NFL DFS Injury Intelligence - DraftKings & FanDuel Data

Real-time NFL injury intelligence for Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) on DraftKings and FanDuel. Automated injury report scraping, DFS impact scores, weather analysis, and change detection across all 32 NFL teams — at a fraction of the cost of premium DFS tools.

Why Use This Over Manual Research?

Task	Manual Research	This Actor
Check all 32 team injury reports	45-60 minutes	25 seconds
Cross-reference practice participation	30+ minutes	Automatic
Check weather for outdoor games	15 minutes	Included
Track status changes over time	Impossible manually	Built-in
DFS impact assessment	Requires experience	Automated scores
Total weekly time saved	3-5 hours/week	< 1 minute

How It Compares to Premium DFS Tools

Feature	SaberSim ($197/mo)	Stokastic ($100/mo)	FantasyLabs ($60/mo)	This Actor
Injury data	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
All 32 teams	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes (446+ players)
Weather data	Basic	Via RotoGrinders	Basic	Yes (Open-Meteo)
Change detection	No	No	No	Yes
Confidence scoring	No	No	No	Yes (0-100)
API/webhook access	Limited	Limited	Limited	Full Apify API
Season cost	$985	$500	$300	~$50-100

What Data Does It Extract?

Data Field	Description	Example
Player Name	Full player name	"Kyler Murray"
Team	NFL team name	"Arizona Cardinals"
Position	Player position (QB, RB, WR, TE)	"QB"
Injury Status	Current designation	"Out", "Questionable", "Doubtful"
Injury Type	Body part affected	"Foot", "Hamstring", "Knee"
Return Date	Projected return	"Nov 3"
Game Probability	Likelihood of playing (0-100%)	75
DFS Impact Score	Fantasy impact rating	"HIGH"
Confidence Score	Data quality (0-100)	98
Practice Status	Wed/Thu/Fri participation	"Full", "Limited", "DNP"
Weather	Game conditions (if enabled)	"Clear, 72F, Wind 5mph"
Last Updated	Timestamp	"2025-10-21T18:14:29Z"
Data Sources	Origin sources	["ESPN"]

Use Cases

DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Players

Monitor injury reports before lineup lock to identify value plays, avoid inactive players, and gain an edge over opponents using outdated data. Perfect for both cash games and GPP tournaments.

Fantasy Football League Managers

Stay ahead of your league with automated injury tracking across all 32 NFL teams. Schedule runs before waiver wire deadlines and trade discussions.

Sports Betting & Props

Track injury impacts on game lines, player props, and team totals. Weather data helps assess conditions that affect scoring in outdoor stadiums.

Sports Analytics & Research

Aggregate historical injury data for statistical analysis and player availability patterns. Export to CSV or integrate via the Apify API for custom dashboards.

Input Configuration

Teams (Optional)

Select specific NFL teams to monitor, or leave empty to track all 32 teams.

{
  "teams": ["Dallas Cowboys", "Kansas City Chiefs", "San Francisco 49ers"]
}

Positions (Optional)

Filter by player position. Leave empty for all positions.

{
  "positions": ["QB", "RB", "WR", "TE"]
}

Data Sources

Choose which injury sources to scrape:

• ESPN (Primary): 446+ players, all 32 teams, ~25s extraction time
• CBS Sports (Backup): 32 teams, 24s load time
• Yahoo Sports (Backup): Fastest option at 4s load time

{
  "data_sources": {
    "espn": true,
    "cbs_sports": false,
    "yahoo_sports": false
  }
}

Advanced Options

• change_detection: Track status changes between runs (default: true)
• minimum_confidence: Only include data with confidence >= threshold (default: 70)
• include_weather: Add weather forecasts for outdoor stadiums (default: false)
• max_request_retries: Retry attempts for failed requests (default: 2)

