.jpg)
Last week my wideout picks finished 1-for-3. I whiffed on Jamison Crowder and Amari Cooper, while Odell Beckham finished just three points behind the leading receiver for the week. As for the rest of my analysis, I was pretty en pointe and I hope to continue in the same direction for Week 15. Below is my full analysis for each outside matchup, while even further below are my “Nostra-Dom-Us picks of the week.”
| Off | Left WR | Def | Right CB | Analysis |
| ARI | Larry Fitzgerald | NO | Sterling Moore | The more likely chance in this scenario is that Delvin Breaux will be following Fitz around, however that all is contingent on whether Breaux is healthy for this contest or not, as he sat out practice on Wednesday afternoon. In any event, I always like the Cardinals ability to move Fitz around in the formation, getting him the matchups and looks that favor him. 6 rec, 80 yds, 1 TD is not out of the question for him against an always vulnerable Saints defense. |
| ATL | Julio Jones | SF | Jimmie Ward | It's tough for me to give a projection here because at the moment, Julio is 100-percent questionable – if you bear with my extreme oxymoron there. If he suits up, I always like Julio's chances, however if he doesn’t, obviously pass on the star wideout. It's that simple. |
| BAL | Steve Smith Sr. | PHI | Nolan Carroll | It appears that Smith has mentally checked out, as he stormed off the field during practice on Thursday and has been dropping some pretty cryptic quotes after tough losses lately. I would stay away from him based off of that alone, but also taking into account that he has struggled of late and plans on retiring after this season, his future projections don't appear too great. |
| BUF | Sammy Watkins | CLE | Jamar Taylor | As I will outline below, Watkins is one of my favorite plays of the week. He more likely than not will draw Joe Haden in this matchup rather than Taylor, but that shouldn't bother him too much now that he appears back to 100-percent healthy. |
| CAR | Kelvin Benjamin | WAS | Josh Norman | Benjamin and Cam Newton haven't been on the same page since the trees still had leaves and Norman is still every bit as elite as he was last season. This is a matchup to avoid. |
| CHI | Alshon Jeffery | GB | Quinten Rollins | Rollins is just a week removed from his return from groin surgery, while Jeffery will be seeing his first action since being suspended for PED use over a month ago. I tend to favor Rollins in this matchup considering he's already made his return, is playing on a defense that just picked off Russell Wilson five times last week, and that Jeffery has Matt Barkley throwing him the football. This is not to say that Jeffery can't be a sneaky play this week in GPP, but I really don't trust him as the typical lineup cornerstone that he has always been. |
| CIN | Tyler Boyd | PIT | Ross Cockrell | Boyd continues to consistently produce about 5 rec, 50 yds per game since A.J. Green went down about a month ago. If that is good enough for your fantasy team then so be it because that is what I expect from him once again this weekend. |
| CLE | Corey Coleman | BUF | Stephon Gillmore | RGIII looked really rusty last week against the Bengals and thus Coleman failed to produce. Until I see evidence of Griffin getting his game back on track, I can't trust Coleman. |
| DAL | Dez Bryant | TB | Brent Grimes | Dez, for the second time this season, was shutdown by Janoris Jenkins. While I don't expect the same to happen here, this Tampa Bay defense should not be taken lightly. Also keep in mind that the Cowboys offense has not been the same over the last few weeks as it was for most of this season. They are slumping and so is Dez. |
| DEN | Demaryius Thomas | NE | Logan Ryan | Since Week 1, Thomas has caught no less than five passes. Last week Thomas hauled in a season-high 10 balls for another seasn-high 126 yards. I don't expect that type of production against an improved New England defense this week, however there is no reason that he can't catch at least five passes for 80 yards. |
| DET | Golden Tate | NYG | Janoris Jenkins | Jenkins has shutdown every receiver in his path this season and has been the heartbeat of this drastically improved Giants defense this season. I don't see any reason that Golden Tate would knock him off his All-Pro path this weekend. |
| GB | Jordy Nelson | CHI | Bryce Callahan | Quietly, this Bears secondary has been really good over the last month, however I still don't believe that they have the chops to keep Nelson out of the end zone this week. I will project a low yardage total from Nelson, but he will score. |
