Well folks, this is it. The end of the line – for some, anyway.
In most fantasy football leagues, week 14 marks the end of the regular season. And for some fantasy managers, this means the end of the year in general. Things haven’t gone as planned. There will be no play-offs. The Grinch stole Christmas — and Cindy Lou, who doesn’t come to the rescue like Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Leonard Williams did last week in New York.
Williams was a one-man team defense in Seattle’s 26-21 win over the New York Jets. Really: Williams logged two sacks, blocked a punt and returned an Aaron Rodgers interception 92 yards for a touchdown.
The big man admitted to reporters the latter had almost worn out the 300-pounder.
“I remember running with it and I thought I was running fast,” Williams said. “All my teammates were hyping me and saying I was on the move. Once I hit 50, I actually wanted to pitch it to someone. I saw the whole cavalry running through the field. I literally just laid down. I was exhausted.”
That’s a dozen fantasy points, depending on your scoring system. Williams accounted for nearly all of Seattle’s fantasy defensive goals last week, and the Seahawks were one top-five team.
It is admittedly unlikely that Williams will repeat the feat on Sunday in Arizona. But two weeks ago, the Seahawks limited the Cardinals to just six points, sacked Kyler Murray five times and scored on a pick-six.
In this most important week, Seattle is at least a high-end streaming option.
THE DOUBTERS
Philadelphia Eagles (vs. Carolina Panthers)
Saquon Barkley’s fantastic season in Philly has taken all the marks, but Vic Fangio has turned a flawed defense that fell apart against the pass last year into the best defense in the league in terms of yards allowed per game and the highest scoring fantasy defense in the competition. the league since Week 7. While the Panthers have looked much more competitive over the past month, we’re talking about a three-win team that has the most through the first seven weeks of 2024 fantasy points per game on defense in the NFC.
Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. Cleveland Browns)
Yes, when these teams met two weeks ago, things didn’t go as planned for Pittsburgh. Star edge rusher TJ Watt was held in check and the Steelers managed just one sack. However, three takeaways salvaged a lackluster stat line, and Pittsburgh followed that up with four sacks, three takeaways and a defensive touchdown in a shootout win over the Cincinnati Bengals. The Browns remain one of the league leaders in sacks allowed and fantasy points given up to defenses, and there shouldn’t be a blizzard that would derail this rematch.
Buffalo Bills (at Los Angeles Rams)
Granted, the elements played a role in last week’s big win over the San Francisco 49ers, but the Bills still racked up two sacks, a trio of fumbles and just 10 points allowed en route to double-digit fantasy points. After thirteen weeks, the Bills rank a respectable seventh in fantasy points at the position, and while the Rams are in the mix in the NFC West, the team has struggled at times to protect Matthew Stafford and has been a plus for the defense – 13th in fantasy points per game surrendered to the position this year.
Chicago Bears (vs. San Francisco 49ers)
Things didn’t go the Bears’ way on Thanksgiving, but the defense can’t be blamed for that; Holding the Detroit Lions to 23 points is about all that can be asked of a defense. At this point in the season, the Bears rank ninth among all defenses in fantasy points. The 49ers aren’t a great matchup on defense, but San Fran’s offense has been destroyed by injuries — in last week’s loss to the Bills, the team lost running backs Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason to multi-week injuries. And while the weather was a factor, it appeared the Niners may have reached a breaking point.
Minnesota Vikings (vs. Atlanta Falcons)
The Vikings remain the highest scoring fantasy defense in the NFC, but as the big plays have declined in recent weeks along with the Vikings’ fantasy production. However, the Falcons may be just what the doctor ordered for the purple and gold. Kirk Cousins was terrible last week, throwing four interceptions. He hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass in his last three games. And over the past month, only the New York Giants have allowed more fantasy points per game to team defenses than the Falcons. This is a good place.
Don’t miss any episodes of Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry and Rotoworld football show all season long for the latest player news, help with distance transfers, start/sit advice and much more.
STREAMERS OF THE WORLD, UNITE!
Miami Dolphins (vs. New York Jets)
The Dolphins had built up some momentum by winning three straight, but Miami cooled off, literally and figuratively, on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field on Thanksgiving Night. However, if the Dolphins are a little cold, the Jets are in hibernation – New York has lost eight of nine, there is talk of Aaron Rodgers being benched, and the Jets have the twelfth most fantasy points per game this year given up to the defense. The Dolphins desperately need this win. The Jets really want this season to be over already.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (vs. Las Vegas)
The Buccaneers haven’t been particularly good defensively this season. Tampa ranks 28th in the league in total defense, 30th against the pass and is outside the top-20 in fantasy points. We also just saw Las Vegas quarterback Aidan O’Connell throw for 340 yards and two scores in last week’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. But the Raiders haven’t exactly excelled at sustaining offense this season, and the team is well within the top-10 in fantasy points per play allowed to the defense. Tampa is a viable streamer in Week 13.
Kansas City Chiefs (vs. Los Angeles Chargers)
Kansas City’s defense wasn’t anything to write home about; the team is barely in the top-20 in fantasy points for the season. The Chargers weren’t a great matchup for opposing defenses either; the Bolts rank outside the top-20 in fantasy points per game given up to the position. But the JK Dobbins-less Chargers offense we saw last week looked lost. And this is a chance for the Chiefs to make a statement in primetime – and bring the “race” in the AFC West to a virtual standstill.
Tennessee Titans (vs. Jacksonville Jaguars)
Aside from last week’s meltdown against the Washington Commanders, the Titans remain an excellent defensive team in some respects — second in the NFL in yards allowed and first in the league against the pass. But that success hasn’t exactly translated into fantasy: Tennessee ranks outside of the top 25 team defenses and has reached double figures in a game just three times this season. However, the up-and-coming Jaguars have been a plus for the defense this year, especially lately. Over the past month, Jacksonville has given up the ninth-most fantasy points per game for the position.
New Orleans Saints (at New York Giants)
It’s been a forgettable season for the Saints, with head coach Dennis Allen already fired. The defense hasn’t exactly set the world on fire either: only two teams have given up more yards per game, and the Saints are in the middle of the pack in fantasy points for the season. This week, however, the Saints draw the best fantasy matchup for defenses in the league in the past month – last week the Dallas Cowboys (another struggling defense) recorded six sacks, a pair of takeaways and a defensive touchdown.
CAVEAT EMPTOR, PEOPLE
Detroit Lions (vs. Green Bay Packers)
Detroit’s defense doesn’t get nearly the credit the offense gets for the team’s 11-1 start, but despite a mounting pile of injuries, the Lions remain a very difficult team to cover – fifth in the league with just 93, 5 meters per match. . The Ford Field crowd will undoubtedly be raucous Thursday night, but the Packers have the passing game talent and quarterback to take advantage of a Lions secondary that is the defense’s weak spot. You might also wonder at what point all the injuries in Motown finally start to take their toll.
Gary Davenport is a two-time Fantasy Sports Writers Association Football Writer of the Year. Follow him on X @IDPSharks.
