Seahawks @ Texans
Final Score: Seahawks 33, Texans 13
Writer: Joe Orlofski (@joeorlofski on Twitter)
Was this the coming-out party for Rashaad Penny that we’ve been promised for years? Or was it just that he played a bad Houston defense? Either way, Penny ran all over the Texans and Russell Wilson tossed a pair of touchdowns to lead the Seahawks to an easy victory.
Davis Mills looked solid, but the Texans’ offense sputtered after long drives and were unable to keep up in the end.
Let’s take a look at some of the fantasy-relevant players.
Seattle Seahawks
Quarterback
Russell Wilson: 17/28, 260 yards, 2 TD | 2 carries, 8 yards
Russell Wilson was gifted a bad defense in this one and had a lot more time in the pocket to let his receivers get open. That included his first touchdown pass of the day.
.@TDLockett12 keeps getting wide open and @DangeRussWilson keeps finding him. This one for a 55-yard TD. 👏#ProBowlVote #WPMOYChallenge
📺 #SEAvsHOU on FOX pic.twitter.com/OYVTegphCJ
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 12, 2021
This was a great step-up in the pocket by Wilson to avoid the sack and find a streaking Tyler Lockett for a long touchdown. It was a little bit of what we were missing from Wilson over the last few games.
Wilson continuously found Lockett and other receivers at pivotal moments, although his attempts to get D.K. Metcalf going were mostly stifled.
Overall Wilson looked a lot more comfortable in the pocket, although he was chased around a bit, which is a bit scary since it was the Texans’ defensive line. It’ll be much tougher against the Rams next week, so Wilson will have to throw the ball a lot quicker to avoid a complete meltdown. I would be a bit hesitant to start Wilson next week unless you think he will have to throw a lot to keep up with the Rams.
Running Back
Alex Collins: 7 carries, 16 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 1 yard
Rashaad Penny: 16 carries, 137 yards, 2 TD | 1 target, 1 reception, 1 yard
DeeJay Dallas: 2 carries, 16 yards
Alex Collins returned after a week’s absence and Adrian Peterson sat with an injury.
Rashaad Penny was easily the best back in this one. He took his longest carry of the first half 32 yards for a touchdown.
That @pennyhendrixx stiff arm 😳
📺 #SEAvsHOU on FOX pic.twitter.com/IUd7HFdKau
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 12, 2021
This was a solid run with a great stiff arm to get free himself enough for the long touchdown run. But he wasn’t done quite yet. He later ran for a 47-yard touchdown, giving us a real glimpse of what Seattle has seen in him for years (even though as fantasy players we were burned by him before).
The second touchdown run of the day for @pennyhendrixx is worth a RT. Just our two cents. 🤷♂️ #ProBowlVote
📺 #SEAvsHOU on FOX pic.twitter.com/SxHi79Ehdt
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 12, 2021
Could Penny finally be performing like Pete Carroll hoped he would? I guess we will see next week when he gets another shot to show us that this one wasn’t a fluke. They do face a much stiffer Rams’ defense next week, so don’t get your hopes up quite yet. The Seattle offensive line is still pretty bad.
As for Collins, it appears as though he will take a back seat to Penny unless he gets the hot hand again.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
D.K. Metcalf: 8 targets, 4 receptions, 43 yards
Tyler Lockett: 9 targets, 5 receptions, 142 yards, TD
Gerald Everett: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 15 yards, TD | 1 carry, 13 yards
Freddie Swain: 1 target | 1 carry, 3 yards
Will Dissly: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 38 yards
Penny Hart: 1 target, 1 reception, 16 yards
Nick Bellore: 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
Dee Eskridge: 1 target
Tyler Lockett started hot in this game, catching a long pass along the sidelines for his first big catch.
.@TDLockett12 knows how to socially distance. 😏 #ProBowlVote #WPMOYChallenge
📺 #SEAvsHOU on FOX pic.twitter.com/XwymZ84iOK
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 12, 2021
He ran a great route and made an even better catch to keep it in bounds. Later on, he caught a 55-yard touchdown pass where he showed his speed to beat the defenders. Lockett was easily Wilson’s favorite target today, and he was open most of the afternoon. Lockett still has the opportunity to put up stinkers, but he is trending in the right direction for fantasy playoffs.
