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Who Should I Start for Week 17? Fantasy Football outlooks for Christian Watson, Woody Marks, DeVonta Smith, Jalen Coker, Mack Hollins, Ricky Pearsall, Rashid Shaheed, Adam Thielen, Tyler Allgeier, Emari Demercado.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 17 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Christian Watson, Woody Marks, DeVonta Smith, Jalen Coker, Mack Hollins, Ricky Pearsall, Rashid Shaheed, Adam Thielen, Tyler Allgeier, Emari Demercado. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 17. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 17 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
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Fantasy Football Matchup Outlooks
Below are some fantasy football outlooks written by our NFL team here at RotoBaller, bringing you their fantasy football analysis and advice on which players to consider starting in Week 17:
Adam Thielen, WR, Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Adam Thielen has become a moderately more intriguing fantasy option for the final few weeks of the campaign following the suspension of teammate DK Metcalf. Thielen joined Pittsburgh ahead of the team's 27-22 win over their division-rival Baltimore Ravens in Week 14. Despite logging roughly 50% of snaps over the two ensuing contests (48/58), the veteran could only come away with one catch on one target in each appearance.
However, Thielen saw his workload elevate in last Sunday's victory against Detroit (4/49) and is poised to see a decent target share with Metcalf set to sit for the next two games. Moreover, if fellow WR Calvin Austin III (hamstring) is unavailable for Week 17, then Thielen, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Scotty Miller would operate in three-wide-receiver sets, significantly raising the floor of the trio. It's a situation worth monitoring as the Steelers gear up for a road clash with the Browns this Sunday.
Mack Hollins, WR, New England Patriots
New England Patriots wide receiver Mack Hollins (abdomen) failed to practice again on Thursday as the team prepares to take on the hosting New York Jets in Week 17. Hollins had one of his better games of the campaign in New England's 28-24 victory over Baltimore last Sunday, reeling in 7-of-9 targets for 69 yards. However, he presumably picked up the issue in the win, despite leading the Pats' WR room in snaps.
With teammate Kayshon Boutte (concussion) following the same practice regimen as the veteran, and DeMario Douglas (hamstring) limited with an injury of his own, New England is in danger of being down several critical offensive pieces. As it stands, Stefon Diggs, Kyle Williams, and Efton Chism III are the only other active wideouts without a designation.
Jalen Coker, WR, Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker has been a more important piece of the offense of late. Coming into Week 17, Coker has seen four or more targets in six straight games. Last week, Coker hauled in three of his five targets for 47 yards in the win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The second-year wideout is still a distant second option to rookie first-rounder Tetairoa McMillan.
The good news is that Coker has found the end zone in two of the last three games. The Panthers are beginning to trust him more, and his role is growing in Carolina. The 24-year-old should at least offer deep-league streaming appeal for the upcoming Week 17 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
Woody Marks, WR, Houston Texans
Houston Texans running back Woody Marks (ankle) missed last week's game against the Raiders after sustaining an injury in Week 15 against Arizona, but he had full participation in practice and has no injury status for this week, indicating he should be a full go in Week 17. The Texans are in a tough matchup against the Chargers in what is expected to be a low-scoring contest on Saturday afternoon, but Marks should step back into a significant role. Before his injury, Marks had set a season-high with 26 carries for 68 yards against the Chiefs and scored a touchdown as a receiver.
The rookie now has five touchdowns on the season and seems to have taken the lead role in the backfield, although Jawhar Jordan and Nick Chubb will also likely remain involved. Since the Chargers have been good against the run and he's still in a committee, Marks is the RB No. 32 in RotoBaller's rankings for Week 17, since he is a high-risk RB3 or flex option with touchdown-dependent upside.
Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers
Per the team, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson (shoulder, illness) is officially questionable for the team's Week 17 clash with the visiting Baltimore Ravens. Watson has dealt with a shoulder injury for a few weeks now, but was able to participate fully for Green Bay's first two practices of the week. However, the 26-year-old was a late addition to the report, picking up an illness that led to his being listed as a non-participant on Thursday.
Unfortunately, this puts his availability for the Pack's Saturday night matchup in doubt, making him a volatile WR3/flex if active. If Watson is unable to suit up, teammates Matthew Golden and Dontayvion Wicks would see an uptick in snaps behind Jayden Reed and Romeo Doubs in the passing game.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 17 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Christian Watson, Woody Marks, DeVonta Smith, Jalen Coker, Mack Hollins, Ricky Pearsall, Rashid Shaheed, Adam Thielen, Tyler Allgeier, Emari Demercado. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 17.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, players news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do, is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 17 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 17 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 17 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 17 for Christian Watson, Woody Marks, DeVonta Smith, Jalen Coker, Mack Hollins, Ricky Pearsall, Rashid Shaheed, Adam Thielen, Tyler Allgeier, Emari Demercado:
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