Tee Higgins injured his hamstring in Thursday’s practice. Uh oh. But not to worry, the Bengals were so unconcerned they left Higgins off their final injury report. That, obviously, indicates 100 percent certainty someone will play. Which, of course, Higgins technically did against the Browns: For one snap.
Those two actions do not square, at all, and coach Zac Taylor was scrambling for an explanation afterwards. Claiming Higgins’ hamstring was not an issue on Friday but suddenly popped up again an hour before game time, Taylor nevertheless said he didn’t see a need to update the injury report, as teams often do when someone is injured during pre-game warmups. But then he made it sound like Higgins was too hurt even before then anyways?
“We didn’t want him to open up and run,” Taylor said. “That doesn’t mean he couldn’t run a goal-line fade on the 1-yard line. There was no sense in ruling him out. I didn’t see any reason to do that.” That, uhh, is not how this works Zac. Expect the NFL to confirm as much with a fine.
As for fantasy managers, if you managed to survive the fiasco and advance to the playoffs, at least Higgins avoided setbacks? Even if he wants to, Taylor will not be playing the same injury games twice. We would expect a more straightforward handling of the situation for Week 15, and for Higgins to ultimately suit up against the Bucs.
Five Week 14 Storylines
J.K. Dobbins rumbles for 120 yards in return. We weren’t sure what to expect with Dobbins active for the first time since Week 7, especially with the Ravens starting a backup quarterback against a Steelers defense that is more vulnerable through the air than on the ground. What we got was the second most rushing yards of Dobbins’ injury-marred career, and a 45 percent snap share as he led the Ravens’ backfield committee. Impressive, though there were some touches of gray. Dobbins’ longest gain was a 44-yarder where he emerged through a narrow lane untouched. He chewed up open field but you could almost see him favoring his surgically-repaired left leg in real time. Sunday was an outlier in terms of what Dobbins can be expected to provide down the stretch rather than a baseline. He is best treated as a FLEX for the first week of the fantasy playoffs.
Trevor Lawrence nukes Titans with 368/3. Lawrence’s latest arrival was his best one yet, and the first four-score effort of his entire career. Yes, he was taking advantage of a “pass funnel” in the Titans, but taking advantage of a poor defense is something he did not do in Week 13 against the Lions. Lawrence’s sophomore inconsistency has been frustrating, but the takeaway is not that he has been inconsistent, but that he’s finally mixing in spiked weeks with his more modest affairs. It’s an excellent sign for 2023 and a Jaguars team that might finally be on the rise. As for 2022 and the fantasy playoffs, Lawrence has the worst possible Week 15 matchup in the Cowboys.
Deebo Samuel suffers high-ankle sprain amidst impressive Brock Purdy start. The 49ers are lucky Samuel suffered “only” a high-ankle sprain after he got both legs rolled up underneath him in ugly fashion. He could have suffered a high-ankle sprain and torn ACL on the same play. Samuel’s loss meant one fewer weapon for Purdy in his first NFL start, but it made little difference as the rookie executed coach Kyle Shanahan‘s offense to perfection. Each of Purdy’s touchdowns traveled 20-plus air yards. Jimmy Garoppolo had only one such score all season. Excellent, though Purdy picked up an oblique injury in the process. He is highly questionable for Thursday’s short-week date with the Seahawks. Samuel should be considered done for the fantasy playoffs with the Niners’ sole goal to be getting him ready for the postseason.
Mike Williams clears 100 yards in first full game since Week 7. That’s a number Williams has now reached in half of his eight “regular” appearances in 2022. Plainly the X-factor in an offense with no other vertical threat, Williams can immediately be reinserted into the WR1 mix in fantasy. That is especially true for Week 15, where he will be facing a Titans defense allowing the most receiver fantasy points and second most overall passing yards. You might not have made the playoffs with Williams missing most of the stretch run, but he’s going to be a huge boost if you survived and advanced.
D.J. Moore catches zero passes, injures both finger and ankle. Is that the way Moore’s 2022 season is going to end? It would be unfortunately fitting in yet another lost campaign. Moore produced this year whenever he received even the vaguest hint of competent quarterback play, but it was far, far too often the opposite. Now he’s going on 26 and heading into an offseason where he will be getting yet another new coach and quarterback. A player with a Stefon Diggs profile is seeming further and further away from his Stefon Diggs moment. Perhaps an offseason trade will be in order from a Panthers team that seems open to tearing it all down, but more than likely, Moore will be kept around as the top weapon for whomever “replaces” Sam Darnold.
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Questions
1. Wasn’t it nice to have a Sunday without Arthur Smith?
2. Were the Jets waiting on Mike White‘s spleen to explode before removing him from the game?
3. Remember when a team voluntarily guaranteed Mitch Trubisky $5.25 million?
Early Waivers Look (Players rostered in less than 50 percent of Yahoo leagues)
QB: Mike White (vs. DET, if healthy), Ryan Tannehill (@LAC), Brock Purdy (@SEA, if healthy), Mac Jones (@LV), Baker Mayfield (@GB), Desmond Ridder (@NO)
RB: Gus Edwards, Tyler Allgeier, Chuba Hubbard, Jordan Mason, Travis Homer
WR: D.J. Chark, Chase Claypool, Kadarius Toney, Van Jefferson, Elijah Moore, Ben Skowronek, Chris Moore
TE: Chigoziem Okonkwo, Cade Otton, Austin Hooper, Daniel Bellinger, Tyler Conklin
DEF: Commanders (vs. NYG), Vikings (vs. IND), Cardinals (@DEN), Panthers (vs. PIT), Broncos (vs. AZ), Browns (vs. BAL), Giants (@WAS)
Stats of the Week
68. The length of Mike Evans’ latest “doesn’t count” touchdown. Tom Brady also missed Evans on another end zone target. There is no light at the end of this tunnel.
Three. Mike Gesicki‘s number of consecutive goose eggs. The tight end franchise tag ain’t what it used to be.
The Vikings’ defense has allowed over 400 yards in four straight games for the first time in franchise history.
Via the Lord: Trevor Lawrence is now fifth amongst all QBs in red zone fantasy points (93.0) and second amongst all QBs in points scored inside of the five-yard line (51.5), behind only Patrick Mahomes (61.8).
Also Via the Lord: Derek Carr has completed 39.6 percent (21-of-53) of his passes in the red zone, ahead of only Joe Flacco (39.1 percent) amongst all passers with 10-plus attempts.
John Daigle on Evan Engram’s insane day: “Evan Engram became only the sixth TE of the Super Bowl era to record 10 catches, 150 yards and two touchdowns in a single game (per @NFLResearch), which accounted for 31.4 percent of his fantasy points this year.
Awards Section
Week 14 Fantasy All-Pro Team: QB Trevor Lawrence, RB Jerick McKinnon, RB Christian McCaffrey, WR Jerry Jeudy, WR Justin Jefferson, WR Ja’Marr Chase, TE Evan Engram
Most Hilarious Russell Wilson Pick Six of the Week: Wilson’s attempted 4th-and-1 play fake that Willie Gay was able to easily tip, intercept and house for a pick-six.
“It’s Insane That” Award: It’s insane that Travis Homer and DeeJay Dallas have both been on the Seahawks’ 53-man roster since 2001.
Future Emergency Panthers Starter Award: Stetson Bennett.
That’s Joe Flacco Award: Joe Flacco being forced into the game for a second time in place of Mike White and losing a fumble on the first snap.