Week 14 Fantasy Football Stars Who Will Struggle: Patrick Mahomes, Bijan Robinson, Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp and Evan Engram

Last week’s try at choosing a fantasy star who would struggle at each position was awful. It was the worst effort of the season. The four players I chose scored 77.6 combined PPR points (according to FantasyPros):

• Joe Burrow threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns against the Steelers. He turned the ball over three times (two fumbles and a pick), but it was a big fantasy day for Burrow.
• James Conner had a nice day, gaining 81 total yards on 20 touches against the Vikings.
• Terry McLaurin led the Commanders with eight receptions, 73 yards, and two touchdowns as Washington wiped the floor with the Titans (42-19 final).
• I chose Mark Andrews as the tight end to struggle for the second straight week, and he responded by catching a touchdown for the second straight week while gaining 67 yards on six receptions.

Ugh. Quitters never win, though, so let’s do it again and identify one weekly fantasy starter at each offensive position who will struggle to excel in Week 14. I used stats from NFL.com and our FantasySP defensive fantasy rankings to help determine the toughest matchups. I will reference those numbers often.

Quarterback

Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs vs. Los Angeles Chargers

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That means less choices for this spot, which has a dearth of real options. It came down to Mahomes, Brock Purdy, and Matthew Stafford. None of the three are fantasy stars this season, but Mahomes does have the biggest name; he’ll have to suffice.

The KC quarterback is QB9, a respectable standing, but that’s the mark of a high-level streamer, not the best real-life QB in the world. He has only reached 20 fantasy points twice in 12 games and was below 15 points four times.

The Chargers have allowed the fourth-least yards per pass attempt and 12th-least fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. These teams played in Week 4, and Mahomes had an OK day, with 245 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.

The matchup makes the middling Mahomes (from a fantasy perspective) a player to be leery of in Week 14. His lack of high-end production has been a season-long problem, and his floor is also lower in this one.

Running Back

Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons @ Minnesota Vikings

This one is all about the matchup: Minnesota has allowed the second-least yards per rush attempt and third-least fantasy points per game to running backs. Teams are able to pass against the Vikings, but the ground game has been a fantasy graveyard.

Robinson is a good receiving back and will surely be part of that attack. He has averaged 3.8 receptions and 30.3 yards per game in his career, the production of a low-level fantasy tight end.

Add in his rushing production, and it’s easy to see why he was such a highly coveted player coming into this season. It’s dangerous to bet on a guy with Robinson’s skillset being held down, but that’s what we’re doing here: working with the best fantasy players (in most cases).

The Vikes have allowed the ninth-least receiving yards per game to running backs, posing a tough test in all aspects. Robinson will get his touches, but he might find it hard to be consistent, especially if Minnesota gets ahead early.

You’ll never bench him, but don’t be surprised if Robinson has a pedestrian Week 14.

Wide Receiver

Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, Los Angeles Rams vs. Buffalo Bills

I pulled this trick a few weeks ago too: when the Rams faced off with the tough Eagles defense in Week 12, I listed both star receivers here and said that at least one would probably be limited while the other did well.

They were each able to put together a good fantasy week:

• Nacua: 9 catches, 117 yards
• Kupp: 8 catches, 60 yards, 1 touchdown

This is a dangerous passing game that can compete with the best defenses when they are rolling. With another tough matchup against Buffalo, though, there’s a chance that one or both might fail to excel.

The Bills have allowed the third-least yards per pass attempt and fourth-fewest fantasy points per game to wide receivers. This iteration of Buffalo’s defense has the team in a great position to make a Super Bowl run, maybe more so than at any time during the Josh Allen era.

Either one of these receivers could have a big day; both might even be fantasy starters again. Owners probably aren’t sitting them. If you’re a Kupp owner, though, it’s at least worth entertaining your options to see if you have better matchups that might be more appealing plays.

Tight End

Evan Engram, Jacksonville Jaguars @ Tennessee Titans

Engram’s biggest issue is that he lost his top quarterback, as Trevor Lawrence was put on IR after taking the most talked about hit of the season last week. Mac Jones will take over in the starting lineup, lowering the ceiling and floor for everyone involved.

He’s also not really a fantasy star. Engram missed four games toward the beginning of the season, but he hasn’t hit double-digit standard points in the eight games he has played. He was a PPR star last season: Engram finished as TE2 in PPR in 2023 after a TE5 finish in 2022.

Tennessee has allowed the second-least yards per pass attempt and the 10th-fewest fantasy points per game to tight ends. It’s hard to judge the Titans because of how bad their offense has been at times, but their D has regularly stopped other teams in the passing game.

Engram is likely to have a rough game here. Jones might rely on his tight end a little bit, giving him some volume, but Engram will likely be reliant on a touchdown to avoid underwhelming.