Fantasy Football Playoffs Bold Predictions - John's Picks for Weeks 15, 16, 17

John's fantasy football playoffs bold predictions for Weeks 15, 16, 17 of the 2025 NFL season. Expert predictions for Justin Jefferson, Luther Burden, Chris Rodriguez, more.

The fantasy football playoffs are almost upon us. You might have missed the playoffs in your leagues or be fighting for the last spot to make it in, so this article might not be completely relevant for you yet.

But for those of you who have made it in, or those who are simply looking ahead in case you can make it, it's important to try to find potential must-have players down the stretch, and to avoid players who might lose people leagues if they're started.

Even players who haven't done a ton this season can still have mini-breakouts down the stretch, and those are the players you want on your team. And even great players can fade down the stretch for a variety of reasons. We'll stay positive with this one, though -- let's break down bold predictions for the fantasy football playoffs in 2025!

• 2025 fantasy football rankings
• Running back (RB) rankings
• Wide receiver (WR) rankings
• Tight end (TE) rankings
• Quarterback (QB) rankings
• FLEX rankings
• Defense (D/ST) rankings
• Kicker (K) rankings
• Dynasty rankings

Chris Rodriguez Jr. Scores Double-Digit Fantasy Points In Each Game

The Washington Commanders officially declared that their starting quarterback, Jayden Daniels (elbow), will return to play in Week 14, meaning he should be fully healthy by the time Week 15 rolls around. That's fantastic news for the Commanders offense.

A better offense almost invariably tends to lead to the players on that offense scoring more points in fantasy football. For a running back, a team's ability to sustain drives and get into scoring position is massive, especially for one who doesn't catch a ton of passes.

This is the major difference between Chris Rodriguez Jr. and Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Rodriguez runs with power, Bill does not. It's important for running backs to fight through contact, break tackles, and pick up extra yards. C-Rod is not giving this job up this year pic.twitter.com/wetYOinqX0

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) November 17, 2025

Rodriguez runs with excellent power, which has made him the primary goal-line back for the Commanders ever since they benched rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt. While that didn't amount to a lot of volume last week, things should be better with Daniels back.

The second-year pro is one of the best rushing quarterbacks in the NFL, and his rushing ability forces defenses to respect him by spying him with linebackers more. They'll sometimes bite on play-action fakes or read option plays, which opens up more lanes for the running back to run through.

Chris Rodriguez probably maintains his goal line role for the Commanders because Jacory Croskey-Merritt is not capable of running through linebackers. Doesn't have the strength or power to do so even with some speed built up. pic.twitter.com/NoHxG9Jf2Q

— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) November 13, 2025

The other Washington running back who actually sees decent playing time is RB Jeremy McNichols. He's the team's primary pass-protecting back, so he plays on clear passing downs since he's good at keeping the quarterback clean from pass-rushers.

While it would be nice if Rodriguez caught more passes, he has major touchdown upside down the stretch. And he'll face the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and Dallas Cowboys in the three weeks of the fantasy playoffs. Two of those matchups are excellent, and the Eagles just got decimated by the Chicago Bears on the ground in Week 13.

The Bears run game is functioning like a well-orchestrated symphony with them hitting their peak against the Eagles. Zone-based with gap concepts sprinkled in. Shrewd use of motion to clear out space, QB ball-handling from Caleb on point, cameraman being faked out. Ben Johnson &… pic.twitter.com/9iM5gDsIRt

— Brandon Thorn (@BrandonThornNFL) December 1, 2025

The Eagles might be the toughest out of these matchups, and their best run defender, defensive tackle Jalen Carter (shoulder), just had an operation on his shoulders. He'll miss Week 14. He should be back by Week 16, but he might not be playing at 100 percent, and might not have been last week, either.

In the two games the Eagles have played without him this season, they have allowed five rush touchdowns. So, Rodriguez's schedule looks quite favorable, and the offensive situation around him is improving. I wouldn't be surprised if he's startable through the entire fantasy playoff stretch.

Luther Burden III Becomes A Startable WR2

It was just announced that Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze (foot) is dealing with a stress fracture in his foot and won't play in Week 14. While the belief is that he'll return soon, foot fractures like this often cause players to miss multiple weeks.

Some medical professionals who happen to be fantasy football injury analysts are predicting that he should miss around three to five weeks. When he comes back, obviously, Burden's upside will be nerfed. But Burden has been excellent this year. The only barrier to him becoming fantasy relevant has seemingly been playing time.

