Who Should I Start? Demario Douglas or Justin Shorter

Friday, November 22, 10:18 AM

New England Patriots wide receiver DeMario Douglas remains a viable fantasy football option for Week 12 against the Miami Dolphins. Douglas has maintained a steady role on offense lately, bringing his season totals to 43 catches, 415 yards, and one touchdown. He's on pace to break the statistical marks from his rookie campaign last year, both on a full-season and per-game basis. In addition to Douglas' year-long productivity, he also played quite well in his last matchup against the Dolphins back in Week 5. During that meeting, Douglas turned in one of his better performances of the season, catching six of nine targets for 59 yards. Miami has allowed the fewest fantasy points to wide receivers this year, but that number is likely skewed from the four-game stretch for which Tua Tagovailoa was sidelined; during that span, opponents adopted a run-heavy approach against the Dolphins and did not have to develop an overly aggressive passing attack. This Miami team allowed Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp to combine for 16 catches and 178 yards just two weeks ago. Douglas isn't on the same level as either Rams receiver, but the bottom line is that the Dolphins have shown they aren't going to shut down every pass-catcher they face (including Douglas when they faced him back on October 6.) Douglas is a viable WR3/FLEX option in fantasy leagues with at least 12 teams.

Saturday, August 24, 7:49 PM

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Justin Shorter caught two of his three targets for 15 yards in Saturday afternoon's preseason loss to the visiting Carolina Panthers at Highmark Stadium. Shorter's long gain of the day came on a 10-yard reception in Saturday's defeat to the Panthers. The 24-year-old wideout was a fifth-round pick out of Florida by the Bills in the 2023 NFL Draft, but he didn't see the field in any capacity during his rookie season in Orchard Park a year ago. Shorter still has a chance to make Buffalo's final 53-man roster as depth for the receiving corps, but he'll probably end up being a healthy inactive on gamedays more often than not while the team is healthy.