As we do each Sunday, we recap the week's winners and losers from a fantasy perspective, complete with applicable game and historical data. Check back after the conclusion of the 1 and 4 p.m. ET (and, when applicable, Sunday Night Football) games for our picks of the week's best and worst.
Winners
Le'Veon Bell, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers: With 47 fantasy points, Bell easily captured the Week 14 scoring lead (at least through Sunday's games, and presumably the week in its entirety), with what was the first game of 2016 by any individual player or team defense/special teams worth at least 40. In fact, it's the highest individual score since Jamaal Charles managed 51 in 2013 Week 15, which coincidentally was another fantasy playoff week.
Only 24 skill-position players since 1950 have scored more in a single game than Bell, who was started in 99.7 percent of ESPN leagues, did on Sunday. Of those 24, only 17 were running backs, and three of those 17 did so in AFL games in the 1960s. Only 10 running backs have had a greater score than Bell in the past half-century.
The performance thrust Bell into the top five at his position for the season in fantasy points (194), behind only David Johnson (259), Ezekiel Elliott (226, plus his upcoming Sunday Night Football score), DeMarco Murray (209) and Melvin Gordon (199). All of the other four have played 13 games -- Elliott will have played 13 once he appears in Sunday night's game -- while Bell has done it in a mere 10 contests.
Tyler Eifert, TE, Cincinnati Bengals: Just as he did in 2015, Eifert continued to dominate in the red zone, scoring both of his two touchdowns on Sunday in those situations, giving him five in his seven games played (he had 11 scores on red zone plays in his 13 games in 2015). The result was a 16-point fantasy day, matching his best output thus far in 2016. Many fantasy owners reaped the benefit, as Eifert's 79.9 start percentage in ESPN leagues was fourth-highest among tight ends in Week 14.
Jeremy Hill, RB, Bengals: For the third time this season and sixth in his three-year NFL career, Hill managed at least 20 fantasy points; he scored exactly 20 on Sunday to finish a distant second to Bell at the position during the 1 p.m. ET block. A key difference between this effort and the other five, however, was that a greater percentage of ESPN owners capitalized, as Hill was started in 89.6 percent of leagues, easily his highest in any of his 20-plus-point performances. In fact, it was Hill's highest start percentage since 2015 Week 2 (98.8), and his third-highest start percentage in his career (also 98.7 percent, 2015 Week 1).
J.J. Nelson, WR, Arizona Cardinals: All it took was two touches -- one run and one catch -- for Nelson to manage 17 fantasy points, tied for the lead among wide receivers during the 1 p.m. ET block. It was his third double-digit fantasy point total in his past six games, though in each of his previous two, he got there on no more than two touches (he had one in Week 13). Nelson's limited usage provides an easy explanation for why he was started in only 0.43 percent of ESPN leagues.
Ryan Tannehill, QB, Miami Dolphins and Trevor Siemian, QB, Denver Broncos: In a most unusual development, Tannehill and Siemian tied for the highest fantasy point total among quarterbacks during the 1 p.m. ET games, with 17 apiece, marking the first time since 2014 Week 12 that no quarterback reached the 20-point fantasy plateau during that time block (in fact, at least two quarterbacks did it during the 1 p.m. ET block in every previous week). Were you one of the few owners who started Tannehill (17.9 percent of ESPN leagues) or Siemian (1.3 percent)?
DeSean Jackson, WR, Washington Redskins: For the third time in his past four games, Jackson managed double-digit fantasy points, his 16 finishing one shy of the lead during the 1 p.m. ET block. But don't whip out the "revenge" argument as to why he found success so simple against his former team, the Philadelphia Eagles: Jackson has had three double-digit fantasy point totals in five games against his former team, but he has also averaged 10.8 in those five, which is hardly enough to call a clear trend.
Zach Ertz, TE, Eagles: Though his 11 fantasy points hardly set any records, nor even pushed for the positional lead in Week 14, that Ertz managed 10 receptions in the game, tops at the position (through Sunday's games), was significant. It resulted in 21 fantasy points using PPR scoring, giving him back-to-back games with at least 20 in that format. He joined Greg Olsen (Weeks 4-5) as the only tight ends to accomplish that feat this season.
