Teddy Bridgewater, Kyle Rudolph, Mike Wallace Post-Week 14 Fantasy Advice

Much of the NFL world was abuzz in the immediate aftermath of the Arizona Cardinals’ 23-20 victory over the Minnesota Vikings Thursday because of the dramatic ending. Fantasy football owners were more concerned with the two points Teddy Bridgewater lost because of his fumble. 

Minnesota had the ball at the Arizona 31-yard line in the final seconds with no timeouts remaining and elected to keep the offense on the field for third down instead of trying to tie the game. Bridgewater was sacked and fumbled the ball back to Arizona, which essentially ended the contest.

It was heartbreaking for Vikings fans, but those relying on Bridgewater for fantasy purposes were still thrilled with his overall day. Even wide receiver Mike Wallace made a rare appearance with a touchdown catch, and tight end Kyle Rudolph led the team in receiving yards. 

Here is a look at the final tallies for the three offensive playmakers, as well as some fantasy reaction for each.

Completions	Passing Yards	Passing Touchdowns	Interceptions	Carries	Rushing Yards	Rushing Touchdowns	Fumbles Lost	Fantasy Points
25-of-36	335	1	0	1	3	0	1	15.7

Fantasy football doesn’t reward or subtract points for on-field awareness, so Bridgewater’s impressive numbers were what mattered, even though he probably felt responsible for the loss because he didn’t throw the ball away on the fumble. 

His outing was a welcome change for fantasy owners after what can only be described as an inconsistent stretch since November started:

Date	Opponent	Passing Yards	Passing Touchdowns	Interceptions	Rushing Yards	Rushing Touchdowns
Nov. 1	Chicago Bears	187	1	1	21	0
Nov. 8	St. Louis Rams	144	0	1	17	1
Nov. 15	Oakland Raiders	140	1	0	23	0
Nov. 22	Green Bay Packers	296	1	0	43	0
Nov. 29	Atlanta Falcons	174	0	1	-3	0
Dec. 6	Seattle Seahawks	118	0	1	2	0
Dec. 10	Arizona Cardinals	335	1	0	3	0

There are a couple of solid performances mixed in there, but Bridgewater hasn’t tallied multiple touchdowns since an Oct. 25 game against the Detroit Lions. He hasn’t been much of a threat on the ground either, and the aerial yardage hasn’t been enough to make up for it.

Part of the issue for Bridgewater is the offensive line, which Football Outsiders ranked as the 28th-best pass-blocking unit in the league entering Thursday’s contest. It certainly reared its ugly head on the strip-sack. 

Even with his showing Thursday, Bridgewater has not demonstrated enough consistency to trust him for fantasy purposes behind a shaky offensive line.

Catches	Receiving Yards	Touchdowns	Targets	Fantasy Points
6	67	0	6	6.7

Rudolph’s value must be assessed in the tight end vacuum because superstars such as Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham and Tyler Eifert have all dealt with injuries in recent weeks. The position is not exactly loaded with fantasy difference-makers, so even a solid day from Rudolph likely worked for owners.

It was the third time in four outings he topped 50 receiving yards, and he even tallied 106 and a touchdown during that span against the Green Bay Packers. Again, it isn’t head-turning production, but it is enough for lineup consideration in a struggling position. 

Rudolph also saw six targets Thursday, which was only behind Stefon Diggs’ seven for the Vikings. The ceiling is fairly low for Rudolph, but he tallied a combined 29 targets the past four games and is a solid, but not spectacular, option at tight end.

Catches	Receiving Yards	Touchdowns	Targets	Fantasy Points
3	42	1	5	10.2

The Vikings traded for Wallace during the offseason with the idea of making him a No. 1 receiver this year after he topped 800 yards the last five campaigns, including two years with more than 1,100. He has been anything but a top option in 2015 and is behind Diggs in the pecking order at the position now.

Wallace's touchdown catch Thursday was only his second of the year, and he hasn’t even reached 90 receiving yards one time. In fact, he only topped 60 two times all season, and those came on Sept. 14 and Oct. 4.

For context, he tallied a whopping zero receiving yards in three different games during November alone. 

Drew Magary of Deadspin said what all fantasy owners were likely thinking when Wallace scored Thursday:

"

I'm still in shock that Mike Wallace did something useful

— Drew Magary (@drewmagary) December 11, 2015"

Even though he caught a touchdown against the Cardinals, there is no reason to play Wallace in the stretch run of your fantasy season.