Who Should I Start? T.J. Hockenson or James Cook

Friday, January 2, 5:19 PM

Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson (shoulder) will not play in Sunday's Week 18 regular-season finale against the division-rival Green Bay Packers, according to Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press. Hockenson was unable to practice at all this week and will miss a second straight game to close out the 2025 season. The 28-year-old was highly inconsistent this year for fantasy managers as a starting tight end option, primarily because of the inconsistent play that the Vikings got out of quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Going into Week 18, Hockenson ranks as the TE23 overall in half-PPR scoring with 51 catches on 65 targets for 438 yards and only three touchdowns in 15 games played. With Hockenson out again this weekend, Josh Oliver will be the team's TE1, but he'll be a risky, touchdown-dependent TE2 streaming option for fantasy managers with McCarthy returning in Week 18.

Tuesday, January 13, 7:00 PM

After finishing the regular season with an NFL-best 1,621 rushing yards, Buffalo Bills running back James Cook had an underwhelming outing in his first game of the postseason. The 26-year-old was held to just 46 rushing yards on 15 carries and five receiving yards on two catches by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Cook's regular-season track record should afford him the benefit of the doubt from fantasy managers. However, he will face another very difficult run defense in the Divisional round when Buffalo travels to Denver to take on the Broncos. The Broncos defense finished the regular season ranked third in the NFL in yards per carry allowed (3.9) and tied for fourth in rushing touchdowns allowed (11). Additionally, Buffalo's already depleted pass-catching corps lost another two wide receivers in Gabe Davis (knee) and Tyrell Shavers (knee), who both suffered season-ending knee injuries in the Wild Card round. As a result, Denver could be even more geared up to stop Cook and take away the run. Cook remains a high-end running back option, but fantasy managers may want to downgrade expectations heading into the Divisional round.