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How does Jeremiyah Love's preseason injury affect his role in Mike LaFleur's offense?

Answered 2026-08-19 · from the ChatFFB news wiki

Great question. The wiki doesn't have this injury update yet, but expert reports fill it in — and they're significant.

The injury: Jeremiyah Love suffered a high ankle sprain during a preseason game. He was in for 24 snaps and 14 touches in a half when he caught an angle route, got twisted down, and sprained his ankle. Reports indicate he won't need surgery, but he's expected to miss the rest of the preseason and is in question for Week 1 and possibly Week 2 (from Underdog's Josh & Hayden).

How it affects his role in LaFleur's offense:

  • Before the injury: Love was the clear lead dog. He took 7 of 11 first-team carries in a late-July practice, demonstrating the Cardinals planned to feature him despite OC Nathaniel Hackett's public hedging about a "competition" with James Conner (from the Jeremiyah Love page).

  • After the injury: This opens the door wide for James Conner and Tyler Allgeier to soak up early-season work. Conner, who's already being discussed as a trade candidate, suddenly has real leverage to hold a significant role — at least through the first couple weeks. As one expert noted, Love's "in question for Week 1, Week 2" (from Underdog Fantasy Football — ).

On Establish The Run, they reported Love took 14 touches in just a half before the high ankle sprain occurred — underscoring how aggressive the usage was going to be (from Establish The Run — ).

The bottom line: Love's talent and LaFleur's Shanahan/McVay scheme are still a perfect match — he's a three-down back with elite receiving ability that fits the play-action-heavy system. But the high ankle sprain likely pushes his full-time bellcow role back by a couple of weeks. In redraft, his ADP around RB24/Round 3 still reflects the upside, but you'll want James Conner as a handcuff to start the season.

6 ChatFFB lookups behind this answer
  • Searched ChatFFB for "Jeremiyah Love" — 5 pages found
  • Searched ChatFFB for "Mike LaFleur" — 5 pages found
  • Searched ChatFFB for "Jeremiyah Love injury" — 5 pages found
  • Searched ChatFFB for "Love injury Cardinals preseason" — 5 pages found
  • Checked YouTube expert takes for "Jeremiyah Love injury preseason" — 4 quotes found
  • Read the player page for jeremiyah-love

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