The Kansas City Chiefs will face the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 13. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding RB Isiah Pacheco.
Is Isiah Pacheco Playing in Week 13?
Hunt will face competition from Isiah Pacheco, who fully practiced all week and has no injury destination for Week 13. Head coach Andy Reid said Pacheco will play this week, provided he had no setbacks.
Pacheco has been on IR since fracturing his fibula in Week 2. He’s been practicing for two weeks but was limited in every session until Tuesday. Now that he’s fully participating, Pacheco has never been closer to a potential return.
It remains to be seen how K.C. will divide touches between Pacheco and Hunt once the former returns. Hunt has finished as a top-25 fantasy RB or better in four of seven games.
“We’ll find a way. Both of them are good players,” head coach Andy Reid recently said of the Pacheco-Hunt split. “We’ll find a way to get both of them in if and when that takes place. That’s a good problem to have.”
We’ll continue to monitor the Chiefs’ 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 Isiah Pacheco in Week 13?
There was cautious optimism entering last week that Isiah Pacheco (leg) would return to action against the Panthers, but Andy Reid ultimately ruled him out on Friday, opting to not bring him back on the heels of a short week.
A return to action on Black Friday makes all the sense in the world — Kansas City is heavily favored and will have something of a mini-bye heading into Week 14, allowing its star running back an extra 48 hours to recover.
I’m treating Pacheco as a fantasy manager exactly how I anticipate the Chiefs to — patience. They have no motivation to rush him back like the 49ers did with Christian McCaffrey, and that has me labeling 11-13 touches as a much more likely outcome than the 20.5 he averaged through the first two weeks this season.
The loss to the Bills in Week 11 could well prove to be a result that impacts fantasy championships in a major way. With Buffalo remaining in the chase for the top seed, Kansas City could be motivated to deploy Pacheco at full capacity sooner than they would have otherwise.
I have Kareem Hunt (RB2) ranked ahead of Pacheco (Flex) for this week, but I’m anticipating that flipping for Week 14 and this to be the Pacheco show during the fantasy playoffs, presuming he can escape the next few weeks without a setback.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 13 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Isiah Pacheco’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 13
As of Friday afternoon, Pacheco is projected to score 12 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 12.6 rushing attempts for 55.5 yards and 0.4 touchdowns. It also includes 2.2 receptions for 15.8 yards and 0 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 Steelers' Defense
The Pittsburgh Steelers posted their third-lowest Defense+ grade of the season in the Week 16 loss to the Ravens (72.1, C-). Baltimore averaged 6.7 yards per play, the highest by any offense against Pittsburgh's defense all season.
The Steelers' pass defense had one of its worst games of the season, perhaps not surprising given the injuries to the secondary. They also had their second-lowest pass defense success rate (44%) and third-lowest EPA per dropback average (-0.25) this year. That’s despite the Ravens completing just one pass gaining 20+ yards in Week 16.
On the bright side, the pass rush looked like its vintage self, generating a season-best 50% non-blitz pressure rate. Pittsburgh ranks 11th in that category, right around the same spot they were last season (12th). The difference is that they still rank 17th in sack rate, which would be their lowest rank since 2014.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Isiah Pacheco’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 3:45 AM ET on Wednesday, December 25. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 17 RB PPR Rankings
1) Saquon Barkley | PHI (vs. DAL)
2) Jahmyr Gibbs | DET (at SF)
3) Derrick Henry | BAL (at HOU)
4) Bijan Robinson | ATL (at WAS)
5) Josh Jacobs | GB (at MIN)
6) De'Von Achane | MIA (at CLE)
7) Jonathan Taylor | IND (at NYG)
8) Chase Brown | CIN (vs. DEN)
9) Kyren Williams | LAR (vs. ARI)
10) James Conner | ARI (at LAR)
11) Bucky Irving | TB (vs. CAR)
12) Chuba Hubbard | CAR (at TB)