Atlanta Falcons defense/special teams: No defense enjoyed a better day than the Falcons, whose 26 fantasy points not only topped the position in Week 14 (through Sunday's games), but were the second-best performance by any D/ST in 2016 (Kansas City Chiefs, 32, Week 3). Their owners were ready for this one, though, starting the Falcons in 48.3 percent of ESPN leagues, eighth-most at the position. It was the defense's highest start percentage of 2016 by far; their next-best percentage was 13.5 in Week 4 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Bilal Powell, RB, New York Jets: A Jets running back did capitalize upon the favorable matchup against the San Francisco 49ers, but it was Powell, not Forte (knee), who was forced from the game in the first quarter due to injury. Powell, started in only 7.4 percent of ESPN leagues, scored a career-high 29 fantasy points, most of any player during the 4 p.m. ET block. It was the eighth time this season that a running back managed at least 20 fantasy points against the 49ers.
Carlos Hyde, RB, 49ers: Powell wasn't the only star running back in the Jets-49ers game, as Hyde scored 25 fantasy points of his own, second-most at the position during the 4 p.m. ET block. It was Hyde's second-most fantasy points in a game in his career (29, 2015 Week 1), and it was also only the second-best individual score by any running back against the Jets this season (David Johnson, 31, Week 6).
Taylor Gabriel, WR, Falcons: With Julio Jones (toe) inactive, Gabriel took on a larger role on Sunday, and those fantasy owners who were attentive enough to start him when the news broke shortly after 2 p.m. ET were rewarded with a 14-point effort. Gabriel was started in only 31.8 percent of ESPN leagues, but that rose by more than eight percent between 1 and 4 p.m. ET, and it increased by more than 20 percent between Thursday and Sunday. For Gabriel, it was his fifth double-digit performance in his past six games, and his 77 fantasy points during that time span (since Week 8) are sixth-best among wide receivers.
Matt Ryan, QB, Falcons: It was Gabriel's 64-yard reception in the third quarter that helped Ryan push past the 20-point fantasy threshold, his 21 tying for the position lead (through Sunday's games). That gave Ryan seven games with at least 20 fantasy points, and it put him on pace for a career-high 329 fantasy points.
Losers
Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Steelers: Remarkably, while Roethlisberger's teammate Bell dominated the fantasy scoreboard, Roethlisberger himself could muster only two fantasy points in a game played in the snow. It was extremely inopportune timing; he was started in 69.1 percent of ESPN leagues, fourth-most among quarterbacks, making it every bit as likely that Roethlisberger cost his owners a fantasy playoff matchup, while Bell helped his owners win theirs. For Roethlisberger, it was his worst fantasy point total since 2008 Week 17 (also 2).
Fantasy owners of key players lost early to injury: Melvin Gordon (hip), third among running backs in fantasy points entering Week 14 (199), Matt Forte (knee), facing a San Francisco 49ers defense that entered the week allowing the most fantasy points per game to running backs (25.5) and Donte Moncrief (hamstring), who had 48 fantasy points in his previous five games entering the week, were all lost for significant chunks of Sunday's games, resulting in zero fantasy points apiece.
Gordon's 97.5 start percentage in ESPN leagues was fifth-highest among running backs, while Forte's 94.8 percent was seventh-highest.
Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Cardinals: He scored just one fantasy point on his nine targets, though much of the blame can be placed upon his quarterback, Carson Palmer, who actually had a negative fantasy point total until late in the game. Unfortunately, it was a costly stinker for the veteran wide receiver, whose 92.1 start percentage in ESPN leagues was eighth-highest at the position.
Marcus Mariota, QB, Tennessee Titans: Most fantasy owners saw a mediocre performance coming -- he was started in just 12.9 percent of ESPN leagues, ranking 19th among quarterbacks -- but those owners who rode Mariota into their leagues' playoffs and relied on him nevertheless (remember: two-quarterback leagues!) absorbed his fourth-worst fantasy point total (6) in his 25 career games to date. It snapped a streak of four consecutive 20-point performances, and might well drop him in the seasonal scoring at his position from fourth to as low as seventh.
Jay Ajayi, RB, Dolphins: His five fantasy points were his fewest in any of his nine starts since taking over the starting role entering Week 5, giving him a fourth single-digit performance in his past five games. Most discouraging was the fact that Ajayi's 21 touches, hinting that the Dolphins aren't necessarily lightening his workload, were his most since Week 9, but he managed just 63 total yards with them.
