos will miss their premier tackle, but for fantasy purposes, not much of a change in value should occur across the board.