Despite six teams being on bye, Week 14 saw an explosion of fantasy points. Seven players scored 30 fantasy points or more, and three topped 40. It’s playoff time now, so there are officially only three weeks in the fantasy season. These are fantasy football lessons for Week 15 and beyond.
Fantasy Football Lessons to Take Into Week 15
There Is Reason To Worry About The Eagles Pass Catchers
The Philadelphia Eagles are a run-first team. It’s understandable, considering they have Saquon Barkley, who’s having one of the greatest running back seasons in modern NFL history, and a mobile quarterback in Jalen Hurts. Hurts has failed to reach 200 yards passing in his last three games.
This is not too much of a concern for Hurts fantasy-wise due to his rushing upside. It helps that the tush-push play at the one-yard line is unstoppable and has led to ten of Hurts’ 13 rushing touchdowns. The genuine concern comes with the receivers, namely A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith. Brown was a consensus first-round pick in redraft leagues but has struggled lately. He only has one touchdown in his last seven games and isn’t getting significant volume, either.
He’s only had more than eight targets in a game twice all season. Brown called out the Eagles passing offense in his latest post-game interview. Since returning from a concussion in Week 6, Smith has been a boom-or-bust fantasy option. Since then, the only games he’s cleared ten fantasy points come in games in which he’s scored a touchdown. He also had less than seven fantasy points three times during that time. Brown and Smith are still fantasy starters, but they aren’t what most people drafted them to be.
Puka Nacua Is a Top 3 Fantasy Wide Receiver
Many were skeptical about Puka Nacua coming into the season. He had an ADP of 14, making him an early second-round pick or late first-round pick in most leagues. Nacua had a historic rookie season, but could he keep it up? Would a healthy Cooper Kupp take away his volume? Since returning from injury, Nacua has put all worries to rest.
Outside of a game in Week 9 in which he was ejected, Nacua’s lowest point total in a game is 17.3. He’s also had at least 98 receiving yards in five of six full games since his injury. Nacua is coming off a monster game where he totaled 41.8 fantasy points. His 162 receiving yards were the eighth most by any player in a game this season.
Not only is Nacua the undisputed WR1 for the Rams, but he’s a top-three fantasy receiver outright. He has elite volume, production, and an excellent quarterback throwing him the ball. Nacua faces the 49ers, Jets, and Cardinals to close the season.
Ja’Marr Chase Arguably Has The Highest Single Game Upside Ever
There is no way to measure this objectively, but Ja’Marr Chase is making a strong case for having the highest single-game fantasy ceiling we’ve ever seen. Chase is the overall WR1 by more than 82 fantasy points, averaging over 24 fantasy points per game. He’s well on his way to winning the receiving triple crown and has six more touchdowns than the next-highest receiver.
Where Chase shines is his ability to explode for massive games. Chase has three of the top five receiving yardage games in the NFL this season and three of the top nine fantasy performances. He’s cleared 40 points three times. Chase’s ridiculous upside hasn’t only come this season, either. He has two of the top 20 fantasy games of all time and scored over 50 three times in his career.
He clears other top receivers, such as Justin Jefferson, regarding top fantasy performances despite playing one season fewer. Considering it’s only Chase’s fourth season, these numbers are ridiculous. Chase may end up as one of the greatest fantasy players ever. He can single-handedly keep teams in games, as 40-point games are nothing new for him. It’ll be fascinating to see how many more 45+ point explosions he can have in the coming years.
Main Image: Gary A. Vasquez – USA Today Sports
