Michael Pittman Jr., Zack Moss, Ja'Marr Chase. Three players who were likely lineup locks for the fantasy playoffs, only to suffer an injury during their respective games on Saturday.
Injuries can derail an entire matchup, missing out on critical points against other great fantasy lineups. That's the beauty and pain of the game that we hate to love.
If you managed to survive injuries like that, it's time to look ahead as to whether you'll have their services in Week 16.
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Michael Pittman Jr. Injury Update for Fantasy Football
Pittman is in the NFL's concussion protocol after taking a brutal hit from Pittsburgh's Damontae Kazee. Kazee has since been suspended for the rest of the season.
Every concussion is unique and every player recovers from them differently. At the beginning of the season, it was almost a guarantee that players would miss the following week after suffering a brain injury. In the middle of the season, we saw some players like Alexander Mattison and Chris Olave not miss any time. Then, just last week, Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud was forced to sit out. New England wide receiver Demario Douglas recently sat out two games with his concussion.
Pittman benefits from one extra day to pass the league's protocol. The Colts played on Saturday in Week 15 and will return to the Sunday slate in Week 16.
Michael Pittman Jr. Fantasy Football Outlook
If Pittman is cleared for Week 16, he's a lock for fantasy football lineups across the board. The 26-year-old is the WR10 in his post-hype sleeper season and has only scored below 10 PPR fantasy points once in 2023. Even in Saturday's game, Pittman delivered 11.8 points, despite playing just 31 percent of the snaps.
The Colts draw the Falcons in Atlanta in Week 16. That secondary allows the fifth-fewest fantasy points to wide receivers. It's a knock, but it's not strong enough to shy away from Pittman.
If he's not ready to play, he'd likely suit up in Week 17 against Las Vegas, an average defense against the pass. Managers will need to come up with a contingency plan this week so they can take advantage of that future matchup in the fantasy playoffs.
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