Well you’ve made it. If you’re reading this article it’s likely for one of two reasons: You’re in your fantasy league’s championship or you’re in the fight to avoid coming in dead last. And honestly if it’s the latter, you shouldn’t be eligible to make waiver wire pickups in my opinion. Even in the Toilet Bowl, the best free agents should be made available to the final two teams playing for a title. But to each their own. I can’t make the rules for all leagues. This Week 16 FAAB piece may seem a bit abbreviated, but I feel it’s only pertinent to mention players that could actually help win Week 16 and crown a champion.
Obviously, there are no more stashes and handcuffs to target. It’s win-or-go-home, and if you’ve made it this far, you likely have a really solid team that you’re comfortable starting. But if you want to grab a guy to block your opponent from potentially getting him, or if you genuinely need a RB2 or WR3/FLEX play, then these are some players to target. At this point, it should take all the FAAB you have left to get your guy.
DOMINATE YOUR LEAGUE: Get the Fantasy Alarm NFL Season Pass!
Week 16 Fantasy Football FAAB targets: Quarterback
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Dolphins (vs. Bengals): In deeper formats you can look at Fitzmagic. He’s about 15 percent owned in ESPN leagues and 25 percent owned in Yahoo leagues. He’s kind of all over the place in terms of production, but he’s thrown caution to the wind. That’s somewhat reckless, but he presents a ton of upside. He gets a good matchup next week against the Bengals. It’s an easy defense to pick apart, and perhaps the Bengals put up some points and keep the game competitive. After all, the Dolphins defense is terrible, and Joe Mixon could run all over them. If Fitz isn’t available in the deepest of leagues, then maybe roll the dice on Drew Lock, who is at home against Detroit. Hopefully you aren’t that desperate in your championship matchup.
Other QBs to consider streaming: Drew Lock (vs. Lions), Andy Dalton (@ Dolphins), Gardner Minshew (@ Falcons), Mitchell Trubisky (vs. Chiefs)
WEEK 16 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Week 16 Fantasy Football FAAB targets: RB
Alexander Mattison/Mike Boone, Vikings (vs. Packers): The Dalvin Cook shoulder injury likely screwed a lot of owners in fantasy. However, if Mattison (ankle) is active next week and Cook is out, then Mattison is a top-24 running back. He’s a FLEX play at worst. But Mattison missed this past Sunday’s game and once Cook went out, Mike Boone got a decent amount of work (56 yards on 13 carries) while finding the end zone twice. Obviously you can’t feel great about starting Boone, but if Mattison is active and Cook isn’t, Mattison is an outstanding value that can be found on waivers.
Boston Scott, Eagles (vs. Cowboys): Scott apparently earned the trust of the Philadelphia coaching staff because he was a PPR darling last week. Sure, he only yielded 13.5 PPR points, but he had seven catches and now has 13 in his past two games. Miles Sanders stole the show on Sunday with his big performance, and it may have overshadowed Scott’s performance. But with a crucial divisional matchup in Week 16 against the Cowboys, I would expect Scott to have similar involvement to the past two weeks where he could record five-to-seven catches, as long as Jordan Howard (shoulder) remains out.
Patrick Laird, Dolphins (vs. Bengals): Laird was a bit of a dud last week as he only recorded 7.4 PPR points, but don’t overlook his 47 total touches in his last three games. He has PPR upside, especially in a matchup against the Bengals next week. He only has one touchdown on the season, but he at least starts over Myles Gaskin, who had 11 touches himself last week. Laird and Gaskin are borderline FLEX plays next week, with Laird being a little better spot because he starts.
MORE WEEK 16:
Waiver pickups | Stock watch | Snap counts | Fantasy playoff tips
Week 16 Fantasy Football FAAB targets: WR
Breshad Perriman, Buccaneers (vs. Texans): Similar to Alexander Mattison, Perriman has really seen his stock rise in recent weeks due to the injuries to Mike Evans (hamstring) and, more recently, Chris Godwin (hamstring). Perriman has three straight games with six targets, and he has four touchdowns in his past two games, including a three-TD performance in Week 15. This is probably what the Ravens were expecting when they drafted him in the first round a few years back, but he’s finally excelling in a pass-happy offense like Tampa Bay’s. Currently it appears that Godwin could be inactive for Week 16. If he’s out, then Perriman could be in line for a healthy dose of targets and oddly enough, he could be a key play for your championship team. If you miss out on Perriman, then Justin Watson is another player worth keeping an eye on especially, if Scotty Miller (hamstring) is also out for the Bucs. Both Perriman and Watson could be high-upside plays in Week 16 alongside O.J. Howard and possibly Cameron Brate.
