The Las Vegas Raiders will face the Los Angeles Chargers 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 RB Alexander Mattison.
Is Alexander Mattison Playing in Week 18?
Mattison is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any unexpected setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Raiders’ 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 Alexander Mattison in Week 18?
Mattison last averaged 4.0 yards per carry in 2020 while with the Vikings, so his 3.2 mark this season shouldn’t be overly surprising.
He hasn’t had a 15-yard carry since September, and the fact that this team was willing to flip Ameer Abdullah from a third-down specialist to a full-blown bellcow instead of handing the keys to Mattison should be all you need to see to fade.
I’m not in a hurry to play any Raiders outside of Brock Bowers, and I don’t make a habit of playing fringe options against the Chargers — when both of those instances occur in a single game, there really isn’t a decision to be made.
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.
Alexander Mattison’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
As of Sunday, Mattison is projected to score 10.6 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 11.2 rushing attempts for 40.9 yards and 0.3 touchdowns. It also includes 2.4 receptions for 17.5 yards and 0.1 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 Chargers' Defense
After some rough games against better competition, the Chargers stifled the hapless New England Patriots on Saturday to make their way back into the top five entering Week 18.
The Chargers posted their third-best grade of the season, an 84.5 (B) performance. It was LA's best performance since Week 8, when they faced the New Orleans Saints' backup quarterbacks.
While the dominant win to clinch a playoff berth was reassuring, it's tough to read much into a game against the Patriots. Los Angeles' declining pass defense was a concern -- between Weeks 10-16, the Chargers ranked 25th in pass defense success rate (52.8%), with the likes of the Chiefs and Tampa Bay Buccaneers slicing them up.
Still, the Chargers rank sixth in that category for the entire season and have paired that with a run defense that doesn't allow many explosive gains (ninth in EPA per rush allowed). This unit will go down as a massive improvement after never ranking higher than 24th under Brandon Staley.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Alexander Mattison’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 RB PPR Rankings
1) Bijan Robinson | ATL (vs. CAR)
2) Jahmyr Gibbs | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Derrick Henry | BAL (vs. CLE)
4) Jonathan Taylor | IND (vs. JAX)
5) Josh Jacobs | GB (vs. CHI)
6) Bucky Irving | TB (vs. NO)
7) Chase Brown | CIN (at PIT)
8) Aaron Jones | MIN (at DET)
9) De'Von Achane | MIA (at NYJ)
10) Zach Charbonnet | SEA (at LAR)
11) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
12) Breece Hall | NYJ (vs. MIA)
13) Ray Davis | BUF (at NE)
14) D'Andre Swift | CHI (at GB)
15) Rico Dowdle | DAL (vs. WAS)
16) Isaac Guerendo | SF (at ARI)
17) J.K. Dobbins | LAC (at LV)
18) Najee Harris | PIT (vs. CIN)
19) Jaleel McLaughlin | DEN (vs. KC)
20) Joe Mixon | HOU (at TEN)
21) Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG (at PHI)
22) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. NYG)
23) Blake Corum | LAR (vs. SEA)
24) Tank Bigsby | JAX (at IND)
25) Jaylen Warren | PIT (vs. CIN)
26) Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX (at IND)
27) Rhamondre Stevenson | NE (vs. BUF)
28) Michael Carter | ARI (vs. SF)
29) Rachaad White | TB (vs. NO)
30) D'Onta Foreman | CLE (at BAL)
31) Kimani Vidal | LAC (at LV)
32) Miles Sanders | CAR (at ATL)
33) Tyler Allgeier | ATL (vs. CAR)
34) Audric Estimé | DEN (vs. KC)
35) Will Shipley | PHI (vs. NYG)
36) Alexander Mattison | LV (vs. LAC)
37) Antonio Gibson | NE (vs. BUF)
