Game Info
Kickoff: Sunday, December 28, 2025, 1 p.m. ET
Location: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
Network: FOX
Jacksonville Jaguars
Quarterback
Trevor Lawrence: START, QB1
In case you didn’t know, Trevor Lawrence is 🔥ON FIRE🔥. (If you didn’t already do so, please go back and read that last part in the NBA Jam’s announcer voice. TLaw played arguably the best game of his career, going into Denver and accounting for four touchdowns against one of the most dominating defenses in the NFL. Jacksonville ended the Broncos’ 11-game winning streak on the back of Lawrence’s epic performance, making me look like a fool for fading him last week in the process. Lawrence has 14 touchdown passes and zero turnovers in his previous four games and is an auto-start in fantasy championships: He’s the hottest player in all the land, and playing well, too.
Running Back
Travis Etienne
Bhayshul Tuten
LeQuint Allen Jr.
Travis Etienne hasn’t ran the ball well in quite awhile, with just one game over 4 yards per carry since the teams Week 8 bye. But efficiency doesn’t matter when you’re scoring touchdowns! ETN has 10 touchdowns over that period and six in his last three games. The Colts have been a middle-of-the-road matchup for running backs this season, but have permitted five touchdowns to the position in their last four games. With Bhayshul Tuten expected to miss again and his only other competition for touches being LeQuint Allen Jr.
Wide Receiver | Tight End
Brian Thomas Jr.: START, WR2
Jakobi Meyers: START, WR2
Parker Washington: FLEX, WR4
Brenton Strange: START, TE1
Lawrence threw for three of his four touchdown, but none of them went to Jakobi Meyers or Brian Thomas Jr. One was to Brenton Strange, another to ETN, and the third went to Parker Washington, who caught six of nine targets for 145 yards and a touchdown. It makes sense against Denver, with second or third receivers regularly outproducing teams’ top wideouts with Patrick Surtain II on the field. Washington is a risky flex this week, but it’s worth a dart in a top-three fantasy matchup. I have no concerns regarding Meyers or BTJ, and rank both as WR2s against the Colts. Indy has also been kind to opposing tight ends, allowing the sixth-most points to the position, keeping Strange startable as a borderline TE1.
Defense/Special Teams
Jacksonville Jaguars: START
The Jags have held their last three opponents under an average of 20 points per game and rank second in interceptions and turnovers.
Indianapolis Colts
Quarterback
Philip Rivers: SIT, QB2 (Startable in Superflex)
The man’s still got it, daggumit!
Philip Rivers was slinging it on primetime at age 44 👏
23/35 passing
277 yards
2 touchdowns pic.twitter.com/FLzkGIywTe— NFL (@NFL) December 23, 2025
Philip Rivers understandably had some rust to knock off after five years away from the NFL, but I doubt his own children expected the leap in performance we saw from the 44-year-old from Week 15 to 16. Rivers threw two more touchdowns on “Monday Night Football” against the Niners and looked rather spry. The Jags allow the 12th-most fantasy points to the position, so Rivers is surprisingly an option in Superflex, albeit a risky one. Rivers still has the mind for the game, but he was drafted when I was in high school. My graduating class just had its 20-year reunion last month. He’s just as likely to go out and faceplant as he is to throw a couple of touchdowns.
Running Back
Jonathan Taylor: START, RB2
Ameer Abdullah: SIT
For the first time this season (I think), Jonathan Taylor is not at fun fact, must-start status for the week. His blistering start to the season had already slowed before Daniel Jones‘ injury, and in two starts with Rivers, JT has averaged 15 points per game. Not bad by any means, but a far cry from his five games over 30 before the bye. He’s an RB2 based on talent, but the Jags are the second-worst fantasy matchup for opposing running backs. Don’t expect a pre-bye performance from Taylor.
Wide Receiver
Michael Pittman Jr.: START, WR3
Alec Pierce: START, WR3
Josh Downs: START, WR3
Seemingly an afterthought after a one-target, one-catch game in Rivers’ debut, Alec Pierce was the beneficiary of Rivers’ suddenly big arm. Pierce caught all four of his targets for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Michael Pittman Jr. again saw five targets, and Josh Downs jumped to a delightful nine. With so many uncertain factors and a tiny sample size, it’s impossible to predict what the target share will look like for the Colts’ pass catchers against the Jags. I think we’ll see Pittman hover around 8-10 points most weeks, and the only way he gets to midteens is if he comes down with a TD. All of these guys are volatile WR3s with a broad range of outcomes. However, even in a solid matchup, the risk is much greater than the reward.
Tight End
Tyler Warren: STREAMER
The hope that whatever was left of Rivers’ arm would lead to a bump in production for Tyler Warren has yet to materialize. Warren does have 15 targets through two games with Rivers, but has turned that into six catches for 49 yards. Jacksonville has given up the ninth-most points to the tight end position, so Warren makes for a sneaky streaming option equal parts risk and reward.
Defense/Special Teams
Indianapolis Colts: SIT
