The San Francisco 49ers will face the Buffalo Bills in Week 13. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding QB Brandon Allen.
Is Brandon Allen Playing in Week 13?
Allen is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend if Purdy cannot play.
We’ll continue to monitor the 49ers injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Brandon Allen in Week 13?
It took Brandon Allen 29 passes to threaten 200 yards through the air last week in Lambeau. He was able to spread out his targets, but when throwing to teammates not named George Kittle, Allen was able to complete just 55% of his passes, a rate that just isn’t going to cut it.
If Allen draws another start, you don’t need to worry about it when it comes to the QB position. His connection with Kittle was strong enough to keep the veteran TE ranked top seven regardless of who is under center.
The value of Deebo Samuel Sr. would be the one to watch, but I’m ranking things as if Brock Purdy will be back this week and get San Francisco’s offense back on track with its season hanging in the balance.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 13 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Brandon Allen’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 13
As of 8 AM ET on Sunday morning, Allen is projected to score 7.8 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 9.5 rushing attempts for 42.6 yards and 0.2 touchdowns. It also includes 0.6 receptions for 12.9 yards and 0 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Bears' Defense
One of the most concerning things entering this season was that Matt Eberflus had presided over a struggling defense during his time as a head coach. As a defensive-minded HC, inheriting a top-10 unit and seeing them fall to last in the league in 2022 before finishing just 21st in 2023 was less than ideal.
Chicago put that right this year, but unfortunately, offensive struggles have let them down. In the end, it wasn't the defensive performances that led to Eberflus' firing but a combination of late-game mistakes. One of those was a concentration lapse by the defense, but much of it was around-the-clock management and offensive errors.
It was a real performance of two halves for the Bears' defense on Thanksgiving. They struggled at times in the first half, and their offense's inability to hold onto the ball didn't help.
However, they were stout in the second half, and their ability throughout the game to limit the Lions inside the red zone meant they had a chance to win the game in the end.
That red-zone defense has been Chicago's calling card all year and is a big reason they've managed to stay in games (40.9% conversion rate; first). The Bears have also been solid in other key situations, such as on third down (34.2%; fifth), and have done a good job forcing turnovers (14.3%; sixth).
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Brandon Allen’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 11:40 AM ET on Sunday, December 8. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 14 QB PPR Rankings
1) Josh Allen | BUF (at LAR)
2) Jalen Hurts | PHI (at CAR)
3) Joe Burrow | CIN (at DAL)
4) Kyler Murray | ARI (vs. SEA)
5) Baker Mayfield | TB (vs. LV)
6) Tua Tagovailoa | MIA (vs. NYJ)
7) Patrick Mahomes | KC (vs. LAC)
8) Brock Purdy | SF (vs. CHI)
9) Jared Goff | DET (at GB)
10) Justin Herbert | LAC (at KC)
11) Sam Darnold | MIN (vs. ATL)
12) Jordan Love | GB (vs. DET)
13) Russell Wilson | PIT (vs. CLE)
14) Geno Smith | SEA (at ARI)
15) Will Levis | TEN (vs. JAX)
16) Matthew Stafford | LAR (vs. MIN)
17) Derek Carr | NO (at NYG)
18) Jameis Winston | CLE (at PIT)
19) Caleb Williams | CHI (at SF)
20) Bryce Young | CAR (vs. PHI)
21) Kirk Cousins | ATL (at MIN)
22) Aaron Rodgers | NYJ (at MIA)
23) Aidan O'Connell | LV (at TB)
24) Cooper Rush | DAL (vs. CIN)
25) Drew Lock | NYG (vs. NO)
26) Mac Jones | JAX (at TEN)
27) Justin Fields | PIT (vs. CLE)
28) Tommy DeVito | NYG (vs. NO)
29) Desmond Ridder | LV (at TB)
30) Brandon Allen | SF (vs. CHI)
Chicago Bears at San Francisco 49ers Trends
Chicago Bears
Team: Chicago is 0-6 since their bye, losing to a divisional foe in each of the past three weeks (cumulative score in those games: 73-66).
QB: Caleb Williams threw a pair of deep touchdown passes last week, his first since Week 6, but don’t let that mask the fact that 12 of his other 14 deep attempts hit the turf.
Offense: Over the past three weeks, the Bears have converted 45.8% of their third downs (first 10 weeks: 28.7%).
Defense: The Bears blitzed 38.9% of the time on Thursday, a stark difference from their season rate of 24% and even further ahead of the direction they were headed entering Week 13 (Weeks 11 and 12 were both under 16%).
Fantasy: The Keenan Allen profile is changing. It gave you what you needed last week (5-73-2), but be careful in assuming that his increased reliance on deep passes recently is going to result in consistent production.
Weeks 10-11: 103 total air yards
Weeks 12-13: 119.1 air yards per game
Betting: Eight straight games that the Bears have played on long rest have gone under the total.
San Francisco 49ers
Team: This is San Francisco's first of two straight at home, though that might not be as comforting as it sounds. They are 1-3 over their past four home games despite holding a +22 point differential through the first three quarters of those games (-30 in the fourth quarter).
QB: Brock Purdy’s yards per third down attempt went down from 8.8 a season ago to 6.8 this year (Sunday in Buffalo: 4.2).
Offense: The 49ers have converted just three-of-10 third down attempts in consecutive games (season prior: 45.4% conversion rate).
Defense: Over the past three weeks, the Seahawks, Packers, and Bills reached the end zone 11 times against San Francisco — they walked away from those drives with 11 touchdowns.
Fantasy: Jordan Mason has produced 12.2% over PPR expectations for his career. He is one of two healthy backs (minimum 100 rush attempts), picking up 10+ yards on 15% of his carries this season (other: Jahmyr Gibbs).
Betting: Three of the 49ers’ past four home games have seen them both fail to cover and the under to come through.