The Miami Dolphins will face the New York Jets in Week 18. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding QB Tua Tagovailoa.
Is Tua Tagovailoa Playing in Week 18?
Updated at 2:55 ET on Sunday, January 5
Tagovailoa is inactive for today's game.
Tagovailoa pushed very hard to play last week but was shut down by the medical team due to his hip injury. It appears he’s still not ready to go, as he was listed as doubtful after being limited in practice all week.
The Dolphins need to win to have any shot at making the playoffs this week, but it sounds like it will be Tyler Huntley once again.
We’ll continue to monitor the Dolphins’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Tua Tagovailoa’s Fantasy Outlook
Tagovailoa’s status is uncertain for this week, but I’m comfortable enough with what he has put on film this year to say that he fits the “if he plays for his team, he plays for your fantasy team” mantra.
Tagovailoa has five top-10 finishes this season, one of which came in Week 14 against the Jets (QB5 with 331 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns). It’s not yet clear whether the Dolphins will have Jaylen Waddle back, but taking on a defense that ranks 18th in terms of limiting YAC is a good spot for this quick-release offense, no matter the status of its WR2.
I have a spot tucked just inside of my top 12 for Tagovailoa should we get news that he is cleared ahead of the week kicking off.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 18 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Tua Tagovailoa’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
Tagovailoa is projected to score 0 points in Week 18.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Jets' Defense
Since Robert Saleh's departure, the New York Jets' defense hasn't been pretty. At the time of his firing, this was a top-three unit, with two top-five weeks and two others that had ranked seventh through five weeks.
The Jets have now regressed towards league average, with the Week 17 no-show vs. the Bills representing the team's third-worst grade of the season (67.8, D+). New York's last four games have resulted in four of their five worst grades of the season, with the unit playing out the string on a lost season.
This is a frustrating downturn for a unit that Saleh and Jeff Ulbrich had built into a juggernaut together. They inherited a mess from the Adam Gase regime, and while the first year (2021) was equally bad, the Jets had been a top-five unit in each of the last two seasons. They won't approach that in 2024 as one of the league's most disappointing teams overall.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Tua Tagovailoa’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 7:00 AM ET on Sunday, January 5. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Week 18 Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 18 QB PPR Rankings
1) Lamar Jackson | BAL (vs. CLE)
2) Jayden Daniels | WAS (at DAL)
3) Baker Mayfield | TB (vs. NO)
4) Joe Burrow | CIN (at PIT)
5) Sam Darnold | MIN (at DET)
6) Jared Goff | DET (vs. MIN)
7) Jordan Love | GB (vs. CHI)
8) Bo Nix | DEN (vs. KC)
9) Kyler Murray | ARI (vs. SF)
10) Justin Herbert | LAC (at LV)
11) Drake Maye | NE (vs. BUF)
12) Bryce Young | CAR (at ATL)
13) Russell Wilson | PIT (vs. CIN)
14) Geno Smith | SEA (at LAR)
15) Caleb Williams | CHI (at GB)
16) Aaron Rodgers | NYJ (vs. MIA)
17) Joe Flacco | IND (vs. JAX)
18) Michael Penix Jr. | ATL (vs. CAR)
19) Mason Rudolph | TEN (vs. HOU)
20) Aidan O'Connell | LV (vs. LAC)
21) Mac Jones | JAX (at IND)
22) Tanner McKee | PHI (vs. NYG)
23) Kenny Pickett | PHI (vs. NYG)
24) Cooper Rush | DAL (vs. WAS)
25) C.J. Stroud | HOU (at TEN)
26) Drew Lock | NYG (at PHI)
27) Jimmy Garoppolo | LAR (vs. SEA)
28) Carson Wentz | KC (at DEN)
29) Davis Mills | HOU (at TEN)
30) Tyler Huntley | MIA (at NYJ)
31) Joshua Dobbs | SF (at ARI)
32) Spencer Rattler | NO (at TB)
33) Mitchell Trubisky | BUF (at NE)
34) Taylor Heinicke | LAC (at LV)
35) Bailey Zappe | KC (at DEN)
36) Dorian Thompson-Robinson | CLE (at BAL)
37) Sam Howell | SEA (at LAR)
38) Josh Allen | BUF (at NE)
Dolphins at Jets Trends and Insights
Miami Dolphins
Team: Miami has won six of eight after opening the season with six losses in their first eight.
QB: Tyler Huntley averaged 8.7 yards per pass and had one touchdown on 26 attempts against the Browns on Sunday – in his first 66 passes this season, he averaged 5.7 yards per pass and had one touchdown.
Offense: Miami has not turned the ball over in four of their past five games (3-1 record in those four games).
Defense: The Dolphins improved to 5-0 this season when allowing a score on no more than 30% of opponent drives.
Fantasy: De’Von Achane managers are signing up to be Tua Tagovailoa fans when they draft him. This season:
- Tagovailoa: 18.6% production over expectation, 1.2 points per touch, 24.1% on-field target.
- Tyler Huntley: 23.1% production under expectation, 0.5 points per touch, 11.5% on-field target.
Betting: Miami Has covered six of their past seven road divisional games (their last 3-0 ATS season in terms of road divisional games was 2019).
New York Jets
Team: The Jets lost by 26 to the Bills on Sunday and were fortunate that the final score was that close. The blowout came on the heels of their previous four losses, which were by a total of 22 points.
QB: Aaron Rodgers has had more downs than ups this season, but he has completed 17-of-21 play-action passes over the past two weeks (81%).
Offense: New York averaged 1.4 points per drive on Sunday and fell to 0-8 this season when they failed to clear 2.0 points per drive.
Defense: The defense hasn’t traveled this season—the Jets have allowed 3+ points per drive in five games this year, and they’ve all been on the road (Sunday at Buffalo: 3.5).
Fantasy: The only players with more targets than Davante Adams (102) since he debuted for the Jets are Ja’Marr Chase (119) and Malik Nabers (110).
Betting: Under tickets have cashed in five of New York’s past seven home divisional games.