RADIO
First of all, congratulations to those of you who have already been crowned as champions in 2015. For the rest of you who are still in the trenches, we have not forgotten about you. The two-week championships or the Week 17 championship leagues, let's talk. While we'd all like to think we have a grasp on player and team trends, each week of football serves to remind us that "any given Sunday" is a real thing. We have upsets, expectations that are exceeded, injuries and so on.
Let's look at players who are on the rise heading into the last week of the regular season. Please note: I am actively avoiding the Washington players even though Kirk Cousins and Jordan Reed are EASY risers and while I don't think they'll be benched for Week 17, one cannot be sure.
Championship Week's Fantasy Football Risers
Drew Brees - QB, NO
For everyone, including myself, who was concerned a bit about that foot injury, well Drew Brees put those thoughts to rest with an assist from the Jacksonville secondary. Brees completed 25-of-36 passes for 412 yards and three touchdowns in a victory over Jacksonville in a game that lived up to its Vegas shootout projection and more. There's not much to look at here, but this should instill confidence in Brees and the offense for New Orleans going into their last game against Atlanta. The Falcons appear to have come to their senses, but New Orleans is coming in hot, and despite them being on the road in this one, Brees' owners should have no fear heading into Week 17.
DeAngelo Williams - RB, PIT
One of the waiver wire golden boys of the year, DeAngelo Williams ran for 80 yards early against Baltimore only to have to take a backseat as the Steelers abandoned the running game as they fell behind to Ryan Mallett and the Ravens. There's a sentence I never planned on writing. Now Williams and the Steelers get to pick on the nonexistent Browns defense in a must win Week 17 game for them. All Steelers should be fired up in this game, notably DeAngelo as he should get those opportunities in heavy doses next week.
Tim Hightower – RB, NO
We talked about Drew Brees, but here is Tim Hightower. The man is still owned in less than 50% owned of leagues on Fleaflicker so I feel the need to bring his name up specifically. Hightower carried the ball 27 times for 122 yards and two touchdowns while also catching three balls for 47 yards. Hightower now gets a Falcons defense that gives up plenty of points on the ground, and while it'll be an emotionally charged divisional game, the Saints will be out here trying to go out on a high note and end the year on a high note.
Julio Jones – WR, ATL
So let's go to the other side of the ball in that New Orleans-Atlanta game and check in on one of the best receivers in the NFL. He rewarded those who started him despite the matchup against Josh Norman with nine catches on 11 targets for 178 yards with a headliner of a 70-yard touchdown where he shook off Josh Norman and Luke Kuechly (those guys are pretttttay good). Now he'll get to feast on the New Orleans Saints defense that apparently forgot to help Brandon Browner over the top with a safety (leading to an Allen Robinson 90-yard touchdown). Julio is the #1 WR for Week 17.
Jordan Matthews - WR,PHI
The Philadelphia Eagles fell flat on their face on Saturday against the Redskins, clinching the division for Washington, and now a game against the Giants in Week 17 is meaningless as far as objective playoff implications go. That said, this is a bad blood rivalry game in the NFC East and the Giants looked way more broken than Philly in their own matchup against Minnesota on Sunday night (without Odell Beckham of course). The Giants' passing defense is a joke, which leads to Matthews' own inclusion here as well as the next name. Matthews has become a serious garbage time hero this year, but owners don't care when it comes. He caught six-of-eight targets for 104 yards and a touchdown, and now gets to be the top option against said Giants. Lock it in.
Zach Ertz - TE, PHI
Here we are again Zach. I put you here last week and you rewarded owners with 13 catches on 17(!) targets for 122 yards, which doesn't include an errant throw by Sam Bradford for a wide open touchdown. You want a guy on the rise who is available in nearly two thirds of leagues on Fleaflicker, well here you go. The Eagles are finally coming around to the fact that they have a great athlete in Zach Ertz who can convert for them in big opportunities. Two games ago he saw 13 targets, catching eight of them for 78 yards and a touchdown. He has 30 targets in his past two games. They now face that horrid Giants defense who just gave up a long touchdown to Kyle Rudolph. Ertz is here to build some serious momentum going into 2016.
Other Risers to Note: Ryan Fitzpatrick (QB, NYJ), Frank Gore (RB, IND), Mike Gillislee (RB, BUF), Calvin Johnson (WR, DET), Travis Kelce (TE, KC)
