We’ve made it to Week 17 – championship week for most leagues. More importantly, this means that this will be the final Heat Index of 2021! Thanks to all who’ve followed us this season. As we review the Week 16 breakout performances below, our indexes will focus on Week 17 alone. So along with the usual stats and positional rank for the week (half-point PPR scoring), the scale of ?-to-????? will only apply to next week’s games (in case your league plays in Week 18).
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Quarterbacks
Stat-line: 37-46 passing for 525 yards and 4 TDs; 11 yards rushing
QB Rank: 1
Analysis: Burrow set records with his performance Sunday against the Ravens. He likes facing them as his two best games have come against Baltimore this season. Burrow is rostered in nearly every league, but not always as a starter. If he’s on your bench, should you consider rolling with him against the Chiefs next Sunday? Maybe. The Chiefs were horrible against opposing QBs early in the season but have been quite good since Week 9. Since then, only Justin Herbert (QB – LAC) has put up big fantasy numbers against them, and a rushing TD aided him. If you have a better matchup with a similar (or better) caliber fantasy QB, though, try not to be too enamored by Week 16. If Burrow is your guy and you’re playing for a championship, let it fly and hope the game ends up a shootout.
Heat Index: ???
Wide Receivers
Stat-line: 11 catches on twelve targets for 125 yards and a TD
WR Rank: 4
Analysis: McKenzie is fifth on the Bills WR depth chart but put together a career day Sunday thanks to Gabriel Davis (WR – BUF) and Cole Beasley (WR – BUF) being on the Covid list. Davis definitely won’t be available for Week 17, but Beasley might. If Beasley is out, McKenzie will once again be the 3rd receiver, which on the Bills means he’ll be on the field for most of the offensive snaps. Next week’s matchup is good versus the Falcons, who are one of the worst teams against WRs this season. Even so, it would be hard to trust McKenzie in a championship matchup given his short track record of success unless you are genuinely desperate or in a very deep league.
Heat Index: ?? (if Beasley is out)
Stat-line: 6 catches on seven targets for 75 yards and 2 TDs
WR Rank: 6
Analysis: Pringle helped fill the void left by the absent Travis Kelce (TE – KC) in the Chiefs’ dismantling of the Steelers on Sunday. The two touchdowns buoyed his stat-line, and the blowout contributed to keeping him on the field for 54 snaps. Kelce should be back next week, so in all likelihood, Pringle’s opportunities will settle back to where they typically lay – as a player who is not fantasy-relevant most weeks.
Heat Index: ?
Running Backs
Stat-line: 64 yards rushing on eleven attempts and 2 TDs; 8 catches on nine targets for 98 yards
RB Rank: 1
Analysis: In what is becoming a familiar theme, Jackson stepped in for Austin Ekeler (RB – SD), who was on the Covid list, and torched the Texans’ defense Sunday (albeit in a losing effort). Jackson put together a very Ekeler-like performance, doing most of his damage in the passing game. As Ekeler is already off the Covid list, Jackson will resume his backup role against the Broncos next Sunday. Even if this weren’t the case, this would be a more challenging test as the Broncos have been one of the best defenses against opposing RBs all season.
Heat Index: ?
Stat-line: 149 yards rushing on twenty-two attempts and 2 TDs; 2 catches on two targets for 0 yards
RB Rank: 4
Analysis: The veteran Burkhead ran all over the Chargers’ porous defense Sunday en route to one of the best performances of his career. The Texans have used several RBs this season, with Burkhead being the latest to dominate the backfield snaps. Next week’s task will be more difficult against a Niners’ run D, which has played well lately. However, if you are desperate, he should at least be on the field for a fair number of snaps and is a threat to score a touchdown.
Heat Index: ??
Tight Ends
Stat-line: 4 catches on five targets for 68 yards and a TD
TE Rank: 3
Analysis: Everett hasn’t been a very consistent option this season, but he has now scored three TDs in his last five games and is averaging nine ppg since the Seahawks Week 9 bye. He isn’t a premier TE option, and he probably needs to score to pay off, but you could do worse than trot him out there next week against the Lions. This season, Detroit has given up 979 yards to opposing Tight Ends, the fourth-worst rate in the league.
Heat Index: ??
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Scott Youngson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Scott, check out his archive and follow him @FantasyMutant.
