Week 13 NFL Usage Report for Fantasy Football

We are down to the last quarter of the NFL season, so it’s make-or-break time in fantasy football. There’s no more time for holding players who may or may not have value later on. The players you are holding now need to have immediate value. I’ll try to help everyone down this final stretch as a take a deep dive into each team’s usage numbers in the Week 13 Usage Report.

Fantasy Football Usage Report Through Week 13

AFC East

Buffalo Bills: Consider Adding Ray Davis If He’s Available

For the 10^th week in a row, James Cook saw less than 60% of the snaps in Week 13. In fact, he saw just 45% of the snaps (26) in Sunday’s snow game against the 49ers. He continues to perform extremely well regardless of his low snap rates. If anything, the big opportunity here lies with Ray Davis. He has the potential for big impact if he can get those extra touches that were given to him against the 49ers. His 12 touches were the most he has seen in a game with Cook active. Winter weather in Buffalo isn’t going to get much better, so it wouldn’t shock me if Davis can get 10-plus snaps per game to finish the season.

Miami Dolphins: Jonnu Smith Is the Dolphins’ No. 1 Offensive Weapon

Over the last three weeks, Jonnu Smith has caught 25 passes for 301 yards and 3 touchdowns. We are now living in a world where Smith has more fantasy value than Tyreek Hill, De’Von Achane and Jaylen Waddle The dilemma with Smith since he started making this huge run is whether you start him over top TEs like Mark Andrews and Sam LaPorta. I’m here to tell you now that you need to start him no matter what. If you somehow have Brock Bowers or Travis Kelce, you still need to be playing Smith in the flex. If you don’t have a flex spot, you start him over everyone except Brock Bowers or Travis Kelce.

New England Patriots: Kayshon Boutte Leads WRs in Snaps for 8^th Straight Week

Kayshon Boutte gets a ton of time on the field. In fact, Sunday against the Colts, he was on the field for 99% of the snaps (71). The only problem is that he isn’t really doing much with those opportunities. He caught just 3 passes on 3 catchable targets for 41 yards. The Patriots have a Week 14 bye, but if you need someone with potential who is sure to be available, Boutte might be worth a shot. He is only rostered in 5% of Yahoo leagues even though he is getting the snaps of a WR1.

New York Jets: Malachi Corley Has a Shot at Ending the Season with Value

For the first time this season, Malachi Corley outsnapped Xavier Gipson. Corley saw a season-high 60% of the snaps (41) and got 1 catch for 8 yards. With Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams, Garrett Wilson and the rest of the Jets offense purely playing for pride at this point, I can see Corley getting more opportunities in the coming weeks. He might be worth a roster spot, if you have it, in deeper leagues.

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens: Drop Diontae Johnson If You Haven’t Yet

Diontae Johnson ended his Week 13 without a snap. Apparently, it can somehow get worse than that. Johnson was suspended one game by the team Wednesday for refusing to enter the game. At this point, he’s only being rostered for name value, yet he should be nowhere remotely close to a fantasy football roster for the rest of the season.

Cincinnati Bengals: Khalil Herbert May Never Get an Opportunity

Khalil Herbert only saw 10% of the snaps (6) in Cincinnati’s loss to the Steelers. Chase Brown continues to see a ton of usage with Zack Moss on IR. Brown is certainly nowhere near perfect, but head coach Zac Taylor hasn’t been willing to give Brown much of a breather. Many have picked up Herbert with the hope that he’d take on a viable role in the Bengals offense, but with time winding down and the Bengals in desperation mode, I don’t see his usage changing any time soon.

Cleveland Browns: Elijah Moore Needs to Be Rostered

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, Elijah Moore gets a huge boost with Jameis Winston under center. Moore takes a lot of snaps out of the slot, and Winston is aggressive and consistently shows a willingness to get balls across the middle. While Jerry Jeudy and David Njoku made all the headlines, Moore still ended Monday night with 8 catches on 9 catchable targets for 111 yards. He could be a top-20 fantasy WR every week to end the season and is currently only rostered in 16% of Yahoo leagues.

