The Minnesota Vikings will face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 14. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding QB Sam Darnold.
Is Sam Darnold Playing in Week 14?
Darnold 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 Vikings’ 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 Sam Darnold in Week 14?
Darnold is the Wan’Dale Robinson of quarterbacks. He always seems to be on the fringe of being productive, never posting a big number but rarely falling completely flat.
Darnold has six top-15 finishes over his past seven games, but only two of those weeks have seen him check in better than QB9. He’s doing enough to get the Vikings wins, and that is why he was brought in.
This team doesn’t ask Darnold to put up big numbers, so why would we expect anything different? The Falcons own the second-lowest opponent aDOT this season, something that has me thinking we see something similar to last week (21-of-31 for 235 yards and two scores against the Cardinals).
That stat line is viable, but it’s a game of inches. He benefited from two touchdown tosses from five yards or closer; if one or both of those scores come on the ground, his fantasy standing drops in a meaningful way. Jared Goff and Brock Purdy have similar profiles — I have both of them ranked just ahead of Darnold when it comes to the back end of my QB1 tier.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 14 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Sam Darnold’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 14
As of Sunday morning, Darnold is projected to score 18.5 fantasy points in Week 14. This includes 239.6 passing yards, 1.5 passing touchdowns, and 0.9 interceptions. It also includes 5.1 rushing attempts for 18.9 yards and 0.3 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
Sam Darnold’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 9:15 AM ET on Saturday, January 18. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Divisional Round Superflex Rankings.
Divisional Round QB PPR Rankings
1) Josh Allen | BUF (vs. BAL)
2) Lamar Jackson | BAL (at BUF)
3) Jayden Daniels | WAS (at DET)
4) Jalen Hurts | PHI (vs. LAR)
5) Jared Goff | DET (vs. WAS)
6) Patrick Mahomes | KC (vs. HOU)
7) Matthew Stafford | LAR (at PHI)
8) C.J. Stroud | HOU (at KC)
