Fantasy football strategy, rankings, and podcasts

The survivor pool I was in still has 84 of the initial 871 entrants, meaning it will likely extend into the post-season, barring a wacky week of upsets. I don't know if it is a tough slate of games this week, or if it just seems that way because the Cleveland Browns are off. Last week, the Giants predictably dismantled the Browns, continuing their 15-game losing streak and giving me another win.

This week there aren't many sure things. Seattle and New England are the weeks two biggest favorites, and I really don't trust Seattle against the Panthers. The Patriots are a lock at home against the Jared Goff led Rams, so if you haven't used them that's your pick. I, however, do not have that luxury, having picked the Pats earlier this season.

My next choice for the week would have been the Denver Broncos on the road against the pathetic Jacksonville Jaguars. Denver needs this win bad and an Oakland loss in the near future to make sure they don't get left behind the pack. However, when it was announced that Trevor Siemian would be out with a foot injury and rookie Paxton Lynch would make the start, I wasn't so sure. I think that Denver's defense still provides enough for them to get the win, but I will shy away from them since it is on the road.

Which leads me to this week's pick, the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers finally looked like himself last week and this week he gets a Houston team led by Brock Osweiler, who, unfortunately for the Texans has also looked like himself. Detroit faces a tough match up in the Saints this week and with a Packer win and Lions loss the two will be tied for the division lead. Green Bay will not let this opportunity slip by.

Cheers! Drink Five!!

Welcome to Statistically (in)Significant, the place to find great stats that probably only matter at the water cooler (or bar). Each week I'll dig through the stats of the week gone by and deliver you some choice conversation starters.

30.24 Points

Through Sunday, Joe Flacco leads all players with 30.24 points in Week 13, after a monster 381 yard, 4 TD performance against the Dolphins. It's only the third time he's gone over 300 yards, and only the second time he's thrown for more than 2 TDs all season, so you probably didn't have him in your lineup. Owned in 23% of leagues, he's been a regular face on our waiver wire article, but I don't think anyone saw this game coming from him. This is the type of performance that he was signed for - 'member when Flacco was the highest paid player in the league? I 'member. I suppose he's not paid for big numbers - he's paid to keep his team in first place, which they are.

175 Yards from Scrimmage

David Johnson has gone over 100 yards from scrimmage in each of his 12 games this season and is making a strong MVP argument. This remarkable streak seems to really just be the norm for him - last season 4 of his last 5 games were over 100 yards from scrimmage as well. This season, he's the 4th highest scoring player in fantasy, and it's hard for anyone other than QBs to top that list. Last year, the top 16 players were QBs, then came Antonio Brown. Johnson is even pulling away from Ezekiel Elliott to dominate the RB position all by himself. So far, he has 1709 yards from scrimmage and 15 touchdowns and you still have 3 more games with him in the fantasy playoffs. Johnson can easily eclipse the 300 point mark this season.

4 Passing Yards

Well, we don't get all of them right. On Sunday, Colin Kaepernick had just 4 passing yards and was benched in the second half after being just absolutely awful. I didn't see this coming, and I'm sure some around these parts would like to attribute it to "Bear Weather", but really, the 49ers are just that bad, Kaepernick included. Players that always rely on garbage time to score their points aren't always going to be given that opportunity, and I suppose that's something worth remembering when going hunting for replacement QBs.

2 Point Return

Eric Berry found a new way to win a game in Atlanta on Sunday - the Pick-Two. I suppose we'll have to work on that name, it doesn't roll off the tongue like a pick-six, which he also had earlier in the game. This is the second time that I've seen a lead change in the 4th quarter of a game as the result of a return for two points. DEN-NO had this happen when the Broncos blocked an extra point attempt and returned it for two to win the game 25-23. The Chiefs are now 9-3 and have only lost to the Steelers, Texans and Buccaneers, all quality teams this season. Suddenly I need to stop complaining about Thursday Night Football, since we got the Cowboys-Vikings last week and the Raiders-Chiefs this week. I'll take it!

