Quarterbacks

Start ‘Em

Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars

Now this is purely contingent on his injury status, but I believe Trevor Lawrence will play on Sunday against the Titans and the MRI was precautionary. Lawrence has been playing really well the last few weeks and faces a Titans defense with the sixth-highest consistency score at 8.31 and giving up over 20 points per game to opposing quarterbacks. The Titans are leaky on the back end and Lawrence should take advantage of this.

Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings

I thought about going to the other sideline for this pick, but with the division title at stake, Kirk Cousins is too good to pass up. Going up against the second most fruitful D-PAC rating against quarterbacks (10.14) and an offense that’s likely to score just as much, Cousins has a plethora of points coming his way. Then there is Cousins’ history against Detroit with 20 passing scores and just two interceptions in nine career matchups with the Lions as a Viking. Sign me up!

Sit ‘Em

Tom Brady, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

From the eye test, it looks like there is something wrong with Tom Brady and the Bucs lately. He is the 11th most consistent quarterback with a score of 7.36, but this season he’s seemed like age might finally be catching up to him. He’s facing arguably the best defense in the league this week with the 49ers, who are only giving up 12 points per game to opposing quarterbacks. I don’t think this is a good matchup for Brady this week.

Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys

If you were a wrestling fan 20 years ago, you’ll remember when Steve Austin would knock down an opponent in the corner and ‘stomp a mudhole’ in them. That’s what the Cowboys will do to the Texans in Week 14. The problem is, that will be in the first half before all of the starters get pulled. Dak Prescott should do some damage in those first two quarters, but that may not be enough for your fantasy squad. Only three starting quarterbacks have thrown more than one touchdown against Houston in 2022. It’ll be tough this week, but you should consider another quarterback this week.

Running Backs

Start ‘Em

Cam Akers, Los Angeles Rams

There isn’t much going well for the defending Super Bowl champions, but as of late Cam Akers seemed to have refound his form. Last week against the Seahawks, Akers saw 17 carries for 60 yards and two touchdowns, showing that the Rams are going to be pretty dedicated to the run with all the questions on the passing game. This week the Rams are taking on the Raiders who are giving up nearly 27 points per game with a consistency score of 12.05 which is the 4th highest in the league for running backs. 

D’Onta Foreman, Carolina Panthers

With six teams on bye in Week 14, many of us will be scraping the bottom of the barrel for fantasy starters. If you’ve held onto him, D’Onta Foreman is going to be a windfall for your running back woes. He’s run for more than 110 yards in four of his last six games. In a positive matchup with the Seahawks, he could easily make it five of seven. Seattle has a D-PAC rating of 12.67 – the third most profitable for running backs. His following two matchups (Pittsburgh and Detroit) could be the factor that gets you into your fantasy championship.

Sit ‘Em

Any Kansas City Chiefs Running Back

The usage of Isiah Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon has been decent over the last few weeks. Last week McKinnon had around 13 fantasy points and Pacheco had over 15. However, this Bronco defense has been stingy against the run, having a sixth-lowest consistency score of 8.25. Try to look for other options than the Chief’s running back room this week.

Leonard Fournette & Rachaad White, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

You read that correctly: I’m putting the kibosh on the Tampa Bay running game this week. No running back has accumulated more than 60 total yards against the 49ers this season except for Christian McCaffrey before he was traded to San Francisco. With Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White eating into each other’s touches, there’s little hope either of them can perform well enough for fantasy purposes.

Wide Receivers

Start ‘Em

Brandon Aiyuk, San Francisco 49ers

The injury to Jimmy Garappolo last week was very unfortunate, especially with this 49er team looking like one of the best teams in the league. However, I don’t think they miss much of a beat with Brock Purdy starting. They face a Buccaneer team this week that can be abused through the air, as they are giving up nearly 33 points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Aiyuk has also been one of the most consistent wide receivers in the league, with a tenth-best consistency score among wide receivers of 5.19. Good start for Aiyuk this week.

Nico Collins, Houston Texans – OUT

In the previous four weeks, Nico Collins is seeing 8.5 targets per game. His yardage numbers haven’t been huge, but he has scored twice in that same span. In a game against the Cowboys, passing opportunities should be very high as they attempt to keep up on the scoreboard. You can probably find Collins on your league’s waiver wire. A fun fact: he’s also caught five passes in both career games against NFC East opponents. With Brandin Cooks’ shaky future with Houston, Collins is the main pass catcher going forward.

Sit ‘Em

Marquise Brown, Arizona Cardinals

In his first game back from injured reserve, Marquise Brown had a pedestrian showing six receptions for 46 yards. This week he has a tough matchup against the New England Patriots who have the third-lowest consistency score in the league at 12.07. Not a good matchup for this sputtering Cardinal offense.

Mike Williams, Los Angeles Chargers

It feels a little unfair to pick a guy who’s trying to return from a high-ankle sprain. However, the lack of options this week may cause fantasy managers to slide Mike Williams in should he be active. Don’t do that. The Dolphins have allowed one wide receiver to score and one other to reach 70 yards since Week 7. Coming off of a bad injury and the fact that he’s caught 13 or 26 passes at home (50%), I’ll be leaving Williams on the bench this week.

Tight Ends

Start ‘Em

Hunter Henry, New England Patriots

After spending a ton of money on tight ends a few years ago, the Patriots’ usage of the position has been quite the puzzle. It seemed like they were going to be a big part of the offense, but it’s been pretty hit or miss. Jonnu Smith has been pretty nonexistent and Hunter Henry has had some crazy ups and downs. The Cardinals are a great matchup for the tight ends, giving up nearly 20 points per game to opposing tight ends. For that reason, I think Henry is going to see some good usage this week.

Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Chargers

Gerald Everett has had a handful of top tight-end performances in 2022. I think he’ll have another one in Week 14 against the Dolphins. In their last five contests, Miami has allowed four touchdowns and 261 receiving yards to the position. Fire up your Everett shares this week for a good fantasy boost.

Sit ‘Em

Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

It’s beginning to look like Cade Otton should be the starting tight end in Tampa Bay with or without Cameron Brate being hurt. Otton looks to have some good chemistry with Tom Brady and has a nose for the end zone. However, against the 49ers, this is not the week to fully start trusting his fantasy production. The 49ers give up just over 8 points per game to tight ends and have the league’s lowest consistency score of 2.49. Next week might look better, but don’t start Otton this week.

Noah Fant, Seattle Seahawks

Finishing as the TE2 in the majority of fantasy leagues, Noah Fant will be on a lot of radars going into Week 14. It’s a shame he’ll be meeting the fifth least desirable defense for tight ends based on our D-PAC rating system. Carolina had held opposing tight ends to just 36.3 receiving yards per game and no scores since Week 8. Let your league mates chase Fant this week while you start a better option.

Don’t forget to hit us up on Twitter with any of your lineup questions. You can find Benjamin @FFRabbitDad and Brendan @OBryanBren. If you have a question, we will give you some guidance. After all, we want you to win!

---

Trending Now

• Free NFL Picks

• 2023 Dynasty Rookies

• Weekly Rankings

• Latest Podcast Episode

• Consistency Score

• D-PAC