Gerald Everett didn’t light it up this week, but he did make up for his debacle of a game last week by catching a short touchdown pass to extend the Seahawks’ lead.
TOUCHDOWN @lightningstrk12‼️ #ProBowlVote
📺 #SEAvsHOU on FOX pic.twitter.com/u6rsjYhuTd
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) December 12, 2021
He almost managed to get dropped short, but thankfully a tiny sliver of the football hit the line and they called it a touchdown. Everett really isn’t a great fantasy option.
D.K. Metcalf did catch a touchdown pass in the third quarter, but it was called back on a holding call. Metcalf was mostly bottled up in this one and didn’t really see any deep targets. Wilson made sure to target Metcalf a lot more in the second half, but he just couldn’t connect. Metcalf had another chance at an easy touchdown in the fourth quarter but he was held by the defender and a defensive pass interference call was made. Metcalf will have his targets week-to-week but it seems like he needs a touchdown or a deep completion to make fantasy players happy.
Houston Texans
Quarterback
Davis Mills: 33/49, 331 yards, TD | 2 carries, 8 yards
Davis Mills returned as the starter after a Tyrod Taylor injury in Week 13, and he started off hot as well. He found Nico Collins on a deep pass and finished the drive with a wide-open touchdown pass to his Tight End.
WASTING NO TIME 🙌@Brevinjordan | 📺 » FOX pic.twitter.com/9baIXnd9FI
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) December 12, 2021
It was a great scramble and the rookie made an easy throw to take an early lead. Mills was efficient to start, completing 14 straight passes before finally throwing an incompletion. The Texans had a good shot at scoring again midway through the 2nd quarter on a first-and-goal, but a penalty killed the drive. Mills continued to make much better decisions and was careful with the ball. As a rookie himself, he showed some poise in the pocket.
They did name Mills as the starter the rest of the way, which makes him an interesting streaming option against the Jaguars next week. The Texans will throw the ball a lot and he has shown some solid games against bad defenses so far this year.
Running Back
Rex Burkhead: 11 carries, 40 yards | 4 targets, 4 receptions, 26 yards
Royce Freeman: 11 carries, 15 yards | 8 targets, 6 receptions, 51 yards
Rex Burkhead started in this one with David Johnson out. He didn’t find much running room, but he managed a few catches to help his fantasy day. Burkhead had a chance to punch it into the endzone but was stuffed on the goal line. He ended up exiting with a groin injury.
Royce Freeman did nothing on the ground, but he had a relatively good fantasy day with six catches for 51 yards. Most of those catches did come in garbage time, however. Freeman probably won’t be worth adding in fantasy, especially if David Johnson returns next week. But with the Texans having to throw a lot, Freeman could have some PPR relevance if either Burkhead or Johnson miss time.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Brandin Cooks: 11 targets, 8 receptions, 101 yards
Nico Collins: 10 targets, 5 receptions, 69 yards
Chris Conley: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 20 yards
Phillip Dorsett II: 3 targets, 1 reception, 9 yards
Brevin Jordan: 7 targets, 4 receptions, 26 yards, TD
Davion Davis: 1 target, 1 reception, 17 yards
Antony Auclair: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
Jordan Akins: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
Brandin Cooks once again had a solid game and is by far the best player on the Texans’ offense. Cooks has the ability to burn past defenders as well as having the ability to take short catches for big yards. With Mills under center, Cooks has some solid WR2 or Flex appeal on a week-to-week basis.
Nico Collins has built some chemistry with Mills and got double-digit targets for the first time this season. Collins came into the season with a bit of sleeper value but really hasn’t panned out for fantasy purposes quite yet. If Mills continues throwing as much as he did today, and if he looks this efficient, Collins may be a decent option in the future. For now, I doubt anyone in the fantasy playoffs would want to take a shot.
Brevin Jordan caught his third touchdown pass of the season and saw a career-high seven targets in this one. He still isn’t worth adding in fantasy at this point, but since he is only a rookie he may have some decent years in the future.
— Joe Orlofski (@joeorlofski on Twitter)