Fantasy Football 2024: One player I’m fading vs. starting in Week 15 for each position

The bye weeks are over. The fantasy playoffs are here. This is the most important time of the season for fantasy managers and it's also the time where you have the most difficult decisions to make.

Your entire season might come down to one lineup move you make on Sunday. All this work, and whether you start Aaron Rodgers or C.J. Stroud at quarterback could be the thing that ends your season, of the thing that propels your quest for a title even deeper.

Here is one player to fade and one player to start at each position in fantasy football for Week 15 of the 2024 NFL season.

Week 15 quarterbacks to fade and start

Fade: C.J. Stroud - Houston Texans

Call it a sophomore slump. Call it the results of having an awful offensive line. Whichever thing you want to blame, Houston Texans C.J. Stroud is having a disappointing 2024 season.

He's throwing touchdowns less frequently. Interceptions at about twice his 2023 rate. He's already been sacked more than he was last season.

Now, his fantasy football playoffs begin with a difficult matchup against the Miami Dolphins, who have allowed just 14 touchdown passes this season. If there's a week I'd consider sitting Stroud, this is it.

Start: Aaron Rodgers - New York Jets

Aaron Rodgers is still capable of good games. Take last week against Miami. Sure, he was held to just one touchdown pass, but he threw for 339 yards, his most of the 2024 season.

This week, Rodgers gets a juicy matchup as he takes on the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags allow 21.4 fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks, the second-most in the NFL.

Digging deeper, the Jags have allowed the second-most passing yards in the league and the most net yards per pass attempt. This is a week vintage Aaron Rodgers is capable of making an appearance.

Week 15 running backs to fade and start

Fade: James Cook - Buffalo Bills

James Cook is coming off a very disappointing game against the Rams, rushing for just 20 yards on six attempts. In a game where the two teams combined to score 86 points, Cook was unable to make any kind of impact. And that's without Ray Davis or Ty Johnson recording a carry despite the two combining to play 34 snaps.

This week, the Bills face the Lions in a potential Super Bowl preview, and the game script could look mostly the same. Detroit has a very good run defense, allowing the fifth-fewest rushing yards in the league this season. The team is allowing the 10th-most passing yards, so this certainly feels like it will be a big Josh Allen week.

Start: Chuba Hubbard - Carolina Panthers

Jonathon Brooks suffered a torn ACL last week, ending his rookie season and re-handing the bellcow role in Carolina to Chuba Hubbard. Last week against the Eagles, Hubbard had 26 carries, finishing with 92 yards and a touchdown. It was his eighth rushing score of the season.

Hubbard was supposed to just be a placeholder in Carolina, someone who could absorb carries while Brooks worked his way back from his 2023 torn ACL. Now, two major knee injuries in two years has Brooks' NFL future in question and has Hubbard as an RB1 play this week against the Cowboys, a team that allows the fourth-most fantasy points to the running back position.

Week 15 wide receivers to fade and start

Fade: Deebo Samuel - San Francisco 49ers

Deebo Samuel is still ranked as a top 35 wide receiver this week in the consensus expert rankings from FantasyPros, but let's not delude ourselves here. Based on his recent play, there's simply no way you can trust Samuel in fantasy football this week.

Last week against the Bears, Samuel caught two passes for 22 yards, marking the fourth game in a row where he finished with under 25 receiving yards. He got a slight boost by usage in the run game, with five carries for 13 yards, but that just isn't enough. He's fallen outside the top 50 in weekly finish among wide receivers in all four of these games.

It's just tough to see upside here. The 49ers aren't using Samuel in a way that leads to big plays, and there's no reason to expect that to change on Thursday night.

Start: D.J. Moore - Chicago Bears

Last week against the 49ers was a bit of a down week for D.J. Moore, as the Bears receiver finished as the overall WR37 on the week. And like...that's not awful, but after two top 10 finishes in a row, it was a bit of a letdown.

Still, Moore is averaging 7.0 receptions per game over the past four contests as he's reclaimed his role as Chicago's best offensive weapon. It was a slow-ish start to the year, but Moore has figured things out and his rapport with rookie quarterback Caleb Williams continues to grow.

This week, Moore faces the Vikings for the second time this season. In the first meeting, he caught all seven of his targets for 106 yards and a touchdown, finishing as the overall WR4 this week.

Week 15 tight ends to fade and start

Fade: Dalton Kincaid - Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid hasn't played since Week 10 due to a knee injury, but Kincaid has been practicing this week and looks to be on track to suit up and play against the Lions this week.

But that doesn't mean fantasy managers need to be in a rush to get Kincaid back in the lineup.

Part of that's because he might be a little rusty coming off the injury. Another is that he has just one top 10 fantasy finish all season. A third reason is the Lions allow the fewest fantasy points in the league to opposing tight ends. It's not a good confluence of factors.

Start: Jake Ferguson - Dallas Cowboys

It's been a fairly uneven year for Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson, who finished as a top 10 fantasy tight end in three consecutive games from Week 3 to Week 5 but has hit that mark just once since.

He'll have a great chance to deliver one of his best games of the season in Week 15 against a struggling Carolina Panthers defense. The team has allowed 10 touchdowns to tight ends this season, the most in the NFL.