Fantasy Sports

By far the best game of Worthy’s uneven rookie season was too little, too late for a Chiefs team that fell behind 34-0, but does provide hope heading into next season his late-season hot streak was not a mirage. Worthy notched scores of 24 and 50 yards in the second half, with the 50-yarder coming against tight end zone coverage. The No. 28 overall pick of the draft, Worthy entered the league as an undersized (165 pounds) “role ‘tweener” who couldn’t decide if he was best deployed deep or in the short area. As was the case at Texas, the Chiefs split the difference, giving Worthy a middle of the pack “average targeted air yards” of 9.0. Worthy was also the recipient of frequent deep shots but struggled mightily down the field, catching just 4-of-18 targets 20-plus yards beyond the line of scrimmage. Lagging badly in nearly every efficiency metric, Worthy finally took off in a post-Thanksgiving Rashee Rice-type role, vacuuming up at least five receptions in each of his final seven appearances, including the playoffs. Still young (22 in April), Worthy now has invaluable experience and has demonstrated the ability to get better at the NFL level. His perch as one of Patrick Mahomes’ top-two pass catchers makes him an extremely valuable Dynasty league asset even if you’re not a big believer in his ultimate career ceiling.

“Playoff Kelce” showed up for the Divisional Round but was absent afterwards. Kelce took an efficiency nosedive this season, watching his yards per catch crater from an already-declined 10.6 in 2023 to an anemic 8.5. That’s late-career Jason Witten territory. After sitting at a robust 2.23 in 2022, Kelce’s yards per route run plunged all the way to 1.43. That was good for just 19th amongst tight ends in Pro Football Focus’ database, putting him behind players like Pat Freiermuth and Mike Gesicki. Visibly slower, Kelce’s famously improvisational route running is “hitting different” in his diminished state. Heading into the final year of his contract with no more guaranteed money, 35-year-old Kelce will probably give retirement a thought or two. If he returns for another year in K.C., it will likely be on a new deal. Despite the decline, Kelce would likely remain a solid top-eight fantasy TE for 2025.

Brown got free for a 12-yard touchdown late in the second quarter to put the Eagles up 24-0 in their eventual 40-22 victory. The superstar wideout has now scored in each of his career Super Bowl appearances. Brown’s 13 regular season appearances matched a career low thanks to a Week 2 hamstring issue and Week 17 knee ailment, but he still sailed past 1,000 yards receiving for the fifth time in his career and third time in as many seasons with the Eagles. With Jalen Hurts being asked to do less amidst Saquon Barkley’s domination on the ground, Brown didn’t receive as many down-field opportunities. Only 15.8 percent of his looks came 20-plus yards beyond the line of scrimmage, a new career low with the Eagles. This led to some late-season unhappiness, where Brown could scarcely hide his displeasure with Hurts’ play. This QB/WR pairing is going to be a little more volatile as long as Barkley is putting the offense on his back, but AJB remains in his prime heading into his age-28 campaign. He’s still a higher-end WR1 for fantasy purposes.

Barkley’s second quietest rushing outing of the season somehow didn’t matter as the Eagles dominated on defense, and Jalen Hurts shined as a rusher and passer. Signed to a three-year, $37.75 million signing in the opening moments of free agency, 27-year-old Barkley quickly confirmed he wouldn’t be any ol’ running back addition. After piling up five touchdowns across his first three games in midnight green and black, Barkley slumped for two weeks before truly announcing his Philly presence with a 176-yard Week 6 outburst against his former team New York. When the dust eventually settled on his 2024 campaign, he had the eighth most rushing yards in league history at 2,005 despite sitting out Week 18. Barkley’s 33 receptions were a career low for a healthy season, but he was second to only Derrick Henry in rush yards over expected per attempt. In other words, it wasn’t just his elite blocking. He then proceeded to put the Eagles’ offense on his back during their four-game Super Bowl run. The odds are high 2024 will go down a career campaign for the “generational” 2018 prospect, but he’s a cinch to be a top-three fantasy back in 2025, and is suddenly back in the mix for a potentially Canton-bound career if he can have another few seasons like his ‘24.