| HOU | DeAndre Hopkins | JAX | Jalen Ramsey | Ramsey may very well end up being the defensive rookie of the year, while Hopkins may be the biggest fantasy bust not named Todd Gurley this season. Thus, I will be passing on this matchup. |
| IND | Phillip Dorsett | MIN | Xavier Rhodes | With Donte Moncrief out, Dorsett will get the start at left flanker opposite T.Y. Hilton. He saw eight targets last week, however struggled with drops and inconsistent route running. If Rhodes is on him this week, you can forget about Dorsett, however he may have a chance to break free once or twice if he draws Terence Newman. |
| JAX | Allen Robinson | HOU | Johnathan Joseph | The Texans secondary has been impressive this season, while Robinson has not. I'm staying far away from this one. |
| KC | Jeremy Maclin | TEN | Jason McCourty | Maclin has a chance here in this one. Tennessee has the second worst pass defense in the league and it can largely be attributed to their defensive backs. Maclin has been disappointing this season, however he has a chance for GPP value if he can get into the end zone this week. |
| LA | Kenny Britt | SEA | DeShawn Shead | Britt continues to produce as the Rams number one receiver. He likely will draw Richard Sherman more often than not on Thursday night, however keep in mind that Britt did manage to burn Sherman once for a TD last season, so he has the potential to still produce in this one. I won't bank on it, but you may be able to get some production by a low owned player here. |
| MIA | DeVante Parker | NYJ | Buster Skrine | With Matt Moore throwing him passes for the foreseeable future, I can't give you a realistic expectation here. I would stay away from Parker this week for that exact reason, despite the Jets secondary issues. |
| MIN | Stefon Diggs | IND | Vontae Davis | Diggs drew a tough matchup in Jalen Ramsey last week so his numbers were understandably mediocre. This week he can take on the declining Vontae Davis and should have better luck. Start him as you would any other week. |
| NE | Chris Hogan | DEN | Chris Harris | Hogan dominated the Ravens last week, but against this incredible Denver secondary, I do not expect the same to occur. Stay away from this one here if possible. |
| NO | Michael Thomas | ARI | Marcus Cooper | Thomas slowed down last week, but should be able to manage himself against Cooper this week, while Patrick Peterson focuses his attention towards Brandin Cooks. I expect plenty of targets headed Thomas' way in this matchup, which should spell some nice production for him. |
| NYG | Odell Beckham | DET | Nevin Lawson | Beckham is more likely to draw Darius Slay, but at this point Deion Sanders could be covering him and I would question the outcome. Beckham is the most dangerous playmaker in the game right now and should be treated as an unquestionable WR1 each week, regardless of matchup. |
| NYJ | Brandon Marshall | MIA | Xavien Howard | Marshall is really banged up and Bryce Petty doesn't seem to look in anyone else's direction other than Robby Anderson's. Skip Marshall this week. |
| OAK | Michael Crabtree | SD | Casey Hayward | Crabtree is dealing with a bum finger, however he is not in doubt this weekend. While he will be playing, he will be less than 100-percent in a crucial divisional game. He's playable, but unreliable at this point. |
| PHI | Jordan Matthews | BAL | Jimmy Smith | The PPR machine proved his worth once again last week against the Redskins. He will have a tougher draw this week against the Ravens slot coverage, however he should still end up posting his regular numbers (sub-100 yards, 7+ rec). |
| PIT | Antonio Brown | CIN | Adam Jones | Brown can handle himself against anyone, it is just a matter of whether Big Ben will throw him the ball or not. With no snow in the forecast, I expect that Ben will look Brown's way more often this week, making him a WR1. |
| SD | Travis Benjamin | OAK | Sean Smith | Dontrelle Inman and Tyrell Williams are the wideouts to own in this offense. Benjamin hasn't been relevant since Halloween. |
| SF | Torrey Smith | ATL | Jalen Collins | Smith remains useless as always, especially considering the current state of this 49ers passing game. |
| SEA | Doug Baldwin | LA | E.J. Gaines | Baldwin has been getting open, but the problem is that Russell Wilson has been struggling to get him the ball accurately. I expect that Wilson will turn it around, which will bode well for Baldwin's numbers down the stretch here. |
| TB | Adam Humphries | DAL | Anthony Brown | Humphires is a nice player, but he just doesn't see enough targets to be considered relevant. |
| TEN | Rishard Matthews | KC | Phillip Gaines | Matthews has slowed down a bit lately, however I like him this weekend against a weak Chiefs secondary. He could be in line for some big numbers if Marcus Mariota can get his game back on track. |
