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Week 14 of the 2021 NFL season brought unexpected fantasy football surprises and busts. Mike Riggall analyzes overreactions to Craig Reynolds, Robby Anderson, Joshua Palmer, and more.
Week 14 featured a shootout between Josh Allen and Tom Brady, both of which threw for over 300 yards and two scores while both added a touchdown on the ground. In addition to Allen's tremendous performance through the air he added 109 yards on the ground to finish as QB1. Taysom Hill had a rocky day throwing the ball but he ran for 73 yards and a score so he came through, while both Joe Burrow and Ben Roethlisberger went over 300 yards bringing their teams back from significant deficits but falling just short. Aaron Rodgers continued to own the Bears throwing for 341 yards and four touchdowns to finish as QB3 on the week. Justin Herbert, Matthew Stafford, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, Patrick Mahomes and Jimmy Garoppolo were the other QB1's.
Davante Adams went for 121 yards and two scores to finish as WR1 on the week while Tyler Lockett caught a 55-yard touchdown from Russell Wilson on his way to a WR3 finish. Ja'Marr Chase (WR4) got back on track with two scores while Hunter Renfrow (WR5) went over 100 yards and scored. Mike Evans, Allen Lazard, Robby Anderson, Jakeem Grant Jr., Justin Jefferson, Odell Beckham Jr. and Jalen Guyton rounded out the WR1 group. George Kittle went off for a second week in a row as the Bengals were simply unable to contain him, allowing him to go for 151 yards and a touchdown. Mark Andrews was TE2, posting 11 catches for 115 yards and a score with Tyler Huntley throwing him the ball. The rest of the TE1's on the week finished with low yardage totals but found the endzone.
Dalvin Cook was questionable leading up to the game but he ended up exploding for 205 yards on the ground and two scores to finish as RB1. Rashaad Penny (RB3) exploded against a brutal Texans defense this week while Najee Harris (RB4) had an underwhelming game, but he scored two touchdowns immediately after Diontae Johnson drops in the endzone. Melvin Gordon (RB5) scored twice, Alvin Kamara (RB6) went for 120 yards and a score, Leonard Fournette (RB7) continued his tear going for 113 yards and a score against the previously tough Bills defense. James Conner, Javonte Williams, Aaron Jones, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Saquon Barkley and Derrick Gore rounded out the RB1's on the week. Now, let's take a look at some of the outliers from Week 14 and evaluate whether they're worth a spot on your roster or in your starting lineup.
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Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
Week 14 Stats: 17-of-28 passing, 260 yards, 2 TD, 2 carries, 8 yards
Russell Wilson scored two touchdowns for the third straight week, but he's still not putting the ball in the air a lot. Wilson has only thrown for over 300 yards once this season (all the way back in Week 2 against the Titans) and he's only thrown the ball more than 35 times twice.
Bottom Line: Russell Wilson took advantage of a great matchup against a struggling Texans secondary in Week 14, but he will be hard to trust moving forward. In Week 15, Wilson will face a tough Rams defense that gives up the seventh-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks on the season. If you have Wilson as your starter there are a few guys on the waiver wire who are low-owned according to Yahoo, including Trevor Lawrence (28%), Tua Tagovailoa (32%) and Jimmy Garoppolo (30%).
Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs
Week 14 Stats: 4 targets, 3 catches, 27 yards
The Chiefs went up 35-0 against the Raiders and were leading 35-3 at the half as the Raiders kicked a field goal just before time expired to get on the board. The Chiefs defense put up a tremendous effort and actually scored a touchdown off of a fumble recovery early in the game. Of the Chiefs five touchdowns in the first half, Clyde Edwards-Helaire ran two of them in, the Chiefs defense had another, and Patrick Mahomes threw two of them.
Bottom Line: Travis Kelce has underwhelmed as of late, but he's a stud and he will come through down the stretch. Next week the Chiefs face the Chargers who have struggled to defend tight ends, so he should bounce back quickly. Kelce hasn't scored since November 7th and he hasn't eclipsed 70 yards since before Thanksgiving, so he's due. Do not get cute and bench him in your season-long leagues.
