“Playoffs? Don’t talk about playoffs?! You kidding me?” Thank you, Jim Mora, but we have to talk about the playoffs today. If they haven’t started in your league yet, I’m willing to bet this is the last week of your regular season. It’s go big or go home. If you already clinched a spot in your playoffs, congrats. Take the week to stash some players who could help you down the line. Perhaps players from these teams could help, sorted by the easiest remaining schedules for each position.
- QB: Miami, San Francisco, Dallas
- RB: Miami, Denver, Jacksonville
- WR: Miami, New York Jets, New Orleans
- TE: Houston, New York Giants, Denver
- K: Miami, New York Jets, Denver
- D/ST: Seattle, Atlanta, Denver
Suddenly, those Dolphins are looking pretty good. Have any more fantasy questions? Hit me up on Twitter @ZachCohenFB and make sure to follow @TDNFantasy for more fantasy advice!
QUARTERBACKS
Start: Taysom Hill at NYJ
Look, I’ve pounded the table for Hill since he was named the Saints' starter, so I won’t spend much more time on why Hill is a QB1. Besides, I basically made that case on Monday in my weekly waiver column: “Hill was my Start of the Week for a reason. It doesn’t matter how ineffective he is as a passer. Hill gets the job done on the ground, and even if that doesn’t translate to wins, it should translate for your fantasy team. Honestly, I was pretty shocked to see he was available in 65% of leagues, per FantasyPros. He is a must-add in all formats. Of course, there’s still the possibility Hill is benched for Ian Book or Trevor Siemian, though I doubt either of them would do much for the Saints’ offense anyway. As long as Hill is a starter, he is a must-start in fantasy. He faces the Jets this week. Enough said.”
Other Players to Consider: Cam Newton vs. ATL, Joe Burrow vs. SF
Sit: Derek Carr at KC
Carr has been wildly inconsistent since the Raiders’ bye in Week 8. While he’s second in the league in passing yards, that doesn’t always translate to fantasy points. It doesn’t help that Carr's receiving corps isn’t great beyond Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller (when healthy). This week, Carr faces a Chiefs defense that's come into their own in the last month or so. Kansas City held Dak Prescott to 2.6 points just two weeks ago, though they did allow Carr to score 18.2 points in Week 10. So the Chiefs' defense has been trending up, and Carr and the Raiders offense has not been trending up. There’s too much uncertainty to confidently start Carr this week.
Other Players to Consider: Kirk Cousins vs. PIT, Zach Wilson vs. NO
RUNNING BACKS
Start: Javonte Williams vs. DET
Finally! The prodigal son has arrived. Williams had immense hype entering the season, but alas, he was held prisoner to Melvin Gordon’s shadow. Well, Williams had his coming-out party with Gordon sidelined against Kansas City. The veteran reportedly returned to practice this week, though I find it hard to see him having too big of a role, if any, against Detroit. Speaking of the Lions, they’ve allowed the third-most fantasy points for running backs this season. Even if Gordon is active, Williams should still put up double-digit points. If Gordon is out? Williams becomes an RB1 and the party continues.
Other Players to Consider: James Conner vs. LAR, Ameer Abdullah vs. ATL, Sony Michel at ARI (if Darrell Henderson sits)
Sit: James Robinson at TEN
Week 13 was a weird week for Robinson. He saw limited snaps due to an injury, yet a fumble seemingly caused him to be benched. Robinson voiced his frustrations following the game, and even Urban Meyer admitted Robinson should be involved more. So why is he my Sit of the Week? After all, he’s averaging 14.1 points per game. For as good as Robinson can be, I just think there’s too much room for him to bust this week. Setting his weird situation aside, the Titans are sixth in FPA (Fantasy Points Allowed) to running backs. Since Week 5, Tennessee has also allowed just one running back to reach 60+ rushing yards and four running backs to score altogether. I’m not a fan of Robinson’s risk this week, especially in such a dysfunctional Jacksonville offense.
Other Players to Consider: Jets RBs, Chuba Hubbard vs. ATL
WIDE RECEIVERS
Start: Elijah Moore vs. NO
[Editor's Note: Moore has since been placed on IR]
Ladies and gentlemen, your overall WR3 since Week 7! Moore also has the seventh-most targets among wideouts since Week 7. There’s no getting around it: Moore is a must-start in all formats. Between Zach Wilson, Josh Johnson, Mike White, and Joe Flacco, Moore has been by far the most reliable wide receiver on the Jets. His matchup against the Saints shouldn’t negatively impact his production, either. New Orleans is 27th in FPA to wide receivers. Start Moore with confidence from here on out. (Moore is day-to-day with a quad injury so keep an eye on that).
Other Players to Consider: Darnell Mooney at GB, K.J. Osborn vs. PIT, Russell Gage at CAR
Sit: Amari Cooper at WSH
There are a few reasons why I’m not confident in starting Cooper. The first is his inconsistency. One look at his stat sheet and you’ll see the frustration his fantasy managers have had with him. The second reason is Michael Gallup. CeeDee Lamb is unquestionably the best receiver on the roster, but Gallup’s return from injury has diminished Cooper’s target share even more. Gallup saw six more targets than Cooper in Week 11 and has played at least 94% of Dallas’ snaps in each of the last two weeks. Cooper has done that once all season. The final reason I’m fading Cooper is the matchup against Washington. This is a team that held Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to low-end WR2 numbers just a couple of weeks ago. I know Cooper and Lamb are both banged up, but if any Cowboys wide receivers are to break the bank this week, I’d bet on Lamb and Gallup. You can’t trust Cooper right now.
Other Players to Consider: Courtland Sutton vs. DET, Brandin Cooks vs. SEA, Rashod Bateman at CLE
TIGHT ENDS
Start: Pat Freiermuth at MIN
Tight ends are a bloodbath, aren’t they? Not even the great Travis Kelce could muster up a startable game in Week 13. That’s why it doesn’t matter much to me that Minnesota is fourth in FPA to tight ends. Freiermuth has been too productive since Week 6. See for yourself how he’s been in that span:
- Averaging 68% of snaps
- Averaging the second-most targets on the team
- 5/7 games with double-digit points
- TE4 in total points
Unless you have Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews, or George Kittle, Freiermuth is a must-start for the rest of the season.
Other Players to Consider: Zach Ertz vs. LAR, Ricky Seals-Jones vs. DAL
Sit: Noah Fant vs. Detroit
It’s nice that Fant is the TE13 since Week 6 despite missing a game in that time. But he’s been way too inconsistent. He has only five games with 10+ points, four of which came in the first six weeks of the season. Since then, Fant has topped nine points once. Denver’s woeful passing attack doesn’t help, either. Perhaps that’s one reason why he’s seen just four targets in three of his last four games. Fant gets a surprisingly tough matchup against Detroit this week, as the Lions are 10th in FPA to tight ends. The Broncos have too many mouths to feed in what *should* be a run-centric gameplan. Leave Fant out of your lineups.
Other Players to Consider: Tyler Higbee at ARI, Jared Cook at NYG
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