The star running back suffered a high ankle sprain against Tampa Bay, but he appears to have made a full recovery. According to Jerry McDonald of the Oakland Tribune, McFadden has been officially upgraded to probable after participating in a full Wednesday practice.
McFadden's return should give a huge boost to the Raiders offense. It could also give a huge boost to savvy fantasy owners who are willing to start him against the Broncos on Thursday.
Starting McFadden is, admittedly, a pretty big risk––for a number of reasons.
For one thing, we've only heard reports about his ankle feeling better; we haven't actually seen it in action yet. But even assuming full health, Denver has been great against the run this season. The Broncos allow just 96.4 yards per game on the ground, and they stifled McFadden in the teams' first meeting.
But there are also a number of promising omens for McFadden's fantasy stock.
Marcel Reece, the Raiders' backup running back, is dealing with a nagging injury of his own, which could drastically increase McFadden's workload. Plus, the Raiders have sorely missed their best weapon for the past month, and should be eager to get him the ball early and often. Even if they fall behind, it's a safe bet that McFadden will touch the ball 20-plus times.
And even though they're playing the Broncos' stout defense, McFadden has shown the ability to perform against good run units––even Denver's. Last season, in Week 1, McFadden gashed the Broncos for 150 yards on 22 carries.
Box scores from last season not good enough for you? How about this: McFadden shredded the Steelers' fifth-ranked run defense for 113 yards and a touchdown earlier this season. Pittsburgh allows only 93.1 rush yard...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
