Arizona Cardinals vs Seattle Seahawks
This game was widely viewed as a potential shootout with multiple fantasy-relevant players on both teams projected to have big games, however, it was a pretty lackluster performance by most of them. Two of those players, Kyler Murray and Chris Carson, left the game with injuries and it sounds like Carson is done for the year. The Seattle offense wasn’t the same with Carson out, but credit is due for the Arizona defense who stepped up and was able to sack MVP candidate Russell Wilson five times. On the other side of the ball, Kenyan Drake had another monster performance and Larry Fitzgerald dialed back the clock and showed some elusiveness and toughness on a 21-yard touchdown reception.
Arizona Cardinals
Quarterback
- Kyler Murray: 11/18, 118 yards, TD, 1 sack | 6 carries, 40 yards
- Brett Hundley: 4/9, 49 yards | 6 carries, 35 yards
Kyler Murray was having an average game prior to leaving the game with a hamstring injury in the third quarter. His lone touchdown was a short throw to Larry Fitzgerald who did all of the work to get into the end zone, but Murray didn’t make any mistakes and was able to pick up some yards on the ground to help beef up his stat line. Having a fully healthy Christian Kirk likely would have helped but there was no reason to throw the ball 30 times with the red hot Kenyan Drake in the backfield. Murray’s injury is concerning, so keep an eye on his status this week but even fully healthy he’s no more than a QB2 against the Rams.
Running Backs
- Kenyan Drake: 24 carries, 166 yards, 2 TD | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 18 yards
- David Johnson: 2 carries, 3 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
Kenyan Drake, welcome to the Fantasy Football Hall of Fame! His performance in the last two weeks has likely been the reason why many of us are fantasy champions and we will never forget these two games of utter dominance. For a guy who was once behind Mark Walton on an 0-6 Miami Dolphins depth chart, it’s the ultimate turnaround, and if you’re playing in Week 17 there’s no reason to bench him now. He faces a Rams defense that is vulnerable against the run next week so keep on rolling with Drake.
Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends
- Larry Fitzgerald: 7 targets, 4 receptions, 48 yards, TD
- Christian Kirk: 5 targets, 0 receptions, 0 yards | 2 carries, 9 yards
- Maxx Williams: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 36 yards
- Dan Arnold: 3 targets, 1 reception, 20 yards
- Pharoh Cooper: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 14 yards
- Charles Clay: 1 target, 1 reception, 16 yards
- Damiere Byrd: 1 target, 1 reception, 11 yards
Ol’ Faithful Larry Fitzgerald carried the Cardinals through the air Sunday, scoring an impressive 21-yard touchdown where he made multiple defenders miss prior to diving into the endzone. He was pretty much bottled up after that but there was no reason to force-feed the ball through the air with the way Kenyan Drake was running the ball. This was the best-case scenario for Fitzgerald and I doubt he was in many championship lineups today. Next week is a tougher matchup against the Rams and I would leave him on the bench if I owned him.
It was a disappointing day for anyone who started Christian Kirk as he was shut out through the air on the day. There’s no word on whether this is related to his lingering ankle injury but one has to assume it had an impact on his output today. If he suits up next week he’s nothing more than a flex at this point, but if Kyler Murray is unable to suit up then I wouldn’t even consider Kirk.
Seattle Seahawks
Quarterback
- Russell Wilson: 16/31, 169 yards, TD, 5 sacks, Fumble | 2 carries, 2 yards
Russell Wilson had a very un-Russell Wilson like game today and the entire Seahawks offense struggled as a result. With a backup left tackle in for injured starter Duane Brown, the offensive line had a difficult time keeping Wilson in a clean pocket all day. Chandler Jones sacked Wilson four times by himself. This was an off day for the entire offense and it only got worse once Chris Carson went down with an injury. Expect Wilson to bounce back next week in a must-win game for the division against the 49ers.
Running Backs
- Chris Carson: 8 carries, 40 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 20 yards
- C.J. Prosise: 4 carries, 14 yards
- Travis Homer: 5 carries, 16 yards | 8 targets, 6 receptions, 26 yards
It looks like the Week 17 waiver wars will be fought over Travis Homer after both Chris Carson and C.J. Prosise left the game with injuries and are both reportedly out for the season.
It’s an unfortunate ending for Carson especially after breaking out this season despite his fumbling issues. Prosise would have been a decent add as he’s flashed in the past but now it’s on to Travis Homer. He didn’t do much on the ground but had plenty of targets through the air. There is no guarantee that Homer will be the starter next week, but since he’s the only healthy back on the roster at the moment it seems likely that he will be the guy to add. I don’t particularly like the matchup next week but it’s not a bad idea to at least put in a claim for Homer and see how the week progresses. If he is the lead back then he would be in line for a good amount of touches on one of the most run-heavy teams in the league.
Wide Receivers/ Tight Ends
- Tyler Lockett: 8 targets, 1 reception, 12 yards
- Jacob Hollister: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 64 yards
- Malik Turner: 3 targets, 1 reception, 23 yards
- David Moore: 2 targets, 1 reception, 21 yards, Fumble
- Nick Bellore: 1 target, 1 reception, 3 yards, TD
- DK Metcalf: 1 target, 0 receptions, 0 yards
The leading receiver on the night, Jacob Hollister, unfortunately wasn’t able to fully take advantage of Arizona’s awful defense as he had a pedestrian line and was held out of the end zone. Tyler Lockett was held to one catch and continues to be boom or bust on the season. DK Metcalf was shutout on the day. All credit goes to the Cardinals defense, who kept the pressure on Russell Wilson all day and forced some errant throws.
–Ben Brown (@FelixTheDog23 Twitter, iamatechnician Reddit)
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