One of the issues with playing into Week 17 is that some teams have nothing to play for at this point in the season. This year, that would constitute all teams that have been eliminated from the playoffs and the Kansas City Chiefs, as they have locked up the AFC’s No. 1 seed already. The Chiefs and some of the eliminated teams could opt to rest their starters because of injury risk, so that will be something to watch this week.
WEEK 17 STANDARD RANKINGS:Quarterback | Running back | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Though there may be some absences, WR seems like a position that is still deep. There are some teams playing in big games with good matchups that will need their wideouts to step up, so that should help owners to find viable options. This includes the Steelers’ trio of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chase Claypool, and Diontae Johnson (vs. Browns), Marquise Brown (@ Bengals), T.Y. Hilton, Zach Pascal, and Michael Pittman Jr. (@ Jaguars), and many more.
In terms of risky starts, the Rams WRs Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, and Josh Reynolds would qualify. They are in a fine matchup against the Cardinals, but they will either have Jared Goff throwing to them while he deals with a thumb injury or John Wolford throwing to them. Wolford has zero NFL pass attempts, so there’s reason for concern about those players if he starts. They may not be outright sits, but if you have comparable options, steering clear of them wouldn’t be a bad move. (UPDATE: Kupp is now a definite sit, as he is out for the week after testing positive for COVID).
WEEK 17 PPR RANKINGS:Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
As always, the goal at this point in the year is to start players with teams that still have something to play for, as they are the safest options to produce given the need of their teams to win and either improve their playoff seeding or make the playoffs.
Week 17 Fantasy WR Rankings (Standard)
These rankings are for non-PPR leagues.
