For many leagues, this is the final week of the season before the fantasy playoffs.
On paper, this Week 14 matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos looks to be one-sided in favor of the Chiefs. The Broncos are battling through multiple injuries to key players, and even when healthy their offense hasn’t exactly been lighting it up.
Let’s take a look at who to start and sit for this divisional clash.
*Projections from our colleagues at The Huddle
QB Patrick Mahomes
The Cincinnati Bengals once again had the recipe to contain Mahomes, holding him to just 223 passing yards and one touchdown last week. He was still able to produce a solid fantasy output by adding a rushing touchdown, however.
Mahomes is still pacing the position and is comfortably in the league lead in passing yards and touchdowns. Denver has a great secondary and is allowing the third-least amount of passing yards per game, but Mahomes is obviously matchup-proof and should at the least have a solid game.
RB Isiah Pacheco/Jerick McKinnon
Pacheco was limited to 66 rushing yards last week but found the endzone for the second game in a row. He’s had a good, consistent workload over the past month and is slowly getting involved in the passing game.
The Broncos rank near the middle of the league in run defense and could be without their best run-defender in this game in D.J. Jones, which would propel Pacheco to RB1 status this week.
McKinnon racked up 60 total yards and found the endzone last week for the first time since Week 2. He makes the most of his opportunities, but his work volume is very inconsistent. The Chiefs could be run-heavy against a tough Broncos’ pass defense, making McKinnon a decent flex option if you’re in a deep league.
WRs JuJu Smith-Schuster/Marquez Valdes-Scantling/Skyy Moore
Smith-Schuster hasn’t been able to get back into a consistent rhythm with Mahomes since returning from injury, catching three passes in each of his last two games.
He did, however, lead all Chiefs’ receivers with 41 snaps played. Smith-Schuster has a very tough matchup against the Denver secondary but being Mahomes’ No. 1 receiver justifies him as at least a flex play.
Fantasy owners of Valdes-Scantling probably can’t help but think about what could be with the speedy receiver. He continues to get plenty of snaps every week and make tough catches but drops the easy ones. Even with an impressive 17.8 yards per catch Valdes-Scantling doesn’t grab enough passes or find the endzone enough to be in lineups.
Moore took a step back last week, playing just 23 snaps and getting zero targets. If you have him in a dynasty league, I would keep him in hopes that he has a breakout in year two, but this year was just too soon.
Kadarius Toney is out this week with a hamstring injury.
TE Travis Kelce
While he still did ok for fantasy tight end standards, Kelce was held in check by a very game Cincinatti defense last week. It’s not often that he’s quite in back-to-back weeks, so I would expect him to bounce back even against a good Denver secondary.
Chiefs' defense/special teams
Despite coming off a weak performance against the Bengals, I am all-in on the Chiefs’ defense this week. The Broncos will be without their top receiver in Courtland Sutton, their offensive line is banged up and quarterback Russell Wilson is playing with no confidence or rhythm. K.C. is one of the best defensive plays in fantasy this week.
K Harrison Butker
Butker missed a crucial 55-yard field goal last week, but in fairness, 55 yards is a pretty long distance. I expect the Chiefs to put up a fair number of points this week and kicking in the thin air of Denver is always a plus. Start Butker with confidence.
QB Russell Wilson
Even if he has fallen off a bit physically as some have speculated, the fall of Wilson this season is still shocking to a degree. His eight touchdown passes are a league-low among QBs who have started at least 10 games.
He’s also not running the ball as effectively with just 158 yards on the season. Combining those factors with his ailing offensive line and being without his top target in Sutton, there’s no way Wilson should be in any lineups.
RB Latavius Murray
With the exception of a solid Week 12 performance against the Carolina Panthers, Murray hasn’t brought much to the table as the lead back in Denver. The 32-year-old veteran is averaging just 3.7 yards per carry and is playing behind a weak offensive line. He shouldn’t be considered for any lineups.
WRs Jerry Jeudy/Kendall Hinton/Montrell Washington
Without Sutton, this is about as weak of a receiving unit as there is in the league. Jeudy is the most talented among them but is battling through an ankle injury and could be on a pitch count. The big play potential is always there with Jeudy, so he may be worth a flex play if you’re in a deep league with no better options.
Hinton has just 19 receptions on the season and has yet to find the endzone. It’s possible he leads all Broncos’ receivers in snaps played in this game, but there’s nowhere near enough of a track record to justify him in any lineups.
The same goes for Washington, who has more receptions (4) than he has yards (2) on the season. He brings a bit of value as a return man, but that’s hardly enough to consider him in fantasy.
TE Greg Dulcich
Dulcich has had a quiet season overall but is coming off the best game of his young career against the Baltimore Ravens where he caught six passes for 85 yards.
There’s definitely bust potential, but with how banged up the Broncos’ receiving corps is, Dulcich could continue to see a steady number of passes come his way. The Chiefs haven’t been great against tight ends this year, so Dulcich could be a sneaky-good play.
Broncos' defense/special teams
The Denver defense has been a bright spot during a gloomy season. It has perhaps the best secondary in the league and does a great job of keeping the score close as seven of the Broncos’ nine losses have been by just one possession.
This week, however, a matchup with the explosive Chiefs’ offense could be too much to handle, especially since the inept Denver offense likely won’t be able to hang.
K Brandon McManus
McManus has been great from inside of 50 yards, hitting 17/19 from that range. He’s a bit shaky from beyond 50, however, as he’s hit 6/11. It’s pretty amazing that he has that many attempts from that distance on the season.
I would say McManus is a fine start for this week, but he’s coming off a quadriceps injury and his range could be limited. If you’re thin on options he’s an ok play.
