The Denver Broncos will face the Kansas City Chiefs 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 WR Courtland Sutton.
Is Courtland Sutton Playing in Week 18?
Sutton is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Broncos’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Courtland Sutton in Week 18?
After reaching 70 yards receiving in six straight games, Courtland Sutton hasn’t cleared 55 in three straight, but he’s bailed you out with a score in two of those games.
That sort of decline should have your attention for the postseason, but I’m not close to sweating it this weekend. Despite the limited returns recently, Sutton has remained heavily involved (115+ air yards in four of his past five games) and didn’t struggle to generate looks in Week 9 against a full version of this Chiefs defense (32.1% target share, 70 yards, and a touchdown).
I currently have him sitting just outside of my WR1 tier this week, and that could easily change (three top-six finishes this season) as we gather more information about what Chiefs are/aren’t going to take the field.
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.
Courtland Sutton’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
As of Sunday, Sutton is projected to score 15.9 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 5.7 receptions for 75.6 yards and 0.4 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Chiefs' Defense
The Chiefs had their third-best grade of the season, recording an 81.7 (B-) grade in the Christmas Day romp over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Four of this unit’s seven best performances have come since Week 13, vaulting Steve Spagnuolo’s group back into the top 10.
Against the Steelers, the Chiefs' pass rush continued to improve even without All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones.
Kansas City posted its third-best non-blitz pressure rate (37.2%) of the season vs. Houston a week after posting their sixth-best vs. Pittsburgh. Since the Bills loss in Week 11, the Chiefs have the fourth-highest non-blitz pressure rate (36.2%), a big leap after ranking 16th in that category (31.6%) from Weeks 1-10.
That's especially frightening to consider when you remember that Spagnuolo's designer pressures are what this unit typically feasts on. Kansas City still blitzes at the seventh-highest rate this season (30.8%) and fares well when doing so. The Chiefs have the seventh-best EPA per dropback (0.07) when sending extra pass rushers this season.
After some shaky weeks and midseason questions, the Chiefs appear to be peaking as the postseason arrives. That's a familiar story from last season and could result in a familiar ending in February as well.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head over to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Courtland Sutton’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 WR PPR Rankings
1) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (at PIT)
2) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Justin Jefferson | MIN (at DET)
4) Mike Evans | TB (vs. NO)
5) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (at IND)
6) Drake London | ATL (vs. CAR)
7) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at LV)
8) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (at LAR)
9) Terry McLaurin | WAS (at DAL)
10) Malik Nabers | NYG (at PHI)
11) Tee Higgins | CIN (at PIT)
12) George Pickens | PIT (vs. CIN)
13) Davante Adams | NYJ (vs. MIA)
14) Courtland Sutton | DEN (vs. KC)
15) Jauan Jennings | SF (at ARI)
16) Jordan Addison | MIN (at DET)
17) DJ Moore | CHI (at GB)
18) Nico Collins | HOU (at TEN)
19) Zay Flowers | BAL (vs. CLE)
20) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at NYJ)
21) Jameson Williams | DET (vs. MIN)
22) Jalen McMillan | TB (vs. NO)
23) Calvin Ridley | TEN (vs. HOU)
24) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (vs. MIA)
25) DK Metcalf | SEA (at LAR)
26) Adam Thielen | CAR (at ATL)
27) Keenan Allen | CHI (at GB)
28) Jakobi Meyers | LV (vs. LAC)
29) Jayden Reed | GB (vs. CHI)
30) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (vs. SF)
31) Josh Downs | IND (vs. JAX)
32) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at LV)
33) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at NYJ)
34) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (vs. JAX)
35) Romeo Doubs | GB (vs. CHI)
36) Darnell Mooney | ATL (vs. CAR)
37) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (at BAL)
38) Khalil Shakir | BUF (at NE)
39) Rashod Bateman | BAL (vs. CLE)
40) Rome Odunze | CHI (at GB)
