football-player football-score football-helmet football-ball Accuracy Arm-Strength Balance Ball-Security Ball-Skills Big-Play-Ability Block-Deconstruction Competitive-Toughness Core-Functional-Strength Decision-Making Discipline Durability Effort-Motor Elusivness Explosiveness Football-IQ Footwork Functional-Athleticism Hand-Counters Hand-Power Hand-Technique Hands Lateral-Mobility Leadership Length Mechanics Mobility Pass-Coverage-Ability Pass-Protection Pass-Sets Passing-Down-Skills Pocket-Manipulation Poise Power-at-POA Progressions RAC-Ability Range Release-Package Release Route-Running Run-Defending Separation Special-Teams-Ability-1 Versatility Vision Zone-Coverage-Skills Anchor-Ability Contact-Balance Man-Coverage-Skills Tackling Lifted Logic Web Design in Kansas City clock location phone email play chevron-down chevron-left chevron-right chevron-up facebook tiktok checkbox checkbox-checked radio radio-selected instagram google plus pinterest twitter youtube send linkedin search arrow-circle bell left-arrow right-arrow tdn-mark filled-play-circle yellow-arrow-circle dark-arrow-circle star cloudy snowy rainy sunny plus minus triangle-down link close drag minus-circle plus-circle pencil premium trash lock simple-trash simple-pencil eye cart
NFL Draft

Fantasy Football Week 14 Start/Sit Advice

  • The Draft Network
  • December 9, 2020
  • Share

Welcome to Week 14’s start/sit column, playoff edition. Each week throughout the regular season, I will go over a few players at each major position and tell you whether you should make room in your lineup for them or pull them out of a starting spot. Players labeled “starts” are non-obvious options that either have a good matchup or are trending in the right direction, ranking higher for me than consensus this week. Players labeled “sits” are ones I have concerns about leading into the week but are in a significant amount starting lineups. This article is most helpful for those in full- or half-point PPR leagues. 

As always, you should make the final call on all of your lineup decisions. This column is intended to be a piece of your research puzzle and/or a resource to highlight some specific names that may have been overlooked in my weekly rankings. Remember, there are no more bye weeks. 

Without further ado, here is Start/Sit for Week 14:

QUARTERBACK

START: Ryan Tannehill (QB - TEN)

Tannehill is a must-start this week and for the rest of the season given his schedule to finish off 2020. This week he gets to face off against the Jaguars, a team allowing the third-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season. Quarterbacks are averaging nearly 23 points per game against Jacksonville and Tannehill is averaging 23.52 points per game over the last three weeks—that ranks as the QB5 overall. The Jaguars don’t have anyone who can cover Corey Davis and A.J. Brown consistently, so even though this’ll likely be a Derrick Henry bounce-back game, I expect Tennessee's passing game to be plenty productive as well.

START: Taysom Hill (QB - NO)

Since taking over as the Saints’ starter in Week 11 due to Drew Brees’ injury, Hill ranks as the QB6 in fantasy with an average of 22.11 points per game. He’ll face his most difficult test yet against the Eagles on the road, but it’s certainly not a matchup to run away from—speaking of running, Hill versus Jalen Hurts could feature a ton of rushing yards from the quarterback position. The Eagles have struggled to contain rushing quarterbacks this season, allowing the second-most rushing yards per game to the position. Hill ranks in the bottom portion of QB1 territory for me this week, but I wouldn’t be afraid to start him over any waiver wire options that might be available.

SIT: Cam Newton (QB - NE)

Newton’s opening act of New England’s two-week L.A. trip was quite fruitful for fantasy managers. He finished with 23.56 fantasy points—aided heavily by his pair of rushing touchdowns—finishing as a top-10 quarterback for the week. However, he’s got a matchup with the far superior Los Angeles team on tap. No team in the NFL allows fewer fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks than the Rams (15.1 per game). In a division with a pair of quarterbacks that can run (Kyler Murray, Russell Wilson), they’ve allowed an average of only 15.1 rushing yards per game and three total rushing touchdowns to quarterbacks this season. We already know Newton can’t be a fantasy QB1 with his arm. So unless he gets a pair of touchdowns on the ground again, which seems unlikely in this matchup, it’s hard to imagine him finishing among the top-12 quarterbacks in Week 14.

RUNNING BACK

START: Jonathan Taylor (RB - IND)

So I’m all the way back in on Taylor… sorry for everyone that asked me about Taylor versus Nyheim Hines last week and I recommended Hines. However, while the pass-catching back still has plenty of value as a low-end RB2 this week, Taylor is the clear preferred option for fantasy managers in the Colts’ backfield. He had 22.5 fantasy points in Week 13, but more importantly, he got 50% of the total running back touches for Indianapolis. That’s now a multi-week positive trend that makes me feel confident enough to push him into low-end RB1 territory in a great matchup against the Raiders. Las Vegas is allowing the fourth-most fantasy points to running backs this season and just got torched by *checks notes* Ty Johnson. Yeah, get Taylor (and Hines) into your lineups.

