The Buffalo Bills will face the Detroit Lions in Week 15. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Bills skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 15 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Josh Allen, QB
Josh Allen stamped his MVP ticket last week with the historic six-touchdown performance, and now he gets a chance to solidify the Bills as legitimate Super Bowl threats.
In our game, Allen is exactly as good as you think he is. Last week was his second finish this season as the top-scoring QB of the week, his fifth top-five finish, and eighth in the top 10.
The Bills have asked Allen to quicken his decision-making (65.4% fast pass rate, easily a career high), and it’s opened up more avenues to production.
Like with Hurts, you could easily argue that there is room to grow. Dalton Kincaid and Keon Coleman have both been on the shelf recently and will offer a depth in support that he’s thriving without.
James Cook, RB
James Cook was left out of the fun last week (eight touches for 29 yards), but I feel good about labeling a game that featured 86 points and a break-neck pace as rare.
This isn’t a good spot for Cook, that much we know. The Lions are the top run defense in terms of success rate by a wide margin, and both of these offenses operate at a bottom-seven pace, leaving us open to a possession count on the low side.
Even with those negative factors working against Buffalo’s RB1, I think you’re playing him. Cook has 11 rushing scores this season and has been good for multiple receptions more often than not. Ray Davis hasn’t eaten his role as a featured back, and with Josh Allen constantly putting this team in a position to score, Cook is a must-play every week.
Ray Davis, RB
Ray Davis didn’t get a single touch in the Josh Allen superhero game last week, and that tracks. He’s a change-of-pace back to James Cook, but if this offense is going to ask Allen to wear the cape, there’s really no reason to involve the rookie RB2.
At this time of year, I value volume on these bad offenses above efficiency, something that makes Pollard a viable starter in all formats for me. The fact that the Bengals rank third-worst in defensive success rate against the run is a bonus and has him flirting with my top 10 this week alongside names like Alvin Kamara and James Cook.
Amari Cooper, WR
In his first four games with Buffalo, Amari Cooper saw 13 targets on 73 routes. In the Week 14 loss to the Rams, the veteran receiver saw 14 passes thrown his way on 26 routes.
Was this a matchup thing or the start of a beautiful connection with Josh Allen? Only time will tell on that front — it’s worth noting that Dalton Kincaid and Keon Coleman were both inactive, not to mention a game script that demanded aggression.
Not all of those things are going to align weekly, but they could be in play this week to some degree. The Lions are a good bet to push the Bills, and while one or both of his teammates could be back in the mix, their extended absences have me pessimistic that they will return at full strength this weekend.
The Lions are the best red-zone pass defense in the league; that caps the upside case for a receiver who plays on an offense that wants to rush the ball into the end zone as it is, but I think the plus volume sticks. That’s enough to Flex him with a decent level of confidence.
Keon Coleman, WR
Keon Coleman has now missed four straight games with a wrist injury, and his status for Week 15 remains up in the air, though there has been more early optimism this week than in the past few.
I’m not sure it matters.
He’s earned a target on just 16.4% of his routes this season, and that doesn’t include many reps with Amari Cooper. This time last week, I was bullish on the idea of stashing Coleman with the thought being that the Bills would move heaven and earth to pass the Chiefs for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
After a loss to the Rams last week on top of another heart-stopping Chiefs win, those dreams are all but dashed, and now I think a cautious approach is more likely than not.
I don’t see a realistic path to Coleman working his way into the top 35 of my receiver rankings at any point over the final month of the season. With that being the case, I believe you can move on should you need immediate help — Coleman, at best, is a long-term play with limited role upside.
Khalil Shakir, WR
I like to think that if I was athletically gifted, Khalil Shakir would be my spirit animal. Remove that pesky ability to excel physically, and we are basically identical.
- Listed at 6’ tall
- K.S. initials
- Aquarius Zodiac Sign
- Significant time spent in Upstate NY
See what I mean?
I’ve been ultra proud of my clone lately. Only Malik Nabers (11) has a longer active streak of 7+ target games than Shakir (seven), and with a red-zone touch in five of his past seven games, he’s benefiting from the overall consistency of Buffalo’s offense.
We saw a little bit of everything from Shakir last week in the loss to the Rams. The 51-yard catch, run, and shrug-off-tackles touchdown was impressive and on brand. I was even more encouraged by a 31-yard bomb that nearly got him a second score.
If Shakir’s route tree is expanding, get used to seeing this name ranked as a top-20 PPR receiver. This profile isn’t super exciting in terms of highlight plays, but I find winning fantasy matchups exciting, and my guy K.S. helps you do that consistently.
Dalton Kincaid, TE
Dalton Kincaid has now missed three consecutive games due to a knee injury, and while I typically project a return to action before a fourth missed game in instances like this (if he was going to miss four games, the Bills could have opened up a roster spot by placing him on IR a month ago), I’m not sure we get that this week.
The Bills are still technically alive for the top seed in the AFC, but that seems like a fleeting dream after they gave up a game in the standings last week. Barring a dramatic shift in reporting, I’m not banking on having Kincaid as a full-go this week. And for a player who is more than 300 days separated from his last game with 55 receiving yards, can you really justify playing a compromised version of him with your season on the line?
Dawson Knox, TE
Dawson Knox has assumed the Dalton Kincaid role, posting a snap share north of 81% in two of the starter’s three DNPs. From a spreadsheet-only point of view, the case for streaming a player like this is reasonably straightforward — he’s tethered to Josh Allen in an offense without much in the way of alpha target earners.
Of course, our game is played on the field and that is where this profile loses some traction. Last week, in a shootout that was played without Keon Coleman (wrist) and with QB1 wearing the Superman cape, Knox’s 29 routes resulted in one very forced target. His only look against the Rams was a screen pass that came two yards behind the line of scrimmage, not exactly a showcase of him being able to win a route.
If Kincaid returns this week, I don’t think you’re playing either Buffalo tight end; and if Kincaid doesn’t return this week, I don’t think you’re playing either Buffalo tight end. The Lions own a top-five defense in terms of YAC yards allowed and opponent completion percentage — the idea of Knox is far more appealing than the realistic application of him.