Buccaneers QB Tom Brady completed 35 of 66 attempts with 2 TDs and 1 INT in Monday’s Wild Card loss vs. the Cowboys. The Bucs’ backfield failed to establish a presence in the contest, leaving Brady to throw for over 60 attempts in a game for the first time since Super Bowl LI vs. the Falcons, according to Pro Football Reference. The question now is whether the future Hall of Famer will hang up his cleats for good with the Buccaneers’ season officially over. Brady is set to become a free agent this offseason. The 45-year-old will have a lot to think about in the months to come.
Cowboys TE Dalton Schultz roped in 7 of 8 targets for 95 yards and 2 TDs in Monday’s Wild Card victory vs. the Buccaneers. Teammate WR CeeDee Lamb also performed well, snagging 4 of 6 his targets for 68 yards and a score of his own. This pair made a tremendous difference in the outcome of this game and will look to continue this success against the 49ers next weekend in the Divisional Round. Though the 49ers’ defense ranks 7th in Football Outsiders’ pass defense DVOA this season, we did see Seahawks WR D.K. Metcalf eclipse the century mark in receiving yards with 2 TDs on Saturday. Perhaps QB Dak Prescott and company could replicate that success in the next round.
Cowboys RB Tony Pollard led the team in rushing with 77 yards on 15 carries in addition to hauling in all 3 targets for 12 yards as a receiver in Monday’s Wild Card win vs. the Buccaneers. Fellow RB Ezekiel Elliott logged 13 carries with 27 yards. The duo shouldered nearly even amounts of the rushing workload, but Pollard is the one who looked considerably fresher. Next week’s matchup vs. the 49ers will present a difficult challenge. The 49ers’ defense ranks as the single-toughest matchup in adjusted fantasy points allowed to RBs this season and held the entire Seahawks’ offense to a mere 104 rushing yards on Saturday.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott completed 25 of 33 attempts for 305 yards and 4 TDs in Monday’s Wild Card win vs. the Buccaneers. The veteran QB added another 24 yards and a red zone TD on the ground. Prescott seems to have found his groove after entering the playoffs on a 7-game turnover streak. Next up on the agenda is a tough road battle vs. the 49ers’ defense that ranks 8th-toughest in adjusted fantasy points allowed to QBs.
Bengals LT Jonah Williams dislocated his left kneecap in Sunday night's win over the Ravens, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. HC Zac Taylor called Williams' status "week to week" on Monday. That suggests the LT will have trouble getting back in time for Sunday's game at Buffalo -- but that he has a chance to return if Cincinnati continues to advance. Reserve G Jackson Carman filled in against Baltimore after Williams went down. QB Joe Burrow still drew pressure on just 28.2% of his dropbacks for the game, according to Pro Football Focus, the 4th lowest rate among the 10 starting QBs so far in these playoffs.
The Cardinals are hiring former Titans executive Monti Ossenfort as GM, according to NFL Network. Ossenfort most recently worked under recently fired Tennessee GM Jon Robinson and interviewed for that position before this announcement. He joined the Titans as director of player personnel in 2020 after 14 years with the Patriots and stints with the Texans and Vikings. In Arizona, he takes over for Steve Keim, who resigned to focus on his health. Ossenfort will now join the already-running search to replace HC Kliff Kingsbury and rebound a franchise that made the playoffs in 2021. The Cardinals finished this season 4-13 and in last place in the NFC West.
NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported Monday that the Giants held long-term contract talks with RB Saquon Barkley during the season. Per Rapoport, the team wants Barkley and Daniel Jones to return for 2023. (No surprise there.) The franchise tag remains likely to be used on 1 of those guys. Per Spotrac, New York currently has the 3rd most cap-space league-wide (~54$ million).
Packers RB Aaron Jones is set to count $20 million against the salary cap in 2023. But Packers GM Brian Gutekunst said he expects the veteran to return on a restructured deal. “Yeah, certainly, we expect to have him back,” Gutekunst recently told the media. “Obviously, he’s a dynamic player. It’s amazing. For a guy his size, to bring it every day, he rarely misses a practice, rarely misses a rep. The way he leads that football team, his consistency is amazing.” Indeed, Jones played all 17 games in 2023, setting career highs in rushing yards (1,121) and receptions (59). The 28-year-old’s fantasy ceiling will largely depend on whether Aaron Rodgers returns for another season.
Bengals RB Joe Mixon mustered only 39 yards on 11 carries in Sunday’s win over Baltimore. He’s now been held to only 1 TD over his past 6 outings. Mixon at least remained a key part of the passing game, racking up 3+ catches for the 14th time (in 15 games) this season. The Bengals now travel to Buffalo for the Divisional Round. The Bills have allowed 4.3 YPC to opposing RBs this season.
