Winners Club: Fantasy, Betting Implications of the Jalen Hurts Injury News

Plus, fantasy playoff waiver adds and NFL futures odds and standings.

Here’s hoping you got a Monday night miracle to advance in your fantasy playoffs. Or better yet, you already had the W in the bag before the Packers eliminated the defending Super Bowl champion Rams from playoff contention and kept their own slim postseason hopes alive.

Onward we go to Round 2 and Week 16.

In today's Winners Club, you'll find:

• Jalen Hurts injury impact
• Fantasy playoff waiver pickups
• Latest NFL power rankings
• AFC and NFC playoff picture
• Division, conference and Super Bowl odds
• Bowl game schedule and spreads

Jalen Hurts Injury News Moves PHI-DAL Line

The 13–1 Eagles may be without their quarterback, and MVP candidate Jalen Hurts when they take on the Cowboys on the road with a chance to lock up the NFC East with a win.

Hurts suffered a right shoulder sprain in Sunday's win against the Bears, which put his status for Saturday's game in doubt.

The line quickly moved Wednesday from Eagles as one-point underdogs to the Cowboys as high as a six-point favorite. When these teams met earlier this season in Philadelphia, the Eagles won 26-17 as seven-point favorites, though that was Cooper Rush’s last start for Dallas.

In a radio interview Tuesday morning, Coach Nick Sirianni said that Hurts' shoulder sprain is not considered a long-term injury.

Gardner Minshew will get the start if Hurts is unable to play.

Daniel Bartel-USA TODAY Sports

Hurts is the No. 1 scorer in fantasy football this season and carried plenty of teams to the playoffs. He delivered his second overall QB1 performance in the first round of the fantasy playoffs last week, powered by three rushing touchdowns.

Hurts’ MVP odds also took a hit with the news. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is now -333 to win the award for the second time in his career, and Hurts, who was previously -175, saw his odds lengthen to +450.

Waiver Wire Pickups for Round 2

Congratulations on your win if you're looking for players to add this week! Let's keep it going.

Injuries to Jonathan Taylor (ankle) and Hurts (shoulder) this late in the season are a pain to deal with, but the last few seasons have shown us league winners are available on waivers.

There is some good news, though. Quarterback Lamar Jackson and tight end Dallas Goedert are both expected to return for Week 16.

All that said, allow Jen Piacenti to direct you to the best pickups this week at quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end. And remember, you can’t save that FAAB, so spend up!

Trevor Ruszkowski/USA TODAY Sports

Matt De Lima also has the waiver wire report for IDP leagues, Craig Ellenport wrote about Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson in the fantasy fallout, Michael Fabiano shared 10 fantasy takeaways from Week 15, and Shawn Childs recounted some of the best fantasy quarterback performances ever.

NFL Playoff Picture and Futures Odds

Four of the seven playoff spots in the NFC have already been spoken for, while the AFC remains largely wide open with just two postseason spots secured. Three weeks remain to sort out the remaining division races and wild card spots.

Here’s how things stack up in both conferences, from each team’s record to its division, conference and Super Bowl odds. And read more about the playoff picture in the AFC and NFC and the latest NFL power rankings.

AFC Standings

1. Buffalo Bills: 11–3 (clinched playoff berth)

AFC East: -10000 | AFC: +138 | Super Bowl: +350

2. Kansas City Chiefs: 11–3 (clinched AFC West)

AFC West: N/A | AFC: +225 | Super Bowl: +450

3. Cincinnati Bengals: 10–4

AFC North: -225 | AFC: +450 | Super Bowl: +800

4. Tennessee Titans: 7–7

AFC South: -143 | AFC: +2500 | Super Bowl: +5000

5. Baltimore Ravens: 9–5

AFC North: +150 | AFC: +1400 | Super Bowl: +2500

6. Los Angeles Chargers: 8–6

AFC West: N/A | AFC: +1400 | Super Bowl: +3300

7. Miami Dolphins: 8–6

AFC East: +3300 | AFC: +1600 | Super Bowl: +3300

8. New England Patriots: 7–7

AFC East: N/A | AFC: +8000 | Super Bowl: +10000

9. New York Jets: 7–7

AFC East: N/A | AFC: +8000 | Super Bowl: +10000

10. Jacksonville Jaguars: 6–8

AFC South: +100 | AFC: +8000 | Super Bowl: +10000

11. Las Vegas Raiders: 6–8

AFC West: N/A | AFC: +15000 | Super Bowl: +30000

12. Cleveland Browns: 6–8

AFC North: | AFC: +15000 | Super Bowl: +20000

13. Pittsburgh Steelers: 6–8

AFC North: N/A | AFC: +25000 | Super Bowl: +50000

14. Indianapolis Colts: 4–9–1

AFC East: +4000 | AFC: +50000 | Super Bowl: +75000

Eliminated: Denver Broncos (4–10), Houston Texans (1–12–1)

