49ers QB Sam Darnold will start Sunday's regular-season finale vs. the Rams, HC Kyle Shanahan announced Wednesday. QB Brock Purdy will join RB Christian McCaffrey on the sidelines for that one after San Francisco locked up the NFC's No. 1 seed. WR Deebo Samuel, WR Brandon Aiyuk, and TE George Kittle are unlikely to play much, if at all, against the Rams.
Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell announced Wednesday that QB Nick Mullens will start this weekend's finale vs. the Lions. "To me, Nick has been very effective moving the team," O'Connell said. "We've been very explosive as an offense when he's been in there. Nick knows the one area that we must focus on is possession of the football, not giving the football away." Mullens has tossed six INTs over the past four games but otherwise completed 67% of his passes at 8.8 yards per attempt with five TDs. He threw for 411 yards, two TDs, and four INTs against the Lions a couple of weeks ago and is at least an intriguing DFS tournament play this week.
Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Rams HC Sean McVay has ruled out RB Kyren Williams, WR Cooper Kupp, and DT Aaron Donald for Week 18's contest vs. the 49ers. Once the decision was made that backup QB Carson Wentz would be the Rams' starter on Sunday, it was reasonable to expect we'd see more of these big-name players sit out. Los Angeles gains nothing from playing all their starters in a game that doesn't alter their playoff hopes. This news leaves rookie WR Puka Nacua as the active playmaker of note for season-long managers who play into Week 18 -- although we are not expecting Nacua to play a full slate of snaps. Veteran Demarcus Robinson sits highest among Rams in the Week 18 WR Rankings.
The Rams will start QB Carson Wentz in Sunday's game against the 49ers, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. They'll be resting Matthew Stafford in a game they don't need for playoff positioning. That revelation likely confirms that WRs Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua and RB Kyren Williams will also sit. Beyond that, we'll see. We'd be surprised if Demarcus Robinson has elevated to the point of being rested in this game, but we'll be watching for specific reports ahead of Sunday's kick.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes won't play vs. the Chargers this weekend, HC Andy Reid said Wednesday. QB Blaine Gabbert will start in a meaningless game for the Chiefs, who are locked in as the AFC's No. 3 seed. Reid also said that "some" other starters will not play on Sunday. We imagine that'll include TE Travis Kelce, RB Isiah Pacheco, and potentially WR Rashee Rice. This is an offense to avoid in Week 18 fantasy lineups.
The Commanders will start QB Sam Howell in Week 18. While he’s faced a tough stretch of defenses – Cowboys, Dolphins, Rams, Jets, 49ers – Howell’s play has fallen off over the second half of the season. Week 18 turns up a rematch with a Dallas team that defeated Washington 45-10 on Thanksgiving. Howell posted 300 yards, 0 TDs, and 1 INT in that one. The 23-year-old will remain a superflex-only option.
Jets QB Zach Wilson (concussion) is out for Sunday's game vs. the Patriots. QB Trevor Siemian will presumably close out this Jets season that was doomed when QB Aaron Rodgers went down in the opener. Siemian isn't a fantasy option but has at least been peppering RB Breece Hall and WR Garrett Wilson with targets.
Bengals OC Brian Callahan said he believes RB Chase Brown “has a chance to be a heavy contributor” in 2024. Callahan praised Brown’s hard running and explosiveness. Despite only 46 touches, the rookie’s tallied a pair of 30+ yard gains. Joe Mixon isn’t a lock to return in 2024, so Brown's a candidate to play a rotaitonal role next fall. He sits at RB47 in our current RB dynasty rankings.
The Browns will start QB Jeff Driskel in Week 18. Cleveland’s guaranteed the No. 5 seed, so they’ll rest Joe Flacco for a fairly meaningless matchup at Cincinnati. Driskel owns a 59.2% completion rate and 6.1 yards per attempt across 23 career appearances (11 starts). He’s not someone we’d rush to play in Week 18 DFS contests.
Jaguars WR Christian Kirk has been designated to return from IR. He's missed the past four games after undergoing core-muscle surgery. Kirk is eligible to play vs. the Titans this weekend, although it's still unclear if he'll be ready. Kirk averaged 7.6 targets, 5.1 catches, 69 yards, and 0.3 TDs over the first 11 games of the season. Per the NFL Media Research Department, QB Trevor Lawrence has completed 68% of his passes with 14 TDs vs. seven INTs in games with Kirk this year vs. a 57% completion rate, five TDs, and five INTs without Kirk.
