Week 14 once again proved how fickle this silly game is, as many who rode the likes of Alvin Kamara and Tom Brady to the playoffs saw their championship hopes go up in smoke, while others who didn’t make it witnessed Kareem Hunt finally have that big game all too late. Congratulations if you advanced through the luck and variance that is fantasy football, and condolences if your team hit the showers for the final time last week.
As always, let’s journey through some Interesting Tidbits to highlight important fantasy football related changes and trends entering the week. This can include notable recent performances, changes in playing time, intriguing matchups, and so on. Let’s see what’s on tap for Week 15 and (hopefully) beyond!
The secret to winning college bowl pick’ems 
Ben Roethlisberger is averaging 362 yards and three touchdowns over last four games
Hey, remember in Week 5 when Ben Roethlisberger “didn’t have it anymore” following a five-pick clunker against the Jacksonville Jaguars? Well, that sure seems like a long time ago, doesn’t it? Big Ben struggled in the early going, and for a while there, it did look like he might be done as a reliable fantasy quarterback.
But for those who stuck with him, he’s become an offensive juggernaut over his last four games, averaging 362 yards and three touchdowns, including last week’s ridiculous 506-yard outburst against the Baltimore Ravens. Roethlisberger has seen a noticeable bump in pass attempts over this span — notching totals of 45, 45, 40, and 66 — due in no small part to a struggling Pittsburgh Steelers defense that’s forced the offense to air it out to win games.
That’s unlikely to change in an upcoming AFC shootout with a 54.0 over/under against the New England Patriots. Armed with arguably the league’s best running back and wide receiver, Big Ben is peaking at the right time and could be taking many a fantasy team to the promised land this season.
Jordy Nelson finally gets Aaron Rodgers back
Aaron Rodgers has officially been medically cleared for Week 15, and no one should be happier to see him than Jordy Nelson. Over Brett Hundley’s seven starts, Nelson averaged a mere 3.1 receptions for 21.9 yards a game and scored zero touchdowns. Meanwhile, in Nelson’s four full games with Rodgers, he averaged 4.8 receptions for 57.5 yards and grabbed six scores.
Don’t forget that Nelson led the league in receiving touchdowns just last year (14). You’re still taking a leap of faith in trusting a quarterback coming off a severe injury, and the matchup is less than ideal against a Carolina Panthers that ranks seventh in DVOA against the pass, but Nelson is back on the WR2 radar this week.
Theo Riddick is averaging 15 touches over the last two weeks, but Ameer Abdullah could return against the Bears
Theo Riddick has emerged as a surprise fantasy asset over the last couple games, averaging 15 touches for 77.5 total yards, while cashing in the end zone three times. As one would expect from the traditional passing down back, he’s been particularly helpful in PPR leagues, catching 11-of-15 targets. His rise has coincided with a neck injury to Ameer Abdullah, who has been inactive the past two weeks and seemingly fallen out of favor with the Detroit Lions.
However, it now sounds like Abdullah will return this week against the Chicago Bears. While it’s unlikely he’ll suddenly regain his previous lead role, he could still steal touches back from Riddick. Keep on eye on the chatter leading up to Saturday’s game, but if Abdullah is active, you may want to temper expectations for Riddick and consider looking elsewhere this week.
Mike Evans catches just 2-of-5 targets for 25 yards in Week 14
Ugh. A disappointment for most of the season, Mike Evans crushed anyone who kept their trust in him last week, seeing a season-low five targets for a scoreless 25 yards. He now has just four receptions for 58 yards over his last two games.
Whether it’s Evans himself, or this Tampa Bay offense being too predictable, Evans has yet to hit 100 yards all season and hasn’t scored since Week 7. Still, in spite of the underwhelming results, Evans has seen a team-best 23% of the targets and 31% of the air yards, which are solid marks even if they are down from 2016.
The Atlanta Falcons are a bottom-half pass defense in DVOA, and Evans saw 12 targets against them in Week 12. You’re probably not thrilled about using him at this point, but given his talent and history, Evans can still be viewed as a WR2, and ought to have a higher floor than he’s shown lately.
Carlos Hyde is targeted just once in Week 14
One of the most interesting developments in the running back ranks this season is Carlos Hyde’s surprise usage in the San Francisco 49ers passing game. Across 13 games, Hyde has caught 52-of-79 targets for 307 yards. He caught 50-of-64 for 284 yards in his prior three seasons combined (34 games).
However, most of that volume came with C.J. Beathard at quarterback, and since Jimmy Garoppolo took over two weeks ago, Hyde has seen just six targets, including only one last week. And although Hyde has still seen touch totals of 20 and 14, Matt Breida has reemerged to siphon touches, grabbing 13 and 12 of his own. Hyde still sees enough volume to remain a solid back against the Tennessee Titans, but these recent developments reduce his floor, particularly in PPR leagues.
Josh Gordon scores first touchdown since December 15th, 2013
Josh Gordon got off to a hot start last week, scoring an 18-yard touchdown in the first quarter against the Green Bay Packers, so perhaps it was a little disappointing that he “only” ended up catching three-of-six targets for 69 yards and one touchdown. That said, it was another strong showing for Gordon, who hit pay dirt for the first time since late-2013, as he was held scoreless in 2014.
He gets a tough matchup against the Ravens in Week 15, but the defense isn’t impervious with Jimmy Smith lost for the season — Baltimore got knocked around for 39 points by the Steelers on Sunday night. Gordon should once again be in most lineups this week.
Peyton Barber could overtake Doug Martin in the Bucs’ backfield
With Doug Martin out with a concussion in Week 13, all Peyton Barber did in his place was rack up 143 total yards on 27 touches. So naturally, rather than stick with Barber in Week 14, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went back to Martin as their lead back against the Lions. Martin would get an early touchdown, but ultimately squander the opportunity with a lost fumble in the second quarter, leading to a benching in favor of Barber in the second half.
Barber would end the day out-touching Martin 13-12, in addition to averaging 4.8 yards a carry compared to 2.6. While we wouldn’t put it past the Bucs to stubbornly stick with Martin again this week if the Bucs hand the reins over to Barber he jumps into the flex discussion against the Falcons, who rank 30th against the run in DVOA.
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Kenyatta Storin is a featured writer with FantasyPros. For more from Kenyatta, check out his archive and follow him @kenyattastorin.
