Week 17 means fantasy football championships and players like Kirk Cousins helping owners hoist trophies.
This past week, it was Washington’s quarterback who led all scorers before Monday besides the Arizona Cardinals’ defense, which is quite the fitting situation for what has been a wild season.
Though the season continues to fade, owners won’t have it easier in Week 17. With the contenders making pushes, pretenders hoping to play spoiler, injuries, the threat of starters sitting and so much more, this might be the toughest week of all—as it should be.
Here’s a look at value comparisons for each spot and some start-sit notables.
QB
Matchup to Know: Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers (at CLE)
Another week, another chance for Ben Roethlisberger to blow away the competition.
One could have drafted Big Ben this past offseason with this two-game stretch around championship time. The word “chance” isn’t a mistake, though, as he went out against a miserable Baltimore defense and posted just four points last week.
Don’t expect it to happen again.
It’s the first time all year Big Ben’s really let owners down and now he goes into a pivotal contest against the Cleveland Browns, a team he torched for 27 points back in Week 10. Look for him to get back into form after a brief hiccup and lead all quarterbacks in scoring.
Sleeper: Sam Bradford, Philadelphia Eagles (at NYG)
The hype around Chip Kelly’s offense with the Philadelphia Eagles wound up swallowing Sam Bradford into the realm of disappointment, which is why he’s owned in 18 percent of leagues.
The numbers should swell this week, though. Bradford has posted 16 or more points in each of his past two outings and now gets the New York Giants, the team that entered last weekend allowing the second-most points to quarterbacks.
Owners will point out that Bradford struggled against these Giants earlier this year by throwing a trio of interceptions, but the cobwebs around the offense seem gone and the Giants sit in a miserable free fall after just allowing 49 points.
RB
Matchup to Know: Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons (vs. NO)
It’s time for Atlanta Falcons running back Devonta Freeman to end his season with a feast.
Freeman is fantasy’s leading scorer at the position and figures to go out with a bang against the New Orleans Saints, owners of a defense he exploited to the tune of 27 points back in Week 6.
Little has changed since. Freeman’s still a monster, having posted 14 or more points in each of his last two outings and the Saints entered Week 16 still allowing the most points to backs.
What else needs said?
Sleeper: Antonio Andrews, Tennessee Titans (at IND)
The Tennessee Titans always provide a tricky situation at running back, but it’s clear Antonio Andrews is the lead back and a surefire solid play if the matchup looks good.
It certainly does in Week 17 against the Indianapolis Colts. Owners probably have a hard time trusting Andrews after he posted minus-two points last weekend against a game Houston defense, but the Colts entered last weekend allowing the 10th-most points to the position.
Andrew not only has the talent to run wild thanks to his ability to catch passes as well as run well, he proved more than capable against these Colts back in Week 3 by way of 11 points.
Now the full-time back, Andrews looks ready to bully the Colts again.
WR
Matchup to Know: Odell Beckham, New York Giants (vs. PHI)
It’s comeback time.
The other side of the Eagles-Giants clash features Odell Beckham, who returns from a one-game suspension surely wanting to end the season on a high note.
He’s going to against the Philadelphia secondary, which hit last weekend as the unit allowing the second-most points to wideouts before Washington’s Pierre Garcon torched it for 14 points on his own.
That’s an easy number for Beckham to hit in a game that should feature plenty of passing. Before the suspension, he had hit on 20 or more points three times in four games with five scores in that span.
Sleeper: Travis Benjamin, Cleveland Browns (vs. PIT)
Travis Benjamin looked like one of last week’s biggest sleepers in a smooth matchup against the struggling Kansas City Chiefs defense, at least against wideouts.
Instead, the Cleveland Browns top threat at the position managed just two points, but like Big Ben, owners have to go back to the well thanks to the matchup.
The Steelers haven’t been able to stop opposing wideouts all year from a fantasy perspective, letting up the third-most points to the position before last weekend.
Back in Week 10, Pittsburgh had absolutely no answer for Benjamin, who caught seven passes for 113 yards and 11 points. Expect it to be a similar story here as the Browns take to the air often in an effort to keep pace.
TE
Matchup to Know: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (vs. OAK)
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce has one more chance to come up huge for fantasy football owners.
While he’s been quite hit-or-miss this year, Kelce posted 10 points last weekend against Cleveland in a good matchup and gets another top-tier opportunity this time out against the Oakland Raiders.
Oakland’s been the matchup everyone circled this year thanks to its lack of ability to stop tight ends. Kelce only managed four points against the unit earlier this year while in a slump, but one has to imagine the surging team will help him produce another double-digit day in such an easy situation.
Sleeper: Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles (at NYG)
One of Bradford’s favorite targets in recent weeks has been tight end Zach Ertz.
Ertz had been one of the bigger disappointments this year while taking a backseat to pretty much everyone else in the Philadelphia offense.
In recent weeks, though, Ertz not only grabbed his first double-digit outing of the year, he’s now posted two in a row.
It’s not outlandish to expect a third when Ertz takes on the Giants, who allowed the third-most points to the spot before letting Minnesota’s Kyle Rudolph post 11 in a blowout loss this past weekend.
Given the newfound usage and matchup, Ertz is one of the week’s top sleeper plays.
All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats as of December 28. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com.
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