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NFL Nation, ESPN
Week 15 is one game in, and the result was so lopsided that the losing team already has fired its coach and general manager.
It didn’t feel like the Los Angeles Chargers (5-9) had much choice after losing to the AFC West rival Las Vegas Raiders 63-21 at Allegiant Stadium.
The same Raiders team that had been shut out the week before led 42-0 at the half and 63-7 just 30 seconds into the fourth quarter. Aidan O’Connell had four touchdown passes, and Jakobi Meyers caught one and passed for another. Las Vegas also had two defensive touchdowns.
The Chargers were without starting quarterback Justin Herbert, who went on IR earlier in the week after surgery for a broken finger on his throwing hand, and wide receiver Keenan Allen (heel).
Elsewhere, a lot of eyes will be tuned on the health of Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (ankle) as he pursues the first 2,000-yard receiving season in NFL history. The decision is likely to push until 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, when the Dolphins play host to the New York Jets.
Elsewhere, two AFC postseason contenders will be without their starting quarterbacks. The Houston Texans won’t have rookie standout C.J. Stroud (concussion), and the Pittsburgh Steelers won’t have Kenny Pickett (ankle). The news is mixed for the Minnesota Vikings. Running back Alexander Mattison (ankle) has been ruled out, but wide receiver Justin Jefferson (chest) says he’ll play despite being listed as questionable.
Here are more injury updates from our NFL Nation reporters as we head toward the Sunday matchups:
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Injury: Ankle
The NFL’s leading receiver suffered an ankle injury in Monday’s loss to the Tennessee Titans that limited him to just 47% of the Dolphins’ offensive snaps. Although he was able to return to the game, Hill has not practiced at all this week and is questionable to play Sunday against the New York Jets. Coach Mike McDaniel said Hill’s availability will depend on whether he and his staff believe the all pro is at no additional risk to cause further damage to his ankle. Even for one of the league’s most durable players, this decision may come all the way down to the wire.
— Marcel Louis-Jacques
Injury: Concussion; calf
Stroud was officially listed as doubtful on Friday’s injury report. Davis Mills and Case Keenum split practice reps this week, and either could start Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans. Collins didn’t practice all week and was listed as questionable.
Rookie edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. (ankle) was ruled out.
— DJ Bien-Aime
Injury: Ankle
Pickett will be out again after undergoing TightRope surgery to aid his recovery from a high ankle sprain. In his place, Mitch Trubisky will start his second consecutive game. While Pickett is out, others who were on the practice injury report with various ailments — Najee Harris, Diontae Johnson, Alex Highsmith and T.J. Watt — have no injury designation and are expected to play against the Indianapolis Colts.
— Brooke Pryor
Injury: Right ankle; internal chest bruise
Mattison, the team’s leading rusher with 660 yards, will miss his first start of the season. Second-year tailback Ty Chandler, who had slowly been working into the backfield rotation since the Week X loss of veteran Cam Akers, will be the primary ball carrier Saturday against the Bengals. For as much promise as he has shown, Chandler has only 49 carries this season, and it’s unclear how he’ll hold up over the course of an entire game. Depth behind him is thin; kick returner Kene Nwangwu and fullback C.J. Ham would be next in line.
Jefferson was cleared of any significant internal injuries after taking a hard hit to the back last Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders. He was a limited participant in practice all week, and thus is listed as questionable, but he is expected to play and he said earlier in the week that he planned to play his normal amount of reps.”We feel really good about where Justin’s at,” coach Kevin O’Connell said.
— Kevin Seifert
Injury: Ankle
Olave will be a game-time decision, according to coach Dennis Allen, after injuring his ankle last week against the Carolina Panthers. Olave has not practiced all week and has missed the last five practices after coming down with the flu last week.
WR Rashid Shaheed (thigh) and QB/TE Taysom Hill (foot/left hand) practiced in full on Friday and carry no injury designations, so both should be available for Sunday’s game against the New York Giants.
— Katherine Terrell
Injury: Groin
Smith’s status for the Seahawks’ Monday night matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles remains uncertain because of the groin injury that kept him out last Sunday vs. the San Francisco 49ers. Smith is back at practice, though, and Pete Carroll sounded optimistic on Thursday about the progress the quarterback is making, saying he was “feeling really good.”
— Brady Henderson
Injury: Hamstring
Robinson was ruled out of Sunday’s game at the Los Angeles Rams after injuring his hamstring in a Dec. 3 loss to Miami. Washington had a bye on Dec. 10, but the extra time did not help as Robinson was unable to practice this week. Antonio Gibson workload will increase and rookie Chris Rodriguez will get more work as well. Veteran Jonathan Williams might get some reps, too.,
— John Keim
Injury: Groin
The Browns will be without their leading tackler for at least the rest of the regular season. Cleveland placed Delpit on IR this week, though the hope is he could return during the playoffs, if the Browns get there.
— Jake Trotter
Injury: Concussion
Bill Belichick said Friday that Douglas has cleared concussion protocol, so he should be available for Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Douglas has missed the last two games. “Assuming no setbacks, he should be available,” Belichick said. Douglas has 36 receptions for 410 yards this season and is in position to pass the injured Rhamondre Stevenson (38) and Kendrick Bourne (37) as the team’s reception leader.