This route by Luther Burden wow. Sells vertical. Quick in and out of the break great reactive catch.

Give this man more targets. #DaBears #Bears pic.twitter.com/NdwipjPaxw

— Clay Harbor (@clayharbs82) November 9, 2025

Burden is quite talented, but he was a raw prospect entering the NFL. His college made a cut-up of him running routes at practice, and it really wasn't impressive. But he's clearly made strides in his short time in the NFL, and he's not lacking athletic talent.

Burden has by far the highest passer rating of any Bears wideout when targeted (122.0), the highest yards per route run (2.33), the highest yards per target (9.65), yards after catch per reception (6.85), missed tackles forced per reception (0.15), and yards per target over expectation (2.3).

In short, he's made a lot happen with the few opportunities he's been given. Yet, the Bears haven't fed him the targets he deserves, instead feeding slot WR Olamide Zaccheaus quite generously. It's probably time that they stop doing that quite as much, thankfully.

.@CALEBcsw goes deep to @lutherburden3 🚀

📺: ABC pic.twitter.com/imsfbxj3hL

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 14, 2025

Of course, we don't know what's going on behind the scenes. But it's becoming seemingly ridiculous that they're not using Burden more. They need to start doing so, and he'll produce quite well if they do, according to my analysis. With Odunze out, they might finally not have much of a choice.

I'll meanwhile be screaming at my television if they start giving more targets to Zaccheaus.

Justin Jefferson Bounces Back, Averages 15.0+ PPR PPG

Jefferson had easily his worst game of the season last week, catching just two of his six targets for a paltry four receiving yards. Not once in his career has he had such poor production -- not even in his rookie season, or in games where he suffered an injury and was forced to exit the contest.

It's been an absolutely miserable season for him. In the games that quarterback J.J. McCarthy or rookie Max Brosmer started, Jefferson had quite low yardage totals. But his playoff schedule is luckily an absolute cakewalk. He'll face the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and Detroit Lions.

JUSTIN JEFFERSON 52-YARD TD FOR THE LEAD

📺: #LACvsMIN on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UQdQ05hqXN pic.twitter.com/I6yR2VECKf

— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023

Even with poor quarterback play, it's important not to get carried away by a stretch of bad games and remember how good a player he is. And playing against very poor defenses can dull a bit of the downside of having a poor quarterback.

Jefferson will likely be getting open regularly and with ease against all three of these defenses, which each have bottom-10 ability to slow down receivers. The Cowboys have been awful all season, the Giants have been awful all season, and the Lions secondary is decimated by injuries. All three have been gashed through the air.

Jefferson might not have absolute league-winning production, but he should at least land in the 15-20 PPR point range for each game, making him a must-start borderline WR1. It's probably not a great idea to bench him out of frustration. If you're still hanging onto him, keep him in your active lineups.

De'Von Achane Will Be The Fantasy Playoffs RB1

Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane is one of the best running backs in fantasy football this season. He's currently the RB5 overall, but I'm predicting he finishes as the top-scoring running back in all of fantasy football from Week 15 to Week 17.

A big part of this is his schedule -- he gets to face the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cincinnati Bengals, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While the Steelers are an above-average rushing defense, they give up a sliver more receiving production to opposing running backs. Tampa Bay and Cincinnati, meanwhile, give up the most in the NFL.

De'Von Achane runs it in for 6️⃣ and Julian Hill adds 2️⃣ pic.twitter.com/JZvEFj4TOp

— Miami Dolphins (@MiamiDolphins) September 7, 2025

Achane's development has been fantastic. He's a true workhorse running back and easily the smallest RB in the NFL to have such a distinction. While he had a big dip in rushing efficiency in Year 2, he's bounced back in a big way this season, and remains absolutely lethal as a receiver.

He's capable of running routes from the pattern as a receiver, handles the vast majority of the rushing work, and has been successful with dump-off passes out of the backfield despite defenses often knowing what's coming. And the Cincinnati and Tampa Bay matchups are absolutely perfect for him.

There goes De’Von Achane for six!

NOvsMIA on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/Tj2LUxgCqU

— NFL (@NFL) November 30, 2025

Achane would probably be more productive if he were on a better offense, but it might not matter with the low-quality defenses he'll get to face. If you drafted him, you might just be on your way to winning a championship in your fantasy league. Buckle up!

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