13) James Cook | BUF (vs. NYJ)
14) Breece Hall | NYJ (at BUF)
15) Joe Mixon | HOU (vs. BAL)
16) Aaron Jones | MIN (vs. GB)
17) Jerome Ford | CLE (vs. MIA)
18) Tony Pollard | TEN (at JAX)
19) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (vs. ATL)
20) D'Andre Swift | CHI (vs. SEA)
21) Rico Dowdle | DAL (at PHI)
22) Isaac Guerendo | SF (vs. DET)
23) Rhamondre Stevenson | NE (vs. LAC)
24) Rachaad White | TB (vs. CAR)
25) Tyrone Tracy Jr. | NYG (vs. IND)
26) Zach Charbonnet | SEA (at CHI)
27) Alexander Mattison | LV (at NO)
28) Isiah Pacheco | KC (at PIT)
29) Tyjae Spears | TEN (at JAX)
30) Kendre Miller | NO (vs. LV)
31) Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX (vs. TEN)
32) Jaylen Warren | PIT (vs. KC)
33) Javonte Williams | DEN (at CIN)
34) Justice Hill | BAL (at HOU)
35) Najee Harris | PIT (vs. KC)
36) Gus Edwards | LAC (at NE)
37) Tank Bigsby | JAX (vs. TEN)
38) Ameer Abdullah | LV (at NO)
39) Kareem Hunt | KC (at PIT)
40) Devin Singletary | NYG (vs. IND)
41) Tyler Allgeier | ATL (at WAS)
42) Kimani Vidal | LAC (at NE)
43) Audric Estimé | DEN (at CIN)
44) Raheem Mostert | MIA (at CLE)
45) Ray Davis | BUF (vs. NYJ)
46) Antonio Gibson | NE (vs. LAC)
47) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. DAL)
48) Craig Reynolds | DET (at SF)
49) Cam Akers | MIN (vs. GB)
50) Ty Johnson | BUF (vs. NYJ)
51) Blake Corum | LAR (vs. ARI)
52) Patrick Taylor Jr. | SF (vs. DET)
53) Roschon Johnson | CHI (vs. SEA)
54) Braelon Allen | NYJ (at BUF)
55) Jeremy McNichols | WAS (vs. ATL)
56) Jaleel McLaughlin | DEN (at CIN)
57) Isaiah Davis | NYJ (at BUF)
58) D'Onta Foreman | CLE (vs. MIA)
59) Cordarrelle Patterson | PIT (vs. KC)
60) Jamaal Williams | NO (vs. LV)
61) Emanuel Wilson | GB (at MIN)
62) DeeJay Dallas | ARI (at LAR)
63) Keaton Mitchell | BAL (at HOU)
64) Chris Brooks | GB (at MIN)
65) Pierre Strong Jr. | CLE (vs. MIA)
66) Ke'Shawn Vaughn | SF (vs. DET)
67) Trey Benson | ARI (at LAR)
68) Kenneth Walker III | SEA (at CHI)
69) Michael Carter | ARI (at LAR)
70) Sean Tucker | TB (vs. CAR)
71) Samaje Perine | KC (at PIT)
72) Israel Abanikanda | SF (vs. DET)
73) Ezekiel Elliott | DAL (at PHI)
74) Khalil Herbert | CIN (vs. DEN)
75) Dare Ogunbowale | HOU (vs. BAL)
76) Jaylen Wright | MIA (at CLE)
77) Kyle Juszczyk | SF (vs. DET)
78) Trey Sermon | IND (at NYG)
79) Mike Boone | CAR (at TB)
80) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (vs. ATL)
81) Dameon Pierce | HOU (vs. BAL)
82) Sione Vaki | DET (at SF)
83) Hunter Luepke | DAL (at PHI)
84) Alec Ingold | MIA (at CLE)
85) Tyler Goodson | IND (at NYG)
Chiefs at Steelers Trends and Insights
Kansas City Chiefs
Team: The Chiefs are one of 32 teams in the NFL (3.1%) – they have accounted for 13.3% of the 5+ game win streaks since the start of 2022.
QB: Patrick Mahomes recorded the longest touchdown run of his career on Saturday (15 yards) and now has a 10+ yard carry in three straight games for the first time in the regular season since Weeks 1-4 last year.
Offense: Saturday was the third time this season in which they averaged 3+ points per drive (they had three such games last regular season as well).
Defense: Kansas City has allowed under 20 points in four straight games, their third-longest streak since 2016.
Fantasy: It’s been a struggle for Isiah Pacheco of late, but it hasn’t been all his fault – 0.44 yards per carry before contact over his past three games.
Betting: Since 2022, unders are 8-1 when the Chiefs play on short rest.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Team: From Week 9 of 2022 through Week 2 of this season, the Steelers had one losing streak – they’ve had two since.
QB: George Pickens missed three straight games, and in those contests, Russell Wilson was 10-of-26 with one touchdown and one interception when pressured (two games prior: 14-of-24 with three scores and zero picks).
Offense: Pittsburgh has turned the ball over on 7.2% of their drives at home this season (road: 9.1%).
Defense: The Steelers have allowed 7.7 yards per pass since Week 12 (Weeks 1-11: 6.9). They are 8-0 this season, when allowing under 29 yards per drive (2-5 otherwise).
Fantasy: Najee Harris has yet to reach 45 rushing yards in a loss this season and has just seven receiving yards over his past three games (two targets earned).
Betting: Since 2005, the Steelers are 8-1 ATS on a short week in Week 15 or later (9-0 outright with a +130 point differential).