De'Von Achane To Play Week 15 vs Steelers, Fantasy Football Managers Sigh in Relief
In this story:
The Miami Dolphins announced that De'Von Achane will indeed be a go in their Week 15 matchup versus the Steelers. This is expected, but it does lead many of us to wonder if he will indeed be a "full-go" and at full efficiency. We need prime Achane in our playoff run, so we must measure if we will get that. Leave it to me to give you a full analysis to his Monday Night expectation.
2025 Stats: De'Von Achane
Achane has played all 13 Games this season for the Dolphins. This is very nice to see for a rather injury-prone player in his short NFL career. Achane has recorded 193 Attempts (58%) Share, 1,126 Yards (5.8 Yards per Attempt), and 7 Touchdowns. Achane is also the 2nd pass-catcher on the Dolphins with 73 Targets (21% Target Share), 55 Receptions, 383 Yards, and 4 Touchdowns. He is the RB5 in Fantasy Football, meeting preseason expectations.
Is Achane Playing to a Full Workload?
The Dolphins have seen much better football when Achane is behind center. Jaylen Wright and Ollie Gordon have combined for (100) Attempts this reason, resulting in (3.6) Yards per Attempt. This is over a 25% efficiency dip as compared to Achane.
#NFL Injury Updates#Dolphins De'Von Achane - Very likely playing. Data = mild dip in touches/efficiency. Still a must-start#Packers Josh Jacobs - Likely playing. Avg = 85 ypg on 18 carries/g since injury. Expect continued high usage/efficiency. Concern = re-aggravation
— Deepak Chona, MD. SMA (@SportMDAnalysis) December 13, 2025
1/6
Achane is working through a rib injury. If it were bad enough, he would not be cleared to play. Ribs protect vital organs on your body. If they prove a threat to your health, you cannot play, no questions asked. That fact that Achane is active means that he should be okay. His explosiveness could see a minor dip, but we should see a good Achane.
At a worst case, Achane would be at 80% of his normal efficiency. I would expect 90-95%, and that makes him a certified RB1.
Week 15 Matchup
The Dolphins are headed up to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers. This game comes with a multitude of factors to dissect.
Tua Tagoliavoa is 0-8 in games under 46 degrees fahrenheit. At kickoff, we are expected to see 28 degree weather with snow flurries. This is very bad for Tagoliavoa.
Tua in games when the temperature is below 40 degrees:
— PickensBurgh 🫡 (@PickensBurgh) December 11, 2025
0-6 record
1 TD
12 interceptions 😳
Steelers are in for a treat on Monday 👀 pic.twitter.com/9Ty5SabjzC
Luckily for our situation, we are worried about Achane. Any struggles from Tagoliavoa will rub off on Achane, but he can still perform, and would be a handcuff to bad play by Tua.
The Steelers are 10th versus Running Backs. They are also 11th in Receiving Yards Allowed to Running Backs. However, TJ Watt will be out for the Steelers in this game, which will reduce their overall defensive efficiency by around 10%, as he is a very high-impact player.
We could expect a somewhat difficult matchup for Achane considering the defense, conditions, and injury. Nonetheless, he is a must-start RB1, still with a very-high ceiling.
De'Von Achane has mildly reduced expectations, but still with a ceiling being RB1 of the week, as per usual.
More Fantasy Sports On SI News:
Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.