— Mike Reiss
Injury: Left knee sprain
Hamilton has a “good” chance of playing Sunday night at the Jacksonville Jaguars, coach John Harbaugh said after Friday’s practice. “He’s in a good place [physically],” Harbaugh said. Hamilton sprained his left knee on Sunday, and he had limited participation in practice all week. He wore a brace on his knee during practice. On Wednesday, Hamilton said it was “up in the air” if he would play. “I tried to stay as positive as possible, and lucky for me that it wasn’t as bad as it could have been,” Hamilton said.
— Jamison Hensley
Injury: Left knee
Bonitto suffered his injury in the first half of the Broncos’ win over the Los Angeles Chargers last week. He will miss Saturday night’s game against the Detroit Lions. The Broncos probably will use rookie Drew Sanders for more snaps to help in the rotation at outside linebacker, Bonitto’s impact could be missed. Bonitto not only leads the Broncos with seven sacks but he also generates pressure at a rate that is among the best in the league.
— Jeff Legwold
Injury: Ankle
He suffered the injury against the Philadelphia Eagles but managed to return to the game. He missed two days of practice but he was able to go through the walkthrough Friday and the hope is he can practice Saturday before the team flies to Buffalo. The belief now is he will be available but if that changes, the Cowboys will go with Juanyeh Thomas as their third safety with Jayron Kearse and Donovan Wilson.
— Todd Archer
Injury: Ankle (Lindstrom, Dalman); Knee (McGary, Matthews)
Four of the five starters on Atlanta’s offensive line are questionable (Matthews, Lindstrom, Dalman) or out (McGary). Storm Norton will once again take the right tackle spot for McGary. Matthews, the left tackle, would likely be replaced by practice squad tackle Tyler Vrabel; Dalman, the center, by Ryan Neuzil for the second straight game and Lindstrom, the right guard, by Kyle Hinton. Lindstrom wouldn’t say whether he’d definitively be playing Sunday, but he told ESPN on Friday that “definitely going to give it a go and just keep on the plan that we have set.”
— Michael Rothstein
Injury: Hamstring
Waller was able to practice this week and take reps in the team period. “No issues,” he said after Friday’s practice. Waller expects to play Sunday against the New Orleans Saints after missing the past five games. It won’t be a full workload, but Waller still expects to be used in certain situations where he can help the team. Passing downs seems the likely scenario.
— Jordan Raanan
Injury: Right knee
Simmons will miss his second game in a row. The Pro Bowl lineman suffered the injury in the fourth quarter of Tennessee’s Week12 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. The injury requires Simmons to wear a brace. Simmons hasn’t practiced over the past two weeks.
— Turron Davenport
Injury: Shoulder
Pacheco will not play for the second straight week after having surgery that coach Andy Reid referred to as a cleanup procedure. Pacheco had surgery on the same shoulder during the offseason. He could return to practice next week.
— Adam Teicher
Injury: Thumb; right knee
Taylor will miss his third consecutive game since undergoing his recent thumb surgery. The Colts have missed his playmaking of late, with the running game stagnant in his absence. The Colts have just one explosive run (a 12-yard rush) in the two games Taylor has missed this month.
Smith also will be sidelined again this week, and the timing couldn’t be worse. The Colts will be faced with blocking Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt (14 sacks) without one of their best linemen. Rookie Blake Freeland will start in Smith’s place.
— Stephen Holder
Injury: Ankle; groin
Moore injured his ankle while being tackled on his third and final carry against the Detroit Lions in Week 14. The injury didn’t hamper him in game but kept him out of Wednesday’s practice before returning as a limited participant on Thursday and practicing in full on Friday. Bears wide receivers coach Tyke Tolbert said Moore will be “ready to roll” when Chicago faces the Cleveland Browns on Sunday despite being listed as questionable on the final injury report. Brisker, on the other hand, is dealing with a groin injury after his career-best 17 tackles against the Lions. He was limited on Wednesday, did not practice Thursday, and was back in limited capacity on Friday. The safety also is listed as questionable.
— Courtney Cronin
Injury: Groin; foot/ankle
Davis, who made a key interception in the Bucs’ victory over the Atlanta Falcons last week, will miss Sunday’s game at the Green Bay Packers. Davis did not practice all week. Second-year corner Zyon McCollum, who has started 13 games this season, will get the start. Meanwhile, fellow starter Dean, who missed the last three weeks with a foot/ankle injury suffered in Week 11, is trending up. He was a full participant in Thursday’s practice, which is encouraging for a return.
Two other defensive starters, LB Devin White (foot) and DT Vita Vea (toe), will be game-time decisions, according to coach Todd Bowles.
— Jenna Laine
Injury: Right thumb
It’s a good thing that Aaron Jones appears set to return from his knee injury after a three-game absence (although he was still listed as questionable) because the Packers aren’t sure if Dillon will be handle the ball well enough with the wrap that he’ll need to protect his right thumb, which was broken late in Monday night’s loss to the New York Giants. Dillon tried something out in practice on Friday and was listed as questionable. “They had it padded up pretty good and so we’ll just see where we’re at with that,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said.
— Rob Demovsky
Injury: Stinger
The Bills will be without one of their starting safeties in Hyde, who has been ruled out against the Dallas Cowboys. Taylor Rapp is expected to start in his place. Defensive end A.J. Epenesa (ribs) is also out.
— Alaina Getzenberg
Injury: Quadricep
Campbell will miss his second consecutive game and sixth overall (four were with a hamstring injury). Second-year player Montaric Brown will make his sixth start in place of Campbell. Compounding the situation is the fact safety Andre Cisco (groin) also will miss the game, so the Jaguars will only have half of their starting secondary available against the Baltimore Ravens.
— Michael DiRocco