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The San Francisco 49ers are facing a must-win situation in the Week 18 regular season finale against the division-rival Los Angeles Rams on the road, and the Rams won't be throwing backups out there. They, too, have something to play for -- the NFC West title.
In a huge game for San Fran, they face injury concerns at the most important position. We are here to keep you updated on the most important injury news around the NFL, in case your league is still going on or you are playing some DFS. Let's focus on the 49ers QB situation today.
Is Jimmy Garoppolo (thumb) playing in Week 18? If Garoppolo misses a second straight game, is rookie Trey Lance worth starting? Let's dig deeper on Garoppolo's injury and determine who might be under center on Sunday.
Is Jimmy Garoppolo Playing This Week Against the Rams?
49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo is truly questionable to play in Week 18 against the Rams this Sunday. The 30-year-old suffered a Grade 3 sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb, along with a fracture, in Week 16. He did not play in last week's win over the Texans.
The good news is that Garoppolo has done more in practice this week. He's officially been limited on back-to-back days on Wednesday and Thursday, and he didn't look to be laboring during his throws on Thursday.
Head coach Kyle Shanahan said earlier this week that Garoppolo would be the starter in Week 18 against the Rams if he was healthy enough to play. However, fantasy managers probably won't know whether it'll be Garoppolo or Trey Lance until Sunday afternoon.
Should I Start Trey Lance Against the Rams?
Rookie quarterback Trey Lance picked up his first win as a starter in the NFL against the Texans in Week 17 in his second career start. In his two starts (the first in Week 5 against Arizona), he's gone 31-for-52 (59.6 completion percentage) for 441 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions. Lance has added 24 carries for 120 yards on the ground.
The 21-year-old got off to an extremely slow start in Week 17, but he settled down nicely in the second half and showed why he was the third overall pick in this year's draft. His dual-threat ability makes him a much more attractive fantasy option than Garoppolo already, and Lance showed off his elite arm strength on Sunday.
If the 49ers aren't comfortable with the progress that Garoppolo has made throwing the football this week and make him inactive for a second straight week, Lance will be in play as a low-end QB1 for fantasy purposes.
However, he'd also be facing a much tougher defense in the Rams. They will be playing to win and could give the rookie plenty of issues. As a defensive unit, the Los Angeles D has allowed the seventh-fewest fantasy points per game to the QB position.
Lance has more upside than Jimmy G, but you should also temper your expectations for the rookie if he makes his third career start in a must-win game on the road.
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