It was the best of offenses; it was the worst of offenses. Timely defensive plays and poor weather capped both teams' fantasy ceilings. Big winners included fringe starter Jaylen Warren, whose high this season had been 10.8 points; Calvin Austin III, who's been solid three times and entirely unstartable every other time; Jerry Jeudy, who now has 14+ fantasy points in four straight; and Nick Chubb, who finally had a big night after three consecutive clunkers.
Chubb is an interesting case. What do managers do with a legendary RB who's clearly not close to his former self (though being down two starting offensive linemen doesn't help)? A couple of goal-line touchdowns give managers hope. Still, he's averaging merely 3.0 yards per carry and has only three catches. His realistic floor is around 5-6 points. That makes him a tough weekly start, period.
I wouldn't overreact to Cedric Tillman's, Elijah Moore's, and David Njoku's disappointing performances. Njoku entered the game questionable and nearly scored. Snowy conditions impacted an otherwise capable passing attack, limiting Jameis Winston to only 27 attempts. He'd thrown it 40+ times in five straight starts dating back to 2022. Last night was more of an anomaly.
So the fact Winston could muster even 13.5 points was a minor miracle, especially after turning the ball over twice. A tough remaining schedule should keep him out of most fantasy lineups. But he's arguably the Browns' best quarterback as the franchise looks ahead to 2025, and he's a terrific dynasty bargain.
Elsewhere, Russell Wilson played surprisingly well, though that didn't translate into meaningful fantasy points. If Pittsburgh falls to Cincinnati next weekend, will there be rumblings to give Justin Fields more work? When a team's winning, quarterbacks often get the benefit of the doubt. I'm wondering if head coach Mike Tomlin trusts Wilson for the playoffs (assuming they get there), or if the starting job is still a battle.
And Mike Williams was invisible for the second consecutive week. Not a good sign, though it helps George Pickens.
A big congrats to Ray Kaufman and Matthew Kennedy, who both predicted a 24-20 Browns win. Only a few of us picked Cleveland to prevail -- yet another reminder that when intra-divisional rivals face off, win-loss records sometimes fly out the window.
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