Monday December 22, 2014
Denver Broncos @ Cincinnati Bengals

Ladies and gentlemen we have ourselves an excellent finish to our fantasy season. A ton of championships will be decided in this game. It is packed with fantasy superstars. This is as good of a fantasy finale game that I can remember. Plenty of storylines, too. Peyton Manning has been slumping but can you bench him? How will Andy Dalton’s prime time woes effect the Bengals offense? Of course real life playoff seeding also hangs in the balance. I’m sure plenty of my fellow fantasy owners will be holding their breath on Monday as a year’s work comes to a climactic conclusion.

Denver Broncos: Key Players
QB Peyton Manning
For the first time in forever Manning is in a miserable slump and at the worst possible time for his fantasy owners. Nonetheless, you cannot sit Manning in your championship game. You have to roll with him, he’s the one who got you here. It will be nerve racking but believe in him on Monday night.
Verdict: Start Manning. He’s much more likely to bounce back than continue slumping. Count on him to come through in a major way and lead you to a championship.

RB CJ Anderson
Anderson has been outstanding over the past four weeks and he’s touching the ball nearly 30 times-per-game. He has become a surefire RB1 and is a must start in all formats. He is racking up yards and TDs. If he’s not a top five play, he’s very close.
Verdict: Start Anderson. He has been what we all expected Montee Ball to be.

WR Demaryius Thomas
No one has been hurt more by Manning’s struggles than Thomas. This week the matchup only gets worse as the Bengals have one of the toughest red zone pass defenses in the league. Still, much like Manning, you have to roll with him. He’s an elite WR1 and should be utilized as such. Just keep your fingers crossed.
Verdict: Start Thomas. Like I said with Manning, it’s more likely he breaks out of his slump than continues to struggle. Remember he went through this at the beginning of the season as well and ended up just fine.

WR Emmanuel Sanders
Sanders has been one of the best value picks of the year. Everyone that rolled the dice on Sanders has been rewarded greatly. He has caught only seven fewer passes than Thomas and is by far the Broncos most efficient pass-catcher. He is another must start and perhaps the best option on this team right now.
Verdict: Start Sanders. He’s been great and has been the Broncos most consistent and efficient player this season.

TE Julius Thomas
Thomas has been a major disappointment this season. In part due to an ankle injury but we’re not in the business of making excuses. He was being drafted as the TE2 in many drafts and has fallen far short of expectations. With that said he has a great matchup this week against a Bengals’ defense that has really struggled at times this season against TEs. He also has looked much healthier in practice this week than he has since suffering his ankle injury.
Verdict: Start Thomas. Not with extreme confidence but it’s hard to find a better option than Thomas. Odds are if you drafted him you didn’t draft another great TE.

Cincinnati Bengals: Key Players
QB Andy Dalton
You cannot start Dalton on Monday night. This is your championship and he is nightmarishly bad in prime time games. Like Blaine Gabbert in a blizzard in Seattle bad. Last time he played on prime time he went 10-of-33 for 86 yards, three INTs and no TDs. This is a trend, not an isolated incident. If you start him, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Verdict: Sit Dalton. For the love of god do not start him when he’s on prime time. He is impressively miserable.

RB Jeremy Hill
Much like Anderson in Denver, Hill has really emerged as a must start in all fantasy leagues. He has far surpassed Giovani Bernard and is seeing a ton of touches, even with Gio active. Hill is a borderline RB1 and should be utilized as such.
Verdict: Start Hill. He is a must start at this point. Hill is the clear RB1 in Hue Jackson’s offense.

RB Giovani Bernard
It’s a shame what has happened to Gio this season. Bernard has thoroughly frustrated his owners in the second half of the season, especially after such a promising start. He just can’t stay healthy and has been outperformed by Hill. He’s become nothing more than a desperation play at best.
Verdict: Sit Bernard. He has fallen too far behind Hill in the Bengals pecking order.

WR AJ Green
When Green is not healthy and not playing against the Browns, he may just be the best WR in the NFL. Luckily this week he’s playing the Broncos. The one concern is how Dalton’s prime time struggles will effect Green. He is more than worth the risk and should be used as an elite WR1.
Verdict: Start Green. He’s one of the best WRs I the league and is always a must start.

WR Mohammed Sanu
Sanu has been pretty much useless since Green has returned and gotten healthy. There is no way you can feel comfortable starting Sanu in your championship game.
Verdict: Sit Sanu. He’s not even worth a desperation start at this point.

Predictions

Final Score
Denver: 38
Cincinnati: 20

Best Play
Broncos: Emmanuel Sanders
Bengals: Jeremy Hill

Sleeper
Giovani Bernard