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Who Should I Start for Week 17? Fantasy Football outlooks for Kyle Pitts Sr., Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange, Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, George Kittle, Mike Gesicki, Jake Tonges, Oronde Gadsden II, Luke Musgrave.
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some of the most common Week 17 fantasy football lineup decisions involve players like Kyle Pitts Sr., Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange, Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, George Kittle, Mike Gesicki, Jake Tonges, Oronde Gadsden II, Luke Musgrave. 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.
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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:
Dalton Schultz, TE, Houston Texans
Houston Texans tight end Dalton Schultz has been a consistent PPR producer for most of the season and has played his way up the rankings coming into his team's Saturday afternoon matchup with the Chargers. Schultz has 75 catches for 685 yards and three touchdowns this season and has found the end zone in each of the last two weeks against the Cardinals and Raiders.
Schultz has at least five catches in three of his last four games and in 10 of his last 13. While his yardage totals are typically underwhelming, he gets plenty of looks in the Texans' current conservative play-calling. The Chargers are a below-average matchup for Schultz, but he still ranks as the No. 6 TE in RotoBaller's rankings, indicating he can be started with confidence in Week 17 in standard-sized leagues.
Luke Musgrave, TE, Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave could see a further uptick in his workload for the Packers in Week 17 as Green Bay takes on Baltimore on Saturday at Lambeau Field. Musgrave saw his highest percentage of routes per dropback this season in Week 16, running a route on 84% of dropbacks. That was primarily due to John FitzPatrick (Achilles) leaving the game because of his injury, and Musgrave seeing that time on the field with Green Bay's TE3 Josh Whyle inactive.
Musgrave should see the bulk of the snaps and routes for the tight end position in Week 17, but the murky quarterback situation with Jordan Love (shoulder/concussion) and Malik Willis (shoulder/illness), both questionable, makes it difficult to recommend Musgrave. Consider Musgrave a very risky play for fantasy managers in Week 17.
Oronde Gadsden II, TE, Los Angeles Chargers
Los Angeles Chargers rookie tight end Oronde Gadsden saw his involvement crater last week, recording just one catch for seven yards on a season-low 3.5% target share. This drop in usage stems from the Chargers prioritizing extra pass protection for their battered offensive line, leaving non-blocking Gadsden on the sidelines for significant stretches. The Week 17 matchup against the Houston Texans offers little hope for a rebound.
While Houston is occasionally susceptible to tight end touchdowns, they rank top-10 in yards allowed to the position and lead the league in EPA/Pass. With Gadsden's routes and targets trending sharply downward, he cannot be trusted during the most important week of the fantasy season. He should remain on your bench as a low-end TE2.
George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle (ankle) remained sidelined during Thursday's practice. Kittle exited their Monday night victory over the Colts early due to an ankle injury. Following the contest, the star tight end was reported to have suffered a "mid-to-low" ankle sprain. However, head coach Kyle Shanahan has stated Kittle still has a chance to suit up this weekend when the 49ers face the Bears on Sunday night.
Managers should pay close attention to his status ahead of Friday's final injury report, as it will likely provide clarity on his availability. If Kittle were to miss Sunday's contest, managers should expect Jake Tonges to slide into the TE1 role while top wideout Jauan Jennings takes on an even higher target share, serving as Brock Purdy's go-to option.
Kyle Pitts Sr., TE, Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. continued his recent stretch of success in Sunday's 26-19 win over the Cardinals, hauling in seven of nine targets for 57 yards and a touchdown. It was the fourth straight game with at least eight targets and at least six catches, and the 25-year-old has quickly vaulted himself into the position of second-ranked tight end for fantasy this year after recording four touchdowns in the last two weeks alone (five on the season). The 6-foot-6 pass catcher was able to perform in Week 16 despite the return of Drake London (knee), who played just 69 percent of the team's offensive snaps.
Pitts draws a home matchup against the Rams in what is most likely the championship round of the fantasy playoffs for most managers, a defense that is middle of the pack in terms of fantasy points allowed to opposing tight ends, although the Seahawks' AJ Barner just registered a 4-49-1 line in Week 16 against Los Angeles. With a solid role in the Atlanta offense, Pitts will surely be a TE1 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 - Kyle Pitts Sr., Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange, Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, George Kittle, Mike Gesicki, Jake Tonges, Oronde Gadsden II, Luke Musgrave. 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 Kyle Pitts Sr., Dalton Schultz, Brenton Strange, Mark Andrews, Dallas Goedert, George Kittle, Mike Gesicki, Jake Tonges, Oronde Gadsden II, Luke Musgrave:
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