Week 16 Fantasy Football Rankings for Championship Week: Standard and PPR

Week 16 Fantasy Football Rankings

Congrats on making it this far in your playoffs! For most this is the fantasy football championships, the Super Bowl of fantasy football, the moment you've all been waiting for. For some leagues, next week is still in play so if you are reading then then most likely you are still in the hunt. What this all means is this week is the most important one yet for most of us, and lineup decisions are crucial!

As always, we are bringing you our Week 16 fantasy football rankings, for both PPR and standard leagues, by authors Zach Wilkens (@LopsidedTrades) and Ryan Rufe (@RyanRufe) along with plenty of Week 16 rankings analysis by Zach Wilkens.

The NFL season has two weeks remaining, and that means many fantasy seasons are over due to elimination, and many more will end this weekend. You should be familiar with the routine by now, but just in case you weren’t sure, every week fellow RotoBallers Ryan Rufe and Zach Wilkens post their fantasy football rankings based on team matchups and expected player performances for the week.

Good luck with your lineups, and your championship games. Hopefully we've been able to help you along the way... now let's win some leagues!

2014 Fantasy Football Rankings powered by FantasyPros
 
 
 

Week 16 Quarterback Rankings

Week 16 Quarterback Rankings Anaysis

The biggest question of the week is can Peyton Manning bounce back? I guess most likely if you own Peyton he kept you from making the fantasy championships but if you are still in the running with Peyton then yes, I think he should be a top five QB this week. He is dealing with a slight thigh injury but it shouldn't be something that affects his play.

Matt Ryan has rebounded in a big way lately and has a great matchup this week. I'm not sure what's changed (especially given that Julio was out last week!) but he has a very high ceiling against the Saints. If Julio Jones is active, and I think he will be, even better!
Mark Sanchez is coming off two awful vintage Jets Sanchez games. Luckily the Redskins have an awful defense so he is a borderline top ten play and I'd feel more than okay starting him here. The Redskins allow the most points to opposing quarterbacks, including Nick Foles' 26 points in Week 3. Different quarterback, but the same Chip Kelly offense is a good sign.

Another surprisingly startable QB this week is Robert Griffin III. He looked good last week and most importantly, looked good running. I think he might run even more this week with pressures high to keep up with the Eagles offense. Even without much running, the Eagles give up the third most points to opposing quarterbacks so he should have a fairly easy time getting the ball to his receivers.
Cam Newton is on track to play this week. The injury and lack of practice is worrisome but if Joe Haden misses the game he would be a top-15 QB. There is a good chance you have a safer option here though.

There are three quarterbacks making their first starts of the year at the bottom of the list. The biggest surprise is Jimmy Clausen starting in place of the benched Jay Cutler. If Josh McCown can succeed there is a small chance Clausen can but really you should just avoid this. The other two are Thad Lewis or Case Keenum for the Texans and Ryan Lindley for the Cardinals. Avoid at all costs!
 
 

Week 16 Running Back Rankings

Week 16 Running Back Rankings Analysis

The Ravens allow the fewest points to opposing running backs. So why do I have Arian Foster so high? I think the loss of Haloti Ngata is huge and they simply haven't been tested the past two weeks. Toby Gerhart was able to go over 4 yards a carry last week. That was the first time he's gone 4.0+ with at least 10 carries so that's a great sign for Foster. In addition with a well below average starter at QB I expect plenty of runs and screens for Foster. Start him with confidence.

DeMarco Murray is the biggest question mark for many championship teams. If he plays I think you have to start him. The worry is whether the Cowboys will only use him sparingly and it's a legitimate concern. I'm thinking he still gets 16-20 touches if he plays in which case he isn't elite but still a very good play. Unless you have two other really good options I'd take the slight risk with Murray because the upside is too great.

One guy I am lower than most on is C.J. Anderson. He has failed to go over 3.0 yards per carry the past two weeks, a clear result of being overworked if you ask me. Especially if Ronnie Hillman is active, there is a real chance you see Anderson's total touches drop by 5 or more. That would still put him at around 20 which is plenty enough to be effective but not a top five play to me.

Jeremy Hill was fantastic taking over as lead back last week. Unfortunately he gets a brutal matchup against the Broncos who have allowed just one rushing touchdown in their past ten games and just one 100 yard rusher. Jeremy Hill could definitely hit either or both of these marks but the odds are stacked against him. That said he is still a solid RB2.

