The Carolina Panthers fired offensive coordinator Joe Brady on Sunday, during their bye week, and fantasy managers might wonder what that could mean for the Week 14 game against the defensively woeful Atlanta Falcons, if anything. Remember, the Panthers benched QB Cam Newton during the Week 12 blowout loss to the Miami Dolphins, as he completed only 5 of 21 passes and scored 6.18 PPR points, needing a rushing score to get there. He will start against the Falcons, as the Panthers remain in the wild-card hunt.
The question, of course, is whether fantasy managers will again become interested. They sure were in Week 11, when Newton accounted for a trio of touchdowns and 26.16 PPR points in a tight loss to Washington. Today, Newton is the most dropped quarterback in ESPN standard leagues. Some of that is because it was his bye week, but still, playing the Falcons tends to be much fun! Entering Week 13, only Washington and the Tennessee Titans permitted more fantasy points to quarterbacks. Watch Newton become popular again this week, and it might be his last gasp as a fantasy-relevant option.
Meanwhile, the most dropped non-D/ST is Panthers RB Christian McCaffrey, which makes sense since his season ended a few weeks ago due to an ankle injury. Welcome back to Chuba time! Rookie Chuba Hubbard gets a chance to play regularly for the next month, though after the Falcons game, the Panthers play nothing but stringent rushing defenses (New Orleans Saints, Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers). Hubbard is one of the most added players in ESPN standard leagues over the past week, but remains available in nearly 50% of leagues. The Panthers say they want to run more, so we shall see how that goes.
The Week 14 opener
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings might not have much in common these days, though the former tied the lowly Detroit Lions and the latter come off an embarrassing, walk-off loss to them, Detroit's first victory. The Steelers and Vikings open Week 14 on Thursday night, each desperate for a win to stay in playoff contention. The Steelers scored a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to edge the rival Baltimore Ravens Sunday, but until that final period, QB Ben Roethlisberger -- and those around him -- struggled mightily.
Can we trust this offense the rest of the way, or will Roethlisberger, in what might be the final regular-season games of a Hall of Fame career, improve his performance? Remember, the Steelers lost 41-10 to the Bengals in Week 12, and for three quarters on Sunday scored three points. We get another look at the offense against the welcoming Vikings defense.
On the Vikings' side, the big story will be the health of standout WR Adam Thielen. QB Kirk Cousins enjoys a pair of top-10 fantasy wide receivers on his side, but Thielen left Sunday's loss after just a few minutes with a sprained ankle, catching only one pass. Justin Jefferson scored a mammoth 35.6 PPR points. If Thielen sits, Jefferson might be the No. 2 WR in our rankings, after Los Angeles Rams star Cooper Kupp, and enticing K.J. Osborn might earn WR2 status. The Vikings expect RB Dalvin Cook (shoulder) to miss at least one more game, giving capable backup Alexander Mattison, who scored 21.4 PPR points Sunday, another chance to shine for fantasy managers.
Other injuries
Fantasy managers always have to worry about injuries, especially in December, but normally by this point the bye weeks are over. Well, we have one more week of them! This week, the Philadelphia Eagles, Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots get their well-deserved rest. We also lose the top running back in the Colts' Jonathan Taylor, adding more roster pressure to those in fantasy with running back injury issues. Lions star RB D'Andre Swift (shoulder) might miss another game or more, so keep Jamaal Williams rostered for the Week 14 game at the Denver Broncos just in case.
As for compromised pass-catchers, the big names to watch include San Francisco 49ers WR Deebo Samuel (groin) and Las Vegas Raiders TE Darren Waller (knee). The 49ers play a road game against the Cincinnati Bengals, and since wide receivers accounted for only six catches and 79 yards in Sunday's loss to the Seattle Seahawks -- TE George Kittle dominated, however -- they could sure use dual-threat Samuel back. The Raiders play the rival Kansas City Chiefs, though when these teams met in Week 10, Waller scored only 6.4 PPR points. Backup Foster Moreau caught only one pass on Sunday.
Monday night madness
The streaking Arizona Cardinals, with the best record in the NFL at 10-2, host their NFC West rivals the Los Angeles Rams. These teams met in Week 4 and the Cardinals took a 37-20 decision. QB Kyler Murray scored 22.62 PPR points that day. More recently, he looked fully recovered from an ankle injury that cost him three games against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, scoring 30.82 PPR points and reminding us we can count on him. RB James Conner continues to dominate the backfield sans colleague Chase Edmonds, though Edmonds could return from his ankle injury for this game. (Start Conner anyway.)
On the Rams side, they sure angered many a fantasy manager when they kept RB Darrell Henderson Jr. (thigh) active Sunday in the easy win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but did not let him take the field for any snaps. If only we had known! Sony Michel had his best statistical day of the season, scoring 21.9 PPR points. Of course, coaches are under no obligation to tell the truth to anyone, let alone fantasy managers, but a little clarity would have helped many. Anyway, we would say to expect Henderson back for a full Week 14 workload, but Michel looked good, so anything is possible!