Sunday Night Football: Injury and fantasy news for Dolphins vs. Eagles
Editor’s note: Follow all the Sunday Night Football action between the Dolphins and Eagles with USA TODAY Sports’ live coverage.
The Philadelphia Eagles (5-1) have been one of the best teams in the NFL this season, but fresh off a humiliating defeat to Zach Wilson and the New York Jets, Philly returns home hungry to get back into the win column.
Their opponents will be the Miami Dolphins (5-1), who have been offensive juggernauts alThis is a showdown between two absolute powerhouses, and luckily for us each team is at near full strength for their Week 7 tilt.l year long. They are averaging 37.2 points per game, which is currently the third-most in NFL history, behind only the 2013 Broncos (37.9 points per game) and the 1950 Rams (38.8 points per game).
Dolphins at Eagles:Expert picks and predictions
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Injury Reports:
Miami Dolphins:
Week 7 fantasy football rankings:Injuries, byes leave lineups extremely thin
Fantasy Impact:
Three-time All-Pro cornerback Jalen Ramsey was one of the biggest trades of the offseason. Through seven weeks though, Ramsey is still yet to suit up for South Beach. Fellow All-Pro corner Xavien Howard could also be out. All of this means potential big days for Philly receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith.
Smith has not been his usual, productive self lately, producing just six receptions and fifty yards over his last two games. He also hasn’t reached the endzone since Week 2 and has seen five or fewer targets in half of Philadelphia’s games. In all fairness, most of those games had negative scripts for the Eagles, meaning they didn’t need to pass much. In Philly’s lone loss, Smith had 11 targets, and while he only recorded five receptions. That’s a very positive number considering the Jets have a solid secondary. Miami does not, and this game could be a shootout, meaning several opportunities for both of Philly’s standout wideouts.
Bad news for Raheem Mostert fans, the Philadelphia defense has been remarkably stout against the run. It makes sense considering the team has Fletcher Cox, Jordan Davis, Jalen Carter, Brandon Graham, and Josh Sweat on that D-line. That said, it’s very possible Mostert has his worst game of the season in this one.
The Eagles have allowed just 395 rushing yards on the season, second-fewest in the league, on just 3.6 yards per carry. That doesn’t even take game script into account. In Miami’s only loss this year, Mostert managed just nine yards on seven carries. He did record three receptions for 36 yards as well, but that is pitiful considering everything Mostert has done this year.
Should Philadelphia get out to an early lead, which is entirely possible, Mostert could find himself on the bench for most of the game, especially considering that pass-catching back Jeff Wilson Jr. is returning from IR this week. Wilson was also a full participant at practice all week, meaning any hope you might have had for Wilson to be eased back into his usual role with a limited snap count this week is probably out the window. For perspective, when Miami trailed early to Buffalo in Week 4, Mostert saw just 43 percent of snaps, compared to 60 percent for rookie De’Von Achane.
At this point, Mostert is a must-start in all formats and his touchdown upside is still palpable. That said, Jeff Wilson Jr. could be a sneaky start if your team has suffered a litany of injuries like many of mine have (shout out to Aaron Jones and James Conner).
The Eagles have allowed a ton of receptions by running backs over the course of the season. On the year, they have surrendered 6.5 targets and 5.33 receptions to running backs per game. That is where Jeff Wilson shines. While he may not get all of those receptions and targets, he should see most of them, meaning his floor is probably higher than most people are considering at the moment.