Fantasy Football Week 16 Rankings: Projections and Matchups to Love

With fantasy championships or slots in them at stake, Week 16 started in notable fashion during the Thursday Night Football showdown between the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants.

Long story short, most of the Eagles didn't show up as expected, while Odell Beckham Jr. and Robbie Gould led all scorers. Gould wasn't exactly expected, but those who wanted to get the kicker position out of the way early apparently hit the jackpot.

Anyway, the rest of the slate isn't so easy to figure out. Most teams are on a short week for Saturday holiday games, but there are also a pair of Sunday games and the usual Monday affair. Let's cut through the confusion with a look at full projections.

Week 16 Schedule

Saturday, December 24	Time (ET)
Sunday, December 25
Monday, December 26
Miami at Buffalo	1 p.m.
N.Y. Jets at New England	1 p.m.
Tennessee at Jacksonville	1 p.m.
Minnesota at Green Bay	1 p.m.
San Diego at Cleveland	1 p.m.
Washington at Chicago	1 p.m.
Atlanta at Carolina	1 p.m.
Indianapolis at Oakland	4:05 p.m.
San Francisco at L.A. Rams	4:25 p.m
Arizona at Seattle	4:25 p.m
Tampa Bay at New Orleans	4:25 p.m
Cincinnati at Houston	8:30 p.m.
Baltimore at Pittsburgh	4:30 p.m
Denver at Kansas City	8:30 p.m.
Detroit at Dallas	8:30 p.m.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Drew Brees	25
2	Tom Brady	24
3	Marcus Mariota	21
4	Philip Rivers	19
5	Kirk Cousins	18
6	Aaron Rodgers	18
7	Matthew Stafford	17
8	Cam Newton	17
9	Matt Ryan	16
10	Tyrod Taylor	14
11	Jameis Winston	14
12	Russell Wilson	12
13	Andrew Luck	12
14	Dak Prescott	12
15	Derek Carr	12

It's a big week for quarterbacks, with two of the more notable ones representing different generations.

Philip Rivers of the San Diego Chargers continues to represent the old guard. He's hit 14 or more points in five of his last six outings with two or more passing scores in 10 outings this year.

Rivers is a top-tier play just in time for title games thanks to an encounter with the Cleveland Browns, owners of the defense allowing the second-most points to quarterbacks on average.

Though on the road, owners can trust the Browns to cough up plenty of points as usual.

Marcus Mariota of the Tennessee Titans, of course, represents the future. A top-seven scorer entering the week, he has six outings at 21 or more points this year.

Owners might have beef with Mariota because he hasn't cracked 10 points in each of his last two outings, but so it goes against the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs. He next gets the Jacksonville Jaguars, a team he hit up for 19 points and two passing scores back in Week 8.

Expect a repeat performance as Mariota's Titans make a playoff push.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Le'Veon Bell	23
2	DeMarco Murray	21
3	Todd Gurley	20
4	Ezekiel Elliott	18
5	Doug Martin	17
6	David Johnson	16
7	LeSean McCoy	15
8	Devonta Freeman	14
9	Latavius Murray	13
10	Jay Ajayi	12
11	Jordan Howard	12
12	Robert Kelley	12
13	Lamar Miller	12
14	Jonathan Stewart	11
15	Jeremy Hill	11
16	Thomas Rawls	11
17	Frank Gore	10
18	Kenneth Farrow	10
19	Carlos Hyde	10
20	Spencer Ware	10
21	LeGarrette Blount	9
22	Ty Montgomery	9
23	Mark Ingram	8
24	Bilal Powell	8
25	Adrian Peterson*	8
26	Isaiah Crowell	7
27	Tevin Coleman	7
28	Chris Ivory	7
29	Tim Hightower	6
30	Dwayne Washington	6

It's a similar story at running back.

Todd Gurley of the Los Angeles Rams heads up the new class, even if he's had a trying fantasy season. The rough waters should subside in Week 16 against the San Francisco 49ers, the team allowing the most points to backs on average.

Gurley has hit double digits only four times, but he is generally reliable in good matchups, hence his 14 points in Week 14 against the Atlanta Falcons.

At home while trying to break in a rookie quarterback, owners can expect the Rams to ride Gurley, a great thing given the opponent.

Doug Martin is on the other end of the spectrum, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lead back hasn't produced as most have come to expect. After injury struggles, though, he has double digits in four of his last six outings.

One of those came against the New Orleans Saints in Week 14, a 13-point affair by way of 66 rushing yards and a score. Martin gets the defense allowing the third-most points to backs again in Week 16. 

