Who Should I Start for Week 16? Fantasy Football outlooks for Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Jalen Hurts, Bryce Young, Sam Darnold, Gardner Minshew, Shedeur Sanders, Quinn Ewers, Geno Smith, Brady Cook.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 16 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Jalen Hurts, Bryce Young, Sam Darnold, Gardner Minshew, Shedeur Sanders, Quinn Ewers, Geno Smith, Brady Cook. However, don't worry, we are here to help you make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 16. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 16 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.
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
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 16:
Aaron Rodgers, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers
The veteran peppered running back Kenneth Gainwell with seven underneath targets to pick up easy yardage, then threw touchdown passes on back-to-back drives to former Green Bay Packers teammate Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the opening drive of the second half and D.K. Metcalf on the ensuing possession. Rodgers has put together two of his best games of the season in the past two weeks and will look to stay hot next week against the Detroit Lions on the road. It won't be an easy matchup, but Rodgers should be forced to throw plenty in a game with shootout potential.
Kirk Cousins, QB, Atlanta Falcons
The veteran quarterback shook off the old narrative that he's incapable of thriving in the primetime slot, and in doing so, he kicked off his candidacy for the top-scoring fantasy quarterback in Week 15. It's unlikely that many managers started Cousins in the first week of the fantasy playoffs, but his big game could be enough to justify deploying him as a fringe top-12 fantasy option heading into a favorable matchup against the Arizona Cardinals next week.
Jalen Hurts, QB, Philadelphia Eagles
The 27-year-old signal-caller added seven carries for 39 yards on the ground. He was sacked only once for a loss of four yards. Two of Hurts' touchdown passes were short dump-offs to tight end Dallas Goedert, with his third passing TD coming to receiver A.J. Brown on a 27-yard hookup. It hasn't always been pretty in 2025, but Hurts now has 22 touchdown passes, eight rushing TDs, and six interceptions in 15 games. He has been a top-five fantasy QB and has another plus matchup for the fantasy semifinals in most leagues in Week 16 versus the division-rival Commanders.
Bryce Young, QB, Carolina Panthers
In the four weeks leading up to Week 15, the Buccaneers ranked last in the league in fantasy points per game allowed to QBs. Tampa Bay's pass defense also surrendered the second-most passing touchdowns against opposing QBs during that span (eight). Although his fantasy totals for the year have been mediocre, this matchup makes Young a more favorable starter in superflex leagues for Week 16. Those who are desperate in one-QB leagues can also consider streaming Young.
Sam Darnold, QB, Seattle Seahawks
Based on what we saw earlier in the season, we know what Darnold and this offense are capable of. However, NFL defensive coordinators are very adaptable, and they may have figured out the ticket to stopping Seattle. With matchups against the Rams, Panthers, and 49ers remaining, Darnold will face three solid-to-great defenses in a row. Streaming Darnold was fun earlier in the season, but it may not be feasible in the fantasy playoffs.
Who Should I Start Tool
You can also see the Who Should I Start tool here.
Week 16 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Jalen Hurts, Bryce Young, Sam Darnold, Gardner Minshew, Shedeur Sanders, Quinn Ewers, Geno Smith, Brady Cook. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 16.
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 16 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 16 (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 16 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 16 for Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Jalen Hurts, Bryce Young, Sam Darnold, Gardner Minshew, Shedeur Sanders, Quinn Ewers, Geno Smith, Brady Cook:
More Fantasy Football Analysis
Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App
Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy football app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, rankings, starts/sits & more. All free!
RADIO




