Williams lands on COVID list as close contact

The Chargers on Wednesday placed WR Mike Williams on the COVID list. He, of course, joins teammate WR Keenan Allen, potentially leaving QB Justin Herbert down his top 2 wideouts for Sunday's game against the Giants. We'll keep an eye on the situations for both players. Jalen Guyton and Joshua Palmer look like the next 2 WRs up. RB Austin Ekeler, TE Jared Cook and even TE Donald Parham could all be in for more targets, though, if Williams and Allen both miss the game. On defense, the Chargers also placed CB Chris Harris Jr. on the COVID list. That might be more interesting for fantasy purposes if the Giants weren't down to their 3rd QB.

Update: HC Brandon Staley says Williams and Harris are on the list merely as close contacts. That means each player can make it back for Sunday's game as long as he continues to test negative.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that further imagining revealed a fracture in Chargers WR Mike Williams' back. Williams is expected to be out "a couple of weeks," Pelissero adds. He's already been ruled out for Saturday night's game vs. the Jaguars -- and it sounds like Williams would also likely miss a potential Divisional Round game.

The Chargers have downgraded WR Mike Williams from questionable to out for Saturday night's game against the Jaguars, because of the back injury he suffered in Week 18 against the Broncos. That boosts the outlook for Chargers WRs Josh Palmer and DeAndre Carter, who have each moved up our WR rankings for the week. HC Brandon Staley has taken a lot of flak this week for the way he handled starters in a game his team didn't need. But he at least did coaches everywhere a service by clearly reminding everyone why you rest key players in those situations. We'll see about Williams' status for Round 2, if the Chargers advance.

Chargers WR Mike Williams missed practice for a 3rd straight day Thursday, with the back injury he suffered in the Week 18 loss to the Broncos. He is officially questionable for Saturday's game against the Jaguars and sure doesn't look like a great bet based on his practice schedule. We've seen Williams go later in recent full-playoffs drafting. WR Josh Palmer, however, has not risen at the same time. He looks like an attractive option across playoff fantasy football formats this week.

Chargers WR Mike Williams (back) was listed as a DNP on Wednesday for the 2nd day in a row. HC Brandon Staley shared on Tuesday that the veteran is considered day-to-day and that Williams will practice at some point this week. We'll continue to monitor his name on the injury report in advance of Saturday's Wild Card game vs. the Jaguars.

Chargers WR Mike Williams (back) was listed as a non-participant on Tuesday's practice report. It'll be important to see if he's able to practice tomorrow ahead of Saturday's Wild Card game vs. the Jaguars. We'll keep an eye on this storyline as more information becomes available.