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| Sunday, December 20, 2020 |
| In an ideal world, the Fantasy playoffs would be determined by who has the best roster, not who has the best roster left after injuries, but that's not how things work. Just as NFL teams have to make due with what they have, so does your Fantasy team, and unfortunately, Week 15 isn't exactly a straightforward one for injuries. Especially at running back. |
| Heading into Sunday's lineup lock, we learned Ezekiel Elliott is out due to his calf injury, and we've got real questions about how much work James Conner is going to see, who the starter for the Dolphins will be, and how work will be split up in Houston, New England, Tampa Bay, and Arizona. Plus, we've got a bunch of significant absences already accounted for at wide receiver, like Julio Jones and Michael Thomas. Like I said, it isn't ideal, and this morning's newsletter has all the latest on injuries as the first round of inactives are announced, along with the consensus rankings from Jamey Eisenberg, Dave Richard, and Heath Cummings to help you with those tough lineup dilemmas. |
| And if you've got any other questions, you need to tune in to Fantasy Football Today live on CBS Sports HQ until kickoff for the latest news and analysis for today. We're also answering your questions on our Twitch stream starting at noon and going until kickoff — and you can always drop your questions on Twitter using the hashtag "#AskFFT" because the whole team is answering questions this morning. |
| More Week 15: Start 'Em & Sit 'Em | Starts & Sits, Sleepers & Risks | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: QB | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: RB | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: WR | Waiver Wire | QB Preview | RB Preview | WR Preview | TE Preview | Trade Values | Cut List | Winners | Losers |
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| Week 15 Injury Updates |
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| Here are the key injury situations we're watching out for Sunday, along with some potential fill-in options if you need help: |
| Quarterback |
| In: Drew Brees (ribs), Matthew Stafford (ribs/thumb) Out: Daniel Jones (ankle), Alex Smith (calf), Brandon Allen (knee) |
| There really aren't too many questions at QB this week as far as who is playing, but some of you might be thinking about starting Brees or Stafford now that they are active. I would try to avoid it, personally; Brees is playing without Michael Thomas in his first game back against a tough matchup, while Stafford just hasn't been good enough to be more than a low-end option against a good matchup; I view both as risky No. 2 QB for this week, especially because either could be a bad hit away from leaving the game. |
| Running back |
| In: David Johnson (Reserve/COVID-19), James White (foot), Salvon Ahmed (shoulder), Rashaad Penny (knee) Expected to be in: Chase Edmonds (ankle) Questionable: James Conner (quad) Out: Ezekiel Elliott (calf), Damien Harris (ankle), Myles Gaskin (Reserve/COVID-19), Ronald Jones (Reserve/COVID-19/finger), Antonio Gibson (toe), Duke Johnson (neck) |
| There was once a time when Elliott being out would've made Tony Pollard an absolute must-start option, but this isn't the same situation we thought it would be at the start of the season. Elliott has struggled since Dak Prescott's injury and this offensive line isn't nearly as strong as it once was. Pollard is in the RB2 discussion as the starter for the Cowboys -- he has shown more burst and big-play ability than Elliott this season -- but he's not someone you absolutely need to rush out and add to start. In one league where I have him, I'm still starting Alvin Kamara, James Robinson, and David Montgomery ahead of him, and I didn't really give much thought to starting him; I would have started him over Wayne Gallman, also on the benchm for context. If he's out there and you don't have faith in your No. 2 back -- someone like Sony Michel, Nyheim Hines, J.D. McKIssic, or Todd Gurley, then he's definitely worth adding and starting. |
| Avoiding Pittsburgh's backfield feels like the safest option right now, whether Conner plays or not. They have one game with more than 100 rushing yards as a team over the last two months, so it's hard to get excited about either Conner or Benny Snell. Neither should be viewed as much more than a low-end No. 2 back, with the matchup against the Bengals the best thing they have going for them. |
