Who Should I Start? George Pickens or Devin Neal

Wednesday, December 10, 9:31 AM

Senior News Writer Kevin Patra of NFL.com reported Tuesday morning that coach Brian Schottenheimer spoke with George Pickens about what most reporters and analysts considered a "lack of effort from Pickens" in the Cowboys' Week 14 matchup against the Detroit Lions. Schottenheimer said he "wasn't making a mountain out of a mole hill." In other words, Schottenheimer is not worried about Pickens' "lack of effort" and wants them both to move on to Week 15. For those who may have missed it, Pickens was the talk of the town come Friday morning, as many reporters and analysts noticed Pickens' lack of effort on a handful of plays in the nationally televised Thursday Night Football game, which was pivotal for both teams to win based on the NFC standings. Overall, it's excellent that Schottenheimer and Pickens were able to talk about it and move on. Pickens has been phenomenal this season and is likely on many fantasy football teams' playoff rosters. For the season, he has 1,179 receiving yards and eight touchdowns on 78 receptions. He has been a top-five wide receiver all season, and the Cowboys are right in the thick of things in the NFL playoff picture, so they are going to need their star wideout at the top of his game. Additionally, Pickens is a lineup lock in your fantasy rosters.

Monday, December 8, 9:15 AM

New Orleans Saints rookie running back out of Kansas, Devin Neal, dominated the backfield touches on Sunday against the Bucs in the Saints' 24-17 victory. Neal carried the ball 19 times for 70 yards and a touchdown, and added one reception for 14 yards. On the afternoon, Neal scored 14.9 fantasy points in half PPR leagues and, most importantly, handled a solid 76 percent of all running back carries. Audric Estime had three, Evan Hull had one, and Taysom Hill had two. As long as Alvin Kamara (ankle, knee) remains sidelined, Neal should be viewed as a low-end RB2 moving forward in most formats strictly due to his volume. Over the past two weeks with Kamara out, Neal has seen 17 or more total touches, and if he's available on your waiver wire, he is a must-add heading into the fantasy playoffs.