Taking a weekly look at Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy's fantasy output in his last game and his outlook for Sunday:
Week 15 statistics: 20 rushes, 50 yards, one touchdown; four catches, 46 yards, one touchdown.
Week 15 fantasy output (ESPN PPR scoring): 25.6 points (tied-14th overall, tied-seventh among running backs)
Week 15 fantasy output (ESPN standard scoring): 21.6 points (18th overall, seventh among running backs)
What happened vs. Miami Dolphins: McCoy was named Tuesday to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl, his candidacy having been boosted by one of the strongest performances by a running back in the second half of this season.
McCoy has 511 rushing yards since Week 10, the most in the NFL. He ranked seventh through Week 7, with 546. His yards per carry has increased from 3.66 through Week 9 to 4.65 since Week 10.
In Sunday's win over the Dolphins, McCoy posted his fourth-best fantasy performance of the season despite gaining his sixth-fewest rushing yards in a game this season. His scoring was boosted by his third multi-touchdown game this season, and his second with both a receiving and rushing touchdown.
McCoy's efficiency was the issue with his lack of production in the running game Sunday, not his usage or workload. McCoy played in 65 percent of snaps, which was about average for him in the second half of this season. His 20 carries were slightly higher than his 18.5 average per game this season.
McCoy, whose 12 rushes of 20 yards or more lead the NFL, did not gain more than 14 yards on a rush Sunday. He gained only 28 yards before first contact, his fourth-lowest total of the season. His average of 1.4 yards before contact per rush was also the fourth-lowest for him this season, pointing to issues with blockers clearing space in front of him.
What to expect Sunday vs. New England Patriots: As many fantasy leagues enter championship week, McCoy's owners face a middle-of-the-road matchup.
New England has allowed opposing running backs to gain at least 100 yards in each of their past three games. McCoy totaled 102 yards from scrimmage in Week 13, Miami's Kenyan Drake raked the Patriots for 193 yards in Week 14 and Le'Veon Bell added 165 total yards last Sunday.
However, the Patriots have surrendered two touchdowns from scrimmage to running backs since Week 10: one by Drake in Week 12 and another Sunday by Bell. Despite McCoy topping 100 yards from scrimmage, his lack of touchdowns in his Dec. 3 meeting with the Patriots stunted his fantasy scoring. His performance was worth only 12.2 points in PPR formats and 10.2 in standard formats.
There is also the issue of McCoy's knee. It kept him out of practice last Wednesday before he returned to practice fully on Thursday before sitting out Friday's practice. It did not seem to hamper him in Sunday's win over Miami, but he sat out practice again Wednesday. Coach Sean McDermott said last week McCoy was dealing with some soreness and the team wanted to be smart about it. With a more critical finale against the Dolphins looming, it is not out of the question that McCoy's workload is depressed slightly this Sunday to keep him fresh.
Patriots' fantasy points per game allowed to running backs this season (PPR scoring): 24.5 (14th-most in NFL)
Patriots' fantasy points per game allowed to running backs this season (standard scoring): 18.9 (15th-most in NFL)