These starts and sits for Week 14 are designed to help you battle for a postseason slot. All “start” suggestions are players who are being started in 70% or less of Sleeper leagues at time of writing.
If you have already secured a playoff berth in your league – and for your sake we hope that’s the case! – then you can enjoy a relatively stress-free final week of the fantasy football regular season, as you jockey for positioning and seeding. But if you are battling for one of the remaining postseason spots in your league, then setting the most optimal lineup has never been more important.
Our suggested starts and sits for a pivotal Week 14 are designed to help you do just that (and now for our weekly disclaimer: all “start” suggestions are pooled from players who are being started in 70% or less of Sleeper leagues at time of writing). Our list gets started with a veteran quarterback who is shockingly the overall QB1 in fantasy football since Week 11.
STARTS
QB Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins
vs. NY Jets; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
Don’t look now but Tagovailoa is the best quarterback in fantasy football over the last three weeks, posting 77.2 points over that span.
Tagovailoa, who has only played eight games this year due to concussion issues, has caught fire at the right time throwing nine touchdowns over his last three games.
Tagovailoa, who is still only being started in 45% of Sleeper leagues, draws a favorable matchup against a Jets defense he historically dominates. In his career, Tagovailoa is a perfect 5-0 against his AFC East division rival, on the strength of owning a 75% completion rate.
RB Isaac Guerendo, San Francisco 49ers
vs. Chicago; Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
With Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason both put on IR, meet the new RB1 for the 49ers – and a potential unexpected league-winner.
The rookie has displayed his talent each time he has been handed volume. After CMC went down last week, Guerendo scored San Francisco’s only touchdown against the Bills. Back in Week 8, the former Louisville standout posted 19.2 PPR points against the Cowboys.
In Week 14, he’ll face a Bears defense that has surrendered an average of 143.6 rushing yards per game and four TDs to opposing running backs over the last five games.
WR Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders
at Tampa Bay, Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
Meyers has quietly flown under the fantasy radar, ranking as the overall WR17 since Week 8 by averaging 16.5 PPR points per game in that time.
The veteran wideout, who has hauled in at least six receptions in five of his last six games, has become a focal point of the Raiders’ passing attack with 26 targets over the last two games.
In Week 14, Meyers is in line to continue his upward trend against a Tampa Bay secondary that has allowed the third-most passing yards (3,325) and the seventh-most passing touchdowns (21), which has resulted in 17 WRs posting double-digit PPR fantasy points against them.
QB Sam Darnold, Minnesota Vikings
vs. Atlanta; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
Darnold, who is the overall QB8 through 13 weeks, is only being started in 46% of Sleeper leagues. The Vikings offensive leader, who has thrown multiple touchdowns in five of his last six games, ranks fourth among all QBs with 23 passing scores on the year.
Armed with both the overall WR3 (Justin Jefferson) and the overall RB17 (Aaron Jones), Darnold pilots one of the most balanced attacks in the NFL which has led to immense success in his first season in Minnesota.
In Week 14, Darnold is primed to crush Sleeper’s projection of QB8 (17.5 points) against a Falcons defense that has surrendered 18 TD passes over their last eight games.
WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Tennessee Titans
vs. Jacksonville; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
It is time we finally give Westbrook-Ikhine the love he rightfully deserves. Tennessee’s fifth-year wideout, who only scored 10 touchdowns over his first 61 games in the NFL, has blossomed since Week 6, finding paydirt eight times!
Westbrook-Ikhine, who had not registered on the stat sheet in his first four games, is quietly the overall WR13 since Week 8. In Week 14, he finds a plus-matchup against a Jaguars defense that allows the third-most fantasy points to opposing WRs, surrendering an average of 184.4 receiving yards and 14 total TDs.
With so many starters on bye, managers need to start paying attention to a player who could become a difference maker not only over the final week of the fantasy regular season but also in the playoffs.
SITS
RB Breece Hall, NY Jets
at Miami; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
After last week’s dismal performance against Seattle, it’s seeming apparent that Hall is limited by the knee injury he suffered in Week 11 against the Colts. The talented back only gained 60 yards on the ground while failing to be involved in the passing game and fumbling once. Hall was outproduced by New York rookie RBs Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis, who combined for 59 total yards and a touchdown.
Hall, who is the overall RB11 and averaging 15.8 PPR points, is a risky start with playoff berths on the line. On Sunday, he draws a tough matchup against a Miami defense that has only allowed an average of 67.2 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to opposing RBs since Week 9.
If you’re a Hall owner, it’s unlikely you have a superior option with six teams on bye, but expectations should be tempered immensely.
RB Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars
at Tennessee; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
Due to bye-mageddon, many desperate managers may feel the urge to turn to a player who had high expectations heading into the season.
Drafted as, at worst, a high-end RB2, Etienne has been one of the biggest busts in fantasy football this season, ranking as the overall RB38. He has struggled mightily since the calendar flipped to October, ranking as the overall RB59 and averaging just 5.1 PPR points since Week 5.
In Week 14, Etienne draws a tough matchup against a Titans defense that is allowing an average of 86.4 rushing yards per game to opposing RBs. In a do-or-die week for many, managers need to resist the temptation to start a RB who has failed to top 46 rushing yards over his last six games, is still splitting touches with Tank Bigsby and is likely to be part of a Mac Jones-led offense, with Trevor Lawrence in concussion protocol.
RB Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers
at Philadelphia; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
Hubbard has been a solid high-end RB2 for the majority of the season, averaging 15 PPR fantasy points per game. If last week is any indication, his time as a trustworthy starter has come to end, though. Against Tampa Bay, the Panthers leading rusher only out-touched rookie RB Jonathon Brooks by a slim margin of 12-9 and had a crucial fumble in overtime, leading to a disappointing 2.3-point effort.
Coupled with losing backfield work, Hubbard now draws a brutal road matchup against an Eagles defense that is allowing the seventh-fewest rushing yards (1,257) and rushing touchdowns (eight) in the league.
Fantasy owners need to limit optimism, with only two running backs topping 63 rushing yards against Philadelphia since Week 4.
TE Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
vs. LA Chargers; Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET
Patrick Mahomes' top weapon is once again having a solid season, leading the Chiefs in receptions (75) and receiving yards (637). Kelce, who is the overall TE4 and averaging 12.4 PPR points, has hauled in six or more receptions in five of his last six games.
In Week 14, though, he draws a brutal matchup with a Chargers defense that is only allowing 45.5 receiving yards per game to opposing tight ends. To compound matters, Kelce, who has only scored two TDs, may find it hard to add to that meager amount against a Los Angeles secondary that has only allowed one touchdown all year to the position.
It’s understood that you’re highly unlikely to bench Kelce, who did have seven catches for 89 yards against the Chargers earlier this season, but don’t expect a monumental showing.
WR Garrett Wilson, New York Jets
at Miami; Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
After only producing 41 yards on 10 targets last week against the Seahawks, the Jets star WR remains a major bust candidate for the second consecutive week. After averaging 94.4 receiving yards in Weeks 5-9, Wilson has only averaged a pedestrian 33.3 receiving yards per game over his last three contests.
Wilson, who is still the overall WR7 in PPR, draws a tough matchup against a Dolphins secondary that has only surrendered seven passing TDs to opposing wideouts all season.
While it will be tough to sit one of the best young wide receivers in the NFL, you need to be aware that Wilson has not enjoyed much success against Miami historically, averaging only 47.3 receiving yards with just one score in four career divisional showdowns. Those numbers will likely not improve with a struggling Aaron Rodgers at the helm of one of the worst offenses in the league.
