His elite days are over but Drew Brees
still has bullets left in the chamber. Fire him up as high-end
QB1.
Grab a Helmet
Drew
Brees vs NYJ: It’s clear that the days of Brees leading
a high flying circus are over. He’s likely going to finish with
the fewest yards, completions and touchdowns in a long while. But
while the elite QB1 days might have come to an end, he still heads
a potent offensive attack, and gets a Jets pass defense that is
languishing near the bottom of the league. Gang Green has surrendered
25 passing touchdowns this season, and even made Trevor Siemian
look respectable last week. The Saints passing game has hardly had
a better matchup all season, so fire Drew up as a top end QB1.
Matthew
Stafford vs CHI (SAT): Stafford hasn’t been a spectacular
fantasy quarterback this year, but gosh has he been consistent.
He’s yet to have a truly terrible week, finishing with at least
10+ fantasy points in all games this season, despite playing banged
up and with minimal threats in the backfield. Stafford’s numbers
are buoyed by the 4th most pass attempts in the league, and a defense
that’s proved to be quite leaky, especially early in games. The
Lions host a Bears team that’s played respectable defense for a
large portion of the year, but are hardly world beaters. Stafford
is in his home dome and has plenty of big play options to throw
to. He was solid several weeks ago (299 yards, 2 touchdowns) in
Chicago, and should have no problem matching those numbers this
week. While not exciting, Stafford projects as a solid QB1.
Dak
Prescott @ OAK: It took a while, but the Dallas offense
finally looked in sync last week against the hapless Giants. Prescott
protected the ball, his receivers made big plays after the catch,
and Dallas rolled to a victory they had to have. Prescott and
the Cowboys welcome the Raiders, and their sieve like defense.
Oakland is swimming at the bottom half of the defensive rankings
and have somehow only picked off two passes all year, while giving
up 20 touchdowns. If Prescott can continue to play within his
means, and let his playmakers make plays, he offers enough upside
to be a solid option in Week 15.
Grab a Headset
Andy
Dalton @ MIN: Andy Dalton is a likeable fellow, so
I do generally feel bad for him this week. After a horrific performance
in all phases last week at home against the Bears, the Bengals
get to hit the road to take on what should be a very inspired
Viking defense. Dalton has a banged up backfield, only one reliable
target, and is the captain of a sinking 5-8 ship. Minnesota has
given up the 2nd fewest passing touchdowns (13) and can essentially
win the NFC North with a victory. Dalton has been a starting option
in plus match-ups only, and this certainly DOESN’T qualify as
one!
Alex
Smith vs LAC (SAT): I’ve flip-flopped on Smith several
times already this back half of the year, and while a majority
of the struggles of KC can’t be laid on Smith’s lap, he also hasn’t
been the type of quarterback to overcome them either. Smith is
at his fantasy best when he can line up and hit a few deep balls
to his receivers. It happened a ton against the Jets two weeks
ago, and he barely missed on a few last week. Unfortunately the
Chargers are only yielding 10.4 yards per completion, good for
2nd best in the NFL. Big plays are going to be a premium for Smith,
and he should be under plenty of duress with the Chargers pass
rush chasing him around. Smith is a low-ceiling play for fantasy’s
crucial playoff week.
DeShone
Kizer vs BAL: Another guy I feel sorry for this week
is DeShone Kizer. Coming off a heartbreaking loss in possibly
his best game as a pro, Kizer gets a proud Baltimore defense that
gave up 39 points and almost 600 yards of total offense against
the Steelers. Baltimore will be out for blood, and need this win
to keep their slim playoff hopes alive. Kizer leads the NFL in
turnovers and while he’s typically got a high floor because
of the points he earns with his legs, the only running he’ll
be doing this week is for his life.
