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Although the majority of fantasy football leagues are in the books, some fantasy managers are still alive and playing for a championship in Week 18. There are also DFS contests to compete in during the final week of the regular season. As always, there are plenty of key injuries to monitor ahead of Saturday's and Sunday's kickoffs. Our injury updates and reports for Week 18 as of Friday, January 5, 2024, will give you the latest updates on key guys.
As always, some players have more "real" risk of missing Week 18 than others, but things change quickly, so it's important to stay up to date. Trevor Lawrence, Josh Jacobs, Alvin Kamara, Amari Cooper, Zay Flowers, Baker Mayfield, and more are in danger of missing Week 18. Fantasy managers should be ready to pivot should things go south. Some players are sitting out of Week 18 for non-injury reasons. We won't cover those players in this article.
To keep close tabs on all of the news across the NFL, make sure to favorite or bookmark the fantasy football player news page, or download the free RotoBaller fantasy football mobile app with push notification alerts on all the latest news. Let's look at the updates for some top fantasy assets at all positions and see whether they may play in Week 18.
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Trevor Lawrence Injury Update
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (shoulder, finger) will be questionable to play in the Week 18 regular season finale against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, and a decision on whether he plays could go up to game time. "If he's good to go, he's good to go. If he's out there, he's rolling," head coach Doug Pederson said. Lawrence sprained his right shoulder in Week 16 and didn't play in last week's win over the Carolina Panthers as a result.
The 24-year-old did a little bit of throwing on Wednesday and Thursday. If we had to guess, Lawrence will be active this weekend in a must-win game for Jacksonville, and he could be getting receiver Christian Kirk (groin) back as well. With several big-name QBs being rested in the regular season finale, Lawrence will have low-end QB1 appeal for fantasy managers still playing for a championship if he's active on Sunday morning.
Alvin Kamara Injury Update
New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara (ankle) will be listed as questionable for the Week 18 regular season finale against the visiting Atlanta Falcons, and head coach Dennis Allen said Kamara will be a game-time decision on Sunday. "Alvin is one of the guys so valuable to our team, we'll take it all the way up to game time," Allen said. Kamara sprained his ankle in the Week 17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is in danger of sitting out of a must-win game to close out the regular season.
The good news is we'll know Sunday morning if he's able to play, and the 28-year-old workhorse back will still be a reliable high-floor DFS RB this weekend if he's active. If he doesn't get the green light, expect Jamaal Williams and Taysom Hill to be the Saints' primary rushing options. In Week 12 against Atlanta, Kamara had 15 carries for 69 yards and four catches for 50 yards.
Amari Cooper Injury Update
Cleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper (heel) has been ruled out for the Week 18 regular season finale on Sunday versus the Cincinnati Bengals. Cooper will miss his second straight game to close out the regular season. With the Browns locked into the No. 5 seed in the AFC, they are choosing to rest some key players ahead of the wild-card round next week.
The 29-year-old set a franchise record with 265 receiving yards and two touchdowns in the Week 16 win over the Houston Texans, but that will end up being his final game of the regular season. Receivers Elijah Moore (concussion) and Marquise Goodwin (knee) are questionable and could also be rested, so quarterback Jeff Driskel might be working with rookie Cedric Tillman, David Bell and James Proche II as his top receivers against the Bengals.
Zay Flowers Injury Update
Baltimore Ravens rookie wide receiver Zay Flowers (calf) didn't practice all week and is listed as doubtful to play on Saturday night in Week 18 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Ravens have the top seed in the AFC and a first-round bye in the playoffs locked up, so they will be resting some players this weekend. In addition to Flowers on offense, quarterback Lamar Jackson, receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and right guard Kevin Zeitler (knee, quadriceps) won't play.
Receiver Tylan Wallace (knee) is also questionable to play. Fantasy managers are going to have to ignore Flowers this week and will probably want to ignore Baltimore's offense entirely with quarterback Tyler Huntley making his first start of the year against a Steelers team still fighting for a playoff spot. With both OBJ and Flowers out, Rashod Bateman and Nelson Agholor will be the team's top two receivers in addition to tight end Isaiah Likely.
Christian Kirk Injury Update
Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Christian Kirk (groin) is considered a game-time decision for the Week 18 regular season finale on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans by head coach Doug Pederson. NFL Network's James Palmer writes that players he's spoken to have been blown away by what they've seen from Kirk in practices this week after returning from core-muscle surgery. Kirk's speed is there, but he needs to show more side-to-side cuts to be cleared to play in a must-win game this weekend.
