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Welcome to the fantasy football playoff finals! Congratulations to all of those that made it to the big dance! There are certainly a number of "must starts" in championship week. Guys like Jonathan Taylor, Dalvin Cook, Cooper Kupp, Davante Adams, Travis Kelce, and Mark Andrews immediately come to mind.
Then there's a middle tier of players that you're almost certain to start, but may not be as locked into your lineup as the elite guys. And then there are the sneaky starts and streamers that have come on of late and could be the difference-maker in whether or not you hoist up the championship trophy.
We're here to uncover a few of those players -- so let's dive right in!
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Sneaky Starts and Streamers for Week 17
Ke'Shawn Vaughn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With no Leonard Fournette in Week 16, second-year back Ke’Shawn Vaughn operated as the complement to starter Ronald Jones. He ended the game with 70 rush yards and a touchdown on seven carries playing on nearly a third of the snaps. In fact, he ran more routes (12) than RoJo (9). Jones of course got most of the RB opportunities (23 vs. 8), but both guys found paydirt against what has been a stout Panthers run defense. Not only do the Bucs face the Jets, who have allowed 172.7 rushing yards per game in their last three games, in Week 17, but head coach Bruce Arians called Vaughn a “lead dog” following his Week 16 performance. Don’t be surprised if both RoJo and Vaughn eat in a game Tampa Bay is favored by 13.5 points with an implied point total of 29.5. This game has “blowout” written all over it, which could mean a lot of Ke’Shawn Vaughn in the second half.
Justin Jackson, Los Angeles Chargers
Jackson was a revelation in Week 16, helping many fantasy football managers get to the championship round after a big 33-point outing against the Texans. He was thrust into that role as a result of Austin Ekeler being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list after testing positive for the virus. Ekeler has since been activated and he'll be back in the mix in Week 17, but should we expect a full workload? We saw Tyreek Hill come off the COVID list ahead of Week 16 but be limited to just a 44% snap share as he was exhausted after battling the virus. This isn't to say Ekeler won't come back and produce with his history of high-value touches, but Jackson will likely mix in a bit more than he was earlier in the season. Don't be surprised if Jackson plays 40-50% of the snaps in Week 17 with Ekeler fresh off the COVID list. The Chargers, who have an implied point total of 26 points, are also going to be very hungry in this game vs. the Broncos after losing to a very mediocre Texans team in Houston last weekend.
Gabriel Davis, Buffalo Bills
Davis might be a bit of a forgotten man in Week 17. He went on the COVID list ahead of the Bills’ Week 16 game and it was reported that he’d miss two games because of being unvaccinated. Many managers likely dropped him with that news, but the NFL has since updated its protocols in accordance with the new CDC guidance and Davis has since been activated from the COVID list. Not only that, but Emmanuel Sanders (knee) logged a DNP at practice Thursday after being limited on Wednesday. Sanders left the team’s Week 14 game early and missed Week 15, and in those two games, Davis averaged five catches for 64 yards and 1.5 touchdowns on 7.5 targets per game. He had an 85% snap share and ran 37.5 routes per game in one of the league’s most prolific, high-octane passing attacks. Josh Allen targeted him five times in the red zone during those two games. Next up is a matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, who allow the 5th-most fantasy points to wide receivers this season. If Sanders misses this game, Davis becomes a very viable top-30 option at the position in Week 17.
Robby Anderson, Carolina Panthers
Guess who's 8th in total targets since Week 14. That's right, it's Robby Anderson with 30 total targets in his last three games. In those three games, he's averaging five receptions for 57 yards. But what's promising here is the peripheral metrics. He's playing on nearly every snap and running an average of 38.9 routes per game with the Panthers mainly playing from behind. Anderson has also gone over 110 air yards in two of those three games and has eclipsed 74 air yards in seven of 10 games Sam Darnold has played this season. DJ Moore is the alpha in Carolina, but there should be plenty of opportunities for Robby A in a game the Panthers figure to be playing from behind against the New Orleans Saints.
Zay Jones, Las Vegas Raiders
Zay Jones has very quietly taken over as the number one outside receiver for the Raiders since the Week 8 Bye. He's playing on 85-90% of the snaps every game and has been peppered with targets since Darren Waller went down in Week 12. In fact, since Week 12, Jones is running an average of 31.4 routes and seeing 7.2 targets per game. He's averaging 95.6 air yards per game in those five games. He hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 1, but that could be coming this week against a Colts team allowing the 2nd-most passing touchdowns (29) this season, behind just the Washington Football Team (33). Bryan Edwards is also fresh off the reserve/COVID-19 list, so it's possible he's not a full-go in Week 17. There are far worse options than Zay Jones for championship week.
Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens
After practicing in full on Wednesday, Marquise Brown was not seen at practice on Thursday and showed up as DNP with an illness. I'm not here to speculate, but the last time we saw this same situation play out with the Ravens, Tyler Huntley was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list ahead of Week 16. There hasn't been any news of this just yet, but we'll see what the Friday practice report tells us. If Brown were to miss Week 17's game vs. the Rams, Rashod Bateman would step in as the number one wide receiver. He's already been playing a full-time role the past three weeks, averaging an 80% snap share. While he could draw more of Jalen Ramsey if Brown is out, he'll likely be peppered with targets as the Ravens move him all over the formation. Huntley is expected to start in this game with Lamar Jackson still nursing the ankle injury, and in the three games he's started so far, Bateman has been targeted 6+ times in two of those three games (and that was with Brown in the lineup). The rookie could make for a sneaky start for championship week.
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