The Tennessee Titans and fantasy football owners took a hit Tuesday when RB Tyjae Spears was placed on injured reserve with designation to return, set to miss at least four games to start the season, as reported by Adam Schefter.
Let's dive into how the Tyjae Spears injury could affect your fantasy football drafts this year, and Tony Pollard's value as a clear-cut RB1 for the Titans.
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How Long is Tyjae Spears Out?
Titans RB Tyjae Spears will be out for at least four games to start the season with his ankle injury, as he was spotted in a walking boot. One doctor expects Spears to take additional weeks to get back to 100% after he's out of the boot.
The second-year running back from Tulane is nursing a high ankle sprain suffered during trining camp.
This is a setback to the Titans’ expected one-two punch in the backfield. In fantasy, though, the injury creates a clear opportunity for RB Tony Pollard.
Pollard now becomes the unquestioned workhorse in Tennessee and carries far more appeal in upcoming fantasy football drafts. The central question now is whether Pollard should be vaulted into “must-draft” status, given the vacuum Spears is leaving behind.
Tony Pollard Fantasy Football Outlook
Before the injury, Spears was viewed as one of fantasy football’s sleeper picks. According to FantasyPros, Spears’ ADP was 142 (RB45) before the injury news, making him a late-round option. He had legitimate FLEX appeal due to his role as the passing-down back for the Titans.
But fantasy owners will now have to stash him, with the earliest possible return coming in Week 5 — Oct. 5 at Arizona.
The spotlight now firmly shifts to Pollard, who signed on with the Titans in 2024 and racked up career-high numbers in rushing yards (1,079) and attempts (260) on a subpar offense.
The underlying numbers on Pollard are phenomenal too: he ranked fifth in yards per rush after contact (3.40) and overall yards after contact in 2024.
Now, the Titans feature a more well-balanced offense with No. 1 overall pick QB Cam Ward, WR1 Calvin Ridley, and they’ll be running behind an offensive line that was invested in heavily during the offseason.
Under HC Brian Callahan, Pollard has been playing some of his best ball, and he could potentially deliver top-15 RB production with the absence of Spears. Just check out his production with Spears sidelined last season on a per game basis, via David J Gautieri on Twitter:
- 116.2 YPG (1,976-yard pace)
- 15.8 fantasy PPG (RB16)
- 17.9 expected PPG (RB2)
With Spears sidelined, Pollard inherits a backfield almost entirely to himself again in 2024.
Pollard will quickly rise up draft boards in the final week, as he'll gives teams borderline RB1 production to start the season.
The absence of Spears is bad news for the Titans — but in fantasy football, it’s excellent news for Pollard’s outlook if you've drafted him already, while Spears remains worth holding in deeper leagues.
Pollard now profiles as a high-end RB2 with RB1 potential in September, making him a player to target ahead of the 2025 season.
Tony Pollard Fantasy Football Projections
Below are Tony Pollard's fantasy football projections for 2025, via the PrizePicks NFLSZN board. You can win real money by picking More or Less on these season-long projections and 100s more fantasy football projections on the NFLSZN fantasy game on PrizePicks.
- 900.5 Rushing Yards
- 5.5 Rush TDs
- 1.5 100+ Rushing Yards Games
PrizePicks only gave Pollard a small bump here, as his yards projection was at 875.5 before the IR designation for Spears.
