NFL Players Ready to Break out After Early-Season Injuries

It feels as though injuries have hit the NFL harder and earlier than in previous years, especially with teams being forced to adjust to a shortened offseason and no preseason games. In a "next man up" league, however, that has opened the door for some of the league's young players to become breakout stars.

The NFL has lost some of its top superstars for the year already, and we're just a quarter of the way through the 2020 season. Week 2 was especially brutal, with both superstar running back Saquon Barkley and reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Bosa tearing their ACLs. That same week, players such as Christian McCaffrey, Drew Lock, Jimmy Garoppolo and Courtland Sutton all suffered serious injuries that have kept them out since.

But the good news is there are a few players who are starting to show that they're ready to step up amid all those injuries, so let's take a look at a handful of them.

Robert Tonyan, TE, Green Bay Packers

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After brief flashes from tight end Robert Tonyan in his first two seasons in the NFL, it looks like 2020 is officially the year that the former Indiana State playmaker becomes a focal point of the Green Bay Packers offense.

His Monday Night Football performance against the Atlanta Falcons this past week was one of sheer dominance. With receivers Davante Adams and Allen Lazard both inactive, Tonyan had the best game of his career, catching all six of his targets for 98 yards and three touchdowns.

Tonyan has now scored a touchdown in three consecutive games and is second in the league in touchdown receptions through four weeks. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has done a brilliant job designing plays for his tight ends, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers has quickly established a strong connection with Tonyan over the past few weeks.

Now in his third NFL season, Tonyan has been waiting for an opportunity to break out. Sharing the same agent as All-Pro tight end George Kittle, the two have become close friends, even training and living together during the offseason. As Tonyan told ESPN's Rob Demovsky back in August, his relationship with Kittle has brought improvements to his own game:

"Just being around someone who's done it and lives it, it's just another person to compete with every day," Tonyan said. "When you have a good relationship with one of your buddies and you're also competing 24/7 when you're with them, it brings out the best in both of us."

Although Adams is likely to return after the bye week, the team is expecting to be without Lazard until at least November after he underwent core muscle surgery. That still leaves a big hole in the passing game that Tonyan should be able to fill, and considering how comfortable Rodgers has been throwing his way, there's a chance the tight end could earn Pro Bowl consideration by the end of the year.

Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts

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The Indianapolis Colts came into the 2020 season excited to have one of the most dynamic running back committees in the league. Unfortunately, a season-ending injury for starter Marlon Mack made the backfield a little less intimidating, but rookie Jonathan Taylor has stepped up and has shown flashes of being just as explosive of a player.

Mack suffered a torn Achilles in a Week 1 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, ending his season before it even began. Since then, the Colts have relied on both Taylor and Nyheim Hines to handle the bulk of the workload on the ground.

So far, Taylor has been able to rip off some nice runs, but the mental processing to recognize rushing lanes feels a tick slow when watching him on film. He's already run for 250 yards and two touchdowns on the year, but he's only averaging 3.8 yards per attempt.

Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni isn't worried about Taylor or the team's rushing efficiency at this point in the season, and it's easy to understand why. Taylor is still getting his footing in the league, and the Colts have won their last three games by managing the clock and maintaining possession instead of breaking off explosive plays.

He may not have had his breakout game quite yet, but with Taylor's talent and the workload he should be getting the rest of the year, he's likely in line for some big performances before 2020 is over.

Javon Kinlaw, DT, San Francisco 49ers

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

The San Francisco 49ers defensive line looks vastly different than it did just a year ago. Along with the front office trading away DeForest Buckner to the Indianapolis Colts, the 49ers have also lost both 2019 Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas for the season with torn ACLs.

Despite all of those losses, the 49ers still have a very promising young defensive tackle ready to step up and make a name for himself in rookie Javon Kinlaw.

Kinlaw was drafted No. 14 overall after showing out as a disruptive force on South Carolina's defense in college. However, he came into training camp admittedly struggling to adjust to the level of play and expectations at the pro level. 

So far, Kinlaw is still getting comfortable with his role for the 49ers, but his stat line is misleading. He has just nine combined tackles and two pass deflections, but he's done a nice job putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks in the middle of the defense, producing five QB pressures so far, according to Pro Football Reference. 

Kinlaw isn't having any issue getting into the backfield, but he's still trying to find ways to produce once he's there. The good news is that there are still 12 more regular-season games left to be played, and with so many injuries on the 49ers defensive line, he will have every opportunity possible to prove himself in 2020. 

Darius Slayton, WR, New York Giants

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

The New York Giants have one of the most inept offenses in the NFL, with 21 NFL players having more touchdowns than the team as a whole. However, of the team's three touchdowns that they've scored, wide receiver Darius Slayton was responsible for two of them.

Sterling Shepard's injury and Golden Tate's suspension opened up more opportunities for Slayton in the Giants passing game. The 2019 fifth-round pick has caught 15 passes for 236 yards and two scores so far this season. For a team that ranks dead last in the NFL with just 11.8 points scored per game so far, Slayton is arguably their most productive offensive player.

Shepard is still on injured reserve, and while Tate has returned from his suspension, Slayton should continue to be a big part of the offense. He was still the leading wide receiver in the loss to the Los Angeles Rams with seven targets, and that should continue.

Losing superstar running back Saquon Barkley has been a huge blow to the Giants offense, but if the passing game can figure itself out over the coming weeks, Slayton's production could see a big uptick despite the return of Tate and eventual return of Shepard.

Bradley Chubb, EDGE, Denver Broncos

Adam Hunger/Associated Press

A team with high hopes for 2020, the Denver Broncos have suffered their share of key injuries this season. Quarterback Drew Lock has missed time with a shoulder injury, and receiver Courtland Sutton and former Super Bowl MVP Von Miller both suffered potentially season-ending injuries. The loss of Miller is a particularly big blow given his ability to rush the passer, but third-year outside linebacker Bradley Chubb is now in line to have a big year.

Chubb was one of the league's best pass-rushers as a rookie back in 2018, picking up 12 sacks and 21 quarterback hits in 16 games. The Broncos were hoping for a big leap from Chubb in 2019, but a torn ACL ended his sophomore season after just four games.

With Miller possibly missing the entire season with an ankle injury, Chubb has been asked to take on a much larger role in the Broncos defense. He remained relatively quiet to start the season but came out in full force this past week against the New York Jets, picking up his first 2.5 sacks of the season to go along with five quarterback hits.

Broncos fans should be optimistic that Chubb can carry that performance into future games, even after he suffered a setback rehabbing during training camp that might have slowed him down to start the season.

Now that it looks like he looks like he's 100 percent healthy, this could be a breakout year for Chubb.