Fantasy & Betting

12/11/24

3 min read

Fantasy Football 2024: Week 15 Rankings For Every Position

By C.H. Herrmann

Fantasy Writer

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The fantasy football playoffs are here.

If you’re reading this, chances are you’re one of the few fantasy managers still in the hunt for a title. Congratulations on your efforts this season. Only a handful more wins separate you from a championship.

The tricky part now is that all of your remaining opponents are among the best teams in your league. The journey will be difficult, and the destination is far from guaranteed.

If you haven’t already, pick up a second D/ST unit with a favorable schedule. Add any decent handcuff running back that’s still on the waiver wire. Give yourself some flexibility in case of injuries.

At this stage in the game, each decision you make is crucial. With that in mind, let’s get into Week 15 rankings position by position:

NFL Week 15 Fantasy Football Rankings

Week 15 Quarterback Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Aidan O’Connell suffered a knee injury on Sunday vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that required being carted off the field in an air cast. For as scary as the moment was, further tests reveal that O’Connell merely sustained a bone bruise, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. It’ll be worth monitoring his status this week in anticipation of a Week 15 matchup vs. the Atlanta Falcons. A situation where backup Desmond Ridder gets the start would mean a substantial drop-off in fantasy value for all Raiders offensive players.
• Derek Carr is officially considered ‘week-to-week’ following a concussion and a minor fracture in his non-throwing hand in Week 14 vs. the New York Giants. While most of the fantasy value of the Saints' offense comes from the ground attack, Carr’s status will be key for the effectiveness of guys like TE Juwan Johnson or WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Deep-league managers ought to keep an eye out on Carr’s progress throughout the week.
• Though he did return to action, Justin Herbert briefly exited Sunday night’s contest vs. the Kansas City Chiefs with a left knee contusion. We’ll discuss his recent struggles in a bit, but this injury is also part of why he appears reasonably low in this week’s rankings.

Trending Up

• Discussing a player who’s borderline fantasy-relevant at best is admittedly an odd choice, but I felt it was important to shout out Bryce Young. The second-year signal-caller has looked great in recent weeks, leading the Carolina Panthers to a handful of near victories—that’s impressive considering this franchise's poor state. Per TruMedia, Young ranks tied for 10th in EPA per dropback (0.13) with Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow since Week 12. From a fantasy perspective, Young’s 17.6 fantasy points per game in four-point per passing touchdown scoring in that span ranks 16th-best at the position, according to FantasyData. Young has been helpful in superflex leagues, and as long as he continues to dish the ball to Adam Thielen (who we’ll touch more on later), he might be able to keep it up. 
• What Tua Tagovailoa has accomplished in the last month is remarkable. Since Week 11, the lefty ranks second in EPA per dropback (0.38), third in passing yards per game (325.5), and fourth in passer rating (118.5) among all quarterbacks. In fact, if you look at the Dolphins’ offense as a whole in this period, their offense ranks first in Offensive Total Pass EPA (72.13) by a wide margin (Los Angeles Rams second at 56.29). We’re at a point now where it doesn’t even matter who the Dolphins’ opponent is; if you roster Tua, he belongs in your starting lineup. A top-five quarterback option the rest of the way.
• In the last month, Sam Darnold has thrown for at least two scores in each contest. Pull that back even further, and we’re talking about a stretch of five out of the Vikings’ last seven games. I’ve harped on the journeyman’s success quite a bit recently, but it bears repeating, considering we’re talking about the QB4 in points per game (24.7) since Week 11.