| WAS | Pierre Garçon | CAR | Daryl Worley | Garçon has caught at least five passes in 9 out of his 13 games this season. Consider him in PPR formats for the most part, while he can have some GPP value this week against an underwhelming Carolina secondary. |
| Off | Right WR | Def | Left CB | Analysis |
| ARI | J.J. Nelson | NO | Delvin Breaux | I outline in more detail below, I like Nelson this week because of circumstance. The Cardinals need his home run hitting ability now more than ever with the loss of Michael Floyd. Luckily he will likely draw Sterling Moore rather than Breaux in this matchup. |
| ATL | Mohamed Sanu | SF | Tramaine Brock | Sanu has been a very inconsistent play this season and I expect that to continue once he returns this week against the 49ers. While I like his matchup, it all depends if Matt Ryan chooses to look his way. If Julio Jones does not play, my fantasy love for him will increase tenfold. |
| BAL | Mike Wallace | PHI | Leodis McKelvin | Over the last five weeks, Wallace has racked up receiving yards between the very specific parameters of 52-62 yards in each game. I see no reason to second guess this trend, while his touchdown production is always a crapshoot. That makes him a WR3 this week. |
| BUF | Robert Woods | CLE | Joe Haden | Woods is useless and has been since his Week 9 explosion. So long as Sammy Watkins is back on the field, his production will remain very limited. |
| CAR | Ted Ginn Jr. | WAS | Bashaud Breeland | Ginn's touchdown streak ended last week, while he isn't likely to extend it this week because his value comes almost exclusively on the random chanced deep ball each week. I will almost always advise staying away from Ginn. |
| CHI | Cameron Meredith | GB | Damarious Randall | Meredith has been a nice surprise this season, but his production is likely to go down a bit now with the return of Alshon Jeffery. The good news is that he is likey to be the wideout that remains in the starting lineup as opposed to Josh Bellamy. |
| CIN | Brandon LaFell | PIT | William Gay | In this offense, LaFell remains far more inconsistent than rookie Tyler Boyd. I would advise staying away from LaFell each week and rather Boyd, despite LaFell's higher touchdown upside. |
| CLE | Terrelle Pryor | BUF | Ronald Darby | The Bills secondary has improved over the second half of the season and Pryor did not look great last week. I expect that he will somewhat get back on track, but reclaiming his WR2 status will be tough in this matchup. |
| DAL | Terrance Williams | TB | Vernon Hargreaves | Williams is always good for clearing a secondary over the top at least a few times per year and he did it just last week against the Giants. The Bucs will be looking for it this week after watching last week's film, so I'm low on Williams in this matchup against a good rookie corner in Hargreaves. |
| DEN | Emmanuel Sanders | NE | Malcolm Butler | Sanders has been targeted a ton lately, and while I don't love his matchup by any means, he should at the least serve as a viable PPR threat this coming weekend. He has proven touchdown upside and 100-plus yard potential of late, but I'm going to temper my expectations against this improved and angry New England defensive unit. Butler vs. Sanders should be a battle, just as Thomas vs. Butler will be as well when they line up across from each other. |
| DET | Marvin Jones | NYG | Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie | DRC is one of the leaders on this red hot Giants secondary. Jones on the other hand has been ice cold since his unbelievable start to the season. You can tell how I feel about this one. |
| GB | Randall Cobb | CHI | Tracy Porter | Cobb has been unhealthy, untargeted, and unproductive for most of the second half of this season. I don't see that trend changing now that Aaron Rodgers has caught fire with other targets and offensive weapons at his disposal. DeVante Adams is the better play this week. |
| HOU | Will Fuller | JAX | Davon House | I don't trust Brock Osweiler and the Jags have been excellent on the back end this season. Skip Fuller this week. |
| IND | T.Y. Hilton | MIN | Terence Newman | Hilton is Andrew Luck's only healthy option this week and regardless of tough matchups and injuries, Hilton has found a way to be a legitimate WR1 for most of this season. Start him this week despite his likely drawing of Xavier Rhodes. |
| JAX | Allen Hurns | HOU | Kareem Jackson | He managed to get into the end zone last week, but that was on his only catch of the game. In fact, he's only got four catches in the last three weeks, which is what I call "fantasy non grata." He is an unacceptable start for the rest of the way. |
