Week 14 is here, and everything is on the line. Of course, half the league is playing backup quarterbacks. With your playoffs on the line, you will have to make some tough decisions. This is where your studs and playing the projections compete. I agree with starting your studs, but those preseason rankings are also long gone. Here are my fantasy football rankings Week 14 edition!
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Week 14 Fantasy Football Rankings: Who Should I Start?
I am not going to waste your time putting guys like Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce as my starts or sits of the week. We will talk about some deeper options, like your flex or stream options. I, of course, will have my full positional and flex rankings for Week 14. But, I will highlight players that I am higher or lower on than the expert consensus rankers. The table will update if I make any updates as more news comes in.
We are live every Sunday at 11:30 a.m. on our SGPN Fantasy Football YouTube channel. There you can get injury updates from our resident football doctor. The guys will keep you updated on news and help you with those tough lineup decisions. Every week it comes down to the wire for starts and sits, we have your back.
You can find my rankings here at sportsgamblingpodcast.com, or you can find them on the FantasyPros ECR. I am competing again in their accuracy contest. Last week, I finished 56th ranked out of 203, the 5th best finish this year. Without further ado, here are my updated week 14 fantasy football rankings.
Starts of the Week
QB – Jake Browning, CIN vs. IND (26th)
Jake Browning broke out last week and finished as QB4 on the week. He was QB18 the week before. He is not inside my top 12 this week, but I had to highlight him as he is absolutely a great streaming option. If you have an injured quarterback, you can do a lot worse than Browning. We saw them take the training wheels off after the first drive last week, and Browning was airing it out.
Browning was 7 for 7 for 170 yards and a touchdown on passes over 10 yards. Helps when you have Ja’Marr Chase. Well, he still does have Chase…and Higgins. His short game was great, too; he went 25/28 for 184 yards with two drops. Indianapolis is a good defense, but they also push the pace of play. This could be a high-scoring game. We could start Minshew or Browning this week.
QB, Josh Dobbs, MIN at LV (23rd)
Josh Dobbs was red hot, and we all got to see him fizzle out in a prime-time game. It was brutal and a brutal reminder that Dobbs has been a career backup. But we can’t forget how good he has been this year. This was by far his worst game, and a lot of the interceptions came off of tipped passes. Dobbs got a bye week to get back on track and getting Justin Jefferson back will absolutely help. The Raiders are also a plus matchup. Dobbs is a risk I am willing to take this week.
Honorable Mentions: Jared Goff at CHI, Baker Mayfield at ATL, Joe Flacco vs. JAX
RB – Zack Moss, IND at CIN (15th)
Speaking of disappointing, Zack Moss was wildly disappointing last week. He was amazing this season when he was the starter, and we all had high expectations last week. His rush totals were the highest rush props of the week, and he didn’t come close. This is a great bounce-back opportunity against one of the best fantasy running back matchups. The Bengals are allowing just under 20 point per game (.5 PPR) to fantasy running backs.
RB – Keaton Mitchell, BAL vs. LAR (26th)
We have seen a trend with teams turning to rookie running backs after their bye week. Last year we saw rookies Rachaad White, James Cook, and others take the reigns for the second half of the season. Before their bye, the Ravens gave Keaton Mitchell a season-high in touches while he out-touched Gus Edwards. Mitchell saw a season-high in snaps, touches, and targets. All good signs and Mitchell has had double-digit fantasy points in three of his last four games.
Honorable Mentions: Alexander Mattison at LV, A.J. Dillon at NYG, Clyde Edwards-Helaire vs. BUF
WR – Courtland Sutton, DEN at LAC (3rd)
Courtland Sutton was written off by the Broncos and the fantasy community. He has been one of the best wide receiver values this season. He is WR21 on the season and already has 9 touchdowns. Sutton has at least 14 points in three of his last four games. His fantasy football playoff schedule is pristine. Someone I am targeting for the playoff run. He gets the 3rd, 11th, 8th, and 3rd-best fantasy wide receiver matchups in the next four weeks.
WR – Brandin Cooks, DAL vs. PHI (1st)
Brandin Cooks has been a WR2 or better in five of his last 7 games. In his last four games, he has scored 14.5, 15.2, 5.7, and 27.8 points (.5 PPR). Philadelphia has been a good fantasy matchup for wide receivers this season and Dallas’ offense is red hot. You want pieces of this game, and Cooks is a good one. Another cheap trade piece with a good fantasy football playoff schedule.
