Leonard Fournette Injury Update Boosts Ryquell Armstead Fantasy Outlook for Week 17

Leonard Fournette has announced that his season is over via Twitter after being listed as doubtful due to an illness. He will miss the Jacksonville Jaguars' Week 17 game against the Indianapolis Colts.

Unfortunately I want be able to play tomorrow due to the flu I have, my brothers know I wish I can ball with them, hopefully I see some of them same faces on my team next year pic.twitter.com/CCrDvz1VE9
— 7⃣ Leonard Fournette (@_fournette) December 28, 2019

Adam Schefter had initially reported that Fournette was doubtful, and Fournette put all doubts to rest on his personal account.

In Fournette's absence, Jaguars backup Ryquell Armstead should make his first NFL start.

Ryquell Armstead Fantasy Outlook

With Fournette solidified as the Jaguars' workhorse running back this season, Armstead hasn't had many chances to succeed in 2019. Armstead scored one touchdown this season in Week 4 against the Denver Broncos, but he's had just 25 carries this season. Outside of a 5-catch day against the Houston Texans in Week 9, Armstead has not made much impact in the passing game either.

Armstead should at least see some volume in Week 17, as Fournette is averaging 17.7 rushing attempts and 6.7 targets per game for the Jaguars.

Armstead is not as talented as Fournette, but he should see enough work to be a viable fantasy option. The Colts rank No. 21 in rush defense DVOA and won't be a bad matchup for the former Temple running back.

The other RB on the roster is Devine Ozigbo, who hasn't had a single carry in his NFL career. The former Nebraska starter will likely be the secondary back for the Jaguars.

With #Jaguars RB Leonard Fournette (neck, illness) now listed as doubtful, former @Temple_FB RB Ryquell Armstead likely to get his first #NFL start.#INDvsJAX
— Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) December 28, 2019

Accounting for Fournette's absence, our Week 17 PPR fantasy football rankings have Armstead at RB18.

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Tristan Jung is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Tristan Jung also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username tristan1117. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.