AJ MassESPN Staff Writer Oct 22, 2023, 9:56am ET5 minutes read
Is Aaron Jones ready to return from injury this week?
Stephania Bell discusses Aaron Jones’ road to recovery from a hamstring injury and how he could potentially return in Week 7.
Who should you start with? Who should you sit on? To help you set your fantasy football lineups and avoid using an offensive player who won’t be in the lineup, we’ll be posting fantasy-related updates and analysis here as NFL teams release their official inactive lists . All rankings cited in this column come from our ESPN Fantasy staff.
Official inactive players on Sunday should arrive approximately 90 minutes before the scheduled kickoff times: approximately 11:30 a.m. ET for early games and 2:30 p.m. ET for late afternoon games.
Update regularly to get the latest information.
Play at 1 p.m. ET
Damien Harris, RB, BUF — OUT/IR
Impact: James Cook and Latavius Murray will split the carries in Buffalo’s backfield.
Quintin Morris, TE, BUF — OUT OF
Impact: Dalton Kincaid returns from concussion and shares goals with Dawson Knox.
Roschon Johnson, RB, CHI — OUT OF
Impact: He’s still dealing with post-concussion issues, so there will likely be some sort of timeshare between D’Onta Foreman, Travis Homer and Darrynton Evans.
Justin Fields, QB, CHI — OUT OF
Impact: Division II rookie Tyson Bagent will get the call in his place.
Deshaun Watson, QB, CLE – Questionable
Impact: Although he hasn’t played since Week 3, signs are positive that Watson will return this week.
Kareem Hunt, RB, CLE – Questionable
Impact: This will likely be decided after the pre-game warm-up. Deon Jackson was promoted to the active roster, so we may see a healthy dose of Jerome Ford (and no Hunt) on Sunday.
Marvin Jones Jr., WR, DET — OUT OF
Impact: Jones did not travel with the team for personal reasons. Expect an increase in targets for Jameson Williams.
David Montgomery, RB, DET — OUT OF
Impact: Jahmyr Gibbs should handle most of the touches in the backfield, especially with Craig Reynolds listed as questionable with a rib injury (although Reynolds is expected to be active).
Alec Pierce, WR, IND – Questionable
Impact: He trained intensively at the end of the week, so the signs are good that he can play. Still, Michael Pittman Jr. and Josh Downs are the better fantasy options here.
Kylen Granson, TE, IND — OUT OF
Impact: Mo Alie-Cox and Drew Ogletree will likely rotate into the lineup.
Jimmy Garoppolo, QB, LV — OUT OF
Impact: Brian Hoyer will start in his place and will be allowed to throw to Davante Adams, who was removed from the injury report on Friday.
Kayshon Boutte, WR, NE – Questionable
Impact: Demario Douglas and JuJu Smith-Schuster are also listed as questionable. One of that trio will likely get a chance to compete, but none of them offer a decent fantasy option right now.
Hunter Henry, TE, NE – Questionable
Impact: Even if he plays, it’s probably not worth starting this week – and the same goes for Mike Gesicki, who would see a lot more of the field if Henry sits.
Daniel Jones, QB, NYG – Questionable
Impact: There’s a good chance Tyrod Taylor gets another start for the Giants, who have shown very little on offense all season.
4 p.m. ET games
Zach Pascal, WR, ARI – Questionable
Impact: Michael Wilson has all but passed him in the WR pecking order, making Pascal’s status relatively questionable.
Kyler Murray, QB, ARI — OUT OF
Impact: His training window to return from IR has begun and a Week 8 start is possible. For now, however, Joshua Dobbs remains at center.
Greg Dulcich, TE, DEN — OUT/IR
Impact: Dulcich was injured again last week and is boomeranging back on IR. Adam Trautman will be in the starting lineup but is not a fantasy factor.
Aaron Jones, RB, GB – Questionable
Impact: His hamstring issues continue, so this is likely a game-time decision. Be prepared to move on to AJ Dillon, but at least for now Jones is expected to give it a try.
Justin Watson, WR, KC — OUT OF
Impact: He will not be placed on IR, but is expected to sit through at least Week 10. Kadarius Toney and Rashee Rice benefit in the short term, but Mecole Hardman Jr. was just reacquired by the Chiefs and could have something to say about that.
Jalen Guyton, WR, LAC — OUT OF
Impact: Although his three-week window to return from IR has begun, he is not yet ready to play. Next week it could be a different story.
Kyren Williams, RB, LAR — OUT/IR
Impact: Darrell Henderson Jr. was promoted from the practice squad to further shake up a replacement committee that already included rookie Zach Evans, Royce Freeman and Myles Gaskin. Adam Schefter reports that Freeman and Henderson will be doing most of the heavy lifting today.
Diontae Johnson, WR, PIT – Activated via IR
Impact: His return comes at a good time for the Steelers, who have placed TE Pat Freiermuth on IR due to a lingering hamstring injury.
DK Metcalf, WR, SEA – Questionable
Impact: After a limited practice on Friday, he will likely be used for game time. If you have a good option in the early window, you might not want to wait for Metcalf.
Zach Charbonnet, RB, SEA – Questionable
Effect: It looks like you’re sitting. Kenneth Walker III may see even more porters than usual. DeeJay Dallas is expected to take over the backup RB role this week.
Game on Sunday evening
Jeff Wilson Jr, RB, MIA – Activated via IR
Impact: At some point he will share the backcourt with Raheem Mostert, but exactly when he will overtake Salvon Ahmed for that privilege is unknown.
Julio Jones, WR, PHI – Called up from the training group
Impact: He just signed a contract with the team, so it may be overly optimistic to expect more than a limited number of snaps this week.