Fantasy football championship week is here! If you made it this far, you likely have been navigating the injury landscape with great care and detail, and that needs to happen again this week. In week 17, we have Josh Allen, a fantasy superstar, dealing with a foot injury that threatens to derail his rushing upside. Can we trust Josh Jacobs' knee to get him through the entire game? The middle of the season is a wild time to have your wisdom teeth removed. Will this impact the tear AJ Brown is on? These storylines and so many more are covered in detail in the week 17 NFL injury update below. Good luck this week!

Quarterbacks

Josh Allen

Injury: Right foot sprain

Analysis: Allen suffered an apparent foot sprain on Sunday but did not end up missing any time during the game. X-ray quickly ruled out a fracture, and Allen's ability to at least be limited in practice all week provides confidence he will play against Philadelphia. It's his right foot, which is critical here. As a right-handed passer, he pushes off his right foot for throwing power and to step up in the pocket. The midfoot is critical for athletic motions. This region of the foot is extremely adaptive in shape, helping absorb ground forces but also allowing the foot to become rigid to pushoff for throwing and to run quickly. When an injury is grade II or III, the stability needed to quickly and powerfully pushoff can be inhibited, directly impacting function. Allen's injury, however, does not sound like it is anything worse than a grade I sprain, and it is unlikely there will be much performance drop-off due to the injury. Allen may choose to run less, but he still should be able to be very productive for fantasy managers.

Lamar Jackson

Injury: Back contusion

Analysis: Jackson is on the wrong side of doubtful to play through what is being deemed a "severe contusion" in his back. The bruising to the back/flank where he was kneed causes the local muscles to become both inhibited in strength (temporarily weaker), but also the body's natural defense mechanism to spasm the muscles in the region of injury. What this means for a quarterback is not just pain, but true loss of mobility in all directions, while the bruising and spasm are present. The paraspinal muscles run the entire length of the spine from the pelvis to the head, and when they spasm, the ability to bend forward, arch backward, bend side to side, and most importantly, rotate the spine is hindered. If a quarterback can't adequately move his spine in each direction his throwing power will take a massive hit.

The good news is that with no structural damage and no signs of a disc injury, Jackson will heal back to 100%, just not in time for the fantasy championship.

Jordan Love

Injury: Concussion / left shoulder injury

Analysis: Love will not play in week 17 due to a concussion.

Malik Willis

Injury: Right shoulder injury

Analysis: Willis is trending towards playing through a right shoulder injury and making the start for Green Bay in Jordan Love's absence. A right shoulder injury can obviously make it difficult for a right-handed passer to generate throwing power and be accurate, but when the injury is mild or when the medical staff provides interventions like an injection to get swelling and pain down, quarterbacks can still deliver the ball well. An important thing to consider is that much of throwing power actually comes from the legs, core, and torso, with the shoulder itself being more responsible for accuracy and precision. Willis is probably not on many people's fantasy radars anyway, but in a two QB league, if you are completely desperate, you could roll out Willis.

Running Backs

Josh Jacobs

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Jacobs is fully off the injury report and set to start on Saturday. The analysis is more of the same as it has been; there's confirmed no structural damage, just bruising that has continued to get aggravated when he gets hit. With him being fully removed from the injury report, versus being a game-time decision last week, I suspect his bruising is in a better place, and like all the prior weeks he should be able to play well. However, like all of the prior weeks, one bad hit or fall could set off the swelling cascade again and cause his knee to stiffen up. No doubt starting Jacobs is a risk for re-injury, but as long as he is on the field, the production should look good.

Aaron Kamara

Injury: MCL sprain

Analysis: Kamara is at risk of missing his fifth straight game due to an MCL sprain. The Saints aren't playing for anything, and there is no reason to rush him back. We may have seen the last of Kamara this season.

TreVeyon Henderson

Injury: Concussion

Analysis: Henderson technically still needs to clear the concussion protocol, but a full practice Friday sure makes that likely. Henderson would be one of the rare concussion cases that does not miss any time. For fantasy managers, there is no expected dip in production after a concussion. Henderson should remain a really great fantasy option this week, assuming he clears the protocol.