Output

JSON Format

{
  "player": "Kyler Murray",
  "team": "Arizona Cardinals",
  "position": "QB",
  "injury_status": "Out",
  "injury_type": "Foot",
  "return_date": "Nov 3",
  "game_status_probability": 0.0,
  "practice_participation": {},
  "confidence_score": 100,
  "last_updated": "2025-10-21T18:14:29.966322Z",
  "data_sources": ["ESPN"],
  "injury_notes": "Oct 20: Coach Jonathan Gannon said Monday that it's 'too early to tell' if Murray (foot) will be able to play in the Cardinals' next game Monday, Nov. 3 at Dallas following a Week 8 bye."
}

Export Formats

Results can be exported in multiple formats:

• JSON: Native format with full metadata
• CSV: Spreadsheet-compatible for Excel/Google Sheets
• XML: Enterprise system integration
• RSS: Feed readers and aggregators

How to Use

Quick Start

1. Run with Defaults: Click "Start" to monitor all 32 NFL teams using ESPN data
2. Filter by Team: Select your DraftKings/FanDuel roster teams to reduce runtime
3. Schedule Runs: Set up daily/hourly monitoring for automatic updates
4. Export Data: Download results in JSON/CSV or integrate via API

Example: DraftKings Lineup Research

{
  "teams": [
    "Dallas Cowboys",
    "Kansas City Chiefs",
    "San Francisco 49ers",
    "Philadelphia Eagles"
  ],
  "positions": ["QB", "RB", "WR", "TE"],
  "change_detection": true,
  "minimum_confidence": 80
}

Example: Full NFL Slate with Weather

{
  "teams": [],
  "positions": [],
  "data_sources": {
    "espn": true,
    "cbs_sports": true,
    "yahoo_sports": false
  },
  "include_weather": true,
  "minimum_confidence": 70
}

Pricing

This Actor uses pay-per-event pricing, so you only pay for what you use. No monthly subscription required.

Pay-Per-Event Costs

Event	Price	Description
Player Analyzed	$0.005	Per player injury status extracted and enriched
Injury Alert	$0.01	Per status change detected (change_detection enabled)
Full Slate Report	$0.05	Per complete run summary report

Cost Examples

Usage Pattern	Players/Run	Events/Month	Estimated Cost
2 teams daily	~30	900 players + 30 reports	~$6/month
All 32 teams daily	~536	16,080 players + 30 reports	~$82/month
Gameday only (weekly)	~536	2,144 players + 4 reports	~$11/month
Full season (18 weeks, daily)	~536	~67,500 players + 126 reports	~$344/season

Cost vs Revenue: Why This Makes Sense

	Per Run	Daily (Season)	Full Season (18 wks)
Apify compute cost	$0.008	$0.008	~$1
Your PPE cost	~$2.73	~$2.73	~$344
SaberSim equivalent	-	$6.57/day	$985
FantasyLabs equivalent	-	$2/day	$300
Your savings vs SaberSim	-	-	65% cheaper

A single full-slate run costs ~$2.73 in PPE fees and only ~$0.008 in compute. The compute-to-revenue ratio is 340:1 in your favor.

Compute Units

Typical compute consumption per run:

• Single team: 0.02 CU ($0.002)
• All 32 teams (ESPN only): 0.08 CU ($0.008)
• Multi-source (ESPN + CBS + Yahoo): 0.15 CU ($0.015)

Integration with Apify Platform

Scheduling

Set up automated runs to never miss an injury update:

• Daily (6 AM ET): Morning updates before work
• Hourly (Sundays): Gameday monitoring during NFL season
• Custom: Before DFS lineup lock, waiver wire deadlines, or trade discussions

Webhooks

Receive real-time notifications on status changes:

{
  "webhookUrl": "https://yourapp.com/api/nfl-alerts"
}

API Access

Integrate NFL injury data into your DFS tools and apps:

$curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/[DATASET_ID]/items"

Technical Details

Data Sources

Primary Source: ESPN

• 446+ players across all 32 NFL teams
• 98% average confidence score
• 25-second extraction time
• Includes injury notes and return dates