Pittsburgh Steelers: Mike Williams Cannot Be Rostered

We all thought Mike Williams would slowly emerge as Pittsburgh’s potential WR2 behind George Pickens But after getting outsnapped by Ben Skowronek and Van Jefferson, and seeing much less impact than Calvin Austin III, it doesn’t look like he should be on anyone’s roster right now. He ended his day without a touch in his third game in a row. With Russell Wilson’s offense rolling on all cylinders, it would be a stretch to think that there’s going to be an increase in usage on the way for Williams.

AFC South

Houston Texans: Tank Dell Is Nearly Unplayable

C.J. Stroud hasn’t looked himself this season, and that hasn’t necessarily helped Tank Dell get back to where he was pre-injury. Dell saw just 1 catchable target the entire game, taking it for 23 yards. Outside of that, Dell gave way to a large dose of Joe Mixon, Nico Collins and Dalton Schultz. In the three games since Collins’ return, Dell has seen just 9 catchable targets — catching 8 for 149 yards. I wouldn’t play Dell right now if I could help it. If you have him rostered in a starting role, take the time and scavenge the waiver wire for some help.

Indianapolis Colts: It’s Not Ideal to Have Any Colts Receivers on Your Roster

It’s hard to be happy about any Colts receiver right now, considering Anthony Richardson ended his Week 13 with a mere 109 passing yards. Still, if you need to roster someone, it’s going to be Michael Pittman Jr., who caught 5 passes on 5 catchable targets for 42 yards. No one else that was dressed in Indianapolis white saw more than 2 catchable targets the entire game from Richardson.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Parker Washington Has Biggest Game of the Season

In Week 13, Parker Washington was the Jaguars’ WR2 behind Brian Thomas Jr. and saw 80% of the snaps (56). He turned those 56 snaps into a season-high 6 catches for 106 yards and a touchdown. Washington’s emergence holds a lot of significance for this injury-ridden offense and could have impact in a lot of fantasy playoff games to close out the season.

Tennessee Titans: Secret’s out on Nick Westbrook-Ikhine

I have highlighted Nick Westbrook-Ikhine’s touchdown prowess for weeks now, but after his two-touchdown performance in the Titans’ loss to the Commanders, seemingly everyone in the fantasy football universe has realized that this largely undrafted guy who was the team’s WR5 heading into the season has 8 touchdowns in 8 games. He’s also someone who is still only rostered in 35% of Yahoo leagues. Pick him up if he’s still available, because he is 100% worthy of a roster spot.

AFC West

Denver Broncos: No Clear Goal-Line Back in Denver

The Broncos running back situation is a mess, but there’s no one who stands out at the most important area in the field. In Week 13, the Broncos running backs had four goal-line carries. Javonte Williams had two of them, but Michael Burton and Jaleel McLaughlin each had one as well, with Williams and Burton each landing in the end zone. Somehow, these were the team’s first goal line carries since Week 9 when Williams got a goal-line carry.

Kansas City Chiefs: I’d Hate to Have Any Chiefs RB or WR on My Roster

The snap share between the Chiefs RBs and WRs have gotten comical. Kareem Hunt ended up leading the running backs with a whopping 38% of the snaps (27), while both Isiah Pacheco and Samaje Perine got significant playing time behind him. As for the Chiefs WRs, there was no Chiefs receiver who saw more than 59% of the snaps (42). The only promising thing on that front is that Justin Watson saw just 45% of the snaps (32) with Xavier Worthy, JuJu Smith-Schuster and DeAndre Hopkins each seeing more time on the field last week against the Raiders. If you have options available at either position, it might be a wise decision to play someone with a clearer role in their offense until things fall into place.

Las Vegas Raiders: Sincere McCormick Out-Touches Ameer Abdullah

Even though he only saw 38% of the snaps (26), Sincere McCormick ended up out-touching Ameer Abdullah 14-12. He also looked like he belonged on the field with his 12 rushes for 64 yards. With no one else really standing out in the Raiders backfield, McCormick may very well find himself as the team’s RB1 to close out 2024.

Los Angeles Chargers: Chargers Don’t Really Trust Any of Their RBs

The Week 12 injury to J.K. Dobbins definitely left a gaping hole in the Chargers offense. They were supposed to be run-heavy, but that has gone away over the last couple weeks. Against the Falcons, the three-headed trio of Gus Edwards, Kimani Vidal and Hassan Haskins combined for just 11 carries for 52 yards and 1 catch for 1 yard. I feel Vidal is worth keeping as a flier, but as of right now, it would not behoove you to be playing him unless you’re in absolute desperation at the RB position.

