"What we said Thursday still goes. Week 17 is a harsh and mysterious place ill-suited for fantasy football. Playoff-bound superstars who have carried your team all season are benched in the interest of good health, while a number of other stalwarts simply aren't used the same way in games that are devoid of meaning.
But if you've reached Week 17 with something still on the line, you are not alone. Yesterday we took a look at who you can trust in such a tricky landscape (while Gregg Rosenthal and Chris Wesseling provided an even more in depth look), but were stuck with incomplete information on a number of critical players. With another day of practice in the books, the status of most has clarified.
In: Ryan Mathews (calf). At least as far as we can tell. The San Diego media seems to believe Mathews' Wednesday absence was purely precautionary, and there would have been little reason for Mathews to return yesterday were he not planning to suit up against the Raiders. Rotoworld is confident enough Mathews will play that we've ranked him third amongst running backs for Week 17. Going up against a Raiders' run defense allowing a league-worst 5.1 yards per carry, San Diego's breakout second-year back has a dream matchup. .
Out: Mike Tolbert (hamstring). Again, this is as far as we can tell. The Chargers would love to play spoiler Sunday, but there's no reason to push their battering ram change-of-pace back if he's not 100 percent. Tolbert could return to practice this afternoon and be listed as questionable on the injury report, but even if he's active, he's is going to be a dicey flex play in all formats.
In/out: Vincent Jackson (groin). We called this one "out" on Thursday, but apparently Jackson and the Chargers have other ideas. Coach Norv Turner has said he's "as hopeful (this week) as he was last week" that his No. 1 receiver will take the field, and believes Jackson himself wants to suit up. That's surprising since San Diego has been eliminated from playoff contention and V-Jax is gearing up for what figures to be another nasty contract negotiation, but he should now be considered (slightly) better than 50-50 to play. Turner has maintained the fact that the Bolts have nothing to play for will not factor into whether or not Jackson gives it a go. "
