Fantasy Fallout: Week 13

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And now for today’s feature from the Daily Dose…

By :: Mike Johnson (Mjohnson86) and Tony Kneepkens (Tonytk44)

Welcome to the Monday edition of the Daily Dose newsletter, our “Fantasy Fallout” day. In this article, you will get a quick rundown of the relevant things we learned from the week’s games from Thursday through Sunday. 

We won’t talk about every single player and we usually won’t spend time on studs who go nuts (no one needs to be told to start Jonathan Taylor right now!), but rather, the idea is to update you on usage trends, injuries, and other relevant things to help your decisions with your teams for the coming week and beyond.

PACKERS @ LIONS

• Jordan Love threw 70% of his pass attempts, and all four of his TD passes, to his top WR trio of Dontayvion Wicks (6-94-2), Christian Watson (4-80-1), and Romeo Doubs (4-20-1) to kick off the Thanksgiving slate. WRs Matthew Golden, Jayden Reed, and Savion Williams all missed this one with injuries and will complicate matters if/when everyone is active.

• The major Lions news was that Amon-Ra St. Brown left with an ankle injury he suffered after being rolled up on from behind by multiple players on a running play. Early reports are a “low” ankle sprain, which would seem like a best-case, but managers should still prepare for the worst and assume he won’t be available to play this week on Thursday night at home against the Cowboys.

• With ARSB missing nearly the entire game, Jameson Williams saw 10 targets and amassed a huge 7-144-1 fantasy line. He would be a must-start in a great matchup against a generous Dallas pass defense on TNF even with ARSB playing, and would be in store for added volume if St. Brown couldn’t suit up.

CHIEFS @ COWBOYS

• The Dallas offense continues to hum along; start their key players with confidence in any matchup down the stretch of the fantasy season.

• Isiah Pacheco returned to the KC backfield after a lengthy absence to handle five touches for 33 yards. Kareem Hunt saw 15 touches for 80 yards. A backfield to monitor but ideally as bench stashes, for now.

BENGALS @ RAVENS

• Joe Burrow returned to and rejuvenated the Bengals lineup on Thursday night. The stats weren’t his best (261-2) but he peppered Ja’Marr Chase with targets and easily outdueled Lamar Jackson and the division-rival Ravens.

• Samaje Perine made a less-heralded return to the Cincy lineup, but he saw a season-best 14 carries and added a couple of catches, racking up 54 total yards. Chase Brown saw plenty of work himself (22 touches, 113 yards) but Perine continues to play a significant role, when healthy.

• Lamar’s real-life and fantasy struggles continued on Thanksgiving night in what seemed like a juicy matchup. Jackson has now failed to complete 60% of his passes in four straight games and has an awful 768-1-3 passing line over that stretch. To make matters worse, he hasn’t topped 50 rushing yards or scored on the ground since Week 1. I’m probably still holding and starting Lamar if I’ve got him, but I’d consider looking at adding another option from waivers, too, which seems like a crazy thing to say about one of fantasy’s usually reliable stars.

• Keaton Mitchell saw five RB opportunities and had 31 total yards and a rushing TD. He’s a strong bench stash behind fantasy legend Derrick Henry down the stretch of the fantasy season.

BEARS @ EAGLES

• The Bears rode their talented RB duo to a whopping 40 carries for 255 yards and a pair of TDs against the Eagles on black Friday in a game in which Caleb Williams completed less than half of his passes for an underwhelming 154-1-1 passing line. 

• Six Bears players saw between three and six targets, and none had more than four catches or more than 36 receiving yards.

• A.J. Brown (10-132-2) was the only real fantasy difference-maker for the Eagles in this one, but all key Eagles remain strong weekly starting options as they head to play the Chargers on Monday Night Football next.

SAINTS @ DOLPHINS

• Saints rookie QB Tyler Shough gave us the full experience for a young quarterback, looking completely lost for much of the game but leading a valiant comeback that would ultimately come up short. Shough probably isn’t someone you’ll be wanting to start in fantasy but he seemed to find a bit of a rhythm and showed he can at least support some pass catchers.

• WR Chris Olave and TE Juwan Johnson had sizable roles, as expected, but the big news here was the breakout performance of WR Devaughn Vele, who the team traded for just before the season. Vele has had a full-time role for three straight games since the trade of Rashid Shaheed, and his budding chemistry with Shough should not be ignored.

• Rookie RB Devin Neal handled 82% of the team’s RB snaps and had a modest fantasy output, but the usage is encouraging and he should be rostered everywhere.

• The only notable thing from the Miami side was the return of TE Darren Waller from injured reserve. Waller ran a route on 70% of the team’s dropbacks and gives the team another viable threat.

TEXANS @ COLTS

• A huge win for the Texans featured a big game for WR Nico Collins and another week of RB Woody Marks leading the backfield. Eventually the usage should result in a decent fantasy score for Marks, but we are running out of time.

• Texans rookie WR Jayden Higgins is clearly the team’s WR2, as his role stuck and he made some big catches in this game. He should flash down the stretch.

• Nothing noteworthy in terms of usage or injuries for the Colts, their offense just struggled to sustain drives against the elite Texans defense.

FALCONS @ JETS

• Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts Sr. did the heavy lifting for the Falcons as they lost another heartbreaking close one to a downtrodden opponent. Atlanta has a tough matchup with the Seahawks next week and hopes to have star WR Drake London back for that one.

• Tyrod Taylor showcased his dual-threat ability and established a connection with talented young WR Adonai Mitchell, who went for over 100 receiving yards and scored a touchdown. 

• Mitchell and John Metchie combined for a 65% target share and both are in play next week against the Dolphins.

49ERS @ BROWNS

• Ugly weather and conservative offense led to a very low-scoring and low-play-volume game. The 49ers offense revolved mostly around Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, and Jauan Jennings – all of which had usable weeks for fantasy purposes. 

