Jamie Calandro's Week 17 Fantasy Football Rankings - The Industry's Top 3 Accuracy Ranker

December 28, 2025

Fantasy football Week 17 rankings for RB, WR, TE, QB from the No. 3 most accurate ranker in 2025, Jamie Calandro. Read his fantasy rankings analysis and outlooks.

RotoBaller writer Jamie Calandro shares his Week 17 fantasy football lineup rankings for RB, WR, TE, and QB. After 16 weeks, Jamie is still No. 3 on the leaderboard among the most accurate rankers in the industry -- and is here today to bring you his Week 17 rankings! This rankings article also includes rankings analysis that will hopefully help you make some tough decisions when it comes to sit/start. Jamie is also on X @jac3600 and in our RotoBaller Discord channel, answering questions.

Regular starting options are included to highlight that some of your must-start players have a good chance of supplying winning totals. Much of the analysis helps fantasy players make the tough decisions between two or more similarly valued players.

The rankings are updated as news breaks until the full slate begins on Sunday. Following the positional advice below, you can consult the player rankings tables. The fantasy football lineup rankings analysis is based on half-PPR scoring rules.

Running Back Rankings – Fantasy Football Week 17

* Players marked with asterisks have injury designations with uncertainty

In the #1 pick bowl, it's impossible to predict what the Giants and Raiders will do, but I'd be inclined to think the Giants will play it straight. Their remaining coaching staff is still auditioning, as are some players. Tyrone Tracy Jr. has 36 touches in the last two weeks, and the Giants have become a complete run-first team. Tracy is a wonderful championship-week start.

The status of TreVeyon Henderson is huge. He practiced in full on Friday, which is a good sign, but he still needs to be cleared from concussion protocol to be active. If he's in, he has monstrous upside against the Jets, who have allowed the third-most FPPG to RBs. If he's out, Rhamondre Stevenson is a must-start (and is probably FLEX playable anyway).

Omarion Hampton is a fine start that will rise significantly if Kimani Vidal (neck) is ruled out Saturday afternoon. It's not an easy matchup, but Hampton is a dynamic runner who will get all the touches. The CLE/PIT game has an O/U of 33.5 points. Don't start Raheim Sanders or Dylan Sampson unless you're forced to. Sampson is still questionable, so Sanders would be a lot more intriguing if Sampson were ruled out.

I'm really not into Woody Marks and his 3.4 YPC against the Chargers. They've allowed the seventh-fewest FPPG to RBs, and Nick Chubb and Jawhar Jordan should both have involvement. The Panthers have allowed the ninth-most FPPG to RBs, so the matchup for Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet is solid. It's trusting them that's the problem, as they cannibalize each other's upside.

What's gotten into Tony Pollard lately?? He's averaged 6.1 YPC over his last three games with three TDs scored. Tyjae Spears is still involved, especially in the passing game, but the Saints have a below-average run defense that Pollard can exploit. Kenneth Gainwell and Jaylen Warren are both solid plays, with Gainwell being the preferred option. DK Metcalf and Calvin Austin III are both out, which could swing even more passing work Gainwell's way.

Wide Receiver Rankings – Fantasy Football Week 17

* Players marked with asterisks have injury designations with uncertainty

Kayshon Boutte and Mack Hollins are both out, and DeMario Douglas is questionable. Stefon Diggs went ballistic on the Ravens last week and is facing an even worse secondary in the Jets. I've elevated him all the way to WR8 for the week. Jaylen Waddle went 5-72-0 on nine targets from Quinn Ewers, so he should be just fine to start against the Bucs.

D.J. Moore needed a long overtime TD to salvage his boxscore, but he's still in "start" territory even with Luther Burden III returning. Burden himself moves right into a great spot, averaging well over two fantasy points per route run. Marvin Harrison Jr. is known to the fantasy community as the "Michael Wilson destroyer," but both could find success against the Bengals, who have allowed the most PPG this season. If Harrison (questionable) sits, you know what to do with Wilson.

Jakobi Meyers and Brian Thomas Jr. are both excellent plays against a Colts secondary that's missing their two starting CBs. Meyers, in particular, is in top-12 territory. Wan'Dale Robinson leads all relevant receiving categories from Jaxson Dart and continues to be startable, but just be cognizant of utilizing players in this game.

Zay Flowers was heavily targeted after Tyler Huntley came into the game, but he certainly cannot be trusted as much as he would be with Lamar Jackson. Start him if you must, but at least explore your bench. Similar sentiments can be applied to A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. They're both talented enough to start, but the Bills are set up to shut WRs down.

It's nearly impossible to trust any Raiders' pass catcher since the team is openly tanking, but Tre Tucker has the speed to get behind a very shaky Giants' secondary. Adonai Mitchell is the de facto WR1 for the Jets and leads the team in targets from Brady Cook. There could be enough garbage time production for him to be viable this week.

I'm not too interested in any Colts' pass catcher outside of Tyler Warren. Philip Rivers has spread the ball around to everyone since taking over, and the Jaguars' pass rush should make life difficult for Rivers. Josh Downs would be the only one I'd risk using in a pinch, as he has 14 targets from Rivers in two weeks.

Tight End Rankings – Fantasy Football Week 17

Colston Loveland's value takes a hit with Burden returning, but he's still usable against a 49ers squad that has struggled to defend the TE position with their key defensive injuries. Brenton Strange has upside for a red-hot Jaguars offense with an implied total of 28 points. The Colts have allowed the seventh-most FPPG to TEs.

Tyler Warren has by far the best matchup of any Colts pass-catchers, as Indy has allowed the eighth-most FPPG to tight ends. Warren leads the team on targets from Philip Rivers. Michael Mayer led the Raiders in targets in one of the three games Brock Bowers missed and had over a 90% snap share in all three. He's a viable streamer if you're in need.

Darren Waller looks like a lot better option than he is. Yes, it's against the pass-funnel Bucs, but Waller still played under half of the snaps against Cincinnati last week. Dalton Schultz has lit up the boxscore for two straight weeks, but he has a terrible matchup against the Chargers. I'm passing on him for the guys above if I have a choice.

Quarterback Rankings – Fantasy Football Week 17

I'm not NECESSARILY advocating sitting Jalen Hurts, but some things are working against him. The Bills are set up to shut down passing games, and Philadelphia has the means to lean on Saquon Barkley in this one. Hurts always has upside with his rushing ability and the tush push, but don't blindly start him if you have someone potentially better.

Tyler Shough is the QB7 over the last four months after throwing another 300-yard game last Sunday. He's firmly is play to start for your championships against a Titans team that ranks in the bottom ten in pressure rate. ... Quinn Ewers has some hope against the pass-funnel Bucs. He's worth a look in 2QB/SuperFlex leagues.

Malik Willis is expected to get the start for Green Bay, but he is not worth a look in standard leagues. Baltimore has been nails against the QB position over the last five weeks (other than Drake Maye's heroics last Sunday). ... As much as it pains me to say, Dart is also a sit even with a solid matchup against the Raiders. The Giants have become a run-first team, and Dart is missing key offensive linemen.

Baker Mayfield has been terrible in the second half, but his receiving corps is finally back to full health, and the Bucs need to go all out after losing division control to the Panthers. He's definitely startable against Miami. Justin Herbert is the toughest decision of the week. He's been spiking recently, but Houston has allowed the fewest FPPG to opposing QBs. He's fine if you have no other options, but consider some potential streamers (Shough, Mayfield, Caleb Williams).

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