Woody Marks

Injury: Ankle Injury

Analysis: Marks will return this week from his one-week absence following an ankle injury. Having logged full practices for much of the week, I suspect the swelling is resolved, and his stability is largely back to normal now. Running backs average an 8% dip in fantasy points, and this may apply to Marks, but this is just a mild hit. Re-injury is definitely a concern, with nearly 30% of athletes who have ankle sprains falling victim to another in the same season; however, risk aside, Marks should be an okay RB2/flex.

Bhayshul Tuten

Injury: Finger Surgery

Analysis: Tuten is practicing in a limited capacity after having surgery on his finger after week 15. There are ways the Jaguars could get Tuten involved early post-op, but these would be in purely running plays with Tuten's hand wrapped pretty heavily. What this means for fantasy owners is that if Tuten can get on the field this week, he won't be involved much in passing downs and would have limited upside. I'd expect him to sit until the NFL playoffs, but we'll see.

Dylan Sampson

Injury: Hand Injury

Analysis: A good part of Sampson's productivity is built in the passing game, which makes a hand injury all the more frustrating. As I wrote above with Tuten, there are ways to provide protection for a hand/finger injury and allow players to return quicker than they should; they come with the compromise of hand dexterity via a heavy tape job, brace, or sometimes cast. If Sampson can play, he will walk into a nice opportunity with Judkins injured, but passing work will likely be limited.

Wide Receivers

Davante Adams

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Fantasy managers should not be planning to have Adams this week. The 32-year-old suffered his fourth confirmed hamstring injury in week 15, and while receivers average missing two games, many miss several more. Muscle healing takes at least four weeks for the cellular process to enter the "remodelling phase," which is when the pain is typically resolved, and the muscle has regained enough strength to function. An older receiver with a lengthy history on a team that has Super Bowl aspirations will not be rushed back. Expect Adams to sit until the NFL playoffs.

AJ Brown

Injury: Wisdom Teeth

Analysis: Brown returned to practice on Friday and is off the injury report after having his wisdom teeth removed. Assuming he is not still on any heavy pain medication, he should be able to play with no ill effects on his production.

Chris Olave

Injury: Back injury

Analysis: Olave is again listed on the injury report due to the back injury he has been dealing with. In the absence of a fracture or disc injury, these are usually manageable and feel better when warmed up. Olave has been playing well through his back injury and should continue to do so.

Ricky Pearsall

Injury: Ankle injury & PCL sprain

Analysis: Pearsall should not be on the fantasy radar this week. After missing considerable time with a PCL sprain earlier this season, and quite frankly not playing very well when he returned from injury, he missed last week after re-injuring the PCL and also injuring his ankle. PCL injuries are notorious for disrupting stability, making it extremely difficult to cut, change directions, and create separation. The body knows when a joint is unstable and will protect itself by slowing down. A receiver MUST be able to confidently plant his leg into the ground and change directions without any instability and this is why they struggle when they return from a PCL injury. Even if Pearsall suits up this week, he remains out of our lineups.

Marvin Harrison Jr.

Injury: Heel Injury

Analysis: Harrison did not perform for fantasy managers last week after seeing his snap rate significantly reduced while returning from a heel injury. Heel injuries like this are usually one of two things: a bruise or plantar fasciitis. With it lingering as long as it has, I would venture to guess the latter, but we don't know. Reports out of Arizona have been largely positive this week, and Harrison should see closer to normal snap rate, and production should begin to return to his baseline. He can be deployed as a WR2-3 this week.

Luther Burden

Injury: Ankle injury

Analysis: Burden is off the injury report and walks into what could be a solid target share with teamate Rome Odunze out with a stress fracture. Burden missed last week with an ankle sprain, and there is an associated 10% dip in fantasy points for wide receivers coming off a sprain, but generally, these are minor injuries that do not significantly impact a player's athletic ability upon return. Burden is still emerging as a viable fantasy option, but he does have some allure in deep leagues.

