Dallas

Cowboys

It’s yet another blow to the depth of a backfield devastated by injuries this season, leaving lead back Javonte Williams again positioned well to see a workhorse role against the 49ers. The team elevated running back Israel Abanikanda in an associated move, who is likely to serve as the primary change of pace option in Week 10.

Porter got in a limited practice on Friday. He described himself as being at 70 percent health this week. The Cowboys listed DaRon Bland (ankle) and backup S Alijah Clark (illness) as questionable, and ruled out LB Donovan Ezeiruaku (ankle) and S P.J. Locke (concussion). Cowboys LB DeMarvion Overshown (hamstring/back) will play.

This was the expected outcome. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer told reporters on Monday that Ferguson will likely be out for “multiple weeks” after suffering a knee injury. He was already dealing with an ankle injury when it happened. Ferguson does not need to be rostered in 12-team formats.

The Cowboys will be without their No. 2 running back, removing what little threat there was to Javonte Williams’ workload. Goodson should remain stashed on 12-team benches if possible, though he could miss next week as well.

Pickens makes his return after sitting out in Week 9. He played through the injury in Week 8, which may have been the wrong decision. The Cowboys’ No. 2 wide receiver encouragingly upgraded from limited to full participation today and can be treated as a WR2 in what should be a high-scoring game against the 49ers.

Abanikanda will get the practice squad elevation over Kendre Miller, who recently signed with the team after being released by the Saints. Abanikanda has spent part of the last two seasons with the Cowboys and had a solid preseason, rushing for 91 scoreless yards on 22 carries while adding three receptions for 16 yards. We wouldn’t expect Abanikanda to see enough meaningful work to be fantasy relevant this week but he could be worth a stash in deeper leagues as insurance for Javonte Williams.

Pickens is still stuck in the questionable column, though his continued participation is a good sign. The team allowed him to play through the injury in Week 8 against the Cardinals, which was probably the wrong call. He sat out last week despite practicing in a limited capacity. Hopefully, he upgrades to full participation tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Porter reportedly told reporters that his “whole foot is jacked up.” That sounds bad. He was able to run today, and hadn’t in a while, but declined to say whether he will play in Week 10 against the 49ers. We suspect he will sit out this weekend’s contest.

Turpin has missed three weeks with the rib issue. He may need to be upgraded to a full practice before being cleared to return to action. Even if he is back this week, George Pickens appears to be healthy and Ryan Flournoy is locked in as the team’s WR3, so there isn’t any fantasy value to be had here.

No surprises here as Ferguson is expected to miss multiple weeks, according to Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer. Ferguson was barely putting up TE2 numbers when healthy, so we’re not expecting much from Brevyn Spann-Ford as the next man up. Fantasy managers should aim higher on the waiver wire this week.