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Los Angeles Rams Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Shark Bites are the latest fantasy football news & NFL updates. Draft Sharks has been in business since 1999. And when we started, redraft was the dominant form of fantasy football. Check out what we've learned about this most basic form of fantasy football along the way.

Rams TE Tyler Higbee (neck) did not practice on Wednesday. He suffered a stinger in last week's win over the Browns and is in some danger of missing Sunday's game vs. the Ravens. Higbee, of course, should not be in your Week 14 fantasy plans against the league's sixth-ranked TE defense.

Rams WR Puka Nacua sustained an AC joint sprain Sunday against the Browns, HC Sean McVay told reporters Monday. The Athletic's Jordan Rodrigue reports the "team may be careful with rest early in the week" but that it "sounds like" they expect Nacua to play in Week 14. We'll obviously track the rookie's status throughout the week.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp turned 8 targets into 6 catches, 39 yards, and 1 score in Week 13. He was out-produced by both Puka Nacua (4-105-1) and Demarcus Robinson (4-55-1). Three of Nacua’s catches came in the first quarter, as he was limited by rib/shoulder injuries. Still, Kupp wasn’t able to get much going in this one, beyond a short-range score that found him exploiting an open zone. That marked his first TD since Week 6. The 30-year-old has now been under 50 yards in six straight. He’ll profile as more of a WR2 for a tough Week 14 showdown at Baltimore. After that comes an ideal home matchup with Washington.

Rams WR Puka Nacua injured his ribs and shoulder on a diving catch in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Browns. He's officially questionable to return. Stay tuned for an update.

Update: Nacua returned for the start of the second half.

Rams Edge Michael Hoecht (knee) is active for today's game against the Browns. Use him as planned in IDP lineups.

Rams RB Kyren Williams returned from IR in Week 12. You might say he did so with a bang. Handling 16 carries, the Notre Dame product tallied 143 yards – the second-highest mark of his career. He added a 6-61-2 receiving line on an 18.1% target share. A positive matchup with Arizona helped. But it’s clear Williams is back near 100% coming off an ankle injury. Also note: Royce Freeman mixed in for 13 carries, 77 yards, and 1 score. So Williams doesn’t look like a true workhorse as we advance. The next two weeks turn up difficult matchups vs. Cleveland and Baltimore.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero hears that Rams RB Kyren Williams will return as the lead back vs. Arizona today but that RB Royce Freeman will stay involved. "They wanna be careful about not overworking" Williams, Pelissero says. "Look for a roughly 2-to-1 ratio between Williams and Royce Freeman. Game flow is gonna dictate a lot of that." Our current projections have Williams for 16.7 carries to Freeman's 7.5 -- close to that 2-to-1 split. Williams should handle the majority of the passing-down snaps, though, and remains a strong RB2 play today. Freeman is really only in play in non-PPR fantasy leagues.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) is not listed on the final Week 12 injury report. He went from no practice on Wednesday to a limited practice on Thursday to full participation on Friday. That progression suggests that Kupp will at least be reasonably close to 100% for this one. He’d be tough to leave out of Week 12 fantasy lineups against a Cardinals defense that ranks 20th in adjusted fantasy points allowed to WRs and coughed up a 7-148-1 receiving line to Kupp back in Week 6.

Rams HC Sean McVay suggested on Friday that RB Kyren Williams' workload could be scaled back in his return from his ankle injury this weekend. "We definitely want to be mindful of taking some snaps off him," McVay said. Williams played 88% of Los Angeles' offensive snaps between Weeks 2 and 6, averaging 16.4 carries and 4.4 targets per game. Don't expect him to play that big a role vs. the Cardinals on Sunday -- but we are expecting Williams to step back in as the Rams' clear lead back. See where he sits in the Week 12 RB Rankings.

