Dynasty Insider
Running Backs
JK Dobbins/BAL: Despite his obvious talent, Dobbins is only averaging 7 carries and 8.9 touches per game. Because of this, you might be able to steal him away from a frustrated fantasy owner.
Dobbins will almost certainly be their main RB next year, so go get him now.
UPDATE 12/20: As you've probably noticed lately, he finally has a clearly defined role and veteran RB Mark Ingram is a non-factor.
Cam Akers/LAR: Unfortunately, it has been a struggle for him this season and he has been mired in a RBBC.
However, let's keep in mind Akers was drafted to be a 3-down RB and that should happen next season. He badly needs a full off-season of work (OTAs, training camp, pre-season).
UPDATE 12/13: Well, don't say I didn't warn you. He finally had his breakout game against the Patriots, so it's going to be tough to trade for him now. But if the price is reasonable, go get him.
Zack Moss/BUF: He dealt with a lingering toe injury for several weeks, so Moss got off to a slow start, but at least he's evened himself up with 2nd-year RB Devin Singletary.
Moss is a better fit for their running game than Singletary, so look for him to take over the starting job next year.
Rashaad Penny/SEA: ADDED 12/13: He has been mostly an underachiever and is coming off a multi-ligament knee injury, but could factor in a big way next season. And you might recall he started to look really good before his injury last season.
UPDATED 12/20: He was activated from reserve/PUP, so he'll get some playing time the rest of the way.
Damien Harris/NE: ADDED 12/20: He'll have a shot to be their primary early-down back next year.
LaMical Perine/NYJ: He's on IR and wasn't used enough before he got hurt, but with better coaching next season, the team will be able to take advantage of Perine's versatility. UPDATE 12/20: He’s starting to practice and could be activated in Week 16.
Benny Snell/PIT: If James Conner isn't re-signed, Snell would likely be the next man up.
A.J. Dillon/GB: His rookie season has been a washout, but Dillon could factor heavily next season and beyond if the team does not re-sign RBs Aaron Jones or Jamaal Williams.
Wide Receivers
Michael Pittman/IND: He got off to a very slow start and then had leg surgery, which helped to curtail the first half of his rookie season. However, since returning from his surgery, Pittman has shown that he's going to be a factor as their "X" WR for now and the future. Because his numbers have been up and down in the 2nd half, you might be able to steal him away for a decent price.
Gabriel Davis/BUF: The team loves him and while he hasn't put up big numbers, Davis has already shown he can handle a variety of roles (X, Z) in their passing game. He has a good chance to be their starting "X" WR next season over veteran John Brown.
Michael Gallup/DAL: ADDED 12/13: Don't blame him for the low numbers. He's really talented and will be really good next season with a healthy Dak Prescott.
Bryan Edwards/LVR: He was dealing with a high ankle sprain for several weeks, so he has been trying to make up for lost time. Edwards was drafted to be their "X" WR and that will happen beginning next year. You might as well go get him now when he should be cheap to acquire.
Jalen Reagor/PHI: It has been a struggle for him as Reagor has battled 2 different injuries which have contributed to a disappointing season. And it doesn't help that his QB has been struggling mightily. He'll benefit from better coaching and a lot more work with Carson Wentz starting in next year's OTAs. Reagor will eventually be one of the better "Z" WRs, but it's going to take some time.
Mecole Hardman/KC: ADDED 12/13: He should take over as the starter for veteran WR Sammy Watkins, whose contract will expire in March. I want any starting WR for the Chiefs who runs well in my fantasy lineups and Hardman does just that.
Darnell Mooney/CHI: ADDED 12/13: He's already their starting "Z" WR and was impressive beginning during the first week of training camp. He's a good QB and OL away from being an every-week fantasy starter in the future.
Laviska Shenault/JAX: ADDED 12/20: The current staff has yet to figure out how to use him, but the rookie should be a bigger factor next year and beyond under a new staff.
Denzel Mims/NYJ: He missed just about all of training camp injuries to both hamstrings, but Mims has shown to be a big-play WR (16.7 yards per catch).
Henry Ruggs/LVR: He has been surprisingly quiet this season and he has dealt with some minor injuries along the way. However, Ruggs will be a big factor in the future as the team figures out a better way to get the ball in his hands.
Darius Slayton/NYG: He has only had a small handful of good games this season, but that's because the timing has been off between him and QB Daniel Jones. They'll get that fixed in the next off-season.
K.J. Hamler/DEN: As one of the top speed threats for this year's NFL Draft, Hamler is incredibly explosive. He just has to show that he can stay healthy and he'll also benefit from a full off-season of work.
Andy Isabella/ARI: He'll take over their slot position as early as next season and he's a vertical threat from that area.
Josh Reynolds/LAR: He likely will be starting for another team next season and Reynolds has intriguing size and speed for the position.
Quintez Cephus/DET: He could start as early as next season if the team does not re-sign veteran WR Marvin Jones. Cephus was one of the smartest rookie WRs for this year's NFL Draft.
Tre'Quan Smith, Marquez Callaway/NO: One of them will start eventually for veteran WR Emmanuel Sanders.
Tight Ends
Dallas Goedert/PHI: The Eagles drafted him to eventually replace veteran TE Zach Ertz and that should happen next season. Goedert's talent is obvious and he could easily be a top-5 to top-7 TE if the coaches do a better job of getting him the ball.
Noah Fant/DEN: He does get hurt a lot and QB Drew Lock is inconsistent, but Fant is a mismatch for defenses. He'll easily be a top-10 TE for the future if relatively healthy.
UPDATE 12/20: Once again, he proved to be a mismatch during this week's game against the visiting Bills (8-68-1 TD-11 targets)
Cole Kmet/CHI: He's taking over the starting job now over veteran Jimmy Graham and the team is very high on him for the future.
