Patriots vs. Cardinals Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: James Conner, Marquise Brown, Kyler Murray, Greg Dortch, Mac Jones, Rhamondre Stevenson

December 11, 2022

Fantasy football start em, sit em and lineups advice for the Patriots vs. Cardinals Monday Night game in Week 14 (2022). MNF matchups analysis with detailed breakdowns.

Week 14 is just about in the books, and we'll get the final matchup of the week tonight. In this article, we're back as always with our Monday Night Football matchups analysis article, this time for the Patriots vs. Cardinals. It's been another fun and crazy week of NFL and fantasy football action filled with big performances, new players emerging, and injuries. Hopefully, you're on the verge of winning your matchups (or already have).

Now, we get one more game on Monday night to finish it off. Below you will find our matchups analysis for the Monday Night Football game between the New England Patriots vs. Arizona Cardinals. Hopefully, it will be an exciting game that adds to a week filled with plenty of booms, busts, and injuries.

Read our fantasy football breakdowns for these games -- the recommended starts, sits, and matchups we love heading into the Week 14 matchups. Good luck RotoBallers!

New England Patriots at Arizona Cardinals

Spread: Patriots -2.0
Implied Total: Patriots (23.25) vs. Cardinals (21.25)
Pace: Patriots (27th) vs. Cardinals (4th)
Patriots Off. DVOA: 3.4% Pass (21st), -13.4% Rush (26th)
Cardinals Off. DVOA: -7.3% Pass (29th), -17.7% Rush (27th)
Patriots Def. DVOA: -14.8% Pass (3rd), -14.8% Rush (7th)
Cardinals Def. DVOA: 12.3% Pass (25th), -2.6% Rush (19th)

Matchups We Love

Rhamondre Stevenson (RB, NE)

Without Harris active, Stevenson's workload was elite. He accounted for all but one carry and was the only running back to catch a pass, which he finished with six of. The Cardinals are a nice matchup, especially over the past few weeks, locking him into the top 15. Damien Harris is listed as doubtful, and Stevenson is a strong play either way, but even better without Harris.

UPDATE: Harris has been ruled out for Monday's game as expected.

Matchups We Hate

Patriots Passing Attack

After taking a huge step forward against the Vikings, the offense regressed in a big way last week. They refused to throw down the field, resulting in 5.4 yards per attempt for Mac Jones. We were also privy to an outburst from Jones begging the offensive coordinator to call more deep throws, so we know where the problem lies.

Without being able to trust the play calling, it's difficult to start anyone outside of Jakobi Meyers, who happens to be dealing with an injury and is going to miss Monday's contest, or tight end, Hunter Henry.

Henry has disappointed this season, finishing with three or more receptions in a game only four times, and clearing 50 yards in the same number of contests. However, we are talking about a position where the combination of those two statistics would be passable most weeks. The other thing working in his favor is the incredible matchup for tight ends. Arizona has allowed the most points of any team, making him a potential streamer.

Other Matchups

James Conner (RB, ARI)

Speaking of running backs with an elite workload, James Conner has paralleled Stevenson since returning from injury, constantly getting almost all of the carries and running back receptions. It's a challenging matchup but he's so involved in their passing attack, it's hard to fade him any further than the top 24, particularly with so many teams on bye.

Kyler Murray (QB, ARI)

Murray returns from his bye to take on a talented secondary that could limit his production. It also should be noted that most of his receivers will be active for this game, something he's rarely had the privilege of in 2022. DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise Brown are good to go, and Greg Dortch is set to make his return, but Rondale Moore will miss this contest. Murray will be a top-12 quarterback because of his rushing upside and weapons, but his ceiling is likely capped a bit this week.

Cardinals Wide Receivers

As mentioned above, we can count on Hopkins and Brown, each of whom has impressed when on the field this season. The matchup pushes them outside the top 10, but they're still strong options because Murray will air it out and they'll be the focal point of the passing attack.

Additionally, since Moore is inactive, Dortch is projected to return to the slot role, which has been valuable in this offense, keeping him in play as a flex option.

Injuries

Damien Harris (thigh)
Jakobi Meyers (head)
Rondale Moore (groin)
Greg Dortch (thumb)

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