NFL Player News

With little left to accomplish in his professional career, Kelce is still leaving the door open for a return in 2024. Kelce turned 36 in November and reportedly told teammates after the NFC Wild Card loss to the Buccaneers that he was retiring. This report has since been disputed, but the 13-year pro is clearly nearing the end of his playing career. The wear-and-tear of an NFL season on Kelce was highly documented in the Amazon Kelce Documentary last year, but despite a multitude of aches and pains, the veteran hasn’t missed a regular season game since 2014. Kelce is a six-time All-Pro who won the Super Bowl in 2017 with the Eagles. He’s a near lock to be a first ballot Hall of Famer whenever he does decide to hang it up, but the lure of one more run at a Super Bowl could be enough for him to return next season. As far as a timetable goes, Kelce said he thinks he’ll “have an answer in the next couple of weeks.”

Schultz came back to life last week with 45 yards and a score on five grabs. Even with Tank Dell out for this game (and the rest of the year), the veteran tight end failed to step up versus the Ravens, though that wasn’t entirely on him. C.J. Stroud missed him on multiple easy throws, turning a potentially average fantasy game into a flop for Schultz. With five catches and 66 yards serving as the ceiling performances for Schultz this year, he is stuck in the TE2 ranks for Week 18.

Metchie operated as the team’s No. 2 receiver with Tank Dell done for the year. He parlayed the role into a team-high in targets and only fell 11 yards short of Nico Collins. While Metchie will have to play a prominent role in the offense in Week 18 and beyond, Diontae Johnson is expected to suit up next week, throwing a wrench in the Metchie streaming plans. He is, at best, a WR5 heading into Week 18 against the Titans.

Collins erupted for 119 yards versus the Jags in Week 13 but has been quiet ever since. He has 136 yards in his subsequent three games. John Metchie led the Texans in targets this week with eight looks, though that likely speaks to just how dysfunctional the team was versus a superior Baltimore squad. Collins gets the Titans in Week 18. He went for 92 yards and a touchdown when the teams last faced in Week 12. Houston has nothing left to play for with the AFC South title already in hand, so fantasy managers with stake in the final game of the year will want to make sure Houston is playing their starters before rolling out Collins as a WR1 next week.

The Texans couldn’t get anything going on offense and fell behind early, giving them no shot at establishing a ground game. Mixon, in turn, was held under 60 yards for the third time in four weeks. The veteran back has been banged up late this year and Houston’s offense isn’t setting him up for success. A date with the Titans would normally be a phenomenal remedy for his slump, but Houston has nothing to play for next week. Mixon and the rest of the starters could get the day off. If he does suit up, Mixon will be a mid-range RB2 versus Tennessee.

It was another stagnant outing from Stroud and the Texans’ offense. Stroud routinely missed layup throws in the first half and was put in bad spots with destined-to-fail runs on early downs all too often. The second-year passer also got banged up on several plays. He was stepped on early but didn’t seem affected after a play or two. Then, right before the end of the first half, Stroud was slammed to the ground by a Baltimore defender and seemed to injure his right arm in the process. Davis Mills took one snap but Stroud was back on the field for the next play. After being thoroughly out-played for another quarter and change, the Houston starters hit the bench late in the contest. Although the injury didn’t stop Sroud from playing beyond the lone rep, it could keep him on the sidelines for Week 18. The Texans have the AFC South title locked up but are stuck with the No. 4 seed regardless of the outcome of their final game. It’s possible Stroud gets the week off to recover and prepare for the playoffs instead of facing the Titans.

Bateman was held to one reception for the second week in a row, though it’s hard to blame him for the low receiving total this week. Lamar Jackson attempted just 15 passes while Derrick Henry alone piled up 27 rush attempts. The Ravens were not pushed in the slightest by a hapless Houston offense, resulting in a quiet game from most of the Baltimore pass-catchers. Bateman is stuck as a no-floor WR5 for his Week 18 date with the Browns.

Flowers accounted for a third of the team’s targets while tying Derrick Henry and Mark Andrews for a team-high in catches. In points-per-target-share leagues, this was an elite performance. For the rest of us, his Week 17 bust goes down as a product of game script. The Ravens bludgeoned the Texans with a 29-point victory and Lamar Jackson attempted just 15 passes. Week 18 should be another low-volume outing with a matchup versus a struggling Browns squad on tap. Flowers will be a high-risk WR2 for the regular season finale.

Likely scored on a short touchdown that saw Lamar Jackson buy well over five seconds with his legs. The backup tight end worked his way into an open pocket in the end zone for an easy score, at least from his perspective. It was Likely’s sixth score of the season. He remains a touchdown-or-bust TE2 for Week 18 versus the Browns.

Andrews nearly found the end zone in the first half on a long toss from Lamar Jackson. The MVP-hopeful hit him for a 67-yard catch-and-run, but Texans safety Calen Bullock took a good angle and chased Andrews down in the red zone. Not wanting to leave fantasy managers hanging, the Texans left him wide open in the end zone for a one-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter. Andrews hasn’t posted many gaudy yardage totals this year, but he has become Jackson’s go-to red zone target, resulting in 10 touchdown grabs with one week left in the regular season. Andrews remains a mid-range TE1 for his Week 18 date with the Browns.

For fantasy purposes, Henry was the Raven most hurt by Houston’s inability to keep up with Baltimore. The bruising back had 10 carries for 86 yards and a touchdown through 15 minutes. He continued to bully the Texans in the second and third quarters, but Lamar Jackson scored the team’s following three touchdowns before John Harbaugh called off the dogs in the fourth quarter and gave his starters some rest. Had the Texans kept the game competitive, Henry could have posted even more monstrous numbers in the final week of the fantasy season. He should close out the year with a bang as Baltimore looks to secure the AFC North crown with a win over Cleveland in Week 18.