The Week 13 slate of games was chock full of tremendous matchups and for the most part, it didn’t disappoint. While just four quarterbacks scored more than 20 points heading into the Sunday night game, we did see some big lines from a few running backs, including Christian McCaffrey, Josh Jacobs and Samaje Perine. We also might be seeing a changing of the fantasy guard in the Detroit backfield.
Fantasy fans also saw some massive stat lines from wide receivers, as a combined 12 players at the position scored over 20 points. That includes three who went over 30 and another three who scored at least 24.5 points. Tight end wasn’t nearly as fruitful, though, as just seven players scored 10 or more points. What’s more, none of those players was Travis Kelce or Mark Andrews. Yup, it’s a brutal position.
With that being said, let’s start our fantasy football whip around Sunday’s action in Las Vegas, where Davante Adams went absolutely nuclear for fantasy managers.
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Davante Adams electrifies fantasy managers vs. Bolts. The WWF used to have a wrestler called “The One-Man Gang,” who wore black and smashed opponents. That also describes Adams this week. The veteran went off against the Chargers, catching eight passes for 177 yards with two touchdowns and scoring 37.7 fantasy points. That’s the most points of any player heading into the Sunday nighter. The superstar wideout has now scored over 27 points in four of his last five contests, including three games with more than 33 points. He’ll face the Rams up next.
Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown record titanic fantasy numbers. Who likes their revenge games served cold? Brown did his former teammates like ol’ Jack Frost, catching eight passes for 119 yards with two touchdowns and scoring 31.9 fantasy points in a win over the Titans. Hurts was a fantasy monster, too, throwing for 380 yards with three scoring strikes while also rushing for a fourth touchdown to produce 34.4 points. He’s now put up 20-plus points in six straight games and 10 of 12 overall. Hurts and Brown should post big totals next week against the Giants.
Justin Fields returns, scores 19.3 points in loss to Packers. Fields was the best quarterback in fantasy football for a five-week stretch, but a bum shoulder kept him out last week. He was able to come back to face Green Bay, however, and he had another solid game. While he was picked off twice, Fields also rushed for 71 yards and a touchdown and scored 19.3 fantasy points. It’s not an enormous number, but Fields was the sixth-best quarterback heading into Sunday night. The Bears have a bye in Week 14, so fantasy fans will need an alternative.
Christian McCaffrey breaks 49ers backfield committee. The injury loss of Elijah Mitchell appears to have put McCaffrey back into a featured role for the Niners. He had 25 touches, including eight catches (10 targets), totaled 146 scrimmage yards and finished with 28.6 points in a win over the Dolphins. It’s CMC’s best game since Week 8, when he scored 40.3 points against the Rams. The Niners did lose Jimmy Garoppolo (foot) very early in the game, but McCaffrey was still able to thrive with backup Brock Purdy under center. Let’s hope this sort of usage continues, too. After the game, we learned that Garoppolo suffered a broken foot and is out for the rest of the season – even more reason to rely on McCaffrey.
Ja’Marr Chase returns to action, posts seven catches. Seeing Chase, one of the top wideouts in fantasy football, back on the gridiron was a sight for sore fantasy eyes. He didn’t post a massive stat line, scoring 16.7 points, but Chase played with no limitations and seemed no worse for wear in his return from an injured hip. He also led the Bengals with eight targets. His presence back on the field was also of course good news for Joe Burrow, who threw for 286 yards with two touchdowns and scored 30 points. This duo will lead plenty of fantasy fans to the postseason.
Lamar Jackson injures knee; finishes with 1.3 points. Jackson suffered a knee injury on the Ravens’ second possession of the game and missed the remainder of the team’s 10-9 win over the Broncos. His 1.3 fantasy points was likely a deathblow for fantasy managers this week, but coach John Harbaugh said after the game that the injury isn’t season-ending but rather “days to weeks.” Tyler Huntley replaced the veteran quarterback and scored 15.6 points, which included 41 rushing yards and a touchdown. He’ll be a hot name on the waiver wire, especially in leagues that allow for multiple starting quarterbacks, for next week’s game in Pittsburgh.
Derrick Henry has another stinker for fantasy managers. Is it time to freak out about the King? He was held to 30 rushing yards and 2.7 yards per rush against an Eagles defense that had allowed the fifth-most yards to backs in the previous four weeks. Henry has now been held to fewer than 54 yards on the ground in three of his last four games, and his yards per rush average is 2.8 in his last three games. That’s an awful total. The good news is he faces the Jaguars, Chargers and Texans, all very soft rushing defenses, in his next three games.
