NFL Player News

Veteran Roman Oben is still hurt, and McNeill has performed well all off-season. McNeill, taken fiftieth overall, could prove to be a draft bargain. Still, Philip Rivers owners can’t be too excited about a rookie protecting his blind side.

Vidal’s totals are uninspiring but his three carries were only five less than team leader Gus Edwards’ eight. The Chargers’ ground game simply couldn’t get going against the Buccaneers. Vidal was promisingly involved as a pass-catcher early on though, earning two targets on the opening drive. Vidal is an RB5 against the Broncos.

The bad news is that Estime continues to underwhelm in the struggled Denver backfield. The good news for the rookie is that he could see extended run in Week 16 if Jaleel McLaughlin (quad) is sidelined in Week 16 against the Chargers. Estime, who has only one game this season with more than six carries, would split the backfield workload with Javonte Williams.

Palmer was an afterthought with Ladd McConkey back in the lineup. Both Quentin Johnston and Stone Smartt outplayed Palmer as well. The 25-year-old WR cannot be trusted with the Chargers’ offense in its current former. He is a WR6/7 against the Broncos in Week 16.

Though most of Mims’ value is as an electric kick and punt returner, he’s seen more usage as a wideout in recent weeks. Mims, who ran a route on 12 of the Broncos’ 39 drop backs against the Colts, has most of his touches designed as short area opportunities. Mims should remain on waiver wires ahead of the Broncos’ Week 16 game against the Chargers.

Coming off of performances of 66 and 88 yards over his past two outings, Vele was a no-show against the Colts amid major struggles from Bo Nix. Vele ran a pass route on 26 of the team’s 39 drop backs but was not involved in the passing attack. Marvin Mims was second on the Broncos (behind Courtland Sutton) with four targets. Vele will be a deep league option next week against the Chargers.

Smartt played very well against the Buccaneers, efficiently earning targets and picking yardage. He was used as both a short-field weapon and as a field-stretcher, earning one such target 20-plus yards downfield. Fantasy managers can again use Smartt as a TE1 streamer against the Broncos on Thursday night, as he continues auditioning for the 2025 starting role.

Williams was as ineffective as ever on the ground and as a pass catcher. He struggled to break tackles and was often forced to run east to west against a middling Indy rush defense. Jaleel McLaughlin led the Denver backfield with seven rushing attempts but was forced from the game with a quad injury in the second half. That could set up Williams as the de facto lead back in Week 16 against the Chargers. Even so, Williams would likely split touches with Audric Estime and being nothing more than a TD-dependent RB3 in fantasy leagues.

Johnston narrowly avoided injuring both of his legs, briefly leaving the game to get checked out after a bizarre incompletion sequence. Johnston showed his best and worst traits against the Buccaneers, blasting through three would-be tacklers on his 13-yard touchdown and later falling over while running a deep route, leaving Jamel Dean free to snap Justin Herbert’s streak of 357 interception-free passing attempts, leaving him fifth all-time and one pass away from Tom Brady’s fourth-place 358-pass mark. Johnston will be his typically volatile WR3/4-self against the Broncos in Week 16. Expect Herbert to continue peppering him with downfield targets against the blitz.

Nix had one of his most uneven performances of the past couple months. He airmailed a couple passes for interceptions and was not on the same page with No. 1 wideout Courtland Sutton, who eventually caught one of Nix’s three scores on the day. Nix also connected with tight ends Adam Trautman andNate Adkins for touchdowns. With multiple touchdown tosses in four of his past five games, Nix has become a reliable option in 12-team formats. He’ll be a top-15 play in Week 16 against the Chargers. Nix had 216 yards and two TDs in Week 6 against LA, along with 61 yards on the ground.