Rams HC Sean McVay said Friday that WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) will play vs. the Cardinals this weekend. Kupp went from no practice on Wednesday to a limited practice on Thursday. We'll see what he does on Friday. It's safe to assume that Kupp won't be at 100% on Sunday, but he'd still be tough to keep out of fantasy lineups. He smoked the Cardinals for a 7-148-1 line back in Week 6

Rams WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) got in a limited practice on Thursday. That gives him a chance to suit up for this weekend's game vs. the Cardinals. We'll see what he does in Friday's practice and how he's listed on the final injury report.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) did not practice on Wednesday. His ankle injury isn't serious by all accounts, but we're tentatively expecting Kupp to miss this weekend's game vs. the Cardinals. We'll see if Kupp's outlook improves over the next couple of days.

Rams HC Sean McVay confirmed on Monday that RB Kyren Williams (ankle) will return for this weekend's game vs. the Cardinals. He's been sidelined since Week 6. Williams was dominating Rams backfield work before going down, averaging 16.4 carries, 81 rushing yards, 4.4 targets, 2.6 catches, and 21 receiving yards from Week 2 to 6. We can't bank on Williams regaining that type of workload, but we are expecting him to return as Los Angeles' clear lead back. RBs Darrell Henderson and Royce Freeman didn't do nearly enough in Williams' absence to lock in significant roles.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp is considered "day-to-day" with his sprained ankle, a source tells ESPN's Adam Schefter. It continues to sound like Kupp avoided a serious injury. But Schefter adds, "Given Kupp’s history with ankle injuries, the Rams will be careful with him as they determine whether he can play Sunday vs. the Cardinals." Consider Kupp no better than 50/50 to play this weekend. We'll keep you updated on his status.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp has been diagnosed with a low-ankle sprain. He tried returning from the injury on Sunday but missed the second half. For now, the 30-year-old looks 50/50 to suit up this week at Arizona. If Kupp remains out, Puka Nacua would likely be in for WR1 usage in a plus matchup.

Rams WR Cooper Kupp suffered a right ankle injury in the second quarter of Sunday's game vs. the Seahawks and is officially questionable to return. Stay tuned for an update.

Update: Kupp was on the sidelines with his helmet to start the second half but did not play on Los Angeles' opening possession.

Update: Kupp was officially ruled out at the end of the third quarter.

Rams QB Matt Stafford (thumb) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final injury report for Sunday’s game vs. the Seahawks. That suggests his right thumb injury shouldn’t be a factor this weekend, although we’d still prefer to see Stafford play a healthy game before considering him as a starter in 1-QB fantasy leagues. Stafford’s return is excellent news for WRs Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua.

Rams QB Matt Stafford (thumb) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. "I feel pretty confident in my ability to go out there and play at a pretty high level," he said afterward. Stafford will start this weekend's game vs. the Seahawks, but we'd still like to see a healthy, productive outing from him before using him in 1-QB fantasy leagues.

Rams HC Sean McVay said Monday that the team is expecting QB Matt Stafford (thumb) to start this weekend's game vs. the Seahawks. Stafford was able to grip and throw the football in Monday's post-bye-week practice. We'll keep an eye on his progress throughout the week. Stafford would be a shaky QB1 play in Week 11 fantasy lineups, but his return is great news for the Rams' skill-position players.

Rams HC Sean McVay says he expects RB Kyren Williams (ankle) to be ready when he's eligible to return from IR, according to multiple reports. Williams has missed three games, so he'll remain out at least through Week 11 -- on the other side of the team's bye. But we should have him back for fantasy lineups from Week 12 on. Darrell Henderson and Royce Freeman have combined to take over the backfield in Williams' absence. We'd guess some version of that duo will hold on to a little more work after Williams' return than any other Rams RB had before he went down. That's not because they've outplayed Williams, but rather because few RBs dominate backfield touches the way Williams was pre-injury. That said, we'll certainly assume a controlling share for Williams upon return until/unless the team shows otherwise.

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