Panthers WR Jonathan Mingo has been placed on IR with a foot injury. We'll look for more details on the injury and whether it'll impact Mingo's offseason. But his rookie campaign was alarmingly bad. Mingo caught just 50.6% of his targets and averaged 9.7 yards per catch. He ranks 88th among 88 qualifying WRs in yards per target and 84th in yards per route. Mingo will be no more than a late-round flier in 2024 redrafts and is closer to a sell-low than a buy in dynasty.
Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon said Tuesday that there's "no doubt" Kyler Murray is his team's QB going forward. "'Number 1' is our franchise quarterback," Gannon added. Things can change over the course of the offseason. But the 4-12 Cardinals are currently slated to pick fourth in this spring's draft, so they'd need to move up to land USC's Caleb Williams or North Carolina's Drake Maye. Murray's 2023 numbers don't jump off the page, but his play has been encouraging considering he's coming off a torn ACL and learning a brand new offense. He had his best outing of the season in the Week 17 win over the Eagles. We'll see how Murray finishes the campaign in Sunday's finale vs. the Seahawks.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the Jets are releasing RB Dalvin Cook. There's no fantasy impact here, because Cook didn't touch the ball the past two games and totaled just 2 touches the week before that. Rookie Israel Abanikanda carried twice and caught four of seven targets as the No. 2 RB in last Thursday night's loss to the Browns. Breece Hall is the only member of the Jets backfield you should be paying attention to if you're playing in Week 18. The timing of this release gives Cook a chance to catch on elsewhere, but we'd be surprised if he lands a meaningful role with a playoff team. Beyond that, we're not expecting much from Cook in 2024 either. The 28-year-old doesn't appear to have much left.
Eagles HC Nick Sirianni said Monday that he'll consider sitting some starters in Sunday's regular-season finale vs. the Giants. Philly can win the NFC East only if the Cowboys lose to the Commanders -- a game in which Dallas is currently favored by 13. If the Cowboys win, the Eagles are locked into the No. 5 seed. "I'm not saying yes, I'm not saying no. I'm saying everything's discussed," Sirianni said of his starters playing on Sunday. Hopefully we have a clearer idea of the plan by the end of this week.
Rams TE Tyler Higbee dislocated his shoulder in the Week 17 win over the Giants, HC Sean McVay said Monday. McVay didn't say whether Higbee will play against the 49ers this weekend, but it'd be a surprise if he did considering the Rams have little to gain in that one. (They'll either be the NFC's No. 6 or 7 seed.) Higbee's absence would leave Davis Allen as Los Angeles' top TE.
The Rams re-signed K Brett Maher. He spent the first seven games of the season with Los Angeles, making 17 of 23 FGs (74%) and 12 of 13 XPs (92%). Maher will kick in Sunday's regular-season finale vs. the 49ers -- and presumably in the playoffs if he doesn't blow this opportunity.
49ers RB Christian McCaffrey (calf) will not play vs. the Rams this weekend, HC Kyle Shanahan confirmed Monday. Shanahan called McCaffrey's injury a "mild calf strain." It's unclear if CMC would be able to play if this game meant something to San Francisco, but he was never going to suit up with the NFC's No. 1 seed clinched. He'll get three total weeks to heal up before the 49ers' playoff opener. We'll see about the team's backfield plans this weekend. RBs Elijah Mitchell and Jordan Mason are on the active roster, with RB Ty Davis-Price on the practice squad.
Lions HC Dan Campbell said Monday that he plans to play his starters in this weekend's regular-season finale vs. the Vikings. Detroit has won the NFC North, can't drop lower than the No. 3 seed in the NFC, and can only climb to No. 2 with a win plus a Cowboys loss to the Commanders and an Eagles loss to the Giants. "We want to use this as fuel," Campbell said. "I’ve got pure octane right now. I woke up and I’m ready, so we’re moving forward.” There's still some risk that the Lions pull key starters at some point during this game, especially if Dallas and Philadelphia have big leads. But we'll be projecting the starters for at least close to normal workloads in the Week 18 Rankings.
Jaguars HC Doug Pederson said Monday that QB Trevor Lawrence (shoulder) is "progressing well" and "definitely improving." Pederson labeled Lawrence "day-to-day" and said they'll see how he's feeling on Wednesday. With their season on the line against the Titans on Sunday, the Jags will do everything possible to have Lawrence on the field.
Saints HC Dennis Allen said Monday that RB Alvin Kamara is dealing with an ankle sprain. He wouldn't say whether he expects Kamara to be available for this weekend's game vs. the Falcons. "We’ll see how he responds throughout the week," Allen said. We'll keep tabs on Kamara's progress. His absence would leave Jamaal Williams as New Orleans' lead back against a tough Atlanta run dfense.
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