This article is part of our NFL Waiver Wire series.
Week 16 marks championship week for most leagues, though some play through Week 17. Most managers are eliminated, but that doesn't mean your fantasy season is over. There's always dabbling in DFS from now until the Super Bowl, and it's not a bad idea to get people together and do a playoff league. Those leagues generally fall into two categories — one-and-done leagues (where you can use a player in your lineup only once) or leagues where players accumulate points throughout the playoffs. Bottom line, fantasy doesn't need to be over for anyone. Spoiler alert, there's a lot of running-back options this week, but it's pretty thin elsewhere.
Also, no FAAB values are listed because each should be a max bid — there's no reason to save FAAB money if Week 16 is your season finale.
This columns is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and remaining budget.
Quarterback
PRIMARY TARGET
Marcus Mariota, LV - Tough week if you're looking to stream a quarterback, there's not much out there. But Mariota is a decent option, as he's expected to start for an injured Derek Carr. Mariota took over in the first half last week after Carr left with a groin injury. He completed 60.7 percent of his passes for 226 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his first extended action since
Week 16 marks championship week for most leagues, though some play through Week 17. Most managers are eliminated, but that doesn't mean your fantasy season is over. There's always dabbling in DFS from now until the Super Bowl, and it's not a bad idea to get people together and do a playoff league. Those leagues generally fall into two categories — one-and-done leagues (where you can use a player in your lineup only once) or leagues where players accumulate points throughout the playoffs. Bottom line, fantasy doesn't need to be over for anyone. Spoiler alert, there's a lot of running-back options this week, but it's pretty thin elsewhere.
Also, no FAAB values are listed because each should be a max bid — there's no reason to save FAAB money if Week 16 is your season finale.
This columns is geared toward "standard" 12-team leagues and based upon a $100 free-agent budget. Please adjust for your league based on both the number of teams (I'm in a 24-team league, for example) and remaining budget.
Quarterback
PRIMARY TARGET
Marcus Mariota, LV - Tough week if you're looking to stream a quarterback, there's not much out there. But Mariota is a decent option, as he's expected to start for an injured Derek Carr. Mariota took over in the first half last week after Carr left with a groin injury. He completed 60.7 percent of his passes for 226 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his first extended action since Week 6 last season. He also rushed for 88 yards and a score. All in all, not bad for coming in cold off the bench; figure a week's worth of practice with the first team helps his numbers this week. Plus, his rushing ability adds value.
Running Back
PRIMARY TARGETS
Le'Veon Bell, KC - The Chiefs fear Clyde Edwards-Helaire suffered a high ankle sprain and will miss at least this week. Bell put up a season-high 14.1 fantasy points against a tough New Orleans defense last week and should get the majority of the work with CEH sidelined. While there's some mileage on Bell, he plays in arguably the best offense in the league and should be fresh with limited work until this point. He's 54 percent owned in Yahoo leagues but would make for at least a nice flex spot for your championship.
Tony Pollard, DAL - Pollard is only owned in 46 percent of Yahoo leagues, so there's a decent chance he's available. Ezekiel Elliott could be back this week, making this something of a gamble, but again, there's no reason to save your FAAB. Pollard scored 28.2 fantasy points as the featured back Sunday and has a decent matchup against the Eagles at home this week.
Salvon Ahmed, MIA - Ahmed is in similar territory to Pollard given that Myles Gaskin could be back this week. Gaskin tested positive fro COVID-19 on Dec. 12; Saturday would be 14 days. Even if Gaskin returns, it seems Ahmed has done enough to carve out a role in this offense to at least be in a timeshare. Again, grabbing him is about the upside if Gaskin is out, and it's an excellent matchup against the Raiders.
SECONDARY TARGETS
Darrell Henderson, Malcolm Brown, LAR - Cam Akers is finally paying dividends for having him on your roster all season and now that it's championship week ... he suffers a high ankle sprain. Both Henderson and Brown should split the workload this week, but if I'm forced to choose, I'm going with Henderson. He had some big games earlier this season and, therefore, I'd think he gets more of the workload. Watch for news this week on both players, as it's a gamble to take either. But this is a good offense and either could pay off big.
Wide Receiver
PRIMARY TARGET
Russell Gage, ATL - This pick depends on the availability of Julio Jones. If Jones is out again, Gage is a great play. One of the best third wide receivers in the league, Gage has scored 13.1, 16.7 and 15.3 fantasy points (.5 PPR) in his last three games. While the Chiefs aren't the greatest matchup, Gage is averaging nine targets per game in his last five contests. It's possible the Falcons shut down Julio.
Defense
SECONDARY TARGET
Houston Texans - Houston is a decent streaming option at home against the Bengals. Cincinnati hasn't won on the road this season, its backfield is a mess and its best receiver, Tyler Boyd, left Monday's game with a concusion. The Bengals also have to deal with a short week. While it's a small sample, Ryan Finley (if he starts again) has a 3.9 YPA after having a 5.4 YPA last season.
