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Fantasy football start em, sit em SNF lineups advice for Chiefs vs. Texans on Sunday Night Football in Week 14 (2025). NFL matchups analysis and SNF starts/sits.
The Week 14 Sunday slate closes with a battle between two quality AFC squads, as the Texans travel to Arrowhead Stadium to face the Chiefs.
With the clock ticking on the 2025 NFL regular season, the Chiefs find themselves in unfamiliar territory, as they are facing a very real battle to make it into the playoffs. Meanwhile, the red-hot Texans enter this pivotal matchup on a four-game winning streak behind an elite defense, and looking to put themselves in the AFC postseason conversation.
We will bring you Sunday Night Football analysis all season, focusing on who to start, who is on the fence, and who should find the bench. Let's dive into this SNF matchup for Week 14 of the season. Good luck in 2025 fantasy football, RotoBallers!
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Houston Texans at Kansas City Chiefs
Sunday December 7, 8:20 PM ET
Notable Fantasy Injuries: None
Matchups We Love
None
Matchups We Hate
No quarterback wants to face this Texans defense right now. This secondary has held Allen (QB21) and Daniel Jones (QB17) to lower than 17 fantasy points in back-to-back games and has yet to allow a top-12 fantasy QB through 13 weeks. Therefore, Patrick Mahomes will be a riskier QB1 play this week.
Patrick Mahomes is 5-1 in his career when facing either the league’s No. 1 scoring or total defense. pic.twitter.com/ayU4YmZmIC
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) December 5, 2025
RB Woody Marks
The opportunities have been there for Woody Marks in recent weeks. He has seen at least 17 touches in three straight games and has totaled a rush share of over 55% in four consecutive weeks. However, the fantasy production hasn't been there with three straight performances of under eight PPR fantasy points. Considering the Chiefs rank sixth in fantasy points allowed to RBs, Marks is a risky RB2.
TE Travis Kelce
You likely aren't sitting Travis Kelce in most formats this week, but this matchup against the Texans isn't ideal. Houston has given up the fifth-fewest fantasy points to the opposing TEs this year, and only two TEs have finished as top-12 options at the position since Week 4. So, Kelce will be a lower-end TE1.
Other Notable Matchups
QB C.J. Stroud
C.J. Stroud made his return last week following a multi-game absence and only finished as the QB26 in fantasy. Although the Chiefs have given up a top-12 fantasy QB finish in three of their last four games, Stroud will come in as a middle-of-the-pack QB2 in Superflex formats. The Texans signal-caller has finished as a top-12 fantasy QB just twice this season.
Chiefs RBs
Kareem Hunt resumed his RB1 duties last week, even with Isiah Pacheco back in the picture. Hunt saw 14 carries and played 64% of the team's offensive snaps. Therefore, Hunt will be a better play than Pacheco this week. However, Hunt will be more of a touchdown-dependent RB3 this week against a Texans defense that has allowed the fourth-fewest rush yards.
WR Rashee Rice
Rashee Rice is the only Chiefs WR worth starting in most formats this week. As a matter of fact, Rice should be started in all formats in Week 14. He likely won't see the Derek Stingley Jr. shadow in this game, considering Stingley has played only 1% of his snaps in the slot this year. So, fantasy managers can trust Rice as a WR1.
WR Nico Collins
Nico Collins has been on a nice stretch for fantasy managers. He has totaled over 20 PPR fantasy points in three of his last four games and has seen at least 10 targets in five of his past six contests. So, Collins should be in all fantasy lineups this week. Both George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb totaled over 85 receiving yards against this secondary last week.
DeMeco Ryans on Nico Collins:
“There’s not an ego with Nico. He’s one of the best receivers in the league. He doesn’t walk around that way like somebody owes him something. Very humble guy, respectful guy. He’s a great teammate. Should be this superstar that a lot of people are… pic.twitter.com/wUdqCgDgZ0
— Houston Stressans (@TexansCommenter) December 4, 2025
Dalton Schultz has been a reliable TE1 play over the past two months. He has finished as a top-10 option at the position in five of the last seven weeks and is coming off a game in which he caught seven passes for 55 yards. That's enough reason to start Schultz in most leagues in Week 14. The Chiefs have allowed at least five catches to a TE in three of their previous four games.
Houston Texans Start/Sit Matchups
See the full stats in our Fantasy Football Matchup Ratings Projections
| Player | Start/Sit | Matchup Rating ▾ |
Game Matchup |
| Nico Collins, WR | Start | 115.1 | @ KC |
| Ka'imi Fairbairn, K | Start | 112.4 | @ KC |
| Woody Marks, RB | Start | 105.9 | @ KC |
| Dalton Schultz, TE | Risky Start | 103.6 | @ KC |
| Jayden Higgins, WR | Risky Start | 103.5 | @ KC |
| Houston Texans, DEF | Risky Start | 102.9 | @ KC |
| Nick Chubb, RB | Sit | 101.9 | @ KC |
| Xavier Hutchinson, WR | Sit | 101.4 | @ KC |
| C.J. Stroud, QB | Sit | 101.3 | @ KC |
| Christian Kirk, WR | Sit | 100.3 | @ KC |
| Jaylin Noel, WR | Sit | 98.9 | @ KC |
| Cade Stover, TE | Sit | 97.2 | @ KC |
| Davis Mills, QB | Sit | 95.4 | @ KC |
| Dare Ogunbowale, RB | Sit | 94.2 | @ KC |
Kansas City Chiefs Start/Sit Matchups
See the full stats in our Fantasy Football Matchup Ratings Projections
| Player | Start/Sit | Matchup Rating ▾ |
Game Matchup |
| Rashee Rice, WR | Start | 116.9 | vs. HOU |
| Patrick Mahomes, QB | Start | 113 | vs. HOU |
| Travis Kelce, TE | Start | 108.8 | vs. HOU |
| Harrison Butker, K | Start | 105.8 | vs. HOU |
| Kareem Hunt, RB | Start | 104.1 | vs. HOU |
| Kansas City Chiefs, DEF | Risky Start | 102.9 | vs. HOU |
| Xavier Worthy, WR | Risky Start | 102.7 | vs. HOU |
| Marquise Brown, WR | Sit | 101.8 | vs. HOU |
| Isiah Pacheco, RB | Sit | 101.8 | vs. HOU |
| Tyquan Thornton, WR | Sit | 99.6 | vs. HOU |
| JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR | Sit | 99.4 | vs. HOU |
| Noah Gray, TE | Sit | 98.2 | vs. HOU |
| Brashard Smith, RB | Sit | 97.4 | vs. HOU |
| Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB | Sit | 95.7 | vs. HOU |
| Elijah Mitchell, RB | Sit | 91.7 | vs. HOU |
| Gardner Minshew, QB | Sit | 90.2 | vs. HOU |
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 14 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like C.J. Stroud, Woody Marks, Xavier Worthy, and more. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 14.
Week 14 Player Decisions. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 14 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, we've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 14 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 14 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 14 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 14 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool:
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