TNF Start 'Em Sit 'Em Week 15 Raiders vs Chargers: Davante Adams, Austin Ekeler in the spotlight for fantasy football

Week 15 of the 2023 fantasy football season starts with a Thursday Night Football showdown between the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers. This marks the first week of the playoffs in most leagues, so getting off to a strong start on the opening game of the week will be crucial. Failure to maximize lineup scores can legitimately mark the end of a manager's fantasy season.

Fantasy teams who have made it this far are likely well aware of how important it is to analyze all available options before finalizing any lineups. The following breakdown can help them do so for TNF in Week 15 of the 2023 NFL season. It highlights the best players to target and fade from each of the four major offensive fantasy positions.

Thursday Night Football Week 15 Start 'Em & Sit 'Em fantasy football

Week 15 TNF WRs

This particular Thursday Night Football between the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders is expected to be one of the lowest-scoring games of the week. Both offenses have struggled to produce big numbers this year and will be playing with backup quarterbacks. This doesn't mean all players involved should be faded, as weekly fantasy value is still present for some of them.

Determining which fantasy players to target in any game is based on a large number of variables. Some of these include recent individual performances, injuries to relevant players, potential game scripts, expected offensive roles, direct weekly matchups, and projected team totals. This helps to reveal which players make the best lineup options each week.

This specific strategy highlights the importance of placing weekly values on all players, rather than basing lineup decisions on season-long outlooks. It is usually more beneficial to target players in the best weekly situations that create the most upside, as opposed to simply starting the best overall players. This is even more true with the 2023 fantasy football playoffs underway.

This process can be complicated, but the Start/Sit Optimizer makes it much easier. This useful tool considers all of the factors for any player in a given week to generate line-up suggestions and fantasy projections. Managers who take advantage of it often gain an edge over the rest of their league and can come that much closer to a league championship.

Official injury reports are always another important factor when making lineup decisions for fantasy players in any game. For this particular TNF showdown, several key injuries to some of the featured on both teams are likely to have a major impact on fantasy football. It also contributes to why this is projected to be one of the lowest-scoring games of the week.

The Chargers will be without superstar quarterback Justin Herbert for the remainder of the year after he recently suffered a devastating season-ending injury. He will be replaced by Easton Stick, who will be making the first start of his career. Keenan Allen has also been ruled out for this contest, so many fantasy managers will be scrambling to find lineup replacements.

The Raiders, as well as fantasy football teams, may be without Josh Jacobs, the defending rushing yards leader from a season ago. He is currently listed as questionable to play as he deals with an injury from last week. Zamir White is expected to fill in as the starting running back if Jacobs is unable to play.

Taking all of this and much more into careful consideration, here is a list of potential players to target and avoid in fantasy football on Thursday Night Football in Week 15 of the 2023 NFL season.

TNF Week 15 Fantasy Football Start 'Em Picks

Austin Ekeler

With Justin Herbert and Keenan Allen both ruled out for TNF, the Chargers will likely give Austin Ekeler a larger workload than usual. While he hasn't been the fantasy superstar this season as he has been in years past, his elite receiving upside still makes him a solid contributor. He should get plenty of check-downs from Easton Stick, so his PPR value is high this week.

Josh Jacobs or Zamir White

Whether it's Zamir White or Josh Jacobs starting at running back for the Raiders this week, either one should be started in fantasy football lineups. White is only an option if Jacobs is out, who is a lineup lock if he does play in this game? The Chargers' defense has struggled in many areas this year, including allowing the tenth-most fantasy points per game to running backs.

Davante Adams

While he is listed as questionable, Davante Adams is reportedly expected to play. His status is still worth confirming before kickoff. As long as he is in the lineup, he should be started in Week 15, despite his inconsistent season. The Chargers allow the fourth-most fantasy points per game to wide receivers, so this could be a breakout week for Adams.

TNF Week 15 Fantasy Football Sit 'Em Picks

Aidan O'Connell

Since replacing Jimmy Garoppolo as the Raiders' starting quarterback, Aidan O'Connell has started seven games this year. He has failed to finish better than QB17 in any of them. He is not a legitimate option in fantasy football.

Easton Stick

With Justin Herbert out with an injury, Easton Stick is scheduled to make his first career start. He will be difficult to trust in any fantasy format, especially without Keenan Allen to throw the ball to. The Raiders also allow the ninth-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, further decreasing Stick's outlook.

Jakobi Meyers

In his past four games, Jakobi Meyers has finished outside of the top 40 wide receivers three times. He has failed to establish chemistry with rookie Aidan O'Connell and has fallen off of the fantasy radar after his promising start to the 2023 fantasy football season.

Quentin Johnston

With all of the injuries piling up for the Chargers' wide receivers, rookie Quentin Johnston should be the featured player in their passing game. Considering the Raiders allow the 10th-fewest fantasy points per game to the position, as well as Stick being his quarterback this week, Johnston should be faded in fantasy football.

Gerald Everett

In the right situations, Gerald Everett can provide high outputs in fantasy football, as demonstrated by his three top-10 weekly finishes among all tight ends. The issue is that he has finished as TE17 or worse in all of his other games this year. He should be faded against the Raiders, who rank in the top half of the NFL in defending fantasy tight ends.

Michael Mayer

The Chargers defense has struggled against the pass all season long, including allowing the 12th most fantasy points per game to tight ends. Michael Mayer still can't be trusted in Week 15 lineups. He has finished outside of the top 25 tight ends in five of his past seven games.