Week 15 featured some amazing games and big performances and had some significant playoff implications. Here is a recap of what we learned from every game played on Sunday of week 15!
Baltimore @ New York Giants
Lamar Jackson threw for five touchdowns, including two to Rashod Bateman, as Baltimore goes to 9-5 on the season. Derrick Henry and Zay Flowers both disappointed their fantasy managers with underwhelming games but Mark Andrews scored a TD and now leads all Ravens receivers all-time.
Once again, Devin Singletary was way more part of the game plan than expected, rushing for 25 yards and a touchdown. Singletary and Tyrone Tracy both had 11 touches, which is very disconcerting, considering that Tracy is obviously the more talented player.
New York Jets @ Jacksonville
After a first half where he did not catch a pass, Davante Adams caught 9 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns to help the Jets defeat Jacksonville. Breece Hall did have a touchdown, but he only had 11 touches on the game.
Brian Thomas Jr. is likely a second-round draft pick in fantasy drafts next year. He had 14 targets and 10 receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns. He is a special talent.
Dallas @ Carolina
Shockingly, the Cowboys defense played exceptionally well despite the loss of DeMarvion Overshown. Dallas had 6 sacks and two interceptions to help lead their victory on the road. Rico Dowdle also had 149 rushing yards.
Carolina goes as Chuba Hubbard goes. Hubbard was only able to get 32 rushing yards on 10 carries, and when Carolina can’t establish its running attack, it makes it much more difficult for Bryce Young to succeed in the play-action passing game.
Washington @ New Orleans
The biggest shock in this contest was that Brian Robinson Jr. was held to just over three yards per carry. Robinson had 65 rushing yards in a game he was expected to dominate and didn’t. Zach Ertz left the game with a concussion, and rookie Ben Sinnott finally came on to play a little bit more towards the end. He’s somebody to watch for if Ertz is out.
The Jake Haener experiment did not work out so well for New Orleans in the first half so they substituted in Spencer Rattler after halftime, and he threw for 135 yards and a touchdown. Alvin Kamara left the game with an injury, and Kendre Miller had 9 carries for 46 yards and once again looked pretty good running the ball.
Cincinnati @ Tennessee
Chase Brown was fantastic, rushing for 97 yards and a touchdown and catching 3 passes for a touchdown. It’s amazing to think how good his season might have been if he didn’t have to share opportunities with Zack Moss for the first few weeks.
Will Levis was playing so poorly throwing that after halftime, they replaced him with Mason Rudolph who threw for 209 yards and two touchdowns. It’s obvious at this point that Rudolph gives the Titans the best chance to win and they need to be thinking about what the plan is at QB not only for the rest of the season but for 2025 and beyond.
Kansas City @ Cleveland
The big story here was that Patrick Mahomes left the game with an ankle injury, and he’s considered week to week. Also, a huge story was how good the Chiefs defense played, as they had five sacks and four interceptions. If they can play at this type of level, there’s a very good chance that they could be back in the Super Bowl.
This game was a disaster for Cleveland as Nick Chubb left the game with a broken foot, and they needed to replace Jameis Winston in the second half for poor play. Look for Jerome Ford to get all the touches over the next few weeks. I still think Winston starts in week 16, but that remains to be confirmed.
Miami @ Houston
Houston’s terrific run defense held the Dolphins to 52 yards on 19 carries. Their run defense and pass rush are both excellent, and they’ll be relied upon heavily, especially if the Texans offense continues to sputter as it has.
Making matters worse was that Miami could not get the ball to Tyreek Hill. Hill had two receptions for 36 yards, which was a major issue after Jaylen Waddle left with an injury. Malik Washington may be one of the best pickups of the waiver week, as he will be the likely starter if Waddle is out for any length of time.
Indianapolis @ Denver
This game was lost when Jonathan Taylor fumbled the ball as he was crossing the goal line. It was such a silly play because all Taylor had to do was hold the ball in his hands and score a touchdown, and when they reversed the play, it was like the referees deflated the Colts as it would have given them a two-TD lead. Anthony Richardson is just terrible. He only completed 17 passes for 172 yards and two interceptions.
Kudos to the Broncos, who scored 24 unanswered points in the second half to come back and win this game after a disastrous start. Bo Nix finished the game with 130 yards passing and three touchdowns and showed a lot of moxie hanging in there when it looked like Denver was going to lose.
New England @ Arizona
New England was never really in this game, as they just couldn’t get any offense going. Kendrick Bourne led the team with 44 yards receiving as Drake Maye completed passes to nine different receivers. New England needs to find a WR1 desperately in the offseason to help Maye reach the next level.
James Conner led the Cardinals with 110 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Trey McBride also had nine receptions for 87 yards, but he still hasn’t found the end zone. Marvin Harrison Jr. disappointed with only two receptions for 32 yards and cannot be trusted anymore in the fantasy playoffs.
Buffalo @ Detroit
Josh Allen threw for two touchdowns and ran in another two touchdowns as Buffalo pulled off an incredible victory on the road. James Cook also had 105 rushing yards and two touchdowns to lead the Bills. One thing of major note was that Amari Cooper did not have one target in the game, which was shocking after being targeted 14 times the week before.
Jared Goff threw for 494 yards and five touchdowns in the loss. Amon-Ra St. Brown had 14 receptions for 193 yards and a touchdown and was the offensive star of the game. More importantly, however, the Lions lost another two players on defense: CB Carlton Davis and DT Alim McNeil might both be out for the season. As good as the Lions have played this year, they’ve had more critical injuries than any other team.
Tampa Bay @ Los Angeles Chargers
In one of the most shocking results of the weekend, Baker Mayfield threw for 288 yards and four touchdowns, including two touchdown passes to Mike Evans. Evans had 9 receptions for 159 yards and is once again threatening to keep his 1000-receiving-yard streak going. Tampa Bay rushed for 223 yards, including Bucky Irving, who had 117 yards, and Rachaad White, who had 64 yards.
The Chargers just couldn’t get their running game going, as they only were able to rush 11 times for 32 yards. This was to be expected as Tampa has one of the best-run defenses in the league. It seemed like Justin Herbert was under pressure most of the game, and he couldn’t get the ball to Ladd McConkey as often as he wanted to.
Pittsburgh @ Philadelphia
Pittsburgh misses George Pickens desperately. Without him, they just don’t have enough playmakers on offense. Russell Wilson completed 14 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown but the Steelers running game only averaged 3.3 yards per carry. There’s no way Pittsburgh can continue winning without Pickens.
After a very dramatic week where people questioned the Eagles passing attack, Jalen Hurts threw for 290 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver A.J. Brown had eight receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown, and Devonta Smith had 11 receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown. This should give the Eagles a ton of confidence as they shoot for the Super Bowl.
Green Bay @ Seattle
The Packers were in control throughout the entire game, beating the Seahawks handily on the road. Josh Jacobs had 30 touches for 136 all-purpose yards and a touchdown. Romeo Doubs also caught 2 touchdown passes in his first game back after being injured for a few weeks.
At this point it is clear that JSN is the WR1 for Seattle. He had 10 receptions for 83 yards, while DK Metcalf only had three receptions for 28 yards. Also of note is that Geno Smith left the game with an ankle injury, and he wasn’t able to return. His status for Week 16 is in question.