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys: Brandin Cooks Catches a TD, But Isn’t in a Good Situation

The Cowboys receiver room is crowded. Six different Cowboys receivers took at least 18% of the offensive snaps (14) against the Giants. The returning Brandin Cooks only saw 39% of the snaps (30). While he ended the day with a touchdown grab, he’s really not someone I would recommend targeting for your roster. It’s a crowded room where they’re trying to get Jalen Tolbert and Jonathan Mingo going behind CeeDee Lamb, but it’s also a room that’s losing a ton of targets to Luke Schoonmaker On top of that, Jake Ferguson has a shot at coming back very soon, and that could make things extremely dicey if you’re rostering anyone outside of Lamb.

New York Giants: Tyrone Tracy Jr. Back in Coaching Staff’s Good Graces

Tyrone Tracy Jr.’s snap rate is back to where it should be. He saw 73% of the snaps (46) in the Giants’ loss to the Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day. Whether it’s Tommy DeVito or Drew Lock under center, we should be seeing Tracy see a significant workload to close out the season. Play him with 100% confidence.

Philadelphia Eagles: Parris Campbell Takes Over WR3 Role with Johnny Wilson Out

Johnny Wilson was inactive against the Ravens due to a hamstring issue. This led to Parris Campbell stepping up into the WR3 role, where he saw 50% of the snaps (28). That said, he along with “WR2” Jahan Dotson and any other pass catcher not named A.J. Brown, Dallas Goedert and Saquon Barkley cannot be played/rostered regardless of DeVonta Smith’s status.

Washington Commanders: With Austin Ekeler Out, It’s Up in the Air Who Ends up the RB2

It’s hard to say what direction the Commanders are going to take at the RB position considering their Week 13 contest against the Titans was a lopsided affair from the get go. As the game went on, both Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez Jr. saw significant playing time, with McNichols seeing 25% of the snaps (21) and Rodriguez seeing 28% (23). Given the importance of the RB2 spot in this offense, either one of these guys may be worth stashing if you have an extra spot or two available.

NFC North

Chicago Bears: DJ Moore a Different Man with Shane Waldron Gone

DJ Moore’s first season with Caleb Williams as his QB has been underwhelming to say the least, but things might just be looking up, considering he ended Week 13 with a season-high 16 total targets, 10 catchable targets and 8 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown. In three games since Shane Waldron was ousted, Moore has caught 22 passes for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns. If you’re among the many who have been cautious with Moore after his rough start this season, you can absolutely feel free to play him as your WR1 or WR2 now.

Detroit Lions: It Isn’t Pretty, But Sam LaPorta Is Looking More Viable

Sam LaPorta’s stats from Week 13 weren’t exactly sexy, considering he caught just 3 passes on 5 catchable targets for 6 yards, but two of the three catches were red zone touchdowns where he was either the first or second read. There’s definitely a lot of opportunity for LaPorta to make a bigger impact considering how much attention Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and the Lions’ running back tandem get every play.

Green Bay Packers: Dontayvion Wicks Sees Highest Snap Rate of the Season

Dontayvion Wicks saw a season-high 89% of the snaps (48) in the absence of Romeo Doubs Doubs has been limited in practice through Tuesday, but it is a short week for the Packers, who face the Lions Thursday. You’ll have to keep a close eye on Doubs’ status, but if he is inactive, Wicks might be a viable bye week alternative considering the Packers will absolutely need to put up points if they have a shot at taking down the NFL’s best offense.

Minnesota Vikings: T.J. Hockenson Hasn’t Been Fully Unleashed

In his fifth game back from IR, T.J. Hockenson saw 64% of the snaps (34). While his snap rates had gradually increased leading up to his Week 13 contest against the Cardinals, Week 13 was actually a lesser snap rate than the previous week when he saw 68% of the snaps (48). There’s certainly potential for more given the amount of usage he has given way to Johnny Mundt, but there’s also the possibility that he’s going to continue to be held back a bit if the Vikings don’t have a shot at winning the division. These next few games along with the results of the Lions next few games will clearly determine that.

