Who Should I Start? Sterling Shepard or Adam Thielen

Tuesday, December 16, 3:05 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Sterling Shepard was active for the team's Week 15 Thursday night loss to the Falcons, but he did not log a single snap. With Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan both available, Shepard failed to get off the sidelines for the first time this season. Already finding himself pushed down the depth chart in recent weeks, Shepard had topped 25 receiving yards only once in his last seven games before Thursday night's blanking, while being held to single digits in three of those contests. The return to health of Evans and McMillan has now made him a non-factor for fantasy purposes, and the 32-year-old can be comfortably dropped in all league formats.

Saturday, December 13, 12:34 PM

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Adam Thielen earned just one target in Week 14 but could be in line for additional opportunities against the Miami Dolphins in Week 15. Thielen surprisingly logged the second-most snaps of any Steelers receiver in his debut with the team last week, trailing only DK Metcalf. With Calvin Austin III (calf) popping up on the injury report late in the week, Thielen could emerge as the unquestioned WR2 in Pittsburgh on Monday night. Still, this isn't a particularly easy matchup, as the Dolphins are surrendering the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to opposing wideouts this season. He can't be trusted to provide consistent fantasy value down the stretch, but Thielen's role and developing chemistry with quarterback Aaron Rodgers are worth monitoring in deeper leagues.