Sad but true: You can't score fantasy points without being on the field first.

While we can't necessarily control for future injuries, we can do our best to evaluate existing issues to determine the overall fantasy impact. And by "we," I mean actual doctors who are kind enough to offer fantasy-specific expertise, such as:

• Edwin Porras, DPT (@FBInjuryDoc on X)
• Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept)
• Jesse Morse, MD (@drjessemorse)
• Deepak Chona, MD (@SportMDAnalysis)

With that, here are two key TE injuries to be concerned with ahead of the 2024 fantasy season.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (right knee)

Hockenson was having the most productive season of his career before tearing both his ACL and MCL on Christmas Eve. His Jan. 29 surgery date won’t help his chances of returning by Week 1.

Both Dr. Morse and Dr. Mueller believe Hockenson could miss half of the 2024 season, with an overall performance dip until 2025. Granted, Hockenson at 90% would still be better than most TEs — he and Travis Kelce were the top two players at the position in PPR points per game last season — but there’s an added wild card here with the offense suddenly being led by Sam Darnold or a rookie QB.

Bottom line: Hockenson is expected to miss half the season and could struggle to provide his usual production after returning, making him a VERY risky pick anywhere near the position’s top-12 options.

Rams TE Tyler Higbee (right knee)

Like with Hockenson, the late-season nature of Higbee’s torn ACL is the primary problem here. Dr. Mueller believes the 31-year-old veteran likely will miss half of the '24 season and could potentially return only as a rotational player.

The Rams would take on more dead money ($7.6 million) than they would save against the cap ($4.5 million) by releasing Higbee at any point this offseason. Either way, he’s not someone fantasy managers or Rams fans should expect to be contributing in a meaningful way until at least November. This makes backup TE Davis Allen an intriguing late-round dart in TE-premium or best ball formats.

Bottom line: Higbee has never been relied on as a meaningful pass-game contributor when the Rams have had healthy WRs. Don’t expect a lesser version of him to emerge as anything more than a potential late-season waiver wire streamer next season.