Biggest Week 14 Studs & Stinkers (Fantasy Football)

With Week 14 mostly in the books, The Fantasy Footballers review and react to the Studs & Duds performances on the latest episode. Here, I’ll highlight the best and worst fantasy finishes from Week 14 and list their upcoming schedule.  Note that all fantasy points are in the 0.5-point scoring format. To get the full breakdown of Week 14 performances, don’t miss Week 14 Studs & Stinkers + Weekly Rewind, Awesome Ekeler!

Biggest Studs

Drew Brees, QB Saints

Week 14 vs SF: 29/40 for 349 passing yards & 5 TD | 1 yard rushing TD

Upcoming Schedule: IND, @TEN / @CAR

The Saints are one of the top four or so teams in the NFL, as evidenced by their performance on Sunday.  Led by Drew Brees, the Saints put up huge points against a stingy San Francisco defense. Brees recorded an impressive 6 total touchdowns, including passing touchdowns to four different receivers.  He earned his spot on this list by recording the fourth-best fantasy QB performance so far this year. Brees has another home matchup in Week 15 against the Colts. Brees has historically been much better at home than on the road.  Fire him up again in Week 15!

Drew Lock, QB Broncos

Week 14 at HOU: 22/27 for 309 passing yards, 3 TD, & 1 INT | 3 rushes for 15 yards

Upcoming Schedule: @KC, DET / OAK

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This was the week where the Drews shined.  Drew Lock looked excellent, especially for a rookie.  Lock’s passer rating was 135.96, which is incredibly impressive even against a beatable Texans defense.  While he should not be trusted in 2019 outside of risky 2 QB leagues, it appears that Lock will be a stream worthy QB in 2020.  Lock has looked very good since starting for the Broncos, which bodes well for the future of Courtland Sutton, Noah Fant, and the running backs.

A.J. Brown, WR Titans

Week 14 at OAK: 5 receptions for 153 yards & 2 TD on 7 targets | 1 rush for 13 yards

Upcoming Schedule: HOU, NO / @HOU

Brown is Tannehill’s favorite target, commanding 24% of the targets and 40% of the receiving yards over the past three games.  Want an even bigger sample size? Since Week 8, Brown has averaged 13.2 fantasy pts/game and he’s outscored Corey Davis (4 pts/g) every single week.  Tannehill, who got the start Week 7, has a clear cut favorite target in A.J. Brown. Brown has been up and down in recent weeks and remains in the flex discussion for Week 15.  Brown is a candidate for a tier jump entering the 2020 season, as Tannehill will likely be back in the starting role.

Aaron Jones, RB Packers

Week 14 vs WAS – 16 rushes for 134 yards & 1 TD | 6 receptions for 58 yards on 5 targets

Upcoming Schedule: CHI, @MIN / @DET

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The offense ran through Jones on Sunday, which was a nice reward for loyal owners who stomached three duds in the prior four weeks.  The Packers play the Bears in Week 15, who are strong against QBs but the middle of the pack against RBs. Jones should be productive. We’ve seen Jones disappear, several times in matchups where the Packers were down.  The Bears held the Packers to 10 points in Week 1, and Jones struggled. Aaron Jones has five games this season with 6 or fewer fantasy points. He has the same number of games with 23 or more fantasy points. Jones remains a must-start with a low floor, especially against Week 15 and 16 opponents that the Packers could struggle against.

Biggest Stinkers

The stinkers showed up big this week…

Russell Wilson, QB Seahawks

Week 14 at LAR: 22/36 for 245 passing yards & 1 INT | 5 rushes for 28 yards

Upcoming Schedule: @CAR, ARI / SF

Wilson disappointed in a big way in the first week of fantasy playoffs this week.  In fact, he’s only surpassed 17 fantasy points once in his past seven games. Wilson exploded at the beginning of the season but has been pedestrian since that time.  To put it into perspective, Ryan Tannehill has outscored Russell Wilson in five of the last seven games. While Russell Wilson is an elite NFL QB, he has struggled recently as a fantasy producer.  He now has a road matchup against the 10th best defense against opposing QB. You can still play Wilson Week 15 because he is the definition of a game-changer, but temper expectations. Conversely, he has a juicy matchup at home against the Cardinals for Championship week.

Alvin Kamara, RB Saints

Week 14 vs SF: 13 rushes for 25 yards | 4 receptions for 18 yards on 6 targets

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Upcoming Schedule: IND, @TEN / @CAR

Kamara hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 3.  Let’s dive even deeper… Excluding Week 11 (17.2 pts), September 22nd was the last time he eclipsed 15 fantasy points.  It’s wild to think that Kamara has been so much less productive this season, especially in a matchup versus the 49ers where the Saints scored 46 points.  Kamara should be viewed more as an RB2 in the playoffs.

Tight End Special

Mark Andrews, TE Ravens

Week 14 at BUF: 1 reception for 14 yards on 3 targets

Upcoming Schedule: NYJ, @CLE, / PIT

Austin Hooper, TE Falcons

Week 14 vs CAR: 2 receptions for 32 yards on 6 targets

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Upcoming Schedule: @SF, JAX, / @TB

Mark Andrews and Austin Hooper were stinkers this week when you needed them most.  They are also both playing top-5 defenses against opposing fantasy TE in Week 15. Despite the challenges, Andrews and Hooper should both be started in Week 15.  Andrews nearly had a TD grab, Hooper still had six targets despite only catching two. Now that Calvin Ridley is unfortunately out for the rest of the season, things are looking even better for Hooper.  START YOUR STUDS!

