NFL Player News

A sixth-round pick of the 49ers in April, Taylor did not make it through final cuts. The former Gator does not have much NFL upside, but the Seahawks are hurting at running back. He could be called up in the near future.

Godwin has the short-area slot role for the Bucs, seeing targets at the sticks and in the flats. He averaged under seven yards per reception for the second straight game, running less deep routes with Mike Evans back in the lineup. Godwin saw one target in the red zone and was tackled inside the 10-yard line, but otherwise made no noise with scoring opportunities. With the Bucs offense dealing with inefficiency, Godwin’s ceiling is capped amidst a fully healthy pass-catching group. He has WR3 upside for Week 17 against the Dolphins.

This was the second time in three weeks Kelce was held to one catch for under 10 yards. This time was a little more understandable as a team already missing Patrick Mahomes then lost Gardner Minshew to a first half knee injury. That left unknown fourth-year pro Chris Oladokun to deliver the football, and deliver it he did not. Isiah Pacheco led the team in receptions. With Minshew believed to be out for Christmas Day against the Broncos, Kelce can no longer be trusted as a TE1 with Oladokun under center. That’s if he even plays. Kelce has said he will finish the season, but the injury risk may no longer be worth it without a legitimate signal caller.

Worthy “added” a zero-yard rush. Worthy actually tied for the team lead in receiving yards, which tells you all you need to know about how the Chiefs fared without Patrick Mahomes. That’s because they were also faring without Gardner Minshew following a first half knee injury. Minshew is now expected to miss Thursday evening’s game against the Broncos, leaving “Chris Oladokun” to sling the ball to Worthy and company. With or without Rashee Rice (concussion) back in the lineup, that basically makes Worthy a no-go as a WR4 vs. Denver’s elite pass defense.

Evans continues to be the Buccaneers’ WR1 since returning from his collarbone injury. It was an inefficient 31 yards on nine targets, a product of a struggling Bucs offense that has failed to take advantage of opportunities. Evans scored the Bucs’ first touchdown of the game on a goal-line fade from the one-yard line in the first quarter. He was targeted in the end zone twice from the one-yard line again in the third quarter, drawing a defensive pass interference before a Sean Tucker rushing score. He still needs 697 yards over the next two games to keep his 1,000-yard streak alive. Evans is a fantasy WR2 for Week 17 against the Dolpins.

Taysom Hill, naturally, led the New Orleans backfield with 12 rushing attempts while Audrice Estime had five carries. Hull ran just 10 routes on the day and was not targeted while Estime ran 34 routes and had three grabs on four targets from Tyler Shough. Hull won’t be fantasy viable in Week 17 against the Titans.

Estime was widely believed to be the Saints’ No. 1 back headed into Week 16 with Devin Neal and Alvin Kamara sidelined with injuries. But it was gadget player Taysom Hill who easily led the New Orleans backfield with 12 rushes for 42 yards, including all of the goal line work. Estime had sold pass game usage, running a pass route on 34 of the Saints’ 55 drop backs on the day. RB Evan Hull ran ten routes and was not targeted. Estime should be considered a deep league flex play in Week 17 against the Titans.

Tucker had almost exclusively a red zone role for the Bucs in Week 16. He saw just five snaps, but got four carries. Tucker ran a few times at the goal line, punching one of them in for a one-yard score. The Buccaneers’ running back rotation currently sees Bucky Irving as the primary back, White in for some passing-down usage, and Tucker as the red zone back, making things frustrating for fantasy managers. Tucker is a touchdown-dependent FLEX play for Week 17 against the Dolphins.

Davis once again operated as the team’s RB2 behind Breece Hall, though it was Davis tho was Brady Cook’s preferred pass-catching option out of the backfield. Davis reeled in four of his five targets; AD Mitchell was the only Jets pass catchers with more targets on the day (6). Davis logged 17 pass routes to 22 routes for Hall, who managed one reception. Despite the decent usage, Davis won’t be a fantasy play in Week 17 against the Patriots.

With the Chiefs’ offense on a doomed mission with “Chris Oladokun” replacing Gardner Minshew in the second quarter, Isiah Pacheco dominated work in the backfield. Even without the latest quarterback injury, we expected Pacheco to get more work down the stretch. These are rare meaningless games for the Chiefs, and it’s not like they need to evaluate Hunt. He will be fully off the FLEX radar for Thursday night’s game against the Broncos.

White continues to get a mixture of carries and passing-down usage behind Bucky Irving, running 11 routes on 25 snaps. He had a 39-yard rush to open the second quarter, the second-longest rush of his career and the Bucs’ second-longest run of the season. White also eclipsed 4,000 scrimmage yards for his career with 60 total yards in this game. The Bucs’ usage of their backs is frustrating for fantasy purposes. White has the No. 2 role and rotates in for pure passing situations, making him a risky FLEX play for Week 17 against the Dolphins.