Anthony Miller, Bears (vs. Chiefs): Miller is shockingly available in about three-quarters of Yahoo and ESPN leagues with 52 targets in his past five games. He’s made the waiver wire column numerous times the last few weeks, but few people have pulled the trigger. If you lost Chris Godwin and need another WR, your best options are Perriman and Miller. Miller has 33 catches in his past five games with healthy yardage, and he’s found the end zone in back-to-back games. The Bears play the Chiefs next week, so the Bears will have to throw it an awful lot and Miller will be involved.
Danny Amendola, Lions (@ Broncos): In season-long leagues, Amendola wasn’t getting much love lately because the production was down. However, he’s been getting looks from David Blough, especially with Marvin Jones Jr. out. In Weeks 13 and 14, Amendola had eight targets in each game. He just didn’t do much with them. However, last week on 13 targets, he caught eight passes for more than 100 receiving yards. The Lions get a difficult matchup next week on the road in Denver and both guys above are better additions, but Amendola may be worth a deep-league PPR add for next week in a tough matchup.
Greg Ward Jr., Eagles (vs. Cowboys): If you don’t like Amendola, then maybe you look to the Eagles' pass catchers. Ward came on strong late in Week 14 against the Giants and it rolled over to Week 15 against the Redskins. For the second straight week, Ward saw nine targets, of which he caught seven for 61 yards and a touchdown. As mentioned previously, the Eagles have a massive game in Week 16, and Ward could be a solid play again in deeper leagues. It’s clear Carson Wentz isn’t afraid to target him and Ward could be a solid play in PPR formats, especially if Nelson Agholor (knee) remains out.
Other WRs to stream: Chris Conley/Keelan Cole, Jaguars (@ Falcons), Russell Gage, Falcons (vs. Jaguars), Tim Patrick, Broncos (vs. Lions), Alex Erickson, Bengals (@ Dolphins)
WEEK 16 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
Week 16 Fantasy Football FAAB targets: Tight End
O.J. Howard, Buccaneers (vs. Texans): I know he hasn’t been great this year. But he almost has to get looked at next week by default, right? Without Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Scotty Miller (possibly), the Bucs are left thin with pass catchers. Howard had eight targets in his last game and he could see a similar workload this weekend against the Texans. Don’t sleep on Cameron Brate, either. Brate and Jameis Winston have a well-documented chemistry on the field, but Howard could get about 65-75 receiving yards.
Others TEs to stream: Jonnu Smith (vs. Saints), Noah Fant (vs. Lions), Darren Fells/Jordan Akins (@ Buccaneers)
WEEK 16 DFS LINEUPS:
FD Cash | FD GPP | DK Cash | DK GPP | Y! Cash | Y! GPP
Week 16 Fantasy Football FAAB targets: D/ST
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: I’ve been quite fond of the Buccaneers D/ST the last few weeks especially in DFS. Tampa Bay has quietly turned their defense around, and those draft investments are finally paying off. Over their past four games the Bucs have returned a total of 59 fantasy points with at least 16 points in three of their past four games. Over that span they’ve forced 10 turnovers, recorded 14 sacks, and scored three touchdowns. The D/ST touchdowns are incredibly hard to predict, but the Bucs defense is hitting on all cylinders. They get a tough matchup against the Texans next week, but it’s a home game at the Pirate Ship and I’m not going to be sleeping on Tampa. They could really give Deshaun Watson fits on Saturday and they have shown a lot of upside recently.
MORE WEEK 16 DFS: Stacks | Values | Lineup Builder
Kansas City Chiefs: The Chiefs, similar to the Bucs, have been returning solid fantasy value at the D/ST position. Sure, they lost Alex Okafor, but they claimed Terrell Suggs off waivers and they get a friendly matchup against the Bears in Soldier Field. The Chiefs have returned double-digit fantasy points in three straight matchups, but they’ve done it the old fashion way by allowing just 28 points in their past three games. They haven’t put up the flashy numbers like the Bucs, but they’ve been solid. Mitchell Trubisky is prone to forcing passes and could be in a little trouble this week with Kansas City coming to town.
Denver Broncos: The Broncos get a friendly home matchup against the Lions on Sunday. Over their past three games, the Broncos have three sacks in each contest with six forced turnovers in that span. What’s killed the Broncos have been the points and yards allowed. That’s limited their upside a little bit. Since David Blough’s marvelous first quarter on Thanksgiving, he has thrown five interceptions and just one touchdown. I can’t imagine he’ll enjoy his first business trip to Denver.
Other D/STs to stream: Seahawks (vs. Cardinals), Redskins (vs. Giants), Colts (vs. Panthers)