NFL Player News

Goldman finishes his career on a low note after a down 2021, but had five productive seasons in the middle for the Bears. His best season was probably 2018, when he finished with an 87.8 PFF run grade and 25 hurries for a 12-4 Bears team. The retirement of the former second-round pick leaves Atlanta’s tackle spot across from Grady Jarrett almost totally up for grabs. The only other player on the roster with any real NFL experience at the position is Vincent Taylor, who is coming off a torn Achilles.

Shakir was tied for the team lead in targets in a game where the Bills leaned heavily on running backs and tight ends in the passing game against a banged-up Lions defense. Shakir did show his typically elite balance, pin-balling off tacklers for key first down catches and his touchdown. He remains Josh Allen’s clear go-to receiver and should be in for a solid game against the Patriots next week.

Kincaid was tied with Khalil Shakir for the team lead in targets and could have had a bigger day after a 10-yard touchdown pass from Josh Allen in the fourth quarter was called off due to a suspect holding penalty. The Bills clearly wanted to get Kincaid involved in the passing game after he missed the last four weeks, but he remains more of a high-end TE2 due to the competing weapons in the Bills’ passing attack.

Tucker rushed inefficiently against the Chargers but did notch a 37-yard kickoff return. He offers no standalone value but remains a high-upside bench stash for the fantasy football playoffs.

Cooper led the team with 14 targets last week but didn’t see a single one today. However, of the 32 targets the Bills had on the day only seven went to receivers who were not Khalil Shakir. The Lions secondary has been the strength of their defense all season, so the Bills chose to attack their defense with running backs and tight ends, which worked incredibly well. Cooper should be back in a bigger role next week against the Patriots.

White checked all of the boxes against the Chargers. His day was briefly jeopardized when he limped off after a red zone play but he was able to return after a short break. The big-bodied pass-catching specialist remains coaching catnip despite his inefficient rushing and ball security error; he is firmly entrenched as the Buccaneers’ primary RB in both scoring position and on pure passing downs. He is a worthwhile flex option against the Cowboys in Week 16.

It wasn’t a high-usage game for Coleman in his first game back since injurying his wrist in Week 9, but he made a huge play by getting open deep when Josh Allen was rolling out of the pocket in the third quarter. His long catch set up a crucial Bills’ score to take control of the game. There should be better games on the horizon, but Coleman is a touchdown-dependent WR3 in fantasy leagues because of how many options there are in the Bills’ passing game.

Patrick has been emerging as a threat to Jameson Williams’ status as the number-two wide receiver in Detroit for a few weeks now, and he out-targeted Williams again today. Some of that had to do with the Bills’ keeping their safeties deep to take away the big play, but Patrick is a solid receiver who can do everything pretty well, so he is going to continue to command targets. With the Lions’ defense continuing to struggle with injuries and shootouts potentially on the horizon, Patrick is on the deep-league radar.

Irving looked spry against the Chargers, spinning and bouncing away from contact. His low-double-digit fantasy-point results are certainly helpful but his upside remains capped by incumbent dual-threat RB Rachaad White. White out-snapped Irving 6-to-5 in the red zone and 10-to-3 on pure passing downs. Irving is a high-end RB2 against the Cowboys in Week 16.

With Saquon Barkley on the sideline for a significant portion of the first half, Gainwell found himself in a lead role against one of the premiere defenses in the league. Gainwell turned his first three rush attempts into 16 yards, and reeled in a 16-yard reception in the second quarter on a drive that ended with a DeVonta Smith touchdown. Gainwell averaged an impressive 6.0 yards per touch in the victory, but should remain in his backup role in Week 16 against the Commanders if Barkley — who finished out the game — is healthy.