Most fantasy football leagues have just one more week until the start of the fantasy playoffs, but some managers will have to navigate away from two teams — Washington Commanders and Arizona Cardinals — on a bye this week.
Let’s take an early look at some of the best start/sit options for your fantasy team heading into Week 14.
Start ‘Em Picks for Week 14
Jordan Love, QB, Green Bay Packers
After a shaky start to the 2023 season, Jordan Love has looked far more comfortable and is playing with plenty of confidence over the last two weeks. And why shouldn’t he? Love has managed to upset the division-leading Detroit Lions and defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in consecutive games.
Over that two-game stretch, he’s thrown 535 yards and six TDs with no picks, which puts him back into fringe QB1 range against the New York Giants in Week 14.
Justin Fields, QB, Chicago Bears
Justin Fields may have failed to capitalize on multiple scoring opportunities in the red zone against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 12, but 217 yards through the air and 59 yards on the ground show he’s still capable of producing as a legit dual-threat option under center.
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After failing to register 12 carries in a game through the first six weeks of the season, Fields has topped that mark in two straight contests. His 30 carries for 163 yards since returning from a thumb injury look far more like his rushing totals from his breakout 2022 campaign.
Expect Fields to have another productive outing against a Lions defense that has struggled against opposing passing attacks over the last four games.
Zack Moss, RB, Indianapolis Colts
Zack Moss averaged 24 touches per game from Weeks 2 to 4 when starting RB Jonathan Taylor was unavailable due to an ankle injury. Well, with Taylor once again out of the lineup… Moss once again saw over 20 total touches to lead Indy’s backfield.
Unfortunately, his 21 total touches against a formidable Tennessee Titans front seven only produced with 57 yards with no scores, but the volume is the encouraging sign moving forward. Moss’ upcoming matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals should see him get back on track. He’s a top-12 play at the RB position in Week 14.
David Montgomery, RB, Detroit Lions
Another week… Another rushing touchdown for David Montgomery. His 10 rushing scores on the season trail only Raheem Mostert and Christian McCaffrey and is actually quite impressive when you take into consideration that Montgomery has missed three games this season due to injury.
Montgomery’s now heading back to the Windy City to take on the team he spent his first four NFL seasons with this Sunday, which could give him a bit of extra incentive to find paydirt against his former squad.
For some context, Montgomery had 98 total yards and a rushing score against the Bears back in Week 11. Expect another solid outing from him this Sunday.
DJ Moore, WR, Chicago Bears
Reunited with Fields, and it feels oh so good for Bears WR DJ Moore. In the two games since Fields returned to the starting lineup, Moore has topped 7+ receptions and 96+ yards on the stat sheet.
If you expand that sample size to the last four full games the two have played together, Moore has produced 34 receptions for 571 yards and five scores. Insert the Keanu Reeves “Whoa,” if you would like.
In my humble opinion, Moore is a low-end WR1 when Fields is in the starting lineup, which is definitely the case for his Week 14 matchup against Detroit.
Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Back-to-back eight-reception outings for Rashee Rice should tell you he is clearly a fantasy contributor the rest of the way for this Chiefs offense. Against the Green Bay Packers, Rice was tackled on the 1-yard line, which made his eight receptions for 64 yards just a decent day at the office in PPR formats.
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He has become everything fantasy managers hoped Skyy Moore or Kadarius Toney would be in Kansas City’s offense. Patrick Mahomes has targeted Rice 19 times over the last two games, which means the rookie is firmly on the WR2 conversation the rest of the way in 2023.
Cole Kmet, TE, Chicago Bears
Cole Kmet may be in the midst of a three-game drought from finding the end zone, but his seven receptions for 43 yards on seven targets against the Vikings in Week 12 showcase he’s still a big part of this passing attack.
Kmet’s 56 receptions for 482 yards and five scores have him as the TE6 overall in PPR formats. Despite a slow day against the Lions earlier this season, Detroit’s defense has given three touchdowns to opposing tight ends over the last two games. Start Kmet with confidence in Week 14.