38) Javonte Williams | DEN (vs. KC)
39) Raheem Blackshear | CAR (at ATL)
40) Ty Johnson | BUF (at NE)
41) Devin Singletary | NYG (at PHI)
42) Cam Akers | MIN (at DET)
43) Raheem Mostert | MIA (at NYJ)
44) Roschon Johnson | CHI (at GB)
45) Craig Reynolds | DET (vs. MIN)
46) Kenny McIntosh | SEA (at LAR)
47) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (at DAL)
48) Cordarrelle Patterson | PIT (vs. CIN)
49) Braelon Allen | NYJ (vs. MIA)
50) Julius Chestnut | TEN (vs. HOU)
51) Samaje Perine | KC (at DEN)
52) Patrick Taylor Jr. | SF (at ARI)
53) Sean Tucker | TB (vs. NO)
54) Jamaal Williams | NO (at TB)
55) Isaiah Davis | NYJ (vs. MIA)
56) Chris Brooks | GB (vs. CHI)
57) Pierre Strong Jr. | CLE (at BAL)
58) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | NO (at TB)
59) Emanuel Wilson | GB (vs. CHI)
60) Mike Boone | CAR (at ATL)
61) Tony Pollard | TEN (vs. HOU)
62) DeeJay Dallas | ARI (vs. SF)
63) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at DAL)
64) Dare Ogunbowale | HOU (at TEN)
65) Rasheen Ali | BAL (vs. CLE)
66) Khalil Herbert | CIN (at PIT)
67) Trey Sermon | IND (vs. JAX)
68) Hassan Haskins | LAC (at LV)
69) Kyle Juszczyk | SF (at ARI)
70) Dameon Pierce | HOU (at TEN)
71) Jaylen Wright | MIA (at NYJ)
72) Carson Steele | KC (at DEN)
73) Sione Vaki | DET (vs. MIN)
74) Hunter Luepke | DAL (vs. WAS)
75) Tyler Goodson | IND (vs. JAX)
76) Ke'Shawn Vaughn | SF (at ARI)
77) Alec Ingold | MIA (at NYJ)
78) C.J. Ham | MIN (at DET)
79) Michael Burton | DEN (vs. KC)
80) D'Ernest Johnson | JAX (at IND)
81) Jeff Wilson Jr. | MIA (at NYJ)
82) Eric Gray | NYG (at PHI)
83) Jermar Jefferson | DET (vs. MIN)
84) Patrick Ricard | BAL (vs. CLE)
85) Joshua Kelley | NYG (at PHI)
86) Ty Chandler | MIN (at DET)
87) Israel Abanikanda | SF (at ARI)
88) Adam Prentice | NO (at TB)
89) Dylan Laube | LV (vs. LAC)
90) JaMycal Hasty | NE (vs. BUF)
91) George Holani | SEA (at LAR)
92) James Cook | BUF (at NE)
Chargers at Raiders Trends and Insights
Los Angeles Chargers
Team: Saturday in New England was only the third time since 2019 that the Chargers have earned at least a B grade in both Offense+ and Defense+ in the same game. The others:
- 2022 Week 17 vs. the Rams (31-10 win)
- 2019 Week 4 vs. the Dolphins (30-10 win).
QB: On Saturday, Justin Herbert officially became the NFL’s top passer through five career seasons (he opened the win over the Patriots by completing 17 of his first 21 passes for 162 yards and a pair of scores and a pair of teammate drops).
Offense: In Week 16, the Chargers scored a season-high 3.1 yards per drive, a rate they topped on Saturday against the Patriots (4.0).
Defense: Los Angeles is 10-1 this season when holding the opposition to a sub-50% third down conversion rate (Week 17 at Patriots: 20%).
Fantasy: Justin Herbert has thrown multiple touchdown passes in three straight games for the first time this season and snapped a 411-day drought since his last game with 3+ TD passes on Saturday.
Betting: Los Angeles is 5-1 ATS in their past six games as a road favorite (4-1 this season).
Las Vegas Raiders
Team: Over the past two seasons, the Raiders are 5-2 after December 13 and 7-19 prior.
QB: Aidan O’Connell turned 12 third-down pass attempts into 131 yards and his first third-down score of the season on Sunday.
Offense: Vegas converted a season-high 10 third downs on Sunday in New Orleans (they hadn’t had more than four conversions in a game since Week 12).
Defense: The Raiders allowed under one point per drive on Sunday against the Saints, their first such performance this season.
Fantasy: Brock Bowers is eight catches away from tying the all-time tight end record for receptions in a single season (116 by Zach Ertz in 2018) and is 104 yards away from posting a top-10 yardage season all-time at the position.
Betting: The Raiders closed last season with four straight covers and can repeat that level of winter success this season should they cover the number this weekend.