| Beyond that situation, I'm starting David Johnson as an RB2, while Ahmed is more in that low-end RB2 range, and there's no reason to start Penny in his first game back from a torn ACL. If you have the roster space, he's worth a flier, though. |
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| Wide receiver |
| In: Brandin Cooks (neck) Questionable: Jamison Crowder (calf) Out: Michael Thomas (ankle), Julio Jones (hamstring), Deebo Samuel (hamstring), Kenny Golladay (hip), DeVante Parker (hamstring), Jakeem Grant (hamstring) |
| Most reports leading up to Sunday indicated Parker and Grant would play, but the Dolphins are becoming one of those teams you just can't trust when it comes to injuries -- Brian Flores is a Bill Belichick disciple, after all. Lynn Bowden will likely be the team's No. 1 receiver, and he fared well in that role last week, catching seven of nine targets for 82 yards. The Dolphins tried to get him involved as a passer last week, too, so there's clear upside here, even if he's still more of a fringe starting option even with all of these injuries. |
| There really aren't any surprises here besides those Dolphins players, as we knew Thomas, Jones, Samuel, and Golladay were out well before Sunday. |
| Tight end |
In: Jimmy Graham (hip), Mo Alie-Cox (knee)
Out: Kyle Rudolph (foot), Mike Gesicki (shoulder) Questionable: Austin Hooper (neck), Evan Engram (calf) |
| Like Parker and Grant, we were hearing positive reports about Gesicki leading up to Sunday, but he never even went on the field to warm up. Durham Smythe and Adam Shaheen figure to see larger roles this week, given Miami's injuries, but Smythe is probably the only one you could rely on as a starter and you've have to be pretty desperate to do so. |
| Irv Smith is a fine fill-in option if you need one, given Rudolph's absence. He had four catches for 63 yards and a touchdown with Rudolph out last week, and could see a similar role in this one. He's a borderline top-12 TE. |
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Expert Consensus Rankings
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| As of 11 a.m. ET from Jamey Eisenberg, Dave Richard, and Heath Cummings: |
| QB Rankings |
| Patrick Mahomes Lamar Jackson Kyler Murray Tom Brady Russell Wilson Ryan Tannehill Justin Herbert Deshaun Watson Drew Brees Ben Roethlisberger Derek Carr Jared Goff Philip Rivers Mitchell Trubisky Jalen Hurts Kirk Cousins Matthew Stafford Baker Mayfield Matt Ryan Cam Newton |
| RB Rankings |
| Derrick Henry Dalvin Cook Austin Ekeler Alvin Kamara Jonathan Taylor Nick Chubb James Robinson David Montgomery Cam Akers Chris Carson Josh Jacobs Miles Sanders Kenyan Drake D'Andre Swift Kareem Hunt David Johnson J.K. Dobbins Wayne Gallman Raheem Mostert Clyde Edwards-Helaire Tony Pollard Nyheim Hines J.D. McKissic James Conner Leonard Fournette Jeff Wilson Salvon Ahmed Chase Edmonds Gus Edwards Sony Michel James White Ito Smith Lynn Bowden Tony Pollard Latavius Murray Giovani Bernard Peyton Barber Frank Gore Todd Gurley Adrian Peterson Ty Johnson Gus Edwards |
| WR Rankings |
| Tyreek Hill Allen Robinson Calvin Ridley DeAndre Hopkins A.J. Brown DK Metcalf Brandon Aiyuk Justin Jefferson Mike Evans T.Y. Hilton Adam Thielen Amari Cooper Keenan Allen Robert Woods Brandin Cooks Cooper Kupp JuJu Smith-Schuster Terry McLaurin Chris Godwin Diontae Johnson Corey Davis Tyler Lockett Jarvis Landry Emmanuel Sanders Nelson Agholor Marvin Jones Marquise Brown Russell Gage Keke Coutee Rashard Higgins Chase Claypool Chad Hansen CeeDee Lamb Tyler Boyd Tee Higgins Antonio Brown D.J. Chark Sterling Shepard Danny Amendola Michael Gallup |
| TE Rankings |
| Travis Kelce Darren Waller T.J. Hockenson Mark Andrews Logan Thomas Eric Ebron Dallas Goedert Hunter Henry Rob Gronkowski Mike Gesicki Irv Smith Jared Cook Evan Engram Cole Kmet Tyler Higbee Dalton Schultz Jonnu Smith Hayden Hurst Jordan Reed Gerald Everett Jordan Akins Trey Burton |
| K Rankings |
| Younghoe Koo Rodrigo Blankenship Harrison Butker Justin Tucker Wil Lutz Jason Sanders Jason Myers Daniel Carlson Greg Zuerlein Matt Prater Ka'imi Fairbairn Robbie Gould Dustin Hopkins Matt Gay Ryan Succop Mike Badgley Chris Boswell Mike Nugent Dan Bailey Cairo Santos Nick Folk |
| DST Rankings |
| Rams Steelers Ravens Browns Dolphins Buccaneers Seahawks Patriots Colts Titans 49ers Football Team Bears Cardinals Chiefs Vikings Cowboys Eagles Giants Chargers Saints |
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