Who Should I Start? Zay Flowers or Ricky Pearsall

Saturday, December 13, 11:11 AM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers finally returned to WR1 territory last week for the first time since his Week 1 outburst against the Buffalo Bills. Even though he finally broke the streak of non-WR1 finishes, he still hasn't found the end zone since the first game of the season. The encouraging part is that he received 11 targets against the Pittsburgh Steelers and hauled in eight of those for 124 yards. Their Week 15 opponent, the Cincinnati Bengals, have been a bit more stingy to opposing receivers in fantasy this year. The Bengals rank as the toughest defense against the position over the last four weeks, giving up an average of 15.13 fantasy points per game. The last time Flowers faced the Bengals in Week 13, he finished as the WR106. He projects as a low-end WR2 in this matchup, but it probably doesn't feel great for fantasy managers that need him.

Monday, December 15, 5:40 PM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee, ankle) aggravated his PCL injury in the Week 15 win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday and also sprained his ankle, according to David Lombardi of The San Francisco Standard. Head coach Kyle Shanahan said he's unsure if Pearsall will practice this week as the team prepares to face the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night in Week 16. The 25-year-old former first-rounder will have an extra day to recover this week, but based on the fact that he missed six games earlier this year after spraining his PCL initially in Week 4, it seems highly unlikely that Pearsall will be cleared to play on Monday. It's really bad timing for Pearsall and his fantasy managers, as he caught six of seven targets for 96 yards in the win over the Titans on Sunday while battling through his knee injury and a low-ankle sprain. If Pearsall misses additional time, Kendrick Bourne could be on the flex radar again in deeper fantasy leagues behind Jauan Jennings.