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Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 17 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Jawhar Jordan, Bucky Irving, Audric Estime, Rico Dowdle, Tyjae Spears, Jaylen Waddle, Stefon Diggs, Josh Downs, Emanuel Wilson, Luther Burden III. 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.
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 17:
Jawhar Jordan, RB, Houston Texans
Despite spending most of the season off his team's active roster, Houston Texans running back Jawhar Jordan has emerged as a major contributor over the last two weeks. With Texans RB1 Woody Marks (ankle) battling an ankle injury, Jordan has recorded 188 scrimmage yards on 37 touches over his past two games. Despite veteran back Nick Chubb making his return in Week 16 from a rib injury that sidelined him in Week 15, Jordan worked as Houston's lead back.
In Week 16, Jordan out-snapped Chubb 30 to 21 and out-touched him 17 to seven. If Marks remains sidelined for the team's Week 17 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, Jordan could see another game with a heavy workload. Jordan is worth targeting on the waiver wire heading into Week 17, just in case Marks is unable to make his return.
Emanuel Wilson, RB, Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers running back Emanuel Wilson has been a reliable fill-in starter when he has had his name called on this season. Josh Jacobs (knee, ankle) has battled injuries off and on this year, and Wilson has taken advantage of every chance he has been given. Recently, Jacobs was battling lower-body injuries heading into Week 16 but managed to play through them against the Chicago Bears. Due to Jacobs being less than fully healthy, Wilson led the Packers in carries and rushing yards in the overtime loss. Wilson finished the game with 14 carries for 82 rushing yards.
When Jacobs has missed time, Wilson has been a viable fantasy running back for managers. However, when Jacobs has been healthy, Wilson has been a non-factor in every fantasy format. Wilson has been a solid handcuff running back when he has been forced into action, but his fantasy value is solely attached to the health of Jacobs. If Jacobs cannot give it a go in Week 17 against the Baltimore Ravens, Wilson is a solid option for fantasy managers.
Audric Estime, RB, New Orleans Saints
New Orleans Saints running back Audric Estime had a season high in touches on Sunday against the New York Jets. The 22-year-old had five carries for 19 yards, along with three catches for 17 yards on four targets. Estime was projected to be the lead back for the Saints with Alvin Kamara and Devin Neal missing time due to injuries, but was out-touched by Taysom Hill in Week 16.
Hill led the team with 12 carries in the Saints' final home game. With Kamara's status unknown in Week 17, Estime will likely split carries with Hill and Evan Hull. With a lot of mouths to feed in the Saints' backfield, Estime should only be added off the waiver wire in deeper leagues to add bench depth heading into fantasy championships.
Tyjae Spears, RB, Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans running back Tyjae Spears notched his best outing of the 2025 season in Sunday's 26-9 home win against the Kansas City Chiefs, totaling 105 scrimmage yards and a touchdown. Spears' 18 touches in Week 16 are the most he'd handled all campaign, and it marked the fourth time in his last six appearances that he'd commanded at least five targets. Moreover, it was the first time he'd seen double-digit carries.
While it's likely the uptick in work came from Tennessee deftly handling a visiting Chiefs squad, there's no denying the Tulane product is a talented athlete. For now, Spears is better suited for deep leagues, but his work in the receiving game keeps him in the range of a low-end flex in PPR formats. At the very least, he boasts high-end handcuff appeal. Tennessee gets an exploitable Saints' defense in Week 17.
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 - Jawhar Jordan, Bucky Irving, Audric Estime, Rico Dowdle, Tyjae Spears, Jaylen Waddle, Stefon Diggs, Josh Downs, Emanuel Wilson, Luther Burden III. 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 Jawhar Jordan, Bucky Irving, Audric Estime, Rico Dowdle, Tyjae Spears, Jaylen Waddle, Stefon Diggs, Josh Downs, Emanuel Wilson, Luther Burden III:
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