Perhaps more than any other, the NFL is a league that experiences ups and downs at a rapid pace. With only 16 games, there’s little room for error and seemingly endless opportunities for improvement. The same goes for fantasy football, and managing rosters effectively is key to winning that championship.

Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year. In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back. These are the risers and fallers heading into Week 17 of the NFL season.

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Post-Week 16 Fantasy Football Risers

RISER - Adam Thielen (WR, MIN)

In his third professional season, Adam Thielen has finally emerged as a major playmaker for the Minnesota Vikings. Shattering all of his previous career highs, the 26-year-old has taken a major leap and figures to be in the team's future plans. Although his targets had barely surpassed five through the first 14 games of the season, Thielen exploded this past Christmas Eve in Green Bay against the Packers.

Quarterback Sam Bradford targeted the Minnesota native a season-high 15 times, and he caught 12 passes for 202 yards, adding a pair of touchdowns in the process. The performance was widely unexpected, as Thielen's ownership percentage was significantly low. It does, however, put fantasy football managers on notice for next week and next year. With the Vikings hosting the Chicago Bears in the season finale, points could once again be easy to come by. Those in need of that one final waiver wire pickup to win a championship could have that player in Adam Thielen.

 

RISER - Brandon LaFell (WR, CIN)

In the aftermath of A.J. Green's injury, the Cincinnati Bengals have been left without a top wide receiver, but that may not be the case anymore. After facing some competition from rookie Tyler Boyd, Brandon LaFell has emerged as that top wideout and recent results have catapulted him into waiver wire frenzy. The seven-year veteran has caught two touchdowns since Green's injury, but his yardage has surpassed 90 three times and his targets have made him a consistent threat.

Last week, he caught six passes for 130 yards and a touchdown in Cincinnati's last-second defeat against the Houston Texans. Like Adam Thielen, LaFell presents quite the intriguing option for those in need of that one final pickup to win a championship. The only reason to worry about him would be the opponents, as the Bengals will host the Baltimore Ravens in the season finale. Having already posted a strong home game against Pittsburgh two weeks ago, however, LaFell could be in line for an encore.

 

RISER - Blake Bortles (QB, JAX)

Listed as one of our fallers of the week way back in Week 3, Blake Bortles has had a terrible, regressive season in 2016. After passing for 35 touchdowns last year, the 24-year-old has dropped off significantly in yards and touchdowns, while maintaining his high interception rate, currently at 16. Jacksonville's struggles as a team have been well documented, with head coach Gus Bradley getting fired just this month. Last week against the Tennessee Titans, however, Bortles managed to put forth his best game of the season as the Jaguars' offense sprung to life.

Bortles completed 26-of-38 passes for his highest completion percentage of the year, while tossing for a touchdown and posting just his fifth game without an interception. The result was outstanding for those who dared to entrust their fantasy football championships with Bortles, but it also set up a possible big game in Week 17. With the Jaguars taking on one of the worst pass defenses this year in the Indianapolis Colts, look for Bortles to close out his season on a high note. After all, he tossed for two touchdowns and zero picks his first time out against them.

 

Post-Week 16 Fantasy Football Fallers

FALLER: Latavius Murray (RB, OAK)

Despite being well short of his total yardage from last year, Latavius Murray has been an incredible fantasy running back this year, doubling his touchdowns from six last year to 12. Fortunately for Murray's owners, the touchdowns have overshadowed his low yardage numbers, but the past two weeks that hasn't been the case. While he did manage 81 yards two weeks ago against the San Diego Chargers, Murray wound up with 40 yards on 15 carries this past week against the Indianapolis Colts, who don't possess a strong rush defense.

This was the fourth time this year that he averaged under three yards per carry, but something scarier is unfolding for Murray's owners counting on him in Week 17. Rookie DeAndre Washington took command of the running game as Murray struggled, rushing for 99 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries. With Derek Carr out for the rest of the year with a broken leg, the running game appears poised for major involvement in the season finale, but Murray's last performance isn't very convincing. He could very well deserve a benching in the season finale.

 

FALLER: Jordan Reed (TE, WAS)

Jordan Reed is a frequent inclusion in the discussion of best tight ends in the National Football League, but his one big flaw keeps reappearing. When Reed is healthy, he is lethal alongside quarterback Kirk Cousins, but his health has been quite the obstacle. After playing in a career-high 14 games last year, he's back down to 11 this season and is currently battling a shoulder injury that has kept him out of action for two of the past four games. In those two games that he has played in, he's managed just two catches for 16 yards combined. This has been an incredible disappointment for the fantasy football managers who feature Reed on their rosters, as he's come up short in the most pivotal time of the season.

For those who have championship matchups scheduled for Week 17, however, Reed still has a chance to pay off. The problem is his ongoing shoulder injury. While he will attempt to play through the pain with the Redskins needing a victory to keep their playoff hopes alive, chances are he won't make any major impact.

 

FALLER: Rashad Jennings (RB, NYG)

While the New York Giants continue to fail miserably at having a consistent running game, Rashad Jennings has remained the team's starter, recording sporadic performances of value. In recent weeks, however, rookie Paul Perkins has begun to emerge as a prime candidate to oust Jennings from the starting role. This past week against the Eagles, Perkins took a major step forward, leading the team in carries for just the second time this season. With Jennings over 30-years-old, Perkins is beginning to look like New York's running back of the future. In the short term, he could be given the lead role once again against the Redskins in Week 17. At this point, Jennings is too inconsistent to garner starts in the season finale. A Jennings swap in favor of Perkins could be in the cards for those counting on the eight-year veteran to win championships.