How often do Questionable players play?
About two out of three. Across 2020–2026 (through Week 5), 68.4% of NFL players listed Questionable on the final injury report were active on game day (5,937 of 8,682; 95% CI 67.4%–69.4%).
All designations
| Final designation | Active on game day | Played / total | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Questionable | 68.4% | 5,937 / 8,682 | 67.4%–69.4% |
| Doubtful | 1.9% | 18 / 937 | 1.2%–3.0% |
| Out | 0.2% | 11 / 6,484 | 0.1%–0.3% |
| No designation | 93.9% | 17,344 / 18,478 | 93.5%–94.2% |
“No designation” here means players who appeared on the practice report (for example a limited day or a rest day) but got no game status.
By final practice status
| Questionable + final practice | Active | Played / total | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|---|
| DNP | 48.4% | 709 / 1,466 | 45.8%–50.9% |
| Limited | 70.6% | 3,843 / 5,446 | 69.3%–71.8% |
| Full | 78.2% | 1,385 / 1,770 | 76.3%–80.1% |
By position
| Position | Questionable players active | Sample | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 49.6% | 226 | 43.1%–56.0% |
| Running backs | 65.4% | 736 | 61.8%–68.7% |
| Wide receivers | 70.0% | 1,217 | 67.4%–72.5% |
| Tight ends | 69.5% | 486 | 65.3%–73.5% |
| Offensive line | 68.0% | 1,525 | 65.6%–70.3% |
| Defensive line | 72.8% | 1,327 | 70.3%–75.1% |
| Linebackers | 72.5% | 1,119 | 69.8%–75.0% |
| Defensive backs | 64.7% | 1,916 | 62.6%–66.8% |
| Kickers, punters & long snappers | 76.9% | 130 | 69.0%–83.3% |
Quarterbacks stand out: only 49.6% of Questionable QBs were active, on a small sample (n=226). One possible reason is that teams tend to list a starting QB as Questionable only when it’s genuinely in doubt, but the data alone can’t prove why.
Position × final practice (Questionable only)
| Position | DNP | Limited | Full |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 29% n=35 | 50% n=155 | 69% n=36 |
| Running backs | 39% n=109 | 68% n=479 | 75% n=148 |
| Wide receivers | 50% n=214 | 73% n=781 | 80% n=222 |
| Tight ends | 47% n=70 | 71% n=307 | 81% n=109 |
| Offensive line | 44% n=281 | 72% n=946 | 77% n=298 |
| Defensive line | 59% n=248 | 76% n=816 | 77% n=263 |
| Linebackers | 60% n=178 | 73% n=697 | 80% n=244 |
| Defensive backs | 41% n=306 | 66% n=1,190 | 79% n=420 |
| Kickers, punters & long snappers | 48% n=25 | 84% n=75 | 83% n=30 |
Is it stable year to year?
| Season | Questionable players active | Sample | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 69.2% | 1,403 | 66.7%–71.6% |
| 2021 | 70.8% | 1,424 | 68.4%–73.1% |
| 2022 | 68.2% | 1,438 | 65.8%–70.6% |
| 2023 | 67.9% | 1,525 | 65.5%–70.2% |
| 2024 | 66.7% | 1,441 | 64.2%–69.1% |
| 2025 | 67.6% | 1,186 | 64.9%–70.2% |
| 2026 (Weeks 1–5) | 67.5% | 265 | 61.7%–72.9% |
Every full season from 2020 to 2025 falls between 66.7% (2024) and 70.8% (2021), so the overall rate is steady. Each full season has 1,186–1,525 Questionable tags. 2026 so far (Weeks 1–5): 67.5% (n=265).
Does the base rate hold up?
Before 2026 games were added, we ran a holdout test of the 2020–2025 rates on 2026 Weeks 1–5: the model said Questionable players would be active 69.7% of the time; 67.7% were (n=266).
The current rates include 2026, so we also run a weekly walk-forward check: each 2026 week is predicted using only data from before that week. So far: Questionable predicted 69.7%, actual 67.5% (n=265).
Sample sizes
The full table covers 34,581 final injury-report entries (2020–2026, through Week 5, regular season) matched to game-day rosters by player ID; 0 of 34,810 rows were unmatched and 212 had no practice status. The 95% intervals are Wilson score intervals.
Base rates only. These are historical averages for everyone who carried the same tag. They don’t know about the specific injury, coach quotes or beat-reporter news, and that news should win when it exists.
Source: nflverse injury reports and game-day rosters (CC BY 4.0), regular seasons 2020–2026 (through Week 5). “Played” means on the active list for that game. Numbers are recomputed from the data on every site build. Full details: methodology.
More guides
What “Questionable” means in fantasy football · How often do Questionable players play? · Practice report guide: DNP vs Limited vs Full · Week 6 injury board