NFL: Lamar Jackson, Christian McCaffrey Among 5 Best Fantasy Football Performers in Week 15
The fantasy football playoffs are well underway with many leagues either in the championship round or semifinals in their respective leagues in Week 15 action. It was a slate of games that saw many notable players step it up in arguably the biggest week of the season in fantasy with some big-time performances. Without further ado, here are a few of the best outings from this past week, minus Monday’s game between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts.
5. Miles Sanders
ESPN: 35.2 PTS
All season long, the hype had been there for Sanders to take over as the primary back in the backfield. With Jordan Howard dealing with a nagging injury, the rookie running back burst out the gate with his best outing of the season. Sanders was a huge factor, tallying his first 100 rushing yard performance with 122 yards along with six catches for 50 receiving yards and a touchdown.
He put on display the reasons for all the optimism as he has provided a huge lift offensively they have been missing out of the backfield. For those who still have the championship to go, he could once again be a highly dependable option against the Dallas Cowboys.
4. Lamar Jackson
ESPN: 37.1 PTS
One constant that has been on this list practically all season has been Jackson, who has been arguably the fantasy football MVP along with the regular season MVP. He has been an absolute force his play behind his dual-threat ability.
Jackson showcased that once again against the New York Jets with a masterful outing 212 passing yards with five touchdown passes along with 86 rushing yards. It marked the seventh time this season that has put up at least 30 fantasy points and third time with at least five touchdown passes. Jackson simply has been the fantasy GOAT in 2019.
3. Christian McCaffrey
ESPN: 37.5 PTS
McCaffrey has been in that same breath of fantasy MVP this season with his stellar play that also has him in the regular-season MVP conversation. He has been a juggernaut out of the backfield with his production as he added another stellar out in Week 15 as he tallied had 87 rushing yards and two touchdowns along with eight catches for 88 receiving yards.
It marked his NFL-best sixth time this season that has recorded at least 175 total scrimmage yards while he became the first Panthers player to tally more than 2,000 total scrimmage yards in a single campaign. McCaffrey has put up more than 30 fantasy points four times and double-digit outputs all but once this year.
2. Julio Jones
ESPN: 38.4 PTS
The Falcons headed into Week 15 on the road with the daunting task of taking on arguably the best team in the NFC. Jones proved to be more than up to the task as he toasted the San Francisco 49ers’ secondary for 134 receiving yards on 13 receptions with a pair of touchdowns. His 20 targets were a season-high and the most for any player in the 2019 campaign.
Jones stepped it up in a significant way with Calvin Ridley out for the season by showcasing why he’s in the conversation for being the best wide receiver in the game. It was a season-best performance and the fourth time that he has tallied more than 20 fantasy points. There have been plenty of ups and downs this season, but Jones came through when it counted most in the fantasy playoffs.
1. Kenyan Drake
ESPN: 39.6 PTS
Since the Arizona Cardinals acquired Drake from the Miami Dolphins, he has played a considerable role in the backfield. He quickly took over the starting job from David Johnson, which has led to him putting up some dependable outings along the way.
However, none were more significant than his performance in Week 15 as he had 137 rushing yards on 22 carries along with a career-high four touchdowns along with one reception for nine receiving yards. The Cleveland Browns had no answer for him defensively as he continued to gash them for his best outing of the season. It also made him the first Cardinals player to record four touchdowns in a game since Ronald Moore in December 1993.
