Who Should I Start? Geno Smith or Josh Allen

Sunday, December 28, 8:34 PM

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (ankle) was diagnosed with a high-ankle sprain following Sunday's Week 17 loss against the New York Giants, according to head coach Pete Carroll. Smith suffered the injury during the fourth quarter while attempting to make a play on a Giants interception return. The veteran quarterback has found himself involved in several of those plays this year, as he leads the entire NFL with 17 interceptions. High-ankle sprains are typically multiple-week injuries, and even if Smith had a chance to play next week, it's tough to imagine the eliminated Raiders would rush him back. Kenny Pickett should start at quarterback in Vegas' regular-season finale against the Kansas City Chiefs. If the Raiders lose, they would clinch the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Sunday, December 28, 8:52 PM

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (foot) told Dan Fetes of 13WHAM that he wasn't bothered by his foot injury at all during the second half of Sunday's Week 17 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles. Specifically, when asked how much his foot impacted him, Allen said, "Zero." However, the star quarterback was seen exiting the X-ray room with a limp after the loss, according to Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic. He added that the quarterback's X-rays came back negative. It's unclear whether Allen downplayed the injury in his postgame comments or whether the additional imaging was merely conducted out of an abundance of caution. The 29-year-old will likely do everything in his power to play in Week 18 against the New York Jets. With that being said, Buffalo has guaranteed that it will finish somewhere between the No. 5 and the No. 7 seed in the AFC, guaranteeing the Bills don't get a first-round home game. With this in mind -- and a relatively softer matchup against the Jets on tap -- we wouldn't be surprised to see Allen only play a portion of next week's game if the Bills take a substantial early lead. In other words, he should get a chance to lock up the No. 5 seed but might not play any more snaps than necessary. Fantasy managers should still view Allen as a high-end QB1 as he takes on the Jets, who just allowed Drake Maye to throw for five touchdowns in fewer than three quarters. We'll likely get more updates on Allen's status in the days leading up to Week 18.