The first round of the fantasy playoffs is nearly in the books, and it was a wild one. Few had Trevor Lawrence and Kyle Pitts as matchup wreckers on their bingo cards but anyone who drew the misfortune of facing one of them was likely sent home, even if you followed our advice on who to sit after Week 14 duds (while Jayden Daniels didn't play, Kenneth Walker and Breece Hall both underwhelmed while at post time Justin Jefferson was blanked through a quarter on Sunday Night Football).
The semifinals are here for most leagues (or the first round if your league is crazy enough to decide it all in Week 18), so those lineup decisions gain more and more impact the further we get into the calendar. Let's take a look at the top bench candidates ahead of Week 16, beginning with a return engagement for Hall.
RB Breece Hall, New York Jets
We warned you about Hall last week in this space, as the Jets' quarterback situation has devolved rapidly before our eyes. Both Justin Fields and Tyrod Taylor sat out of Week 15 with injuries, leaving undrafted rookie Brady Cook to lead the New York offense in the 48-20 blowout loss, as Liam Coen let Lawrence run up the score on a hapless Jets' defense.
Jacksonville made stopping Hall the focus of their game plan, and it was successful as he turned 14 touches into 37 yards from scrimmage. Backup Isaiah Davis had a bit more luck than Hall, running 9 times for 58 yards and a score, but it remains mind-boggling that New York offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand doesn't create more work for Hall in the passing game.
Hall caught both of his targets on the afternoon, but isn't a featured player in the passing attack, making him a very dicey proposition against a Saints' team playing hard in Week 16. If New York sticks with Cook under center, New Orleans will again sell out to stop Hall on the ground, making him an unusable player in the fantasy playoffs.
RB Ashton Jeanty, Las Vegas Raiders
The biggest first-round bust for fantasy purposes was Jeanty, who everyone assumed would have an Ezekiel Elliott-like impact as a rookie for Las Vegas. Even though the Raiders have tried to feature their talented young rusher, the complete ineptitude of their offensive line has put a severe crimp into Jeanty's style throughout the season.
Week 15 was nothing new for Jeanty, who repeatedly ran into a brick wall in the Raiders' 31-0 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Jeanty ran nine times for 35 yards on the day, adding four catches for seven yards on six targets to offer some saving grace for players in half-PPR leagues, but getting 6.2 points out of your RB1 is a recipe to get eliminated in the playoffs.
Things could actually get worse for Jeanty next week as Las Vegas takes on Houston's defense, which is by some metrics the best unit in the NFL. Kenny Pickett isn't striking fear into the heart of DeMeco Ryans so expect plenty more stacked boxes for Jeanty, who should be on your bench if you somehow advanced in spite of his performance.
RB Kyle Monangai, Chicago Bears
Monangai was one of the most profitable waiver adds of the season for smart fantasy owners who recognized that Ben Johnson was trying to duplicate his Sonic and Knuckles rushing attack from Detroit in Chicago. While D'Andre Swift has been the more explosive player, Monangai's dependability between the tackles offered a safe fantasy floor, enhanced by his propensity to get work near the goal line.
The script flipped in Week 15 against the Browns' defense, as Cleveland was able to stifle Monangai, who rushed 11 times for just 33 yards. The Browns had no answers for Swift, who carried 18 times for 98 yards and two touchdowns, allowing him to re-assert his claim as the alpha in the backfield after the situation had evolved into a 1A/1B one over the course of the year.
Saturday night's rematch with Green Bay could see Johnson try to feature Swift more in the game plan, especially as the Packers' defense took a big hit with Micah Parsons going down with a torn ACL in Denver on Sunday. Monangai does have some floor value since he is still in the mix for goal line work, but bear in mind (no pun intended) that he only registered 57 yards rushing in the previous meeting while offering zero pass-game upside.
WR Ladd McConkey, Los Angeles Chargers
The Chargers are winning key games despite the fact quarterback Justin Herbert is playing through a hand injury that required surgery prior to Week 14. Herbert is gutting out games to help Los Angeles try to stay in the AFC West hunt, but the Chargers have reduced the number of vertical shots they're taking to protect Herbert, which has in turn damaged the fantasy stock of McConkey.
After registering only one catch for 12 yards in an overtime win on Monday, McConkey's production improved slightly with two catches for 20 yards against Kansas City. Fantasy owners were loving McConkey's emphasized role at mid-season, when he had a three game stretch receiving nine, 15 and 10 targets respectively, but the return to health for Los Angeles' secondary pass catchers has led to Herbert offering a more egalitarian distribution of targets.
McConkey has not exceeded six targets in a game since Week 8 and that script doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon with Herbert nursing an injury. The return of Omarion Hampton also gives Jim Harbaugh more license to lean on the running game, so McConkey's ceiling appears to be flex production in half-PPR leagues with a Week 16 matchup against Dallas.
All Chiefs' Pass Catchers
It would be remiss not to mention the story of the day in the NFL as Patrick Mahomes' torn ACL has significantly altered the immediate future for the now-eliminated Kansas City Chiefs. Mahomes had been playing through a knee injury to try and keep his team afloat before disaster struck on Sunday, ending his season and potentially impacting his availability for the 2026 campaign.
While the Chiefs' front office is understandably more concerned about the long view, fantasy players who have shares of Rashee Rice, Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy are bummed that they went from the best quarterback on the planet throwing their guys passes to Gardner Minshew. Even though Minshew has had his fantasy moments over the years, this is a massive downgrade in terms of arm talent and the Chiefs' motivation to try hard after being eliminated from the postseason is unknown.
Even though Week 16 brings a favorable matchup against Tennessee, expecting Minshew to step right in and pepper the Chiefs' receiving stars with accurate targets is a big lift. There are surely safer options available, but anyone forced to start Rice or Kelce must moderate their expectations while being prepared to take bigger risks elsewhere in the lineup to win a semifinal matchup.