Week 14 is upon us — typically the final week to make the playoffs in fantasy football. We have six teams on hiatus once again after a full slate a week ago, so the pool is thinner than usual, leaving us with a few recommendations who would lean closer to sleeper territory most weeks.
You will have to make do with my advice for Week 14. I’m filling in for Daniel Dobish, who under the weather, so we wish him a speedy recovery and hope he’s back in the saddle for the first round of the fantasy playoffs.
Doing start/sit articles can be a little challenging. The players featured on the list below should not be taken as “must starts” or “must sits.” Instead, these are more suggestions on what we believe managers should do with fringe players heading into the weekend. The choice is ultimately up to the manager.
Just because a player is listed as a “start” doesn’t mean he should be put in the lineup over the secure, bona fide studs. Vice versa for the “sits.” If there’s no better option on the waiver wire or the bench, a manager shouldn’t automatically sit the player. That’s why these can be tricky waters to navigate.
Feel free to ask any specific start/sit questions via X, formerly Twitter, (@TheHuddle), or check out our start/bench list for Week 14:
Quarterbacks
Start ‘Em
Aidan O’Connell, Las Vegas Raiders at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: After missing practice Thursday with an illness, O’Connell was back out there Friday and should be fine. The trip across country is always a bit of a concern for acclimation reasons, but that tends to be overblown. This one is simple: The Buccaneers are capable of putting Vegas into a negative game script from the jump, and the Raiders have no running game to speak of, so even checkdown passing adds up for O’Connell padding his stats. Quarterbacks have averaged 275.7 passing yards (3rd most) and the sixth-highest fantasy points per play when facing Tampa Bay in 2024, and this also is the No. 2 opponent to face for one-dimensional, non-rushing quarterbacks, like O’Connell.
Kirk Cousins, Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings: Since taking over as the full-time starter in Washington, this is Cousins’ worst per-game fantasy season by a large margin. He is coming off three consecutive contests without a touchdown pass vs. six picks thrown, which is difficult to reconcile given he tossed seven TDs against no interceptions in the pair of outings prior to the slump. Cousins obviously has the “revenge game” narrative on his side, though it’s dubious for someone of his demeanor and the circumstances surrounding his exit. Either way, Minnesota has the offensive chops to force Cousins to heave the rock, and with a highly drafted rookie quarterback lurking, the 36-year-old knows he’s hurtling toward a career-defining stretch to close the season. Signal callers have managed 264.7 yards and 1.5 passing TDs vs. the Vikes this season, and CB Stephon Gilmore won’t play. In 2024, 50% of quarterbacks have reached 20-plus fantasy points vs. Minnesota without a rushing TD and 18 or fewer rushing yards.
Sit ‘Em
Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers vs. Chicago Bears: It’s no secret the Bears are mired in great turmoil after losing seven straight games in … let’s just say “clever” ways prior to the dismissal of head coach Matt Eberflus. The defense has remained one of the few positives, giving up only 11 touchdown passes to quarterbacks on the year and just 225.2 passing yards. In the last five weeks, the position has done slightly more damage, taking this from the second-toughest unit to the ninth-worst matchup. No quarterback has thrown for three touchdowns yet, and only Trevor Lawrence, Sam Darnold and Jared Goff have passed for two scores. Start Purdy if you absolutely must, but his ceiling is dangerously low, especially without his blindside protector.
Jameis Winston, Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers: At this stage of his career, one would need to be living under a rock to not understand what Winston offers. Yes, you’re going to get those eye-popping days, such as last week’s 42-pointer, but he’s also well known for his epic meltdowns when the touchdowns don’t outweigh the rash of turnovers (see Week 9, Week 12). The Steelers have held QBs to fewer touchdown passes (12) than interceptions thrown (13), and the 237.1 yards per game allowed (11th most) is basically the solitary highlight of this matchup profile. Joe Burrow and Dak Prescott are the only to post more than 19 fantasy points against Pittsburgh this year.
Running backs
Start ‘Em
Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Los Angeles Chargers: Pacheco was eased back into action last week following a fractured leg that cost him most of the year, and he acquitted himself well on just seven totes, going for 44 yards (6.3 YPC). In the last five weeks, LA has surrendered 108.4 rushing yards per game to the position, and while only two of 119 attempts scored, four of the seven double-digit PPR efforts on the year came in the last three games alone. Bank on a much bigger workload this week for the speedy back.
James Conner, Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks: To be fair, most gamers aren’t sitting Conner in a week without byes. The focus here is mostly his disastrous Week 12 meeting with the Seahawks, which left the veteran reliant on 5-41-0 worth of aerial work to still fall short of 10 PPR points. Conner ran seven times for an absurd eight yards, and he now has scored only twice in the last eight outings. Seattle has given up virtually nothing to RBs of late, allowing no scores over 74 attempts since Week 8, though the matchup is much more appealing prior to that stretch. The position scored eight times in the first eight games, and dual-threat types have fared well. There’s ample reason to expect a useful rebound from Conner in this one.
Sit ‘Em
Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers: These divisional foes met two weeks ago in a Cleveland blizzard, and Chubb rushed 20 times for 59 yards, scoring twice to generate 19 total PPR points on the day. The Steelers have allowed eight rushing TDs to the position on the year. While the position has produced 10 double-digit efforts in 2024, and this matchup is 15% better than league average in the last five weeks, 21 points is the high-water mark. Only two backs have exceeded Chubb’s previous effort, and the weather should be markedly better this week, creating more chances for Pittsburgh to force Cleveland into a pass-happy situation that simply didn’t exist in the last battle. At best, Chubb is a risky flier for a cheap TD and little more. Whether you want to chase that is a personal decision.
