Las Vegas

Raiders

O’Connell went from being carted off the field and sporting an air cast less than 24 hours ago to now having a chance to play in Week 15 against the Falcons. After some concerns that he may be lost for the season, O’Connell has avoided the worst and now “has a shot” to play this week, per NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. This news comes minutes after head coach Antonio Pierce said Desmond Ridder would start in Week 15 against his former team, so we’ll see what happens in the coming days following this announcement.

Pierce’s commitment to the bit is notable, but after they aircasted O’Connell and carted him off in Week 14, we’re quite comfortable in saying that Ridder will helm a #RevengeGame against the Falcons. (Can it be a #RevengeGame if you barely earned the right to start in the first place? We’re looking into this.) A Ridder takeover, something that could possibly last the final four weeks of the season, would probably relegate Jakobi Meyers to fantasy benches and leave Brock Bowers as the only Raiders tight end or receiver worth starting.

Schultz adds that O’Connell will undergo “additional testing to confirm the full severity.” It appears as though Desmond Ridder will be the rest-of-season starter though. The development negatively impacts the team’s fantasy-relevant players, though Brock Bowers should continue his improbably efficient level of play.

Bowers reeled in a one-handed snag for the highlight reel early in the day, but that would go down as one of the better moments for him in an otherwise quiet outing. He did, however, draw a pass interference call in the end zone for a fresh set of downs. Bowers was dragged to the ground by Bucs linebacker Vi Jones, preventing an otherwise easy touchdown grab. Aidan O’Connell cashed in with a one-yard score on the next play. The Bucs made it a point to bottle up Bowers and were mostly affective, DPI aside. Few teams have been able to do that this year and Bowers will get to test a weak Atlanta defense in Week 15. Despite the flop, Bowers remains near the top of the TE1 ranks heading into the fantasy playoffs.

Meyers led the Raiders in targets and tied No. 2 tight end Michael Mayer for a team-high in catches. Mayer beat him in the yardage category by exactly one. Meyers is up to at least 50 yards and six catches in all but one of his past seven games. He even has two 100-yard outings during that stretch. Though the veteran wideout doesn’t have an elite weekly ceiling, his volume-based floor has earned him a spot in the WR2 ranks heading into a Week 15 date with Atlanta.

Mayer logged career highs in catches and targets while earning the second-most yards in a game of his young NFL tenure. The former second-round pick returned to the lineup in Week 11 after missing most of the season for personal reasons. Though he will fall behind Brock Bowers in the pecking order for targets in most weeks, Mayer could be more involved than most backup tight ends going forward given the lack of wide receiver talent on the team. He could sneak into the TE2 ranks for Vegas’s Week 15 matchup with the Falcons.

Aidan O’Connell went down with a leg injury late in the second quarter. He was placed in an air cast and carted off the field, ending his day and possibly his season. With Garnder Minshew also done for the year, Ridder appears to be the Raiders’ starting quarterback for the final month of the season. Ridder almost instantly lofted a nightmare interception to Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum after taking over, but McCollum didn’t complete the catch and the pick was overturned after review. Ridder ended the day with a dreadful 5.6 yards per attempt and no scores. This isn’t groundbreaking analysis, but fantasy managers should look elsewhere for a streaming quarterback, even in Superflex leagues.

Tucker broke out with 82 yards on seven receptions two weeks ago and followed that up with 58 yards and a touchdown on his only grab last week. His lack of receptions in Week 13 was the canary in the coal mine, signaling a predictable letdown today. Tucker will pop up with the occasional big game depending on the matchup and game script, but he isn’t involved enough on a week-to-week basis to crack most fantasy lineups. He will remain in the WR5/6 range for his Week 15 matchup with the Falcons.

Sincere McCormick sent Abdullah to the bench this week, out-touching him 17-2. Last week, Abdullah earned a dozen touches, only two fewer than McCormick. This performance from Abdullah can put any notions of him as a streaming RB3 to rest. Abdullah is not on the fantasy radar going forward.

McCormick out-touched Ameer Abdullah 17-2 a week after seeing just two more carries than him. McCormick had been gaining ground on the veteran heading into Week 14 and completed the takeover today. He also passed the eye test, breaking off multiple chunk gains including a long of 29 yards. Alexander Mattison and Zamir White were both out this week. Mattison appeared to be close to returning but was ruled out ahead of kickoff. If he returns, the Raiders could mix him in with McCormick, making it an ugly situation for fantasy managers. Still, this performance should earn McCormick the starting role with or without Mattison healthy.