Fantasy Football Injury Updates: Are Mark Ingram, Marshon Lattimore playing Thursday?

The Saints have some key "questionable" players ahead of Thursday night's game against the Falcons. Mark Ingram, who has been part of a huge revitalization of the Saints running game, is battling a toe injury, and Marshon Lattimore, who has turned a laughingstock defense into one of the better ones this year, is dealing with an ankle injury that has kept him out the past two weeks. Both these players have an effect on not only themselves, but also their teammates and key players on the Falcons. Get Week 14's fantasy start-sit decisions off to a good start as we wait for the official active/inactive list.

Is Mark Ingram playing Thursday night?
As of Thursday afternoon, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Ingram (toe) is qquestionable" but expected to play against the Falcons. Ingram practiced in a limited role on Monday before missing all of practice on Tuesday.

Ingram, who has finished in the top-six RBs three of the past four weeks, is a must-start if he's active. We have him ranked in the top five in our RB rankings. If he sits, Alvin Kamara will handle the majority, if not all, of the snaps out of the backfield, making him a top-five play.

Another trickle-down effect of Ingram's potential absence is that Drew Brees might throw more. Since the ground-and-pound offense has worked so well lately, the Saints haven't relied on Brees as much this year, hence his multiple games with zero passing TDs. If Ingram is out, expect the Saints to throw more and Brees to have more value.

Is Marshon Lattimore playing Thursday night?
Lattimore (ankle) hasn't played since Week 11, and it was believed he took last week off in preparation for tonight's matchup. Right now, Lattimore is listed as "questionable" but expected to play, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

If he plays, Lattimore will likely blanket Julio Jones all game. The rookie corner has done well all season, shutting down the likes of Kelvin Benjamin, DeVante Parker, Mike Evans, and others. Of course, those players aren't quite the caliber of Jones, but Jones was just shut down last week by Minnesota's Xavier Rhodes. Jones is still a must-start even with Lattimore in the Saints' lineup, but his ceiling -- and the ceiling of Matt Ryan -- drops a bit. It's also a boost for the Saints' D/ST, though in this matchup, it's still outside our top 12.