41) DeMario Douglas | NE (vs. BUF)
42) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (at PHI)
43) Jalen Coker | CAR (at ATL)
44) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (vs. CHI)
45) Xavier Worthy | KC (at DEN)
46) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (at DAL)
47) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (at DEN)
48) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (vs. HOU)
49) Hollywood Brown | KC (at DEN)
50) Amari Cooper | BUF (at NE)
51) Brandin Cooks | DAL (vs. WAS)
52) Parker Washington | JAX (at IND)
53) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (vs. KC)
54) Tim Patrick | DET (vs. MIN)
55) Kayshon Boutte | NE (vs. BUF)
56) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (vs. CAR)
57) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (at NE)
58) Devaughn Vele | DEN (vs. KC)
59) Andrei Iosivas | CIN (at PIT)
60) Calvin Austin III | PIT (vs. CIN)
61) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (vs. WAS)
62) Ricky Pearsall | SF (at ARI)
63) Michael Wilson | ARI (vs. SF)
64) Joshua Palmer | LAC (at LV)
65) Keon Coleman | BUF (at NE)
66) Tre Tucker | LV (vs. LAC)
67) Jalen Nailor | MIN (at DET)
68) Elijah Moore | CLE (at BAL)
69) Jamison Crowder | WAS (at DAL)
70) Xavier Legette | CAR (at ATL)
71) Kendrick Bourne | NE (vs. BUF)
72) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (vs. WAS)
73) David Moore | CAR (at ATL)
74) Adonai Mitchell | IND (vs. JAX)
75) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (vs. SEA)
76) Mike Williams | PIT (vs. CIN)
77) Malik Washington | MIA (at NYJ)
78) Alec Pierce | IND (vs. JAX)
79) Allen Lazard | NYJ (vs. MIA)
80) Tyler Lockett | SEA (at LAR)
81) John Metchie III | HOU (at TEN)
82) Robert Woods | HOU (at TEN)
83) Darius Slayton | NYG (at PHI)
84) Van Jefferson | PIT (vs. CIN)
85) Troy Franklin | DEN (vs. KC)
86) Mack Hollins | BUF (at NE)
87) Tutu Atwell | LAR (vs. SEA)
88) Kevin Austin Jr. | NO (at TB)
89) Dante Pettis | CHI (at GB)
90) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (at DAL)
91) Xavier Hutchinson | HOU (at TEN)
92) Ryan Miller | TB (vs. NO)
93) Greg Dortch | ARI (vs. SF)
94) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (vs. KC)
95) DJ Chark | LAC (at LV)
96) Michael Woods II | CLE (at BAL)
97) Cedrick Wilson Jr. | NO (at TB)
98) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (at DEN)
99) Devin Duvernay | JAX (at IND)
100) Justin Watson | KC (at DEN)
101) Tylan Wallace | BAL (vs. CLE)
102) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. NYG)
103) Josh Reynolds | DEN (vs. KC)
104) Ryan Flournoy | DAL (vs. WAS)
105) Trey Palmer | TB (vs. NO)
Chiefs at Broncos Trends and Insights
Kansas City Chiefs
Team: The Chiefs now have multiple six-game win streaks this season, and five of the past seven teams to pull that off have won their conference at the very least (two Super Bowl champions).
QB: Patrick Mahomes has some lofty standards – he’s completing a career-high 65.7% of his red zone passes this season.
Offense: Kansas City has gone six straight games without a turnover (they had one turnover-free game through the first 11 weeks).
Defense: The Chiefs have allowed a touchdown on just two of seven red zone trips over their past three games.
Fantasy: Xavier Worthy averaged 2.5 catches per game through his first six this season and 3.0 over his next six. In his past four games: 5-6-7-8 catches.
Betting: Kansas City had a stretch last season where they went 0-3-1 ATS before finishing the regular season with a pair of covers and winning the Super Bowl. Earlier this season, they failed to cover seven straight, but now have covered three in a row as they get ready to chase a three-peat.
Denver Broncos
Team: Over the past decade, Denver is 0-8 against Kansas City in winter games (games played on or after December 1). They’ve been outscored 216-138 across those games (-9.8 PPG).
QB: Bo Nix has completed 15 of his 19 passes in the final two minutes of regulation this season (78.9%).
Offense: This offense was put in a tough spot against the Bengals on Saturday. Their 24.6-yard line average starting field position was their second-lowest mark of the season.
Defense: Saturday was just the third time this season in which a team picked up at least half of their third downs against Denver – the Broncos are 0-3 in those games.
Fantasy: After reaching 70 yards receiving in six straight games, Courtland Sutton hasn’t cleared 55 in three straight, but he’s bailed you out with a score in two of those games.
Betting: Denver is 11-3 ATS (78.6%) in their last 14 games played on extended rest.