Who Should I Start? DeMario Douglas or Emeka Egbuka

Friday, January 23, 9:40 PM

New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas scored in the Divisional Round win over the Houston Texans last weekend, but he had only two catches and 36 yards otherwise. Douglas never had more than four catches in a single game during the regular season, and he hasn't caught more than two passes in a contest since the Dec. 1 win over the New York Giants. The 25-year-old had a total of 31 receptions (46 targets) for 447 yards and three touchdowns in 17 regular-season games. Douglas finished fifth on the team among receivers in last Sunday's win with just 17 snaps on offense. He has played over 34% of the snaps in a game just once, and that was all the way back in Week 1. With Douglas not seeing the field much and quarterback Drake Maye spreading targets around, it seems unlikely that Douglas will have breakout potential in the AFC Championship against a Denver Broncos team that allowed the fifth-fewest half-PPR points per game to WRs. During the regular season, Douglas averaged just 5.0 half-PPR points per game.

Tuesday, January 27, 5:59 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka entered the NFL with high expectations after Tampa took him with the 19th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft out of Ohio State. Egbuka quickly showed that his talent was for real, catching 25 of his 38 targets for 445 yards and five touchdowns in his first five NFL games. The 23-year-old would only go on to catch one more touchdown pass the rest of the way, though, to finish with 63 receptions for 938 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 17 contests. Egbuka opened 2025 with a substantial role, with both Chris Godwin Jr. and Jalen McMillan dealing with injuries. Veteran Mike Evans also went down due to injury during the season, which assured Egbuka of a heavy target share. Once both Evans and Godwin returned, Egbuka saw his role shrink dramatically. Egbuka's talent will play long-term, but he could have his fantasy upside capped in 2026 if Evans, Godwin, and McMillan are all in the fold.