Terrelle Pryor Sr., WR, Cleveland Browns: Until Sunday, Pryor hadn't been shut out on the fantasy scorecard all season, but he dropped a doughnut in the box scores of his owners, who started him in 55.9 percent of ESPN leagues. Strangely, Robert Griffin III and the Browns scarcely passed, attempting only 28 throws, despite playing the near-entirety of the game from behind. Most disconcerting was the fact that Pryor managed just three targets to Corey Coleman's 11.
Philip Rivers, QB, San Diego Chargers: For the first time all season, Rivers was held to single-digit fantasy points, his seven points representing his worst score since 2015 Week 13 (6). He was the 12th-most-started quarterback in ESPN leagues (44.0 percent). Incidentally, it represented the sixth consecutive game in which the Carolina Panthers limited an opposing quarterback to 17 fantasy points or fewer. They're giving up an average of just 12.8 during that time, after they had allowed four games of 20-plus fantasy points to an opposing quarterback in their first seven contests.
Jordan Reed, TE, Redskins: His production was understandably down due to a shoulder injury that had him questionable for Sunday's game, but Reed's one fantasy point on as many targets was especially disappointing because he's typically known for volume. It resulted in a one-point score in PPR formats, matching the worst output of his four-year, 44-game NFL career (2014 Week 1, a game he exited early due to a hamstring injury). Some of Reed's fantasy owners took a conservative approach with him and benched him knowing he'd be limited, but unfortunately he still resided in active lineups in 68.3 percent of ESPN leagues.
Devontae Booker, RB, Broncos: Though Booker wasn't started in a significant number of leagues -- his 33.3 start percentage in ESPN leagues ranked outside the top 20 running backs -- his one-point fantasy score cast some serious doubt on his utility in the final three weeks of the season. He managed just five touches, trailing Justin Forsett's nine (which he accrued despite losing a fumble early in the game), and per Pro Football Focus' Nathan Jahnke played only three more snaps (29) than Forsett (26).
DeAndre Hopkins, WR, Houston Texans: For the ninth time in his 13 games this season, Hopkins was held to single-digit fantasy points, his three representing his worst score since he had the same amount in Week 7 (facing a much, much tougher matchup in the Denver Broncos). Hopkins now has 37 fantasy points in his past seven games combined.
Drew Brees, QB, New Orleans Saints: In Week 14, no quarterback was more heavily started than Brees, who was active in 92.3 percent of ESPN leagues. It was a huge vote of confidence in a quarterback who disappointed with seven fantasy points in Week 13, facing a favorable matchup on paper, but he followed it up with another stinker. Brees' four fantasy points were his fewest in a game since 2012 Week 13 (3), and they gave him consecutive single-digit scores for the first time since 2009 Weeks 3-4 (4 and 7).
Russell Wilson, QB, Seattle Seahawks: He set a new career high with five interceptions on Sunday, resulting in a four-point fantasy score that was his worst since 2012 Week 7 (3), during his rookie season. It was only the fourth time in his 45 games played since the beginning of the 2014 season that he was held to single-digits, and it came at an extremely poor time, considering he was active in 53.0 percent of ESPN leagues, ninth-most among quarterbacks.
Jimmy Graham, TE, Seahawks: With Wilson struggling, Graham predictably underperformed as well, scoring only one fantasy point on his four targets. Graham was the most-started tight end in ESPN leagues in Week 14, active in 91.0 percent, but he matched his season low for fantasy points (Week 1, his first game back following surgery to repair a torn patellar tendon).
Devonta Freeman, RB, Falcons: There are few things more frustrating to fantasy owners than seeing your player's team scoring 42 points, only to open the box score and discover that your player, one started in 95.2 percent of ESPN leagues (sixth-most among running backs), managed just one fantasy point. That was Freeman's output on Sunday, and while he wasn't necessarily needed for much of the contest, as the Falcons took an insurmountable lead early, it still represented his worst performance in 26 games since he took over as the team's starter in 2015 Week 3. Worse yet: Tevin Coleman, Freeman's partner in the backfield, managed 16 fantasy points of his own.
Dez Bryant, WR, Dallas Cowboys: The fifth most-started wide receiver of Week 14 (96.3 percent of ESPN leagues), Bryant scored minus-1 fantasy points on Sunday night, his worst single-game score in 94 career NFL contests. He managed nine targets in this one, so in two games against the rival New York Giants this season he totaled minus-1 fantasy points on 14 targets.4