Week 14 Fantasy Football Rankings: Top Plays at Each Skill Position for Playoffs

Fantasy playoffs are here. 

Forget draft strategy, trades and the waiver wire. One thing matters now: an ability to craft the absolute best possible lineup with the talent on a roster.

The other facets of fantasy have led to this point. But like any talented NFL team with poor coaching, a team cannot be great if the folks in charge do not know how to execute a game plan with the proper pieces.

Instead of spending hours digging for info, look below for the absolute best plays at each position for the playoffs in one convenient location.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent
1	Peyton Manning	DEN	vs. TEN
2	Matthew Stafford	DET	at PHI
3	Nick Foles	PHI	vs. DET
4	Eli Manning	NYG	at SD
5	Jay Cutler OR Josh McCown	CHI	vs. DAL
6	Cam Newton	CAR	at NO
7	Tom Brady	NE	vs. CLE
8	Colin Kaepernick	SF	vs. SEA
9	Russell Wilson	SEA	at SF
10	Joe Flacco	BAL	vs. MIN

Player to Watch: Nick Foles, QB, Philadelphia Eagles (vs. DET)

Since Week 9 (when he dropped a ridiculous 45 points), Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Nick Foles has ranked in the top 10 at his position every week. (Week 12 was a bye.)

Last week, Foles threw for 237 yards and three touchdowns—good for 23 points—against an Arizona defense that allows an average of 14.8 points to the quarterback position per game.

In his past four games, Foles has thrown for 13 touchdowns and no interceptions, which gives him 19 scores and no picks overall.

While the streak of no interceptions will come to a halt at some point, Foles is in for a massive day against a Detroit secondary that allows an average of 262.3 yards per game through the air.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent
1	Jamaal Charles	KC	at WAS
2	Adrian Peterson	MIN	at BAL
3	LeSean McCoy	PHI	vs. DET
4	DeMarco Murray	DAL	at CHI
5	Knowshon Moreno	DEN	vs. TEN
6	Ben Tate	HOU	at JAC
7	Reggie Bush	DET	at PHI
8	Matt Forte	CHI	vs. DAL
9	Marshawn Lynch	SEA	at SF
10	Frank Gore	SF	vs. SEA

Player to Watch: Knowshon Moreno, RB, Denver Broncos (vs. TEN)

Knowshon Moreno is a great matchup-based play for savvy owners looking for an advantage in the playoffs.

Make no mistake, Moreno's line in Week 13 against Kansas City was ugly. He carried the ball 15 times for 18 yards. That is bad, but he also caught four passes for 72 yards and a score.

But remember that Moreno carried the rock 37 times for 224 yards and a touchdown in Week 12 against New England.

Owners know that quarterback Peyton Manning has his struggles in cold weather. They also know Tennessee ranks in the top 10 against the pass, so Denver will surely utilize a run-first approach when the Titans come to town in Week 14.

Perhaps the best fact is that the Titans rank among the best in the league for fantasy production to running backs. Tennessee allows an average of 20.2 points per game to the position.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent
1	Calvin Johnson	DET	at PHI
2	Victor Cruz	NYG	at SD
3	A.J. Green	CIN	vs. IND
4	Alshon Jeffery	CHI	vs. DAL
5	Dez Bryant	DAL	at CHI
6	Josh Gordon	CLE	at NE
7	Brandon Marshall	CHI	vs. DAL
8	Larry Fitzgerald	ARI	vs. STL
9	Roddy White	ATL	at GB
10	Eric Decker	DEN	vs. TEN

Player to Watch: Alshon Jeffery, WR, Chicago Bears (vs. DAL)

As Fox Sports illustrates, Alshon Jeffery had himself quite the day against Minnesota in Week 13:

Jeffery finished with 12 catches for 249 yards and two touchdowns. The performance marked the third time this year the sophomore receiver has scored 20 or more fantasy points.

While Jeffery is a boom-or-bust type receiver, the schedule does the easy work for Jeffery owners the rest of the way. Games against Dallas (22.4 points allowed on average), Cleveland (17.3) and Philadelphia (28.9) wrap up what will be the entire fantasy playoff stretch for most.

The impressive streak starts at Soldier Field against Dallas on Sunday.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent
1	Rob Gronkowski	NE	vs. CLE
2	Jimmy Graham	NO	vs. CAR
3	Jared Cook	STL	at ARI
4	Vernon Davis	SF	vs. SEA
5	Tony Gonzalez	ATL	at GB
6	Ladarius Green	SD	vs. NYG
7	Heath Miller	PIT	vs. MIA
8	Jason Witten	DAL	at CHI
9	Coby Fleener	IND	vs. CIN
10	Brandon Myers	NYG	at SD

Player to Watch: Jared Cook, TE, St. Louis Rams (at ARI)

New England's Rob Gronkowski and New Orleans' Jimmy Graham are surefire options every week.

After that, tight end is a futile effort in guesswork. 

If there is one name to bank on outside of those two in Week 14, it's Jared Cook of St. Louis out in the desert.

Cook has been far from reliable, but that goes for most at the position. Cook has a matchup against Arizona, the team that allows the most points to the position on average (13.7 per game). Arizona has surrendered 11 or more points to the position the past two weeks.

Note: All fantasy scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues. Points against info courtesy of ESPN.

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