Sit Start Injury Report Saturday Morning Week WC 2021

Every fantasy manager knows that injuries can have a huge impact on a fantasy team's performance.

That makes properly navigating each week's injury report a must. To assist in this effort, this weekly article series will analyze the fantasy football impact of the Friday and Saturday injury reports.

The injured players are noted by player position and then their injury status. Out means the player has been ruled out of this week's contest. Doubtful means the player is very unlikely to start. Questionable indicates the player might start. Start likelihood is increased if a player has participated in practices that week, so practice participation levels are frequently noted in these posts.

Let's look at the Wild Card injury report. The initial edition of this article is generated following the league's Friday injury report. It is then updated on Saturday night with any injury changes that have been posted since the Friday update. A Sunday night update will also be provided for the NFL's first ever Monday Night Football Wild Card matchup.
 

Las Vegas at Cincinnati

Las Vegas injuries

Questionable
DT Johnathan Hankins

Hankins did not practice on Tuesday or Wednesday, but he was upgraded to a limited practice on Thursday and thus is trending towards being available for this contest. The biggest news for the Raiders injury-wise is that Casey Hayward, Josh Jacobs, and Darren Waller all were not on the final injury report despite being limited in practice this week.

Cincinnati injuries
The Bengals have no notable injuries. The largest concern during the week was Tee Higgins being downgraded to a limited practice on Wednesday and Thursday, but he wasn't on the final injury report and thus will play this week.

New England at Buffalo

New England injuries

Out
T Isaiah Wynn

Questionable
C David Andrews
LB Jamie Collins
K Nick Folk
DL Lawrence Guy
RB Damien Harris
LB Dont'a Hightower
WR Jakobi Meyers
S Adrian Phillips

COVID
CB Jalen Mills
New England may look like the Wild Card playoff team most impacted by injuries, but a lot of that has to do with the Patriots penchant for placing a ton of players on injury lists. Almost all the people listed as questionable have been listed as questionable in recent weeks and still played, so the expectation is that will recur, and New England will go into this game at very close to full strength.

The exceptions to this are Wynn and Mills. Wynn has already been ruled out, so the Patriots will be without one of their best run blockers. Mills was not activated off the COVID list on Friday, so New England will also be missing one of its best cover cornerbacks. That should afford Emmanuel Sanders and Gabriel Davis upside opportunities in this contest.

Buffalo injuries

The Bills may be the healthiest team headed into the 2021 postseason, as they have no one listed on their final injury report and the only players listed on the did not practice or limited practice lists were on there via a "resting player" status.

Philadelphia at Tampa Bay

Philadelphia injuries

Questionable
G Nate Herbig
DE Josh Sweat

Miles Sanders was not listed on the final injury report and told reporters on Friday that he will be playing in this matchup. It's a good development for Philadelphia's offense, but Sanders' hand injury means he likely still won't be able to contribute much to the passing game, so he has the potential for a low ceiling.

Herbig and Sweat are trending towards not playing this week. Herbig missed Friday's practice with an ankle injury after being limited with that ailment on Wednesday and Thursday. Sweat did not practice all week due to a non-COVID illness. The Eagles can absorb the loss of Herbig better than Sweat as their offensive line depth is better than their defensive line depth, but neither loss is apt to be a major factor from a fantasy production perspective.

Tampa Bay injuries

Out
WR Cyril Grayson
RB Ronald Jones

Questionable
CB Carlton Davis
CB Sean Murphy-Bunting
WR Justin Watson
The Buccaneers late season injury woes continue, as Grayson and Jones have been ruled out for this contest. It is possible Tampa Bay will get Leonard Fournette back in time for this game, as he is available for return from the injured reserve list, but that activation hasn't occurred yet. Even if Fournette is available he should be considered a risky start candidate given that Tampa Bay has Ke'Shawn Vaughan and Le'Veon Bell available to split the backfield workload.

Davis was added to the injury list on Friday with a back injury, while Murphy-Bunting was limited in practice all week long. This isn't enough to make Eagles pass catchers high percentage fantasy plays, but it does increase their percentages as longshot upside candidates.

San Francisco at Dallas

San Francisco injuries

Questionable

LB Azeez-Al Shaair
LB Marcell Harris
S Talanoa Hufanga
The 49ers will have Jimmy Garoppolo, Trent Williams, and Elijah Mitchell available this week. Safety Jaquiski Tartt and linebacker Dre Greenlaw also practiced in full on Thursday and Friday and thus are likely to be available for this matchup.

Al-Shaair was downgraded from limited practices on Wednesday and Thursday to a did not practice on Friday, so he is likely to be out for this game. Harris and Hufanga were limited in practice all week and thus are trending towards playing.

Dallas injuries
Out
S Keanu Neal
Tony Pollard was not on the final injury report and thus will play, which is good from a personnel perspective, but might be bad from a fantasy perspective since it is likely to lead to a workload split between Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott. Dallas will not have Neal in this contest, but the Cowboys did receive some good news on the COVID front, as strong safety Jayron Kearse has been activated off the COVID list and will play on Sunday.

Pittsburgh at Kansas City

Pittsburgh injuries

Questionable

RB Najee Harris
Harris went from not practicing on Wednesday or Thursday to a full practice on Friday. This indicates he is trending towards playing, but there is a chance that he is on a snap count or will not play. Combine this with a matchup against a strong Chiefs defense and it makes Harris a very risky candidate among topflight fantasy running backs.

Kansas City injuries

Out
RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire

Questionable
RB Darrel Williams
Williams was limited in practice all week yet is still expected to play this week. His fantasy prospects are greatly improved by the absence of Edwards-Helaire, as a full workload against a Steelers rush defense that has been abysmal at times this year offers Williams elite upside potential. Tyreek Hill was limited in practice on Thursday but had a full practice on Friday and thus will be starting in this matchup.

Arizona at Los Angeles Rams

Arizona injuries

Did not practice

RB James Conner
LB Isaiah Simmons
RB Jonathan Ward

Limited practice
DE Zach Allen
RB Chase Edmonds
CB Antonio Hamilton
WR Rondale Moore
DE Jordan Phillips
G Justin Pugh
CB Marco Wilson
It isn't yet fully clear how the above injury list may be missing from the Cardinals active list on Monday night, but the trends are not good in many cases. Conner did not practice on Thursday or Friday. Simmons was out due to a personal matter rather than an injury, so this could be a one-day issue for him. Edmonds has indicated he will play this week despite battling a ribs injury. If he is ready to go and can perform close to his typical level, Edmonds could be one of the top running back starts this week due to potentially getting a bell cow caliber workload.

Los Angeles injuries

Did not practice
RB Buddy Howell
S Taylor Rapp

Limited practice
WR Van Jefferson
Jefferson was downgraded from a full practice on Thursday to a limited practice on Friday. His Saturday practice status will indicate whether this was saving some wear and tear on Jefferson or is an indication he will miss this contest. Rapp is still in the concussion protocol and will need to clear it to play this week. If he is out, it will leave the Rams very shorthanded at safety, as they lost Jordan Fuller to a season ending ankle injury last week.