Chiefs @ Buccaneers
Tyreek Hill and Patrick Mahomes got off to a scorching start against Tampa Bay. Hill had seven receptions for 203 yards in the first quarter, yes, you read that correctly. That included two long touchdowns. The Chiefs left some points on the field and could have scored more points easily and the game felt more out of reach than it was. I’ll get into that more later. Brady and the Bucs’ pass-catchers seemed to have some miscommunication early on in this one. They really struggled to sustain drives in the first half until a late touchdown. They got into their groove a bit better in the second half and made this a real ball game. The Chiefs iced it on their last drive which took 4 minutes and change off the clock and the Chiefs won 27-24. Tampa Bay has a bye next week and Kansas City hosts Denver.
Kansas City Chiefs
Quarterback
Patrick Mahomes: 37/49, 462 yards, 3 TDs, 2 sacks, 1 fumble lost | 4 carries, 28 yards
What a day for Mr. Patrick Mahomes. He was constantly making throws look super easy that I’m sure were not. The Bucs were covering Tyreek Hill in single coverage early on and Mahomes took advantage. They connected on a 75 and 44-yard touchdown in the first quarter. In the third quarter, he found Hill again for a 20-yard score, again, in single coverage. Mahomes scrambled on the last drive to get a first down that essentially clinched the game. He is underrated for his chip in rushing yardage. Mahomes did throw an interception on a 3rd and 17 deep shot down the sideline but that was called back due to roughing the passer penalty. Mahomes missed Mecole Hardman on a wide-open 80+ yard touchdown where he was running free and Mahomes just threw it behind him.
Check out the beautiful strike to Hill on Mahomes’s third touchdown of the day below in GIF form. He also had a sack, fumble in the red zone and the Chiefs failed to score a touchdown on 2nd and 3rd and goal from the one and kicked a field goal on the first drive. There were definitely points left on the board for the Chiefs. Mahomes is a no-brainer starter every week he is playing.
Tyreek Hill is having a day…
12 REC, 261 YDS, 3 TDs
(and counting!)#FantasyFootball | #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/IdDTkpW2sP
— QB List (@TheQBlist) November 29, 2020
Running Backs
Clyde Edwards-Helaire: 11 carries, 37 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 2 yards
Le’Veon Bell: 5 carries, 22 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 10 yards
Everyone knows the Buccaneers’ strength is in stopping the run. The Chiefs ran the ball more to keep some balance than actually trying to establish it. Sunday, was a two-man backfield at least. Darrel Williams did not have a touch. On the first drive, the Chiefs threw the ball on three straight plays inside the 10, including two plays at the one. That was the running back’s best chance to score a touchdown today. The Chiefs will have specific run-heavy game plans but it was easy to predict this wouldn’t be one of those.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Tyreek Hill: 15 targets, 13 receptions, 269 yards, 3 TDs
Travis Kelce: 8 targets, 8 receptions, 82 yards
Sammy Watkins: 7 targets, 4 receptions, 38 yards
Demarcus Robinson: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 36 yards
Mecole Hardman: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 23 yards
I’m so sorry if you faced the Tyreek Hill buzzsaw in fantasy this week. Hill was unstoppable on Sunday. He had 203 receiving yards in the first quarter and two scores. Hill’s first touchdown was on a 75-yard bomb that was a touch underthrown and he made a nice adjustment to secure it. Check it out below.
Tyreek Hill.
75-yards.
No big deal. #FantasyFootball | #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/4GjDfwiQeo
— QB List (@TheQBlist) November 29, 2020
They kept guarding him one-on-one and he was roasting the corners, easily beating the man coverage. In the third quarter, Tampa Bay’s safety was late getting over and Hill did a simple go route in the red zone and Mahomes laid a beautiful ball in over the corner’s shoulder for their third TD connection. The other receiving options had more of the chain-moving plays. Travis Kelce could have had a much bigger game but penalties negated multiple catches by him. He still showed why he is the best tight end in fantasy because he puts up 16 PPR points without scoring a touchdown. The other three receivers were catching short quick passes from Mahomes to offset the fierce Bucs’ pass-rush. As I said above, Mecole Hardman should have had a much bigger day with a long touchdown added to his box score. Sammy Watkins stepped right back into his number two receiving role and is a WR3/flex option at the moment.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Quarterback
Tom Brady: 27/41, 345 yards, 3 TDs, 2 INT, 1 sack
Tom Brady was under a lot of duress during this game. He was only sacked once but he was under pressure constantly. Tony Romo was one of the announcers in this game and he pointed out some definite small miscommunication issues between Brady and his receivers in the first half. The one that stood out was on a Brady pick in the red zone. Mike Evans didn’t quite pick up the hot route when Brady spotted a blitz. Evans Drifted upfield towards a defender and Brady’s ball was tipped at the line and then picked. Brady had to wait on Evans instead of Brady getting the ball out immediately. Brady and Evans later connected on two touchdowns in the second half that were very nice. You can see Evans’ first touchdown below. Overall, Brady played well and the offense seemed to mesh better in the second half. They get a bye next week and Brady will be a solid QB1 down the stretch here.
Knockin’ on Evans Door #FantasyFootball | #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/cB0ILgMYg1
— QB List (@TheQBlist) November 29, 2020
Running Backs
Ronald Jones: 9 carries, 66 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 37 yards, 1 TD
Leonard Fournette: 3 carries, 10 yards | 3 targets, 3 receptions, 10 yards
It is too bad that the Buccaneers were in catch-up mode throughout this game. The Bucs trailed by 10 or more for a large part of this game and that really kept the run game volume in check. Ronald Jones looked good on the touches he did get. He had two 30+ yard plays, one on the ground and one through the air on his beautiful touchdown run after the catch down the sideline.
RoJo goes for 6️⃣#FantasyFootball | #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/896Hq5zdQS
— QB List (@TheQBlist) November 29, 2020
Jones is a solid RB2 and seems to be the preferred back to get carries in the backfield. Leonard Fournette was not involved much in this game. He did play a decent amount in catch up mode. He is just a bench stash at this point.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Mike Evans: 9 targets, 3 receptions, 50 yards, 2 TDs
Chris Godwin: 9 targets, 8 receptions, 97 yards
Antonio Brown: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 11 yards
Rob Gronkowski: 7 targets, 6 receptions, 106 yards
Cameron Brate: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 34 yards
The receivers’ roles are starting to take shape for the Buccaneers. Mike Evans is a big-play threat. He gets a lot of targets down the field and in the red zone. Evans scored twice in the fourth quarter to cut the KC lead to three. His first score was on a beautiful throw and route combination on 4th and three from 31 yards out where Evans did an out and go and got a step on the defender. His second score was a crisp out-route in the end zone for a seven-yard score. That score was set up by two bone-headed roughing the passer penalties by Frank Clark where he hit Tom Brady in the head on multiple plays. Chris Godwin had a couple of nice catch and runs plus a beautiful catch on a go route that he caught by his fingertips down the seam. He gets a lot of short and intermediate work and is solid WR1/2. Antonio Brown really took a step back today. He wasn’t involved much at all in the passing game and had two short catches. I would expect his role to increase after the bye but he is just a WR3/flex option at the moment. Rob Gronkowski looked great on Sunday. He had two long catches of 29 and 48 yards and was a favorite early target of Brady’s as well. He is a solid TE1 at the moment. Cameron Brate had some nice intermediate catches but he is hard to trust as the, at best, fifth option in the passing game.
— Kevin Taylor (@ktbeast918 on Twitter)