It’s playoff time baby! Well for most fantasy owners it is at least. Now is the time of year where making it to pay dirt can really get you paid, and I’m not talking in Bit Coin either, though that would be nice at it’s current value, but I digress. Knowing who is seeing the targets now versus mid-season is key to winning your matchups this time of year and taking a “what have you done for me lately approach” is part of that.

 

Target Monsters

Travis Kelce- After squandering an opportunity against a favorable opponent last week in the Jets, he didn’t miss his chance twice in a row. Facing a divisional foe, in a critical game for the Chiefs and fantasy owners alike, he nabbed his first four-target game of the season, catching two of them officially, but he nearly had a three touchdown day as all three scores were called back. He and Tyreek Hill continue to be the focal points of the passing game, even more so with the change in play callers, and he’s regained his place among the top-three tight ends in fantasy.

Adam Thielen- The four targets that Thielen saw on Sunday was the first time this season he’s seen that many in a game, but it was also the first time in nearly a month that Case Keenum has looked his way in the red zone. The former undrafted wide out leads the team with 17 targets, more than double the total of Stefon Diggs, but only six of them have come since mid-November. The other downside here is that he’s only managed to snag five of the 17 passes and only two of those for scores, so he’s scoring more on long passes than short ones.

Nelson Agholor- Agholor has been overshadowed by Alshon Jeffrey and Zach Ertz this season, and with good reason, but Sunday was Agholor’s show, mostly. It was, like the others above him, his first four-target game of the year and it gave him the team lead at 15, five of them coming in the last two weeks. That being said, the number two guy on the list (Ertz) didn’t play last week, and his replacement (Trey Burton) got the scores, two of them on two targets. Agholor did catch three of the four targets and showed a connection with Nick Foles, but his numbers could be iffy going forward.

 

Most Efficient

Jarvis Landry- Landry was the key to the Dolphins’ win over the Patriots on Monday. Why? His three catches, on three targets, and two touchdowns were the bulk of the red zone offense for Jay Cutler and Miami. Landry now has 18 targets on the year, 14 of them have been caught, and eight of them have gone for scores making him more than just a reliable target.

Adam Shaheen- Shaheen has come a little bit out of nowhere recently and Week 14 was a big step forward. In one of the more shocking outcomes of the week, Shaheen doubled his red zone targets from three to six, catching two of them and one for a touchdown. The tight end is now second on the Bears, behind Tarik Cohen and his seven targets, making him a sneaky streaming play the last few weeks.

Demaryius Thomas- It’s been an up-and-down season for DT but this week was an up. It was his second game with three targets on the season, catching two of them and one for a touchdown. The touchdown came from Trevor Siemian, making it the first score from inside the 20 for Thomas from someone other than Brock Osweiler. Given that the Broncos played on Thursday night, he won’t helpful again in most formats until Week 16.

Le’Veon Bell- Sunday night against the Ravens proved to be a shootout, which only bolsters stats on both sides. Bell in particular benefited with another multi-target week, three to be specific. He caught two of them with one going for a 20-yard touchdown. Nine of his 15 targets on the season have come in the last month with five of them being in two of the last three games. Bell ranks fourth among running backs in target share at 19.5% of Pittsburgh’s red zone targets going to Bell.

 

Ones to watch

Josh Gordon- Gordon’s return after nearly three years away from the game is impressive on the whole, but he’s also being targeted in valuable real estate. He’s got at least one target in each of the last two games and his chemistry with DeShone Kizer continues to grow. He gets Baltimore in Week 15, who have only given up five total touchdowns to wide receivers all year which is a far cry from last week’s opponent in Green Bay.

Jordy Nelson- Nelson has fallen off the fantasy radar ever since Aaron Rodgers went down earlier in the season. He is still however second on the team with 12 red zone targets this season, behind only Davante Adams. The problem with that stat is that only four of those looks came from Brett Hundley, and only two since this time two months ago. Now that Rodgers is back, expect Nelson’s value to skyrocket the last few weeks of the year, even against tough matchups in Carolina and Minnesota.

Dede Westbrook- Westbrook has started to reach rookie sensation status, though it is a little late in the year for full-blown sensation status. Anyway, he has three red zone targets on the year, all-coming in the last two games. Weeks 15 and 16 setup nicely for him to continue his mild breakout against Houston and San Fran.

Rob Gronkowski- With his suspension for Week 14 now behind him, he gets a matchup against Pittsburgh in Week 15. Why is he in the one to watch section? Pittsburgh is the best defense this year against the tight end only giving up two touchdowns to the position all year and giving up 50 or fewer yards nine times. However the five career games he’s played against the Steelers, Gronk has 30 catches for 496 yards and eight touchdowns, with his lowest yardage total being 72 and only once being held out of the end zone. Now not all of these catches, yards, and scores came from inside the 20, but he is still the top target for Brady there this year and facing a team he’s dominated in the past with playoff seeding on the line, expect a big night from Gronk in a mildly contrarian play.