The Jaguars must first activate the 27-year-old from Injured Reserve on Saturday if he is going to play. Before missing the last four games, Kirk was a huge piece of Jacksonville's offense, catching 57 of 85 targets for 787 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games. He'll be enticing as a DFS play if he's active, but he'll also be extremely risky if the team monitors his snaps in his first game back.
Baker Mayfield Injury Update
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (ribs) is listed as questionable for the Week 18 regular season finale on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers despite receiving a questionable tag on the final injury report on Friday. Head coach Todd Bowles said on Friday that Mayfield is a "full-go" and will start in a must-win game this weekend on the road in Carolina.
The 28-year-old signal-caller came out of the Week 17 loss to the New Orleans Saints with some sore ribs, but he'll tough it out and suit up on Sunday in hopes of leading the Bucs to another NFC South title. It won't be a great matchup on the road coming off a lackluster performance, but Mayfield has a little more sleeper appeal in DFS with several other big-name QBs being rested in the regular season finale.
Jayden Reed, Dontayvion Wicks Injury Update
Green Bay Packers rookie wide receivers Dontayvion Wicks (chest) and Jayden Reed (chest) are both questionable to play in the Week 18 regular season finale on Sunday against the Chicago Bears. Christian Watson (hamstring), who has missed the last four games, is also questionable, but he appears to have a better shot at returning in a must-win game for the Packers.
Before getting hurt in the Week 17 win over the Minnesota Vikings, Reed had six catches for 89 yards and two touchdowns with both Watson and Wicks out. Even if Watson returns to action this weekend, Reed, who we expect to play, will be the most expensive and attractive DFS play. The 23-year-old has been a touchdown machine in the second half of his first NFL season and has found the end zone seven times in the last seven games.
On the flip side, Chicago isn't friendly to opposing wideouts, so all of Green Bay's receivers have some level of bust potential as well.
Will Levis Injury Update
Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis (foot) remained limited during Friday's practice. He is officially questionable to play in Week 18, though head coach Mike Vrabel already announced that Ryan Tannehill will draw the start in what could be his final game as a Titan.
If active, Levis will be the backup, keeping him off the fantasy football radar. Assuming he doesn't take a snap on Sunday, Levis will finish his rookie campaign having completed 58.4 percent of his passes for 1,808 yards, eight passing touchdowns, one rushing touchdown, and four interceptions.
Josh Jacobs Injury Update
Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (quadriceps) will be a game-time decision for the Week 18 regular season finale against the Denver Broncos on Sunday. Jacobs has missed the last three contests and didn't practice at all on Wednesday or Thursday.
However, the Raiders aren't ruling the 25-year-old out for the final game of the year under interim head coach Antonio Pierce. If Jacobs is indeed active on Sunday against the division-rival Broncos, fantasy managers should consider him an extremely volatile starting option with the Raiders likely to limit his snaps in his first game back, especially since backup Zamir White has been extremely efficient as the team's lead back the last three games with Jacobs sidelined.
UPDATE: Jacobs has been ruled out.
Tee Higgins Injury Update
Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins (hamstring) did not practice on Friday and is listed as doubtful to play in the Week 18 regular season finale on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns. Higgins didn't practice all week after tweaking his hamstring in the Week 17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. If the Bengals were still in playoff contention, the 24-year-old wideout might have made a bigger push to play, but Cincy doesn't have anything to play for besides pride in this one.
Higgins played in only 12 games in his fourth NFL season due to various injuries and finished with career-lows in receptions (42), targets (76), receiving yards (656) and touchdowns (five). It didn't help that quarterback Joe Burrow (wrist) dealt with injuries, too, and didn't play a full season. With Higgins out on Sunday, Ja'Marr Chase (shoulder) and Tyler Boyd will be the team's top two wideouts.
Rashee Rice, Kadarius Toney Injury Update
The Kansas City Chiefs have ruled out wide receivers Rashee Rice (hamstring) and Kadarius Toney (hip) for the Week 18 regular season finale against the Los Angeles Chargers. With the No. 3 seed in the AFC already locked up, the Chiefs will also be resting quarterback Patrick Mahomes and offensive tackle Donovan Smith (neck). It means that a Chiefs offense that has been less than stellar this year is going to be even weaker for a meaningless contest this weekend against the Bolts.
The 23-year-old Rice should be good to go for the wild-card round next week. Toney, meanwhile, will miss his third straight game, although he, too, should be ready to roll next week for the start of the postseason. With Rice and Toney out on Sunday, Justin Watson, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Mecole Hardman Jr, Justyn Ross and Richie James should all be more involved.
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