Washington Commanders DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (ankle) is off the injury report and good to go for Sunday's matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. McLaurin opened the week as a non-participant and was able to upgrade to limited participation the following day. This suggests that his ankle injury was not serious and should not be a concern this weekend. McLaurin is riding a four-game touchdown streak. During this stretch, he found the back of the end zone six times and averaged a strong 77.0 receiving yards per game. With No.2 wide receiver Dyami Brown (hamstring) ruled out, McLaurin could see a heavy workload in this game. Facing the Atlanta Falcons, who have allowed the third-most PPR points to opposing wideouts, makes him a must-start WR1 in all formats.

Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz (shoulder, rest) returned to full practice on Thursday after he was rested in Wednesday's session. Ertz had a three-game stretch of finding the end zone in each game from Weeks 11-13, but in two games since the team's Week 14 bye, he's caught only three of four targets for 37 yards and no touchdowns. The 34-year-old will likely be removed from Friday's final injury report and should be active this Sunday when the team takes on the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday Night Football. Ertz will be looking to get more involved in the passing attack in that one against a Falcons defense that has surprisingly only allowed 8.3 full-PPR points per game to the TE position. As he has been pretty all season, Ertz checks in as a touchdown-dependent TE2 heading into Sunday night's game in Week 17.

Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (ankle) returned to a limited practice on Thursday after he was a non-participant in the first practice of the week on Wednesday. McLaurin might need to practice in full on Friday to avoid an injury designation for the weekend, but he has a pretty good shot to play now on Sunday in the Week 17 contest versus the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday Night Football. The 29-year-old pass-catcher needs to stay in all fantasy lineups as well. He'll carry a four-game touchdown streak into this Sunday's contest. In that same span, he's caught 25 of his 30 targets for 308 yards and six total touchdowns. In the last five weeks in half-PPR scoring, McLaurin ranks as the WR10 overall. McLaurin has been thriving in 2024 as impressive rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels' No. 1 target.

According to Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post, Washington Commanders running back Austin Ekeler (concussion) is trending the right way for a potential Week 18 return. The veteran running back has been sidelined since suffering a concussion during their Week 12 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. While he has been on the injured reserve, Brian Robinson Jr. has seen the vast majority of the snaps with Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez Jr. operating as change-of-pace options. Before his injury, Ekeler was deployed as the top third down running back and averaged a solid 11.6 PPR points across his first 11 games in the DMV. He saw 3.5 targets per game and found the back of the end zone four times. Fantasy managers should continue to expect Brian Robinson Jr. to operate in his workhorse role during their Week 17 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. finally broke out of a five-game slump during a 29-17 defeat to the Dolphins in Miami on Sunday. Samuel Sr. caught seven of a co-team-high nine targets for 96 yards and a touchdown. He added five rushing attempts for 25 yards. Samuel Sr. looked angry and determined with his touches for the first time in weeks, scoring his 16-yard touchdown by running through three defenders. It's probably too little, too late for Samuel Sr.'s fantasy managers who suffered through five consecutive weeks of sub-five-point half-PPR performances, but anyone still rostering Samuel Sr. now has to at least consider him for a start in Week 17 coming off his most productive game of the season. San Francisco gets the offensive powerhouse Detroit Lions in Santa Clara on Monday night, which should force the 49ers into a pass-heavy game script, with a similar amount of carries to Sunday if rookie running back Isaac Guerendo (foot, hamstring) misses another game.