Week 15 Fantasy Football Losers
Week 15 is behind us, and for some franchises, sights are set for the playoffs. On the other hand, sights are set towards the next season. 13 teams have been eliminated from playoff contention, including the Chiefs, Dolphins, Bengals, and Vikings. The Cowboys and Lions are the only two teams facing elimination entering Week 16. However, in fantasy football terms, depending on playoff formatting, the championship week is getting extremely close. Some players who were drafted high and helped their team managers reach the playoffs, ultimately rewarded their owners with poor performances, potentially ending their season. Here are some names that were drafted high or proved their way into starting on fantasy lineups, but disappointed managers in Week 15.
QB Joe Burrow – (5.5 Fantasy Points)
On Thanksgiving, Joe Burrow played relatively well for his first game back since his Week Two injury. Throwing for just under 300 yards, adding two touchdowns and no turnovers, the Bengals coasted to an easy win in Baltimore. Less than a month later, nothing much has changed in terms of roster makeup, leaving analysts to think of the Ravens as slight underdogs. That was not the case by any means. Burrow and the Bengals offense could not get the ball rolling. They found themselves in opponent territory a few times, but either turned the ball over or suffered a penalty or sack to get them out of field goal range. Burrow’s 225 yards were okay numbers, but his fantasy production suffered due to the two turnovers. The Bengals were shut out 24-0 by the Ravens, and the Ravens' defense outscored the Bengals' offense, in part due to a pick-six in the fourth quarter. The Bengals have nothing to play for now, as they have been eliminated, but head coach Zac Taylor said Burrow will start the rest of the season.
QB Sam Darnold – (9.34), RB Kenneth Walker III – (2.9), RB Zach Charbonnet – (3.1 Fantasy Points)
Out of everyone in Seattle’s offense, the only fantasy-relevant producers from their nail-biting win against a Philip Rivers-led Colts were Offensive Player of the Year candidate WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba and kicker Jason Myers. JSN had a respectable 18 points considering the Seahawks did not score a touchdown, and Meyers scored a franchise record six field goals in a single game. Sam Darnold completed 22 of 36 passes for 271 yards and lost a fumble. He did not perform poorly in terms of turnovers, but the offense was unable to find the end zone the entire game. Next, the RB duo of Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet combined for 18 touches for 50 yards. Without the run game, the Seahawks were heavily reliant on Cooper Kupp and JSN to move the ball down the field on second or third-and-long. Seattle looks to be slipping a little bit, but it could be attributed to the Colts' defense stepping up as projected underdogs or the questionable weather in Seattle on Sunday. JSN is still a starter, but be wary of Darnold, Walker, and Charbonnet.
RB Jahmyr Gibbs – (9.8 Fantasy Points)
Lions versus Rams is always a good game. Since the Matthew Stafford-Jared Goff trade, both teams play in high-stakes situations all the time. Unfortunately, Jahmyr Gibbs' success was not in the script. Amon-Ra St. Brown found himself in my winners article behind his 13 catches for 164 yards and two touchdowns. The game was neck-and-neck until the third quarter, but the Rams played better football. The Lions’ run game was unable to find any rhythm, but by the end of the third quarter, the Lions were in desperation mode, down 10, with their playoff chances slowly slipping away. Gibbs finished with his third-lowest total yards contribution of the season, rushing for 38 yards and bringing in four catches for 20 yards. The Lions will play the Steelers, Vikings, and Bears, which are not easy defenses to run against, but Gibbs is still starting material for his ceiling, which is raised with his usage in the passing game.
WR George Pickens – (6.3 Fantasy Points)
When George Pickens was in Pittsburgh, he never cracked the top 30 receivers in terms of total PPR points. However, in his first year in Dallas, he is ranked as the WR4, behind a career high in catches, yards, and touchdowns. While Pickens is having a career year in Dallas with Dak Prescott, his fantasy playoffs first-round performance was well below the expectations and projections that were set for him. His three receptions for 33 yards mark the third time this season he has not broken 40 yards in a game, and he failed to do so in back-to-back weeks. I think this speaks more to how Dallas’ offense is changing and throwing to more than just CeeDee Lamb and Pickens. The Cowboys are all but eliminated from the playoffs, but their awful defense will force Dallas to pass the ball more than a normal team would.
Honorable Mentions
Plain and simple, everyone from the Chiefs-Chargers matchup is on this list. The only player to break 15 points in the 16-13 game that ended in Los Angeles’ favor was Travis Kelce, who finished with 15 points exactly, assuming offensive players are given a singular point for a tackle. The Raiders were another team that was shut out, but that was pretty much expected, as Vegas was starting Kenny Pickett against an Eagles team that has seven more wins. Pickett completed 15 passes for 64 yards, but zero were caught by Tre Tucker, and Brock Bowers only had 28 yards on his six catches. Tetairoa McMillan tied his second-worst reception mark of the season with two catches. However, in both the games where he had one and two receptions, McMillan found the endzone, making his two catches for 25 yards the worst statistical output for the rookie this year. Lastly, Tua Tagovailoa completed 22 passes, but only two of those completions went to Jaylen Waddle, who is meant to be a WR1 for Miami after Tyreek Hill’s injury. It is hard to trust any of these players in this category except for Bowers, but the struggles in Vegas’ offense might be the downfall for managers who start him in the playoffs.
