Detroit Lions Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Lions S Kerby Joseph (hip) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee, hamstring) are inactive for tonight's game against the Packers. Joseph's absence -- for the second straight week -- should mean more playing time for rookie Brian Branch once again. He went from 68% and 69% snap shares the first two games to playing every snap last week. That helped Branch rack up 11 solo tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 2 passes defensed in the win over the Falcons. He has moved up our Week 4 DB rankings.

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) is active for tonight’s game vs. the Packers. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero said this morning that Montgomery will be returning as Detroit’s “lead back.” He’s a solid RB2 against a beatable Green Bay run defense missing LB De’Vondre Campbell.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero now reports that (via miscommunication) he was incorrect this morning on the status of RB David Montgomery. The Lions RB is expected to return from his thigh injury for Thursday night's game against the Packers. Assuming this proves true, Montgomery should be back in the low-RB2 mix for fantasy football lineups. Rookie RB Jahmyr Gibbs, meanwhile, should see a big decrease in his rushing share vs. Sunday's game. Craig Reynolds and Zonovan Knight can go back to being guys we forget are there. Detroit is also expected to get LT Taylor Decker back, which can only help both the run and pass offense.

Update: Pelissero adds that Montgomery will be the "lead back," with "plenty" still in the plan for Gibbs as well. We'll trust that he's not working off miscommunication this time. Check your Team Intel page or the Week 4 rankings before setting your lineup.

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) was a limited participant in practice again on Wednesday and is listed as questionable for Thursday night's game vs. the Packers. HC Dan Campbell expressed optimism about Montgomery's status for that one on Tuesday, so we're tentatively expecting him to play. We'll get Detroit's inactives around 7 pm ET tomorrow.

Lions S Kerby Joseph (hip) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee, hamstring) are questionable for Thursday night's game against the Packers. Joseph missed last Sunday's game after sitting out the whole practice week. He returned to limited workouts this week but remains a question mark and is probably not worth the risk in IDP lineups. Moseley has yet to play in a game this year and didn't get any live practices in this short week. He shouldn't be in IDP lineups yet but sported some upside when he started with the 49ers.

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) was listed as a limited participant on Tuesday's injury report. It was just a walkthrough on the short week, but Montgomery said he's hoping to make it back for Thursday night's game vs. the Packers. "We've been doing everything right as far as preparing myself in the training room, mentally being there," Montgomery said. "We are just taking it day by day, but I'm ready for whatever." We'll see how Montgomery is listed on the final injury report tomorrow.

Buccaneers CB Carlton Davis (toe) is inactive for tonight's game against the Eagles. That can only help the matchup for Philly's WRs. LB Devin White (groin) is active. He arrived questionable after a groin injury popped up during the practice week.

Lions TE Sam LaPorta went off for eight catches on 11 targets for 84 yards and a score in Sunday's win over the Falcons. A big chunk of that production came on a blown coverage that resulted in an easy 45-yard score. But LaPorta's 11 targets were second on the team behind only WR Amon-Ra St. Brown's 12 and were a huge 33.3% of the team total. LaPorta now has 22 targets through three games. And his 18 catches are the most ever by a rookie TE through his first three games. LaPorta is an easy weekly starter and has a chance to finish the season as a top-six fantasy TE.

Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs racked up 17 carries in Sunday's win over the Falcons vs. just seven total for RBs Craig Reynolds and Zonovan Knight. The rookie totaled 80 rushing yards for a solid 4.7 yards per carry. But he didn't find the end zone, despite three carries inside the Atlanta 10-yard line. And Gibbs surprisingly caught just one of two targets for two yards. It was an underwhelming fantasy outing but encouraging usage. If RB David Montgomery remains out for Week 4, Gibbs will again land in RB1 territory in our rankings.

The Lions will miss starting safety Kerby Joseph today because of a hip injury. Third-year S Ifeatu Melifonwu is expected to start in his place and has been added to our DB rankings as a Week 3 sleeper this morning. There should be plenty of tackle opportunities against the run-heavy Falcons for the safety likely to see the most time "in the box."

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) is inactive for today’s game vs. the Falcons. RBs Jahmyr Gibbs, Craig Reynolds, and Zonovan Knight are active for Detroit. We’re expecting Gibbs to get at least a slight uptick in rushing volume, with Reynolds soaking up most of the rest of Montgomery’s work. See where the Lions RBs land in the Week 3 Rankings.

Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) is active for today’s game vs. the Falcons. He’ll play with a steel plate in his shoe so that his injured toe can’t bend as much. It’s safe to assume that St. Brown won’t be at 100% today, but he remains a strong fantasy option.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs is expected to get "the majority of the work" against the Falcons today. "They are still going to play multiple backs," Pelissero adds. "They don't want to wear Gibbs out." Don't expect 20+ carries for the rookie. But even 12-15 -- along with heavy involvement in the passing game -- would make Gibbs an easy RB1.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport hears that Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) is "optimistic" that he'll be able to play vs. the Falcons today. It's not as good as a "will play" report, but St. Brown can stay penciled into Week 3 fantasy lineups for now. We'll get Detroit's inactives around 11:30 am ET.

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) is listed as doubtful for Sunday’s game vs. the Falcons. He didn’t practice all week and is obviously a long shot to play. Montgomery’s absence should mean a bigger role for RB Jahmyr Gibbs, although RB Craig Reynolds and potentially RB Zonovan Knight will be in the mix.

Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) is listed as questionable for this weekend’s game vs. the Falcons. He went from no practice on Wednesday to a limited practice on Thursday and full participation on Friday. St. Brown told reporters on Friday that he plans to play with a steel plate in his shoe so that his injured toe can’t bend as much. He added that he’s dealing with a bruised bone in that toe, rather than turf toe. "But it's been getting better every day. I'm excited and happy that it's nothing too serious,” St. Brown added. Even at less than 100%, St. Brown would be nearly impossible to bench in season-long fantasy lineups.

Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official website expects RB Jahmyr Gibbs to get around 15 carries vs. the Falcons on Sunday. If the rookie gets that type of rushing volume -- to go along with his big role in the passing game -- he could be in line for a breakout Week 3. Gibbs is a must-start in season-long fantasy leagues and a recommended play in DFS tournaments.

Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (toe) returned to a limited practice on Thursday. He figures to suit up for this weekend's game vs. the Falcons. Even at less than 100%, St. Brown would be impossible to bench in fantasy football lineups.

Lions RB David Montgomery (thigh) did not practice on Wednesday. HC Dan Campbell isn't ruling Montgomery out just yet for this weekend's game vs. the Falcons, but we're not expecting him to play. We'll see if he gets back on the field tomorrow.

Lions HC Dan Campbell labeled WR Amon-Ra St. Brown "day-to-day" with a toe injury. St. Brown won't practice on Wednesday. He was able to play through this injury in the second half of last week's game, so we're tentatively expecting him to be out there vs. the Falcons on Sunday. But we'll keep a close eye on St. Brown's status over the next few days.