Week 15 Fantasy Football Droppables: Get Rid of Pittsburgh's Defense
Early in the week, the fantasy football community is focused on the waiver wire. Of course, to pick up one player, you must drop another. This column covers the other side of that transaction. Get acquainted with our Week 15 Droppables.
As always, remember that these are not players you must drop. Specific league parameters, such as starting lineup requirements, roster size, and number of teams, will go a long way toward determining who should be dropped, and who should be kept. Droppables, then, can still be roster-worthy, but no longer deserve a guaranteed spot on a roster in most leagues.
Pittsburgh Steelers Defense
Even after allowing 24 points to the Raiders in a stunning loss in Week 14, the Steelers are the sixth-ranked fantasy defense, trailing on the Bears, Rams, Texans, Broncos and Chiefs. Despite that, the Steelers cannot be trusted for the rest of the fantasy season. In Week 15, they host the Patriots in a game where a loss could knock them out of playoff position. In Week 15, they hit the road to take on the Saints, a virtually unstoppable offense in its own building. There’s no way fantasy owners should have confidence in Pittsburgh’s defense in either of those games. If your league plays its championship in Week 17, the Steelers could be worth keeping around for their matchup with the Bengals in a game they may need to make the playoffs. Otherwise, the unit is an easy cut this week.
Courtland Sutton, WR, Broncos
Sutton was supposed to take off in Denver’s offense after the team dealt Demaryius Thomas to the Texans. Instead, the rookie out of SMU has 13 catches on 28 targets for 248 yards and a touchdown in five games since Thomas decamped for Houston. What’s more, he suffered a thigh injury in the Broncos’ 20-14 loss to the 49ers in Week 14, and while he returned to the game, he was clearly limping on most of his routes. DaeSean Hamilton and Tim Patrick combined for 14 catches, 19 targets, 132 yards and a touchdown in the game, and could give the Broncos enough confidence at the receiver position to take it easy on Sutton this week.
BREER: Miracles, Mistakes and Playoff Momentum: Week 14 in the NFL
DeSean Jackson, WR, Buccaneeers
Jackson missed his missed his second straight game in Week 14 because of a thumb injury. Even before he was ruled out, there was speculation that the team could shut him down for the rest of the season. That’s only more likely with just three games left in a season in which the Buccaneers are going nowhere. Even if he does return, he’ll be doing so to a crowded receiving corps in which he may be the fourth option behind Mike Evans, Adam Humphries and Chris Godwin.
Josh Reynolds, WR, Rams
Reynolds was a ghost for the second straight game, catching three of seven targets for 36 yards in the Rams’ 15-6 loss to the Bears in Week 14. After hauling in six passes for 80 yards and a touchdown in the Rams’ first game without Cooper Kupp, Reynolds has just five catches for 55 yards in his last two games. Remember, too, that his big game came in the best one-off offensive environment we’ve seen in at least a generation, the Rams’ 54-51 win over the Chiefs back in Week 11. There’s just not enough value here to support Reynolds as a fantasy starter for the final two weeks of the playoffs.
Chris Thompson, RB, Redskins
Thompson was a chic sleeper play for Week 14 because of the Giants’ troubles covering pass-catching backs this season. Just the week before, Tarik Cohen burned the Giants for 156 yards on 12 receptions. The case for Thompson conveniently overlooked the absolute mess that is the Washington offense. The team scored 16 purely garbage-time points, totaling 288 yards in a 40-16 drubbing at the hands of the lowly Giants. Thompson caught three passes for 15 yards and carried the ball three times for 23 yards. He should get used to stat lines like that for the rest of the season.
