NFL Nation Fantasy: Caution with Goedert? How Bears will divvy up carries
Credit to Author: Eric Moody and NFL Nation| Date: Sat, 9 Dec 2023 09:21:38 EST
Want to make the fantasy football playoffs? Week 14 is your last chance to secure a spot or improve your standing, and we want to help.
Each Tuesday and Saturday during the season, ESPN fantasy analyst Eric Moody will ask our NFL Nation reporters the most pressing questions heading into the weekend and what to make of the fallout after games are played. Who is primed for a big performance, who is impacted by injuries and what roles might change? Here’s what our crew had to say about some of the biggest storylines heading into Week 14.
Need a boom or bust candidate for your critical fantasy football matchup? Here are some player outlooks, with help from AI-generated insights built with IBM watsonx.
With all the Chargers’ injuries, Keenan Allen has become one of the most reliable players in fantasy football, but he’s also shown some upside this season. His 33.0-point high-end projection this week is the highest of any player.
Need a tight end stream in Week 14? Look no further than Jonnu Smith, who has a matchup against the pass-funnel Buccaneers and has a 28% chance to boom this week, the highest at any position.
Tua Tagovailoa has delivered wins for the Dolphins, but hasn’t reached 20 fantasy points since October as Miami eases on the throttle in blowout wins. His 6% chance to boom this week is the lowest of any player.
The Jaguars will likely need to lean on Travis Etienne Jr. against the Browns on Sunday with Trevor Lawrence‘s status up in the air and Christian Kirk on IR. His 27% boom chance is the best of any RB in Week 14.
Gardner Minshew has delivered some highs and lows this season, with two boom weeks and two bust weeks in his past six games. Expect more of the same this week, as he faces the Bengals, who allow the seventh-most fantasy points to QBs, but he has a 28% bust chance, the highest of any QB in Week 14.
Goedert only missed three games following surgery on his fractured forearm. It’s probably unrealistic to think he’ll be 100 percent healthy for Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys and beyond, but he expects to function at a high level and should get right back into the offensive mix. Goedert was averaging 6 targets, 4 catches and 46 receiving yards per game before injury. Those seem like attainable numbers the rest of the way. — Tim McManus
Yes, it will remain divided. Hall (ankle) is less than 100 percent, but he’s still expected to get more touches than Cook. The coaches are trying to get Cook more involved because, quite frankly, he has been more effective than Hall, who has been held under 3.6 yards per carry in six of the past seven games. It’s a smaller sample size, but Cook is averaging 4.8 yards per carry (76 yards on 16 rushes) over the past four games. — Rich Cimini
The Bears’ trust in Johnson was evident in the 52 snaps (10 rushes, 35 yards; five catches, 40 yards) he played at Minnesota while Herbert logged just 15. The rookie running back excels in pass protection, which was critical against the Minnesota Vikings‘ aggressive blitz, but was also an opportunity for him to prove that he could handle an increased workload and is ready for an increased snap count. All three of Chicago’s running backs are healthy, and the team has often ridden the hot hand on a game-by-game basis. Johnson was that guy against the Vikings, but it very well could be Herbert or Foreman in a rematch with the Lions as the team judges early-game production. “A guy rips off a run or he’s doing a really good job, you start feeding that guy,” coach Matt Eberflus said. “That’s kind of how it works, but we certainly like having three guys that we can go to.” — Courtney Cronin
Rookie Parker Washington stepped in for Kirk and caught six passes for 61 yards and a TD — but he also ran the wrong route on the play that Trevor Lawrence got hurt. He will get more work in the slot, but the Jaguars utilize tight end Evan Engram a lot from the slot, too. In fact, he has actually run almost as many routes from the slot (228) as Kirk (241). I wouldn’t expect Washington to get the same volume of targets as Kirk, but he will be a bigger part of the offense. — Michael DiRocco
It’s still not 100 percent certain that Knox will play in the game against the Kansas City Chiefs, as coach Sean McDermott said on Friday that “if he continues to progress, there’s a good chance he’ll play.” He was a full participant throughout the week and is officially listed as questionable. If he does in fact play, as it is trending, Kincaid should still have a substantial role in the Bills’ passing game as he has proven how valuable and reliable he can be for this offense, but having Knox available could take away a smaller portion of his targets. — Alaina Getzenberg
Not much. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who was benched last season to clear a spot in the starting lineup for Pacheco, has averaged only 3.5 yards per carry, or almost a full yard less than Pacheco. Jerick McKinnon is likely to be available Sunday after missing two games with a groin injury, but he’s more of a pass-catcher than a runner. — Adam Teicher
Victory shines brighter with a blinged-out ESPN Championship Ring. Shop Now >>
The last time Chargers coach Brandon Staley said there would be completion in a position group, three defensive backs were benched. On Wednesday, he said there would be competition for carries. “We’re going to keep exploring, making adjustments, so that we can find that rhythm that I’ve been talking about,” Staley said. So, there should be some concern that Ekeler could see a decreased workload on Sunday, but offensive coordinator Kellen Moore said Thursday he isn’t expecting a “drastic change” with carries. — Kris Rhim