Robby Anderson, Carolina Panthers
Week 14 Stats: 12 targets, 7 catches, 84 yards, 1 TD
Robby Anderson out targeted D.J. Moore 12 to 10 in Week 14 and was able to haul in a touchdown late in the fourth quarter as P.J. Walker attempted to bring the Panthers back against the Falcons.
Bottom Line: Robby Anderson does this every year. He disappears for a significant chunk of the season and then comes through in December. It doesn't feel right saying it, but I think you can trust Anderson in your lineup if you need a receiver, but it's still an iffy proposition because of the quarterback situation in Carolina.
Joshua Palmer, L.A. Chargers
Week 14 Stats: 7 targets, 5 catches, 66 yards, 1 TD
Keenan Allen missed Week 14 while on the COVID list which led to an opportunity for Joshua Palmer to play 87.3% of the Chargers offensive snaps while Jalen Guyton played his usual compliment of about 60% of the snaps.
Bottom Line: Simply put, it appears that Mike Williams and Jalen Guyton maintained their normal roles in the Chargers offense in Week 14 while Joshua Palmer assumed Keenan Allen's role. Allen is slated to return to the lineup in Week 15 so Palmer likely won't be viable again unless something happens to Allen or one of the other receivers.
Gabriel Davis, Buffalo Bills
Week 14 Stats: 8 targets, 5 catches, 43 yards, 1 TD
Gabriel Davis has been coming on lately, but he hasn't been playing a large number of snaps. In Week 14 Emmanuel Sanders suffered a knee injury and was ruled out coming out of halftime which led to a larger role for Gabriel Davis who played a season-high 65 snaps (83.3%).
Bottom Line: Gabriel Davis is owned in just 3% of Yahoo leagues and he should be a priority addition off of the waiver wire if you need help at wide receiver. The Bills play the Panthers and Patriots over the next two weeks and Davis should have decent matchups given the top cover guys should be on Stefon Diggs.
DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks
Week 14 Stats: 8 targets, 4 catches, 43 yards
DK Metcalf had a great matchup heading into Week 14, but he failed to come through yet again while Tyler Lockett exploded and finished as WR2 on the week. To be fair, Metcalf was held very badly in the redzone on what would have been a sure touchdown that would have salvaged his day.
Bottom Line: Metcalf has been targeted lately, but he's simply not getting it done which makes it very hard to trust him. However, I can say with confidence that he didn't come through in Week 14 because the Texans secondary had to hold him to stop him. The Seahawks face the Rams in Week 15 and earlier this year Metcalf was able to gain 98 yards and score twice against them, so he has a chance to come through.
Rashaad Penny, Seattle Seahawks
Week 14 Stats: 16 carries, 137 yards, 2 TD, 1 target, 1 catch, 1 yard
Rashaad Penny ripped off several chunk-plays in Week 14 against a terrible Texans defense, including two long-touchdown runs. Penny finished the Texans off with a 47-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter which brought the score to 33-13. Penny played 35 snaps (57.4%), DeeJay Dallas played 11 (18%) and Alex Collins played 14 (23%).
Bottom Line: This is a difficult situation to navigate, especially since the Seahawks have a difficult matchup against the Rams in Week 15. I think it's safe to say that out of all the Seahawks running backs Rashaad Penny should be the guy, but you only want to use him if you're desperate.
Craig Reynolds, Detroit Lions
Week 14 Stats: 11 carries, 83 yards, 2 targets, 2 catches, 16 yards
Craig Reynolds is a 25-year old running back that went undrafted out of Kutztown State in 2019. Jermar Jefferson was not feeling well throughout the week leading up to the game and as a result Reynolds played 46% of the Lions offensive snaps compared to 4.8% for Jefferson and 44.4% for Godwin Igwebuike.
Bottom Line: Hopefully Jamaal Williams returns from the COVID list or D'Andre Swift is ready to go because otherwise this situation is one you want to avoid.
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