Fantasy managers work so hard to reach fantasy championship week. All that preseason prep. Attacking the waiver wire. Monitoring injury situations up until kickoff each week before making your start/sit decisions. You get to this point and still, unforeseen injuries can be crippling.
We already saw championship week get off to a brutal start for fantasy managers with Derrick Henry. One of fantasy’s elite running backs missed the Titans’ Thursday night loss to the Cowboys, causing agita throughout the fantasy world. But there are many more dreadful scenarios in Week 17. And it’s not always about the player that’s out this week. A quarterback who means nothing to you might be sitting, and the backup is bad news for your star receiver.
Of course, one of the biggest issues this week is the likelihood that Jalen Hurts misses this week’s game for the Eagles. Hurts is the QB3 on the season and surely carried many fantasy football players to this week. Lamar Jackson hasn’t been nearly as dangerous but the Ravens quarterback is still productive (when healthy) and his absence in Week 17 will force fantasy managers to settle on a second-level passer.
Here are five other developments that might not be as jarring but will still have a profound impact on fantasy championship week:
Colt McCoy out for Cardinals
Nobody was starting Colt McCoy this week, even if their QB1 is out. But here’s the problem: The Cardinals are down to their fourth-string QB, David Blough, and that’s bad news for wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise Brown. Hopkins tore it up when he got back from his six-game suspension, but he’s been less stellar down the stretch with Kyler Murray and then McCoy going down.
Christian Watson battling hip injury
Even after being held out of the end zone the last two weeks, Packers rookie receiver Christian Watson still has eight total touchdowns over his last six games. Watson likely had a major impact on fantasy leagues everywhere, but he hasn’t been practicing this week and probably won’t be able to help fantasy teams he’s carried this far.
Miles Sanders nursing a knee
It’s bad enough that Sanders has been limited in practice this week with a knee injury but it also doesn’t help that Hurts is doubtful and the Saints defense can focus a little more on stopping Sanders. The Eagles running back hasn’t been a model of consistency this season, scoring five touchdowns in the last five weeks and he was the RB2 in Week 12 and RB1 in Week 14.
Tua Tagovailoa out with a concussion
It’s unlikely that Tagovailoa carried anyone to fantasy championship week, but there are plenty of good teams that relied on receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. The good news: When we last saw Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback for the Dolphins, he passed for 329 yards in Week 6 – Hill caught 12 passes for 177 yards, Waddle had six grabs for 129. The bad news: Both of Bridgewater’s TD passes went to Mike Gesicki.
Derek Carr benched
Well, it’s not an injury but it still hurts. The Raiders passer was the QB15 this season, but it’s entirely likely Carr might have been the best available backup option for anyone with Hurts or Jackson as their main guy. With Jarrett Stidham starting for Las Vegas, that’s bad news for Davante Adams and it also means the stout 49ers defense can load the box to stop Josh Jacobs.