Amon-Ra St. Brown lights up the Jaguars pass defense. St. Brown’s recent hot streak continued against the Jaguars, as the USC product beat them for 11 catches, 114 yards, two touchdowns and 34.6 fantasy points. It’s his second 30-plus point game of the season, and his third game with 22-plus points in the last four weeks. In that time, St. Brown has 37 total catches and has averaged 24.9 points. His success should continue next week vs. a bad Minnesota defensive backfield.
Deshaun Watson returns; Browns D/ST shines in Houston. Watson made his first start since Jan. 3, 2021 against his old team, the Texans, and he looked like a quarterback who hadn’t played football in 700 days. The controversial veteran served an 11-game suspension for sexual misconduct after more than two dozen women filed lawsuits against him (nearly all of which have been settled). He was a mere 12 of 22 for 131 yards with no touchdown and an interception in a 27-14 win, and the offense didn’t score a single touchdown. Watson’s 5.3 fantasy points was less than Kyle Allen, who had two interceptions and scored a mere 6.1 points. On a positive note as it pertains to the Browns and fantasy football, their defense/special teams unit produced three touchdowns and 30 points. Just five players had more points heading into the Sunday night game in Dallas.
Tua Tagovailoa suffers injured ankle against Niners. This weekend’s matchup in San Francisco was tough on paper, and it was even worse on the gridiron. Tua was held to just 13.8 fantasy points, his worst total since Week 4, and he left the game in the second half with what the Dolphins called an injured ankle. Jaylen Waddle was also banged up in the contest, which is part of the reason he was held to just one catch for nine yards. Miami has a Sunday night game next weekend against the Chargers, so any doubts about Tua or Waddle heading in could make it tough to start them. Sports Illustrated will keep tabs on their status all week.
Notes
- Are the Lions going back to D’Andre Swift as their top runner? He got the start against the Jaguars and led the team in touches (18), and he also saw six red-zone looks to Jamaal Williams’s two. Swift’s 21.2 points is his best total since Week 1, when he beat the Eagles for 26.5. He has always been the more explosive of the two Lions running backs, and it now seems that the coaching staff feels he’s back at 100% and ready to handle more work. For those fantasy fans who have Swift, this comes at a great time (playoff coming)!
- Rookie standout Ken Walker suffered an injured ankle against the Rams and was forced out of the contest. He finished with just three carries for 36 yards and should be considered questionable for a Week 14 matchup against the Panthers. It’s a tough blow as we’re a week from the playoffs. With Travis Homer (knee, illness) out, DeeJay Dallas or Tony Jones Jr. could be popular yet uninspiring additions off the fantasy football waiver wire this weekend.
- Christian Watson scored two more touchdowns in a win over the Bears and now has eight in his last four games. Heck, even Cris Carter thinks that’s a lot of touchdowns! What’s amazing about his rise to stardom is that Watson had a combined 14 targets in his first six NFL games, relegating him to the waiver wire in a lot of fantasy leagues. Since then, he’s seen 26 targets and hauled in 15 receptions. That’s right, nearly half of his catches since Week 10 have gone for touchdowns. The Packers have a bye in Week 14, but Watson has all but locked himself into a flex position for the fantasy football playoffs.
- So much for the Jets’ three-man backfield committee rumors! Zonovan “Bam” Knight saw 36.4% of the touches in a loss to the Vikings, while Ty Johnson was a distant second at 12.7% and James Robinson was third at 7.3%. The coaching staff trusts Knight, who has now led the Men in Green in the last two weeks, and he’ll be the Jets back to start while Michael Carter is out of action. The undrafted rookie will be a flex next week in a roadie against the Bills.
- Speaking of the Jets, Garrett Wilson is making fantasy fans who passed on him in drafts green with envy. The rookie went bananas again, posting a solid eight catches for 162 yards and 24.2 points in a loss to the Vikings. He’s now recorded 17-plus points in four of his last five games including over 24 in each of his last two. With plus matchups vs. the Lions, Jaguars and Seahawks in the fantasy playoffs, Wilson could be a real league winner across the board.
More fantasy, betting & NFL coverage:
• Early Look at Week 14 Waiver Wire Pickups
• Deshaun Watson Rusty in His Return to Action
• Jimmy Garoppolo Out for the Season
• Packers Eclipse Bears As All-Time Winningest Team
Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on Sports Illustrated and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. Click here to read all his articles here on SI Fantasy. You can follow Michael on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram for your late breaking fantasy news and the best analysis in the business to help you win a fantasy championship!
