Who Should I Start? Keenan Allen or Tank Dell

Tuesday, December 24, 12:37 AM

Chicago Bears wide receiver Keenan Allen has been a touchdown machine lately, and he has a good chance to return to the end zone during Thursday night's contest against the Seattle Seahawks. Allen has five touchdowns over his last five games, ranking as the overall WR6 in PPR leagues during that span. He has just 3.2 fewer fantasy points than Ja'Marr Chase during that window, and he ranks ahead of stars like Mike Evans, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, A.J. Brown, and Amon-Ra St. Brown. While most of Allen's productivity can be attributed to his sudden spurt of touchdowns, we can't ignore that he has been a high-volume option for Caleb Williams, racking up nine receptions and 141 yards against the Detroit Lions in Week 16. As it stands, Allen may be the most dependable fantasy option in Chicago. He should continue to be deployed as a mid-to-low WR2 option for Week 17, especially as he faces a Seahawks defense allowing the fourth-most touchdowns to opposing wide receivers in 2024.

Tuesday, December 24, 5:31 PM

Houston Texans wide receiver Tank Dell (knee) tore his MCL, LCL and ACL in the Week 16 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday and also dislocated his knee and suffered meniscus damage. He has a long road of recovery ahead of him that will require multiple surgeries. "It would be great if he could participate at some point next season, but it's far from guaranteed he will play at any point next season. It's similar to what happened with Browns running back Nick Chubb. They're both knee dislocations, but not all knee dislocations are the same. This is a much more complicated surgery process," Dr. David Chao said. It's the second straight year that Dell's season has been cut short due to a serious leg injury. However, this one is much more serious and will affect his long-term fantasy value heading into 2025. Despite playing three more games in 2024, Dell wasn't as productive as he was in his rookie campaign, catching 51 of 81 targets for 667 yards and three touchdowns in 14 games.