Fantasy Football 2016: Best Week 17 Lineups, Rankings For FanDuel, DraftKings And More

The NFL’s regular season finale, Week 17, will be a conundrum for FanDuel, DraftKings and other daily fantasy football owners. Much of the issue has to do with the postseason. A number of stars and their respective teams are either hoping to earn a playoff spot or better their position in the standings, while those who have no shot at the playoffs could sit out for fear of a serious injury that could spill over into the 2017 season.

And after Week 16’s litany of injuries to stars, who could blame any player. The Oakland Raiders saw quarterback Derek Carr go down with a broken leg, as did the Tennessee Titans with quarterback Marcus Mariota and the Seattle Seahawks with receiver and returner Tyler Lockett.

Given those major blows – with Oakland’s likely the worst as Carr blossomed into a franchise cornerstone and gave the once beleaguered team Super Bowl hopes – it’s very possible fantasy’s regular producers like the Cowboys Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott and Dez Bryant may sit out, and the same could be said for studs like the Giants Odell Beckham Jr. and the Steelers Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown.

That’s not to say every one of those players will opt for the bench, but it does seem unlikely they will play four full quarters and threaten their health for the playoffs.

And it’s not just winning, postseason-bound players that could be affected. The Titans could decide to sit running back DeMarco Murray and the Arizona Cardinals may rest explosive and unheralded rusher David Johnson and look toward next season. We already know the Buffalo Bills will exercise caution with quarterback and fantasy star Tyrod Taylor and instead start EJ Manuel in Week 17.

No matter what platform you choose, be sure to monitor every prospective players’ status throughout the week and plan some contingencies for each. And our rankings can help you plan.

Here’s the best lineups and rankings at each position for Week 17 for any DFS platform.

QB

1.Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

2.Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions

3.Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints

4.Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers

5.Tom Brady, New England Patriots

It’s all chalk and a big hit to your salary cap this week at QB. But for good reason. Rodgers is back to his old-self and the Lions are sixth-worst in fantasy against passers. But Stafford faces a Packers secondary that’s seventh-worst. In a best case scenario, it winds up as a shootout and DFS players all win. Brees doesn’t seem likely to sit for Week 17 and he might take solace in missing the postseason by handing the Falcons a loss before they advance. Atlanta’s still the second-worst in fantasy against QBs. Roethlisberger might not play the whole game versus Cleveland, and Brady the same against Miami, but they both have matchups against two of the three worst secondaries in fantasy.

RB

1.Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons

2.Le’Veon Bell, Pittsburgh Steelers

3.Mark Ingram, New Orleans Saints

4.Charcandrick West, Kansas City Chiefs

5.Latavius Murray, Oakland Raiders

Freeman hasn’t made our rankings too often of late, but the Saints are allowing 5.1 catches for 51.5 yards per week to RBs, and both Freeman and Tevin Coleman will be must-owns in Week 17. Like Roethlisberger, tread lightly with Bell who Pittsburgh will be careful with based off of his history of injuries late in the season. Ingram had a monster Week 16 and can carry that over as Atlanta’s No. 22 in fantasy against RBs. West and Spencer Ware could be coin flips this week, like Coleman and Freeman, and the Chiefs should play both extensively to improve their playoff seeding. KC plays the Chargers eight-worst defense in fantasy. Murray may get a heavier workload if Oakland thinks it can hold on to the No. 2 seed and due to Carr’s unfortunate injury.

WR

1.Golden Tate, Detroit Lions

2.Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks

3.Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys

4.Julian Edelman, New England Patriots

5.Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Bonus: Emmanuel Sanders, Denver Broncos

Of late, Tate’s either exploded or provided moderate production. This week he meets a Green Bay secondary allowing 28.33 points per week to receivers, according to Yahoo, by far the worst in the league. Baldwin was unstoppable in Week 16 and next faces San Francisco’s fifth-worst secondary, while Bryant is another star who could see limited action but could torture the Eagles, who are better only that Green Bay vs. WRs. Edelman goes as Brady goes, but his matchup with Miami (24.57 points per week to WRs) is hard to pass up. Evans is likely to close out the year big against the Panthers No. 25 ranked unit, and Sanders is a backup for all the others in a risky, but possibly big, play.

TE

1.Ladarius Green, Pittsburgh Steelers

2.Richard Rodgers, Green Bay Packers

3.Dennis Pitta, Baltimore Ravens

4.Charles Clay, Buffalo Bills

5.Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles

Green, who sat out Week 16, by far has the best matchup vs. Cleveland (a fantasy worst 11.97 points per week to TEs), but if he sits out again Rodgers could see a ton of targets vs. Detroit’s No. 30 ranked group. Pitta and the Ravens have nothing to play for but could close the season strong when facing Cincinnati, who sits one spot above Detroit. Clay won’t have Taylor, but Manuel will look for him often against the Jets sixth-worst defense against TEs. And Ertz could take advantage of Dallas’ poor TE defense – 9.19 points per week and likely to sit several top defenders.

FLEX

1.Tevin Coleman, RB, Atlanta Falcons

2.Bilal Powell, RB, New York Jets

3.Chris Ivory, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars

4.J.J. Nelson, WR, Arizona Cardinals

5.Tyrell Williams, WR, San Diego Chargers

Coleman we already mentioned, but Powell can cement his place on the roster for next season as Buffalo’s dropped to fourth-worst in fantasy against RBs. Ivory can do the same vs. the Colts sixth-worst RB defense allowing 105.6 rushing yards and 5.1 receptions for 45.6 yards per week. Nelson was unstoppable against Seattle and has a much easier matchup with the Rams, who are ranked No. 27 in fantasy vs. WRs. Williams and Chargers have no playoff hopes but can knock back KC, which struggled against WRs but has improved to No. 20 in fantasy.

Defense

1.Minnesota

2.Seattle

3.Houston

4.Denver

5.Tampa Bay

Have to live Minnesota against Matt Barkley and the Bears, while Seattle can bounce back against the very limited 49ers offense. Houston faces a Titans offense missing Mariota, who was the only one keeping defenses honest and protecting DeMarco Murray. Denver could punish the Raiders and Carr’s fill-in Matt McGloin, and Tampa Bay’s very, very slim playoff hopes rest on its defense and a few prayers. They get a Panthers offense that’s been boom or bust all season, and Cam Newton is unlikely to see significant playing time.