Anyone picking up old man rivers?

By Martin Richardson

Told you things weren’t right down in Baltimore. Anyone who has Lamar as their starter must be worried now, surely? On the flip side of that, anyone who has Josh Allen on their team must be very smug that they are probably sitting pretty in the playoffs and are probably a favourite to win their Fantasy league.

Now there are only a few weeks left, so for those of you who are still in the mix for let’s look at who could have an impact on your all-important matchups.

JONATHAN TAYLOR

Last week I went big and lead with Justin Jefferson, this week I’m leading with the lead Fantasy running back. Go big, or go home, right?

What a few weeks it’s been for Colts fans or Fantasy players who have Colts players in their team. The two firsts thrown to the Jets for Sauce Gardner seemed like solid business until he got injured. The Daniel Jones renaissance looked to be going well until he had a broken fibula, played in a bespoke cast from a university and then snapped his Achilles a week later. Now, the Colts are turning to 44-year-old, retired nearly five years, former Colt QB Phillip Rivers to potentially keep their season afloat.

This is great news for Jonathan Taylor Fantasy players.

Rivers isn’t going to be what he was before he retired, even if he caches the Colts offense in high school with his son. He is going to get rid of that ball fast; and that means giving it to Taylor as much as possible. Even on a down day against the Jags, he managed nearly 80 yards and touchdown. Against a bad team he can do what he did against the Falcons and motor his way to over 200 yards and multiple touchdowns.

Going into this week though, the Colts season could be on a knife edge. They come up against one of the best teams in football: the Seattle Seahawks and they are looking like the real deal. Looking back on the Colts and how they’ve faired against the better teams in 2025, Taylor struggled by his standards against the Rams and went for just shy of 100 yards. Against the Steelers he got less than 60 yards on 16 carries. So there may be cause for concern against a Seahawks team that is relentless at the moment.

Like I said though, I think the sheer volume of carries and chances he will get as old man Rivers dispatches the ball quickly, means even if the Colts look like a shadow of themselves, Taylor can still shine.

WOODY MARKS

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I’m calling it now. No Nick Chubb and Joe Mixon on the Texans next year. Marks has a real chance now to cement his place as the RB1 and ‘sleeper candidate’ of 2026 for the Texans. His projections increase every week and most of the time he delivers when required.

He got his most carries in the game last week against the Chiefs and got nearly 70 yards on the ground, and now with a really favourable set of games, Marks could be a real asset on Fantasy teams as we get to the playoffs. That favourable set of games: the Cardinals and Raiders, then the Chargers and the Colts to end the season. Marks has the potential to be a real force on offense for the Texans as they look to secure their division title and a playoff push for January football.

TET MCMILLAN

(try not to be too biased, it’s ok that he’s a Panther and will likely be leading the NFC South after this weekend and I’m a very worried Bucs fan)

Tet McMillan has a chance to be real difference maker in Fantasy football matchups in the Playoff window for some of you. Against a fellow NFC South team in the Falcons, he got 130 yards and 2 touchdowns, followed up with touchdown against the 49ers and the LA Rams before his bye week last week. His stock is on the rise and if you have ridden out the weeks where he has needed a touchdown to be Fantasy relevant, now is the time to be rewarded.

Coming out of the bye week, McMillan has some very good matchups to keep racking up points for you. This week he plays the Saints and they are just as up and down as the rest of the teams in the NFC South, so he could get plenty of opportunities to get more touchdowns and points for Fantasy players. after that he plays my Bucs team that is in a desperate place. I’m writing this after the loss to the Falcons and a Bowles foul-mouthed tirade so who knows what will happen there. What is clear is that if there is team that continually allows players to amass yards, it’s the Bucs. Am I worried he could simply destroy the Bucs singlehandedly, yes, yes, I am. Oh, and he plays the Bucs twice as well… sigh.

RICKY PEARSALL

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He’s due a breakout game and the odds are in his favour for having one: he’s coming off a bye week and the 49ers are playing the Titans. Two very positive things as we come to business end of the Fantasy season. When he gets the chance to have the ball in his hands, he can make the most of it, as you saw so early on in the season with his two 100 yard plus games against the Seahawks and Cardinals.

What is worth noting though is that since his return from injury, his involvement in games has decreased by almost half per game, with two games resulting in a goose egg and 14 yards from two receptions. If you have him in your team and need a performance, Pearsall has the chance replicate that against someone like the Titans. He then goes on to play the Colts, and as we all know, they are in a tumultuous situation of their own.

MARTIN RICHARDSON

NFL/FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYST

A Yorkshireman living in Lancashire, Martin is a massive NFL fan but his heart belongs to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Also a huge Fantasy Football enthusiast and spends far too long crunching the numbers! Follow him at @MRBucsFan31

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