• Ricky Pearsall led the 49ers WRs in snaps and routes. San Francisco has a bye in Week 14, but Pearsall could be in for a big game at some point down the stretch assuming his role holds up in higher-scoring game environments.

• Quinshon Judkins handled 26 touches despite the trailing game script as Dylan Sampson suffered a second-half leg injury. This is the first time in several weeks we have seen Cleveland give Judkins a big workload when playing from behind, which is huge for his fantasy prospects down the stretch.

• Browns TE Harold Fannin Jr. caught a touchdown and led the team in targets. Fannin has taken over the top tight-end spot ahead of David Njoku and has outstanding matchups against the Titans and Bears on deck.

  RAMS @ PANTHERS

• Matthew Stafford turned the ball over three times after doing so only twice in the previous 11 games. Stafford continued to display his end-zone connection with WR Davante Adams, who scored twice in the first half.

• Blake Corum continued to take a sizable portion of the backfield work as the Rams running game was very successful. Corum and Kyren Williams combined for 153 rushing yards on 20 carries. Corum should be rostered everywhere and is an instant RB1 if Kyren ever misses time.

• Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard led the backfield in snaps for the first time since Week 8 and touched the ball 19 times after a nice touchdown reception on the game’s opening drive. Rico Dowdle was still involved and handled 20 touches of his own, but it is clear this backfield is in a timeshare.

• Bryce Young attempted only 20 passes, which hurt the outlook for the receivers, but Jalen Coker and Tetairoa McMillan saved their days with touchdown receptions. Carolina has a Week 14 bye before finishing the season with three divisional games in the last four weeks.

JAGUARS @ TITANS

• Jacksonville QB Trevor Lawrence started this game hot but slowed down in a hurry as the Jaguars controlled this one start to finish and leaned heavily on their running game in the second half.

• Brian Thomas Jr. returned to the field for the Jaguars after a three-game absence with an ankle injury. Jakobi Meyers led the receivers in snaps, routes, targets, receptions, and yards. Parker Washington left with an injury and TE Brenton Strange had a strong game, so all of a sudden we have some interesting options for the Jaguars passing game for next week’s showdown with the Colts.

• We can’t be playing Titans unless the matchup is awesome, and even then it feels dicey for a struggling offense that rotates a lot of players. Their next three games are against the Browns, 49ers, and Chiefs so we don’t have to think about it for a while.

CARDINALS @ BUCS

• Cardinals WR Marvin Harrison Jr. returned from his appendectomy and was having a solid game before leaving due to a heel injury in the second half. Something to monitor and if he were to miss more time it would instantly vault Michael Wilson into elite WR status on a weekly basis again.

• Trey McBride’s assault on the tight-end position continued this week.

• Bucky Irving returned to the field for Tampa Bay after a two-month absence and immediately handled 19 touches. He should be in starting lineups everywhere for next week’s game against the Saints.

• Chris Godwin Jr. had his best game of the season and looked closer to his old self as he made multiple big plays. Emeka Egbuka still led the team in targets, but both WRs are now on the fantasy radar.

VIKINGS @ SEAHAWKS

• The Seahawks’ defense completely overwhelmed Max Brosmer and turned in one of the top D/ST performances of the season by shutting out the VIkings and adding four sacks and five takeaways, including a pick-six.

• Seattle didn’t actually do too much with its opportunities, turning repeated short fields into field goals, but the game was in hand early. Not much else to take away from this lopsided performance from either team. The Vikings will hope to get J.J. McCarthy back, soon.

BILLS @ STEELERS

• The Bills trailed by seven late into the first half, but they scored 26 straight to finish the game. They fed RBs James Cook and Ray Davis 41 carries for 206 yards on the day.

• No Bills WR or TE had more than four targets, three catches, or 28 receiving yards. This remains one of the worst pass-catching groups in the league, but TE Dalton Kincaid could return soon from his hamstring injury, which would help.

• Aaron Rodgers played through significant injury and added some new cuts and bruises along the way in an ugly performance for the entire Pittsburgh offense. Jaylen Warren was their lone bright spot, seeing 14 of the team’s 24 RB opportunities for 44 yards and a TD.

RAIDERS @ CHARGERS

• Kimani Vidal saw 26 touches for 137 yards and a TD in the Chargers’ easy divisional victory, making another start in rookie Omarion Hampton’s injury absence. Hampton is expected back in the lineup in the next two weeks, after having his 21-day practice window opened to return from IR last week.

• Justin Herbert didn’t have too much to do, but he completed three-quarters of his passes and tossed TDs to Ladd McConkey (4-39-1) and Quentin Johnston (3-23-1).

• Not that we need a reminder to start them, but Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty combined for 124 scrimmage yards (and two Bowers TDs) in a game in which the Raiders had just 156 total yards as an offense.

BRONCOS @ COMMANDERS

• As expected, RJ Harvey maintained control of the Denver backfield coming out of their bye week. He handled a majority of RB carries, including a pair of goal-line scores, and added some receiving work. Jaleel McLaughlin is the primary backup runner, while Tyler Badie remains involved in the receiving game.

• Denver rookie WR Pat Bryant (3-42) saw seven targets this week after having a career-best game heading into the team’s bye week. It’s an interesting development, but he’ll be competing with Troy Franklin and multiple TEs for targets behind top wideout Courtland Sutton.

• WR Terry McLaurin returned from a lengthy absence with a quad injury to score an overtime TD and feature in the Commanders’ passing game along with veteran TE Zach Ertz; each seeing double-digit targets. Both players’ fantasy outlook will brighten if/when star QB Jayden Daniels, out since Week 9 with a dislocated elbow, returns to the lineup.