Roster management is the single most crucial in-season task for fantasy football managers. Knowing which players to let go is as important as adding the right guys. Which players find themselves on our Week 15 fantasy football cut list?
All roster percentages are taken from Yahoo.
Players You Should Cut in Fantasy Football
Geno Smith, QB, Seattle Seahawks (59%)
To open the season, Geno Smith was as reliable as it gets. He scored at least 17 fantasy points in five of his first seven starts. Since the Seattle Seahawks’ Week 10 bye, it’s been quite the opposite.
Smith hasn’t hit 17 fantasy points in four straight games, three of which were under 14. With games against the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, and Chicago Bears left, it’s hard to envision Smith being a recommended option.
Kirk Cousins, QB, Atlanta Falcons (53%)
So much for the Kirk Cousins revenge game. Against his former team, Cousins threw for 344 scoreless yards and two interceptions. It was a thorough beat down by the Vikings and Sam Darnold, who threw a career-high five touchdowns with no interceptions.
Cousins entered Week 14 averaging a career-low 14.4 fantasy points per game. The reality is it’s been so much worse.
Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cousins has posted games of 35.36 and 28.64 fantasy points. Thus, against Tampa Bay, he’s the best fantasy QB in history. Against everyone else, though, Cousins has averaged 10.98 fantasy ppg.
When he’s not facing the Bucs, Cousins is the worst quarterback in fantasy. The Bucs are not on the schedule anymore. The last time Cousins threw a touchdown was Nov. 3. He should quite literally be 0% rostered in single-QB leagues.
Will Levis, QB, Tennessee Titans (20%)
Will Levis is only 20% rostered, but his name bears mentioning because of his remaining schedule. Beginning this past week, Levis had the easiest rest-of-season schedule for quarterbacks. It did not start off well.
Levis threw for 168 scoreless yards against the No. 32-ranked pass defense. If he can’t so much as provide a passable QB2 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, I don’t care that he faces the Cincinnati Bengals, Indianapolis Colts, and Jaguars again. Anyone who stashed him for the juicy matchups should look for a better option.
C.J. Stroud, QB, Houston Texans (88%)
With the Houston Texans on bye last week, C.J. Stroud’s roster percentage dipped a bit. But it’s still outrageously high.
We are through 14 weeks of the season, and Stroud has one game with more than 20 fantasy points. He can give you three more starts against each of the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs, and Baltimore Ravens. That Ravens matchup is juicy, but you have to get there first. Plus, he just had a juicy matchup against the Jaguars and completely flopped. There’s just no reason to expect a turnaround at this point.
Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers (67%)
I typically wouldn’t include injured players two weeks in a row. However, Christian McCaffrey is still on a large percentage of rosters. To be fair, that’s likely a product of fantasy managers who drafted McCaffrey being out of the playoffs and not bothering to drop him, which is understandable. If you somehow made the postseason with McCaffrey on your roster, you can let him go, as he is done for the season.
Raheem Mostert, RB, Miami Dolphins (48%)
The Dolphins have pretty clearly moved on from Raheem Mostert. He has a mere two games all season with double-digit fantasy points but hasn’t hit that threshold since Week 8. Mostert also hasn’t carried the ball more than five times since Week 9.
De’Von Achane is the clear RB1 and Jaylen Wright has taken over as the primary backup. As if that wasn’t reason enough to cut Mostert, he’s also injured.
At 32 years old, it appears Mostert’s run as an impact NFL player may be over.
Devin Singletary, RB, New York Giants (43%)
I will preface this by saying Devin Singletary is still the clear handcuff to Tyrone Tracy Jr. If the rookie were to miss time, Devin Singletary would return to the clear RB1 role and likely be a startable RB3. But unless that happens, he has no fantasy value.
Tyrone Tracy played 83% of NYG's snaps in Week 14, just the second time he's been above the 80% mark. He ran a route on 71% of the team's drop backs, a season high. His 21.7% target share was a season high. His 89% running back rush share was the second-highest of his season.
— JJ Zachariason (@LateRoundQB) December 9, 2024
Singletary carried the ball seven times for 23 yards against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. That seemed like a whole lot of nothing. Somehow, it got even worse this past week, with Singletary earning a whopping two carries and no targets. He hasn’t hit double-digit fantasy points since Week 3. Singletary is nothing more than a low-upside handcuff.
Tyjae Spears, RB, Tennessee Titans (43%)
Since Week 4, Tyjae Spears has played a total of five games. He’s scored a combined 17.2 fantasy points. If you were able to get all four of his most recent games in one lineup for one week, it would still merely be a mid-RB2.
Spears did see more work against the Jaguars, but only barely. He turned six opportunities into 23 scoreless yards.
This is not a timeshare. Spears, at best, is a tenuous handcuff. There is absolutely no stand-alone value here.
Jonathon Brooks, RB, Carolina Panthers (40%)
In his third game back from a lengthy ACL recovery, Jonathon Brooks’ went down untouched on his first carry of the game. He tried to walk off the field on his own power but couldn’t. Eventually, the cart was brought out for the rookie.
Sadly, Brooks re-tore the same ACL he spent nearly a year recovering from. His season is over.
Deebo Samuel Sr., WR, San Francisco 49ers (96%)
For this one, I am going to copy exactly what I said in last week’s cut list.
“Every week, I get a bunch of questions in the PFN Discord about whether to start Deebo Samuel Sr. or [insert player here]. My answer, every time without fail, is the exact same: ‘Never Deebo.’ It doesn’t matter who the other player is. All that matters is that the player you start isn’t Samuel.
