Fantasy Football Week 16 Rankings: Position-by-Position Breakdown

Round 2 of the 2013 fantasy football playoffs is almost complete, and owners have begun shifting their focus to the Week 16 position-by-position rankings to find out which players will help cement a championship.

After a wild week that saw Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles have one of the biggest fantasy performances in NFL history—amassed over 200 all-purpose yards and five touchdowns—owners are desperate to decipher which stars will explode this week.

Here are my top-10 rankings at every position to help you make the toughest game-day decisions in such a pivotal week of the season.

*Based on standard-scoring leagues. Points against stats via Yahoo! Sports.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Peyton Manning	Denver Broncos	Houston Texans	27
2	Drew Brees	New Orleans Saints	Carolina Panthers	25
3	Philip Rivers	San Diego Chargers	Oakland Raiders	25
4	Tom Brady	New England Patriots	Baltimore Ravens	24
5	Andrew Luck	Indianapolis Colts	Kansas City Chiefs	22
6	Tony Romo	Dallas Cowboys	Washington Redskins	22
7	Matthew Stafford	Detroit Lions	New York Giants	21
8	Cam Newton	Carolina Panthers	New Orleans Saints	19
9	Alex Smith	Kansas City Chiefs	Indianapolis Colts	19
10	Nick Foles	Philadelphia Eagles	Chicago Bears	18

Quarterback Notes

If you made it this far in the fantasy postseason, that likely indicates you have one of the top quarterbacks in the sport. If you have a player like Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Philip Rivers or Andrew Luck, start them without hesitation.

Whether it’s the high-octane play of their offense or a favorable matchup, perennial fantasy powerhouses Tony Romo, Matthew Stafford or Cam Newton are also worth a start in every formatted league this week.

The biggest surprises in the top 10 are both Andy Reid protégés, Alex Smith and Nick Foles.

Smith has been a force in Kansas City, throwing for 14 touchdowns over the last four weeks and trailing only Manning in the overall rankings during that stretch. Fantasy players should continue playing Smith’s hot hand.

Philadelphia may have been defeated Sunday, but Nick Foles has been one of the most explosive fantasy players in 2013. With 428 yards and three touchdowns in the team’s loss to Minnesota, Foles should find even more success against a Chicago Bears team that gives up an average of 15.77 fantasy points to opposing QBs.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Jamaal Charles	Kansas City Chiefs	Indianapolis Colts	22
2	LeSean McCoy	Philadelphia Eagles	Chicago Bears	20
3	Marshawn Lynch	Seattle Seahawks	Arizona Cardinals	18
4	Knowshon Moreno	Denver Broncos	Houston Texans	18
5	DeMarco Murray	Dallas Cowboys	Washington Redskins	17
6	Matt Forte	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	16
7	Eddie Lacy	Green Bay Packers	Pittsburgh Steelers	16
8	Zac Stacy	St. Louis Rams	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	15
9	Ryan Mathews	San Diego Chargers	Oakland Raiders	15
10	Le'Veon Bell	Pittsburgh Steelers	Green Bay Packers	14

Running Back Notes

Before the focus can turn to Week 16’s projected outcomes and point totals, fantasy owners must reflect on the awe-inspiring five-touchdown performance by Kansas City’s Jamaal Charles.

If you have Charles on your roster, you likely made the championship game due to his performance; if you don’t have him on your team and you still made the finals, your only hope is that the Indianapolis Colts slow him down Sunday.

Charles earns the No. 1 spot without question, but the rankings get convoluted after that. With Adrian Peterson missing last week’s game and being listed as questionable for Week 16, LeSean McCoy has slid into the No. 2 spot, and the rest of the running backs have moved up as well.

Other must-start RBs include Marshawn Lynch, Knowshon Moreno, DeMarco Murray, Matt Forte and Eddie Lacy. Each of these backs has been successful this season and has added to your run this far in the postseason.

The three underrated stars to watch for this week will be Zac Stacy, Ryan Mathews and Le’Veon Bell. If you have any of these players on your bench, do whatever it takes to get them into an RB2 or Flex spot.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Calvin Johnson	Detroit Lions	New York Giants	23
2	Dez Bryant	Dallas Cowboys	Washington Redskins	21
3	Josh Gordon	Cleveland Browns	New York Jets	20
4	Demaryius Thomas	Denver Broncos	Houston Texans	19
5	A.J. Green	Cincinnati Bengals	Minnesota Vikings	19
6	Brandon Marshall	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	18
7	Antonio Brown	Pittsburgh Steelers	Green Bay Packers	18
8	DeSean Jackson	Philadelphia Eagles	Chicago Bears	16
9	Alshon Jeffery	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	15
10	Julian Edelman	New England Patriots	Baltimore Ravens	15

Wide Receiver Notes

One of the most consistent positions in fantasy football this season has been wide receiver. While the overall numbers are down, each of the stars who made the top-10 rankings this week can be counted on to get several catches and to contend for the occasional touchdown on a weekly basis.

