Week 15 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Play or Bench Advice on Top Fantasy Football Stars

Fantasy football managers who make the right lineup decisions in Week 15 should be heading to the semifinals of their league's playoffs. As for those who make the wrong choices? Their championship dreams will likely be over.

The fantasy playoffs will get underway in most leagues in Week 15, so there's even greater pressure on managers to roll out the optimal lineup for their matchup. With all 32 NFL teams in action, there could be some tough calls to make.

Time is running out to contemplate them as well. This week's slate begins with a Thursday-night matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks. Then, three games are set to take place a day early on Saturday.

Here's some start/sit advice to help fantasy managers for Week 15.

J.K. Dobbins was activated from injured reserve last week, making his return from a knee injury during the Ravens' Week 14 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. And it didn't take long for the 23-year-old running back to carry Baltimore's offense.

Dobbins had 15 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown for his best performance in a season in which he's been hampered by injuries. It was an encouraging sign for fantasy managers, who may not have trusted Dobbins in their lineups last week and opted to leave him on the bench.

That shouldn't be the case in Week 15, though, especially because quarterback Lamar Jackson is still out because of a knee injury. Whether it's Tyler Huntley (concussion protocol) or Anthony Brown under center for the Ravens this week, they're likely to lean heavily on Dobbins and their rushing attack to power the way.

Baltimore has a favorable matchup against the Cleveland Browns, who are giving up the third-most fantasy points per game to running backs, per NFL.com. So Dobbins should be a safe play, and the Ohio State product may have an even better performance than he had last week.

It's been an inconsistent year for Adam Thielen, especially of late. Over the past four weeks, the Vikings wide receiver had two games in which he had more than 60 yards and a touchdown. In the other two, he was held to 27 or fewer yards and was a non-factor.

Minnesota may not need a ton of offense to win this week, as it has a favorable home matchup vs. the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday. This could be a low-scoring matchup in which the Vikings rely on their ground game to pound out a victory (which would give them the NFC North title).

The Colts may be struggling, having lost six of their past seven games, but they aren't giving up many big performances to wide receivers. In fact, they're giving up the fewest fantasy points per game to WRs this season, per NFL.com.

Thielen isn't likely to have a big game, and it's too risky to count on him in a high-stakes fantasy playoff matchup. So find a better starting option if you had been relying on the 32-year-old in your lineup.

Need to stream a tight end in fantasy this season? It's typically not a bad idea to first look at who is facing the Arizona Cardinals. They're giving up the most fantasy points per game to TEs, per NFL.com, and it isn't particularly close.

In Week 15, the Broncos are set to host the Cardinals. And with how involved Greg Dulcich has been in Denver's offense of late, he's a great option to start in fantasy lineups this week.

Dulcich has been targeted eight times in each of the Broncos' past two games, which has resulted in nine catches for 127 yards. The 22-year-old rookie still hasn't scored a touchdown since his NFL debut in Week 6, but that drought could be ending soon.

Regardless of who starts at quarterback for Denver this week (Russell Wilson or Brett Rypien), consider Dulcich a start-worthy fantasy tight end. The matchup is so appealing that it's worth taking a chance on him.