'No surprise' if LeSean McCoy matches '13 workload

Jul 17, 2014

Philly Mag's Sheil Kapadia...

The pressing question: Will Chip Kelly lighten LeSean McCoy’s workload?

On his way to setting the franchise record for rushing yards, McCoy led the NFL in carries (314) and touches (366). Only Chicago's Matt Forte played more snaps. The Eagles added Darren Sproles in the offseason. Does that mean they want to give McCoy more of a breather in 2014?

The answer, as I see it, is no. McCoy often mentions how his running style lends itself to fewer big hits, and the numbers suggest there could be something to that. In the Eagles' final four regular season games, he piled up 519 yards and averaged 6.3 YPC. In the fourth quarters of games, he led the NFL with 441 yards and averaged 6.0 YPC, according to STATS, Inc. In other words, there were no signs that his production took a hit because of the heavy workload.

McCoy is only 26 years old and the focal point of the Eagles' offense. Matching last year's number of touches would be no surprise. Assuming health, he's as close to a lock as there is to finish as one of the top three rushers in the NFL.

Fantasy Impact:

Due to the arrival of Darren Sproles and Jordan Matthews, and the expected emergence of Zach Ertz, we would be surprised if the Eagles didn't lighten McCoy's workload a bit. We currently have him projected for 337 touches, which represents an 8 percent drop in touches. He's still a top 3 RB in both PPR and standard formats.

yesterday

Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson officially Out for Week 13

Adam Schefter

yesterday · 7:52 PM EST

Cowboys ruled out Jake Ferguson for the Thanksgiving game vs. the New York Giants due to his concussion. His replacement, once again, will be Luke Schoonmaker.

Fantasy Impact:

This was expected, but it could have been a nice matchup for the No. 2 pass-catcher. Schoonmaker is a little less exciting but is worth a TE stream for desperate managers.

Seahawks WRs DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett miss Wednesday practice

Brady Henderson

yesterday · 7:48 PM EST

The Seahawks list DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett as non-participants in practice today. These appear to be new injuries (though Lockett was also listed with a knee injury in Week 7). Leonard Williams has been playing through his foot injury the past few weeks.

Related Players: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Jake Bobo

Fantasy Impact:

This is obviously not a great sign for Geno Smith or the general offensive environment for the Seahawks. We would have to imagine that JSN would be seeing his fifth double-digit target game of the season if either of the two were forced to miss Week 13, which catapults him into solid WR2 territory. We'll keep an eye on the reports through the rest of the week.

Giants QB Tommy DeVito officially Questionable for Week 13

Ian Rapoport

yesterday · 1:24 PM EST

Giants QB Tommy DeVito (right forearm) is listed as questionable for tomorrow against the Cowboys. Drew Lock, his backup, took some first-team reps just in case.

Fantasy Impact:

What a treat this game will be. Whether DeVito or Lock is back there on Thanksgiving, they both need to remain firmly on waiver wires.