The fantasy championship round is finally here! Congratulations if you’ve made it this far. At this point of the season, any pickup you make is not for depth, but instead, you’re likely either hurting from a fresh injury (e.g. Antonio Brown), or you’re trying to block your opponent who’s dealing with an injury.
We’ll keep it short and simple. If you’re looking to make waiver moves, we asked the experts to rank the top readily-available options (i.e. < 50% ownership on Yahoo! and ESPN leagues) and tell us who they like the most from the list and why. If streaming defenses is your thing, they’re naming their favorite streamer too. Good luck this week!
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Featured Experts:
Mike Tagliere – FantasyPros
Bobby Sylvester – FantasyPros
Dan Harris – FantasyPros
Jason Moore – The Fantasy Footballers
KJ – Fantasy Team Advice
*Ownership % derived from a consensus of Yahoo & ESPN leagues
On a mobile device? Click here for rankings table
Q1. Give us your thoughts on a waiver wire target (or two) you especially like as a pickup.
“It’s all about Week 16. I mean, you might as well look at actual rankings. If you aren’t playing someone in a non-keeper league, feel free to drop him for Dede Westbrook or Keelan Cole. It appears all but certain that Marqise Lee will miss this week’s game, meaning they’ll jump into the No. 1 and No. 2 spots against the 49ers, who just allowed Marcus Mariota to have one of his best performances of the season. The 49ers are allowing nearly two passing touchdowns per game, and something tells me that these two will be heavily involved, especially when you consider that Leonard Fournette is at less than 100 percent. ”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)
“With championship week upon us, it’s all about the matchup which makes Dede Westbrook my top overall pickup this week against the 49ers. While Keelan Cole enjoyed an explosive week 15 I expect Dede to bounce back against a SF team allowing the 19th most passing yards per game.”
– KJ (Fantasy Team Advice)
“There isn’t a single guy that jumps off the page this week, though Nick Foles is an obvious priority add if you (or your championship opponent) has a question mark at quarterback. But for me, Mike Wallace would be my top target. He’s now led the Ravens in receiving yards in each of the last five games, and has 34 targets over his last four contests. With Jeremy Maclin potentially missing this week’s game against the Colts with a knee injury, Wallace should again be integral in the newly opened-up Baltimore offense, and I’d have no qualms about starting him in my championship matchup.”
– Dan Harris (FantasyPros)
“It’s championship week so make sure to use up all your FAAB if you need to upgrade any of your starters, or even if you can just add a player your opponent may want. The top player available in most leagues is Dede Westbrook who is now the #1 receiver for Blake Bortles. Both have been on fire and with another easy matchup coming this week versus San Francisco and the fact that Marqise Lee is expected to sit out, Westbrook just might be a WR2. His teammate, Keelan Cole, is startable as well with 15 receptions for 364 yards and 3 scores despite playing as the 3rd fiddle before Lee injured his ankle last week.”
– Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros)
“Dede Westbrook and Keelan Cole are great waiver wire pickups. People will be winning championships this week due to Blake Bortles (yes, I know, gross). The matchup against SF is great, especially now that SF has figured out how to shut down the run. Add in that Marquis Lee is going to miss this game and I don’t think you will go wrong picking up and playing either of these JAC WRs. ”
– Jason Moore (The Fantasy Footballers)
Q2. For owners renting a D/ST in Week 16, what readily available option (under 40%) should they target?
“As we’ve done all year, look at the team who is playing the Browns. This week, it’s the Bears who will be at home. If there’s one thing I’ve noticed as a Chicagoan (who also roots for the Bears), it’s that the Bears have played dramatically better defense at home over the last two years. The Browns offense has committed 13 turnovers the last six games, along with allowing 20 sacks, and not scoring more than 24 points. Use ALL of your remaining FAAB on them – it’s the last week. ”
– Mike Tagliere (FantasyPros)
“Target the Chicago Bears against Deshone Kizer and the Cleveland Browns. This Bears defense has been underrated all season by fantasy experts, and this week they face the Browns who allow the 2nd most FPPG compared to their opponents average.”
– KJ (Fantasy Team Advice)
“When in doubt, it’s always wise to go with the team playing against the Browns, and in Week 16, that’s the Chicago Bears. The Bears have a better real-life than fantasy defense, but they’ve tallied seven sacks over their previous two games and will be playing at home after two road games. Frankly, DeShone Kizer can make a Pop Warner defense fantasy-relevant for a game, so Chicago certainly needs to be under consideration.”
– Dan Harris (FantasyPros)
“If you can get your hands on Chicago’s DST this week, you are likely to be quite pleased with their performance. Over the past three weeks, they have surrendered just 42 points while forcing 4 turnovers and landing 9 sacks. This defense has multiple sacks in every game except one this season and has been a DST1 through 15 weeks as a result. Add in the fact that they play the lousy Browns and their young quarterback, Deshone Kizer, and you’ve got to love their chances of being a top 5 unit this week.”
– Bobby Sylvester (FantasyPros)
“The Chicago Bears have been a top ten fantasy defense this year and yet are still available in the vast majority of leagues. I get it, the Bears are not a very good team overall. However, teams usually look much better overall when they get to face the winless Cleveland Browns. Playing at home in what should be a cold weather game against the turnover-prone Browns should make the Bears a very safe play at D/ST. ”
– Jason Moore (The Fantasy Footballers)
Thank you to the experts for naming their top waiver targets. Be sure to give them a follow on Twitter (click their names above) and check out our latest podcast below for more great advice.
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