It's a rarity when every team playing on Thanksgiving still has something to play for. Heading into next week, two of the six essentially no longer will.
Chase Daniel deserves a ton of credit for his mostly error-free football in his first NFL start in years. I thought the Lions would keep him in check, and for most of the first half they did. But Daniel will end the week somewhere among the top 10-16 fantasy QBs. Meanwhile, Matthew Stafford's lost season is now beyond repair. As good as Chicago's D is, and as injury-ravaged as Detroit's offense is, Stafford has only five TDs and seven turnovers in his last five games -- a 1-4 stretch that has all-but-certainly has knocked them out of postseason contention.
To put this in perspective, Stafford has been a mid-range to back-end QB1 in six of the previous seven years. He entered 2018 with his best receiving corps in at least three years -- and certainly his biggest collection of talent in a while with Golden Tate, Marvin Jones, and the ascending Kenny Golladay. Their offensive line appeared to be markedly improved over 2017, with a preseason Pro Football Focus ranking of 8th in the NFL (compared to 24th the previous preseason). And yet he's on pace for a tied-for-career-high 47 sacks, his lowest yardage output since his injury-marred 2010 campaign, and 21 turnovers (his third most since 2009).
With so many great young talents (Mahomes, Wentz, Goff, Trubisky, Watson), it's fair to wonder whether Stafford will finish in the top 8 ever again, particularly with Kerryon Johnson looking like the bellcow he's long lacked, putting Stafford on pace for his second-fewest passing attempts since 2010. It all spells trouble if you're in a dynasty league.
The Dallas-Washington game played out mostly as expected. Patient fantasy managers were rewarded by Amari Cooper, while Ezekiel Elliott controlled the tempo with 31 touches. On the other side of the ball, Adrian Peterson was unstartable as expected, while Colt McCoy surprised in tough confines and a deplete receiving corps. Trey Quinn is looking like a solid PPR fantasy streamer, though it's too early to tell how he and Maurice Harris and Josh Doctson will shake out once Jamison Crowder returns.
And the nightcap played out almost exactly as anticipated. The Saints hit 30+, Tevin Coleman was a risky start, and Atlanta's receivers all got in on the action. Austin Hooper was the one blemish with a merely top 12-16 caliber Week 12 output. If the Falcons hadn't turned it over three times in the red zone, they might have kept it close. But then again, New Orleans' D has stepped up big-time recently. It'll be very interesting to see how the Saints fair with three straight road games against Dallas, Tampa Bay, and Carolina, wrapping up with two home games against Pittsburgh and Carolina. If they wrap up the regular season with a 1 seed, they'll be as battle-tested as any playoff team.
Chase Daniel deserves a ton of credit for his mostly error-free football in his first NFL start in years. I thought the Lions would keep him in check, and for most of the first half they did. But Daniel will end the week somewhere among the top 10-16 fantasy QBs. Meanwhile, Matthew Stafford's lost season is now beyond repair. As good as Chicago's D is, and as injury-ravaged as Detroit's offense is, Stafford has only five TDs and seven turnovers in his last five games -- a 1-4 stretch that has all-but-certainly has knocked them out of postseason contention.
To put this in perspective, Stafford has been a mid-range to back-end QB1 in six of the previous seven years. He entered 2018 with his best receiving corps in at least three years -- and certainly his biggest collection of talent in a while with Golden Tate, Marvin Jones, and the ascending Kenny Golladay. Their offensive line appeared to be markedly improved over 2017, with a preseason Pro Football Focus ranking of 8th in the NFL (compared to 24th the previous preseason). And yet he's on pace for a tied-for-career-high 47 sacks, his lowest yardage output since his injury-marred 2010 campaign, and 21 turnovers (his third most since 2009).
With so many great young talents (Mahomes, Wentz, Goff, Trubisky, Watson), it's fair to wonder whether Stafford will finish in the top 8 ever again, particularly with Kerryon Johnson looking like the bellcow he's long lacked, putting Stafford on pace for his second-fewest passing attempts since 2010. It all spells trouble if you're in a dynasty league.
The Dallas-Washington game played out mostly as expected. Patient fantasy managers were rewarded by Amari Cooper, while Ezekiel Elliott controlled the tempo with 31 touches. On the other side of the ball, Adrian Peterson was unstartable as expected, while Colt McCoy surprised in tough confines and a deplete receiving corps. Trey Quinn is looking like a solid PPR fantasy streamer, though it's too early to tell how he and Maurice Harris and Josh Doctson will shake out once Jamison Crowder returns.
And the nightcap played out almost exactly as anticipated. The Saints hit 30+, Tevin Coleman was a risky start, and Atlanta's receivers all got in on the action. Austin Hooper was the one blemish with a merely top 12-16 caliber Week 12 output. If the Falcons hadn't turned it over three times in the red zone, they might have kept it close. But then again, New Orleans' D has stepped up big-time recently. It'll be very interesting to see how the Saints fair with three straight road games against Dallas, Tampa Bay, and Carolina, wrapping up with two home games against Pittsburgh and Carolina. If they wrap up the regular season with a 1 seed, they'll be as battle-tested as any playoff team.