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 Jacksonville Jaguars players heading into their matchup with the New York Jets to help you craft a winning lineup.
Trevor Lawrence, QB
This is an intriguing matchup that features two sides that often feel underappreciated.
The Jets defense has been better against QBs than you might assume (forget a low-volume Tua Tagovailoa last week, but in the past month, they’ve held Lamar Jackson and Drake Maye in check), and Trevor Lawrence has worked himself closer to the version of him that we’ve been begging to see.
Jakobi Meyers debuted for this team in Week 10, and Lawrence’s aDOT has increased every week since. He’s averaged north of eight yards per pass in three straight, and even more impressive than the raw numbers is the confidence that is allowing the best version of himself to come out.
Lawrence is scrambling and throwing with accuracy, an asset we believed would be his calling card coming out of school. He’s cleared 15 rushing yards in three straight, and if the Meyers effect is unlocking that portion of this profile, then my QB14 ranking is going to prove to be too conservative this week.
Enjoy it this week, but I’d be careful about getting too excited: a trip to Denver looms in Week 16.
Bhayshul Tuten, RB
Bhayshul Tuten has five touchdowns on his resume this season and might well be an asset in this league with time.
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That time, however, is not now. Not in terms of starting for your fantasy team during the playoffs, at least. The rookie was on the field for nine snaps in the convincing victory over the Colts, and seven of them came on special teams.
I don’t have Travis Etienne in the tier of running back that is so valuable that he needs to be handcuffed, so there’s not a real path to me stashing Tuten in any capacity for the final few weeks.
Travis Etienne Jr., RB
Etienne scored a pair of touchdowns in the first half of the blowout win over the Colts last week, bringing his season total to nine in a season that has been more valuable than those who don’t roster him may realize.
Left tackle Walker Little (concussion) sat out last week, and that resulted in him averaging under 4.0 yards per carry for the fifth time in six weeks. I’m not too confident in Etienne’s efficiency or role in the passing game (five catches over his past four games), but his ranking sixth in the NFL in red zone touches is enough to keep him in the middle of the RB2 tier as a double-digit favorite.
In December, if I can get 15+ carries and scoring equity, I’ll take it and not complain.
Brian Thomas Jr., WR
We are at a point in the program where small victories are significant.
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What I mean is that we can play Brian Thomas, and that’s better than where we were for most of this season. It’s not a “big” victory because he’s not close to the asset that we thought we were getting when we spent up on him in August, but he’s startable now that he’s produced over PPR expectations in three straight games.
Lawrence hit him for gains of 18 and 39 yards in the first quarter last week against the Colts, a sign that there is an effort being made to keep him happy. Of course, one catch the rest of the way wasn’t ideal, but 89 yards on a target share nearing 20% is good enough.
We take what we can get.
Meyers remains my top-ranked Jag WR this week. Still, we know that it’s Thomas that holds the edge in per-target upside, and why would spunky Jacksonville not explore that upside against a Jets team that, somehow, has yet to fall into an interception this season?
The avoidance of the deep pass in the modern NFL is primarily due to the math: the turnover probability often outweighs the catch probability in many instances. But when the math changes, and it does when you’re playing the Jets, so does the playcalling.
I think we get something like what we saw last week: 6-8 shots that result in a few big plays, and that’s enough for him to squeak into the low-end WR2 tier for me in Week 15.
Jakobi Meyers, WR
Meyers has scored in three straight games, and while the efficiency was lacking on Sunday against the Colts, he posted his highest target share of the season (32.3%) and his most air yards since joining the Jags.
He had a rush inside the 5-yard line last week, and the touchdown came in the first quarter. The team made it known that they were impressed with his consistency when they acquired him, and they’ve made good on that optimism.
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His 9.4-yard aDOT with Jacksonville points to some nice upside to complement the floor that comes with his high target role. Jacksonville is making its playoff move, and Meyers is at the center of it: you can bank on him moving forward with confidence, especially in full-PPR formats.
Parker Washington, WR
A hamstring injury had Parker Washington labeled as iffy all week long heading into Week 14, and he was ultimately ruled out on Sunday.
We’ve seen him earn 7+ targets in four of his past five games, and the 23-year-old has shown some nice progress in his third season, but you can move on at this point. His role in this offense isn’t loaded with upside, and with him physically compromised, he’d be difficult to trust even if he were to go through full activities entering this weekend.
The Jags travel to Denver next week: you’re not missing out on anything if you cut ties. Maybe the fast track in Indy during a Week 17 matchup is interesting to you, but that’s a long-term thought that can be considered the closer we get. For right now, his roster spot is better used to chase singular matchups that can help you survive and advance.
Brenton Strange, TE
This Jags run is a fun one, and with it has come a new tight end that we can count on.
There’s risk involved, but that’s the case with all but a few TEs in 2025. Brenton Strange has hauled in 31 of 39 targets this season, is averaging nearly 12 yards per catch, and is viewed as an important piece on a motivated offense.
If you’re asking for more, you’re getting greedy.
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The 5.7 PPR points last week weren’t ideal, but in a game where Meyers earns nearly one-third of the targets, and Thomas makes a few splash plays, a six-target showing should be viewed as a net win, even if the production wasn’t up to your standards.
We just saw the Jets get beaten into the turf by the Dolphins last week, and if the Jags have similar success, you’re looking at 8-12 PPR points as a very likely outcome, a result that would land him safely inside the top 10 at the position.
