The Los Angeles Rams‘ outlook dives into the fantasy football value of rookie WR Puka Nacua to end the season, while the San Francisco 49ers‘ fantasy preview looks forward to their star players.
Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco 49ers
- Spread: 49ers -3
- Total: 42.5
- Rams implied points: 19.8
- 49ers implied points: 22.8
The 49ers have locked in the top seed in the NFC and have nothing to play for. With that in mind, you’re not playing any of their regulars with any confidence, be it in a DFS or season-long setting.
Sean McVay announced on Wednesday that he will be resting QB Matthew Stafford, RB Kyren Williams, WR Cooper Kupp, and TE Tyler Higbee this week to prepare for the postseason.
Quarterbacks
Matthew Stafford: The machine that is RB Kyren Williams resulted in Stafford’s multi-TD streak being halted at five straight last week against the Giants. Still, he did clear 250 yards through the air for a fifth-straight game and completed over 70% of his passes for a third straight.
Stafford will be an interesting case next season — he has certainly done enough this season to have our attention in 2024, something that didn’t seem too likely less than five months ago.
Brock Purdy: With 31 TD passes and a completion percentage that fell just short of 70%, Purdy gave fantasy managers the type of high-floor production that is sought after when waiting on the position.
The asking price for Purdy this summer will obviously be greater than it was — he’ll probably be a nice value. The playmakers around him insulate his fantasy value to such a degree that it is pretty easy to build a strong team around him.
Running Backs
Kyren Williams: The season Williams has put together has been nothing short of spectacular. In his 12 games this season, he has finished as a top-10 back eight times and has been twice as likely to finish as a top-three producer at the position as he has been to finish outside of the top 20.
Week 2 meeting: RB4
Williams set a high bar in the first meeting (20 touches for 100 yards and two scores), and it’s games like that why he will be drafted as a RB1 this summer with confidence!
Christian McCaffrey: There are no words left to describe CMC after another massive season. He was in the conversation for the top overall pick this past summer, and he’s the center of that conversation as we look ahead to 2024.
MORE: PFN’s FREE NFL Playoff Predictor
Some will be skeptical about McCaffrey approaching 2,000 career touches — I need to see some sign of decline before blindly assuming that Father Time is going to come for this outlier any time soon.
Wide Receivers
Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua: With Kupp scoring in four of his past five games and Nacua earning at least seven targets in every game this season, both receivers deserve to be locked into your lineups when active.
When it comes to which one will hold more value, I’m not sure it matters. Both are strong target earners, but I give Kupp the slight edge in touchdown equity and will thus be ranked a few slots higher for me entering 2024.
There’s no reason to get caught up as to which Rams WR will be more productive next season, you’re in a good spot with either!
Deebo Samuel: That’s two elite seasons in a three-year stretch for Samuel, a résumé that is as impressive as his versatility. That said, I’m more likely than not to be out on him entering 2024.
The target-earning and catch-rate numbers aren’t overwhelming with Purdy under center, and that means that his rushing production is a must-have, not a nice-to-have.
Samuel is clearly more than capable of making those carries count at an elite level (career: 6.3 ypc with a TD once every 8.4 attempts), but he’s coming up on his 28th birthday, and we have proof that his production can dry up — just ask anyone who paid a premium in the summer of 2022.
Brandon Aiyuk: We knew there was growth potential in his profile, but his 2023 season exceeded even those expectations.
His yards per catch increased by 40.8% from a season ago, a stat you’d expect to be followed by a dip in catch rate.
Nope, in fact, his catch rate this season is higher than it was last season.
With a TD or 100 yards in eight of his past nine games, he’s been able to sustain a reasonable fantasy floor, something that members of this passing game have struggled with.
Aiyuk will be ranked ahead of Samuel for me in 2024 and will be the only 49ers pass catcher that I’m interested in paying the premium for.
Tight Ends
George Kittle: The year-over-year consistency of Kittle is staggering, but his path to those stat lines is nothing short of maddening.
- 2021: 162.5 half-PPR points
- 2022: 170.5 half-PPR points
- 2023: 170.7 half-PPR points
MORE: 2023 TE Fantasy Football Rankings
Fantasy points over his past four games, per the Week 18 Cheat Sheet:
- Week 14 vs. Seattle Seahawks: 15.1
- Week 15 at Arizona Cardinals: 6.4
- Week 16 vs. Baltimore Ravens: 16.1
- Week 17 at Washington Commanders: 4.4
There are seven tight ends that I have labeled as clear fantasy starters for 2024, and Kittle is in that mix, but you need to go in with eyes wide open that he is going to decide a handful of weeks for you — for better or worse.
Trending Start/Sit Searches
Did you know that we have a Start/Sit Optimizer here at Pro Football Network? It’s completely free to use, and it allows you to enter up to six players to find the best option to plug into your starting lineup.
It also allows us to see the most popular trending searches. We’ve jotted some of them down here to help provide some clarity.
Should You Start Brandin Cooks or Puka Nacua?
With Stafford officially resting and the Dallas Cowboys in control of their own destiny, Dallas WR Brandin Cooks is the play here. The veteran receiver has scored in consecutive games and has looked good doing it.
Nacua is the more talented player, but with the Rams resting Stafford and Kupp, I can’t help but think their primary receiver doesn’t see a full day at the office this week. That’s enough to scare me off of him in favor of a receiver in a must-win spot.
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Setting DFS lineups? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer, Start/Sit Optimizer, and DFS Lineup Optimizer to help you make the right decision!
