Week 14 Sneaky Starts

Welcome to your regular-season finale! Week 14 is your last chance to secure your playoff spot, lock up your bye week, or just crush your league-mates’ dreams. Between injuries and an absurd schedule that has four teams off the field this week, rosters are as uncertain as ever. Have no fear, though, because our Week 14 Sneaky Starts are here to help you fill in all of your holes and cruise to a win.

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Week 13 Recap

We had another 50-50 week in the land of Sneaky Starts.

Isiah Likely was our best call by far. He had more yards in Week 13 than in any other three weeks combined. He finished as the TE #10, but would have been the #1 overall had he not fumbled on the goal line.

Xavier Worthy also scraped us a W last week. Four catches for 61 yards with 13 additional yards on the ground isn’t a great stat line, but it’s enough for a Top-30 finish. I really thought we could get a bomb touchdown in this one, but there’s truly no predicting that.

Our other WR pick, John Metchie, was our first bust. He got eight targets, but only caught four for 19 yards. I chose him over Adonai Mitchell. That wasn’t the right call this week, but odds are they will trade good performances moving forward. Good luck trying to predict whose turn it is every week.

Finally, Tyrone Tracy also earned us an L. He got hurt, though, and Devin Singletary ended up having a great game. That goes to show that the process was right, but you can’t predict injury.

Sneaky Start Season Tally: 24-25

Week 14 will get us back over .500, I can feel it!

Week 14 Sneaky Starts

Isaac TeSlaa, Detroit Lions WR vs. Dallas Cowboys

If a player scores a touchdown on 50% of his catches, you should probably play him, right? What if he only has six catches on the year?

Teslaa has shown some amazing skill in his rookie year, even if the stats aren’t all there to back him up. His very first catch (in Week 1) was one of the best touchdown snags you’ll see all season. We would have been more excited for what’s to come, except he has a lot of very good players ahead of him in the pecking order. On Thursday night, that could change.

Kalif Raymond has already been ruled out, so TeSlaa will at worst be operating as the team’s WR #3. Amon-Ra St. Brown is truly questionable to suit up. If he sits, TeSlaa should be on the field for nearly 100% of snaps. If he ends up playing, he’ll be dealing with an ankle injury, which could force more targets to TeSlaa anyway.

He got drafted as a raw, athletic player with tremendous upside. The Lions took him far higher than anyone expected. Dan Campbell spots his guys early, and he was over the moon with this pick. The team clearly has big plans for TeSlaa, and the injury woes could move that timeline up.

The Cowboys are one of the worst defenses against receivers, and the game has one of the highest over/unders of the week. Regardless of Amon-Ra’s status, fire TeSlaa up. You want every piece of this game you can get.

Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR vs. New Orleans Saints

Godwin will be in his third week back from injury. He played only a handful of snaps in his first outing, and then led the team in receiving yards last week on a 66% snap share.

Emeka Egbuka has been operating as the de facto WR1 for the team this year, but that is more out of necessity than desire. Yes, Egbuka was fantastic to start the season, but he’s been looking more and more like a rookie as of late. In his last seven games, he’s only topped 60 yards once. He’s only topped 50 yards in one additional game. He also only has one touchdown over that span. All of this with him averaging nine targets per game in that stretch.

We can expect Godwin to be a full-time player in this one. Mike Evans should still be sidelined, which means he has a good chance of leading the team in targets. He’s shown a great connection with Baker in the past, and has a really great upcoming schedule. It’s in the team’s best interest to get him more involved, and they should have plenty of opportunity to do so against the Saints. Being an important divisional game for their playoff hopes, don’t expect they’ll take their foot off the gas even with a big lead.

I don’t want to be a week late on Godwin. If my team needs him this week to secure my playoff spot, I’ll be starting him.

Devin Neal, New Orleans RB @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Let’s look at the other side of this game with Devin Neal. Admittedly, the Bucs are a pretty stout run defense. Lucky for us, Neal is a volume player.

In his first start last week, he handled 14 carries and also caught all three of his targets. In Week 12, as a backup, he caught five balls.

With Alvin Kamara out, Neal is just about the only show in town. The Saints may be a pass-first team, but receiving is Neal’s best attribute. We should expect the Bucs to have an early lead, which means the team will be playing catch-up for the majority of this one. Tyler Shough doesn’t throw deep very often and should continue to use Neal as a safety blanket for dump-offs.

With such limited production to draw from, it’s hard to paint Neal in any sort of light, good or bad. He came into the league as someone who does everything well, but nothing great. I think that’s what we should expect here. If you need a start at RB this week, he should get enough volume that he won’t sink your team. He is still a rookie on a bad offense, so his ceiling is limited.

Darren Waller, Miami Dolphins TE @ New York Jets

Last week I told you to trade for him, this week I say you play him.

Waller led the Dolphins receivers in Week 13 with 47 yards on two catches. Let that sink in. They don’t have a single wide receiver who got more yards than a recently unretired tight end in his thirties, who just came off IR.

The team desperately needs him!

Every time he’s suited up this year, he’s been a focal point on offense. Even in games where he’s playing on a snap count. He was brought in specifically to fill a role in Miami. We saw Jonnu Smith light up the league in this same role last year.

There are few teams that script plays for the TE like Miami does. Few tight ends have an actual chance at elite production. Waller may not be the same player he was five years ago, but he doesn’t need to be. He will have the opportunity to produce, and he has the talent to see it to fruition.

If you are not rostering one of the top TEs, you should do everything in your power to get Waller. He has one of the best schedules moving forward and has the ability to finish Top 5 every week. That likely starts in Week 14 when you need him most.

Make sure to check out all of our Week 14 Fantasy Football Rankings and Analysis!