Fantasy Football Injury Review: Week 13

How severe is Tyrell Williams’ torn labrum?

Now that the NFL injury report has eliminated the designation of “probable,” the questionable tag will include players who are anywhere from 50 to 99-percent likely to play. With this new development, you will need to check here every week before locking your lineups to make sure that you don’t get burned by a player whose injury status you miscalculated. I will use a combination of Injury Science and my experience as a Doctor of Physical Therapy to give you a more precise description of whether you can trust these players on your fantasy roster.

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Mark Ingram (NO): Toe Soreness

Mark Ingram is on the injury report as questionable with a toe injury. After practicing on Friday, I would assume that he will play on Sunday, but this may not be all good for fantasy owners. The term soreness is one that I do not like to hear with my fantasy players, as it typically means an injury is coming or going.

In Ingram’s case, coming would be the most logical option. As long as the New Orleans Saints and Ingram treat this soreness with respect, we may see Ingram dodge adding another injury to Ingram’s already long list of career ailments. The problem for fantasy owners will be that showing respect for the soreness will most likely lower Ingram’s production ceiling.

If Ingram hints at being sore during the game, you can expect Tim Hightower to take over the bulk of the running back duties. Furthermore, the likelihood of Ingram having some tweak to his toe injury during the game is very high.

As I have stated many times before, a toe injury is one that you can’t hide. Unlike ankle, knee or other joint injuries, there is no brace for a toe. The size of the joints in the toe region make them very meticulous to manage, and one excessive push-off or yank from a defender will likely cause the irritation in Ingram’s toe to return. I would tread lightly with playing Ingram for this week as typically you would like to allow a minor toe sprain/strain injury at least a week to rest and possibly up to three weeks.

I don’t think a few days off of practice will do it, despite all reports suggesting the injury to be minor. For DFS, I am all in on Tim Hightower as I expect an abbreviated day for Ingram.

For season long, Ingram is not my cup of tea. Good luck if you have to roster him, but brace yourself for disappointment.

Jeremy Maclin (KC): Groin Injury

Maclin continues to be listed as questionable, but it appears he will play this week. All I can say for Maclin is that he took an appropriate amount of time off (three weeks) to allow his groin injury to heal, so from an injury perspective it is likely that he is healthy enough to play. A groin injury is not one that typically limits a person’s stamina upon return, so it is possible that he takes back all of his snaps and targets, which is bad news for those invested in Travis Kelce or Tyreek Hill.

As for Maclin’s performance coming off this injury, I guess he can resume the sub-par season that he was having before he got injured, but I can’t imagine that he is ready to open up and run at top speeds coming from a groin strain. I think Maclin may have already transformed into simply being a possession receiver before this injury, but if he wasn’t, that is what I would expect at least for this week.

Even though his groin is likely completely healed, you will sometimes see a hesitation or fear with a player who has suffered this injury. From a fantasy perspective, you may want to wait and see how Maclin is running and cutting before considering putting him back in your line-up.

Brandon Marshall (NYJ): Knee and Foot Injuries

Although Marshall has not made this list much this season, anyone who is paying attention to him should know that Marshall has battled nagging injuries all season. I think the Marshall story is a simple one; he is getting older, and he was overweight for most of his career. I don’t say that in a way to suggest that Marshall was out of shape, but he was simply a big guy who did a lot of jumping and cutting.

The impact of this type of career is hard on the joints, and I think we are seeing the beginning of the end for Marshall. I assume that Marshall will play through his issues this week despite not practicing much, but I think it is clear to say that he is playing at no more than 70% at this point in the season. If you are invested in him, you will have to pick your spots carefully as to when you may get good production from him.

I would not be surprised if the retirement announcement comes soon, although Marshall’s new diet has allowed him to drop a reported 20 lbs, which bodes well for his ability to continue playing. Overall I think it may be too late for Marshall to save a body that has seen its fair share of production.

Jordan Matthews (PHI): Ankle Sprain

Jordan Matthews is listed as questionable with an ankle injury that will be less than a week old by the time the Philadelphia Eagles take the field for Week 13. Playing on Monday night means that at most Matthews will have six days to allow his ankle sprain to heal. The fact that he is not practicing is not too concerning, as most of us know after you sprain an ankle the swelling is the first thing you need to get under control.

Not practicing is the only way Matthews can even have a chance of giving it a go in Week 13, as it is very likely that upon his initial return to action, he will suffer repeat swelling to his ankle the next day. The good news for those invested in Matthews is that ankles are one of the easier joints to support, and if the Philadelphia Eagles want to get Matthews on the field this Sunday, there are many ways to do it.

There is a good chance that Matthews will be moving a little slower and cutting a little less sharp as the swelling around his ankle will restrict his range of motion and overall agility. We are likely to either get a no go from Jordan Matthews or a poorly productive outing; either is not desirable for fantasy.

Tyrell Williams (SD): Torn Labrum

I wish I had more time these days as this is an injury that I would like to explain in more depth so that those invested in Williams could understand what we are dealing with. I will start by saying that I picked Williams up a few weeks ago on my season long team and I have very little worry about his shoulder injury for the rest of this season. A torn labrum is not an injury to take lightly, but the size and location of the tear is significant in giving a prognosis for this injury.

I don’t have the privilege of seeing Williams’ MRI, so I can not tell you these details, but based on his presentation and subjective reports, I would assume that we are dealing with a small tear that is in a location that is not bothering him much. The labrum is the covering of the shoulder socket.

Every time we move our arm, the head of the humerus (top of the upper arm bone) rotates and slides on the labrum. Once this surface is torn, it can make for some painful movements, as now when that bone moves it may catch or squash the torn piece of the labrum. When the bone contacts this torn piece, the pain will usually limit the individual’s range of motion and many times cause hesitant movements as the individual anticipates the pain.

In many cases this means surgery, but if Williams can avoid those painful movements, he can hold off any surgery until after the season. Furthermore, the damaged part of the labrum, in many cases can end up in a comfortable position during which the tear lays flat and flush and the individual will then seem as if there is no injury at all. For Tyrell Williams, this means that we will likely see him experience pain from time to time, and then we will see him play like nothing is wrong for extended periods.

This is not something he can do for long without intervention, but my bet is he can do it for another month or two until the season is over. In fact, this would mimic what Williams did in 2014 when he finished his senior season of college with a torn labrum that required off-season surgery.

I expect Williams to play and play well unless he is unlucky enough to get that torn labrum tissue in the wrong place during the game. There is some risk to playing him, but I consider that risk small as compared to the rewards that he has yielded lately.