Fantasy Football Wide Receiver & Tight End Start/Sit Week 14: Jakobi Meyers, Elijah Moore, Isiah Likely
Lou breaks down some of the toughest Start/Sit decisions at the wide receiver and tight end positions for fantasy football in Week 14.
The importance of knowing who to start and who to sit can make or break a fantasy week and your matchup. People like to say, “Start your studs,” and typically speaking, that is the way to go, especially early in the season, but sometimes a player's matchup gives them more value in a certain week. On the flip side, a player can also have a poor matchup that could give you a reason to bench them.
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Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Week 14 Starts
Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders vs. Minnesota Vikings
Meyers is having a solid first season with the Raiders and has been good over the past couple of games with Aidan O’Connell at QB. Although Davante Adams and Josh Jacobs are the two main options in the Raiders' offense, Meyers benefits from that as he finds himself in single coverage more often than not. He has seven TDs this season in 12 games and faces a Vikings defense this weekend that ranks 23rd in fantasy against the WR position. He may not be worthy of a start in your 10-team leagues, but he should be strongly considered in any larger league.
Elijah Moore, Cleveland Browns vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
He has seen 21 targets in the past two weeks, including 12 last week with Joe Flacco at QB. That amount of work in the passing game makes him very valuable in fantasy now, and with Amari Cooper in the concussion protocol this week, there is a chance that Moore will act as the Browns' number one WR this week against the Jaguars. The Jags rank 28th in the NFL against the pass and 24th vs. WRs, setting Moore up for another busy and productive day.
Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Week 14 Sits
Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ Atlanta Falcons (shallow leagues)
It’s very important that you note the “shallow leagues” in the heading here. Godwin still needs to be considered in deeper formats, yet in 10 and 12-team leagues, there’s reason to avoid him. Mike Evans and Rachaad White are the focal points of the Bucs' offense this season and Godwin hasn’t topped 60 yards in a game since Week 7 while also not scoring a receiving TD since Week 8. His opponent this weekend ranks in the top third of the league against the pass and fourth in fantasy football against the WR position. The chances of him having a bad game are much greater than the chances of him having a good one.
Adam Thielen, Carolina Panthers @ New Orleans Saints
After a very good first 10 games of the season, Theilen has been pretty useless over the past two games. He has just four catches for 27 yards, and he hasn’t found the end zone in six games. It doesn’t help that rookie Jonathan Mingo has been seeing more targets lately as well, as the Panthers have begun to focus on their future. If this isn’t enough of a reason to keep Theilen on your benches in shallow leagues, he faces a Saints defense this weekend that has been good against WRs in fantasy, ranking third.
Fantasy Football Tight End Week 14 Starts
Isiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens vs. Los Angeles Rams
He is “Likely” to have a big game this weekend. With Mark Andrews on IR, Likely is the Ravens starting TE, and in his first start of the season in Week 12, he saw six targets, catching four of them for 40 yards. He has now had the bye week to work more with Lamar Jackson and the offensive starters and has a good matchup this weekend vs. a Rams defense that has really struggled against TEs this season despite being middle of the pack in the league against the pass. In fantasy, the Rams rank 29th against opposing TEs and there’s a good chance that Likely ends up leading the Ravens' pass catchers in both catches and yards.
Tyler Conklin, New York Jets vs. Houston Texans
The Jets' QB room is a complete mess right now, yet Conklin seems to be targeted often no matter who is playing QB. He has seen at least five targets in every game but one since Week 8 and has a very solid matchup this weekend against a Texans defense that ranks 26th in the NFL against the pass and 26th in fantasy against TEs. Conklin should still be avoided in 10-team leagues and probably 12-team leagues, too; however, in a deeper league, he is a solid option this weekend.
Fantasy Football Tight End Week 14 Sits
Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams @ Baltimore Ravens
Higbee was evaluated for a concussion towards the end of the Rams' Week 13 win over the Browns. He should be able to suit up this weekend, yet I believe he is better left on your bench. He has only had one good fantasy day since Week 4, and it was thanks to him finding the end zone twice, his only two scores of the season. His matchup this weekend is incredibly tough, taking on a Ravens team that is coming off their bye week and ranks second in the league against the pass and first in points allowed. They also rank fifth in fantasy against the TE position, and at this point, Higbee is the fourth or fifth option in the Rams' offense.
Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints vs. Carolina Panthers
After missing four games earlier this season, Johnson has caught one or fewer passes in three of his past five games. Even with injuries to Michael Thomas and Rashid Shaheed, Johnson was non-existent in the Saints' Week 13 loss to the Lions. He saw three targets but caught none of them. Jameis Winston is expected to be under center in Week 14 against the Panthers, which may help Johnson; however, that is far from being a certainty, especially in this matchup. The Panthers rank fourth in the NFL against the pass and seventh in fantasy against opposing TEs.