NFC South

Atlanta Falcons: Kyle Pitts Outsnapped by Charlie Woerner

Yes, it’s absolutely appalling that Kyle Pitts ended Week 13 with zero catches on zero catchable targets, but it’s arguably even worse knowing that Pitts ended his game seeing just 41% of the snaps (33), which was somehow less than backup tight-end Charlie Woerner’s 58% (47). Combined with Kirk Cousins’ obvious limitations and struggles, if you’re somehow still fighting for a playoff spot when playing Pitts every week, you must check your waiver wire for a viable replacement to plug into your lineup.

Carolina Panthers: Adam Thielen Getting a Lot of Love from Bryce Young

Even though Adam Thielen is still being eased into the lineup, considering he only saw 73% of the snaps (51) in the Panthers’ loss to the Buccaneers, he led all of the receivers with 8 catches on 9 catchable targets for 99 yards and a touchdown. There are valid concerns that his usage is going to be in question once Jalen Coker returns, but my feeling is that Thielen is just too good to be held back. Young is playing with a chip on his shoulder now and he’ll need Thielen to continue his redemption story.

New Orleans Saints: Expect a Heavy Dose of Alvin Kamara Without Taysom Hill

Taysom Hill was knocked out with a season-ending injury, and it led to much more Alvin Kamara than we’ve seen in a while. Even with Jamaal Williams back from IR, Kamara took 86% of the snaps (60) and got 27 touches for 119 all-purpose yards. While Williams had career numbers as a Detroit Lion, he has taken a back seat behind Kamara and Hill since joining the Saints. If you’re considering adding Williams, I would highly advise staying away. His value is going to be minimal unless Kamara gets hurt.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Cade Otton Not Getting as Many Targets with Mike Evans Back

When Mike Evans and Chris Godwin went down, Cade Otton really carried the load and was clearly Baker Mayfield’s No. 1 target. He saw at least 10 targets in three consecutive games and led the team in receptions in each of the four games without Evans. Simply put, without Evans, he was an absolute must play, but since Evans has been back, Otton hasn’t been utilized nearly as much — catching 5 passes on 8 catchable targets for 50 yards. If you have Otton on your roster, it would be in your best interest to find alternatives in the coming weeks. There have been viable options on the waiver wire all season long.

NFC West

Arizona Cardinals: James Conner’s Snap Rates Maybe Too Low

Not that it’s the best interest for the team’s success, but James Conner’s snap rates have been dwindling. Conner saw just 59% of the snaps (48) in a very close game against the Vikings, and he hasn’t seen over 70% of the snaps since Week 8. Instead, both Emari Demercado and Trey Benson are seeing time on the field and that includes games that are blowouts and tightly contested. You obviously need to play Conner every week regardless of the results, but we’ll still need to keep an eye on his snap rates in the coming weeks just to be safe.

Los Angeles Rams: Blake Corum Could See a Viable Number of Snaps to Close out the Season

The Rams offense is at its best when the running game is activated. Last week against the Saints, Kyren Williams had his second 100-yard rushing game of the season. But it was also notable that Blake Corum saw his highest snap rate of the season — seeing 32% of the snaps (18) and getting 8 touches for 42 yards. Don’t get me wrong — Williams is a must start if he’s on your roster, but I expect Corum to get plenty of touches over these last few games and possibly even an uptick in touches depending on the Rams playoff chances.

San Francisco 49ers: Jauan Jennings Might Be the Most Appealing 49ers WR

It is now four weeks a row where Jauan Jennings has led all of the 49ers receivers in snaps. There aren’t too many specific takeaways to make out of a weird snow game that really hindered the 49ers passing attack, but Jennings seeing 96% of the snaps (46) definitely means something considering both Deebo Samuel Sr. and Ricky Pearsall saw just 75% (36) and 73% (35), respectively. With the team ending their fantasy season with three home games and a road matchup in Miami, weather won’t be much of a factor, and Jennings should be in great position to produce.

Seattle Seahawks: Zach Charbonnet Getting Snaps, Not Many Touches

Snap counts can be a big misleading. While Zach Charbonnet has been getting plenty of time on the field the last couple weeks, he just isn’t getting enough touches to be a viable flex option. Charbonnet saw 45% of the snaps (29) in the Seahawks win over the Jets, but only got six touches in those 29 snaps.