Week 16 is here. Thursday Night Football was an exciting contest but featured very little in terms of standout IDP production. Zach Cunningham seems to be settling in well with his new team, and there were some sacks going around, but all of the biggest fantasy names aside from Azeez Al-Shaair disappointed. Let’s take a look at some other players who can help fantasy teams this week and a few others who may do more harm than good.
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Start em
Carlos Dunlap (DE – SEA)
Dunlap went bonkers in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Rams. After recording just 1.5 sacks all season, Dunlap exploded for three sacks on Matthew Stafford. Usually, Dunlap would slide right into the sit part of this column while I went over just how much of a drain he has been on fantasy rosters this season. However, in fantasy football’s ‘second season’, recent form is all that matters. Dunlap is up to four sacks in his last three games and gets a tremendous Week 16 matchup against a hobbled Justin Fields and the Chicago Bears. Start Dunlap as a sneaky DL2 option for Week 16.
Robert Quinn (DE/LB – CHI)
By this point, Quinn is locked in as a must-start on providers in which he qualifies as a DE or DL. However, he is still not getting enough love on providers like Yahoo in which he is listed as an LB only. Quinn is the LB1 overall and the LB3 in fantasy points per game since Week 11 and needs to be started in those leagues. Not just as an LB3 or LB2, but as an LB1 option. Quinn has at least one sack in each of his last six games and should be treated as a T.J. Watt type during this throwback season. Start him everywhere, regardless of position.
Jaelan Phillips (DE – MIA)
Jaelan mysteriously vanished in Week 15, recording just one solo, one assist, and one tackle for loss despite playing one of his highest snap counts of the season. Perhaps Jaelan still needs to work on his conditioning because he has only managed one sack all season when playing more than 63 percent of the snaps. He has 8.5 sacks as a rookie and should continue to be viewed as a DL1 option for Week 16. Jaelan gets the Ian Book version of the New Orleans Saints offense in Week 16 and should push to reach the double-digit sack threshold with what should be a bounce-back performance. Start Phillips if you got him.
Jayron Kearse (S – DAL)
Jayron has been excellent during the stretch run and is the DB1 overall since Week 11. He needs to be respected as a DB1 option for the fantasy playoffs. He has been a little disappointing over the last two weeks, but has been a stud for fantasy managers and needs to be plugged in against what should still be a depleted Washington team. Washington has allowed the 12th most fantasy points to the safety position, giving Kearse what should be a high floor. Start Kearse universally.
Jordyn Brooks (LB – SEA)
After an up and down start to the season, Jordyn Brooks has found some consistency. He has been on quite the tear since Week 10, a time period in which he is the LB1 overall and the LB4 in fantasy points per game. He should already be viewed as a borderline LB1 due to his recent form but gets an instant bump to LB1 status for a tremendous Week 16 matchup against the Chicago Bears. Chicago is set to be down to Nick Foles at quarterback. He should be treated to a heavy dose of tackle opportunities against the run and short passes, giving him an LB2 floor. Start Brooks everywhere as an LB1 for Week 16.
Sit em
Lorenzo Carter (LB/DE – NYG)
Lorenzo Carter went off in Week 15, tallying three solos, one assist, two sacks, two tackles for loss, one pass defended, and one forced fumble. His excellent performance made him a hot add in deeper IDP leagues, and while adding and stashing him was not a bad decision, starting him in Week 16 solely because of his excellent Week 15 may be. Carter had zero sacks coming into Week 15, had zero games with more than two solos, and had just one tackle for loss all season. Hold in case he keeps up his hot play in Week 16. If he continues to play well, he will be a Week 17 option, if he goes back to being relatively invisible from a fantasy perspective, you can use his roster spot on one of the hot adds next week.
Garret Wallow (LB – HOU)
Yes, this suggestion falls into the ‘no duh’ category. Garret Wallow went off in Week 15, recording six solos, five assists, one sack, and one tackle for loss. He should have earned an expanded role with his performance but is still firmly behind Kamu Grugier-Hill and Christian Kirksey. If KGH and Kirksey are healthy and removed from the reserve/COVID list, Wallow will go back to being a key reserve and someone who plays the bulk of his snaps on special teams. Keep the rookie benched for Week 16 if Grugier-Hill and Kirksey are active against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Anthony Hitchens (LB – KC)
Anthony Hitchens was excellent in Week 15, recording five solos, three assists, one interception, and one pass defended. He played 85 percent of the snaps with Willie Gay sidelined, his highest snap count since back in Week 5. He could be an excellent start in Week 16 but that is totally dependent on the status of Willie Gay and whether or not Nick Bolton is cleared from the reserve/COVID list in time for Sunday’s plus matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Keep him in a swing spot, but for now, you should plan on leaving him on benches until it becomes clear that he will be seeing another 80 percent plus snap share outing.
Ashtyn Davis (S – NYJ)
Double whammy. Davis has been struggling to produce from a fantasy perspective lately but went off in Week 15, with three solos, five assists, one interception, and one pass defended. I was planning on detailing how inconsistent he has been this season and that his recent form makes him hard to trust in the win-or-go-home scenario of the fantasy playoffs. However, Ashtyn made our decision for us this week as he has, unfortunately, landed on the reserve/COVID list for the New York Jets. We decided to keep him in this column in case he is cleared, and fantasy managers feel tempted. Don’t. Keep Ashtyn benched for Week 16, regardless of his status.
Yetur Gross-Matos (DE – CAR)
Yetur Gross-Matos went off in Week 15, racking up two solos, three assists, 2.5 sacks, one tackle for loss, and one forced fumble. It was a career day for the young pass rusher, but fantasy managers should continue to look elsewhere for Week 16. Gross-Matos had just one sack on the season coming into Week 15 and has played less than 41 percent of the snaps in all but one game this season. He is a talented pass rusher who should eventually grow into more than a rotational reserve role, but it will not be happening in Week 16. The Panthers reserve/COVID list is relatively small, with just one starting defensive lineman currently on the list (Derrick Brown), so an expanded role is unlikely for Yetur despite the exciting flash of the talent that made him a second round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Look elsewhere for Week 16.
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Raju Byfield is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Raju, check out his profile and follow him @FantasyContext.
