Whether you’re trying to finish your fantasy regular season strong or stay alive in the playoffs, your flex position can make or break your team.
Fantasy owners are finding two things to be true as we approach the end of the season. The first is that for many, their quarterback situation is in serious flux. Multiple starters became injured in Week 14 or were already out for the season.
The second fact is that many starting-caliber skill position players have also exited the season due to injury, making those players on your bench more important than ever.
Who knew that, for example, Philadelphia’s Darren Sproles would outscore DeMarco Murray with 12.5 points in Week 14 or Seattle’s Doug Baldwin would be the highest-scoring fantasy wideout with 32.20 points?
Let’s break down the best flex plays for Week 15, with projected point totals rounded to the nearest half-point.
Week 15: Top 100 Flex Projections
Golden Tate, WR, Detroit Lions
Detroit’s Golden Tate has quietly put together a very effective fantasy season, and if you handcuffed him with Calvin Johnson, in many weeks you’ve been more impressed with Tate’s performance in your flex slot than Johnson’s in your WR1 or WR2 slot.
That was certainly the case in Week 14 against the St. Louis Rams.
Tate was Matthew Stafford‘s favorite target on Sunday, catching nine passes on 10 targets for 60 yards and two touchdowns, which made him a good play in both standard and PPR leagues.
His teammate Johnson, on the other hand, had an extremely disappointing outing on Sunday, as he was held in check by the Rams defense throughout the game. Johnson only managed 2.6 points in standard leagues on Sunday.
Tate is not only a smart flex play for the playoffs, but he could even earn justification as a WR2 in some leagues.
The only question is how much he will score; although Tate has had at least 50 yards in every game since Week 8, he has only scored in two games through that period of time.
In PPR leagues, Tate is a must-play for flex. In standard leagues, he’s worth heavy consideration.
DeAngelo Williams, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers are getting hot at exactly the right time as they make a late-season playoff push, and while Ben Roethlisberger and Antonio Brown have got things covered through the air, DeAngelo Williams is providing the support on the ground.
Williams was the fourth-highest scoring fantasy running back in Week 14, but given his average draft position, he is likely at least the third running back on many rosters.
That makes him a perfect flex play in Week 15.
Williams had 76 yards on 23 carries Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals run defense and found the end zone twice. This was just one week after Williams recorded the 21st 100-yard game of his career:
To say those who drafted Williams this year, or even acquired him on waivers, have set themselves up for success is an understatement.
After a shaky middle of the season, the veteran has been remarkably productive in the final half, with four games of 70 yards or more since Week 8. If you have Williams on your roster, he’s a must-play at the flex slot.
Rob Gronkowski, TE, New England Patriots
Sorry, owners who picked up Scott Chandler on the waiver wire; Tom Brady’s favorite weapon, Rob Gronkowski, is back in the lineup and ready to produce in the final few games of the season.
Gronkowski was reportedly only supposed to have a “limited role” in Sunday night’s game against the Houston Texans, as FanDuel’s Will Carroll reported, the end result was anything but.
True, the tight end only had four receptions, but he gained 87 yards off them to match his jersey number and connected with Brady on a touchdown, as well.
Of course, you may be asking yourself why anyone in his or her right mind would play Gronkowski in the flex slot.
But if you happened to pick up another well-performing tight end when Gronkowski was out injured (think Jacob Tamme or Zach Miller), playing two tight ends in Week 15 could be a good strategy, especially if your receiving or running back corps have been decimated by injuries.
Scoring stats courtesy of Yahoo Sports.
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