Fantasy Football Week 18 Rankings: Final Season Position-by-Position Review

The fantasy football season is already in the books for many, but some will stay active during Week 18.

If you're reading this, chances are you're one of them.

You may find yourself, then, trying to make sense of which NFL players will be active and how much they'll be used, since many teams have nothing to gain or lose this weekend. Frankly, we're doing the same.

Still, we've cobbled together what we know with what we think we know to form our final weekly positional rankings.

Quarterback

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HOUSTON, TX - DECEMBER 31: C.J. Stroud #7 of the Houston Texans celebrates during an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans at NRG Stadium on December 31, 2023 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

Top 10

1. Dak Prescott, DAL (at WAS)

2. Josh Allen, BUF (at MIA)

3. Jalen Hurts, PHI (at NYG)

4. Justin Fields, CHI (at GB)

5. C.J. Stroud, HOU (at IND)

6. Kyler Murray, ARI (vs. SEA)

7. Geno Smith, SEA (at TEN)

8. Jordan Love, GB (vs. CHI)

9. Trevor Lawrence, JAX (at TEN)

10. Baker Mayfield, TB (at CAR)

Josh Allen and C.J. Stroud can be fantasy juggernauts in any situation, but the added motivation they'll feel in Week 18 could propel them to particularly big weeks. If Allen's Bills win, they're the AFC East champs and the No. 2 seed. If Stroud steers the Texans to a victory, they'll have punched their playoff ticket.

Jordan Love is another quarterback entering a win-and-you're-in season finale. He's also coming into this contest scorching hot, having delivered seven touchdown passes, a pair of touchdown runs and zero interceptions over his last three outings.

Running Back

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TAMPA, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 31: Alvin Kamara #41 of the New Orleans Saints runs with the ball during the first quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium on December 31, 2023 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

Top 10

1. Saquon Barkley, NYG (vs. PHI)

2. Alvin Kamara, NO (vs. ATL)

3. Breece Hall, NYJ (at NE)

4. Rachaad White, TB (at CAR)

5. Jahmyr Gibbs, DET (vs. MIN)

6. James Conner, ARI (vs. SEA)

7. Kenneth Walker III, SEA (at ARI)

8. Joe Mixon, CIN (vs. CLE)

9. Bijan Robinson, ATL (at NO)

10. James Cook, BUF (at MIA)

All eyes are on Alvin Kamara here, as the same ankle injury that knocked him out of last week's win over Tampa Bay have now made him a game-time decision for this matchup. Hopefully, he can give it a go, though, because he continues seeing one of the better volumes at this position with 180 carries and 75 receptions in 13 games.

Sticking in the same Atlanta-New Orleans game, will the Falcons let Bijan Robinson loose here? His usage has been strangely up and down at times, but in his last two games, he touched the ball 37 times (27 carries and 10 catches) and topped 200 scrimmage yards.

Wide Receiver

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ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 30: CeeDee Lamb #88 of the Dallas Cowboys celebrates during an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium on December 30, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

Top 10

1. CeeDee Lamb, DAL (at WAS)

2. Justin Jefferson, MIN (at DET)

3. Tyreek Hill, MIA (vs. BUF)

4. Amon-Ra St. Brown, DET (vs. MIN)

5. A.J. Brown, PHI (at NYG)

6. Nico Collins, HOU (at IND)

7. Michael Pittman Jr., IND (vs. HOU)

8. Davante Adams, LV (vs. DEN)

9. Mike Evans, TB (at CAR)

10. Stefon Diggs, BUF (at MIA)

CeeDee Lamb, a first-round pick in 2020, appears to be approaching the peak of his powers, as he's basically rendering opposing defenses totally helpless. He has the most fantasy points of non-quarterbacks not named Christian McCaffrey, per FantasyPros, and is coming off a wholly ridiculous 13-reception, 227-yard, one-score outburst.

Stefon Diggs, meanwhile, just can't seem to snap out of his second-half skid. In six of his last seven games—and each of his last four—he finished with fewer than 50 receiving yards and no scores. If anything can get him going, though, maybe it's the massive stakes ahead of Buffalo this week, as the Bills could still finish anywhere from the AFC's No. 2 seed to out of the playoffs.

