NFL Player News

Underdog Fantasy’s James Palmer said on Thursday that the “buzz is real” between Carroll and the Raiders after Vegas lost out to the Bears on Ben Johnson. Carroll, 73, spent last season in the Seahawks’ front office after mutually agreeing to step down as the team’s head coach following the 2023 season. During his 14-year run as the Seahawks’ head coach Carroll posted a 137-89 record while appearing in two Super Bowls and winning one. Should the Raiders hire him, he would create an immediate culture shift for a team in desperate need of an upgrade in an ever-competitive AFC West.

Walker was targeted three times but only brought in one of them for a one-yard loss. He continued to operate as the team’s top back this week, but a massive lead in the second half allowed Mike Macdonald to give his starters some rest down the stretch. Walker gave up two carries to Zach Charbonnet and four to Velus Jones on the Seahawks’ final drive. Drew Lock had taken over for Sam Darnold, marking this drive as a true garbage time scenario. Walker is the clear lead back for Seattle, but there are several ways for him to let fantasy managers down, given how much work he cedes to Charbonnet. With game script likely working in his favor next week, Walker will cling to an RB2 ranking versus the Colts in Week 15.

The first 100-yard game of Fannin’s career came as Shedeur Sanders erupted for 364 yards on 42 attempts in snowy Cleveland conditions. His touchdown was his second in as many weeks, and came even as David Njoku also found the end zone. Really cutting into Njoku’s playing time of late, Fannin got further a boost when Njoku tweaked his knee. The veteran did return to the game, but Fannin out-targeted him 11-1. Continuing to build his case as an elite Dynasty league asset, Fannin is also shoring up his TE1 value for the fantasy playoffs. Fannin will remain a lower-end option with Sanders’ play likely to be up and down, but the Bears are not a concerning Week 15 matchup.

Hall also failed to catch is only target of the day. In a pass-heavy game script with Brady Cook as the quarterback, Hall saw 14 carries in a limited offense. He did not see much red zone usage and ends up with a pedestrian 43-yard total as the run game had little impact against the Dolphins. His value will be tied to who the Jets’ quarterback is for Week 15, but Hall is in the RB2 range against the strong Jaguars run defense.

Broncos DL Zach Allen hit Smith early in the third quarter, resulting in visible abrasions on the ring and pinky fingers on Smith’s right, throwing hand. The broadcast announced Smith as questionable to return, as team trainers attempted to stop the bleeding on the sideline. Stay tuned.

Neal’s three-yard score to cap off the Saints’ opening drive was the first touchdown of his career. Excellent stuff for fantasy managers taking the FLEX plunge, but Neal then surprisingly lost two more rushing scores to not-exactly-dual threat Tyler Shough. Neal did out-touch backup Evan Hull 20-2, and he ground out some turf yards in obvious rushing conditions in rainy Tampa weather. Basically, he passed the RB3 assignment, though Alvin Kamara (knee, ankle) could be back for Week 15. If not, Neal will find himself hanging around the top 30 as New Orleans takes on Carolina’s middle-of-the-road run D.

With the Bucs struggling to pass without LT Tristan Wirfs and dialing up obvious runs in rainy Tampa conditions, none of their three backs could get anything going in the efficiency department. So fantasy managers breathed a sigh of relief when Irving contributed a 24-yard receiving score in the first quarter. Beyond that, there just wasn’t anything doing beyond a 32-yard, non-scoring run. Irving has now found the end zone twice in two games since returning, but his 32 rushes have produced just 116 yards (3.6 YPC). Hopefully he can maintain that volume but chew more meat off the bone in a plus Week 15 matchup with the Falcons.

Patterson also made all four of his extra point attempts as the Dolphins trounced the Jets. He saw a lot of scoring opportunities and gave fantasy managers a productive day with two field goal kicks of 43 and 53 yards. Patterson will have less scoring opportunities against the Steelers in Week 15 but is productive enough for fantasy managers to keep him in lineups.

Over the last three weeks, “Bill” has seen 17, 12, and now 10 snaps, respectively. The rookie seventh-rounder has been outplayed by both Chris Rodriguez and Jeremy McNichols over the last month and a half, and saw most of his playing time come with the game well out of reach. There’s little reason for fantasy managers entering the playoffs to hold JCM at this time.

The Steelers finally pushed the ball downfield after a season full of constant check downs to everyone in the offense, including the big-bodied speedster Metcalf. Metcalf had a season high in air yards and receiving yards in this one, and came close to not one but two touchdowns from Aaron Rodgers. Metcalf took full advantage of single coverage against a Ravens secondary that was overmatched by Metcalf’s size-speed combination. Coming into Week 14, he had seen more than six targets just five times this year. If the Steelers continue being aggressive in Week 15 against Miami, Metcalf could push for top-15 status.

Dulcich out-snapped Darren Waller and tied him for targets as the Dolphins continue to utilize both in the passing game. He made a catch-and-run of over 20 yards into the red zone that was nullified by penalty and kept his yardage to 41 on the day. Dulcich is difficult to trust on a weekly basis and is on the TE2 borderline for Week 15.