Minnesota Vikings Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Packers HC Matt LaFleur said after Sunday's win over the Chargers that RB Aaron Jones' knee injury is not believed to be a long-term deal. Jones will likely get additional testing done on the knee on Monday, and we should get another update on his status then. For now, consider him unlikely to play vs. the Lions on Thanksgiving.

Packers RB Aaron Jones suffered a knee injury in the second quarter of Sunday's game vs. the Chargers. He was in obvious pain on the field and needed help getting out. We'll update his status when we know more, but don't expect Jones to return today. That'll leave A.J. Dillon as Green Bay's lead back.

Update: Jones has been ruled out.

Fox Sports' Jay Glazer says the Vikings are considering holding out WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) through the Week 13 bye. Jefferson needs to be activated from IR next week if he's to be eligible to play again this season -- but the Vikings are not required to play him vs. the Bears next week. We'll keep you updated on Jefferson's status this coming week. He's obviously still worth holding in fantasy leagues of all shapes and sizes.

The Vikings are not activating WR Justin Jefferson off IR this weekend, meaning he won't play Sunday night against the Broncos. Minnesota will need to activate Jefferson for Week 12 -- or leave him on IR for the rest of the season. Jefferson got the "questionable" label on Friday's practice report, so we're assuming he'll be ready to play next week. But we'll certainly be watching for confirmation. Jefferson's continued absence leaves target share available for TE T.J. Hockenson, WR Jordan Addison, and others. It also hurts the upside of QB Joshua Dobbs.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday night's game vs. the Broncos. Minnesota also listed Jefferson as questionable last week before ruling him out on Saturday. We'll see whether he's activated from IR this Saturday, but we're not expecting Jefferson to return for the Sunday nighter.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson appears unlikely to play Sunday against the Broncos. ESPN's Kevin Seifert reports that Jefferson is "continuing to ramp up" in his return from a hamstring injury "but would need to make a lot of quick progress to play Sunday night." That doesn't mean he's out for the week just yet. But you'll need to plan as though you won't have Jefferson in your fantasy lineup. We'll be watching throughout the rest of the week for more updates on the star WR. For now, we've knocked him out of our Week 11 WR rankings and adjusted the projections for teammates such as QB Joshua Dobbs (down) and TE T.J. Hockenson (up).

Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell wouldn't say Monday whether WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) will be back for Sunday night's game vs. the Broncos. Jefferson will continue to "ramp up" in practice, O'Connell said, after being limited last week. “Nobody wants to be out there more than Justin, maybe with the exception of me wanting him out there," O'Connell said. "But we’ll continue to be smart with Justin and know that when we do get him back, it’ll be a major boost." We'll keep you updated on Jefferson's status throughout the week.

Vikings RB Ty Chandler logged 15 carries for 45 rushing yards and a TD in Week 10 vs. the Saints. It was reasonable to assume the second-year back would elevate into some sort of committee role with fellow RB Cam Akers out for the rest of 2023 with a torn Achilles. But with lead runner Alexander Mattison leaving in the third quarter of the contest with a concussion, it’s possible that fantasy managers could be looking at an incredible waiver wire target in Chandler. He played well on Sunday, is currently the healthiest RB in Minnesota, and the Vikings are set to take on a Broncos defense in Week 11 that ranks 31st in run defense DVOA this season. Be sure to look for his name when making claims in the coming days.

Packers RB Aaron Jones received 13 carries for 35 rushing yards with 4 catches for 19 receiving yards in Week 10 vs. the Steelers. This isn’t the type of performance you’d like to see from him in a plus matchup, though the story isn’t as bad as it seems on the surface. Jones’ 55.8% snap rate on Sunday is about on par with his season-high 56.9% mark set last week, and he still accounted for 61.2% of the Packers' RB touch opportunities in the contest. Fantasy managers would be wise to stick with Jones in Week 11 vs. the Chargers (11th-best RB matchup in adjusted fantasy points allowed).

