Chris Allen and Jorge Martin dive into the Week 13 NFL injury news impacting fantasy football.

Fantasy managers who have no players on this list should be extra thankful going into Week 13 of the season. Though for everyone else—likely EVERYBODY who plays fantasy football—there are plenty of questions going into the penultimate week before the fantasy playoffs. Every decision matters.

We're here for you. Let's get to the most important players for fantasy football with injury designations in Week 13 after the Thanksgiving Day games. Could they play? We'll keep updating this article up until inactives are announced before Sunday's early games.

Quarterback

Brock Purdy (shoulder): Purdy logging limited practices the first two days of the week are encouraging that he’ll return to the lineup. That would be welcomed news for the 49ers, as pass catchers will get a decided upgrade if Purdy returns even close to his previous performance.

Purdy will need to be close to full health, as traveling for the second week in a row will see the 49ers playing in Buffalo on Sunday Night Football. Weather could have an impact, as snow is in the forecast with temperatures in the 20s and some winds. If Purdy can go, he’ll need to keep up with Josh Allen on an MVP tear. Purdy is currently QB23 in our rankings, and probably better left on benches in single-QB leagues. Though pass catchers Jauan Jennings, Deebo Samuel, and George Kittle would all get upgrades with Purdy playing over Allen in a game that could see some passing. 

Trevor Lawrence (shoulder): HC Doug Pederson said that he expects Lawrence to play on Sunday. That’s fantastic news for the Jaguars, as Mac Jones was unable to surpass 138 passing yards in his two games subbing for Lawrence. 

Temps are expected to be a balmy 62 degrees with minimal wind, so perfect conditions this time of year. This is an upgrade for BrIan Thomas Jr. and Evan Engram. Both may be needed very much, as C.J. Stroud and Co. should move the ball at will for the Texans against a Jaguars defense that’s at or near the bottom against the passing and running games. Nothing like starting players who are chasing points. 

Bo Nix (back): Nix popped up on the injury report with a questionable tag and logged a limited practice on his first day leading into the Monday Night Football game against the Browns. As of now there’s no worry about sitting Nix, who is on a run of throwing multiple TDs in four of his last five games. This is a situation we’re following.

Running Back

Isiah Pacheco (leg): Fantasy managers who get to put Pacheco back in starting lineups are giving thanks on Black Friday. Just temper the expectations, as the first week will probably be a timeshare with Kareem Hunt, who has compiled rush-attempt percentages between 76% to 88% Weeks 8-12. 

Playing the Raiders in KC, it will be a good game for Pacheco to get in some reps while Hunt is playing on short rest. If you’ve waited this long, start Pacheco though the best hope may be that he gets rush attempts near the goal line in a game where the Chiefs are favored by almost two touchdowns.

Brian Robinson Jr. (ankle): It initially looked like Robinson might miss this week, but after logging two LP designations to start the week he practiced in full on Friday and should be ready to go. Robinson will likely have the backfield to himself (see next player), though it’ll be a tough matchup.

The Titans come to the nation’s capital and are allowing the 5th-fewest rushing yards to RBs this season (68.2). Since Jahmyr Gibbs went for 127 rushing yards in Week 8, no running back has surpassed 55 rushing yards against this tough Titans defensive front. Robinson may get the bulk of the carries if he’s active, but may not have much room to maneuver. Robinson will get heavy volume, but it could be far from easy sledding.

Austin Ekeler (concussion): Ekeler went DNP the first two days of practice and is in the concussion protocol. He was ruled out on Friday afternoon, which will direct nearly all the touches to Robinson.

Zamir White (quadriceps) and Alexander Mattison (ankle): The top two RBs for Las Vegas have been ruled out for the Friday afternoon game, though Ameer Abdullah will likely have a tougher time since his Week 12 RB9 performance when he amassed 65 total yards and a touchdown. This will be a tougher test for Abdullah, as the Chiefs have not allowed more than 58 rushing yards to any running back this season.

Breece Hall (knee): After missing Wednesday’s practice with a knee injury, Hall returned in a limited fashion on Friday. That’s good news for Hall’s fantasy managers, and there is hope that he will be able to start going into a home matchup against the Seahawks. 

Seattle has improved dramatically on defense the first two games coming out of its bye, though Christian McCaffrey did compile 106 scoreless yards in Week 11. We’ll keep an eye on the practice reports, but Hall is starting if he’s playing.

Wide Receiver

Josh Downs (shoulder): Downs was ruled out on Friday afternoon, which is tough news for Anthony Richardson to be missing his top target. Michael Pittman, who was on the injury report before practicing fully the past two days, will be the focal point of the passing game after seeing 28% and 30% target shares, respectively, the past two games.

Alec Pierce and Adonai Mitchell could also see bumps in targets with Downs sitting, as they did see deep targets earlier this season when Downs was out the first two games. This is a dome team going into the elements in New England—temperatures are expected to be around 37 degrees with light wind. After the Patriots allowed 4 passing TDs in back-to-back games, this could be a passing environment to take fliers on these deep threats with Downs sidelined

Cedric Tillman (concussion): Tillman has missed the first two days of practice in the concussion protocol. He does get an extra day to recover, though for now he is trending toward sitting. 

The Denver defense has been one of the best against the pass, though there have been some recent chinks in the armor. Jakobi Meyers (121 receiving yards) and Tre Tucker (82) had good games last week, and in Week 9 Zay Flowers put up a 127-2 line. Before that no WR had surpassed 78 receiving yards against Denver’s defense. 

DK Metcalf (shoulder): After missing consecutive practices to start the week, that’s never a good sign for a player’s availability. However, teams do sometimes sit stars in practice before gearing them up for Sunday. Looking at his practice session on Friday will be very important.

With Metcalf’s availability in question, take a hard look at Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s usage. In Weeks 8 and 9 when Metcalf was out, JSN saw target rates of 28% and 38%, respectively. In Week 9, the second-year wideout saw 13 targets and put up 7 catches, 180 yards, and 2 TDs for a WR1 overall finish. The Jets are coming off a bye, though they did get beat up by Richardson and the Colts for 272 yards and a touchdown in Week 11.

Tight End

Ja'Tavion Sanders (neck): After a scary fall where he landed with all of his weight on his head last Sunday, Sanders was taken to the hospital for testing before being released that same evening. That's great news.

The Panthers did not take chances with the talented rookie. He did not practice this week and was ruled out on Friday. Short and intermediate routes should go to Adam Thielen, in his second game back from the IR. The Buccaneers are fourth in the league with 250 passing yards allowed per game. 

Dalton Kincaid (knee): After missing Week 11 before the Bills' bye, Kincaid is not back. He's been ruled out for the Sunday night tilt against the 49ers. Amari Cooper could see an increase in playing time after seeing just a 53% snap share and 8% target share in his return from a two-game absence with a wrist injury.