Put simply: Hurts stood and delivered as the Eagles won their second Super Bowl in franchise history. Setting the Super Bowl quarterback rushing record, Hurts evaded the rush with his legs and pushed the pile and moved the chains seemingly every time the Eagles needed a big play. He also hit chunk gains to A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. It was a complete game for the sometimes embattled dual-threat, who deservedly earned Super Bowl MVP honors. As for the regular season, the Eagles’ fourth-year starter took a backseat to free agent dynamo Saquon Barkley, slumping to career lows in passing yards (2,903) and rush yards per game (55.3) as Barkley erupted for over 2,000 yards rushing. A late-season concussion didn’t help matters, causing Hurts to miss most of three starts. Then again, Hurts’ 15 appearances tied for the second most of his career. Hurts’ rugged dual-threat style leaves him more susceptible to injury than the average quarterback, but his power running has led to a ridiculous 52 rushing scores over the past four seasons, including 14 even amidst Barkley’s 2024 avalanche. Hurts has almost unparalleled toughness, but nagging knee issues have become a concern. Going on 27, Hurts could already be post-peak. It still doesn’t really matter in fantasy leagues, where Hurts’ tush-push domination makes him a shoo-in for top-five status even if the passing production continues to leave something to be desired.

Mahomes was hammered for six sacks as the Chiefs’ protection completely collapsed, a la their Super Bowl LV loss to the Bucs. Besieged Mahomes didn’t help matters with two awful picks, one of which was housed for a pick-six. It had the feeling of a duct tape and glue production no longer “getting away with it.” As for the regular season, Mahomes’ statistical “slump” continued even as he led the Chiefs to a 15-1 record during his starts. He failed to eclipse 4,000 yards passing for the first time in seven years as starter and matched a career low with 26 aerial scores. Mahomes’ previous 26-TD campaign came when he was limited to 14 starts in 2019 by a knee injury. A painfully low average depth of target was accompanied by a career-worst 6.8 YPA. With any other quarterback, we would be talking about a drop-off, but weekly Chiefs observers know the deal. This is a super limited supporting cast, and Mahomes and company have opted for ruthless short-area efficiency over deep-game pyrotechnics. It’s an ongoing bummer for fantasy managers, but obviously the right call for Kansas City as it awaits for passing-game reinforcements. Once again limited to non-premium draft position ahead of a typically barren receiver free agent market, the Chiefs could look to add a front-line wideout via trade.

Rapoport said he expects Parsons to become “the highest-paid player in the NFL” this offseason but the Cowboys are apparently weighing whether they should allow another team to give Parsons that honor. Rapoport shared an exchange between him and Cowboys CEO Stephen Jones, where Jones wondered aloud whether it “is wise to have all that money invested in some of [their] best players.” We’re unsure as to what else the Cowboys would do with their money but only time will tell.

The Chiefs enter Super Bowl LIX largely in good health. Morris has filled in admirably at times this season but the team has not required his services since the regular season finale. The Chiefs also declared OL C.J. Hanson, OT Ethan Driskell, DE Malik Herring, DE Joshua Uche, CB Steven Nelson and CB Keith Taylor inactive.

Huff has played intermittently since undergoing in-season surgery on his injured wrist in November. Huff will be replaced by veteran DE Brandon Graham, who makes his triumphant return from injured reserve after tearing his triceps in Week 12. The Eagles also declared QB Tanner McKee, CB Eli Ricks, DB Lewis Cine, OL Darian Kinnard, OL Trevor Keegan and WR Ainias Smith inactive. McKee will serve as the emergency third quarterback.

Pelissero states that McCarthy “is set to return to football drills within the next couple of weeks” giving him ample time to ramp up for May OTAs. Pelissero also notes that Sam Darnold’s future remains up in the air, saying a potential tag-and-trade scenario could be undertaken if Darnold and the Vikings are unable to come to terms on a new deal by March 4th. Regardless, Pelissero expects the Vikings to ensure that a veteran quarterback is on the roster alongside McCarthy, calling in-house option Daniel Jones “a logical pick” for the role.