Well Rush Nation, we made it! Championship Week is finally upon us. And you know what that means! It’s time to think about our Fantasy Football Starts and Sits. 

It’s been a gruelling and punishing schedule. From no pre-season to COVID Boomerangs, to close contact uncertainty, practice facilities shutting down, games moving and flexing into different game weeks, byes being moved, an unprecedented amount of players landing on IR, and of course, coaching hiring and firings, it’s been a heck of a season.

However, we are now at the end of this journey. And I hope this Fantasy Football Starts and Sits column has been at the heart of your journey. Like a steady notebook, filled with the information you need to make the right decisions. As with all the other content on 5 Yard Rush.

Whilst I always feel nostalgic at this time of year, I realise there is a job to be done. So, without further delay, let’s get into those Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week Sixteen.

Starts

Jalen Hurts- QB Philadelphia Eagles

Jalen Hurts has been electric since he started 2 weeks. He has 6 Touchdowns and 1 Interception in his two games as a starter so far and has done something that Carson Wentz has really struggled with this season… be fantasy relevant. Hurts has a dream match-up with Dallas this week and their historically bad defense.

Tom Brady- QB Detroit Lions

Another QB who will play against an extremely bad defense is Tom Brady. After his comeback win vs the Falcons, the fire must be well and truly lit under Brady as he is on course to lead the Buccaneers to their best season since 2005. And since the Lions have just fired their Special Teams coach, which was the best phase of the Lions play this season, it should be another routine QB1 performance from Brady.

Salvon Ahmed- RB Miami Dolphins

I have already spoken about him in the Waiver Wire column and podcast this week. Despite being available in almost 75% of leagues, Ahmed has a chance to be a RB1 this week. A lot will depend on who is healthy for the Dolphins. However, it looks like they will be short in a lot of areas. And that means Ahmed will be the beneficiary once again.

Le’Veon Bell- RB Kansas City Chiefs

It looks like if you managed to hold Lev Bell until the end of the season, you might have just won the Fantasy Football lottery. With CEH out, Bell has little competition for touches, goal-line or carries. He also gets to play an extremely poor defense in the Atlanta Falcons. I would say he is a RB2 with upside this week.

Rashard Higgins- WR Cleveland Browns

Rashard Higgins has started the last four games. In the last three games, he has 24 targets (8 targets a game average). He also has two Touchdowns. It doesn’t sound that impressive. However the volume has been consistent. And with Baker Mayfield relying on him more, a playoff spot on the line, and a match-up against the 1-13 New York Jets, Higgins looks more and more like a top 30 option at Wide Receiver this week.

Dionte Johnson- WR Pittsburgh Steelers

If you have not been listening to the match-ups podcast, then first of all… why? And second of all, you might have missed me talking about Dionte Johnson. Johnson is the one of the three Steelers Wide Receivers you want to own. Move over Ju Ju, you are no longer the alpha receiver. In fact, whilst Johnson remains King, Claypool is also above Ju Ju in the pecking order. Expect Johnson to follow up a strong Monday Night Football with a fine WR2 performance in Championship week.

Logan Thomas- TE Washington Football Team

Logan Thomas has become a solid TE1 over the last few weeks. With the lack of Gibson in the backfield, this has elevated Thomas to another level. You can start Thomas with confidence this week as he is a top eight option.

Sits

Cam Newton- QB New England Patriots

Whilst the Patriots have had some up and down results over the last few weeks, Cam Newton has become fantasy irrelevant in Fantasy Football. As a result, you should be dropping Cam Newton from your rosters this week. After all, he has only thrown five TD passes this season.

Matthew Stafford- QB Detroit Lions

Matt Stafford has been fairly average this season. He certainly hasn’t killed you in games, but he also hasn’t given you a high ceiling either. However, he is QB14 on the season and is playing a team that is looking to secure their first playoff berth for twelve years. Also, Stafford doesn’t get off to a fast start. And , unfortunately for him if you don’t get off to a fast start against the Buccaneers, it becomes harder to score against them as the game goes on. He’s a easy sit this week.

D’Andre Swift- RB Detriot Lions

I spoke about this on Tuesday’s pod. I am not sure you can actually sit Swift. However, this is a really bad match-up for him. The Buccaneers have allowed almost 200 rushing yards less than the next fewest team as well as also the fewest amount of yards to Running Backs this season. And whilst Swift gets goal-line work, he does also split this with Adrian Peterson. Therefore, just temper your expectations when it comes to Swift this week.

Jonathan Taylor- RB Indianapolis Colts

Another rookie RB to beware of this week is Jonathan Taylor. He has Pittsburgh this week. And whilst Giovani Bernard was able to run on the Steelers defense last week, they are still the third best defense in the NFL against fantasy Running Backs, giving up just 13.1 points per game. The Steelers should finally wake up this week after three straight losses, so this should be a tough game.

Sterling Shepard- WR New York Giants

Whilst Sterling Shepard will be on most people’s radars as he is the number 1 Wide Receiver on his team, he should be avoided at all costs this week. He might have Colt McCoy throwing him the ball this week, with Daniel Jones banged up. And, to top it all off, he has to deal with the Ravens secondary.

Robby Anderson- WR Carolina Panthers

Robby Anderson came out of the blocks quickly in 2020 like a 100 metre sprinter. However, he seems to have entered a 400m race by mistake. His performances have taken a real dip here down the stretch and he is struggling to find the end zone, having only found it once since his first Touchdown of the season in Week 1. Not to mention, the Washington Football Team defense is the second best defense against fantasy Wide Receivers. 

Trey Burton- TE Indianapolis Colts

You will be hard pressed to find a bigger Trey Burton fan than I. Especially for Fantasy Football. However, he has had a bad couple of weeks in a row. And now he gets to face the Number 1 Ranked Defense against Tight Ends. Therefore, sit Trey Burton and all of his Tight End colleagues against the Steelers this week.

That will do it for this week. I appreciate all of you that have stuck with the Fantasy Football Starts and Sits column this season. I also appreciate those of you reading this for the first time, or if you have ever dipped in and out. It’s humbling to see people reading and citing this column as the reason they help win in Fantasy Football.

I am not sure if there will be a Week Seventeen Fantasy Football Starts and Sits column. If it is possible during the Christmas break, I certainly will try. Also, don’t forget to send through any starts or sits questions to us, and I will try and pick that up and and when I see them.

Unfortunately, it is impossible to answer every question. The only way to guarantee getting your question answered is subscribe to our Patreon Channel. We will answer all questions on there up until 4:30pm on Sunday.

However, thank you for everything this season. Good luck this week in Championship Week (or Semi Final week if you are in a Week Seventeen League). However until then Rush Nation, don’t forget, Keep Rushing!

– Murf (@Murf_NFL)