Tight End

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JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 31: Evan Engram #17 of the Jacksonville Jaguars runs past Xavier Woods #25 of the Carolina Panthers during the first half at EverBank Stadium on December 31, 2023 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

Top 10

1. Evan Engram, JAX (at TEN)

2. Trey McBride, ARI (vs. SEA)

3. Sam LaPorta, DET (vs. MIN)

4. Dallas Goedert, PHI (at NYG)

5. Jake Ferguson, DAL (at WAS)

6. Darren Waller, NYG (vs. PHI)

7. Dalton Schultz, HOU (at IND)

8. Cole Kmet, CHI (at GB)

9. Dalton Kincaid, BUF (at MIA)

10. Gerald Everett, LAC (vs. KC)

Consistency isn't necessarily a strength for Evan Engram (or any other tight end on this list, frankly), but he almost consistently dominated the month of December. He was quiet in Week 15 against the Ravens (four catches for 28 yards), but he had 60-plus receiving yards in his four other outings. In total, his five December games yielded 40 receptions for 360 yards and three touchdowns.

Elsewhere, Dalton Kincaid finally returned to fantasy-relevance this past week, although few may have started him given how frigid he'd been before that outing. Still, he can hopefully build on his four-catch effort that saw the rookie first-rounder pop for a season-high 87 yards.

Defense/Special Teams

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DENVER, COLORADO - DECEMBER 24: Josh Uche #55, Ja'Whaun Bentley #8, and Jalen Mills #2 of the New England Patriots celebrate after a defensive play against the Denver Broncos in the second half of a game at Empower Field at Mile High on December 24, 2023 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

1. New England Patriots (vs. NYJ)

2. New York Jets (at NE)

3. Dallas Cowboys (at WAS)

4. Las Vegas Raiders (vs. DEN)

5. Philadelphia Eagles (at NYG)

6. Cincinnati Bengals (vs. CLE)

7. Cleveland Browns (at CIN)

8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at CAR)

9. San Francisco 49ers (vs. LAR)

10. New Orleans Saints (vs. ATL)

The last time the Patriots and Jets locked horns, the teams combined to score 25 points in Week 3—and two of those points were scored on a safety. Neither quarterback who started that game (Mac Jones and Zach Wilson) will start this one, but it's not like we should suddenly expect fireworks in a Bailey Zappe vs. Trevor Siemian tussle.

The Cowboys, meanwhile, could have a field day with this Commanders' offense, which has scored 20 points or fewer in five of its last six games. Dallas' Thanksgiving clash with Washington was part of that stretch, and the Cowboys' defense delivered with a pick-six, four sacks and just 10 points allowed.

Kicker

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ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 30: Brandon Aubrey #17 of the Dallas Cowboys kicks a field goal against the Detroit Lions at AT&T Stadium on December 30, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)

1. Brandon Aubrey, DAL (at WAS)

2. Jake Elliott, PHI (at NYG)

3. Matt Prater, ARI (vs. SEA)

4. Michael Badgley, DET (vs. MIN)

5. Jason Myers, SEA (at ARI)

6. Evan McPherson, CIN (vs. CLE)

7. Justin Tucker, BAL (vs. PIT)

8. Jake Moody, SF (vs. LAR)

9. Ka'imi Fairbairn, HOU (at IND)

10. Chase McLaughlin, TB (at CAR)

Brandon Aubrey, a 28-year-old rookie who opened his pro career as a soccer player in the MLS, has been flat-out ridiculous. He has attempted 35 field goals and connected on every last one, including nine from 50-plus yards. He's also gone 44-for-47 on extra-point attempts. He's not only the best fantasy scorer at the position, he has a 15-point edge on second place (Justin Tucker).

Sticking with the freshman class, Jake Moody hasn't missed a field goal since the month of October. Granted, he doesn't have a ton of volume (10-of-10 in his last nine games), but at least San Francisco keeps him busy with extra-points, as he's attempted (and made) a league-leading 58 of them.