DFS Alerts
RB Isaiah Crowell (toe) misses second straight practice Thursday
Head Coach Todd Bowles said Crowell’s toe injury is a “concern” and he would be a gametime decision against the Bills. Elijah McGuire would take over lead back duties if Crowell is sidelined, though the Jets come in as 4-point underdogs and with a measly 17-point implied team total.
As reported by: Brian Costello Other tagged players: Elijah McGuire
QB Sam Darnold practices in full again on Thursday
The rookie QB will start in Week 14 but his timing isn’t great as the Jets go on the road for a brutal matchup against Buffalo who boasts one of the best passing defenses in the league and already beat the Jets 41-10 earlier this season. With an implied 17-point team total and a limited Robby Anderson, Darnold is an easy avoid while the Bills D/ST is one of the top plays at the position this week.
As reported by: Manish Mehta Other tagged players: Josh McCown Save Salary With This Defense Against a Third-String QB
The Giants Defense isn’t a unit we have looked at much this season, with the team ranking 25th in points allowed per game, 26th in yards allowed per game, and 30th in sacks on the year. This could be the week to put this affordable defense into your lineups, however. The Redskins are down to their recently-signed third-string quarterback Mark Sanchez, a player most well-known in his career for a fumble, and Sanchez didn’t show much big-play ability on Monday night, passing for only 100 yards on 21 attempts. The Giants are four-point favorites at home this week against Washington, putting the Giants defense solidly into play as a salary-saver across DFS sites.
WR T.Y. Hilton (shoulder) and TE Eric Ebron (illness) not practicing Thursday
Andrew Luck’s two biggest weapons took practice off today, but both are still expected to play on Sunday as the Colts look to stay in the wild card race. Friday’s practice report should be monitored, but assuming Hilton and Ebron suit up, they should both be heavily targeted in a game with the Texans featuring a 50-point total.
As reported by: George Bremer Other tagged players: Eric Ebron Kerryon Johnson (knee) not practicing again Thursday
The rookie will miss another week while veteran backs LeGarrette Blount and Theo Riddick split the load. Week 14 offers a rare game where the Lions are favored and Blount has average 18 touches per game in Johnson’s absence so he could be worthy of your player pool this week at a fairly cheap price in potential positive gamescript.
As reported by: Dave Birkett Other tagged players: Theo Riddick, LeGarrette Blount QB Cam Newton (shoulder) limited again on Thursday
The Panthers QB wasn’t throwing passes for the second straight day of practice, however he’s still expected to play in Week 14 as the team fights for their playoff lives. His practice status still needs to be monitored on Friday, particularly to ensure he can make throws. Newton will look to bounce back against the Browns after throwing 4 interceptions against the Bucs struggling secondary last week, though he did still go for 300 yards in that contest.
As reported by: David Newton Jets QB Sam Darnold Ready to Start This Week
Jets QB Sam Darnold will start this week. Adjust rosters accordingly.
As reported by: Ian Rapoport Twitter
Sam Darnold says the plan for him is to play Sunday
Sam Darnold said in a radio interview Wednesday that the plan for him is to play Sunday. That’s more or less been expected dating back to last week, so this isn’t much of a surprise. The Jets passing attack is not a recommended place to look for DFS options in a match-up with the Bills in what figures to be a low-scoring game.
As reported by: Rich Cimini Other tagged players: Josh McCown
Pierre Garcon gets in limited session Wednesday
Pierre Garcon gets in limited practice session on Wednesday. It’s a positive sign that he’s at least out there early in the week, so he appears to have a decent shot to get back into the lineup this week. The 49ers passing attack has started to wane after a hot debut from Nick Mullens, so Garcon isn’t going to be a recommended option even if he’s healthy.
As reported by: Nick Wagoner Other tagged players: Marquise Goodwin, Dante Pettis, Kendrick Bourne Melvin Gordon still not practicing Wednesday
Melvin Gordon still not practicing Wednesday, but he does still have a few more opportunities to get some work in. If he can’t go, Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson will head the Chargers backfield again, with Ekeler being the preferred option in passing situations with Jackson better served to handle between-the-tackles work. Ekeler will still get a sizeable chunk of the rushing workload, but isn’t quite as good of a bet for goal-line work as the bigger Jackson. We’ll continue to update this one as the week moves along.
As reported by: @Chargers Other tagged players: Austin Ekeler, Justin Jackson Raiders officially signed RB C.J. Anderson and placed WR Martavis Bryant on IR
With Bryant on IR, the Raiders will continue to feed Jared Cook, Jordy Nelson, Marcell Ateman and Seth Roberts as their pass-catching corps, a unit that lacks a ton of upside. Doug Martin is a little banged up currently, so it’s definitely possible that Anderson works his way into a role this coming week on early-downs, with Jalen Richard still dominating passing-down duties.
Other tagged players: C.J. Anderson DeSean Jackson still not practicing Wednesday, Koetter doesn't provide an update on the severity of Jackson's thumb injury; Michael Thomas sits out of practice for NO
DeSean Jackson still not practicing Wednesday. Dirk Koetter doesn’t provide an update on the severity of Jackson’s thumb injury, so it’s certainly possible he could miss another contest, affording Chris Godwin another opportunity to start and play heavy snaps. He took advantage this past Sunday, going for 5-101-1 with Jackson out, and OJ Howard’s absence certainly isn’t going to hurt matters, as Cameron Brate hasn’t eaten into the same type of target workload. Michael Thomas sits out of practice for NO, but there doesn’t appear to be any genuine concern about his status at this point.
As reported by: Greg Auman Other tagged players: Chris Godwin, Adam Humphries, Michael Thomas Broncos claim WR Andre Holmes off waivers
The Broncos have officially announced that they’ve claimed former Bills wide receiver Andre Holmes off waivers in what will likely be the corresponding roster move to the eventual placing of Emmanuel Sanders on injured reserve due to a torn Achilles tendon. The acquisition of Holmes was made, in all likelihood, to provide depth at the wide receiver position following the trade of Demaryius Thomas and the aforementioned injury to Sanders this afternoon. This week, at the very least, the Broncos are projected to utilize a three-wide receiver set that consists of Courtland Sutton, DaeSean Hamilton, and Tim Patrick, while River Cracraft is the other remaining receiver currently on the active roster. Hamilton, in particular, is poised to be an intriguing option for Week 14 contests, as he is the favorite to take over Sanders’ vacated role in the slot and was on the field for 80 percent of snaps in Sunday’s win.
As reported by: Ian Rapoport via Twitter
Julio Jones (foot) did not practice Wednesday; Calvin Ridley (hand, elbow) limited
Jones didn’t participate in practice on Wednesday due to a foot injury, while Calvin Ridley was limited to individual work with hand and elbow injuries. This could just be a veteran maintenance day for Jones, but he hasn’t appeared on the Falcons’ practice report in quite some time, so his status will certainly be worth monitoring throughout the week. Jones had his streak of consecutive 100-yard games broken in Week 13, but he’ll be in a prime bounce-back spot Sunday’s matchup against the Green Bay Packers in a potential shootout.
As reported by: Vaughn McClure via Twitter Other tagged players: Calvin Ridley Joe Mixon (foot) limited in practice on Wednesday
Mixon is a surprise addition to the Bengals’ injury report and was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice due to a foot injury. Beat reporters have speculated that the injury may have incurred during practice because Mixon was reportedly fine following Sunday’s loss. There’s been no indication that this injury is serious enough to keep him sidelined for Sunday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, but the situation is certainly worth monitoring as the week progresses.
As reported by: Jay Morrison via Twitter