Vikings RB Alexander Mattison sustained a concussion in the second half of Sunday's game vs. the Saints. That leaves Ty Chandler as Minnesota's lead back for the rest of this one -- and likely in Week 11 against Denver. We'll track Mattison's progress through the protocol this coming week.
Does Cam Akers' Achilles' tear mean that Vikings RB Ty Chandler is about to get a big boost in work? HC Kevin O'Connell said this week: “Hopefully, we’ll be able to get Ty [Chandler] more involved and kind of assume a little bit more of kind of that role Cam was assuming.” That stops short of saying Chandler will take over a role that afforded Akers just 11 touches per game even over his busiest three-game stretch since arriving. Of course, it's also important to remember that Chandler was already with the team -- and had been since Minnesota drafted him last year -- when the Vikings acquired Akers and shoved him into the No. 2 role. Chandler has yet to garner more than 4 touches in a game this season. We'll certainly bet on that increasing the rest of the way. But O'Connell also mentioned Kene Nwangwu in the answer about Chandler's role, noting Nwangwu's experience and "juice." He added that the team is likely to take a "committee approach" and "kinda ride he hot hand." You should expect Mattison to remain the clear leader of what has been one of the league's weakest backfields (26th in PPR points per game, 26th in rushing yards). He's a bottom-level RB2 candidate going forward. Chandler is fine to stash on deep benches in case he surprises. And Nwangwu can be stashed in deep leagues. There's likely not a season-altering player among this trio, though. Check the Free Agent Finder to see if any makes sense for your fantasy football team.
The Vikings fear a torn Achilles for RB Cam Akers, HC Kevin O'Connell said after Sunday's win over the Falcons. This would be Akers' left Achilles. He tore his right Achilles in July 2021, eventually making it back in January 2022. This latest injury would end Akers' 2023 campaign, leaving Minnesota's backfield to Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler. We should get confirmation on the injury on Monday.
Update: The Monday MRi confirmed the injury. Unfortunately, this makes Akers droppable across fantasy formats, including dynasty.
Vikings RB Cam Akers suffered an ankle injury in the second half of Sunday's game vs. the Falcons and will not return. That leaves the backfield to Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler. We'll update Akers' status when we know more.
A Monday MRI confirmed that Vikings QB Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles in the Week 8 win over the Packers, NFL Network reports. Cousins will miss the rest of the 2023 season. His contract is set to void in March, and Cousins will turn 36 in August, leaving his football future very uncertain. The Vikings, meanwhile, are left with QBs Jaren Hall and Sean Mannion for now. QB Nick Mullens, who at least has 655 NFL pass attempts under his belt, is eligible to come off IR next week. We'll see if Minnesota makes a move for a free-agent QB or swings a trade before tomorrow's trade deadline. Regardless, Cousins' absence is bad news for all of the team's skill-position players.
Vikings QB Kirk Cousins is feared to have torn his Achilles in Sunday's win over the Packers, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. It's typically easy for doctors to diagnose a torn Achilles without any imaging. We should get confirmation tomorrow, but Cousins' 2023 season is very likely over. His absence would leave Minnesota with QBs Jaren Hall and Sean Mannion. QB Nick Mullens is currently on IR with a back injury but is eligible to return. Regardless, Cousins' injury is horrible news for Minnesota's skill-position players.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison worked behind RB Cam Akers early in Sunday's win over the Packers. Akers logged 8 first-half carries to Mattison's 4, as well as the only RB target before halftime. Mattison dominated second-half work, however, taking 12 rushes to just one for Akers. Neither guy did much with their touches. Mattison finished just 16-31 rushing and caught his lone target for a mere 2 yards. Akers scored the lone rushing TD but averaged just 2.1 yards per carry across his 9 attempts. He also didn't see a second-half target. It's best to avoid this backfield in fantasy as much as you can.
Perhaps there’s been a changing of the guard in Minnesota. For the first time since joining the team via trade in late September, Vikings RB Cam Akers saw more volume than his teammate Alexander Mattison in Week 7 vs. the 49ers. Akers led the way with 13 total touches on Monday night to Mattison’s 11. Though neither player achieved double-digit PPR points, this is a potentially significant development worth keeping an eye on ahead of Week 8 vs. the Packers.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison controlled the backfield work in Sunday's win over the Bears. He handled 18 of 19 Minnesota RB carries and drew 7 of 8 RB targets. Mattison gained just 44 yards on the ground, though, averaging 2.4 yards per rush. His 7 targets ranked second on the team. Mattison caught four for 28 yards. Cam Akers logged just 1 carry for 8 yards and caught his lone target for 7 more. Akers had been creeping in on Mattison's playing time before this week, so that's a positive development for Mattison managers. A Week 7 matchup with the 49ers makes the whole backfield worth trying to avoid, though.