Tucker Kraft, TE, Green Bay Packers
The expanded role for Tucker Kraft continued against the Chiefs on Sunday night. Kraft hauled in three of his six targets for 37 yards, which is encouraging in comparison to his two receptions on just targets for 15 yards in Week 12.
It could have been an even bigger fantasy performance last week had Love simply elected to throw to the wide-open Kraft as opposed to his other TE — Ben Sims — for an easy score from one yard out.
Look for Kraft to build off of an encouraging Week 13 outing heading into their matchup against the Giants.
Sit ‘Em Options
Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers
Allow me to start by saying this — if you don’t have other quality options, then you should start Justin Herbert. However, Herbert’s recent play suggests he’s no longer a simple set-it and forget-it fantasy option at QB right now.
Over the last two games, Herbert hasn’t topped 217 yards through the air and has just one touchdown pass to one interception and a lost fumble.
Herbert is still very capable of lighting it up on any given week, but their lack of a running game with RB Austin Ekeler struggling has this offense playing one-dimensional ball at the moment.
Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans
I wouldn’t really blame you for questioning this suggestion right now. Derrick Henry has scored four touchdowns over the last two weeks and topped the century mark for the second time this season on Sunday against the Colts.
However, these performances came against teams that are mediocre units, which helped produce a productive game script for someone with Henry’s talents.
Does anyone think the Miami Dolphins passing offense could have plenty of success against this Titans secondary? If you do, then you should be worried about Henry potentially getting game scripted out of the contest if the Titans face a double-digit deficit heading into the second half.
Henry does have four games with fewer than 45 yards rushing this season, which is a major problem when you consider his lack of a PPR floor with just one reception in four straight games.
Joe Mixon, RB, Cincinnati Bengals
The Jake Browning experience under center didn’t do a whole lot of good for Joe Mixon in their first full game together. Mixon’s 16 rushing yards on eight carries against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 12 was his second-lowest rushing total in a game since 2019.
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The Bengals offense doesn’t feel like it has a very high scoring ceiling right now, which makes the inefficient Mixon a risky play against the Colts in Week 14.
Adam Thielen, WR, Carolina Panthers
After producing top-10 numbers at the WR position through the first two months of the season, Adam Thielen’s production has cratered so significantly that he’s currently a drop candidate for some fantasy managers.
The rainy weather conditions were far from ideal against the Buccaneers on Sunday, but Thielen’s poor outing means he has produced just four receptions for 27 yards combined over the last two games.
When the Panthers’ WRs faced off against the Saints’ secondary earlier this season, they struggled mightily to create any separation whatsoever. I see that being the case again in Week 14, which makes Thielen a strong option to fade out of your fantasy lineup this Sunday.
Garrett Wilson, WR, New York Jets
It almost feels like fantasy managers who drafted Garrett Wilson are being punished by being forced to watch this New York Jets offense play this season. The Tim Boyle experiment under center lasted just one full game before he returned to the bench in favor of Trevor Siemian, which just speaks to Wilson’s awful situation right now.
This week, Wilson could see plenty of Houston Texans CB Derek Stingley Jr., who is a very talented young corner capable of making life difficult on both Siemian and Wilson when they matchup against one another.
If you want to go with Wilson’s floor in Week 14 because of his target share, then that’s reasonable, but I would simply temper my expectations significantly.
Cade Otton, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After consecutive four-reception, 40+ yard performances, Cade Otton didn’t see a single target in Week 13 against the Panthers. He appeared to be emerging as a consistent pass-catching contributor in Tampa Bay’s passing game, but his goose egg on Sunday is certainly a setback.
Otton feels like a high-risk, low-reward TE option heading into the team’s matchup against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 14.
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Setting DFS lineups? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer, Start/Sit Optimizer, and DFS Lineup Optimizer to help you make the right decision!
