Daily Newsletter: NFL Week 15 Sleepers and Busts (Dec.13th)

Welcome to our daily newsletter! As we head into Week 15 of the fantasy football season, the pressure is on with the arrival of the play-offs. Whether you're looking for sleepers to boost your lineup or trying to avoid risky picks, we've got you covered with key insights to help you make the best decisions. Let's dive into the plays...

Sleepers 

Chuba Hubbard

Hubbard has been featured heavily in this article this season, both in the sleepers and the busts section. One week after appearing in the busts, he’s back as a sleeper and one of the top overall RB starts on the entire Week 15 slate of games. Not only is Carolina expected to be in positive game script – favored for the first time in multiple seasons – there is seemingly no real competition for carries. Both Jonathan Brooks and Miles Sanders are out, clearing the path for Hubbard to rack up 25+ touches again against a pretty bad Dallas run defense. He’s a top-five overall RB for me in the first week of fantasy playoffs. 

Jaylen Warren

Sticking with another running back, I love the spot for Jaylen Warren against the Philadelphia Eagles. Pittsburgh are installed as 5.5 point underdogs in this game, which should force the Steelers into a more pass-heavy game plan. This is advantageous for Warren who has been more of a receiving threat than Najee Harris. Furthermore, George Pickens is out again which should increase Warren’s looks in the passing game as well. Pickens missed last week, resulting in a target share over 20% for Warren. Overall, he has a chance to lead the team in receptions with Pickens down and should be locked into a fruitful role for PPR formats. 

Khalil Shakir

Shakir and the Bills find themselves in the Game of the Week squaring off with the Detroit Lions. These are the two best teams in the NFL right now in most opinions, and the total for the game is set at a monster 54.5 points. Detroit has been vulnerable in the slot all season – which is where Shakir primarily operates. He’s also been the Bills most consistent pass catcher, developing a strong connection with Josh Allen both over the middle of the field and on some deep balls. He’s averaging nearly 9 targets per game over his last six contests and I think he has a strong floor and ceiling in this spot. 

Busts 

Nick Chubb

It hurts me to do this, but I don’t see Nick Chubb having any fantasy value the rest of the season. Cleveland is going to be underdogs in pretty much all of their remaining games, which is the case this week against the Kansas City Chiefs. He doesn’t contribute in the passing game, and we haven’t seen his historic efficiency or long run ability since returning from injury. He hasn’t even seen a touch in the red zone the last two games, and will likely put up a completely worthless game if he doesn’t luck box his way into the end zone. 

Michael Pittman

Pittman has been a popular fade candidate for me when Anthony Richardson starts at QB, and that’s the case again this weekend. Pittman has shown virtually no ceiling with Richardson, given his inability to make tight window throws. Indianapolis wants to run the ball with Richardson and Jonathan Taylor and when they do throw the ball it’s typically deep down the field. Denver has been elite at covering outside WRs this season, and it’s likely Pittman sees Pat Surtain’s shadow coverage making him a comfortable sit/avoid for me in this match-up. 

Jordan Love 

I’m a big fan of Jordan Love, but Week 15 seems like a pretty good spot to avoid him for fantasy purposes. Seattle has been a top-four defense by nearly every metric since their bye week, while the Packers have gone extremely run-heavy. Josh Jacobs has emerged as the workhorse back they envisioned when signing him – and the Packers are the most run-heavy team in football except the Eagles since Week 8. Love is averaging less than 25 pass attempts per game over that span, which hurts his fantasy ceiling mightily. I wouldn't want to pick on this defense as it is, but it appears Green Bay is prepared to run the damn ball down the stretch of the season.

Written by Ben Hossler