If you haven’t already had your fantasy football championship yet, it has to be going down in Week 17. As a result, we all need to follow our Week 17 fantasy RB injury update closely. Key players like Mike Davis and Antonio Gibson have their statuses up in the air and could determine your team’s future. Let’s dive into the RB injuries to consider for Week 17.
Fantasy RB Injury Update Week 17: The biggest injury question marks heading into Week 17
In Week 16, James Robinson was inactive somewhat surprisingly. That decision might have been influenced by the Jacksonville Jaguars’ desire to lockup the number one overall pick. Now that they have that pick in the bag, they might be more inclined to bring back James Robinson. Bringing him back also depends on the status of his injury though.
What is James Robinson’s status for Week 17?
Before their game with the Chicago Bears, head coach Doug Marrone said he would rest Robinson during practice that week. The plan was that a week of rest from practice would allow Robinson to be ready for the matchup with Chicago. Unfortunately, however, that wasn’t the case, and Jacksonville was left without their best offensive weapon.
As a result, the Bears trounced the Jaguars, solidifying Jacksonville’s hold on this year’s top pick. Backup running back Dare Ogunbowale filled in for Robinson and did a fine job. He averaged more than five yards per carry and gained 71 yards in the blowout loss. He was nowhere near as effective as Robinson through the air though, gaining just seven yards on five targets.
Now that Trevor Lawrence has fallen into their laps, there’s no incentive for Jacksonville to lose games. So, as long as Robinson is healthy, he should play in the season’s final week. The problem is, he isn’t healthy yet. He was a non-participant in practice this week as well, and Marrone told the media he likely won’t play.
“I was holding out hope, I really was, but it doesn’t look like he’s gonna be up for our game,” Marrone said. “I think it’s safe to say that he’ll be out.”
Some of that motivation to try and get Robinson on the field may have come from the fact that Robinson is just 35 yards short of the single-season rushing record for a rookie undrafted free agent.
However, Adam Schefter reported Saturday night that James Robinson will miss the Week 17 matchup.
Will Cam Akers or Darrell Henderson get off the fantasy RB injury update in Week 17?
The Los Angeles Rams are entering the playoffs limping like a wounded animal. They’re coming off of bad losses to the New York Jets and Seattle Seahawks, which made them lose the NFC West. Now two of their most important players — Cam Akers and Darrell Henderson — are nursing ankle injuries.
In their loss to the Jets, Akers suffered a high-ankle sprain and was forced to miss the team’s game against the Seahawks. He could make his return this week, even though he hasn’t been a full participant in practice yet.
On Thursday, head coach Sean McVay said he wasn’t ready to rule Akers out for Sunday’s game. He even said that he wouldn’t have a problem playing the young RB without practice time.
“I do trust the way that he’s preparing, and I know [RB coach] Thomas [Brown] is meeting with him and getting some above-the-neck mental reps,” McVay said. “So you’d like to be able to get him some physical reps, but I think the approach that we’ll take this week will be use every moment that we have leading up to game time to make sure that you get him as healthy as possible and let’s not put him at risk for any potential setbacks.”
Ian Rapoport reported Sunday morning that Akers is a game-time decision. His status will be determined by a pregame workout.
To make matters worse, in their Week 16 loss to Seattle, Darrell Henderson sustained a high-ankle sprain too. Henderson had finally sprung a run free before spraining an ankle on Jamal Adams’ touchdown-saving tackle.
Henderson’s sprained ankle must be more severe, as the Rams immediately placed him on injured reserve. He won’t be able to return from that designation until the NFC Championship Game at the earliest.
Will Ronald Jones be active in Week 17?
January 3: Ronald Jones is active for the Buccaneers Week 17 matchup.
The last few weeks have been rough on Ronald Jones. First, the Pro Bowl voters surprisingly snubbed him. Then, he was placed on the team’s reserve list and missed Tampa’s games in Week 15 and 16.
Jones might be off the fantasy RB injury update for Week 17 though. This week, the team removed him from the reserve list and made him a full-participant in practice. That news will relieve Bucs fans, as Jones was battling a finger injury as well.
As long as Jones remains on his current trajectory, he should be ready to go for this week’s matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. With that said, don’t be surprised if Ke’Shawn Vaughn continues to get some snaps after playing impressively in a relief role.
If Jones is unable to play this week, which would be surprising, he’d still be on track to return for Wild Card Weekend at least. That places him in a similar position to what Washington’s Antonio Gibson is going through right now.
Will the Panthers have Christian McCaffrey or Mike Davis?
As they enter the season-finale, the Carolina Panthers find themselves incredibly shallow at running back, as both Mike Davis and Christian McCaffrey are banged up.
Mike Davis hasn’t practiced a single day this week due to an ankle injury. He could play in Week 17, but the Panthers season is already over. He isn’t approaching any major milestones, so it wouldn’t make sense to rush him back. ESPN’s Adam Schefter listed Davis as one of a number of players out for Week 17.
Christian McCaffrey hoped to return this season, but it appears his optimism was misplaced. McCaffrey came off of injured reserve before Week 14 but quickly tweaked his quadricep in practice. He then missed Carolina’s Week 14 game but told ESPN’s Adam Schefter he didn’t believe his season was over. He also told Schefter he wanted to return and play again this season.
The Panthers designated McCaffrey as “out” for this week’s game though, ending his season.
If Carolina also designates Mike Davis as “out” for Sunday’s game, expect Trenton Cannon to take over.