Is Kenneth Walker III playing Thursday night? Fantasy injury update for Seahawks-Cowboys Week 13 TNF

Nick Brinkerhoff

Is Kenneth Walker III playing Thursday night? Fantasy injury update for Seahawks-Cowboys Week 13 TNF image

There are just two weeks left in most fantasy football regular seasons, and an untimely injury could be enough to send your team packing. As usual, Week 13's action begins on Thursday night with a doozy of a matchup in Dallas between the Seahawks and Cowboys. These playoff hopefuls should give us a good show, but will it be Kenneth Walker III or understudy Zach Charbonnet in the lead running back role? 

We'll continue to update this article with news on Walker until the official active/inactive report comes out on Thursday around 6:50 p.m. ET, so check back for the latest.

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Is Kenneth Walker III playing Thursday night Week 13? 

UPDATE 2: Walker is officially listed as "doubtful: on the Seahawks' injury report, according to the team's senior reporter John Boyle. 

UPDATE: According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, it doesn't sound like Walker will play on Thursday night.

Walker (oblique) appears to be a true question mark for Thursday night in Dallas. After suffering the oblique injury against the Rams in Week 11, the Seahawks' running back followed it up with a week of DNPs heading into their Thanksgiving showdown against the 49ers. Despite the odds not being in Walker's favor, head coach Pete Carroll said last week that there is hope that Walker could suit up on Thursday night.

That hope will quickly fade, however, if the lack of practice availability continues. Walker was listed as an estimated DNP once again on Monday, leaving little room for a Week 13 return. It's unclear whether the running back needs to get back on the practice field to play, especially when Thursday night games typically lead to compressed weeks.

If Walker ends up playing, we should see him return to the starting role, though that might be in the form of a committee going forward. Zach Charbonnet is in line to continue serving as RB1 in Walker's absence, but the rookie had already been seeing more snaps with each passing week. The injury has complicated the Seahawks backfield, leaving it to be anyone's guess how it unfolds.

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Walker has been no stranger to injury this season, but he hadn't missed a game until the oblique issue popped up. Charbonnet wasn't much of a factor early, but he's emerged late. All of that adds up to one uncomfortable decision on Thursday night if KW3 is active, but you have to ride with him barring your roster having some other incredible option left sitting on the bench. Charbonnet is a must-start if Walker can't go, even against this stout Cowboys defense. In theory, the volume alone should be enough to make both RBs flex options, at worst. 

Nick Brinkerhoff

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Nick Brinkerhoff is a content producer at The Sporting News covering the NFL, NBA and other sports. A proud New Jerseyan, Nick is also a graduate of Rutgers University. He is always in the mood for a good joke, the day’s best bets, or a debate about the mediocrity of the New York sports scene.