It looks like Frank Gore will play following a concussion last week. Of course, he hasn't come close to 100 yards in a game for awhile now so it's hard to be too optimistic here. With Carlos Hyde unlikely to play he might see extra carries. He will be a low-end RB2 and pretty risky despite that.

I've seen a lot of talk about Dan Herron being a good start this week (and last) but I just don't see it. The Colts absolutely refuse to do anything more than a 60/40 timeshare with Trent Richardson which has kept Herron at 12 and 13 carries the past two weeks for just 71 and 72 yards. If possible I'd look for a feature back that might just get 20 touches.

Rashad Jennings was active last week but quickly retweaked his ankle and left the game. Even if he plays I'm avoiding him. You can't expect a heavy workload and the Rams are a very tough matchup. If he's out Andre Williams will be okay. Probably around RB20 but given the matchup and Williams' 3.2 YPC on the season expectations should be low.
 
 

Week 16 Wide Receiver Rankings

Week 16 Wide Receiver Rankings Analysis

No big surprises among the top five. Demaryius Thomas was able to put up strong numbers last week with a struggling Peyton so expect that to continue regardless of how well Peyton plays.

I'm lower on Dez Bryant than most. That is in large part due to Vontae Davis who had a great game last week despite coming off injury. With Davis looking healthy I am going to be nervous about any WR he defends. Despite a couple injuries this season Davis ranks third among all corners on Pro Football Focus. DeAndre Hopkins was held without catch when Davis was on him last week. (All five of Hopkins' receptions were while Greg Toler was on him) Davis won't shut out Dez but he can definitely keep him from being a top five play.

If Julio Jones starts, you play him. I talked up Matt Ryan in the QB section and there is little doubt this will be a high scoring game. It's a great matchup for Julio if he is healthy enough to be active.

Much like Dez Bryant, Kelvin Benjamin's ranking hinges on Joe Haden. There is a good chance Haden misses this game in which case Benjamin moves up to the WR16 range and is a very solid play. If Haden is active I'd be pretty worried especially with Cam Newton possibly below 100%.

While Roddy White is having a fine season he lacks the huge upside of most of the receivers ahead of him. If Julio is out he would move up some but otherwise he's a solid WR2 but nothing more. He has hit the 100 yard mark just once this season and it was only at exactly 100 yards. He definitely has a good chance to get a touchdown but expecting more than 70-75 yards would be asking a lot from a guy that has done that just twice this season.

Moving down the list to some high upside plays - reports indicate that Reggie Wayne's role in the offense will be scaled back this week in favor of Donte Moncrief. Moncrief has a lot of potential and has had a few good games when given the chance. Without knowing just how much Moncrief will be used/targeted over Wayne it's hard to be too optimistic but there is a lot of upside here.

I'm also intrigued by Percy Harvin who has been hit or miss with the Jets and we've seen a lot more of the miss side. I'm expecting Eric Decker to see a lot of Darrelle Revis and someone is going to have to catch passes in this game! I think there is a good chance this is one of the bigger games for Harvin.
 
 

Week 16 Tight End Rankings

Week 16 Tight End Rankings Analysis

Travis Kelce is frustrating because you just never know what to expect from the Chiefs offense. Are things finally looking up for good? It's possible as his 12 catches over the past two games is his best stretch yet. I think we're finally at the point where unless you have one of the top-tier tight ends and perhaps Bennett (and Delanie Walker this week) it's an easy choice to go with Kelce.

Dwayne Allen didn't have a ton of yards last week but played more snaps than Fleener and got the touchdown. The Cowboys are a great matchup for tight ends so I'd feel very good about starting Allen. Fleener is an alright play as well but I think Allen is definitely the preferred option for the offense.

I like Kyle Rudolph coming off a seven catch game but he has yet to practice this week so monitor his situation. Normally he is a red zone specialist so if he is getting extra targets that is a great sign. He has definite upside despite the tough matchup.

Other potentially available plays with upside include Zach Ertz, Jordan Cameron and Tim Wright. All three have the downside of putting up potential zeroes but have decent chances for touchdowns. On the other end of the spectrum you have guys that can probably get you 4-5 points and not much more or less in Jared Cook, Owen Daniels and Heath Miller.
 
 

Week 16 Defense Rankings

Week 16 Kicker Rankings