Eagles RB Jay Ajayi Injury Update: Fantasy Football Impact

Jay Ajayi

Getty Philadelphia Eagles RB Jay Ajayi suffered an injury in Week 2.

The Philadelphia Eagles saw starting running back Jay Ajayi go down with an apparent injury in Week 2 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As Jimmy Kempsky of the Philly Voice revealed, Ajayi is currently questionable to return to the game.

The injury didn’t look good, as Ajayi hobbled to the sidelines with trainers surrounding him. With his status unknown, it does seem like a longshot he’ll return to this game. One of the Eagles backups in Darren Sproles is also currently inactive, which means the work will fall primarily on Corey Clement and Wendell Smallwood.

Update

As revealed by Rotoworld, Ajayi returned to the game on the first drive of the second half. He looked solid, rushing for 20 yards on his first touch. As things stand, it seems the Eagles and fantasy football owners alike may have dodged a tough situation.


Fantasy Football Impact

While Sproles is out for Week 2, the big question is who would pick up the work if Ajayi was to miss any time. Fantasy football owners may want to look at Sproles assuming his current injury isn’t serious. As Pro Football Talk revealed, the veteran pass-catching back is currently dealing with a hamstring injury.

While Sproles is the better pass-catching option, as he hauled in four passes for 22 yards in the team’s opener, Clement would likely take over Ajayi’s role as the top runner. Sproles and Clement both had five rushing attempts in Week 1, but Clement flashed more upside with 26 yards compared to 10.

Diving a bit deeper into the numbers, it’s interesting to see Clement played far fewer offensive snaps than Sproles in the opener. His 18 percent of snaps was trumped by Sproles’ 40 percent, as Football Outsiders shows. A part of that likely had to do with Ajayi being to go-to choice in the running game, forcing Clement to take a backseat.

Much of the decision on how to approach the Eagles running back position if Ajayi misses time could come down to how Clement looks in an expanded role this week.

We’ll update this post as additional news on Ajayi’s injury is revealed.

READ NEXT: Antonio Callaway Fantasy: Should You Pick up the Browns Wide Receiver?