Adam Trautman/NO: He's the future at the position and with Sean Payton calling the plays, Troutman could be a big piece of the passing game starting as early as next season.
Dawson Knox/BUF: He's dealt with a bunch of injuries this season, but the 2nd-year pro is a vertical threat and the team remains very high on him.
UPDATE 12/20: He has scored in 3 out of his last 4 games and is becoming a bigger factor in their passing game.
Week 15 Injury Notes
The Following Players have no injury designation (questionable, doubtful, or out), but are still dealing with an injury. These players are considered probable to play.
Quarterbacks
QB Philip Rivers/IND (toe): They are giving him Wednesday's off in order to keep him off that bad toe and that has certainly worked.
QB Tua Tagovailoa/MIA (toe)
QB Sam Darnold/NYJ (ankle)
Running Backs
RB Chris Carson/SEA (mid-foot sprain): He is practicing quite a bit of late, which is a sign that the injury is mostly behind him.
RB Raheem Mostert/SF (ankle): He has dealt with ankle issues for most of the season.
RB James Robinson/JAX (knee)
RB Kareem Hunt/CLE (thigh)
RB Carlos Hyde/SEA (toe): He's dealing with the same lingering injury, but that has not been an issue for him in games.
RB Peyton Barber/WAS (ankle)
Wide Receivers
**WR D.K. Metcalf/SEA (ankle): He turned his ankle in last week's game, but only missed a few plays and took all of his first-team reps in practice this week. And the team did something rare: They actually removed him from the injury report after Wednesday's practice, which tells us it was a really minor injury.
WR Jarvis Landry/CLE (hip): He has been on the injury report for 14 straight weeks, but always plays.
WR Tyreek Hill/KC (hamstring): He tweaked his hamstring in the last game, but came back right away and also took all of his normal first-team reps in practice this week.
WR Robert Woods/LAR (thigh): They backed off him in most of practices this week, but he's ready to go.
WR Calvin Ridley/ATL (mid-foot sprain): Same injury he has dealt with for nearly 2 months.
WR A.J. Brown/TEN (ankle): He has suffered a few different ankle injuries this season, but his latest only caused him
WR Brandin Cooks/HOU (neck): He took in his usual first-team reps in Friday's practice, which is a positive sign.
WR Breshad Perriman/NYJ (shoulder)
WR Darnell Mooney/CHI (knee)
Tight Ends
- TE Trey Burton/IND (knee)
Game Notes
TB-ATL
Buccaneers: Those who have their fantasy defense got good news with nickel CB Jamel Dean (groin) after he was able to practice this week and is set to play after not playing in last week's game against the visiting Vikings.
DET-TEN
Titans: The Titans will face perhaps the most injured CB group in the NFL today, as the Lions will be without both starters Desmond Trufant (IR), Jeff Okudah (IR) and key backup Darryl Roberts (hip-out). They'll have to use slot CB Justin Coleman on the outside more than they'd like and 5th CB Mike Ford will handle the 3rd role again.
HOU-IND
Texans: As expected, the team added WR Chad Hansen from their practice squad for this game.
With RBs Duke Johnson (neck-out) and C.J. Prosise (ankle-out) not available, the coaches will turn to special teams RB Buddy Howell behind starting RB David Johnson.
Colts: The team got a huge break after the Texans downgraded Phillip Gaines (knee) to out on Saturday. That means the team will be without 2 out of their top-3 CBs (starter Bradley Roby is suspended).
All of this bodes well for WRs T.Y. Hilton and Michael Pittman Jr. and QB Philip Rivers.
Hilton, who our Greg Cosell said looks "quick" on tape, burned the Texan secondary in Week 13 (8-110-1 TD on 11 targets) and he owns them (12 games/63 receptions, 1131 yards, 9 TDs, 19.2 FPPG). This is the best he has looked in the past 2 seasons and his targets have gone way up lately (18 in the past 2 games).
CHI-MIN
Vikings: If you're a Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson, or Adam Thielen owner in daily or redraft leagues, there's good news: The Bears are without 2 out of their top-3 CBs today: Jaylon Johnson (shoulder-out) and slot CB Buster Skrine (concussion-out). The matchup is way more favorable than it looked to start the week and the Bears have poor depth behind Johnson and Kyle Fuller.
SEA-WAS
Seahawks: We told you recently that RB Rashaad Penny (knee) looked great in practice, and now he's going to play today after being activated off the reserve/PUP list. How many carries he gets behind Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde remains to be seen, but he could be a real factor next year as Hyde is on a 1-year deal and Carson's deal is up.
PHI-ARI
Cardinals: With the Eagles down their two starting CBs (Avonte Maddox-IR, Darius Slay-concussion-out) and starting S Rodney McLeod (ACL-IR), they'll likely move S Jalen Mills to CB and let's not forget the reason why he was moved from CB to S this season is because he doesn't run very well. The rest of the CBs (other than small slot player Nickell Robey-Coleman) are rarely used players, so this all bodes well for Kyler Murray and their WRs. And the team projects to use two seldom-used backup safeties as starters today.
KC-NO
Saints: If you added Tre'Quan Smith and wanted to start him today, you won't have to worry about him sharing reps as the team is down 3 WRs (Michael Thomas-IR, Deonte Harris-IR, Marquez Callaway-IR).
CLE-NYG
Browns: The good news here for Baker Mayfield owners is that the Giants are without 2 out of their top-3 CBs (James Bradberry-reserve/COVID-19, Darnay Holmes-knee-out) for this game.
And the Giants will only dress 3 CBs today (Isaac Yiadom+2 added from the practice squad) though they could use FS Logan Ryan at CB.
