Most Josh Jacob owners expected to be without their star RB in Week 15 when they saw him limp to the locker room with a quad injury last Sunday afternoon. A short turnaround for a Thursday night matchup figured to seal his fate for the first round of the fantasy football playoffs, but the Raiders kept the door open for an early Christmas miracle, listing Jacobs as “questionable.”
Considering the win-or-go-home nature of the postseason, fantasy owners can’t afford to make any mistakes with their start ’em, sit ’em decisions, and Jacobs’ game-time decision status only complicates matters.
We’ll continue to update this article with news on Jacobs until the official active/inactive report comes out on Thursday around 6:50 p.m. ET, so check back for the latest.
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Is Josh Jacobs playing Thursday night Week 15?
Despite failing to practice all week, Jacobs (quad) was officially listed as “questionable” ahead of Thursday night’s game against the Chargers.
At 5-8, the Raiders are all but out of the playoff picture, so it seems unlikely they’ll bring Jacobs back on a short week after he went to the locker room in obvious discomfort on Sunday. It’s been a disappointing season for Jacobs after he led the league in rushing in 2022, going from 4.9 yards per carry down to 3.5. However, he’s still leading the league in carries (17.9 per carry), showing how important he is to Vegas’ offense.
WEEK 15 PPR RANKINGS:
QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
If Jacobs is active, we have to assume he’s healthy enough to handle close to his usual complement of carries, which is strengthened by the fact that head coach Antonio Pierce referred to the backfield as the “Josh Jacobs Show” on Tuesday. Against a Chargers’ defense allowing the 11th-most fantasy points to RBs, that gives him flex value, even when you factor in the risk of him aggravating his injury and exiting early again.
If Jacobs is out as expected, then Zamir White and Ameer Abdullah will split snaps in the backfield. White will likely receive the most carries, with Abdullah spelling him on passing downs. That gives both low-end flex value in 12-team leagues, with White having a little more value in standard leagues and Abdullah having a better outlook in PPR formats.
