The Chargers could be without their three-down workhorse for the next few weeks. The team announced Monday that Melvin Gordon suffered a sprained MCL in his right knee during their win over the Cardinals and that his status will be evaluated week-to-week.
Gordon’s likely absence for their matchup against the Steelers will elevate Austin Ekeler to the starting role. Ekeler’s only two games with 15-plus touches this season were when Gordon was sidelined in Weeks 7 and 12. Ekeler played 42-of-44 (95%) snaps in Week 7, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if rookie Justin Jackson sees some extra work this time around.
The Bengals are also dealing with an injury to one of their most important players. Andy Dalton suffered a right thumb injury during their loss to the Browns and will miss the rest of the season. Jeff Driskel is expected to start this week’s matchup against the Broncos. The team also signed Tom Savage.
Some other key injury notes from around the league:
- Other key players who will sit out the rest of the season: Lions wide receiver Marvin Jones (knee), Jaguars guard Andrew Norwell (ankle), Cardinals kicker Phil Dawson (hip) and Broncos tight end Jeff Heuerman (ribs).
- Dolphins running back Kenyan Drake (shoulder) won’t take contact at practice this week, but he’s expected to suit up against the Bills.
- Dolphins wide receiver Danny Amendola is dealing with a knee injury. The offense doesn’t throw the ball much anyway, but Davante Parker, Kenny Stills, Leonte Carroo and Brice Butler could see additional targets against the Bills if Amendola is ultimately sidelined.
- Giants tight end Evan Engram (hamstring) is “optimistic” that his injury won’t affect him this week against the Bears.
- Colts running back Marlon Mack (concussion) could miss some time. Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins would form a two-back committee in Mack’s absence, with Hines working on pass downs and Wilkins likely serving as the early-down runner.
- Steelers tight end Vance McDonald (hip) should be considered questionable. Jesse James has proven capable of providing fantasy value with McDonald sidelined over the past two seasons.
We’ll be tracking injuries and suspensions for every starter and fantasy-relevant player below, with updates until kickoff.
Daily practice participation will be included to give a clear idea of how healthy a player truly is. Official injury designations will be added once they are available, but the FantasyLabs Status will be updated throughout the week.
NFL Week 13 Fantasy Football Injuries
Key
- DNP = Did Not Practice
- LP = Limited Practice
- FP = Full Practice
Fantasy Football Injury News
FantasyLabs will have news updates throughout the week. Stay ahead of your competition with our industry-leading DFS-focused news blurbs.
You can also find news in our NFL Models, along with our Multi-Lineup Builder, Stack builder, ownership projections and more.
Be sure to check out our other tools, including the Matchups page, DFS Contests Dashboard, NFL Ownership page and NFL Correlations page.
Pictured: Melvin Gordon
Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