| KC | Chris Conley | TEN | Brice McCain | Conley is nothing compared to the talent and production of Tyreek Hill. Hill is one of my favorite plays of the week and should be listed as the starter on the depth chart if you ask me. Obviously my point here is that Conley is a non-start, while Hill is the play this week. |
| LA | Tavon Austin | SEA | Richard Sherman | He's starting to get into a PPR rhythm, however I would suspect that slows down against a good Seattle secondary and an even angrier team as a whole. |
| MIA | Kenny Stills | NYJ | Darrelle Revis | Stills produced last week and appeared to have a nice rapport with Matt Moore. With Ryan Tannehill missing the rest of the season, Stills may be a nice sneaky start this week against an awful Jets secondary. |
| MIN | Charles Johnson | IND | Darius Butler | Truth be told, I actually have to google "Charles Johnson, Vikings" each week to make sure that he is still in the league. Obviously Stefon Diggs remains the number one option in this passing game, but now you can also throw Adam Thielen's name into the mix of players who are startable each week. |
| NE | Malcolm Mitchell | DEN | Aqib Talib | Mitchell, since being considered a real starter four weeks ago, has hauled in four touchdowns on 21 catches and . That’s an average of 5 rec, 65 yds, and 1 TD per game over the span. Now, while that is certainly fantasy worthy, he will be facing his toughest task yet in the Broncos secondary. He will still remain relevant, but will have a tough time getting open as often against Talib. |
| NO | Brandin Cooks | ARI | Patrick Peterson | If you have been disappointed with Cooks' second half production so far, just wait until this weekend when he has to take on Patrick Peterson. Yikes… |
| NYG | Sterling Shepard | DET | Darius Slay | With how hot Odell Beckham has been, there just haven't been as many targets to go around for anyone else. Shepard at least will luckily draw Nevin Lawson as opposed to Darius Slay in this matchup. |
| NYJ | Quincy Enunwa | MIA | Byron Maxwell | Enunwa is banged up right now and has nearly disappeared in terms of production since Bryce Petty has taken over. Safe to say that he should be avoided this week. |
| OAK | Amari Cooper | SD | Craig Mager | While the Chargers don't feature even a top-20 pass defense, they have been tough against opposing recievers in terms of fantasy points. Cooper isn't healthy and hasn’t been productive since Halloween. I would avoid him here. |
| PHI | Nelson Agholor | BAL | Shareece Wright | Agholor will struggle against the league's best defense this weekend. There is just no way around it. |
| PIT | Sammie Coates | CIN | Dre Kirkpatrick | The shutout continues as Coates still hasn’t caught a pass since prior to the NBA regular season tip-off – which for reference was October 25th. He is the worst fantasy player on this list. |
| SD | Dontrelle Inman | OAK | David Amerson | Inman has caught touchdowns in three straight games and has racked up 14 catches over the same span. That is reliable production for a WR3. Consider him that this week against a weak Oakland secondary. |
| SF | Quinton Patton | ATL | Robert Alford | Finally! The 49ers updated their depth chart to take out Aaron Burbridge (2 rec all season long). Unfortunately he was not replaced with Randy Moss… Patton is just a guy and he's in a bad passing offense. Skip him this week and in the ones to come. |
| SEA | Jermaine Kearse | LA | Trumaine Johnson | I say it every week: Kearse doesn’t see enough targets to remain fantasy relevant. |
| TB | Mike Evans | DAL | Brandon Carr | Evans has an opportunity against a vulnerable Dallas secondary here, however they looked locked in against the Giants last week. I was surprised to see last week that they mirrored Odell Beckham with Brandon Carr because he never typically leaves his Left CB position. He did a good job outside of one play that no one in the league can stop, so I expect that they will do the same again this week with another star wideout on the docket. |
| TEN | Tajae Sharpe | KC | Marcus Peters | Sharpe was held without a catch last week and has been trending downward since the preseason. While he does have a nice matchup against an underwhelming KC secondary, they have been hot of late and have forced turnovers when needed. He is not in play in any format. |
| WAS | DeSean Jackson | CAR | James Bradberry | D-Jax is interesting because he has been really hot, despite the inconsistent nature of his production (deep routes). Against a vulnerable Carolina secondary, I would roll the dice with Jackson because he is a game changer and seems to have built a rapport with Kirk Cousins. |
“Nostra-Dom-Us Picks of the Week.”
