Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs missed last week due to a quad injury that he sustained in Week 14. Fantasy football managers are sweating over the status of Jacobs as the Raiders do not play the Kansas City Chiefs until today on Christmas Day, at 1 p.m. ET.
Jacobs might not be reaching the heights of last season for fantasy managers, but he is still just under seven fantasy points from a converted place in the RB1 mantle despite only accumulating six fantasy points since the Raiders’ Week 13 bye.
So, will Jacobs play today against the Chiefs? What is the latest news concerning his quad injury? And, if Jacobs does play, what is his fantasy outlook for Week 16?
Editor’s Note: Josh Jacobs is inactive for Week 16.
Is Josh Jacobs Going To Play In Week 16?
Jacobs’ injury held him out of the rest of the 3-0 defeat to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 14 and also the Raiders’ 63-21 win versus the Chargers on Thursday Night Football.
Field Yates of ESPN reported on Wednesday, “Raiders coach Antonio Pierce on RB Josh Jacobs’ status for Monday’s game at the Chiefs: ‘I think he was close to last week. That was a decision we all made for the best interest of him. If I had to be a betting man, I would think he would play this game.'”
And that appeared to be the case with his practice schedule. While Jacobs did not practice on Thursday, he practiced in a limited capacity on Friday.
While we were expecting Jacobs to practice on Saturday, he did not. And his injury designation changed. According to the Raiders’ official injury report, the team is reporting that Josh Jacobs has an illness, and that is why he did not practice yesterday.
Fantasy managers will need to follow updates on Jacobs via our PFN Player Tracker to see if there are further updates on his illness. However, it is rare for NFL players to miss games due to illness. Therefore, I would expect Jacobs to play today, barring any late setbacks.
What Is Jacobs’ Potential Fantasy Outlook Today?
Jacobs comes into Week 16 as the RB15 in fantasy football, though he has not been as sensational for fantasy managers as he was last season. However, Jacobs is fourth in the NFL in terms of total touches among all running backs. His 270 touches trail only Christian McCaffrey (301), Travis Etienne (277), and Rachaad White (272).
However, all three running backs have played a game more than Jacobs, meaning he would rank second in touches per game, averaging almost 21 touches a game (McCaffrey averages 21.5).
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Where Jacobs falls behind these three running backs is his yards per carry is the lowest of the four (3.5 yards per carry), and he is the only running back of the four not to break 400 receiving yards, managing just 296 so far this season.
According to our PFN Consensus Rankings, Jacobs is currently ranked as the RB15 on the week. That is due to his matchup against the Chiefs. The Chiefs are only allowing 17.5 fantasy points per game to running backs so far this season which is the 12th-least allowed by teams in the NFL this season.
And, with the Chiefs heavy favorites in this game (DraftKings has them as 10.5-point favorites against the Raiders), the game script will mean most of Jacobs’ carries will be limited due to the negative game script the Raiders will find themselves in.
Nonetheless, due to his workload in the passing game, Jacobs should still see significant targets that give him high RB2 numbers this week. If Jacobs can find the end zone, he could find himself an RB1.
Fantasy managers should start Jacobs in all formats as long as he is likely to play. Use the player tracker to get updates on any developments. However, if it is just the illness that is keeping him on the injury report, I would expect Jacobs to play.
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