Hello again! Here are my Week 15 fantasy football notes.

 

Los Angeles Rams at San Francisco

Deebo Samuel has been an absolute dud of late, scoring only 18.7 PPR points over the past four games. This isn’t an unfavorable matchup, but the reality is that it is just not a good idea to risk putting Samuel into starting lineups during the fantasy playoffs at this time. Don’t drop him if it can be avoided, as a Samuel bounce back could win a fantasy playoff game in the next two weeks, but he has to show this production first before trusting him with a starting lineup spot.

 

Dallas at Carolina

Rico Dowdle seemed to have a workload limit earlier this year that capped his fantasy value. That limit has now disappeared, with Dowdle posting 66 scrimmage plays over the last three weeks. The Carolina rush defense is one of the worst in the league right now, and when that is combined with Dowdle likely to get 20+ carries, it makes him a borderline RB1 this week.

 

Kansas City at Cleveland

Patrick Mahomes has fallen back to QB2 status of late. That’s a concerning trend given his earlier season struggles and will have some fantasy managers thinking of benching him for this contest.

The Browns recent pass coverage metrics indicate that’s not a good idea. This is one of the most favorable pass coverage matchups of Week 15, so be sure to start Mahomes unless you have one of the true elite fantasy quarterbacks to go with.

 

Miami at Houston

Jonnu Smith’s three-game streak with 20+ PPR points ended last week when he posted only 13.4 PPR points against the Jets. That’s still a starting caliber point total, but the matchup against Houston, a team that has subpar numbers versus opponents’ tight ends of late, provides a path for another 20+ point game for Smith. Get him in all starting lineups, even if only as a flex.

 

The rest of KC Joyner’s Week 15 fantasy football notes are available exclusively for Pickwatch Pro subscribers.