Fantasy football championship week is here.
If you have made it to your league’s championship game, congratulations are in order. Hopefully, you had at least one Kansas City Chiefs player that helped you get there. There are a lot of intriguing Chiefs players to consider for your lineup this week, as well as a couple of Denver Broncos.
*Projections from our colleagues at The Huddle
QB Patrick Mahomes
It’s been a season to remember for Mahomes and his fantasy owners. The possible MVP of the league has paced the QB position for most of the year. Last week against the Seattle Seahawks Mahomes had a tame 224 passing yards, but he also had three total touchdowns on the day.
This week he faces a good Broncos’ secondary, but he threw for over 300 yards and three touchdowns on them three weeks ago. Mahomes should be getting back another weapon this week in receiver Mecole Hardman, making him even more dangerous.
RBs Isiah Pacheco/Jerick McKinnon
Pacheco and McKinnon have become a dynamic thunder-and-lightning duo with Pacheco handling early-down duties and McKinnon as the third down back. Pacheco’s workload has been steady and consistent over the past two months, averaging 16 carries and five yards per carry over his last seven games. That’s a good enough track record for him to be a solid flex play.
McKinnon has done most of his damage as a receiver. He’s second on the team in touchdown receptions with six and has caught a TD in each of his last four games. The returns of receivers Mecole Hardman and Kadarius Toney could cut into McKinnon’s production a bit, but McKinnon is still a solid RB2 given the rhythm he’s in.
WRs JuJu Smith-Schuster/Marquez Valdes-Scantling/Kadarius Toney
After seeing 21 targets the previous two weeks, Smith-Schuster caught only three passes for 27 yards last week. This is going to happen from time to time with the way Mahomes spreads the ball around. Smith-Schuster is still easily the best wide receiver the Chiefs have and is a solid WR3 with WR2 upside. In his last game against Denver, he caught nine passes and a touchdown.
Valdes-Scantling saw just two targets last week and failed to catch either one. He received a season-low 23 snaps and is seemingly taking a backseat to other receivers on the team. The big play potential is always there, but Valdes-Scantling isn’t trustworthy for fantasy purposes.
Toney found the endzone last week on an eight-yard end-around reception, but it was his only catch of the day. Toney will make some sporadic eye-popping plays, but he isn’t yet a big enough part of the K.C. offense to be in any lineups.
TE Travis Kelce
Although he hasn’t found the endzone since Week 12, Kelce has had back-to-back 100-yard games and is still comfortably the No. 1 tight end in fantasy.
He is three catches away from his third career 100-catch season and 159 yards away from his career-high in receiving yards. The Broncos defense is 26th in the NFL against tight ends, giving Kelce a chance at a big game.
Chiefs' defense/special teams
The Chiefs’ defense smothered a good Seahawks offense last week. K.C. ranks fourth in sacks with 45 and eighth in run defense. In its last matchup against Denver, the Chiefs’ defense racked up six sacks and two interceptions.
The Broncos are limping into K.C. with multiple injuries and have just fired their head coach. The Chiefs’ defense is one of the best units to start this week.
K Harrison Butker
Butker is completing 77 percent of his field goals this season, which is a career low. The coaching staff has steadily shown confidence in Butker despite his struggles, and he should find himself in more big-kick situations. He is still a viable fantasy option given how high-powered the Chiefs’ offense is and how shallow the kicker position is.
QB Russell Wilson
Wilson’s first season in Denver has been one to forget. He by far has a career-low in touchdown passes and completion percentage and has cracked 300 passing yards just once this season. He threw three interceptions last week, and he has been sacked a league-high 49 times. Wilson hasn’t been fantasy-relevant at all this season and shouldn’t be rostered.
RB Latavius Murray
Murray is just two weeks removed from a 130-yard rushing performance, but it’s safe to say that was an outlier from his usual production. He is only averaging 4.1 yards per carry and has just one touchdown in his last five games.
He’s not much of a threat as a receiver and his week-to-week workload has been inconsistent. Backups Chase Edmonds and Marlon Mack have been getting increased snaps, making Murray untrustworthy to be in any lineups.
WRs Jerry Jeudy/Courtland Sutton
Jeudy is the Broncos’ big-play receiver. He has over 60 yards in each of his last four games and at least six receptions in each of his last three. Jeudy torched the Chiefs in their last meeting with eight receptions and three touchdowns. He is a very solid WR2 this week, should his ankle hold up during the game.
Sutton still leads the Broncos in receptions despite missing three games. He’s reliable for a fair number of targets and receptions but has just one touchdown on the season and has only eclipsed 100 yards once. Sutton’s upside is limited, but he’s an okay flex play if you’re weak at receiver.
TEs Eric Saubert/Eric Tomlinson/Albert Okwuegbunam
Saubert, Tomlinson and Okwuegbunam have all had pretty equal playing time behind starter Greg Dulcich, who is out for this game with a hamstring injury. Factoring that none of them have been productive this year and that they will likely all rotate, none should be considered for any lineups.
Broncos' defense/special teams
The Broncos’ defense has quietly been a solid fantasy unit this season, especially if the matchup is right. It had a very disappointing outing last week against the Los Angeles Rams, however, surrendering 44 points and failing to record a sack or turnover. Denver’s defense should remain on your bench this week with a matchup against the No. 1 overall Chiefs’ offense.
K Brandon McManus
McManus doesn’t quite have the same leg he used to have but is pretty trustworthy inside of 50 yards. The underachieving Denver offense limits McManus’ production, making him a risky play. It would be safer to look elsewhere for kicking options this week.
