Arizona Cardinals @ Philadelphia Eagles Week 17 Game Preview
Jonathan Fuller breaks down the Week 17 matchup between the Arizona Cardinals and Philadelphia Eagles from a fantasy football and betting perspective.
Arizona Cardinals @ Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles managed to end their three-game losing streak last week and now get another confidence-building spot when they welcome the Arizona Cardinals for a Week 17 tilt in Philadelphia.
The Cardinals are coming off a loss to the Bears, but their season is at the point where losses do them more good than wins by ensuring they land a top-two draft pick in April.
Arizona is giving up the second most points per game, and the Eagles have the third-highest implied team total of the weekend so fantasy managers should be excited to start just about anyone they can on the Eagles side of the ball.
Jalen Hurts is the overall QB1 for the week, while A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert all rank as good to great options at their position. If the Eagles deliver on expectations, at least two of the pass catchers should deliver big fantasy performances.
In the backfield, D’Andre Swift checks in as a solid RB1 in the Fantasy Life consensus ranks after handling 20 carries in a game for the first time since Week 2. Arizona is giving up the most rushing yards per game this season, and this game has the potential for plenty of garbage time, so Swift is a great play who should see plenty of touches again this week.
Philadelphia should be able to move the ball at will, so the big question is whether or not the Cardinals can put up enough points to push the Eagles' offense and keep them playing aggressively late into the game.
Fortunately for the Cardinals (and for fantasy managers), Arizona gets to take on one of the only pass defenses that has been nearly as bad as their own. The Eagles' defense has given up the most points to opposing WRs this season while also ranking poorly against QBs and TEs as well.
The Cardinals should be able to attack through the air, which is an exciting prospect for fantasy managers rostering Trey McBride. The second-year TE has been stellar this season and ranks as the TE3 for the week in the Fantasy Life consensus ranks.
Marquise Brown missed last week with a heel injury, and with little reason for him to rush back, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the trio of Michael Wilson, Rondale Moore, and Greg Dortch serving as the top three wideouts again this week. None of the three are really viable in managed leagues, but any of them could be a nice low-cost bring-back for Eagles stacks in DFS.
James Conner has by far the toughest matchup of the Cardinals' offensive weapons but is still the low-end RB2/FLEX discussion thanks to his role in the passing game and goal-line opportunities.