Fantasy Football Warning Signals for Week 16

Bruce's fantasy football start em, sit em picks for Week 16. His players with warning signals who have struggled and are worth benching, sitting, and avoiding.

We are in the thick of the fantasy playoff. For many, a win this week gets them into the championship game. Every lineup decision is critical to your team’s success and whether or not you will be able to get the opportunity to play for your league’s championship trophy.

Money and pride are on the line with this week’s roster moves. We must monitor the matchups to make sure there are no warning signals are telling us to remove any of our key players out of lineups. The matchups will be the main driver to most of our lineup decisions this week. If we ignore the matchups and put the wrong player into our lineup, there’s a good chance we could get knocked out of the playoffs.

With all that being said, let’s look at some players we should think twice about before we insert them into our lineups this week.

Editor's Note: Identify fantasy football draft busts, overvalued ADPs, and key players to avoid so you can draft with confidence this season.

Quarterback Concerns - Sit Em for Week 16?

Mac Jones, New England Patriots

This week’s matchup will severely impact Jones’ potential to provide the results we need in fantasy. That Patriots will be hosting the Buffalo Bills in a game that is set with a 43.5 over/under. The last time these two teams played Jones passed for just 19 yards. The weather did play a role in his usage. After all, he only had three pass attempts in that game. The fact that we have two very good defenses squaring off suggests that we are going to get another slow-paced game.

Jones has posted four QB1 weeks and six QB2 weeks on the season. His rushing floor is nonexistent considering he only has one game with more than 20 rushing yards. This impacts his ability to consistently hit the QB1 threshold for fantasy. For him to achieve QB1 status he will need to exceed 300 yards passing or pass for three or more touchdowns. The odds of the Patriots going full air-raid in this game are slim to none, making it hard for Jones to tap into his upside.

What To Do

Fantasy gamers will need to take a hard look at what’s available on waivers and even on their bench. The smart thing to do is play the matchups and stream the best available quarterback. If you are lucky enough to roll into the playoffs with a stud quarterback, then your decision has already been made. However, those managers who have been skimming off the waiver wire will need to get their decision right this week if they want to make it to the championship round.

Running Back Concerns - Start Em for Week 16?

Ronald Jones II Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Jones might be an enticing option for those who need a running back since Leonard Fournette is dealing with a hamstring issue. He will get his chance to operate as the team's lead back this week. His matchup might make it tough for him to get things going on the ground.

The Buccaneers will be traveling to Carolina to play the Panthers. Their defense ranks second in the NFL when it comes to stopping the opposing team’s running backs. They are averaging just 17.8 PPR fantasy points per game to running backs. With Jones, we are banking that he falls into the end zone or escapes for a long run. The Panthers' defense is going to prevent him from consistently grinding out yards.

There’s also the chance Jones slips up in pass protection, causing Bruce Arians to make the decision to remove him off the field. Le’Veon Bell just signed with the team and he’s going to get a few carries to get his feet wet.

We can point to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin being out of the lineup being a reason we could see him receiving an increased workload. To counter that, Brady is a Hall of Fame quarterback who has experience spreading the ball to lesser-known wide receivers. Commanding the offense with Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown is not going to faze him.

What To Do

Some fantasy managers have to start him because there are no better options available. Running backs who are getting a full workload do not grow on trees and are not free off the waiver wire. If you have other options, then you are more than likely going to leave Jones on your bench. The odds are stacked against Jones this week. He’s a touchdown-dependent asset who is at risk of getting pulled at the goal line or not receiving enough red zone touches to make him viable in fantasy.

Wide Receiver Concerns - Start Em for Week 16?

Donovan Peoples-Jones Cleveland Browns

Peoples-Jones makes for a trendy play in DFS since he earned a 28 percent target share and 111 air yards last week. The problem for redraft is it’s hard to depend on the Browns passing game. Their offense is very slow-paced and wants to rely on the run game. Baker Mayfield has not been firing on all cylinders. The game script has to go break for the offense to want to think about utilizing their passing attack.

Hopefully, most fantasy gamers made it this far into the playoffs with a deep bench of wide receivers to choose from. Having to pick People-Jones is a sign of desperation that will leave you sweating out your life decisions until Week 16 is over. He could lead the team in targets and still only provide less than ten PPR fantasy points like he did last week.

What To Do

Don’t get cute with your lineups. Start your studs. Use the best players on your roster to field your lineup like you have been doing all season. Fantasy gamers should only be thinking about Peoples-Jones if they don’t have any other options to lean and they have to pick a replacement off waivers. Outside of that, it’s business as usual.

Brandin Cooks, Houston Texans

Cooks has been the main target hog for the Texans. He has had a sneaky good season with four WR1 weeks and three WR2 weeks. Unfortunately, his matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers might not allow him to hit his upside. Fantasy gamers might not have another option, considering he’s has received a 23 percent target share and a 33 percent share of the team’s air yards in his last five games.

The Chargers’ defense ranks second in the NFL allowing on average 28.9 PPR fantasy points per game to the opposing team’s wide receiver unit. It’s going to be tough sledding for Cooks and the Texans passing offense. He will see a buffet of targets still. Fantasy gamers will need him to crack the end zone or connect on a couple of deep targets.

Cooks has also been added to the COVID-19 list. There’s a good chance that he might not even be available to play this week. Fantasy managers will need to monitor his status going forward.

What To Do

Cooks should be thought of as a volatile flex option this week. There’s a chance he will be productive due to the sheer volume of targets. The matchup will more than likely prevent him from tapping into his upside. If I need a steady safe player to plug into my flex, then I would think about putting Cooks into my lineup. However, if I want to gamble on pure upside, then it’s time to explore other options.

More Fantasy Football Analysis