NFL Week 13 Injury Report: Jacobs, Mixon & Chase All Questionable

This article is part of our Injury Analysis series.

The good news this week is that most of the big-name guys listed as questionable are better than 50/50 to play. The bad news is two-fold. First, there's no shortage of injuries this week, including a lot of skill-position players listed as questionable. Second, the guys among that group with the most fantasy value are playing in the late-afternoon games rather than the early set, creating potential for difficulty if things really go down to the wire with Josh Jacobs, Ja'Marr Chase or Joe Mixon.

We'll touch on all that and more below, sorting through Week 13 injuries and the potential fallout after the release of final reports Friday afternoon. The bottom section here, labeled 'truly questionable', can be used as a checklist/cheatsheet for Sunday as inactives come out. First, let's see who's definitely in and who's definitely out...

Good to Go 💯

• QB Justin Fields (shoulder)
• QB Aaron Rodgers (ribs/thumb)
• RB Najee Harris (abdomen)
• RB Christian McCaffrey (knee)
• RB Raheem Mostert (knee)
• RB Cam Akers (illness)
• WR Treylon Burks (illness)
• WR DeVonta Smith (groin)
• WR Marquise Goodwin (illness)

Ruled Out/Doubtful 🚑 👎

• QB Matthew Stafford (concussion)
• RB Michael Carter (D - ankle)
• RB J.K. Dobbins (IR/R - knee)
• WR Brandin Cooks (calf)
• WR Mike Williams (ankle)
• WR Kadarius Toney (hamstring)
• WR KJ Hamler (hamstring)
• TE David Njoku (knee)

Key Defensive Players + Offensive Linemen

• CB Kyler Gordon + S Jaquan Brisker (concussions)
• OT David Bakhtiari (appendix) + S Darnell Savage (foot)
• OT Christian Darrisaw (concussion)
• DL/OLB Denico Autry (knee)
• DE Robert Quinn (knee) + DB Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (abdomen)
• CB Derek Stingley (hamstring)
• Gs Joshua Ezeudu (neck) & Shane Lemieux (toe)
• OTs Terron Armstead (D - pectoral) & Austin Jackson (ankle)
• DT Aaron Donald (ankle)
• C Corey Linsley (concussion) + OT Trey Pipkins (knee)
• CB Kenny Moore (shin) + OT Braden Smith (illness)
• OT Tristan Wirfs (ankle) + S Antoine Winfield (ankle) + S Mike Edwards (hamstring) + Sean Murphy-Bunting (quad)

Listed as Questionable - Should Play 👍

• OLB T.J. Watt (ribs) - 1 ET
• RB Jaylen Warren (hamstring) - 1 ET
• DT Jeffery Simmons (ankle) - 1 ET
• RB Travis Homer (illness) - 1 ET
• CB Marlon Humphrey (ankle) + S Kyle Hamilton (knee)
• WR Michael Gallup + CB Trevon Diggs + S Jayron Kearse (illnesses)

Truly Questionable 🤔 ???

Early Games (1:00 ET)

• RB Travis Etienne (foot) + WR Zay Jones (chest) 
• RB Antonio Gibson (foot)
• RB Mike Boone (IR/R - ankle)
• WRs Courtland Sutton (illness) & Jerry Jeudy (ankle)
• WRs Darius Slayton (illness) & Richie James (knee) + TE Daniel Bellinger (eye)
• WR Jameson Williams (IR/R - knee)
• WR Romeo Doubs (knee)

RB JaMycal Hasty took 81 percent of Jacksonville's snaps after the first quarter last week,  managing only 12-28-0 on the ground but 5-61-1 through the air. With Etienne and Darrell Henderson (illness) both questionable and the latter uncertain to have a role even if healthy, Hasty could be headed for another big game against Detroit's vulnerable defense. On the other hand, Etienne did practice this week, and coach Doug Pederson said Friday he's good to go (see below). I think Etienne will play, but am not ready to assume it after he was held out last week despite reportedly having medical clearance (note that his sprain is in the surgically repaired foot).