Melina Myers/USA TODAY Sports

NFC Standings

1. Philadelphia Eagles: 13–1 (clinched playoff berth)

NFC East: -20000 | NFC: +138 | Super Bowl: +400

2. Minnesota Vikings: 11–3 (clinched NFC North)

NFC North: N/A | NFC: +800 | Super Bowl: +2000

3. San Francisco 49ers: 10–4 (clinched NFC West)

NFC West: N/A | NFC: +275 | Super Bowl: +700

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 6–8

NFC South: -400 | NFC: +1400 | Super Bowl: +3300

5. Dallas Cowboys: 10–4 (clinched playoff berth)

NFC East: +3300 | NFC: | Super Bowl: +1000

6. New York Giants: 8–5–1

NFC East: N/A | NFC: +3300 | Super Bowl: +15000

7. Washington Commanders: 7–6–1

NFC East: N/A | NFC: +8000 | Super Bowl: +8000

8. Seattle Seahawks: 7–7

NFC West: N/A | NFC: +4000 | Super Bowl: +8000

9. Detroit Lions: 7–7

NFC North: N/A | NFC: +2000 | Super Bowl: +6600

10. Green Bay Packers: 6–8

NFC North: N/A | NFC: +6600 | Super Bowl: +25000

11. Carolina Panthers: 5–9

NFC South: +350 | NFC: +8000 | Super Bowl: +20000

12. New Orleans Saints: 5–9

NFC South: +1200 | NFC: +10000 | Super Bowl: +30000

13. Atlanta Falcons: 5–9

NFC South: +1600 | NFC: +20000 | Super Bowl: +25000

Eliminated: Arizona Cardinals (4–10), Los Angeles Rams (4–10), Chicago Bears (3–11)

Upcoming Bowl Game Schedule and Spreads

We're 10 games into bowl season, and the action continues Tuesday with two more contests.

Check out the spreads below, courtesy of SI Sportsbook, for the rest of the week. And read Pat Forde’s bowl breakdown and my confidence pool picks for a more detailed view of the slate.

Tuesday

Potato Bowl, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): San Jose State (-4.5) vs. Eastern Michigan | Total: 53

Liberty Bowl, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Liberty vs. Toledo (-3.5) | Total: 53 | Game preview

Wednesday

New Orleans Bowl, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN): Western Kentucky vs. South Alabama (-4.5) | Total: 56

Thursday

Armed Forces Bowl, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Baylor (-4) vs. Air Force | Total: 43 | Game preview

Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

Friday

Independence Bowl, 3 p.m. ET (ESPN): Louisiana vs. Houston (-7) | Total: 57 | Game preview

Gasparilla Bowl, 6:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Wake Forest (-1) vs. Missouri | Total: 59.5 | Game preview

In Other News

Pre-Christmas NBA Power Rankings: Despite a rough week for the Celtics, they hung on to their No. 1 spot, though the Grizzlies gained some ground on them at the Pelicans’ expense. Check which teams are rising and falling ahead of Sunday’s loaded NBA slate for the holiday.

JSU’s Travis Hunter Enters Transfer Portal: The former top-ranked recruit, a two-way player for Jacksonville State, is on his way out just weeks after coach Deion Sanders left for Colorado. The schools to watch are reportedly Georgia, Miami, USC and Colorado.

UConn Gains on No. 1 Purdue in AP Top 25: The Boilermakers are still unbeaten, but so are the Huskies, whose No. 2 ranking is the highest for the program in over a decade. Kansa shot up four spots into the top five after a resounding win over Indiana.

SI’s Best XI from the 2022 World Cup: It should be no surprise that Argentina’s Lionel Messi and France’s Kylian Mbappé, who traded goals in the epic final, are among the tournament's best players. See who else made the list.

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As always, thank you for reading! And just a heads up, there’s a slight tweak to the Winners Club schedule this week: Look out for the newsletter in your inbox Saturday morning, but no new editions will be sent out Thursday or Sunday.

Happy holidays and good luck with all of your fantasy matchups and bowl pool picks!