For those who had Pittsburgh Steelers kicker Chris Boswell in their lineups last Sunday, good for you. In the history of the NFL – regular season and postseason – nobody else had made six field goals in a game more than twice. On Sunday, Boswell did it for the fourth time.
Never underestimate kickers in your lineup, especially with the potential of bad weather coming during the fantasy playoffs.
Fantasy football risers
San Francisco 49ers WR Jauan Jennings – Jennings had one huge game in September but cooled off considerably after that and missed two games in October, cratering his fantasy value. In the two games since returning from injury, Jennings has been targeted 22 times, catching 17 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown. He’s making it hard to keep him on a fantasy bench, because he is the most targeted receiver on the 49ers.
New Orleans Saints TE Taysom Hill – It’s difficult to explain why Hill qualifies as a tight end because he plays quarterback, running back and wide receiver, too. The problem with Hill is you never know when the huge games are coming. Hill typically ends a season with 8-10 touchdowns, but they come in four games, and he does nothing in the others.
Cleveland Browns WR Jerry Jeudy – Nobody has benefited more from the QB switch in Cleveland than Jeudy. In his first seven games with the Browns, Jeudy caught 21 passes for 266 yards and seemed invisible. In three games with Jameis Winston as the starter, Jeudy has caught 18 passes for 294 yards, posting his three best yardage games of the season. He’s making his case to be in the lineup.
Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff – Goff remains on the waiver wire in a lot of leagues because he’s one-dimensional on a run-heavy team. However, in his last eight games, he has thrown two or more touchdowns in seven of them (19 total) and has completed 80% or more of his passes in four of the last five games. He doesn’t need to throw a lot when completing four of five passes.
Buffalo Bills WR Khalil Shakir – Entering his bye, Shakir isn’t great, but he’s consistent. He has caught six or more passes in each of the last five games and put up weekly numbers of 13.5, 19.9, 11.0, and 15.0 – all without scoring a touchdown. If the Bills offense opens up the red-zone playbook, his numbers will go higher.
Fantasy football fallers
Miami Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle – In his last nine games, Waddle has caught just 28 passes for 295 yards and one TD. In the four games since Tua Tagovailoa returned to the lineup, Waddle has caught just 11 passes for 135 yards and one TD. His weekly point totals since Week 2 are 8.5, 6.6, 7.6, 8.6, 2.1, 8.5, 7.6, 8.6, and 5.7. Anyone who has him has benched him. They should cut him because that’s a long line of brutal.
Green Bay Packers QB Jordan Love – Love isn’t a scrambler – his 18 yards Sunday were his season high. What has made Love frustrating is after an epic start with 15 TD passes in his first five games, Love has thrown just one TD pass in his last three. One-dimensional quarterbacks need to throw multiple touchdowns consistently or you benched them. Love is at that point.
Indianapolis Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr. – Pittman was Indy’s version of Amon-Ra St. Brown in terms of consistent weekly catch totals. From 2021-23 (49 games), Pittman had five or more receptions in 35 of them. In 10 games this season, he had five or more catches in just three of them. Over the last three games, Pittman has just seven receptions for 76 yards and no TDs. He’s the WR3 on the Colts at the moment.
Atlanta Falcons TE Kyle Pitts – He’s no stranger to this list, because Pitts one of the all-time underachievers for his weekly fantasy value. After a two-touchdown game in late-October, the Kool-Aid drinkers came back. Over his last three games, he has caught just six passes for 75 yards and no TDs. Averaging 4.5 points a game gets you back out of starting lineups.
Chicago Bears WR Keenan Allen – Allen was expected to be a high-volume security blanket for Caleb Williams, but that hasn’t happened. He hasn’t had a 45-yard receiving game as a Bear — over his last four games, Allen has put up weekly point totals of 5.9, 7.6, 9.4, and 8.1. He’s the WR3 in the Bears offense, which isn’t known to be prolific through the air.