Backup Sources:

• CBS Sports: 32 teams, reliable structure, 24s load
• Yahoo Sports: Fastest option (4s), 47 data tables

Confidence Scoring Algorithm

Every data point receives a 0-100 confidence score:

• Team name present: +30 points
• Position data: +10 points
• Injury status: +25 points
• Return date: +15 points
• Detailed notes (>50 chars): +20 points

Scores 80+: High quality, ready for DFS decisions Scores 50-79: Medium quality, verify with additional sources Scores <50: Low quality, manual verification recommended

Change Detection

Tracks differences between runs to identify:

• New injuries appearing on injury reports
• Status changes (Out to Questionable, Doubtful to Out, etc.)
• Practice participation changes (DNP to Limited, Limited to Full)
• Return date modifications

Multi-Source Fallback

If ESPN fails or returns low confidence, the Actor automatically falls back to CBS Sports or Yahoo Sports for data redundancy.

FAQ

Is this Actor legal to use?

Yes. This Actor scrapes publicly available data from official NFL injury reports published by ESPN, CBS Sports, and Yahoo Sports. All data sources are publicly accessible websites that display injury information for fan and media consumption.

How often should I run this Actor?

Recommended schedules for DFS players:

• Wednesday-Friday: Daily runs to track practice participation (injury reports release Wed-Fri)
• Sunday morning: Final pre-game injury check before DFS lineup lock
• Gameday: Hourly monitoring for late scratches and inactive lists

Which data source is most accurate?

ESPN is the primary source with 98% confidence and 446+ players. CBS Sports and Yahoo Sports provide backup coverage if ESPN has issues. Enabling multiple sources increases data reliability.

Can I use this data for DraftKings contests?

Yes. The extracted injury data helps you make informed DFS lineup decisions on DraftKings, FanDuel, Yahoo DFS, and other fantasy platforms. The Actor provides raw injury intelligence — you make the lineup decisions.

Does this include practice participation data?

Practice participation tracking is available with change detection enabled. This monitors Wed/Thu/Fri practice reports to assess player availability probability.

What about weather data?

Enable include_weather: true to add game-day weather forecasts for outdoor stadiums. Critical for assessing conditions that impact fantasy scoring (wind affects passing, rain affects ball handling, cold affects kicking).

How do I get alerts for status changes?

Use Apify's webhook feature to receive HTTP POST notifications when player statuses change. Configure webhook URLs in the input settings or use Apify integrations (Slack, email, etc.).

Known Limitations

• NFL.com timeout issues: The official NFL.com injury page has slow load times (60s+). ESPN provides identical data faster and is used as the primary source.
• Beat writer data: Twitter/X integration for beat writer updates is planned for a future release.
• DraftKings salaries: Salary data integration is on the roadmap for the next major version.

Updates & Changelog

Version 1.1.0 (February 2026)

• Fixed pay-per-event billing alignment (player_analyzed, injury_alert, full_slate_report)
• Updated pricing model for competitive DFS market positioning
• SEO-optimized documentation with DraftKings/FanDuel keywords

Version 1.0.0 (October 2025)

• ESPN scraper (446 players, 32 teams)
• Multi-source support (CBS, Yahoo)
• Confidence scoring system
• Change detection
• Weather integration

Roadmap

• DraftKings salary data integration
• Vegas lines and game totals
• Basic player projections
• Ownership projection estimates
• Historical injury pattern analysis

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About

Built with Crawlee and Apify SDK. Uses official NFL injury data from public sports media sources.

Keywords: NFL, DFS, DraftKings, FanDuel, fantasy football, Daily Fantasy Sports, injury report, player injuries, practice participation, ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo Sports, sports data, scraper, NFL injuries API, DFS optimizer, fantasy football injuries, NFL injury tracker, DFS tools, NFL projections, fantasy sports data

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License: Apache 2.0 Last Updated: February 14, 2026