Trending Down

• There was a time earlier in the season when the Green Bay Packers let Jordan Love cook more often. Unfortunately, those days are past, as the second-year starter has now recorded under 30 pass attempts in four straight games. To further illustrate this point, according to Fantasy Points Data, the Packers’ Pass Rate Over Expectation (PROE) during the past month comes out to a frustrating -6.5 percent. None of this is to suggest Love hasn’t had fantasy-relevant games in this span, but it’s worth warning managers that the run-heavy tendencies won’t lend themselves well to the former first-round pick scoring plenty in the fantasy playoffs.
• Calling back to an earlier point, Herbert has issues beyond his knee being hurt. The Chargers’ gunslinger has mostly kept his ammo in the proverbial holster of late, only accumulating greater than 250 passing yards once in a game since Week 10. A lot of what’s hurting him is the fact that in that span, the Chargers’ offense is only scoring a touchdown on 57.1 percent of their red zone drives, a rate tied for 16th with the Indianapolis Colts.
• We can ascribe a few reasons for this, like the lack of a running game sans a healthy RB J.K. Dobbins, rookie Ladd McConkey dealing with a shoulder ailment, or the vanishing act of TE Will Dissly, but it’s not pretty no matter how you slice it. I am not exceptionally comfortable starting Herbert in the fantasy playoffs, as conditions presently exist.

Week 15 Running Back Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Bucky Irving aggravated his pre-existing back injury on Sunday vs. the New York Giants. He’s presently ranked assuming health, but don’t be afraid to be proactive and scoop Sean Tucker off the waiver wire if Irving cannot suit up for Week 15.
• Keeping the sad rookie news flowing, Jonathon Brooks suffered a non-contact knee injury in the first quarter vs. the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. He was later diagnosed with having torn his right ACL, the same ligament ailment experienced in November 2023 while in college at Texas. It’s fair to wonder at this point whether or not we’ll even see Brooks play in 2025. Ultimately, this is more of a concern for dynasty managers, but from a season-long perspective, this does guarantee that Chuba Hubbard has next-to-no competition for touches for the remainder of this year.
• Another rookie with a lower-body knock, Issac Guerendo, reportedly, sprained his foot vs. the Chicago Bears. Given that the Niners are set to play next on Thursday night, I encourage managers to look for Patrick Taylor Jr. out on the waiver wire. He’d theoretically be the next man up in that backfield.

Trending Up

• Don’t look now, but the Jacksonville Jaguars’ backfield might be getting weird again. Is Tank Bigsby taking Travis Etienne Jr. to pasture? If Week 14 is any indication, the answer might be yes. Bigsby dominated with 81.8 percent of the backfield carries (18) against the Tennessee Titans and edged out his veteran counterpart with a snap rate of 51.7 percent. 
• For what it’s worth, this is only the fourth time this season that Bigbsy has played on more than half of the Jaguars’ offensive snaps in a game, and the three previous times all came during the period between Week 6 and 9 when Etienne Jr. was dealing with a hamstring issue. Don’t be prepared to fire up Bigsby in lineups right away, but if he’s on your bench, keep a keen eye on how Week 15 goes. Maybe this one-time happening will become a full trend.
• Revisiting some information from this week’s waiver article, Las Vegas Raiders RB Sincere McCormick has netted 58.3 rushing yards per game since taking over as the de facto lead back in the past three weeks, according to FantasyData. The former UDFA’s yardage efficiency stands highest of any Raiders running back in 2024 — better than Alexander Mattison (32.0 yards per game) or Zamir White (22.9 yards per game). If he’s still out there on your waiver wire, go ahead and fix that. McCormick is a sound, weekly flex option.

Trending Down

• Despite averaging 16.5 carries per game in his past four contests (tied for 12th among backs with Pittsburgh Steelers RB Najee Harris), Rhamondre Stevenson is struggling in fantasy. During this stretch, the Patriots’ offense ranks 22nd in EPA per play on designed runs (-0.08) and has generally had a hard time creating space for rushers as a whole this season, ranking 24th in Adjusted Line Yards per FTN. The tough sledding is set to continue during the next two weeks as well, considering Stevenson’s next two opponents (Arizona Cardinals and Buffalo Bills) rank eighth and 13th, respectively, in run defense DVOA in 2024. If you need him as a flex, fine, but I wouldn’t be counting on Stevenson in the fantasy playoffs.

