The question of is Darren Waller playing has been one fantasy football managers have found themselves asking a lot this year. With the Las Vegas Raiders tight end eligible to return from IR this week, could we see Waller activated ahead of Thursday Night Football?
Update: Darren Waller was not activated from the IR ahead of Thursday Night Football
Is Darren Waller Playing Tonight?
We will have a very good idea if Waller is playing tonight or not at around 4 p.m. ET on Thursday. That is the deadline for the Raiders to activate him from IR if he is to be eligible to play against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 14. After being placed on injured reserve ahead of Week 9, Waller is eligible to return this week, but the short week complicates that a little.
The question around Waller’s status has been hanging over the Raiders since Monday, with Josh McDaniels addressing the question then. At the time, McDaniels told reporters that the team was “going to talk about that” and called it a “unique situation” with “no practice.” That makes it seem unlikely we see Waller tonight, who hasn’t played since Week 5.
McDaniels also made reference to needing to evaluate the health of his team before making the decisions. Foster Moreau left Sunday’s game for a concussion check but returned. While another TE, Jesper Horsted, has been ruled out with a concussion, Moreau has not been on the Raiders’ injury report this week.
On Wednesday, McDaniels again addressed the question saying, “The short week and the long layoff are things we’ve taken into consideration.” The way McDaniels is talking, plus with Moreau healthy, it seems as though the Raiders will wait for Week 15 to bring Waller back.
Having a player who hasn’t played since Week 5 with a hamstring issue come straight back into a game without any practice is a tough ask. The Raiders did not practice Monday and then had walkthroughs on Tuesday and Wednesday, so they did not practice at all to even open the 21-day window for Waller.
While it doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t activate him ahead of game time, it does make it unlikely that he would have much of a role even if they do. The risk of soft tissue injuries, such as hamstring issues, is often increased by a player not practicing. If the Raiders were to give Waller a big role without any practice time, only for him to get hurt again, they would look very foolish.
Fantasy Outlook for Waller and Foster Moreau in Week 14
It’s a bit of a shame that Waller is unlikely to be a big contributor this week because the matchup is a friendly one. The Rams have allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends in the past four weeks (15.47).
In the last three games, they’ve allowed scores of 21.96, 19.90, and 17.10 fantasy points, respectively, to the position. Going back to their Week 7 bye, Los Angeles has allowed 15+ fantasy points to tight ends in five of their last six games.
While it’s frustrating for fantasy managers who drafted Waller, those who have added Moreau will be rubbing their hands together. Without Waller, Moreau will have a chance to play a major role. He’s played 90% or more of the offensive snaps in every game since Week 7, with 36 targets across those seven games.
MORE: Evan Engram and Austin Hooper Top Streaming Options in Week 14
While Moreau has been averaging five targets per game, he’s only scored double-digit fantasy points in half-PPR scoring in two of them. He was a solid contributor in the first few weeks, scoring over five fantasy points in half-PPR in every game between Week 8 and 10. However, in the past three weeks, Moreau has only crossed that threshold once, when he found the end zone in Week 12.
Moreau is not a player you would look to count on at tight end, but in this matchup, he has a chance to be a streaming option. He sits as the TE12 in Tommy Garrett’s Week 14 TE fantasy rankings. Therefore, Moreau makes for an intriguing starting option in leagues of all sizes this week.