Rome Odunze

Injury: Foot stress fracture

Analysis: As mentioned in the prior several weeks' articles, Chicago needs to let Odunze sit until his fracture heals. The only way a stress fracture in the foot will heal is with relative rest, and rushing him back too soon will lead to aggravation, which we already saw. If Chicago does give Odunze enough time to heal, he should be able to play well in the NFL playoffs. I would not expect to see him before the Wildcard round.

Christian Watson

Injury: Shoulder injury

Analysis: Watson powered through a chest/shoulder injury last week but did not put up numbers. Part of this may be due to his quarterback Jordan Love exiting early with an injury, but Watson's snap rate was also slightly lower than usual. Historically, receivers average a 7% dip in fantasy points after a shoulder injury, but this returns to baseline in game two after injury. With Malik Willis expected to start, Watson's upside is capped, but won't be because of the injury.

Romeo Doubs

Injury: Wrist injury

Analysis: Doubs has been removed from the injury report and is ready to play today. Mild wrist injuries don't impact production, but Malik Willis starting in place of Jordan Love might. Doubs remains off the fantasy radar.

Calvin Austin

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: Austin is out with a hamstring injury suffered last week. Receivers average missing just shy of two games, meaning Austin could realistically be ready for the NFL playoffs. A hamstring injury will impact a speed player like Austin more than any other position.

Demario Douglass

Injury: Hamstring strain

Analysis: After being limited in each practice this week, Douglass is officially questionable ahead of week 17. Douglass relies on his speed, and speed is exactly what hamstring injuries impact and is the reason recurrence rates are so high. In the event Douglass can play, I'd expect him to be quite limited in his speed and separation, and receivers do average a 15% dip in fantasy points. The silver lining would be that Douglass would have a real opportunity with Mack Hollins and Kayshon Boutte both out with injury.

Kayshon Boutte

Injury: Concussion

Analysis: Boutte will miss week 17 with a concussion.

Tight Ends

George Kittle

Injury: Ankle injury

Analysis: Kittle is dealing with what many of us believe to be a medial ankle sprain, which can be extremely tricky to play through. This is a sprain to the deltoid ligament that holds the inside of the ankle together and can be challenging to plant, cut, and hit top speeds. Kittle did not practice all week, and the Niners play Sunday night, putting fantasy managers in a real bind. What managers need to consider is that these injuries really can have a detrimental impact on athletic ability. If you have another tight end who is a reasonable start that plays either Saturday or earlier Sunday, you may consider sitting Kittle for that player. If you have another tight end that plays Sunday or Monday night, you have some more time to feel out Kittle's status, but again, even if Kittle suits up, there may be limitations.

Brock Bowers

Injury: PCL Sprain

Analysis: Bowers is being shut down for the season with his lingering knee issue as the cited reason. The Raiders may also be in full tank mode in an attempt to get their pick of the Quarterbacks in the draft. Whatever the true cause, Bowers will be an elite tight end next season.

Harold Fannin

Injury: Groin Injury

Analysis: Fannin tweaked his groin in Friday's practice but does not appear at risk of missing Sunday's game. Groin injuries can be painful, but usually do not have a detrimental impact on fantasy production. Per-play impact should still be solid for Fannin, re-injury rates do hover around 15-20% though.

Darren Waller

Injury: Groin Injury

Analysis: Waller has been cleared from the injury report and will play with a mild groin. As mentioned above, no performance dip is expected following a groin injury.

Dalton Kincaid

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: Kincaid is questionable with a knee injury that allowed him only to log one limited practice. It appears his knee injury is legit, and the past two weeks, Kincaid has only logged 38% of snaps. Low usage means few opportunities, and while he usually makes the most of his opportunities, he feels like a big risk starting this week.

Dawson Knox

Injury: Knee injury

Analysis: In an eerily similar sequence to his teammate Kincaid, Knox missed Wednesday and Thursday's practice. He only practiced in a limited fashion on Friday. Like Kincaid, starting Knox would be a big risk this week.