The Cincinnati Bengals will face the Pittsburgh Steelers 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 Khalil Herbert.
Is Khalil Herbert Playing in Week 18?
Bengals RB Chase Brown is inactive, which means Herbert will get the start in Week 18 against the Steelers.
We’ll continue to monitor the Bengals’ 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 Khalil Herbert in Week 18?
Once upon a time, Khalil Herbert was a popular fantasy breakout pick as the presumptive Bears RB1. In 2023, he posted three games of 19+ fantasy points.
Top 10 in yards per touch and evaded tackles per touch in 2022, Herbert does have talent. Unfortunately, the stigma of being a sixth round pick is hard to overcome.
This is big audition for Herbert, who will get once chance to prove to an NFL team he’s worth of a role next year. You can bet he’s going to give it 100% effort.
With that said, fantasy managers expecting Herbert to be a one-for-one Chase Brown replacement will likely leave disappointed. For the past eight weeks, Brown has played over 80% of the snaps. Herbert will almost certainly rotate with the Bengals backup of choice this week, while the Bengals, who lead the league with a 65% neutral game script pass rate, continue being the most pass-heavy team in the league.
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.
Khalil Herbert’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
As of Saturday, Herbert is projected to score 5.6 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 6.4 rushing attempts for 30.5 yards and 0.2 touchdowns. It also includes 0.8 receptions for 4.9 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 Steelers tumbled out of the top 10 thanks to their worst defensive game of the season on Christmas Day. Pittsburgh's 67.8 (D+) grade was its worst this season and its worst since Week 4 of last year (a 30-6 loss to the Texans).
The Steelers flunked their brutal stretch of three games in 11 days against Super Bowl contenders (Eagles, Ravens, Chiefs), with the pass defense emerging as a concern. Three of Pittsburgh's four worst EPA per dropback figures came during this stretch. Since Week 15, the Steelers are averaging -0.31 EPA per dropback, fourth-worst over that stretch.
The Steelers had the third-best EPA per dropback entering this stretch, and the truth is likely somewhere in the middle. Getting healthier in the secondary will help, with Joey Porter Jr.'s availability on Wild Card Weekend being especially critical. But with this level of pass defense, the Steelers could be staring at a fifth straight one-and-done appearance.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head over to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Khalil Herbert’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)
Bengals at Steelers Trends and Insights
Cincinnati Bengals
Team: Over the past 20 seasons, teams that have won at least four December games have made the playoffs 85.4% of the time.
QB: Joe Burrow has nine games this season, earning a ‘B’ or better in our QB+ metric – he had eight such games over the two seasons prior.
Offense: The Bengals have converted just eight of 13 (61.5%) goal-to-go drives into touchdowns over their past three games (first 14 weeks: 82.8%).
Defense: Cincinnati has stopped its opponent on at least two-thirds of third downs in three of its past four games, something it did just three times through the first 13 weeks.
Fantasy: On top of all of the passing numbers, Burrow has a 15+ yard rush in consecutive games for the first time since October 2022.
Betting: Four straight games, and seven of their past eight, played on extended rest by the Bengals have either seen them cover and the under hit OR them fail to cover and the over cash.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Team: The Steelers have multiple losing streaks this regular season, something two Super Bowl Champions have done in the 2000s:
- 2010 Packers: Lost a Week 15 road game and gave up 27+ points
- 2015 Broncos: Lost a Week 15 road game and gave up 27+ points
- 2024 Steelers: Lost a Week 15 road game and gave up 27+ points
QB: In George Pickens’ return, Russell Wilson couldn’t find a rhythm downfield. He went just one-of-six on deep throws (his lowest such completion percentage of the season) and threw an interception (his first such pick since Week 10).
Offense: From Weeks 6-14, Pittsburgh won seven of the eight right games and averaged 2.26 points per drive. They have been 0-3 since and have scored just 1.29 points per drive.
Defense: The Steelers lost on Christmas Day despite holding the Chiefs to just a 30% success rate on third downs (prior to that game, they were 6-1 this season when holding their opponent to a 30% conversion rate).
Fantasy: Jaylen Warren’s usage is trending up, and he’s cleared PPR fantasy expectations by over 5% in five of his past seven games.
Betting: Pittsburgh’s ATS results have mirrored their real-life results—they’ve covered all 10 of their wins and failed to cover all 6 of their losses.