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (ribs) is active for today’s game vs. the Saints. ESPN’s Ed Werder said this morning that Hockenson “won’t play as many snaps as normal but will be on field in key situations.” We’re still expecting him to be out there for most pass plays, so Hockenson is fine to keep in Week 10 fantasy lineups.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (ribs) "won’t play as many snaps as normal" vs. the Saints today, according to ESPN's Ed Werder. Hockenson "will be on field in key situations," Werder adds. We'd expect those "key situations" to be pass plays. This is a case where Hockenson's snaps could be down, but his pass routes could be right in line with usual. He carries some added risk today but remains a fine fantasy play at the weak TE position.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport calls Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) "close" to a return. "Jefferson spent the week jumping in practice drills and was seen sprinting without issue before Saturday's walk-thru," Rapoport adds. We'll keep an eye on Jefferson's status this coming week, but there's seemingly a chance that he returns for next Sunday night's game vs. the Broncos.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (ribs) is expected to play today vs. the Saints. He's officially questionable, but we've been expecting the TE to go. We'll get confirmation around 11:30 a.m. ET.

The Vikings have downgraded WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) to out for Sunday's game against the Saints and are not yet activating him from IR. They had officially listed him as questionable after Friday's practice, but this has been the expectation all week. We'll check in on Jefferson's status heading toward a Week 11 clash with the Broncos. That game's currently scheduled for Sunday night, which could challenge Jefferson's usability in fantasy lineups if he carries a questionable tag. Beyond that, we'll see whether the Week 13 starts to factor into the decision on when/whether to bring Jefferson back.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (ribs) was limited in practice all week and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game vs. the Saints. He was able to play through this injury last week and should be fine for this weekend's contest. We'll get Minnesota's inactives around 11:30 am ET on Sunday.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. the Saints. He was limited in practice all week after being designated to return from IR. HC Kevin O’Connell admitted Wednesday that Jefferson playing this week “would be a little aggressive,” so we’re still expecting him to miss this one. But we’ll let you know if that changes.

Does Cam Akers' Achilles' tear mean that Vikings RB Ty Chandler is about to get a big boost in work? HC Kevin O'Connell said this week: “Hopefully, we’ll be able to get Ty [Chandler] more involved and kind of assume a little bit more of kind of that role Cam was assuming.” That stops short of saying Chandler will take over a role that afforded Akers just 11 touches per game even over his busiest three-game stretch since arriving. Of course, it's also important to remember that Chandler was already with the team -- and had been since Minnesota drafted him last year -- when the Vikings acquired Akers and shoved him into the No. 2 role. Chandler has yet to garner more than 4 touches in a game this season. We'll certainly bet on that increasing the rest of the way. But O'Connell also mentioned Kene Nwangwu in the answer about Chandler's role, noting Nwangwu's experience and "juice." He added that the team is likely to take a "committee approach" and "kinda ride he hot hand." You should expect Mattison to remain the clear leader of what has been one of the league's weakest backfields (26th in PPR points per game, 26th in rushing yards). He's a bottom-level RB2 candidate going forward. Chandler is fine to stash on deep benches in case he surprises. And Nwangwu can be stashed in deep leagues. There's likely not a season-altering player among this trio, though. Check the Free Agent Finder to see if any makes sense for your fantasy football team.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) got in a limited practice on Wednesday. But HC Kevin O'Connell confirmed that Jefferson is unlikely to play vs. the Saints this weekend. "We have a rough timetable," O'Connell said. [Playing this week] would be a little aggressive." We'll keep you updated on Jefferson's progress, but he should be on Week 10 fantasy benches for now.

The Vikings on Wednesday designated WR Justin Jefferson (hamstring) to return from IR. That means he can return to practice any time, though it doesn't necessarily mean we'll see him on the field in any way this week. Minnesota has three weeks to either activate the wideout or rule him out for the season. Reports have already said we shouldn't expect Jefferson to play in Week 10. But this designation should mean that return is approaching. We'll continue updating whenever there's news on one of fantasy's (and the NFL's) biggest stars.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that the Vikings don't expect to get WR Justin Jefferson back from his hamstring injury this week. Jefferson is eligible to return for Sunday's game against the Saints after missing the past four contests. But it sounds like he'll need at least one more week of recovery time. That obviously leaves targets available for the other Minnesota pass catchers, albeit in a more difficult matchup than last week's vs. Atlanta.