Honorable Mentions: Amari Cooper vs. JAX, Jayden Reed at NYG, Rashee Rice vs. BUF
TE – Isaiah Likely, BAL vs. LAR (3rd)
Isaiah Likely has not put up the type of production he put up last year, but last week showed promise. Likely was targeted 6 times and played on 73% of snaps. The team had a bye week and had more opportunities to integrate him into the offense. He looked quick, turning his four catches into 40 yards. The Rams are also the 3rd best fantasy tight-end matchup this season.
Honorable Mentions: Tucker Kraft at NYG, Kyle Pitts vs. TB, Gerald Everett vs. DEN
Houston Texans at New York Jets (2nd)
Bryce Young has been a turnover machine and the offensive line has struggled to protect him. Even if Young doesn’t play, the Seahawks will get Andy Dalton. This team doesn’t have a lot of weapons and a bad offensive line. Seattle and other defenses will continue to score fantasy points against them. Seattle had a big Week 2 against the Detroit Lions. I have them higher than the consensus and have them a defensive streaming option for Week 3.
The New York Jets are allowing the 2nd most fantasy points to the position. Regardless of which bad quarterback they use this weekend, expect points. They are giving up sacks and turning the ball over every week. Their offense is scoring less than 1 TD per game. They are a smash play, every single week!
Honorable Mentions: DET at CHI, MIN at LV, GB at NYG
Sits of The Week
QB – Geno Smith, SEA at SF (29th)
Geno bounced back in a big way last week. He gets the San Francisco 49ers as a reward. There are just too many good options this week to go with Geno. He is also banged up, and his groin injury might limit his rushing. San Francisco is allowing the 4th least fantasy points to quarterbacks. I would only start him in superflex formats; he must sit in single-quarterback leagues.
QB – Matthew Stafford, LAR at BAL (32nd)
Baltimore has allowed the fewest passing touchdowns in the league. This is on the way to the least amount of fantasy quarterback points. Stafford gives you zero rushing upside on top of it. On top of all three of his top options coming into the game, this banged up. Both Tyler Higbee and Puka Nacua left the game last week with injuries. Both are questionable, and Cooper Kupp is dealing with a nagging ankle injury. Sit Stafford, and thank me later.
RB – Alexander Mattison, MIN at LV (6th)
This appears to be a great matchup, but since the coaching change, the Raiders are bottom 10 in rushing yards allowed. They also played a stretch of top fantasy running backs during that stretch. Regardless of the matchup, Mattison has not been good lately. He has three single-digit performances in a row and in five of six. Mattison also doesn’t have a single rushing touchdown all year. Ty Chandler’s role has increased and lowered Mattison’s upside.
RB – Dameon Pierce, HOU at NYJ (9th)
Houston’s backfield gave us a few good weeks when Devin Singletary was solo. But, it was not great when Pierce and healthy and not good since his return. Neither Devin Singletary nor Dameon Pierce had more than 44% of snaps last week. Dare Ogunbonwale also was involved last week. Despite a great matchup, I am sitting in the Houston backfield. This is a good offense, but not a backfield you should target for fantasy football.
WR – Calvin Ridley, JAX vs. CLE (30th)
The Cleveland Browns are not good for quarterbacks or wide receivers. C.J. Beathard is likely starting this week, and that makes things worse. Ridley has been pretty inconsistent this year. With the bad matchup and the questions at quarterback, I am out. Christian Kirk is out, and that may result in more targets for Ridley. But, Zay Jones is back and Evan Engram saw the biggest uptick when he left the game last week week.
WR – Chris Godwin, TB at ATL (28th)
Chris Godwin has not been good this year. Last week a rushing touchdown saved his three catch day. This week he gets a tough Atlanta defense. Godwin only has 86 yards against man coverage this season. Atlanta is a man-heavy defensive attack. He has been a top-24 option only once in the last eight games and only twice this year. Sientate amigo.
TE – Jonnu Smith, ATL vs. TB (16th)
There was a stretch of the year where Jonnu Smith was a startable tight end. He was a tight end 6 just three games ago. But, in four of the last five games, he finished outside of the top 21. This includes 1, 2, 3, and 5 points performances. Kyle Pitts has seen more involvement since the bye and seems to be healthy. Jonnu has not played higher than 44% of snaps in four weeks and has 6 targets during this time. You can cut Jonnu at this point.
Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles (26th)
The Eagles are only an average of 5.6 fantasy points to defenses this season. The Cowboys are typically a must start, but this is a tough week. Don’t drop them. Their playoff schedule is great. But, if you need a big performance, I would like to go elsewhere. Jalen Hurts, and the Eagles have been protecting the ball well, and their red zone efficiency has led to a lot of points.
