The fantasy playoffs are in full swing, and for some leagues, this is championship week.
The Kansas City Chiefs have no shortage of players who could contribute to fantasy lineups this week. The Seattle Seahawks are a bit banged up this week, but they still have a few good options. Let’s take a look at the best starts from this matchup.
*Projections from our colleagues at The Huddle
QB Patrick Mahomes
If you’re still alive for your league’s championship, Mahomes is probably the biggest reason why. He’s having an MVP-caliber season and is the highest-scoring quarterback in fantasy this year. He has thrown for over 300 yards in eight of his last nine games and leads the NFL in passing yards as well as touchdown passes.
Last week against the Houston Texans, Mahomes completed his last 20 passes as he torched the Houston defense. The Seahawks are middle of the pack against the pass and will be without key starters in safety Ryan Neal and defensive tackle Al Woods, setting up Mahomes for another potential monster day.
RBs Isiah Pacheco/Jerick McKinnon
Pacheco and McKinnon have become one of the best running back duos in the league over the past month. McKinnon has been on fire the last two weeks, racking up 256 total yards and four touchdowns. He has a steady role in the passing game and is second on the team in receiving touchdowns, making him a safe RB2.
As for Pacheco, he is averaging a solid 4.9 yards per carry this season but isn’t involved in the passing game much and isn’t much of a redzone threat with just three TDs on the season. A matchup against Seattle’s 31st ranked run defense makes Pacheco a fine flex play.
WRs JuJu Smith-Schuster/Mecole Hardman/Marquez Valdes-Scantling/Kadarius Toney
Smith-Schuster has been a PPR machine for the last two weeks and has been a trusty target for Mahomes when healthy. You’d like to see him get into the endzone a little more often, but he is easily the best wide receiver on the team and is a fine WR2.
Valdes-Scantling caught a touchdown last week but had just three catches total for only 26 yards. He’s only topped four catches once this season and has just two total touchdowns. There’s always a chance he catches a deep ball or two, but Valdes-Scantling is too inconsistent to be trusted to be in your lineup.
Toney made his return from a hamstring injury last week but was eased back with just five snaps in which he caught one pass for five yards. He could get more involved this week, but there’s not enough of a track record with him to be in a fantasy lineup.
There was speculation that Hardman would return this week, but it seems he’s still not quite recovered from his abdominal injury. Even if he is able to play, he’ll likely be on a pitch count like Toney was last week.
TE Travis Kelce
After a few pedestrian (by his standards) weeks of production, Kelce caught 10 passes for 105 yards against the Texans last week. He is still easily pacing the tight end position in fantasy this year as he chases after his third 100-reception season. Kelce has a nice matchup against a banged-up Seahawks’ secondary this week.
Chiefs' defense/special teams
The Chiefs’ defense has underperformed against poor offenses as of late. It is doing a stellar job at getting to the QB with 43 sacks on the season, good for fourth-most in the league.
Besides that, however, it is giving up a ton of yards and not forcing a lot of turnovers. The Seahawks have enough firepower to move the ball and score, rendering the K.C. defense a candidate to be left on your bench this week.
K Harrison Butker
There’s no doubt that Butker is in a rut, having missed a career-high five field goals this season along with three extra points. There has been some controversy this week with whether Butker’s struggles are his fault or his placeholder Tommy Townsend’s, but regardless it is a frustrating situation for fantasy owners.
Butker has played at a high enough level to be given the benefit of the doubt that he’ll come out of this slump, and he has a great matchup against Seattle this week. I suggest riding it out with him.
QB Geno Smith
Smith has been perhaps the most surprising player of 2022, going from career backup to Pro Bowler. He leads all QBs in completion percentage and is seventh in passing yards. He’s coming off a down week against the San Francisco 49ers, but the Niners’ defense is one of the best in the league.
The Chiefs have allowed the most TD passes this season, making Smith one of the better starts of the week even without one of his top pass-catching targets in Tyler Lockett.
RB Kenneth Walker III
Walker has been battling through an ankle injury but is expected to play in this game. He has been hit or miss this season but has a great combination of size and speed and is capable of taking over a game.
Walker has a good matchup against an inconsistent Chiefs’ run defense, but his ankle injury and lack of production over the past month are a bit concerning. Running back is a shallow position, however, so Walker is a decent flex play this week.
WRs DK Metcalf/Marquise Goodwin
Metcalf is an automatic start no matter the matchup. Combine that with a matchup against a struggling Chiefs’ secondary, there aren’t many better starts at receiver this week than Metcalf. He already leads the Seahawks in receptions and could be in line for an even bigger workload with Lockett out.
Goodwin is the next man up in Lockett’s absence. He’s been inconsistent production-wise this season but did have 95 yards and a touchdown just two weeks ago. Goodwin is a speedy receiver who is capable of a big play on any given snap. Consider him a good flex play this week.
TEs Noah Fant/Will Dissly
Fant and Dissly make for a good tight end tandem, but their share in production doesn’t do fantasy owners any favors. TE is a very shallow position, so if you have to pick between the two, I would suggest Fant. The former Denver Bronco has nine more receptions and 84 more yards than Dissly, while both have three touchdowns on the season.
Seahawks' defense/special teams
The Seahawks have the second-worst run defense in the NFL and are average against the pass. Being without starting safety Ryan Neal, who is Pro Football Focus’ top-graded safety, could knock them down from average to bad against the pass. The Seahawks’ defense shouldn’t be even remotely considered against the Chiefs’ top-ranked offense.
K Jason Myers
Myers has been the most accurate kicker in the league this season, missing just one field goal and one extra point. Even though his stats have taken a slight dip due to the Seahawks’ recent offensive struggles, they should be able to score on a vulnerable Chiefs’ defense, making Myers a very good start this week.
