Sunday, December 22, 2024

Fantasy Football: Week 14 predictions to count on

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Set your Week 14 fantasy football lineups with these confidence picks from the Yahoo team.

Tua Tagovailoa is on fire, scoring at least 24 fantasy points in three straight games, all top-10 finishes. Despite the team struggling to actually win, Tagovailoa has thrived, averaging over 300 passing yards with nine touchdowns and no interceptions during that stretch. During draft season, this end-of-season stretch was a major concern for me but all of Miami’s defensive opponents moving forward are vulnerable to volume performances.

This week, he gets an inconsistent Jets defense that’s struggled since Robert Saleh’s firing, and Sauce Gardner is dealing with a hamstring injury. With De’Von Achane emerging as the Dolphins’ most reliable receiving option, Tagovailoa is in an ideal spot to deliver another elite performance. — Tera Roberts

Chase Brown has averaged a whopping 123.5 scrimmage yards per game over his last four while reaching the end zone three times. You’d better believe he’s about to deliver at least 120 and a touchdown on Monday night against Dallas.

We’ve been picking on the Cowboys’ defense all year in fantasy because they haven’t yet stopped anyone’s run game. Dallas ranks next-to-last in rushing yards allowed (147.6 YPG) and dead-last in rushing TDs (21). It’s a gift of a matchup for Brown, who’s emerged as the unrivaled lead back for Cincinnati. An overall RB1 finish is very much within his range of outcomes this week. Brown has hauled in 22 catches over his last four games, so he’s pretty much impervious to game flow. — Andy Behrens

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Tight end is always a fantasy challenge and the pool got thinner when Taysom Hill and Dallas Goedert were hurt last week. Reinforcements are ready for you in the Chargers-Chiefs game.

Will Dissly is the second-most trusted LAC pass target and he’s up against a Kansas City defense that’s been . And Noah Gray has sleeper chops on the other side, with 12 catches and four touchdowns over three games — Andy Reid has steered into a two-TE offense, in part because his receiver room has not been consistent. Both Dissly and Gray are likely to outkick their Week 14 projections. — Scott Pianowski

Isaac Guerendo suddenly went from waiver wires to must-start this week after Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason went down with season-ending injuries. Guerendo has averaged (5.9) this season and has fresh legs. The rookie needs to work on his vision and is far from a complete back, but while Mason might be the league’s slowest RB, (giving him more fantasy upside).

The Bears have yielded the second fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks this season, but Chicago has ceded the fifth-most schedule-adjusted fantasy points to RBs over the last five games. The 49ers’ offense isn’t the same without Trent Williams and a banged-up Brock Purdy, but San Francisco owns a healthy implied team total (24.5 points) and should have a favorable game-script as four-point favorites. Patrick Taylor will also see work, but Guerendo is a top-10 back this week. — Dalton Del Don

Tyrone Tracy Jr. may have frustrated the coaches in the building with three fumbles between Weeks 10 and 12. If he did, it wasn’t reflected in his playing time. The rookie played 73% of the snaps on Thanksgiving and registered his highest route participation in a game with Devin Singletary active.

Obviously, the 2024 season is all but over for New York, and the future is what matters. Seeing what you have in Tracy and working through any mistakes is the only thing that makes sense. I expect him to remain the RB1 of this backfield. He draws a matchup in Week 14 with a Saints team that ranks 28th in rushing EPA allowed since Week 8. This projects as the type of competitive affair in which the run should be in play for most of the outing. — Matt Harmon

Rico Dowdle is finally getting the workload coach Mike McCarthy has teased at times this season. Over the past two games, Dowdle is averaging 23 touches and 110 total yards per game. This is by far the best usage of his career and it doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon. Dowdle produced four explosive runs of 10+ yards in Week 13 against the Giants and he was a big reason why the Cowboys were able to secure their fifth win of the season.

This week, Dowdle finds himself in another solid matchup against the Bengals, who have struggled to defend the run consistently this year. Last week, Najee Harris totaled 129 yards and a touchdown against Cincinnati. Dowdle appears to be in line for another strong showing and with six teams on bye in Week 14, he’s a top-15 option at the position and a must start RB. — Sal Vetri

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