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John's top fantasy football playoff schedules, sleepers, matchups to target for Weeks 15, 16, 17 of 2025. His favorite players with juicy matchups in the fantasy playoffs.
If you manage any fantasy football teams that have already gotten to eight wins, or are in a great position to make the fantasy football playoffs, you might start thinking about trades you can make to set yourself up for success in the fantasy postseason.
Sometimes, even sure-fire must-start players have a string of difficult matchups in Week 15, Week 16, and Week 17 that might nerf their upside cases in those games. Considering that you have to win each playoff game that you play in, that matters a lot.
If you're able to dump players that have poor playoff schedules for players that have a bunch of excellent playoff matchups, you could truly tap into the upside of the players you end up trading for. So let's break down five players with juicy matchups and playoff schedules in the final weeks of the fantasy football season.
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Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens
Jackson (knee) is set up very nicely for the playoffs. There's little need for introduction here -- even with a relatively weak pass-catching corps, Jackson puts up excellent numbers due to his rushing upside and extremely efficient passing numbers.
He was the QB1 in fantasy football last season, when he threw for 4,172 passing yards, 41 touchdowns, and just four interceptions, and rushed for 915 yards and four scores. He gets to face the Cincinnati Bengals, New England Patriots, and Green Bay Packers in Weeks 15-17.
This is what a below average passing day looks like for Lamar Jackson…#RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/uEihjvKGhR
— SleeperRavens (@SleeperRavenss) November 11, 2025
The Packers are an above-average difficulty of matchup, but the Bengals and Patriots are two of the worst fantasy defenses against quarterbacks this season. We could see him score north of 30 points in both those games, since the Ravens have a poor defense, and they both have great offenses.
Justin Jefferson, WR, Minnesota Vikings
Since quarterback Carson Wentz (shoulder) got injured and was placed on Injured Reserve for the rest of the season, Jefferson's production has been pretty miserable. In his last two games, he's been targeted 21 times, but has caught just 10 passes for 84 yards and zero touchdowns.
A receiver of his caliber has no business dealing with such a poor situation that it makes his numbers tank like that. But the targets are there, and that generally leads to better days, especially when we're talking about arguably the best wideout in the NFL.
MARLON HUMPHREY INTERCEPTION!!!!
TUNE IN ON FOX. pic.twitter.com/heIHiV6VD0
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 9, 2025
It doesn't appear that "Jettas" is too thrilled with McCarthy's play, as we've seen more than a few low-effort plays from Jefferson. That doesn't tend to happen, and is very off-brand for him. Perhaps when Week 15 rolls around, the incredibly soft matchups he has will help him produce more.
He faces the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, and Detroit Lions, all of whom have terrible pass defenses that have ranked near the bottom of the NFL in fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers this season. Specifically, they allow the most, 12th-most, and ninth-most FPts to opposing wideouts in 2025.
Dangerous but catchable ball from JJ McCarthy to Justin Jefferson.
The WR needs to bring this one in. pic.twitter.com/nzWS3K7vq8
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) November 9, 2025
There were quite a few near misses and plays that should have resulted in big gains that Jefferson didn't make. He usually makes those, and there's no reason to believe he's not still in his prime. So if you have him, it's probably better to hold on to him for now if you can manage.
And he's an excellent trade target after a 7.7 PPR fantasy point outing last week. He very rarely has such poor games, and definitely doesn't have them consistently.
Daniel Jones, QB, Indianapolis Colts
After his last two ugly games, in which he turned the ball over seven times, many fantasy managers might be fed up with his inability to protect the football. In fantasy leagues with typical Sleeper quarterback scoring settings, things are mostly fine for him.
But in leagues that punish interceptions, fumbles, and lost fumbles more heavily, he's been a pretty poor fantasy option. Making a move for him makes sense because he'll face the San Francisco 49ers in Week 16 and the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 17.
Daniel Jones runs the "Alec down there somewhere" to perfection 🚀 pic.twitter.com/yYgfErBS7R
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 26, 2025
If you have someone else to start in Week 15, Jones could help you go all the way. The Colts will likely be in playoff contention come that time, and will be battling for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, so they'll have plenty of motivation to win. Against two of the NFL's worst secondaries, Jones and his array of weapons could wreck shop yet again.
Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Commanders
McLaurin (quad) isn't playing because of a quadriceps injury, and his quarterback, Jayden Daniels (elbow), isn't playing due to a dislocated elbow. We don't know how much time it will be before either of them takes the field again. But neither of them was placed on injured reserve after Week 9.
So there's reason to believe they could both make it back after just a four-game absence and be healthy for the final four games of the regular season. A Week 15 game against the porous New York Giants secondary and a Week 17 matchup with the horrendous Dallas Cowboys pass defense should prove very productive for both.
Terry McLaurin is a freak.
An absolute freak. pic.twitter.com/uwl6nOjBzO
— Chad Ryan (@ChadwikoTWW) October 28, 2025
McLaurin is maintaining much of his peak athleticism and skill despite being 30 years old. If he comes back healthy, he could smash in the championship game. He's a nice player to target in trades if you have a winning record and expect to make the fantasy postseason.
Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints
Kamara has had a pretty ugly season so far. In fact, it wouldn't be incorrect to say he's been one of the most disappointing fantasy football draft picks of all this season. He's just the RB24 so far through 10 weeks, despite finishing as the RB9 last year and the RB11 the year before.
And his RB9 finish in 2024 came in just 14 games -- on a points per game basis, he was the fifth-best running back in full-PPR leagues. This season, he's the RB32 in PPG. The plummet has been real. But things are looking up after the bye, and especially during the playoffs.
Alvin Kamara BREAKS a LONG One! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/jq1s5P2RTj
— Saints Happy Hour Podcast (@SaintsHappyHour) November 9, 2025
Kamara just scored 14.5 PPR fantasy points on the road against the Carolina Panthers. That's more than serviceable as a flex. And the Saints offense finally looked alive in Week 10, in quarterback Tyler Shough's second start. Spencer Rattler just wasn't working for them.
He rushed 22 times for 83 yards and caught three passes for 32 yards, both the second-highest marks of his season. And he'll face the Carolina Panthers again, at home this time, in Week 15. Weeks 16 and 17 will feature the New York Jets at home and the Tennessee Titans on the road.
Kamara for SIX!
The @Saints take the lead on the extra point.
📺: #NOvsATL on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/gLvfp3kY89— NFL (@NFL) September 29, 2024
Both those teams have absolutely putrid offenses this season, so the Saints could find themselves in another positive game script in which they use Kamara extensively as a rusher and receiver. We could easily see more 25-touch games in those contests, which is excellent for his fantasy value.
And while he's had bad touchdown luck this season, that could regress nicely against poor defenses. I imagine he'll score 15 or more PPR fantasy points per game throughout the playoffs, which would make him a must-start in all leagues as a flex at worst.
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