Lamar Jackson: playing Sunday at Buffalo but not 100 percent
THE FACT. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson will not be at full strength for Sunday's game at Buffalo, NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe reported Sunday in an item carried by NBC Sports, which lists the ankle as the issue. Jackson is back after a three-game absence, a return Baltimore coach Jesse Minter confirmed Friday, per NFL.com.
THE VERDICT. Start him. A healthy Jackson is a top-two fantasy quarterback and even a compromised one clears the replacement bar, but temper the rushing projection, because a tender ankle is the first thing that comes out of his game plan. Redraft managers with a clean backup option should still ride Jackson. In DFS he is a fade at full price, since you are paying for designed runs he may not take, and the Bills matchup does not hand you a soft floor.
The DFS fade is the one spot I'd go the other way here. He was a full participant all three days and came off the injury report entirely, and Buffalo is 31st against the pass. You don't need designed runs to beat that number, you need dropbacks, and he was third in QBR with six touchdowns to one pick before the ankle. Everybody reads "not 100 percent" and clicks right past him, which is how you end up with a low-owned top-two QB in the best shootout spot on the board. I'm paying up.