START: Wayne Gallman (RB - NYG)

Gallman, a pending free agent, is making himself a lot of money since taking over as the lead back for the Giants following Saquon Barkley’s season-ending injury and the subsequent injury to Devonta Freeman. Since Week 7, Gallman ranks as the RB8 (minimum three games played) in average fantasy points per game (15.8). He has six touchdowns in his last six games, and while he didn’t score last week, he rushed for 135 yards on 16 carries against the Seahawks. Gallman is running hard, effectively, and getting the majority of the goal-line work. That’s a great combination. Arizona is an above-average defense against fantasy running backs, but the Seahawks and Rams have had plenty of success running against them recently. I’m not concerned at all about the matchup, ranking Gallman as a mid-level RB2 for Week 14.

SIT: Miles Sanders (RB - PHI)

Sanders does not crack my top 30 running backs this week after a second listless performance in a row in Week 13. He’s been a complete non-factor in the receiving game since returning from injury (7/32/0 in four games combined) and has only 18 touches over the last two weeks. Maybe he can bounce back with a quarterback change, but it won’t be this week against a Saints defense that is by far the worst matchup for fantasy running backs this season—New Orleans is allowing 14.9 fantasy points per game to all running backs combined this season. I can’t see Sanders being starter-worthy with so much on the line for fantasy managers this week. 

WIDE RECEIVER

START: Corey Davis (WR - TEN)

Davis was started in fewer than 25% of leagues last week… what more do you want to see from him? I seriously don’t understand the aversion to picking up (available in 45% of leagues) and starting Davis. He’s had one bad game all season and ranks as the WR18 FOR THE SEASON with an average of 15.7 fantasy points per game. He has three 110-plus yard outings in his last six games, is averaging 16.7 fantasy points per game in that stretch, and faces a Jaguars team giving up the seventh-most points to wide receivers this season. Davis is a must-start, top-20 wide receiver this week.

START: Marvin Jones Jr. (WR - DET)

As long as Kenny Golladay remains sidelined, Jones is going to be an intriguing WR3/flex option. Since Week 7, Jones’ 16.3 fantasy points per game ranks as the WR19 (minimum three games played). He’s averaging 10 targets per game over the last four weeks and continues to produce. The Packers are an above-average team against fantasy wide receivers, but aren’t a matchup to spend too much time worrying about. Matthew Stafford and the Lions are going to need to throw a lot to keep up with an elite Packers offense, which means Jones should continue to see plenty of volume as Detroit’s No. 1 wide receiver. 

SIT: DeVante Parker (WR - MIA)

I simply don’t trust Parker’s production with Tua Tagovailoa at quarterback. Maybe that changes next season with an offseason to work together, but there’s a marked drop off in Parker’s output with Tagovailoa compared to when Ryan Fitzpatrick is throwing him the ball. Parker is averaging a hair under 10.1 fantasy points and 6.6 targets per game in Tagovailoa’s five starts. However, Parker has fewer than eight fantasy points in three of those five games. The Chiefs are a top-five team in the NFL when it comes to limiting the production of fantasy wide receivers. Put those two things together, and I have Parker ranked outside of my top 40 wide receivers this week.

TIGHT END

START: Robert Tonyan (TE - GB)

After touchdowns in three straight games, I suppose it’s time to be back in on Tonyan as a TE1. After a little bit of a post-bye lull, Tonyan is finding his groove again, averaging five targets and 15.7 fantasy points per game over the last three weeks. The Lions have been pretty stout all season against the position, but I’m going to go against the grain here. I don’t trust Detroit’s secondary overall and Aaron Rodgers has rekindled his connection with Tonyan despite the return of Allen Lazard. With Carolina and Tennessee on tap after this week, Tonyan will likely stay among the top-12 tight ends for the duration of the fantasy playoffs. 

SIT: Zach Ertz (TE - PHI)

You really should be fading all Eagles right now. Dallas Goedert is still a probable starter in 12-team leagues, but he might be the only Eagle worth playing in Week 14. Ertz made his return from injury last week and caught two of his four targets for 31 yards. He hasn’t been a major factor in Philadelphia’s offense at any point this season, and the potential upheaval at quarterback and a matchup with the Saints’ defense doesn’t portend a turnaround. Ertz doesn’t need to be started or rostered right now.

Filed In

Related Articles

Written By

The Draft Network