Defenses & Dragons: Week 14 Detroit Lions fantasy pick of the week

The Detroit Lions may not have much to play for over the last month of the season, but fantasy owners are entering the most important stretch of the year. Whether the goal is to win a championship or to end the season with some strong DFS performances, every roster decision is a little bit more meaningful in December.

Even though the Lions are out of playoff contention, the team does not appear to be shutting down running back Kerryon Johnson. However, Johnson does not appear to be on track to play this week, leaving opportunities at running back open again. If Johnson again does not suit up this weekend, LeGarrette Blount is the Week 14 Defenses & Dragons player of the week.

FantasyPros Ranking: RB39 (0.5 PPR)
FanDuel Pricing: RB36 ($x5600)

The Lions’ need for Johnson was painfully clear against the Rams, as neither Blount nor Theo Riddick managed over eight fantasy points. Though Detroit managed over 100 rushing yards on the whole, no single player was reliable enough to carry the whole workload, and none of the components stood out significantly above the rest.

Still, someone has to get the carries, and the odds are that will be Blount. Over the past two weeks he has seen 36 total touches and has recorded a combined 29 fantasy points, and he might be on track to continue this trend against a leaky run defense.

Detroit faces a Cardinals team that has surrendered over 20 fantasy points to six different running backs this season, and every team except for San Francisco has seen a running back reach double-digit fantasy points. Blount may not be more than a back-end RB2, but at this point in the year that type of production can still be valuable.

Prediction: 16 carries, 60 yards, 1 touchdown; 1 reception, 5 yards; 13.0 fantasy points