NFL Player News

Johnson had five receptions on 10 targets for 34 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 42-21 loss to the Steelers.

The 24-year-old finished first among all Pittsburgh receiving options in targets even with JuJu Smith-Schuster returning for Ben Roethlisberger's swan song. Johnson finished the regular season with team highs in receptions (107) and receiving yardage (1,161) while cashing in eight scores. He's established as the Steelers' No. 1 wideout, but the team's quarterback situation in 2022 will determine how much fantasy value Johnson will carry next season.

Hill caught all five of his targets for 57 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 42-21 win over the Steelers.

Travis Kelce was the featured offensive weapon for Kansas City in this decisive victory -- as has been the case over the final stretch of the regular season -- but Hill still managed to produce a solid fantasy line despite failing to "go off." The speedy wideout has been a little more boom-or-bust than he has in previous seasons, likely due to defenses running tons of deep, two-safety formations and forcing the Chiefs' playmakers to work more underneath routes. Hill still possesses the ability to break off a huge touchdown on any given play, which will likely result in a DFS salary slightly higher than his recent play appears to be worth against the Bills next week.

Higgins had only one catch for 10 yards on four targets in Saturday's win over the Raiders.

Teammates Ja'Marr Chase and C.J. Uzomah did most of the Bengals' damage in the win. That's the one drag on Higgins' value -- the Bengals have multiple options in the passing game, so he's not guaranteed a heavy volume each week.

Lamb caught one of five targets for 21 yards in Sunday's 23-17 loss to the 49ers in the wild-card round. He also gained five yards on his only carry.

It was a disappointing ending to the season for Lamb and for the Cowboys, and the second-year wideout failed to find the end zone or reach 90 receiving yards in his final eight games between the regular season and the playoffs. Lamb's overall numbers still took a step forward, as he set career highs across the board with 79 catches for 1,102 yards and six TDs on 120 targets over 16 games, and he should head into 2022 as a key part of a potent passing game alongside Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper.

Cooper caught six of 10 targets for 64 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 23-17 loss to the 49ers in the wild-card round.

He got the Cowboys on the board with a 20-yard TD catch in the second quarter, but it was the team's only points of the first half, as the Cowboys were in a hole they couldn't climb out of despite a frantic fourth-quarter push. Cooper had a somewhat disappointing regular season despite seeing over 100 targets for the third straight campaign, managing 68 catches for 865 yards and eight TDs in 15 games -- his worst production yet since joining Dallas in 2019. The Cowboys could part ways with Cooper in the offseason without incurring a big dead cap hit, but most likely he'll return in 2022 and be a key part of a potent passing game with Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb.

Aiyuk caught five of six targets for 66 yards in Sunday's 23-17 win over the Cowboys in the wild-card round.

The second-year wideout was Jimmy Garoppolo's favorite target on the afternoon, leading the 49ers in catches, targets and receiving yards as the team mostly kept the ball on the ground. With Garoppolo still nursing a thumb injury, that formula isn't likely to change next weekend in the divisional round against the Packers, so Aiyuk will likely need to score to make a big fantasy splash.

Samuel carried the ball 10 times for 72 yards and a touchdown and caught all three of his targets for 38 yards in Sunday's 23-17 win over the Cowboys in the wild-card round.

It was another big performance for the hybrid wideout/running back, who picked up where he left off at the end of the regular season. Samuel scored the Niners' final points of the game, gliding into the end zone on a 26-yard run in the third quarter. He didn't see much use as a receiver, but that's due more to the thumb injury Jimmy Garoppolo continues to play through than his own skill set. Samuel should be a focal point of the offense again next weekend in the divisional round against the Packers.

Humphrey caught 13 of 18 targets for 249 yards and two touchdowns in 10 games during the 2021 season.

Humphrey missed seven games between injuries, coach's decisions and COVID protocols, but he was a regular part of the rotation over the second half of the season despite Tre'Quan Smith's return to the lineup. However, the 6-foot-4 only saw more than two targets twice and only once was he targeted in the red zone. While Humphrey's status as an exclusive-rights free agent almost guarantees that he'll be back in New Orleans in 2022, each of Michael Thomas, Marquez Callaway and Deonte Harris will probably be back as well, and it's possible other talents are added to the mix.

Smith recorded four receptions on 11 targets for 60 yards in Sunday's 31-15 wild-card round loss to the Buccaneers.

Smith finished second on the team with 11 targets, but he averaged only 5.5 yards per look on his way to a disappointing performance. Though his final line was uninspiring, Smith did turn in a strong second half, as he had only one reception on two targets through the first two quarters. Though it came in garbage time, Smith picked up chunk gains of 31 and 19 yards in the fourth quarter to account for the majority of his production. He'll now look toward his second season as a pro after a solid rookie campaign that was highlighted by 61 catches, 916 yards and five touchdowns across 17 games.

Evans secured nine of 10 targets for 117 yards and a touchdown during the Buccaneers' 31-15 win over the Eagles in an NFC wild-card matchup Sunday.

Evans comfortably paced the Buccaneers in receptions, receiving yardage and targets on an afternoon in which Tom Brady unsurprisingly honed in on him more than any other member of the team's depleted pass-catching corps. The highlight of the veteran's day came on an impressive 36-yard touchdown grab in the latter portion of the third quarter immediately following a Tampa Bay interception. Evans' first opportunity to build on a fruitful postseason-opening effort will come next weekend in a divisional-round battle against either the Rams or Cardinals.