The Cincinnati Bengals will face the Pittsburgh Steelers 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 WR Ja’Marr Chase.
Is Ja’Marr Chase Playing in Week 13?
Chase is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Bengals’ 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 Ja’Marr Chase in Week 13?
The last time we had the pleasure of watching Ja’Marr Chase ball, he was busy scoring twice against the Chargers, his fourth multi-TD reception game of this season. In the history of this beautiful game, only three times has a player under the age of 25 had more such games in a single season:
- Gary Collins (1963)
- John Jefferson (1978)
- Rob Gronkowski (2011)
For the season, Chase has produced 38.1% over expectations and has seen the end zone in five straight games. In previous seasons, I’d worry about a floor performance against an elite Steelers defense that is rarely beaten down the field (third lowest opponent passer rating on bombs through 12 weeks), but Chase’s aDOT is 18.3% lower than Tee Higgins’ this season.
The Bengals offense operates with essentially no room for error due to the limitations of their defense, and that has elevated Chase from Tier 1 to WR1 in my weekly rankings.
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.
Ja’Marr Chase’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 13
As of 8 AM ET on Sunday morning, Chase is projected to score 19.9 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 6.6 receptions for 88.5 yards and 0.7 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 Steelers' Defense
After a couple of lean years by their standards in 2021 and 2022, when they ranked 15th and 16th, respectively, this will be the Steelers' second straight year ranking inside the top 10 if they carry on at their current pace.
They switched to Teryl Austin as defensive coordinator in 2022. After one season of getting his feet underneath himself after being promoted, he's led Pittsburgh's defense back toward its former glory.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head over to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Ja’Marr Chase’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 10:30 AM ET on Sunday, December 1. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 13 WR PPR Rankings
1) A.J. Brown | PHI (at BAL)
2) Justin Jefferson | MIN (vs. ARI)
3) Nico Collins | HOU (at JAX)
4) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (vs. PIT)
5) Puka Nacua | LAR (at NO)
6) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (vs. CHI)
7) George Pickens | PIT (at CIN)
8) Mike Evans | TB (at CAR)
9) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at GB)
10) CeeDee Lamb | DAL (vs. NYG)
11) Terry McLaurin | WAS (vs. TEN)
12) Cooper Kupp | LAR (at NO)
13) Tee Higgins | CIN (vs. PIT)
14) Drake London | ATL (vs. LAC)
15) Malik Nabers | NYG (at DAL)
16) Courtland Sutton | DEN (vs. CLE)
17) DK Metcalf | SEA (at NYJ)
18) Khalil Shakir | BUF (vs. SF)
19) Calvin Ridley | TEN (at WAS)
20) Zay Flowers | BAL (vs. PHI)
21) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (at NYJ)
22) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at ATL)
23) Jayden Reed | GB (vs. MIA)
24) Jameson Williams | DET (vs. CHI)
25) Jauan Jennings | SF (at BUF)
26) Davante Adams | NYJ (vs. SEA)
27) Deebo Samuel Sr. | SF (at BUF)
28) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at GB)
29) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (vs. SEA)
30) DeVonta Smith | PHI (at BAL)
31) Darnell Mooney | ATL (vs. LAC)
32) Amari Cooper | BUF (vs. SF)
33) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (at NE)
34) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (at MIN)
35) Tank Dell | HOU (at JAX)
36) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (vs. LV)
37) Jakobi Meyers | LV (at KC)
38) DJ Moore | CHI (at DET)
39) Xavier Worthy | KC (vs. LV)
40) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (vs. HOU)
41) Keenan Allen | CHI (at DET)
42) Jordan Addison | MIN (vs. ARI)
43) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at ATL)
44) Rome Odunze | CHI (at DET)
45) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (at DEN)
46) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (at DAL)
47) Elijah Moore | CLE (at DEN)
48) Christian Watson | GB (vs. MIA)
49) Noah Brown | WAS (vs. TEN)
50) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (vs. SF)
51) Xavier Legette | CAR (vs. TB)
52) DeMario Douglas | NE (vs. IND)
53) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (at WAS)
54) Keon Coleman | BUF (vs. SF)
55) Adam Thielen | CAR (vs. TB)
56) Brandin Cooks | DAL (vs. NYG)
57) Ricky Pearsall | SF (at BUF)
58) Kayshon Boutte | NE (vs. IND)
59) Alec Pierce | IND (at NE)
60) Devaughn Vele | DEN (vs. CLE)
61) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (vs. LAC)
62) Darius Slayton | NYG (at DAL)
63) Rashod Bateman | BAL (vs. PHI)
64) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (vs. NYG)
65) Mike Williams | PIT (at CIN)
66) Jalen McMillan | TB (at CAR)
67) Joshua Palmer | LAC (at ATL)
68) Tyler Lockett | SEA (at NYJ)
69) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (vs. LV)
70) Michael Wilson | ARI (at MIN)
71) Tre Tucker | LV (at KC)
72) Van Jefferson | PIT (at CIN)
73) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (at NO)
74) Parker Washington | JAX (vs. HOU)
75) Kendrick Bourne | NE (vs. IND)
76) Mack Hollins | BUF (vs. SF)
77) Adonai Mitchell | IND (at NE)
78) Tyler Boyd | TEN (at WAS)
79) Calvin Austin III | PIT (at CIN)
80) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (vs. MIA)
81) Justin Watson | KC (vs. LV)
82) Diontae Johnson | BAL (vs. PHI)
83) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (vs. NYG)
84) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (vs. CLE)
85) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (vs. CLE)
86) John Metchie III | HOU (at JAX)
87) Ja'Lynn Polk | NE (vs. IND)
88) Jalen Nailor | MIN (vs. ARI)
89) Troy Franklin | DEN (vs. CLE)
90) Odell Beckham Jr. | MIA (at GB)
91) Kalif Raymond | DET (vs. CHI)
92) Tim Patrick | DET (vs. CHI)
93) Jahan Dotson | PHI (at BAL)
94) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (vs. TEN)
95) Malik Washington | MIA (at GB)
96) Nelson Agholor | BAL (vs. PHI)
97) Bo Melton | GB (vs. MIA)
98) Tylan Wallace | BAL (vs. PHI)
99) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (vs. TEN)
100) Mecole Hardman Jr. | KC (vs. LV)
101) Tutu Atwell | LAR (at NO)
102) Jalen Brooks | DAL (vs. NYG)
103) Dyami Brown | WAS (vs. TEN)
104) Xavier Hutchinson | HOU (at JAX)
105) DJ Turner | LV (at KC)
106) Tyler Johnson | LAR (at NO)
107) Robert Woods | HOU (at JAX)
108) Jalen Reagor | LAC (at ATL)
109) Jake Bobo | SEA (at NYJ)
110) Jordan Whittington | LAR (at NO)
111) Greg Dortch | ARI (at MIN)
112) Jonathan Mingo | DAL (vs. NYG)
113) Sterling Shepard | TB (at CAR)
114) Parris Campbell | PHI (at BAL)
115) Trey Palmer | TB (at CAR)
116) DeAndre Carter | CHI (at DET)
117) Laviska Shenault Jr. | SEA (at NYJ)
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals Trends
Pittsburgh Steelers
Team: The Steelers are 8-3 and held a lead with one minute left in two of their three losses.
QB: The Russell Wilson “moon balls” get a lot of attention, and they are fun, but over 39% of his attempts in all five of his starts have traveled less than five yards downfield (season rate: 45%).
Offense: Scoreless in the first quarter on Thursday night, snapping a 22-quarter scoring streak (it took a missed field goal and a failed fourth down).
Defense: In the Thursday night snowstorm, the Steelers allowed a touchdown on 30% of drives (their worst mark of the season) and 2.4 points per drive (their second-worst mark).
Fantasy: Jaylen Warren played a season-high 56.7% of the snaps against the Browns and upped his season rate of percentage of carries, gaining 5+ yards to 34.7%.
Betting: The Steelers are 9-1 ATS in their last 10 played on short rest (the past five have all gone over the closing total).
Cincinnati Bengals
Team: There have been an average of 67.3 points scored in Cincinnati’s past four home games (they’ve lost three of those contests).
QB: If you remove the weird Week 1 loss to the Patriots, Joe Burrow’s 17-game pace is 4,869 passing yards, 46 touchdowns, and seven interceptions (2011 MVP Aaron Rodgers: 4,643 yards, 45 touchdowns, and six interceptions).
Offense: Cincinnati has scored on 32 of 33 red zone trips – that’s a 97% rate, putting them in position to challenge the Rams’ 98.2% rate from last season.
Defense: The Bengals are allowing 8.4 yards per pass and 12.9 yards per completion over their past four games, not intercepting a single pass in those 122 attempts.
Fantasy: Chase Brown has three straight top-10 finishes, a streak not amassed by Alvin Kamara, Breece Hall, Jahmyr Gibbs, or De’Von Achane this season.
Betting: Six of the Bengals’ past seven games coming out of their bye have gone over the total.