AJ Mass, ESPN Staff WriterDec 17, 2023, 02:57 PM ET
Close
- Fantasy football, baseball and college basketball contributor.
- Author of book, "Yes, It's Hot in Here."
Whom should you start? Whom should you sit? To help you set your fantasy football lineups and avoid starting an offensive player who won't be in the lineup, we'll post fantasy-relevant updates and analysis here as NFL teams release their official inactives lists. Any rankings cited in this column come from our ESPN Fantasy staff ranks.
Official Sunday inactives should begin coming in approximately 90 minutes before the scheduled kickoff times: around 11:30 a.m. ET for the early games and 2:30 p.m. ET for the late-afternoon games.
Refresh often for the latest information.
4 p.m. ET games
Marquise Brown, WR, ARI -- Active
Impact: Although he didn't practice in full this week, the Cardinals are coming out of a bye. He will be active.
Michael Wilson, WR, ARI -- Active
Impact: Similarly, Wilson will try to play. FYI, the last time he faced the 49ers (Week 4), he scored two touchdowns.
Brandin Cooks, WR, DAL -- Active
Impact: Despite not practicing late in the week, Cooks will indeed play. Jalen Tolbert (illness) will also suit up for this one.
Tutu Atwell, WR, LAR -- Inactive
Impact: While he was able to practice this week, he will not be playing due to the aftereffects of a concussion.
Elijah Mitchell, RB, SF -- OUT
Impact: Once again, Jordan Mason will serve as the backup to Christian McCaffrey.
Brian Robinson Jr., RB, WSH -- OUT
Impact: Antonio Gibson will start, with Chris Rodriguez Jr. spelling him when needed.
Sunday night game
There are no fantasy-relevant injuries of note for this game.
1 p.m. ET games
Mack Hollins, WR, ATL -- Inactive
Impact: Not much, as he has not seen a lot of the football when on the field. On a positive note, kicker Younghoe Koo, who had been dealing with an illness, will play.
DJ Moore, WR, CHI -- Active
Impact: He practiced in full Friday, so it's not a surprise that he will play. Feel free to use him as your WR1.
Equanimeous St. Brown, WR, CHI -- OUT
Impact: Darnell Mooney is the only Bears wideout (other than Moore) who could potentially have some fantasy value.
Ian Thomas, TE, CAR -- OUT
Impact: With Hayden Hurst on IR, it's Tommy Tremble's time to shine, with Stephen Sullivan also potentially getting some looks.
Aaron Jones, RB, GB -- Active
Impact: With AJ Dillon out today due to a broken thumb, Jones should be very busy.
Christian Watson, WR, GB -- Inactive
Impact: With no practice all week, this news seemed inevitable. Jayden Reed will see a ton of targets.
Dontayvion Wicks, WR, GB -- Active
Impact: With Watson absent, Wicks should see a healthy share of WR targets.
C.J. Stroud, QB, HOU -- OUT
Impact: A concussion has the Texans scrambling to find a QB replacement for at least a week. It appears as though they'll turn to Case Keenum instead of Davis Mills.
Nico Collins, WR, HOU -- Inactive
Impact: On the plus side, at least TE Dalton Schultz was removed from the injury report and will play.
Noah Brown, WR, HOU -- Active
Impact: Brown did get some reps in this week and could be the No. 1 WR option for the Texans if he can play. Take that with a grain of salt, though, given the QB situation here.
Isiah Pacheco, RB, KC -- OUT
Impact: Shoulder surgery has sidelined Pacheco for at least Week 15. Expect Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon to share the workload.
Justyn Ross, WR, KC -- OUT
Impact: Although his six-game suspension is over, Ross is not going to return to the Kansas City huddle this week. Coach Andy Reid said that next week could be different, but he made no promises.
De'Von Achane, RB, MIA -- Active
Impact: Even with Achane playing, Raheem Mostert will still likely see a much bigger share of the backfield touches.
Tyreek Hill, WR, MIA -- Inactive
Impact: Reports right up until the deadline were very promising, so this is a bit of a surprise. Jaylen Waddle is the receiver to turn to if you want a part of Miami's offense.
Rhamondre Stevenson, RB, NE -- OUT
Impact: Ezekiel Elliott could possibly see as many as 30 touches in this one.
JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, NE -- Inactive
Impact: Demario Douglas is ready to return from his concussion, so Smith-Schuster's value may already be headed for a decline.
DeVante Parker, WR, NE -- Active
Impact: Both he and Tyquan Thornton (hamstring) will play. Kayshon Boutte is inactive.
Kendre Miller, RB, NO -- OUT
Impact: Jamaal Williams (groin) is going to play, but possibly only because there's pretty much nobody else around to back up Alvin Kamara.
Chris Olave, WR, NO -- Inactive
Impact: Rashid Shaheed and A.T. Perry should both start for the Saints.
Darren Waller, TE, NYG -- Active
Impact: He's finally been activated from IR and it looks like he'll immediately return to No. 1 TE duties.
Chris Godwin, WR, TB -- Active
Impact: He was a game-time call but is going to play. If you were going to start him before he appeared on the injury report, then you probably want to start him now.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, WR, TEN -- Active
Impact: He had been dealing with an illness. Even if he is indeed 100%, there's not a ton of fantasy upside here.
