Who Should I Start? Mike Evans or Josh Downs

Friday, December 12, 12:21 AM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans caught six of his 12 targets for 132 yards during Thursday's Week 15 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The 32-year-old was activated from injured reserve earlier this week after recovering from a broken collarbone, and he wasted no time playing an enormous role in his return to action. Managers did hold their breath momentarily as Evans suffered an injury scare and left midgame with an apparent shoulder issue, but he returned shortly after and played the remainder of the game. After watching the star receiver step up as Baker Mayfield's favorite and best target once again on Thursday, managers should trust that Evans will remain in the WR1 tier for the remainder of the season. He should be started in all fantasy leagues next week against the Carolina Panthers.

Tuesday, December 16, 12:43 PM

In 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers' first NFL game in five years with the Indianapolis Colts in Sunday's 18-16 loss to the hosting Seattle Seahawks, wide receiver Josh Downs caught his lone touchdown pass. Downs played a season-high 72% of the offensive snaps in Week 15 in Rivers' first game replacing Daniel Jones, who is out for the year with a torn Achilles. The 24-year-old wideout was tied for second on the team with five targets, catching three of them for only 13 yards and his fourth touchdown of the year. All in all, it wasn't anything special for fantasy football production, but it was notable that Downs tied Michael Pittman Jr. in targets, with Alec Pierce seeing just one look from Rivers. With Rivers shotputting balls to his receivers, Downs could become a more attractive short-area target over Pierce to close out the season, making him worth a look off the waiver wire as WR depth. Downs is rostered in 43% of Yahoo leagues.