NFL Player News

Lokey was pushing Ron Edwards and Tank Tyler hard for snaps at nose tackle, which says plenty about Kansas City’s defensive line situation.

That makes a total of five receptions for Cooper Kupp over the last three games, or half of what Puka Nacua (10-129) did against the Cardinals on Saturday night. Simply put, this has been a massively disappointing fantasy season for Kupp, and he’s been completely unplayable of those last 12 quarters. It could change against Seattle in Week 18, but fantasy managers shouldn’t count on it.

That makes three straight contests where Wilson has been held below 50 yards. Some of that has to do with strong fantasy outings from Trey McBride and Marvin Harrison Jr;, as they combined for 16 catches for 219 yards in the close loss. There’s no reason to think of Wilson as a fantasy factor for Week 18 against the 49ers.

Williams plunged in from short-yardage for the Rams’ only touchdown of the contest. The tailback wasn’t able to break off many long runs with a top gain of 18, but he was able to keep the chains moving just enough. Williams has now scored 14 rushing touchdowns on the year, and he’ll likely get a chance for at least one more in Week 18 against the Seahawks.

The six catches are a season high for Harrison. The third-overall selection was able to work on the sidelines, and he and Kyle Murray seemed to be on the same page for the first time a while, if not all year. Fantasy managers who drafted Harrison with a high pick have the right to wonder why this couldn’t have happened more often, and managers who may be considering a draft pick on him for 2025 were given a reminder of what the future could hold. His final game of his rookie campaign will be against the 49ers in Week 18.

After James Conner (knee) left the game, Carter was the bellcow for the Arizona rushing attack, and he handled it well. The 25-year-old was able to find creases between the tackles and used his speed on some of his outside runs. It wasn’t dominating by any means, but effective nevertheless. If Conner and Trey Benson can’t go again, Carter should see a lot of touches again in Week 18.

Nacua was used often on screens and a variety of other short-yardage passes; largely because Matthew Stafford was flat-out unable to get him the ball deep sans a 25-yard connection. It’s still a productive fantasy outing for the second-year wideout, it just lacked the chunk plays that could have made it significantly better. Nacua remains an excellent fantasy receiver, and that should continue in Week 18 against Seattle.

It took 16 games and nearly three quarters, but McBride finally got his first touchdown of 2024. The 25-year-old had another monster fantasy game, but unfortunately his night ended on a dour note when a pass hit him in the head in the end zone with less than a minute remaining leading to an interception that clinched the game for the Rams. Still, it’s great to see him finally reach paydirt, and fantasy managers can hope for some better redzone luck in 2025. For now, he’ll get one more game in 2024 against the 49ers.

Murray’s first interception was essentially a punt on 4th and 10. The second one was far more critical as it came in the end zone on a throw that hit Trey McBride in the head and clinched the win for the Rams. Between that, Murray had some nice moments, and was able to give players like McBride (12-123-1) and Marvin Harrison Jr. (6-96) some strong fantasy outings. Murray will be under center for the meaningless finale against the 49ers in Week 18.

Stafford had over two-thirds of his passing yards and completions to Puka Nacua. The 36-year-old was highly ineffective when he wasn’t targeting Nacua, and had some misses to his star wideout as well. Stafford has been carried by his defense and running game for most of the season, and this wasn’t an exception. He’ll be back on the field for Week 18 against the Seahawks, but that game could have no meaning for either team depending on Sunday’s results.

Iosivas appeared to give the Bengals a late lead with a long touchdown on third down with under five minutes to play but the play was called back for illegal motion. He otherwise had a quiet evening as Tee Higgins (three touchdowns), Ja’Marr Chase (103 yards on 15 targets), and Mike Gesicki (10-of-12 for 86 yards) handled the bulk of the passing load against a solid Broncos defense.