The other big truly questionables here are Sutton and Jeudy, though both have a tough matchup anyway as TD-plus road underdogs in a game with an over/under below 40. Sutton has been all volume, no efficiency, of late, while Jeudy missed the past two games and could miss another. Kendall Hinton and practice-squad callup Brandon Johnson have taken the most snaps alongside Sutton with Jeudy out. Hinton, with 154 yards on 17 targets the past three games, could be a startable WR3 in deeper PPR league. Other guys who could see more work than usual due to the injuries listed above include Jags WRs Marvin Jones and Jamal Agnew (Z. Jones injury), Commanders RB Brian Robinson (Gibson) and Giants WR Isaiah Hodgins (Slayton/James).

Late Games (4:05 or 4:25 ET)

• WR Deebo Samuel (quad)
• RBs Josh Jacobs (calf) & Brandon Bolden (calf) - 4:25
• RB Joe Mixon (concussion) + WR Ja'Marr Chase (hip) - 4:25

These are the big boys, with Jacobs, Mixon, Samuel and Chase all auto-starts anytime they're active. Zamir White could step in as the lead runner if Jacobs is out, with Bolden and Ameer Abdullah typically considered passing-down specialists and special teamers. Abdullah would also have fantasy appeal, especially in PPR formats.

For the Bengals, we can pretty much assume Samaje Perine will take over Mixon's usual role if Mixon doesn't play, considering Perine had 93 total yards and a TD on 80 percent of snaps in the win over Tennessee last week. Meanwhile, everything I've seen points toward Chase playing (including a FULL practice Friday), which means Trenton Irwin going back to the bench for the most part. Tyler Boyd didn't do much with Chase out, but he should see favorable coverages in a potential shootout this week.

Samuel, unlike Chase, appears closer to 50/50, with Jauan Jennings and Ray-Ray McCloud on hand to pick up any missing snaps, though the fantasy beneficiaries might just be Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey. It's a game I'm looking to stack in DFS, hoping Miami can make enough big plays to overcome the significant challenge of facing San Francisco's formidable defense with both starting OTs out. Backup tackle Greg Little has played a lot this year and really struggled, but it mostly hasn't mattered with Tua Tagovailoa getting the ball out quickly and with excellent anticipation. Let's hope they can keep him in one piece this Sunday in the McDaniel/Mostert/Wilson Revenge Game.

Primetime Games (8:20 ET, SUN/MON)

• TE Jelani Woods (quad/shoulder) - SNF
• TE Juwan Johnson (knee) - MNF 
• WR Russell Gage (hamstring) + TE Cameron Brate (illness) - MNF

These guys are mostly only relevant for deep leagues or DFS showdowns, though Woods got some redraft attention this week after his eight-catch performance Monday night. Now he's questionable after a couple missed practices while Kylen Granson is back from an illness, potentially flipping the script and allowing Granson to run most of the routes (just don't expect 90 yards... or even 50). 

For the Saints-Bucs game Monday night, injuries on the defensive side look much more impactful than those on offense from a non-fantasy standpoint. This is RotoWire, of course, not RealLifeWire, so we'll especially be keeping track of Brate, whose absences this season have correlated with large snap counts and solid target totals for rookie Cade Otton. Gage will probably rotate with Julio Jones if he plays, which would mean running a route on half of Tom Brady's dropbacks, if that. Johnson could play a lot for the Saints if he recovers and has scored six TDs this year, but it didn't look good for him as of Friday evening after another missed practice. Adam Trautman and Taysom Hill would pick up more snaps at tight end... the latter being more interesting for fantasy. 

Key Defensive Players + O-Linemen

• LB De'Vondre Campbell (knee) - 1 ET
• DE Chase Young (ACL) - 1 ET
• C Jon Feliciano (neck) - 1 ET
• OT Ronnie Stanley (ankle)
• OT Trent Williams (back) - 4:05 ET
• CB Troy Hill (groin) + C Brian Allen (finger) + LB Ernest Jones (back) - 4:05 ET
• CB Marshon Lattimore (abdomen) + LB Pete Werner (ankle) + DB P.J. Williams (knee)