Who Should I Start? Michael Pittman Jr. or Amon-Ra St. Brown

Friday, January 10, 12:10 PM

Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard said that wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (back) will not require surgery for the fractured back that he played through late in the 2024 season. "One tough dude. Example of what you want," Ballard said. It's a testament to Pittman's toughness that he missed just one game due to his back injury. But the 27-year-old's back issues and inconsistent play from the quarterback position in Indianapolis in 2024 led to Pittman posting only 808 receiving yards -- his fewest since his rookie season in 2020 -- to go with 69 receptions (also his lowest mark since 2020) and only three touchdowns in 16 games. Better health will give him a chance to rebound in 2025, but his overall upside might be dependent on quarterback Anthony Richardson's health and his ability to improve as a passer.

Monday, January 6, 12:59 AM

Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown caught six of his seven targets for 77 yards during Sunday's Week 18 win over the Minnesota Vikings. St. Brown had been riding a three-game touchdown streak, so fantasy managers will be understandably disappointed he didn't find the end zone on Sunday night despite leading the Lions in receiving yards. He finished the regular season as the overall WR3 in PPR leagues, and he was just 1.3 points behind the No. 2 wide receiver, Justin Jefferson. All in all, it was an impressive year for the 25-year-old, who totaled double-digit touchdowns for the second year in a row and set a career-high for number of visits to the end zone. Even with the Lions' offense placing attention on Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs, and David Montgomery, fantasy managers were able to enjoy the fact that St. Brown carved out an enormous role for himself and delivered a terrific season once again, playing in all 17 games. He should be a mid-first-round pick in 2025 fantasy drafts, and managers could absolutely justify making him the second wide receiver off the board after Ja'Marr Chase.