ELITE PLAY
N/A (No elite priced plays this week)
Allow me to offer a disclaimer here. The players in the elite price range who you typically place into your lineups each week and make out okay, simply don’t have the favorable matchups you’d like to see. As much as the top ranked running backs are loaded with mismatches in Week 15, I tend to find the middle and lower-ranked wideouts better plays and ultimately better values for this week.
.jpg)
I hope I made myself clear though that I am not saying that I hate Odell Beckham this week – because he is, in fact, the most uncoverable player in the league at the moment – or that I don’t think Mike Evans can expose this largely banged up Dallas secondary – I rather just feel that Evans has been underwhelming of late, while the Cowboys defense looked like the ’85 Bears last week.
If I had to recommend an “elite” option, I would say either Jordy Nelson – because the Packers are the hottest offense in football and Nelson has been a touchdown machine all season long – or T.Y. Hilton – because he has posted back-to-back games of at least nine catches and 115 yards, while the Colts will be without Donte Moncrief, so the majority of the targets will be headed Hilton’s way this week. However in both scenarios there are equal reasons to doubt the plays:
The Bears haven’t allowed a receiver over 67 yards receiving in any of their last four games
The Vikings defense, Xavier Rhodes, and the Colts offensive line must be taken into account before blindly believing in the elite potential production of Hilton this week.
AFFORDABLE PLAY
Sammy Watkins ($5,900 on DraftKings) vs. Jamar Taylor (Joe Haden more likely)
Watkins was in on nearly 95-percent of the Bills offensive snaps last week, so it is safe to say that he is back to full strength – regardless of his listing at practice each weekday. Considering that, I expect him to do some damage at home against the winless Browns in an absolute must win – not only for his team’s playoff chances, but also for the sake of his coach’s job. Chances are that he will be mirrored by Joe Haden, but even so, I still like the talent of Watkins at home in the scenario I just explained above. His numbers have been improving each week and would have been even better if it wasn’t for the blizzard conditions last week against Pittsburgh.
Tyreek Hill ($5,700 on DraftKings) vs. TEN Slot Coverage
Hill has been red hot and is proving to be a scoring threat from anywhere on the field. This week, he takes his all-purpose prowess into a matchup with the Titans – a team that features the second worst passing defense in the NFL. If the Chiefs were smart – and their 10-3 record suggests that they are – they would continue to find ways to get the ball in the hands of Hill, especially in such a favorable matchup as this one.
BARGAIN PLAY
Robby Anderson ($4,200 on DraftKings) vs. MIA Slot Coverage
Over the last two games – not so ironically also the first two games of Bryce Petty’s career – Anderson has been targeted 23 times and has racked up 160 yards and a touchdown during the span. Taking on an at times vulnerable Miami secondary, Anderson should continue to see the bulk of the targets from Petty, especially considering both Brandon Marshall and Quincy Enunwa are banged up. With such a heavy volume of targets, there is no way that Anderson should be on sale at only $4,200 this week. Consider that a bargain.
FLYER PLAY
J.J. Nelson ($3,900 on DraftKings) vs. Sterling Moore
Nelson is an absolute game breaker and he proved that last week with his 56-yard touchdown rush against the Dolphins. On top of Nelson’s proven playmaking ability, it is now more than ever that the Cards need to get the ball in his hands, as they just released Michael Floyd on Wednesday after an arrest and DUI charge. Taking on an always-beatable Saints secondary, I expect Nelson to have a few opportunities to break the game open with an explosive play. Luckily for him, the chances are that he will draw the weaker Moore in this matchup rather than Delvin Breaux who just bottled up Mike Evans last week. At only $3,900 Nelson should be an excellent flex play this week.