Week 15 Wide Receiver Rankings

Trending Up

• Is Jaylen Waddle back? This is more of a data dump than anything, but during the past three weeks, he’s recorded a 31.2 percent air yards share, 80.3 percent route participation, and a 0.22 target per run clip. By contrast, Waddle had averaged a 20.4 percent air yards share, 73.4 percent route participation, and 0.18 targets per route run in the first 10 games of 2024. Small bumps, sure, but the uptick in usage is paying dividends in the form of 20.2 PPR points per game since Week 12. 
• Since Week 12, Adam Thielen has led the Carolina Panthers in targets (25) and receiving yards per game (86.0). In fantasy terms, he’s scoring at 17.3 PPR points per game, ranking 15th among all wideouts in those three weeks. 
• It's time for your weekly update that Jerry Jeudy is playing obscenely well of late. He is averaging 6.3 receptions and 113.0 receiving yards per game with a team-leading 30.2 percent air yards share since QB Jameis Winston took over in Week 8. In fantasy terms, Jeudy is tied with Rams wideout Puka Nacua as the WR2 in PPR points per game (21.0) in that span.

Potential Breakouts

• While he may not be converting on all of his opportunities, DeAndre Hopkins is starting to heat up again. Through the past three games, the veteran leads the Chiefs with a 33.6 percent air yards share, all while churning out 4.3 catches and 52.3 receiving yards per game. Also helping matters is that Hopkins ranks second among wideouts in red zone targets (5) in this span.
• Patrick Mahomes II is looking to get the ball his way more often, and as the Chiefs continue to push for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, their games are still going to matter down the stretch. Call it a hunch, but Hopkins could be a sneaky good low-end WR2/flex option for managers in the playoffs.
• This player is a bit of an odd one. On one hand, Amari Cooper only registered a 58.5 percent route participation rate in Week 14, not too much above the 50 percent rate he’d recorded since joining the Bills following the NFL trade deadline. Despite his limited involvement on a per-snap basis, Cooper did go off like a firecracker against the Los Angeles Rams. The underlying information is a touch suspect, but I'll color myself a believer if he can replicate even a modicum of this success again in Week 15.

Week 15 Tight End Rankings

Quick Takeaways

• Chargers TE Will Dissly has his right shoulder evaluated by doctors a touch before halftime on Monday night vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. Though his efforts have been muted lately, his status as a streaming-level tight end means Dissly will be worth tracking throughout the week.

Trending Up

• After hitting a rough patch to start the year, Sam LaPorta has mounted a hefty turnaround during the past four weeks. Among all tight ends in that span, the second-year pass-catcher ranks ninth in route participation (73.9 percent), sixth in air yards share (22.3 percent), and 10th in PPR points per game (11.6). It’s true LaPorta still ranks third on the Lions in first-read target share behind WRs Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams, but at this level of usage, he’s still viable as a starting tight end down the stretch.

Trending Down

• It’s possible Cade Otton may be losing favor in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense. His recent struggles have been well-documented on this site, and one 44-yard catch accounted for much of his Week 14 success. In his previous four games, Otton has only converted 13 receptions on 22 targets (59.1 percent catch rate) despite seeing a catchable target rate of 81.8 percent from QB Baker Mayfield.
• This probably could’ve gone in the wide receivers portion of the article, but the player who’s overtaking Otton in the offense as a secondary passing game option is WR Sterling Shepard, who’s seen at least six targets per game since Week 12, earning 4.3 receptions and 40.3 receiving yards per game in that span. It would behoove managers to look elsewhere for tight end help in the fantasy playoffs.

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C.H. Herrmann

Fantasy Writer

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C.H. 'Herms' Herrmann is a fantasy writer for The 33rd Team, leveraging his extensive experience from previous roles as a fantasy analyst and NFL writer at Draft Sharks, FantasyPros, ClutchPoints, and SB Nation. A respected voice in the fantasy football community, Herms' insights and accuracy have earned them the distinction of being the No. 1 most accurate DST ranker in FantasyPros’ ECR Draft Rankings in the 2023 season. Herms has worked in media since 2020.