NFL Week 4 Fantasy Football Recap: Immediate takeaways from Thursday's game

• Monitor the Tua Tagovailoa injury: The Miami Dolphins quarterback sustained head and neck injuries after taking a sack in the second quarter and was taken off on a stretcher.
• The Dolphins' frustrating backfield: Raheem Mostert started for Miami and received double-digit carries, but Chase Edmonds took the touchdown opportunities once again.
• Mixed performances from the wide receivers: Four of the best receivers in the NFL were on the field, but only Tyreek Hill and Tee Higgins achieved 100-yard games while Jaylen Waddle had a minimal impact and Ja’Marr Chase recorded one catch over the first 44 minutes.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2022.

Miami Dolphins @ Cincinnati Bengals

• Tee Higgins: 7 receptions, 124 yards, 1 touchdown
• Tyreek Hill: 10 receptions, 160 yards, 1 carry, -1 rushing yards

Deep Dive into the Dolphins backfield: The Dolphins backfield has been frustrating for fantasy managers, but some trends have become clear after a few games.

• Raheem Mostert has been Miami's clear leader on early downs for three straight weeks, which is unsurprising considering how both Mostert and Chase Edmonds were used on their past teams.
• Mostert and Edmonds have split third-down snaps each of the last two weeks. Edmonds was the clear third-down back the first two weeks.
• The two running backs have split short-yardage and goalline work throughout the season.
• Mostert received the two-minute drill snaps for Miami for the first time this season.
• This helped him receive the most offensive snaps he’s ever had in a game while running more t routes than he ever has in a game.
• Edmonds has been the running back to score three times in the last two games, but Mostert took three snaps when the Dolphins were within five yards of scoring.
• Mostert touched the ball on two of those plays but didn’t score on either.
• If Miami continues this usage, Mostert will be the better fantasy back going forward, but both will still see significant opportunities.

The Dolphins without Cedrick Wilson Jr.: Wilson has dealt with both toe and rib injuries since the first game of the season, which left him inactive for this game.

• Trent Sherfield was Wilson's primary replacement, similar to last week. He caught four passes for 55 yards.
• River Cracraft caught a touchdown in his limited time last week, and the Dolphins brought him up from the practice squad again Thursday night, but he didn’t gain any additional playing time compared to last week.
• Sherfield was taking more time from Wilson than expected in both the preseason and Week 1, so it’s no sure thing that Wilson gets his job fully back once he’s healthy.

Monitor the Tua Tagovailoa injury: Tagovailoa sustained head and neck injuries after taking a sack in the second quarter and was taken off on a stretcher.

• He was limited in practice this week from a neck injury from Sunday.
• We wish him the best in his recovery.
• Teddy Bridgewater took over as the team’s quarterback and would be the starter for any time Tagovailoa misses.
• The Dolphins' next four opponents are all teams in the top half of the league in allowing fantasy points to quarterbacks, making it a favorable stretch for the Dolphins quarterback.
• Bridgewater put up better statistics than Tagovailoa Thursday night, so the dropoff in quarterback play will be minimal compared to most teams.
• Bridgewater would be worth a waiver wire addition, as he could be a borderline fantasy starter in those matchups.

Monitor Hayden Hurst’s health: Hurst has shown up on the injury report with a groin injury the last three weeks, which has impacted his playing time.

• He’s been a limited participant in three of his last six practices.
• Hurst was typically taken out in run situations, so the impact on his fantasy performance wasn’t as bad as it could have been.
• He caught three of four passes thrown his way for 27 yards and a touchdown in the last two minutes of the game.
• It’s probably best not to rely on him for fantasy football purposes until we see his percentage of snaps bounce back to what it was to start the season.

Table Notes

• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.