Fantasy Injury Updates: Latest news on Keenan Allen, Darren Waller, Mike Williams, more affecting Week 14 start 'em, sit 'em calls – Sporting News
It’s the final week of the fantasy football regular season, so inevitably, many fantasy owners of Keenan Allen, Darren Waller, Mike Williams, and Deebo Samuel are nervously waiting for the latest news on their respective COVID and injury situations. Of course, these guys are sure to affect Week 14 start, ’em, sit ’em calls, so we’re here to help with the latest updates.
For updates on banged-up RBs Elijah Mitchell, Darrell Henderson, David Montgomery, D’Andre Swift, Alvin Kamara, and Melvin Gordon, click here. For all the latest fantasy news, follow us on Twitter @SN_Fantasy.
WEEK 14 FANTASY: Sleepers | Busts | Start ’em, sit ’em
UPDATE: Allen is officially OUT.
Allen was placed on the reserve/COVID list early in the week, and since he is vaccinated, he has a shot to play against the Giants. Of course, we can’t speculate on whether he’ll test negative twice in a 24-hour span, so it would be silly to guess if he’s playing.
He’s obviously a must-start if he can play and is ranked as our WR11 in standard and WR10 in PPR leagues. Mike Williams (see below) could also be out, and we’ll dive into what that could mean in his section of the post.
WEEK 14 STANDARD RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
UPDATE: Waller did not practice Thursday.
UPDATE 2: Waller is officially OUT.
Waller (knee) didn’t practice Wednesday, and we’d be surprised if he practices all week. In all likelihood, he’ll be out, and Foster Moreau will be the starter after a disappointing fantasy performance last week.
Again, Moreau was a letdown against Washington, but a matchup with Kansas City is much more favorable. He ranks as our TE12 in standard and PPR leagues in what’s shaping up to be a shallow week for TEs.
WEEK 14 PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
UPDATE: Williams is still expected to clear COVID protocol in time for Sunday’s game.
Williams (reserve/COVID) isn’t vaccinated, and since he was a close contact to Keenan Allen (presumably), he’s out for at least five days from Monday. That said, he can play on Sunday against the Giants if he continues to test negative for the rest of the week.
Again, it’s not smart to speculate, but Williams is currently our WR30 in standard and PPR leagues. If one of the Chargers’ WRs is out, Jaylen Guyton draws strong flex appeal. If both are out, Josh Palmer could also be considered in deep leagues. TE Jared Cook and RB Austin Ekeler would also likely see more targets.
WEEK 14 DFS LINEUPS: DraftKings | FanDuel | Yahoo
UPDATE: Samuel wasn’t a full participant in practice Thursday, but he did do some work on the side.
UPDATE 2: Samuel is officially “questionable” for Sunday’s game and will be a game-time decision.
Samuel (groin) didn’t practice Wednesday, and since his original timetable was between one-to-two weeks, his status is truly up in the air for Week 14. For now, he seems to be on the wrong side of “questionable,” but we won’t know for sure until later in the week.
MORE WEEK 14 DFS: Best stacks | Best values | Lineup Builder
We currently don’t have Samuel in our rankings, but he’s obviously a must-start against Cincinnati based on his production this season. Brandon Aiyuk should be viewed as a mid-tier WR2 if Samuel is out. If Samuel plays, Aiyuk is merely a mid-tier flex.