One of the most difficult aspects of fantasy football is accepting that a brand name no longer has value. Samuel has been one of the most dynamic players in the NFL for the past half-decade. He was a second-round pick in 2024 fantasy drafts. But it’s over.”
Samuel hasn’t scored since Week 6. Over that span, he’s scored 12.6 fantasy points twice. That represents the best he can do for fantasy managers — high WR4 value. His absolute, best-case scenario, if-everything-breaks-right upside is maybe he gives you a WR4 outing.
To his credit, Samuel has been remarkably consistent over the past four weeks. You know exactly what you will get. He’s amassed between 20 and 22 receiving yards in four consecutive games. It’s as impressive as it is sad.
Normally, I would say there’s no harm in leaving Samuel on your bench out of fear he could pop a big game. In this case, there’s a strategic advantage to dropping him. Samuel has name value. What if your opponent picks him up and starts him? That’s a guaranteed hole in your opponent’s lineup.
Drop him. Let someone else pick him up and start him, and then hope you play that team while Samuel gives them his usual four fantasy points, contributing to your victory.
Tank Dell, WR, Houston Texans (82%)
This is a repeat of last week’s cut list. Since the Texans were on bye in Week 14, the analysis hasn’t changed. Below is what I wrote in last week’s cut list:
“Is Tank Dell a good football player? I thought so. After this year, I’m really not sure. What I am sure about is he no longer belongs on fantasy rosters and really hasn’t all season.
Even while Nico Collins was out, Dell didn’t exactly do much. He was better but averaged only 11.8 fantasy points per game. Those numbers are good enough to stash on your bench in case you need a desperation start but nothing more. With Collins on the field, though, it’s been a disaster. Dell is averaging 8.3 ppg with Collins active. What exactly are we supposed to do with that?”
Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks (46%)
Heading into this season, I was quite high on Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but the jury was still out on him as a talent. The thesis was pretty simple. If a 22-year-old JSN could not unseat a 32-year-old Tyler Lockett as the Seahawks’ clear WR2, we could shut the door on Smith-Njigba as anything more than “just a guy.”
Since Week 8, Lockett has not seen more than four targets in a game. He hasn’t caught more than three passes in a game. He’s amassed more than 20 receiving yards just once over that span.
Last week, Lockett saw one target and did not catch it. I think it’s safe to say JSN has answered the call.
Tyler Lockett
Weeks 1-7: 18% target share
Weeks 8-14: 9.5%Jaxon Smith-Njigba
Weeks 1-7: 19.5% target share
Weeks 8-14: 25.9%DK Metcalf's has only dropped by two percent. JSN's rise has come purely at Lockett's expense.
— Tom Strachan (@NFL_TStrack) December 9, 2024
Geno Smith cannot support three fantasy-relevant WRs. Smith-Njigba appears to now be the No. 1; DK Metcalf is the No. 2; an aging Lockett looks to be nearing the end.
Diontae Johnson, WR, Baltimore Ravens (38%)
The situation with Diontae Johnson and the Baltimore Ravens has to be one of the strangest in recent memory. From Weeks 3-6, while still with the Panthers, Johnson legitimately was a WR1 in fantasy. Somehow, he’s gone from an every-week must-start to a guy who actively refused to enter the game when his coaches told him to.
Since Week 8, Johnson has had one reception on five total targets. The Ravens suspended him for their next game (Week 15 following the bye) due to conduct detrimental to the team. I still think he’s a talented player, but it’s quite clear there is nothing here for fantasy anymore in 2024.
Kyle Pitts, TE, Atlanta Falcons (83%)
Kyle Pitts is another name with a roster percentage that is shockingly high. If you started Pitts every game this season, you were thrilled with his output a total of two times. You were likely fine with his output another three times. He was a gaping hole in your lineup the other eight times.
Over his past five games, Pitts has scored below 2.5 fantasy points a staggering four times. He was kind enough to throw in a 9.5-point performance in his other game. I simply ask what are we waiting for? It can’t get any worse.
Cade Otton, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (80%)
The entirety of Cade Otton’s fantasy value stemmed from Mike Evans and Chris Godwin going down. Baker Mayfield had no one else to throw to. With Evans back, Otton has returned to being an afterthought.
Since Evans returned, Otton has posted games of 4.0, 6.0, and 10.0 fantasy points (impressive that he’s landed on whole numbers in three straight games).
While 10 points is a serviceable total, he had an anomalous 44-yard reception against the Raiders. His other seven receptions over the past three weeks have totaled 76 yards. You can do better.
Dallas Goedert, TE, Philadelphia Eagles (64%)
My least favorite players to include on the cut list are the ones that don’t deserve to be here. Dallas Goedert’s play did nothing to warrant his removal from fantasy rosters. Unfortunately, he is currently on IR with a knee injury.
Goedert’s season is not over, but we won’t see him again during the regular season. Therefore, he can be released from fantasy rosters.
Cole Kmet, TE, Chicago Bears (51%)
Ever since the Chicago Bears moved on from Shane Waldron as offensive coordinator, Cole Kmet has been the clear primary tight end. He’s on the field and running routes. So, if you want to roll the dice on him, you can. But you don’t need to.
Kmet still hasn’t really done much recently. He’s caught three passes or fewer in four of his last five. Only his 13.4 fantasy points against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 12 were helpful for fantasy managers.
The Bears’ remaining schedule consists exclusively of teams that defend the tight end well. Against the 49ers, Kmet wasn’t targeted at all. He is impossible to trust.