Who Should I Start? Darnell Mooney or Pat Freiermuth

Friday, December 20, 10:30 PM

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Darnell Mooney picked a terrible time to have his worst outing of the season, recording zero catches on one target against a depleted Raiders defense. The 27-year-old posted a one-catch performance back in Week 1, but averaged almost five catches per contest from Week 2-14. Now, with confidence shaken combined with a rookie quarterback making his first start, fantasy managers who survived Week 15's debacle must decide whether or not to use Mooney in Week 16. The lack of success last week should probably be attributed to Kirk Cousins more than Mooney, however. Still, even though the Falcons are nine-point favorites on Sunday versus the Giants, Atlanta is likely to deploy a heavy dose of Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier against a defense that has yielded the fourth-most fantasy points to running backs on the season. If the Falcons do need to ask Michael Penix Jr. to throw, then the receivers should see some success, as New York allows the third-highest completion rate to QBs and has only intercepted a pass twice on the entire year. All that being said, Mooney looks like a shaky WR3 in the fantasy playoffs this Sunday.

Friday, December 20, 12:24 AM

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth has scored in three straight games and will look to take advantage of a juicy matchup against the division-rival Baltimore Ravens in Week 16. The Ravens surrender the most passing yards in the league and the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing tight ends. Freiermuth has seen an uptick in his opportunities lately with George Pickens (hamstring) sidelined. He should continue to get plenty of looks from quarterback Russell Wilson on Saturday as Pickens will once again be inactive. Fantasy managers who have been streaming the position or searching for a consistent option can start Freiermuth as a low-end TE1 with upside this week.