Jalen 'Hurts' Championship Aspirations ☹️

Happy Monday everyone - hopefully you’ve already punched your ticket to the championship round of your fantasy league, or at the very least, can punch your ticket later tonight with the last game of Week 16 between the Saints and Packers! Also, make sure to stay tuned for the full takeaways episode of the Upper Hand Fantasy Podcast and the takeaways post on our Instagram later today!

• Eagles QB Jalen Hurts exits game in first quarter vs Commanders Sunday, doesn’t return in Week 16

  • Fantasy managers made it about five minutes into the day before the fantasy gods struck down Jalen Hurts just four points into the playoff semifinals. Prior to leaving, Hurts had already rushed for 41 yards and was likely on his way to a strong showing once again – especially in a game that ended with 69 points (nice) scored between the two teams. With Hurts done for the day, Kenny Pickett came in and played relatively solid football, throwing for 143 yards and a touchdown while also adding an interception. It’s a concussion for Hurts, so there’s a chance that he could clear the protocol and return in Week 17 for the fantasy championship against the Cowboys – however, we’ve seen plenty of head injuries carry into the week after the injury was originally suffered, so fantasy managers should be prepared for the possibility that Hurts is not available. If that’s the case, Kenny Pickett would be a last resort option off the waiver wire at best, while WRs A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith would receive downgrades to fringe WR1 and WR3 plays, respectively.

• Cardinals RB James Conner leaves game in Week 16 vs Panthers late with knee injury, doesn’t return

  • Unlike Jalen Hurts, James Conner was able to not only salvage his fantasy day before exiting, but also help lead teams into the fantasy championship. Playoff James Conner is very much a thing, as he handled his 19 opportunities and turned them into 166 yards and a touchdown to give him his second top-10 finish in the last three weeks. Unfortunately, Conner left the game in the third quarter and wasn’t able to return with a knee injury. The fact that he wasn’t able to re-enter the lineup was pretty telling about the severity of his injury despite us not knowing the full extent of it – with the season on the line in a must-win game (that they ultimately lost), he was held out. As a result, it’s fair to speculate that this could be an injury that lingers into next week and threatens his availability for the fantasy championship. With Conner out, RB Michael Carter stepped up and handled 10 opportunities in Conner’s absence, but the lone touchdown once Conner had left the game went to DeeJay Dallas. Carter would be the preferred pickup should Conner ultimately be ruled out, as he would be in line for the primary work in the ground while also offering some pass-catching chops.

• Falcons WR Drake London, Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker exit games late with hamstring and ankle injuries, respectively

  • Lots of big-name players exiting games early, though London played most of the game against the Giants before leaving with a hamstring injury in the fourth quarter. Given that the Falcons were up big by the time London suffered the injury, it’s hard to say whether or not he would have been able to re-enter the game considering there was no need for him to. Since its a hamstring injury, it’ll be important to monitor London’s status this week given how finicky they can be - however, if he would miss, WR Darnell Mooney would get a slight upgrade as a WR2, while Michael Penix would get a slight downgrade without his most-targeted pass catcher from yesterday’s game. Kenneth Walker, meanwhile, suffered an ankle injury with just about six minutes left in the game and was ruled doubtful to return. Prior to exiting, he had handled 16 touches, eight of which came in the receiving game. Considering that Charbonnet was limited in practice a bit coming into this game, it’ll be interesting to see who’s available and who’s not for the fantasy championship next week – however, if Walker is ruled out and Charbonnet plays, he’d jump right back into the RB1 conversation. We’ll have a better idea of what to expect for Walker later this week, so stay tuned.