Gus Edwards, Los Angeles Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs: The Gus Bus should remain parked this week with a trip to KC, the finest defense of his position in fantasy. Edwards offers nothing as a receiver, so he could be entirely out of the game plan if the Chiefs manage to beat up on the Bolts early in this one. Only four backs have made it north of 10 PPR points vs. this defense in 2024, and the season-high effort is a lowly 14.7.
Wide receivers
Start ‘Em
Amari Cooper, Buffalo Bills at Los Angeles Rams: Cooper’s wrist injury is behind him, and weather will be far more conducive for passing success this week inside the open-air dome the Rams call home. Since Week 7, when the veteran produced 66 yards and a touchdown on his four grabs, an injured Cooper had no more than 55 yards in any of the three outings, totaling a lineup-killing six catches for 70 total yards. The Bills boast a quality pass defense, so it’s unlikely the Rams hoist a large number early, but that doesn’t mean Buffalo won’t be aggressive. The Rams have allowed big plays to the position of late, yielding the second-most PPR points per touch, fifth-highest yards-per-reception average (15.5), and a touchdown every seven catches — the highest rate in football since Week 8.
Jordan Addison, Minnesota Vikings vs. Atlanta Falcons: The second-year pro was trending in the right direction coming out of the midway point of the season, registering a TD in Week 9 — his first since Minnesota’s fourth game of the year. That decent outing was followed up with a 2-25-0 line on five looks. Addison shrugged it off by bouncing back with 15.1 and 30.2 PPR points over the next two games, respectively, before returning to mediocrity (9.4) last week. The matchup ahead is evenly distributed as one of the best of the week. Over the last five games, Atlanta has ceded the fourth-most catches, eighth-most yards, second-most PPR points, and a TD grab at the fifth-highest frequency in relation to receptions allowed. With all eyes on Justin Jefferson, coupled with a difficult matchup on the ground for Minnesota, Addison is poised for another strong display.
Sit ‘Em
Garrett Wilson, New York Jets at Miami Dolphins: From Week 5 to Week 9, Wilson was one of the hottest things going at the position, racking up 24-plus points three times and at least 11.1 points in the other two appearances. Since, he has 9.1 points bookending a 5.8-pointer in Week 11 before the Jets’ bye. His target tally has increased in consecutive games without it translating to an uptick in production — all while receiving mate Davante Adams‘ production has improved. Miami certainly could (probably will) put New York in a negative game script earlier than not, but it shouldn’t matter. Aaron Rodgers is a shell of his former self, the injured-weakened running game isn’t likely to keep defenders honest, and WRs have been thoroughly owned by the Dolphins in 2024. This is the worst matchup on the year and 10th-toughest in the last five games.
Xavier Legette, Carolina Panthers at Philadelphia Eagles: Not too many gamers are starting the rookie on a weekly basis, but having six bye teams may compel you to give him a whirl. Legette faces a defense that has permitted a mere two touchdowns over the last 50 catches by wideouts, and the matchup is the toughest since Week 8. Carolina has shown some life on this side of the ball of late, and Legette has remained rather consistent with either three or four catches and between 33 and 56 yards in each of the last five games. However, failing to top 9.6 PPR points in three straight outings indicates too little upside to chance it in the face of a damning matchup.
Tight ends
Start ‘Em
Will Dissly, Los Angeles Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs: At the most volatile position in the game and during a week with extra teams on vacation, you take what you can get. Dissly has been inconsistently respectable in 2024, which was on full display the past three weeks. He went for 18.0 PPR in Week 11, following it up with a 4-47-0 line, and culminating in a one-target goose egg last week. Look for a modest improvement vs. Kansas City’s porous defense of the position. In the last five games, TEs have averaged top-12 figures for receptions, yards, and PPR points. Fantasy’s seventh-softest opponent since Week 9 kicked off, this is the No. 4 matchup to exploit over the course of 2024. His value rises if WR Ladd McConkey (knee, shoulder) cannot play through his questionable tag.
Grant Calcaterra, Philadelphia Eagles vs. Carolina Panthers: No Dallas Goedert (knee) thrusts Calcaterra into the TE1 role for this passing game, and he benefits from the expected return of WR DeVonta Smith (hamstring) as well as the attention directed toward slowing Philly’s other dangerous weapons. That brings us to one key point, though, which makes this relatively unknown tight end even riskier is Carolina has been thrashed by running backs, and Saquon Barkley is shredding the NFL. In the last five weeks, TEs have averaged strong stats of their own, going for the ninth-most catches, sixth-most yards, and fifth-highest ease of scoring.
Sit ‘Em
Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears at San Francisco 49ers: With only three useful stat lines on the year, perhaps no one is feeling the urge to play Kmet even with expanded byes, but it should be noted he’s among the worst options available for those seeking a warm body. San Francisco has granted the second-fewest catches and only one TD in the last five weeks, allowing only two more scores on the year. TEs have averaged the fifth-fewest PPR points in both the short- and long-term outlooks.
T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings vs. Atlanta Falcons: Is he outright worthy of being benched? That depends on your options, league size, and expectations. Hockenson has been all or nothing since returning from last year’s ACL tear, and he has a poor matchup that could see his quarterback relying heavily on a much clearer path to success — Minnesota’s talented wide receivers. Hockenson’s opponent has permitted the 15th-most PPR points on the season, which was inflated from two rushing scores against — not quite Hock’s game. Otherwise, one in 18 catches by the position scored, and this is the 11th-toughest team to face for TE receiving yards.