Note that Mark Andrews suffered an injury that appears to be minor as of this writing.  Watch for updates throughout the week, and be sure to follow our own Matthew Betz (@TheFantasyPT) for injury news.

Other Week 14 Studs

QB

• Jameis Winston vs IND — 33/45 for 456/4/3 — 6/5/1 rushing

• • @DET, HOU / ATL
• Mitch Trubisky vs DAL — 23/31 for 244/3/1 — 10/63/1 rushing

• • @GB, KC / @MIN
• Jimmy Garoppolo @NO — 26/35 for 349/4/1

• • ATL, LAR / @SEA 
• Ryan Tannehill @Oak for 21/27 for 391/3/1 — 4/19/0 rushing

• • HOU, NO / @HOU
• Deshaun Watson vs DEN — 28/50 for 292/1/2 — 6/44/2 rushing

• • @TEN, @TB / TEN
• Philip Rivers @JAX — 16/22 for 314/3/0

• • MIN, OAK / @KC

RB

• Austin Ekeler @JAX — 8/101/0 — 4/112/1 on 5 targets

• • MIN, OAK / @KC
    • Melvin Gordon @JAX — 12/55/1 — 5/29/0 on 5 targets

• Joe Mixon @CLE — 23/146/1 — 3/40/0 on 4 targets

• • NE, @MIA / CLE
• Derrick Henry @OAK — 18/103/2 — 1/6/0 on 1 target

• • HOU, NO / @HOU
• Raheem Mostert @NO — 10/69/1 — 2/40/1 on 2 targets

• • ATL, LAR / @SEA
• Ezekiel Elliott @CHI — 19/81/2 — 2/12/0 on 5 targets

• • LAR, @PHI /  WAS

WR

• Emmanuel Sanders @ NO — 7/157/1 on 9 targets — 35 yard passing TD

• • ATL, LAR / @SEA 

• Diontae Johnson @ARI — 6/60/1 on 8 targets — 1/16/0 rushing — 85-yard punt return

• •  BUF, @NYJ / @BAL
• Michael Thomas vs SF — 11/134/1 on 15 targets

• • IND, @TEN / @CAR
• Robert Woods vs SEA — 7/98/1 on 9 targets — 2/29/0 rushing

• • @DAL, @SF / ARI
• Robby Anderson vs MIA — 7/116/1 on 11 targets — 1/4/0 rushing

• •  @BAL, PIT / @BUF
• Julian Edelman vs KC — 8/95/1 on 12 targets — 1/8/0 rushing

• • @CIN, BUF / MIA
• Allen Robinson vs DAL — 5/48/2 on 8 targets

• • @GB, KC / @MIN
• Zach Pascal @TB — 5/74/1 on 9 targets 

• • @NO, CAR / @JAX

TE             

• Noah Fant  @HOU —  4/113/1 on 4 targets

• • @KC, DET / OAK
• Jared Cook vs SF — 2/64/2 on 2 targets

• • IND, @TEN / @CAR
• George Kittle @NO —  6/67/1 on 8 targets

• • ATL, LAR / @SEA 
• Tyler Higbee vs SEA — 7/116/0 on 11 targets

• • @DAL, @SF / ARI
• Travis Kelce @NE — 7/66/0 on 9 targets — 1/4/1 rushing

• • DEN, @CHI / LAC
• Ian Thomas @ATL — 5/57/1 on 10 targets

• • SEA, @IND / NO

Other Week 14 Stinkers

QB

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• Baker Mayfield vs CIN — 11/24/92/0/2 — 2/13/1 rushing

• • @ARI, BAL / @CIN

RB

• Sony Michel vs KC — 5/8/0 — 1/1/0 on 1 target

• • @CIN, BUF / MIA
• Benny Snell @ARI — 16/41/0 — 1 fumble

• •  BUF, @NYJ / @BAL
• Chiefs RBs
  • LeSean McCoy @NE — 11/39/0 — 1/4/0 on 3 targets
  • Darwin Thompson @NE — 4/7/0 — 4/36/0 on 5 targets

• • • DEN, @CHI / LAC
• Tevin Coleman @NO — 3/6/0

• • ATL, LAR / @SEA

WR           

• Davante Adams vs WAS — 4/41/0 on 6 targets

• • CHI, @MIN / @DET
• Tyler Lockett @LAR — 4/43/0/ on 6 targets

• • @CAR, ARI / SF
• Odell Beckham vs CIN — 2/39/0 on 5 targets

• • @ARI, BAL / @CIN
• Courtland Sutton @HOU — 5/34/0 on 7 targets

• • @KC, DET / OAK
• Marquise Brown @BUF — 3/-2/0 on 3 targets

• • NYJ, @CLE, / PIT
• John Brown vs BAL — 3/26/0 on 8 targets

• • @PIT, @NE, / NYJ
• Tyrell Williams vs TEN — 3/35/0 on 4 targets

• • JAX, @LAC / @DEN
• Brandin Cooks vs SEA — GOOSE

• • @DAL, @SF / ARI

TE           

• Kyle Rudolph vs DET — 1/14/0 on 3 targets

• • @LAC, GB / CHI
• Jack Doyle @TB — 2/27/0 on 6 targets
  • @NO, CAR / @JAX
• Jacob Hollister @LAR — 4/34/0 on 6 targets

• • @CAR, ARI / SF