Tavon Austin not practicing, listed questionable
St. Louis Rams wide receiver Tavon Austin (11) runs the ball during the third quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the rams 30-10. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
St. Louis Rams rookie wide receiver Tavon Austin is in a walking boot after suffering a left ankle injury last week against the Arizona Cardinals after gaining 56 yards on a reverse play. Austin wasn’t able to practice on Wednesday and Thursday, and ESPN NFL Nation’s Nick Wagoner reports that Austin was unable to practice today and is still in a walking boot. This paints a very grim picture for Austin’s Week 14 status, yet Wagoner also adds that the Rams will only list Austin questionable.
Despite all indicators pointing to Austin being an inactive on Sunday, the Rams are holding out hope that Austin will be able to play by listing him questionable. He sounds like a game-time decision, and he’s honestly a player fantasy owners should avoid trusting this week. The Rams may be set for a shootout against the New Orleans Saints and Austin has come on strong recently, but he’s not the most consistent performer to begin with.
More importantly, Austin is still in a friggin’ walking boot and hasn’t practiced at all this week, and he’s also a small, rookie receiver on a team that is not in playoff contention. The Rams would honestly be crazy to play him this week, and I am shocked that they are only going to apply the questionable tag on him. That leaves the door open for him playing and may indicate that his ankle injury isn’t as severe as his practice status and walking boot indicate, but I’m not willing to buy into that line of thinking. And in the fantasy playoffs, you can’t afford to have a “goose egg” on the scoresheet, either.