The top spot belongs to Detroit’s Calvin Johnson until another receiver proves that they can produce bigger catches on a more consistent basis or a defender in the league finds the recipe to stop Megatron.

There are plenty of other fantasy juggernauts like Dez Bryant, Josh Gordon, Demaryius Thomas, A.J. Green, Brandon Marshall, Antonio Brown and DeSean Jackson who are bona fide starts each week, but the focus has turned to the bottom of the top 10.

The two biggest surprises over the last four weeks has been the successes of Alshon Jeffery and Julian Edelman. Jeffery has emerged as a viable No. 2 receiver in Chicago and has showcased his circus-like skills on a weekly basis. Edelman is coming off a game in which he totaled 13 receptions for 139 yards and one touchdown.

Both men are worth a start this week.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Jimmy Graham	New Orleans Saints	Carolina Panthers	20
2	Julius Thomas	Denver Broncos	Houston Texans	19
3	Jason Witten	Dallas Cowboys	Washington Redskins	18
4	Tony Gonzalez	Atlanta Falcons	San Francisco 49ers	18
5	Vernon Davis	San Francisco 49ers	Atlanta Falcons	17
6	Dennis Pitta	Baltimore Ravens	New England Patriots	17
7	Jordan Cameron	Cleveland Browns	New York Jets	16
8	Greg Olsen	Carolina Panthers	New Orleans Saints	15
9	Coby Fleener	Indianapolis Colts	Kansas City Chiefs	13
10	Martellus Bennett	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	13

Tight End Notes

The tight end position has been incredibly frustrating this season. Not only has almost every player failed to perform consistently—even No. 1 overall player Jimmy Graham was limited to just two catches in Week 15—but injuries have also played a role in the lack of success.

That’s why reliability rules in Week 16.

Graham remains the top TE due to his rapport with Drew Brees and the fact that he burned the Carolina Panthers for two touchdowns in their first meeting. Other players worth a start this week include Julius Thomas, Jason Witten, Tony Gonzalez, Vernon Davis and Jordan Cameron.

While Greg Olsen, Coby Fleener and Martellus Bennett are all fringe top-tier starters worth a shot Sunday, the biggest focus of Week 16 will be how Dennis Pitta continues to round into shape with the Baltimore Ravens.

It’s clear that quarterback Joe Flacco loves Pitta and will look to him early and often, and the owners who lost Gronkowski to season-ending surgery and placed their confidence in the Ravens’ tight end should begin to see it pay major dividends immediately.

Defense/Special Teams

Rank	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Seattle Seahawks	Arizona Cardinals	18
2	San Francisco 49ers	Atlanta Falcons	16
3	Kansas City Chiefs	Indianapolis Colts	15
4	Carolina Panthers	New Orleans Saints	14
5	Arizona Cardinals	Seattle Seahawks	14
6	Baltimore Ravens	New England Patriots	14
7	Pittsburgh Steelers	Green Bay Packers	13
8	Miami Dolphins	Buffalo Bills	12
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Minnesota Vikings	10
10	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	St. Louis Rams	10

Defense/Special Team Notes

Now is not the time to get fancy with your defense and special teams. If you are reading rankings in Week 16, it’s likely because you made it or are fighting to make it to the championship round of your fantasy league.

Start the best possible defense you can in the top 10.

The Seattle Seahawks proved once again why the team deserves the No. 1 ranking this week, but strong performances from San Francisco and Kansas City have the team’s spot as the undisputed No. 1 defense in the league ready to fall.

If an owner doesn’t have one of the defenses on this list and can’t pick them one up off waivers, check out matchups and pick the team playing the least imposing offensive unit.

Kickers

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent	Proj. Points
1	Matt Prater	Denver Broncos	Houston Texans	16
2	Dan Bailey	Dallas Cowboys	Washington Redskins	14
3	Steven Hauschka	Seattle Seahawks	Arizona Cardinals	12
4	Stephen Gostkowski	New England Patriots	Baltimore Ravens	11
5	Phil Dawson	San Francisco 49ers	Atlanta Falcons	11
6	Justin Tucker	Baltimore Ravens	New England Patriots	10
7	Robbie Gould	Chicago Bears	Philadelphia Eagles	10
8	Adam Vinatieri	Indianapolis Colts	Kansas City Chiefs	9
9	Blair Walsh	Minnesota Vikings	Cincinnati Bengals	9
10	Mason Crosby	Green Bay Packers	Pittsburgh Steelers	9

Kicker Notes

Matt Prater still holds the No. 1 spot in the kicker rankings, but it is far from a lock. With consistent studs like Steven Hauschka, Stephen Gostkowski and Justin Tucker all with the ability to outscore each other, there are several safe routes at the kicker position this week.

Each kicker on the list deserves credit, but with San Francisco dominating lately and playing some of its best football of the year, Phil Dawson has emerged as an elite fantasy player.

Remember that when setting your starting lineup.