Arguably, the most frustrating thing in fantasy football is seeing someone in your starting lineup struggle that week. Therefore, the logic behind this article is simple – identify fantasy football lineup landmines.
These are players you’re leaning towards starting this week but could end up being a landmine that blows up and destroys your starting lineup, potentially costing you your matchup.
Brace yourself and take cover. These players could blow up in your face this week.
- Weekly Fantasy Football Expert Rankings
- Waiver Wire Picks
- Fantasy Football Start/Sit Advice
- Fantasy Football Trade Tools
Fantasy Football Lineup Landmines: Week 18
Mayfield has been an excellent streaming option for fantasy players in 2023. The veteran is the QB9 for the season, averaging 16.7 fantasy points per game, a higher average than Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrow. Last week, he scored 16.3 fantasy points after saving his performance with two touchdowns late in the game. However, Mayfield did snap his three-game streak with over 19.8 fantasy points on Sunday. Unfortunately, he has an unfriendly Week 18 fantasy matchup in a win and get in the playoffs game for Tampa Bay.
While the Buccaneers are playing for the NFC South division title on Sunday, the Carolina Panthers are playing spoilers. More importantly, they have surrendered only 12.7 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, the second-fewest in the NFL. Furthermore, quarterbacks not named Jordan Love have scored fewer than 13 fantasy points against the Panthers in all but one game since the team’s Week 7 bye. Mayfield had only 9.9 fantasy points in the Week 13 matchup against the division rivals. Don’t be surprised if he has a similar performance in the rematch.
Many thought Miles Sanders would be a fantasy star as the featured running back in Carolina. Instead, Hubbard has been the better fantasy running back this season. The former Oklahoma State star was outstanding a few weeks ago, ranking as the RB8 from Week 12 through Week 14, averaging 16.9 fantasy points per game, scoring 17.7 or more twice. However, Hubbard has struggled lately, scoring only one touchdown over the past month. He is also coming off his first performance with single-digit fantasy points since Week 11.
When the Panthers faced the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 13, Hubbard had 104 rushing yards, two touchdowns, and 22.4 fantasy points, all season-highs. However, Tampa Bay was without their top two linebackers – Lavonte David and Devin White. After missing a few games, both linebackers returned in Week 16. Over the past two weeks, the Buccaneers have held running backs to 3.4 yards per rushing attempt and 10.9 fantasy points per game. Tampa Bay makes the playoffs with a win over Carolina, so expect their defense to play at an elite level.
It’s Week 18, meaning it’s time to figure out which teams are resting key starters. The one superstar who definitely won’t play is Christian McCaffrey. The future Hall of Famer suffered a minor calf strain last week. Since the 49ers have the No. 1 seed locked up, McCaffrey won’t play in Week 18. Furthermore, fantasy players might not see Elijah Mitchell get much work because of his extensive injury history. Therefore, Mason might be the featured running back in a meaningless game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Fantasy players have seen very little from the young running back in 2023. He has only 34 rushing attempts for the year, mostly from blowout games. More importantly, the Rams have held running backs to only 14.2 half-point PPR fantasy points per game, the second-fewest in the NFL. Over the past seven weeks, running backs have averaged 3.7 yards per rushing attempt and 11.7 fantasy points per game against Los Angeles, totaling zero rushing touchdowns. With nothing to play for this week, don’t expect much from Mason or San Francisco’s offense.
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | SoundCloud | iHeartRadio
Mike Fanelli is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @Mike_NFL2.