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 TE Mike Gesicki.
Is Mike Gesicki Playing in Week 18?
Gesicki is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
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 Mike Gesicki in Week 18?
The idea of Gesicki is so sound, but the production has been spotty. We saw the de facto WR3 on this offense run 42 routes last week and pay it off with 86 yards (12 targets). I’d love to tell you that we can copy/paste that usage over into the finale – another must-win game – but I can’t.
In the middle of the season, we saw Gesicki earn 23 targets across three games, only to follow that up with a five-game stretch that netted just 16 looks. Further impacting his floor is the type of target he’s been seeing (six straight games without an end-zone opportunity).
There is certainly variance to consider, but if you’re simply targeting a profile, Gesicki’s as a professional route runner in a pass-heavy script should have your attention. In the Week 13 meeting with the Steelers, he caught all five of his targets for 53 yards – I think that’s about what you can expect with the season on the line.
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.
Mike Gesicki’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 18
As of Saturday, Gesicki is projected to score 8.9 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 3.6 receptions for 38.9 yards and 0.2 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.
Mike Gesicki’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 TE PPR Rankings
1) Brock Bowers | LV (vs. LAC)
2) Sam LaPorta | DET (vs. MIN)
3) Trey McBride | ARI (vs. SF)
4) T.J. Hockenson | MIN (at DET)
5) Mark Andrews | BAL (vs. CLE)
6) Jonnu Smith | MIA (at NYJ)
7) Tucker Kraft | GB (vs. CHI)
8) George Kittle | SF (at ARI)
9) Chigoziem Okonkwo | TEN (vs. HOU)
10) Pat Freiermuth | PIT (vs. CIN)
11) Zach Ertz | WAS (at DAL)
12) Kyle Pitts | ATL (vs. CAR)
13) Hunter Henry | NE (vs. BUF)
14) Will Dissly | LAC (at LV)
15) Isaiah Likely | BAL (vs. CLE)
16) Jake Ferguson | DAL (vs. WAS)
17) Mike Gesicki | CIN (at PIT)
18) Juwan Johnson | NO (at TB)
19) Noah Gray | KC (at DEN)
20) Brenton Strange | JAX (at IND)
21) Dalton Kincaid | BUF (at NE)
22) Dalton Schultz | HOU (at TEN)
23) Cole Kmet | CHI (at GB)
24) Tyler Conklin | NYJ (vs. MIA)
25) Austin Hooper | NE (vs. BUF)
26) Noah Fant | SEA (at LAR)
27) Foster Moreau | NO (at TB)
28) Grant Calcaterra | PHI (vs. NYG)
29) Jordan Akins | CLE (at BAL)
30) Stone Smartt | LAC (at LV)
31) Daniel Bellinger | NYG (at PHI)
32) Ja'Tavion Sanders | CAR (at ATL)
33) Payne Durham | TB (vs. NO)
34) Dawson Knox | BUF (at NE)
35) Michael Mayer | LV (vs. LAC)
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.