2022 NFL Weekly Survivor Pool: Week 18 Top Picks & Plays
If you're in a survivor pool that made it to the final week of the regular season, it's impressive. As the season has gone on, it has been a little easier to make picks. The options are limited if you have made it this far making it more challenging. Six games have a line of at least seven points, including two at double-digits.
Here are my top survivor picks for the week.
NFL Week 18 Survivor Picks
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have won nine consecutive games and rookie quarterback Brock Purdy has played well. The 49ers have a chance to get the No. 1 seed with a win and Eagles loss, so there's motivation to play the starters and a win is needed to lock up the two seed if the Eagles win. The 49ers are 14.5-point home favorites and the Cardinals will start David Blough at quarterback and DeAndre Hopkins is out.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles have lost two consecutive games with Gardner Minshew starting at quarterback. Jalen Hurts could return this week since Philadelphia needs a win to secure the top seed in the NFC and a first-round bye. The Giants have nothing to play for and are locked into the sixth seed. The Giants haven't said they will rest key starters, but it would be stunning if they played much. The Eagles are 14-point favorites.
Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys have extra rest after playing on Thursday night in Week 17 and can still win the NFC East with a win and Eagles loss. Washington was eliminated from playoff contention last week and will start rookie quarterback Sam Howell, a fifth-round pick, in his NFL debut.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Chiefs play the first game of the week on Saturday afternoon and need to win to have a chance at the top seed in the AFC. The Chiefs don't have a lot of blowout wins and this won't be easy against a division opponent on the road. Three of the last four games for the Chiefs have been decided by one possession. The Raiders played a great game offensively with Jarrett Stidham at quarterback last week against a staunch 49ers defense.
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings can still finish as the two seed, but they will need a win and the 49ers to lose to the Cardinals. While that's unlikely, the Vikings play at 1 p.m. ET and the 49ers play at 4:25 p.m. The Vikings are expected to play most of the starters and even if they depart early, the Bears are starting Nathan Peterman at quarterback. The Bears can get the first overall pick with a loss and a win by the Texans.
Jacksonville Jaguars
The winner of the Jaguars-Titans wins the AFC South division. The Jaguars have finished the season strong, while the Titans are struggling. The Jaguars have won five of their last six games to take over the division lead. The Jaguars won at Tennessee in Week 14, 36-22. The Titans have lost six consecutive games and will start Josh Dobbs at quarterback in his second start with the team. The Titans enter with eight days rest, while the Jaguars will only have five.
Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks host a Rams team with nothing to play for. The Seahawks need a win and a Packers loss in the Sunday night game to reach the playoffs. Seattle won against the Rams on the road, 27-23, in Week 13. This won't be easy since it's a divisional opponent and the Rams would love to play spoiler. Outside of a 51-14 win over the Broncos on Christmas, the Rams offense has looked bad with Baker Mayfield at quarterback.
Green Bay Packers
The Packers clinch a playoff spot with a win on Sunday night at home. The Lions can only get into the playoffs with a Seahawks loss and a victory over the Packers. The Lions will know by the start of the game if they are still alive. While the Lions will still come to play even if eliminated, there's still a human element of deflation knowing the game isn't significant. The Lions will be motivated to finish with a winning record, but the Packers are tough to beat at home and are the more experienced team in this spot. The Packers are 18-1 in December and January under coach Matt LaFleur. Aaron Rodgers is 18-7 against the Lions, including 10-2 at home.
Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals are the better team, but a division game against the Ravens is always tough. The Ravens won the first meeting of the season and have won six of the last eight games between the teams. Lamar Jackson missed another practice on Wednesday and his status is still unclear. The Ravens offense has been awful, averaging 11.8 points over the last five games. The Bengals are 5-1 at home and can clinch the division title with a win. The Bengals have won seven consecutive games.
Last week: 3-0
Season: 37-10-1
Related Links:
- NFL Survivor League Strategy
- NFL Week 18 Betting Odds
- NFL Weekly Matchup Previews
- NFL Strength of Schedule
- Fantasy Football Weekly Rankings
Player News
Chiefs signed fourth-round WR Jalen Royals to a four-year contract.
Royals doesn’t have an obvious and open spot in the receiving corps to build short-term fantasy value with Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown, and Rashee Rice operating in the opening 11-personnel package. He may or may not play his way into WR4 duties depending on how the team feels about JuJu Smith-Schuster. Royals has plenty of talent and Brown is on a one-year deal, so there is a future where Royals is more than a bit player for the Chiefs. It likely won’t happen in his first season without injuries in front of him.
Matthew Judon said he “probably” won’t return to the Falcons in 2025.
The Falcons, of course, drafted both Jalon Walker and James Pearce in the first round. In an exclusive interview with CardPlayer.com — not to be confused with our PokerNews.com James Cook scoop a few days ago — Judon said that his sack total was down because “I dropped (into coverage) on 60 percent of the plays. It’s hard to get a pick and a sack on the same play.” Judon also told Kyle Odegard that “a couple” teams had expressed interest in him but he was in no rush to sign.
Jets released P Thomas Morstead.
Austin McNamara and Kai Kroeger will compete for the Jets punter job this year. The 39-year-old former Saint was the league’s oldest punter last season. If he wants to keep punting, he can absolutely join the tryout circuit or a competition elsewhere. But this is probably a sign that the Morstead’s 16-year career is close to an end at this point.
Lions offensive coordinator John Morton said it’s “going to be a breakout year” for Jameson Williams.
Morton said he’d never “been around someone that fast,” then quickly corrected himself to note that Jhamyr Gibbs is also that fast. Williams came on strong last year with a 58/1001/7 receiving line, but offensive coordinator praise could mean even more targets are coming. It would likely come at the expense of Amon-Ra St. Brown’s production if Williams were to truly break out, though there’s plenty for St. Brown to give and still be a top-flight fantasy wideout. It’s risky to read too much into statements like this in the offseason, but the new offensive coordinator telling you he thinks it’ll be a breakout year for Williams is certainly noteworthy.
Free agent CB Rasul Douglas is visiting the Seahawks on Tuesday.
It’s been a slow offseason for the veteran corner after a rough year with the Bills where he finished with just a 51.6 PFF coverage grade. The Dolphins have reportedly been in contact with Douglas, but this is the first known visit for him. He’d likely fit as a depth piece in Seattle, perhaps one that pushes Josh Jobe for a starting job outside in a best-case scenario.
Jets signed fourth-round WR Arian Smith to a four-year contract.
The good news for Smith is that he has a lot of depth chart runway. Garrett Wilson is the obvious No. 1, but neither Josh Reynolds nor Allen Lazard qualifies as a locked-in WR2 at this stage of their careers. Smith’s blazing speed has intrigued Aaron Glenn, who noted how fast he was in rookie minicamp over the weekend by simply noting “Arian has some juice.” The tough news is that as long as Justin Fields is the starter, it’s hard to believe he’ll be seeing many deep shots that aren’t schemed wide open. Still, Smith has some appeal in deeper leagues and could make an interesting dynasty stash.