Steelers Fantasy Football Outlook for Week 14: Should You Start Mitch Trubisky, Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth and More?
Discussing the Pittsburgh Steelers week 14 matchup with the New England Patriots and determining which Steelers you can start.
Week 14 of the NFL season opens with an AFC matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots. Each team is dealing with an injury to a key member of the offense, so how does that affect the rest of the team’s fantasy players? Let’s discuss.
Before we get into the players, here is how I see the game playing out. The over/under for the Thursday game is set at 30.5, with the Steelers being six-point favorites.
I think it could be a pretty ugly game myself, and do believe the Steelers prevail in the end. I don’t believe they will cover though, winning 17-13, so give me the under in total points scored and Patriots to cover the spread.
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Mitch Trubisky Fantasy Outlook
Pittsburgh starting quarterback Kenny Pickett suffered an ankle injury that could keep him out a couple of weeks, so Mitch Trubisky will start against the Patriots.
Trubisky has played in three games this season, completing 59.2% of his passes for 273 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He’s added 23 rushing yards on six attempts.
Both of Trubisky’s interceptions came in a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars in late October. He was 11-of-17 for 117 yards and a touchdown in relief of Pickett last week.
The matchup with the Patriots’ defense is a tough one, as they allow just 14 fantasy points per week to opposing quarterbacks. He should have most of the team’s offensive playmakers around him on Thursday.
Running Back Fantasy Outlook
One player that could be missing is running back Najee Harris. He didn’t practice on Tuesday because of a knee injury that popped up. His status will be one to watch as kickoff approaches.
Harris has gotten at least 13 touches in each of the past four games. He leads the team in most rushing statistics, but also splits the workload pretty evenly with Jaylen Warren.
Warren has double-digit touches in each of the past four games, but only had 10 in last week’s contest. He’s averaging 1.7 yards more than Harris on the ground, and is the better pass-catching option.
If Harris cannot play, Anthony McFarland is listed third on the team’s depth chart at RB. He’s gotten just six snaps and two touches this entire season.
It’s a pretty average matchup for the Pittsburgh backs, as New England’s defense allows 19 fantasy points to opposing backs per game.
In the week 14 projections, Harris is currently ranked 13th, while Warren is 26th. If Harris is ruled out, Warren should jump into the top 15, and maybe even top 10 given he should be the workhorse.
Wide Receiver Fantasy Outlook
George Pickens and Diontae Johnson lead the Steelers’ wide receiver room. Pickens leads the team in most statistics because Johnson missed several weeks with an injury.
Johnson also has four or more targets across the past four games, but he’s gotten five more targets over that span. For the season, Johnson has caught 34-of-60 targets for 418 yards and two scores. He’s made three catches on seven red zone looks.
Allen Robinson is another wide receiver that plays a decent amount, but he’s not the receiving threat the top two guys are. Robinson has seven targets over the past four weeks and has 26 grabs on 38 targets for the season, going for 204 yards and no scores. He does not have a red zone reception on three targets.
In week 13, Myles Boykin and Calvin Austin played 12 and nine offensive snaps respectively. Boykin had no targets, while Austin caught his only target for 10 yards. Over the past month, Boykin doesn’t have a target, and Austin has just three.
It’s a bit friendlier matchup for the Pittsburgh receivers, as New England’s defense allows 36 points to the position on a weekly basis.
In the weekly projections, Pickens leads the way at 36th, while Johnson is the only other one ranked in the top 68, coming in 42nd.
Tight End Fantasy Outlook
Pat Freiermuth had a monster game in week 12, but struggled to do much in week 13. He had nine catches and 120 yards on 11 targets in week 12 before three grabs and 29 yards on five targets last week.
He’s been injured for a good portion of the season, so his season numbers aren’t much different than week 12. Freiermuth did score two touchdowns early in the season, and could be a nice checkdown option for Trubisky this week.
Darnell Washignton, Connor Heyward and Rodney Williams also got offensive snaps at tight end in week 13 for Pittsburgh. Heyward has 148 receiving yards for the season, but just four targets since Freiermuth returned. Washington only has seven targets on the season, and Williams is at just two. In other words, Freiermuth shares snaps with several teammates, but he’s been the only real receiving threat when on the field.
New England’s defense locks down opposing tight ends pretty well, giving up just nine fantasy points per week. In the week 14 projections, Freiermuth is ranked 11th.
Kicker and Defense Outlook
The veteran Chris Boswell does the kicking for the Steelers. He’s made 22-of-24 field goal attempts this season and is perfect on his 16 extra point attempts.
Boswell’s misses have both come from over 40 yards, but he’s also made 11 kicks of 40 or more yards. He’s about as dependable a kicker there is in the NFL, he just doesn’t get as many attempts.
Boswell is ranked 13th for the upcoming week.
Pittsburgh’s defense allows nearly 350 total offensive yards per week, which is in the bottom half of the league. They don’t do well against the pass or run, but only allow 19.1 points per game, which is one of the best marks in the NFL. The Steelers have 20 takeaways this season, which is just two off the NFL lead.
New England’s offense has been rough to watch this season, averaging just 290.4 yards per game, which is fifth worst in the league. They are averaging 12.3 points per game, the worst mark in the NFL.
The favorable matchup has the Steelers’ defense as the top option for week 14.
Who to Start in Week 14
The injury to Pickett isn’t nearly as big a blow to the team as some of the other quarterback injuries this season, but I do expect the offense to struggle to move the ball behind Trubisky. Given the tougher matchup, I would not start Trubisky in week 14 unless there’s no other options.
This is a contest I think the Steelers lean on their running backs and would be in favor of starting both, but the injury to Harris complicates things. If Harris doesn’t have an injury designation going into the game, I’d start him, but even if he’s questionable, I’m skeptical of starting him at less than 100%. Warren’s fantasy value would go up considerably if Harris isn’t 100%, and he’d have the chance to finish as a top-10 fantasy RB this week, especially if he finds the end zone.
While the matchup is pretty solid for the wide receivers, with Trubisky at quarterback and the overall inconsistency of the wideouts, I’d lean toward not starting any Pittsburgh receivers. I’d only do it in a pinch and if your other options aren’t considerably better. I’d rank them in this order: Pickens, Johnson, Robinson, Austin, Boykin.
I’m torn on whether or not to start Freiermuth. The matchup isn’t great, but I truly think he’s in for a big workload as the safety valve for Trubisky. I’d lean toward starting him unless another option is too good to pass on.
Boswell is a borderline starter in the projections for the week. If you’ve started him this season, then I’d keep rolling with him as he should get a couple kicking opportunities. I wouldn’t go out of my way to add him though.
The Pittsburgh defense is one I’m all for starting this week. They usually give up a lot of yards, but should stifle the atrocious Patriots’ offense while not giving up many points and likely getting a few sacks and takeaways. There’s a decent chance they finish at the top defense in week 14.
