Indianapolis Colts RB Zack Moss has been a thorn in the side of many Jonathan Taylor shareholders over the past couple of weeks, but that could change after Moss picked up an elbow and heel injury against the Cleveland Browns. How will his injury impact the Colts’ backfield and their fantasy football values heading into their matchup against the New Orleans Saints?
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Latest Injury Update on Zack Moss
According to a recent report from Nate Atkins, Moss is back at practice on Thursday after being listed as a non-participant for Wednesday’s session while dealing with a heel and elbow issue.
Editor’s Note: According to a recent report from the Indianapolis Colts, Moss was listed as non-participant for Friday’s practice and is questionable for Week 8.
Will Zack Moss Play This Week?
A return to the practice field certainly bodes well for Moss having a chance to get on the field for the team’s Week 8 matchup against the Saints. At this moment, the Colts haven’t released their official injury report for Thursday.
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If he takes the field again on Friday in a full or limited capacity, there’s a good chance he will be on the active roster for Sunday.
What Does This Mean for Jonathan Taylor’s Fantasy Ranking?
Since Taylor returned to the active roster three weeks ago, Moss has still been heavily involved in the Colts’ offense. When you dive a bit deeper into their usage, one could make a compelling case the team is taking a running-back-by-committee approach.
Zack Moss Total Touches:
Week 5: 25
Week 6: 13
Week 7: 19
Jonathan Taylor Total Touches:
Week 5: 7
Week 6: 13
Week 7: 21
Sure, Taylor finally out-touched Moss last week, but it was by a very slim margin. Taylor was also the more efficient back against the Browns, yet Moss was still on the field for 50% of the offensive snaps last week.
No one is really certain as to exactly when Taylor will begin seeing the overwhelming majority of work to come from this backfield. But in recent weeks, he’s starting to look like the Taylor of old.
However, until we get a week where Moss isn’t getting a significant amount of work, we can’t really say he’s not a viable Flex option for your fantasy lineup.
Speaking of Flex options, the Colts’ offense will once again be facing off against one of the NFL’s stingiest defensive units against opposing rushing attacks. The Saints are currently allowing just 13.3 fantasy points per game — which is the fourth lowest in the league — to opposing running backs this season.
In fact, every team Indianapolis has faced since Taylor returned to the lineup in Week 5 — Tennessee Titans, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Browns — all rank in the top half of the league against opposing running backs.
If Moss is active, he’s a top-35 play against New Orleans. If he’s unavailable, Taylor gets a small bump in the weekly fantasy rankings and should be a solid RB1 option in Week 8.