Bengals QB Joe Burrow completed 23 of 32 passes for 209 yards and 1 TD in Sunday’s win over Baltimore. He leaned heavily on Ja’Marr Chase, who finished with 9-84-1 on a 37.5% target share. Burrow added a 1-yard TD on a sneak. Next up is a must-see matchup at Buffalo (Sunday, 3PM ET). The Bills exited the regular season sitting 2nd toughest vs. enemy QBs.
Ravens TE Mark Andrews snagged 5 of 10 targets for 73 yards in Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati. He tallied chunk gains of 29 and 25 yards alongside a less-than-100% Tyler Huntley. Andrews, 28 in September, is under contract for 3 more seasons. We’ll see if the Ravens can lock up Lamar Jackson long-term.
Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins rushed 13 times for 62 yards in Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati. He saw only 1 more attempt than Gus Edwards (12-39) and added 4-43-1 as a receiver. Afterwords, Dobbins expressed frustration with the lack of carries. "I'm a guy who feels like I should be on the field all the time," Dobbins said. "It's the playoffs. Why am I not out there?” The 24-year-old was specifically referring to QB Tyler Huntley’s 4th-quarter fumble on a goal line sneak. 2023 turns up a contract year for Dobbins.
Bills RB James Cook tallied 12 carries for 39 yards and 1 score in Sunday’s win over Miami. He out-carried Devin Singletary by 2, although neither guy saw a target on 39 Josh Allen attempts. It was Cook who found the end zone in the 1st quarter, though. The explosive rookie will look for more next weekend, likely against the Bengals. Cincy exited the regular season 6th toughest in adjusted fantasy points allowed to RBs.
Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson led the team in receiving with 10 catches on 11 targets for 109 yards in Sunday's Wild Card loss vs. the Giants. This explosion comes only a few weeks after his 13-109, 2 TD performance against the Giants in Week 16. WR Justin Jefferson totaled 47 receiving yards, hauling in 7 of his 9 targets on the day. Both Hockenson and Jefferson figure to be big contributors to this Vikings' offense moving forward into 2023.
Vikings RB Dalvin Cook tallied 15 carries for 60 rushing yards and 6 receptions on 7 targets for 10 yards in Sunday's Wild Card loss vs. the Giants. This inefficient outing is undoubtedly disappointing for fantasy managers who enlisted the help of Cook for points. It's worth noting that the Vikings have an out in Cook's contract that could make him a free agent in 2023 should they choose to exercise it. Such a move would carry a dead cap hit just north of $6 million and is merely hypothetical at this point. He'll be a name to watch this offseason just in case.
Vikings QB Kirk Cousins completed 31 of 39 attempts for 273 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's Wild Card loss vs. the Giants. He also punched in a 1-yard rushing TD in the contest. The veteran put forth about as valiant of an effort as one can ask for, but the Giants ultimately proved to be too big a challenge. It'll be interesting to see how HC Kevin O'Connell and company rebound from this upset loss in 2023. It's fair to say the effort should start with bolstering their defense that ranked 28th in Football Outsiders' DVOA this season.
Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle posted an empty 3-catch, 44-yard line against Buffalo. Waddle mishandled a couple of potentially game-changing deep balls. He was also tackled inside the 1 on a rush attempt. Prior to that, the young WR picked up a shoulder injury that he quickly returned from. His 2nd season ends with 80-1400-8 in 18 games. Going forward, his value is closely tied to the health of Tua Tagovailoa.
Bills QB Josh Allen put up a monster 352-3-2 passing line in a Wild Card win over Miami. We wouldn’t put either INT on Allen, although he was to blame for a lost fumble in the pocket. Credit Miami for only allowing 20 rushing yards on 4 Allen runs. As a passer, though, Allen’s rare arm talent showed up in several key spots. His scores went to Gabe Davis, Cole Beasley and Dawson Knox. Allen will likely face the Bengals — at home — next weekend.
Bills WR Stefon Diggs popped off for 7 catches for 114 yards against Miami. He tied Gabe Davis for the team lead in targets (9). The highlight here was a beautifully thrown Josh Allen deep ball for 52 yards — the duo’s 2nd longest gain of this season. Diggs will likely face the Bengals in the Divisional Round. It would be the first showdown between Buffalo and Cincinnati this season.
Giants WR Isaiah Hodgins led all pass-catchers in receiving with 8 receptions on 9 targets with 105 yards and 1 TD in Sunday's Wild Card win vs. the Vikings. Fellow WR Darius Slayton hauled in 4 of his 8 targets for 88 yards. This duo of WRs performed admirably for fantasy purposes but will face a considerably stricter matchup next week vs. the Eagles. The Eagles rank as the 10th-toughest matchup in adjusted fantasy points allowed to WRs this season.
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