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Christmas is over, but we hope fantasy managers out there have another gift to unwrap in Week 17, when most fantasy leagues come to an end with one manager standing victorious on the mountain top. If you were fortunate enough to advance to your league's championship, you may be faced with some challenging situations with everything on the line.
For instance, the Philadelphia Eagles rushing attack and lead-back Miles Sanders have come alive in recent weeks, but Sanders suffered a broken hand in the Week 16 win over the Giants and will be out in Week 17. If you have Sanders rostered and were counting on him this week, you'll have to figure out what to do next.
Will Jordan Howard play this week? Should I pickup and start Jordan Howard or Boston Scott? What about rookie Kenneth Gainwell? Let's delve deeper into what the Eagles running back situation might look like in Week 17.
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Is Jordan Howard Playing This Week Against Washington?
Saturday Update: While it was reported that Jordan Howard's status for Week 17 is up in the air, the Eagles did not elevate Kerryon Johnson or any other running back from the practice squad. This hints that Jordan Howard will play on Sunday.
Friday Update: Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said that running back Jordan Howard (neck) is questionable for Week 17 against the Washington Football Team.
Tuesday Update: Running back Jordan Howard (neck) is up in the air to play in Week 17 against the Washington Football Team. However, it sounds as though he could be on the right side of questionable, but we won't know more until the Eagles begin practicing on Wednesday.
There's a good chance that Howard is either limited or held out of practice on Wednesday, and he could even come down to a game-time decision on Sunday. But for now, there is optimism that he'll play in Week 17.
Should I Start Jordan Howard or Boston Scott?
Both running backs Jordan Howard and Boston Scott are worth waiver wire claims, and are in consideration as starts for fantasy football managers, since we know Miles Sanders (hand) won't play in Week 17 versus Washington. And both are widely available -- Howard is rostered in only 17% of Yahoo leagues, while Scott is rostered in 16% of leagues.
Before departing with a stinger on Sunday against the Giants, Howard had nine carries for 37 yards and caught his first two passes of the season on four targets for 19 yards. The 27-year-old will be in line for a significant role if he's active for the league's best rushing offense (163.2 rushing yards per game).
Even if Howard is active this weekend, Scott could take over Sanders' role in this elite rushing offense. And Scott should have waiver priority over Howard in point-per-reception leagues as the better pass-catching back. In the win over the Giants, Scott saw 12 carries for 41 yards and his fifth rushing score of the year.
In 15 games this year, Scott has 73 rushing attempts for 326 yards (4.5 yards per carry) and five touchdowns while adding nine catches on 12 targets for another 44 yards through the air. If Howard is inactive or limited, Scott will have high-end RB2 upside.
The caveat with both Howard and Scott is that quarterback Jalen Hurts has 10 rushing touchdowns on the year and could steal valuable goal-line opportunities from them.
Is Kenneth Gainwell Worth Picking Up in Week 17?
Rookie running back Kenneth Gainwell, who is rostered in 11% of Yahoo leagues, is off the fantasy radar when the entire Eagles backfield is healthy. In the last two games, he's played a total of eight offensive snaps, hasn't had a single carry and has been targeted twice in the passing game (one catch for six yards).
The good news for Gainwell is the Eagles backfield is beat up again. However, even though Miles Sanders (hand) is out in Week 17, both Jordan Howard (neck) and Boston Scott are ahead of Gainwell on the RB totem pole in Philadelphia.
The 22-year-old fifth-round pick has had a nose for the end zone, but he probably won't have more than a handful of touches on Sunday against Washington if Howard plays. Gainwell would enter the RB3/flex picture in PPR leagues if Howard is inactive, but we probably won't have a good read on that until much later in the week.
Will Miles Sanders Play Again This Year?
Running back Miles Sanders might be able to play in the regular season finale in Week 18, but fantasy managers in leagues that end in Week 17 can safely drop him for a player that could be of use off the waiver wire this week.
It's a bummer that Sanders won't be in play for championship matchups, as he entered Week 16 with two straight 100-yard rushing performances while averaging 5.98 yards per carry on 42 rushing attempts in wins over the Jets and Washington.
And before he broke his hand last Sunday, Sanders had seven carries for 45 yards (6.43 yards per attempt). Overall, it was a really tough year to roster the 24-year-old. Sanders averaged a career-high 5.5 yards per carry on 137 attempts for 754 rushing yards in 12 games and failed to find the end zone at all.
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