The fantasy football landscape shifts each week, bringing fresh opportunities and unexpected challenges that separate the prepared from the pretenders. Savvy managers know that last week’s performance tells only part of the story, and diving deeper into the underlying metrics reveals the accurate picture.
This week presents some intriguing decisions. Here’s insight about key Las Vegas Raiders players heading into their matchup with the New York Giants to help you craft a winning lineup.
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Geno Smith, QB
Geno Smith returned from a shoulder/back issue that cost him Week 15 and showed well for himself in Houston after an early Pick-6. For the day, he averaged 8.7 yards per pass and had a pair of touchdown tosses, just his second multi-score effort since early November.
He was perfect when throwing to Brock Bowers (5-33-1) and exploited an Ashton Jeanty mismatch for a 60-yard splash play. Use this as a reminder that good offensive players (like those two in Vegas) are capable of beating even the best defense in today’s game. Matchups matter, but so does talent, and I think we lose track of that sometimes.
Even a good day from Smith doesn’t land him as a viable option in our game, so there’s nothing to see here, but the lesson from Week 16 is a valuable one to keep in mind when building out future rosters or structuring a DFS team.
Ashton Jeanty, RB
Prior to Sunday, Jeanty didn’t have a 15-yard rush since September ended, but he hit the Texans for touchdowns of 51 (rush) and 60 (reception) yards, reminding us all of the profile that made him the sixth overall pick last April.
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The touchdowns were different in skills required, both beautiful in their own specific way. The long catch was a vertical route where the Raiders allowed him to run a route in space, and the rush showed us the elite balance that we saw often during his time in college.
Over the past two weeks, in road games against the Eagles and Texans, Jeanty has picked up yardage on 31 of 33 carries. Every player develops on his own timeline, and with the Raiders giving their star running back some support, we are seeing what is possible.
I’ve got him ranked as an RB1 this week, and if he can carry over this recent momentum, could he sneak his way into fantasy first rounds this summer if Vegas adds talent up front?
Brock Bowers, TE
If you had to guess, how many fewer PPR points is Bowers averaging this year than last?
This is a small section, but I’ll buy you some time to guess before I give the answer.
Last week in Houston, Bowers scored his seventh touchdown of the season, and while I’d love to give the Raiders credit for getting their difference maker in a position to succeed, it was more the result of the Texans giving him a free release inside the 10-yard line.
I’m not sure there’s a perfect formula to stopping him in close, but allowing him to do whatever he wants doesn’t feel optimal.
He’s been hotter of late than you might expect: four scores in four games with an 86.4% catch rate over that stretch. It’s not peak, drop everything and watch him destroy opponents, Bowers, but it’s a heck of a lot closer to our preseason expectations than what we were getting prior.
Hear me out: maybe he’s finally healthy?
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You’d have to think that the QB play next season (you’re locking him in this week, that’s a given) is at least a little better than what Vegas has subjected him to, and that keeps him in the top tier for me at the position.
Trey McBride has been too good to say he’s not leading the 2026 TE rankings, but after him, it’s wide open, and Bowers right now is my favorite to land that spot.
0.77
That’s how many fewer PPR PPG Bowers is averaging this season than last. That’s a sub-5% drop after an injury and, for the most part, completely inept play under center.