5. DJ Chark, WR, Carolina Panthers
Chark suffered a hamstring injury during Panthers' practice on Wednesday, which could have taken him off this list quickly. There are contradicting reports regarding how severe it is though.
Frank Reich indicates DJ Chark is injured, declines to expand on his situation "at this point."
— Joe Person (@josephperson) August 23, 2023
Doesn't sound great.
The #Panthers announce that WR DJ Chark has a hamstring injury, and it doesn't sound like a major one.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 23, 2023
The Panthers, already without WRs Terrace Marshall, Laviska Shenault and Damiere Byrd who are dealing with injuries, were without DJ Chark today due to a hamstring injury. It's not believed to be serious.
— Steve Reed (@SteveReedAP) August 23, 2023
Let's go to the optimistic side on Chark right now, and presume he's not going to miss a lot of regular season time (if any). Even a game or two into the season is not a total death knell to his fantasy value in 2023.
After a disappointing lone season as a Lion last year, albeit with a healthy late-season stretch that was useful in fantasy, Chark signed with the Panthers. There he'll have a rookie quarterback in Bryce Young, which has to be noted. But apart from that concern, his primary target competition is the shell of Adam Thielen, a promising but wholly unproven Terrace Marshall, a gadgety player in Laviska Shenault, a rookie in Jonathan Mingo and Hayden Hurst at tight end.
The appeal of drafting Chark, assuming good news on his injury, is fully rooted in where you can draft him. He's WR65 by Yahoo! ADP (0.5-point PPR), 11 spots below Thielen. As a potential No. 1 wide receiver on his team, again with the caveat his injury is not serious, that's a steal in leagues where he'll even be drafted.