60 Straight Home Games

Sunday marked the end of Drew Brees's streak of 60 straight home games where he threw a passing touchdown. In an era where Brady and Manning will be remembered as bigger names, Rodgers as the better "pure QB", it's still possible that Brees winds up as a more prolific passer than all of them. He is, yet again, leading the league in completion percentage, passing yards, touchdowns and passing attempts. He's also the active career leader in all of those categories. You're freaking awesome, Drew. I just wish you had better teams, like those other three guys. On a side note, the Saints somehow became the first team this season NOT to lead the Detroit Lions in the 4th quarter.

The fantasy playoffs are finally upon us! The weak managers have all been eliminated, bye weeks are over and you just need to survive three more weeks of matchups to take home a championship. Hopefully, this advice will aid you in getting one week closer to glory. Good Luck!

Note: all waiver picks listed here will have only been owned in 50% or less of Yahoo! leagues at the time of publication.

Quarterback

Joe Flacco (BAL) - 23% owned - Most likely no one needs to be running to the wire for a quarterback when there are no bye-weeks, but if you do need one I recommend Flacco. He should have to air the ball a lot to keep pace with the Patriots and is coming off his best game of the year going 36-47 for 381 yards and 4 TDs against the Dolphins.

Honorable mention: Alex Smith (KC) - 27% owned

Running Back

Kenneth Dixon (BAL) - 46% owned - Dixon continues to split work with Terrence West despite having a 5.9 yards per carry average compared to the 3.9 average for West over the past four weeks. If you need help at running back Dixon should be counted on for 10-12 touches with a strong chance of that workload to increase over the remainder of the season.

Mike Gillislee (BUF) - 23% owned - Gillislee has been getting touches behind LeSean McCoy in Buffalo's run heavy offense. I'd expect him to see somewhere around 8-10 touches per game down the stretch, but what's nice is that he does get goal line work which was seen last week when he scored two touchdowns from three or fewer yards out of the end zone.

Honorable mentions: Jerick McKinnon (MIN) - 44% owned, Adrian Peterson (MIN) - 47% owned

Wide Receiver

Ted Ginn Jr. (CAR) - 23% owned - Ginn has seen his role in the Panthers offense grow the second half of the season and is coming off a great three-game stretch of 12 catches for 241 yards and 3 touchdowns. If his involvement continues he should be a great asset down the stretch with matchups against the Chargers, Redskins and Falcons his next three games.

Malcolm Mitchell (NE) - 29% owned - Mitchell has seen more playing time recently with injuries to the Patriots pass catchers. He's made the most of the playing time catching 17 passes for 222 yards and 3 touchdowns over the past three games. It was announced that Danny Amendola suffered a high ankle sprain this past week which means Mitchell should continue to see more looks for the fantasy playoffs.

Honorable mention: Taylor Gabriel (ATL) - 38% owned

Tight End

Ladarius Green (PIT) - 23% owned - Injuries may have delayed it from happening, but Green finally had his breakout performance as a Steeler, going off for 110 yards and a touchdown on 6 of 11 targets. He should continue to get a high amount of targets down the stretch since no other receiver has stepped up, besides Antonio Brown so far.

Honorable mention: Dennis Pitta (BAL) - 33% owned

Defense/Special Teams

Cincinnati Bengals (TB) - 31% owned - The Bengals defense has been floating around average all season long for fantasy purposes, but they draw the terrible Browns in week 14 which means they are worthy of a start.

With the fantasy football playoffs upon us, it's time to set aside all the leagues you didn't advance in and forget about most of the bench players who you won't be starting. The playoffs (and coffee) are for closers! While you're getting ready for this week, make sure to check out the news and updates from week 13, this week's podcast and the Week 14 Rookie Report as well.

This week, despite where the experts rank Derek Carr, we think he should be in your lineup against KC. Dance with the one who brought you, as they say. At RB, be cautious when deciding to start Doug Martin, and it's also probably time to move on from Tim Hightower. At wideout, I know you've started him all year, but isn't it time that DeAndre Hopkins grabbed some bench? Finally, it's time to look for options other than Greg Olsen - he's not bad, but his offense is and he's currently on a streak of 4 games with less than 50 yards receiving.