The Kansas City Chiefs prepare for their Week 12 home matchup against the Indianapolis Colts desperately searching for answers after dropping to 5-5 on the season. Xavier Worthy continues dealing with an ankle injury that has nagged him for multiple weeks. Will fantasy football managers have their speedy receiver available this week?​
Xavier Worthy Injury Update
Worthy tweaked his ankle during the team’s Week 11 loss to the Denver Broncos, though it’s unclear exactly when the injury occurred during the contest. Head coach Andy Reid confirmed Monday that Worthy aggravated the ankle issue, leaving his practice status uncertain heading into the week.​ The former first-round pick out of Texas did not practice on Wednesday.
Worthy has consistently played through the ankle issue without missing a game since returning from his earlier shoulder injury. He appeared on last week’s injury report as a limited participant Thursday before practicing fully Friday and suiting up Sunday without an injury designation. Despite the ankle bothering him, Worthy logged a 76% snap share in the loss to Denver.​
Wednesday practices are largely meaningless when evaluating a player’s availability for Sunday’s game. Teams routinely hold out players dealing with minor issues as a precautionary measure while managing their workload throughout the week. This is not yet cause for concern given Worthy’s established pattern of limited midweek participation before playing.​
Fortunately, Worthy returned to a limited session on Thursday. He’s not a lock to play just yet. However, given the fact that he completed last week’s game and appeared close to being able to practice on Wednesday, fantasy managers should view this as trending in the right direction.
Hopefully, Worthy can practice in full on Friday. Even if he doesn’t, another limited session might be good enough to avoid a final injury designation altogether.
Worthy’s Fantasy Outlook
Worthy has been incredibly disappointing for fantasy purposes ever since Rashee Rice returned to the lineup. The speedy sophomore has scored between 5.5 and 10.3 fantasy points in every game he’s played with Rice active. His recent production reflects this downturn, as Worthy has logged back-to-back three-catch efforts for a combined 48 yards over his last two outings.​
Worthy wasn’t particularly good in the three weeks before Rice returned either. He’s posted just one game with more than 11.1 fantasy points all season. He is already a very suspect Flex option at best, making a banged-up Worthy an even less appealing fantasy play.​
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The matchup against Indianapolis represents a favorable opportunity on paper. The Colts operate as a pass funnel defense, allowing the third-most schedule-adjusted fantasy points per game to wide receivers. However, matchup hasn’t mattered for Worthy yet this season.​
The reality is that Worthy simply isn’t a priority in Kansas City’s offense outside of a couple of manufactured touches and mistimed deep balls. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offensive scheme haven’t consistently targeted him despite his elite 4.21 40-yard dash speed that made him a first-round selection.​
Given the number of teams on bye, plus all of the injured wide receivers, fantasy managers may not have a choice but to start Worthy. However, expectations should be as low as possible until he proves otherwise.
