Fantasy Football Heat Index: Geno Smith, James Conner, Alec Pierce, Brevin Jordan

Every Monday of the NFL regular season, we will showcase exceptional player performances from the weekend and analyze their potential for sustained success in fantasy football. We will rank these performances from 🔥 to 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 based on whether we believe they are momentary or long-term options for your fantasy teams.

Fantasy Football Heat Index

Quarterback

Geno Smith (QB – SEA)

Stats: 23/41, 334 passing yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 2 rush att, 6 yards, 1 rush TD

Position Rank (pre-MNF): QB1 (29.96 points)

Analysis: After breaking out in his first season in Seattle, the current campaign has been more of a struggle for Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith. With a Thursday Night Football matchup against the talented Cowboys defense, many of us expected more of the same in Week 13.

Not so fast, my friend. Despite the tough matchup, Smith scored a season-high 29.96 fantasy points in Seattle’s 41-35 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Smith finished with 334 passing yards and four total touchdowns. He’s the current QB1 on the week.

This type of performance against that talented defensive unit is encouraging, but you also have to keep Smith’s Week 13 performance in perspective. Smith has scored 20+ fantasy points in only 3/12 games this season and has matchups against San Francisco and Philadelphia over the next two weeks.

Heat Index: 🔥🔥

Running Back

James Conner (RB – PIT)

Stats: 25 rush att, 105 rushing yards, 2 TD, 2 targets

Position Rank (pre-MNF): RB4 (22.5 points)

Analysis: In his return to Pittsburgh, Arizona running back James Conner received his biggest workload of the season. Conner responded with only his second 100+ rushing performance of the season and his best fantasy football finish all year.

Conner finished Sunday’s contest with 105 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns on a whopping 25 carries. He scored 22.5 fantasy points and is the current RB4 on the week. For reference, Conner had 36 carries and 19.8 total fantasy points over his previous three contests. That’s quite the uptick in usage.

Despite the blow-up spot, I’m still skeptical of Conner repeating Week 13’s performance. Arizona had a rare double-digit lead early in the contest, which led to them riding the running game down the stretch. I doubt Arizona finds itself in this type of positive game environment very often this season, so I’d consider selling Conner if you can find a buyer.

Heat Index: 🔥🔥

Wide Receiver

Alec Pierce (WR – IND)

Stats: 3 receptions, 100 receiving yards, 1 TD, 6 targets

Position Rank (pre-MNF): WR11 (17.5 points)

Analysis: In Indy’s 31-28 victory over the Tennessee Titans, Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce produced more than he has all season. Pierce only finished with three receptions, but he made two splash plays, including a 36-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter.

Unfortunately, this performance is the very definition of an anomaly and isn’t very sustainable over time. Pierce did lead all Colts wide receivers in snaps, but he usually trails Michael Pittman Jr. and Josh Downs in targets. Pierce is more of a field-stretcher who helps open things up for others, so I’d be wary of trusting him into starting lineups after one good performance.

Heat Index: 🔥

Tight End

Brevin Jordan (TE – HOU)

Stats: 3 rec, 64 receiving yards, 4 targets

Position Rank (pre-MNF): TE11 (7.9 points)

Analysis: With Dalton Schultz out, the Texans called on backup Brevin Jordan to fill the void at the tight end position. Jordan dominated playing time (51-19 snap advantage over TE2) and finished with 64 receiving yards on three receptions. That doesn’t sound like much, but as we all know, it doesn’t take much to finish as a low-end TE1 this season.

Schultz doesn’t appear to have a long-term injury, so Jordan’s increased usage could be short-lived. With Tank Dell injured and lost for the season, the Texans could theoretically keep Jordan involved with more 2TE sets, but they’re more likely to just incorporate their other wide receivers.

Heat Index: 🔥