Keep in mind this one comes on the road. Martin could see the most usage of his season as the Buccaneers look to control the game and keep Drew Brees off the field.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Mike Evans	18
2	Antonio Brown	18
3	Ty Montgomery	16
4	Jordy Nelson	16
5	Demaryius Thomas	15
6	Emmanuel Sanders	14
7	T.Y. Hilton	14
8	DeSean Jackson	14
9	Julio Jones*	13
10	Tyrell Williams	13
11	Stefon Diggs*	12
12	Dez Bryant	12
13	A.J. Green	11
14	Julian Edelman	11
15	Amari Cooper*	11
16	DeAndre Hopkins	11
17	Kenny Britt	10
18	Pierre Garcon	10
19	Golden Tate	10
20	Sammy Watkins*	10
21	Michael Crabtree	9
22	Jamison Crowder	9
23	Doug Baldwin	8
24	Alshon Jeffery	8
25	Allen Robinson	8
26	Larry Fitzgerald	8
27	Brandin Cooks	8
28	Dontrelle Inman	8
29	Steve Smith Sr.	7
30	Donte Moncrief	7
31	Kelvin Benjamin	7
32	Davante Adams	7
33	Michael Thomas	6
34	Rishard Matthews	6
35	Taylor Gabriel	6

Owners shouldn't stop riding the Ty Montgomery train in Week 16.

The Green Bay Packers wideout and hybrid weapon functioned as a running back in Week 15, ripping off 162 rushing yards and two touchdowns against the Chicago Bears, also catching two passes. The tally was an impressive 28 points, giving him 14 or more in two straight games.

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

Given the need to keep ripping off wins to make the playoffs, the Packers won't go away from Montgomery now. The Minnesota Vikings are one of the best teams against opposing wideouts but have allowed a score to the position in four consecutive games.

Given Montgomery's odd usage, rankings go a bit out the window. Green Bay will keep him involved and productive when owners need him most.

While on the topic of the Bears, don't overlook Washington Redskins wideout DeSean Jackson this week.

Jackson has been on fire as of late, hitting double digits in four of his last five outings after a rather quiet season before the stretch.

The good trend will only continue against the Bears, the unit coughing up the fifth-most points to the position on average. Washington's pass-happy attack will give him plenty of chances to score and reach double digits yet again.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Greg Olsen	13
2	Cameron Brate	12
3	Kyle Rudolph	11
4	Eric Ebron	10
5	Delanie Walker	10
6	Travis Kelce	8
7	Hunter Henry	8
8	Vernon Davis	8
9	Jimmy Graham	7
10	C.J. Fiedorowicz	7
11	Tyler Eifert	6
12	Jason Witten	6

Greg Olsen leads the way at tight end in Week 16.

Olsen remains the top option in the Carolina Panthers attack and has eight points in each of his past two outings. While the meat of his production came earlier in the season, he has a dynamite matchup with the Falcons.

Those Falcons permit the fourth-most points to tight ends on average and allowed Olsen to rip off a touchdown and 15 points back in Week 4. Rest assured the Panthers will keep looking his way and hoping for more of the same.

Whereas Olsen has been old reliable, Cameron Brate has been a pleasant breakout stud. The owner of five double-digit outings, Brate next gets the Saints in a cake matchup.

Considering the Saints struggle against tight ends, Brate's four points against the unit in Week 14 are an anomaly. Over his past three outings, he's posted 13 or more points twice and has scored five touchdowns since Week 8.

Defense/Special Teams

Rank	Unit	Projected Points
1	Patriots	12
2	Chiefs	10
3	Rams	9
4	Bills	9
5	Chargers	8
6	Packers	7
7	Broncos	7
8	Bengals	6
9	Titans	6
10	Seahawks	6

Normally known for offense, owners should be all over the New England Patriots defense this week.

The Patriots get to beat up on the reeling New York Jets, which will be as lucrative as it sounds. The unit did so in Week 12, totaling eight points.

Call it a great floor for the Patriots this week, as the unit has now hit eight or more points five weeks and running. Another matchup with the Jets, who boast a question mark at quarterback, will only help continue the trend.

Who knows? If owners are lucky, maybe the unit even gets a touchdown at home and takes credit for a few fantasy championships.

Kickers

Rank	Unit	Projected Points
1	Sebastian Janikowski	12
2	Matt Bryant	10
3	Mason Crosby	9
4	Dustin Hopkins	9
5	Stephen Gostkowski	8
6	Dan Bailey	7
7	Matt Prater	7
8	Nick Novak	6
9	Ryan Succop	6
10	Wil Lutz	6

Sebastian Janikowski once again leads the way at kicker.

His Oakland Raiders get the Indianapolis Colts in Week 16, which is about as easy as it sounds. Those Colts surrender the third-most points to kickers on average and have allowed two opponents to hit eight or more points in consecutive weeks, including a season high of 19.

Janikowski might not hit that crazy bar, but he does have five double-digit outings this year and a nice floor of eight points nine times.

The allure of a major upside with a good floor likely has many owners still alive, making Janikowski a great choice.

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN.com standard leagues, as are points-against info and ownership stats.

Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.