The Vikings will be placing WR Justin Jefferson on IR for the hamstring injury that knocked him out of Sunday's loss to the Chiefs. That means he'll miss at least the next four games. Jefferson's absence will obviously leave a bunch of targets for his Vikings teammates. Jefferson drew 47 through the first four games, 30% of QB Kirk Cousins' total attempts over that span. That makes rookie WR Jordan Addison a weekly starting candidate over the next month. He drew a season-high 9 targets in the K.C. game, reaching 6 receptions for the second time in three weeks. It also makes WR K.J. Osborn worth picking up in many leagues. But there's also a chance Jefferson's absence shifts the offensive approach. Minnesota leads the league in pass attempts through five weeks, sits tied for the lead in pass rate, and ranks third in pass rate over expected. Losing Jefferson figures to hurt the offense overall and could push a little more work to the running game. We're certainly not upgrading RB Alexander Mattison for this, but we'll be watching the offense's reaction over the next couple of weeks. Cousins clearly loses upside with the absence of arguably the league's best WR. Fortunately for him -- and fantasy managers -- the Vikings visit a bad Bears defense in the first game without Jefferson. That will help everyone's fantasy outlooks. An ominous Monday night date with the 49ers waits on the other side of that, however.
RB Cam Akers carried five times for 40 yards in Sunday's win over the Panthers, his first action with the Vikings. He added 2 receptions for 11 yards on 2 targets, one of just three Minnesota players who caught more than one pass in the game. Akers looks like the handcuff to RB Alexander Mattison but probably won't turn into a standalone fantasy play without a Mattison injury. Mattison rushed 17 times for 95 yards against Carolina and caught his only target for 3 yards.
The Vikings will go with the hot hand at RB vs. the Panthers today, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. RB Alexander Mattison "is still the starter," per Pelissero, but we could see "a lot of" RB Cam Akers. Mattison has been inefficient and mistake-prone through three games, so there's an opening for Akers. Mattison remains the preferred fantasy play today, but his floor is much lower than it's been the first three weeks.
The Vikings made RB Cam Akers inactive for his first game with the team. So RB Alexander Mattison continued to dominate backfield usage. He took 20 carries for 93 yards and added a 5-32 receiving line on 7 targets. Mattison benefited from facing a weak Chargers D and from Minnesota running 83 offensive plays. But we'll have to assume he retains the clear backfield lead until/unless something changes. Week 4 holds a high-upside matchup with a Panthers D that has been run over so far this season.
Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell said RB Cam Akers "more than likely" won't play vs. the Chargers on Sunday. O'Connell does expect Akers to be ready for Week 4. But RB Alexander Mattison will get at least one more game as Minnesota's feature back.
On Wednesday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Rams are trading RB Cam Akers to the Vikings in exchange for a swap of 2026 NFL Draft picks. Akers was a surprise inactive on Sunday vs. the 49ers, and HC Sean McVay reiterated to the media on Monday that the team was trying to deal away the former second-round pick. This news brings the "will they, won't they" saga dating back to the 2022 season to a close and also muddies the outlook for incumbent Vikings RB Alexander Mattison. Fantasy managers who roster Mattison will now have to worry about Akers, who has connections to HC Kevin O'Connell and OC Wes Phillips dating back to their days in Los Angeles, coming in and taking away some work. This could be merely a depth move, though Mattison has not been particularly effective this season, averaging just 31.0 rushing yards per game. Stay tuned for more updates regarding the fantasy fallout of this trade.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison mustered just 28 scoreless yards on eight carries (3.5 YPC) in Thursday night’s loss to the Eagles. He turned six targets into three catches and 11 yards. Mattison has now totaled 83 yards on 25 touches through two games this season — an ugly 3.3 yards per touch. He hasn’t gotten much help from his offensive line but also hasn’t made much happen on his own. Mattison continued to dominate the backfield work vs. Philadelphia, with RB Ty Chandler getting just one carry and two targets. But we could see Chandler’s role grow if Mattison doesn’t start producing more. Mattison's RB2 status is on very shaky ground.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison out-carried Ty Chandler 11-3 in Sunday’s loss to Tampa Bay. Mattison didn’t find much room to run, but he salvaged his day with an excellent individual effort on a goal-line receiving TD. Mattison also ran 22 routes to only 7 for Chandler, so there’s no concern over the passing-game role. Week 2 brings a tough matchup with Philly, but Mattison will remain an RB2. Keep Chandler stashed as a high-value handcuff.
Vikings RB Kene Nwangwu has been placed on IR. That knocks him out for at least the first four games of the season. Minnesota signed RB Myles Gaskin, who figures to serve as the No. 3 RB behind Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler.
The Vikings released RB DeWayne McBride. A favorite of some in the analytics community, McBride sunk to the seventh round of this spring's draft and didn't make any noise in August. He's miles away from fantasy relevance at the moment. Ty Chandler will open the season as Minnesota's No. 2 RB behind Alexander Mattison.
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