The Miami Dolphins will face the New York Jets in Week 14. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Dolphins skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 14 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Tua Tagovailoa, QB
It might be too little, too late for the Dolphins, but fantasy managers will certainly take the trajectory of Tua Tagovailoa.
- Week 11 vs. Raiders: 288 yards, three TDs, and zero INTs
- Week 12 vs. Patriots: 317 yards, four TDs, and zero INTs
- Week 13 at Packers: 365 yards, two TDs, and zero INTs
I’d argue that Miami should just bank on Tagovailoa from the jump. For the season, he’s completing 76.3% of first-down passes, a rate that sits at 84.8% over the past two weeks (28 of 33).
With numbers like that, I think we can count on the 40-ish attempts that we’ve seen from him lately, especially against an opponent whom Tagovailoa was awfully efficient against a season ago when the Jets’ unit was more feared (two games: 77.8% completion percentage and 8.6 yards per attempt).
You can nitpick Tagovailoa if you’d like, and all of it would be fair. He ran for 13 yards in his return to action and has picked up six yards on the ground since (five games). He was fortunate on Thanksgiving to throw for multiple scores as it took a garbage Jonnu Smith drop that turned into a 12-yard Tyreek Hill touchdown. Those are all facts — facts that really don’t scare me in this spot and him back in the sunshine.
There aren’t many pocket passers I’d rather have than Tagovailoa, especially with his plethora of weapons at his disposal and his willingness to take what the defense gives him.
De’Von Achane, RB
De’Von Achane couldn’t find any running room on Thanksgiving night against the Packers in a one-sided loss (seven carries for 14 yards with a season-high 57.1% of his attempts failing to gain yardage), but that doesn’t prevent elite fantasy assets from paying the bills. That is exactly what the Dolphins have in their backfield.
The second-year star hauled in eight of his season-high nine targets for 56 yards and his fifth touchdown reception in six games since Tua Tagovailoa returned. He’s caught 28 of 30 targets over his past five contests, and with 13 red-zone touches over his past three games, this profile is about as bulletproof as it gets.
We are talking about a player that will go in the first half of first rounds for 2025 and one that looks poised to give you all the production you need to make a deep postseason run.
Jaylen Wright, RB
Jaylen Wright continues to hold more upside, in my opinion, than Raheem Mostert, should De’Von Achane suffer an injury. However, his one offensive snap on Thanksgiving is proof positive that the team has no desire of getting him work this season.
With Miami clinging to its playoff hopes, I don’t see it all of a sudden changing course. With six teams on a bye this week, it’s possible that you’re in a roster crunch; if that’s the case, you can cut ties with the explosive rookie.
Raheem Mostert, RB
Raheem Mostert has reached a 47% snap share just once this season (Week 13: 36.9%) and simply seems like an afterthought in this offense. Of course, he did enough on Thanksgiving to ruin my SGP that featured him rushing for under 9.5 yards (five carries for 19 yards), but this isn’t a profile that means anything for fantasy.
If you want exposure to a secondary back in Miami, it’s Jaylen Wright — and it’s not close. This is a one-back system that requires no weekly decision making — you’re riding De’Von Achane as far as you can and neglecting the other two.
Jaylen Waddle, WR
I think the Dolphins can have plenty of success in this spot and, on a per-dollar basis, I find myself leaning Jaylen Waddle over Tyreek Hill in the DFS streets. Efficiency hasn’t been the issue lately for Miami’s WR2 (14 catches on 16 targets over the past three weeks), and we saw Waddle produce at a high level (8-114-0) in New York last season during the one matchup in which Hill was active.
From a matchup standpoint, there is a path to this setting up better for Waddle. Seven of the top eight producing receivers against the Jets this season spent under 32% of their time in the slot.
Dolphins WR slot rates, 2024:
- Waddle: 19.4% of routes
- Hill: 32.1% of routes
New York allows the ninth most yards per completion this season (11.5), giving me confidence that Waddle’s recent efficiency results in a strong week. Maybe his third 100-yard game of the season?
Tyreek Hill, WR
Tyreek Hill caught a Jonnu Smith drop in the end zone on Thanksgiving against the Packers in garbage time, giving him a touchdown in three of his past four games. It was a fortunate play, but part of putting up fantasy numbers is being in the right place to succeed, and at the very least, Hill did that in Week 13.
Over the past three weeks, Miami’s WR1 has 18 catches, and if you told me that we’d be getting six receptions per game, I’d take it to the bank. Hill doesn’t have a catch gaining more than 30 yards since the 80-yarder in Week 1 (vs. Jacksonville), a lack of big plays that feels impossible.
It could flip this week, and that potential has me continuing to play him with high expectations, even if the box scores haven’t proven that wise. The Jets have the second-highest opponent aDOT, and we saw the Dolphins’ offense use Hill as their sun last season in his lone game against them (9-102-1 on a 42.9% target share).
I’ve got Hill ranked as a low-end WR1 and could see him being a “pay up to be different” option in DFS contests.
Jonnu Smith, TE
Jonnu Smith is tied for fourth at the position in PPR points per game since Tua returned to the field. That’s even more impressive when you consider that he averages more fantasy points per target over that stretch than the names ahead of him on the scoring leaderboard.
The veteran has posted an on-field target share north of 20% in five straight games, vacuuming in at least six looks in seven of his past eight games. There was certainly some garbage time on Thanksgiving, but the fact remains that Smith is a chain mover — of his 25 catches over his past three games (301 yards and three scores), 19 have picked up a first down.
Smith doesn’t have the per-target upside of Miami’s receivers, but his role appears to be as safe as any pass catcher in this offense, and that lands him inside of my start-every-week tier at the position.