Who Should I Start? Michael Mayer or Drake Maye

Sunday, January 4, 7:54 AM

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer should continue to operate in a high-volume role during Sunday's Week 18 contest against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Raiders recently placed Brock Bowers (knee) on injured reserve, ending his season and putting Mayer into the starting role for the final two games of the year. Last weekend, he exploded as the top target in Geno Smith's offense, catching nine of 10 targets for 89 yards. In total, throughout the three games that Bowers has missed and Mayer has played this year, the latter tight end has 15 catches, 149 yards, and one touchdown. A quarterback change is expected in Week 18, though, as Kenny Pickett steps in for the injured Smith (ankle). Pickett struggled to the tune of 64 yards and one turnover in his lone start this year, but he should still be able to support a fantasy-relevant role for Mayer on Sunday. At worst, Mayer will operate as a security blanket in case Pickett struggles to throw the ball deep or needs to get the ball out quickly. As it stands, he ranks as the overall TE8 in RotoBaller's latest fantasy football rankings for Week 18.

Saturday, January 3, 6:39 PM

New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye put together his best performance of the season during last week's win over the New York Jets. Maye threw for 256 yards with five touchdowns and was pulled from the game in the middle of the third quarter. The 23-year-old likely won many fantasy managers championships with that performance, but he's not done yet. Maye heads into a favorable matchup against the Miami Dolphins in Week 18. The Patriots are expected to play their starters as they still need to win for seeding purposes. It wouldn't be shocking to see the Patriots pull Maye again if it's a blowout, but he's too valuable to avoid for Week 18.