Well, we made it (some of us did), most fantasy football regular seasons are in the books (MNF pending) and now the real fun starts. Hopefully you were able to punch that ticket into the playoffs or even if you were out of it, you made sure someone else didn’t make it to the dance. Did your fantasy teams suffer major injuries? You’re preaching to the choir. It happens, the big games, the bad ones, you have to accept it all. You can bet your bottom dollar that a guy you weren’t thinking of two weeks ago is going to help push you through this time of year. But who will it be?
STOCK UP
WR - Drake London, Atlanta Falcons
In Week 14 against the Buccaneers London recorded 10 receptions for 172 yards (both career-highs) as his heroics nearly led the Falcons to victory. If he was in your fantasy lineup he certainly helped you there. Over his past three games he is WR19 in total points right behind Brandon Aiyuk and has an upcoming schedule that looks favorable. The Falcons will play the Panthers, Colts and Bears in the fantasy playoffs and with Desmond Ridder coming off a career-high 347 passing yards, the Falcons’ willingness to air it out bodes well for London. At the very least, London should be considered a mid-level flex option who’s playing his best football at the right time.
RB - Ty Chandler, Minnesota Vikings
Chandler fantasy managers may be sitting on a back who stands to gain a considerable workload after the ankle injury to Alexander Mattison. For what it’s worth, Mattison was having a solid day in Week 14 after going 10-66-0 on the ground. After his injury, Chandler ended up finishing with 15 touches (tied for a season-high), but for only 42 yards. Granted, the Vikings vs. Raiders matchup ended up being a 3-0 barn burner. In any event, should Mattison miss any time, Chandler should handle the majority of the workload in his absence. With upcoming games against the Bengals, Lions, and Packers, it won’t be an easy road by any means, but running backs with large workloads are hard to find in the fantasy playoffs.
RB - Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals
Brown was a guy that was talked about pre-NFL draft, but is just now making his mark after recently coming off the IR (hamstring). In his last two games, Brown has seen double-digit touches. In Week 13, he went for 9-61-0 on the ground and caught his lone target for eight yards. He followed that up tallying 11 touches for 105 yards and a touchdown against the Colts. With his biggest play coming on a 54-yard catch and run for a touchdown, Brown started off the scoring for the Bengals and showed that he has a consistent role in the offense. He is likely on waivers in your league. If you’re a Joe Mixon manager you definitely want him on your roster, but even if you don’t have Mixon, Brown may have his own standalone value moving forward.
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STOCK DOWN
RB - Roschon Johnson, Chicago Bears
Folks it’s just not going to happen for Johnson, or at least it doesn’t look that way. We are headed into Week 15 and D’Onta Foreman (who’s earned it) is the Bears’ lead running back. After getting 15 touches and gaining 75 yards against the Vikings in Week 12, many felt like after the bye that Johnson would be the guy. What it really meant was another week for Foreman to get healthy and take back over as the lead runner. To make matters worse, Johnson was only able to secure one single carry in a game where the Bears were battling. Outside of being a stash for possible injuries to other Bears’ running backs, Johnson is not worth a spot on your roster as we enter the fantasy football playoffs. Sorry guys.
WR - Stefon Diggs, Buffalo Bills
Diggs has been WR35 in fantasy on a points per game basis over the last four weeks. His latest performance, an outing where he went 4-24-0 (despite seeing 11 targets) is certainly alarming. The good thing is, the targets are there as it’s his second straight week with 11, but the production is not. Diggs has failed to clear 35 receiving yards in three of his last four games, so what should you do with him in the fantasy playoffs (if you’re still alive)? Well, you’ve got to stay strong and stick with him. It’s probably tough, especially since the Bills have been winning (you’d think he’d have better numbers), but who would you start instead of Diggs? Stick it out, the Bills have the Cowboys, Chargers, and Patriots coming up and the only road trip out of those is in Los Angeles. Diggs is still Diggs.
RB - Kenneth Walker, Seattle Seahawks
Walker just came back after missing multiple games with an oblique injury, but it’s fair to ask whether or not he’ll be in a full-blown committee with Zach Charbonnet. Neither back was able to get anything going on the ground against the 49ers as they combined to go 17-65-0. The interesting thing was that Charbonnet out-carried Walker nine to eight. We could be looking at a “hot hand” approach as both guys have performed in similar fashion when given the opportunity to be the lead back. It’s a sticky situation, especially when you consider that the Seahawks’ offense as a whole hasn’t been humming (outside of Geno Smith lighting up the Cowboys in Week 13). Proceed with caution and play the matchups.