Week 15 Fantasy Football Projections: Stat Predictions for Top 100 Players

Congratulations.

No, really—most fantasy football owners in Week 15 who take the time to seek out details such as what rests below are victors and through to the first round of the playoffs.

For those who are not, well, a tip of the hat. Fake football is life, after all.

For those in need of help, let's get right down to business. While divisional battles such as the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys get set to shape the playoff picture, what really matters is how such matchups can affect fantasy playoffs.

Below is a comprehensive list of the top 100 players of Week 15 with sleepers to boot.

Week 15 NFL Schedule

Thursday, Dec. 11	Time (ET)
Sunday, Dec. 14	Time (ET)
Monday, Dec. 15	Time (ET)
Arizona at St. Louis	8:25 p.m.
Oakland at Kansas City	1 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Atlanta	1 p.m.
Washington at NY Giants	1 p.m.
Miami at New England	1 p.m.
Houston at Indianapolis	1 p.m.
Jacksonville at Baltimore	1 p.m.
Green Bay at Buffalo	1 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Carolina	1 p.m.
Cincinnati at Cleveland	1 p.m.
NY Jets at Tennessee	4:05 p.m.
Denver at San Diego	4:05 p.m.
Minnesota at Detroit	4:25 p.m.
San Francisco at Seattle	4:25 p.m.
Dallas at Philadelphia	8:30 p.m.
New Orleans at Chicago	8:30 p.m.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Projections
1	Aaron Rodgers, GB	335 PAS, 4 TD, 1 INT
2	Peyton Manning, DEN	305 PAS, 3 TD
3	Drew Brees, NO	245 PAS, 2 TD, 1 INT
4	Andrew Luck, IND	350 PAS, 4 TD, 3 INT
5	Ben Roethlisberger, PIT	300 PAS, 1 TD
6	Russell Wilson, SEA	364 PAS, 2 TD
7	Tom Brady, NE	300 PAS, 2 TD
8	Matt Ryan, ATL	225 PAS, 2 TD, 2 INT
9	Mark Sanchez, PHI	305 PAS, 2 TD, 2 INT
10	Philip Rivers, SD	215 PAS, 75 RUS, 2 TD, 1 INT
11	Cam Newton, CAR	240 PAS, 95 RUS, 1 TD
12	Jay Cutler, CHI	240 PAS, 1 TD, 2 INT
13	Tony Romo, DAL	245 PAS, 1 TD
14	Matthew Stafford, DET	290 PAS, 2 TD, 1 INT
15	Eli Manning, NYG	275 PAS, 3 TD
16	Ryan Tannehill, MIA	180 PAS, 2 TD, 1 INT
17	Joe Flacco, BAL	205 PAS, 1 TD, 1 INT
18	Colin Kaepernick, SF	255 PAS, 1 TD, 2 INT
19	Alex Smith, KC	265 PAS, 2 TD
20	Ryan Fitzpatrick, HOU	240 PAS, 2 TD, 2 INT

Sleeper: Alex Smith, KC (vs. OAK)

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

The frustration with Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith extends beyond the realm of fake football, believe it or not.

Just ask Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com:

This helps to explain why Smith is owned in just 20.3 percent of leagues.

For owners in a bind for one reason or another, Smith is not a horrible pickup going into Week 15.

Smith has 10 double-digit outings this year with 17, 12 and 15 points over the course of his last three outings. That last number came against the Oakland Raiders, the team that just so happens to be his next opponent.

Keep in mind that Smith just posted 15 points on an Arizona defense that entered the weekend ranked among the top 10 in terms of points allowed to quarterbacks. He is a strong play for those in a pinch.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Projections
1	DeMarco Murray, DAL	165 RUS, 1 TD
2	Le'Veon Bell, PIT	110 RUS, 80 REC, 2 TD
3	Arian Foster, HOU	100 RUS, 85 REC, 1 TD
4	Justin Forsett, BAL	75 RUS, 50 REC, 2 TD
5	Matt Forte, CHI	55 RUS, 45 REC. 1 TD
6	Jamaal Charles, KC	105 RUS
7	LeSean McCoy, PHI	95 RUS, 25 REC, 1 TD
8	C.J. Anderson, DEN	100 RUS, 95 REC 1 TD
9	Mark Ingram, NO	65 RUS, 1 TD
10	Marshawn Lynch, SEA	105 RUS, 1 TD
11	Tre Mason, STL	95 RUS, 1 TD
12	Joique Bell, DET	120 RUS, 1 TD
13	Rashad Jennings, NYG	65 RUS, 85 REC, 1 TD
14	LeSean McCoy, PHI	85 RUS, 1 TD
15	Ryan Mathews, SD	90 RUS, 1 TD
16	Isaiah Crowell, CLE	70 RUS, 1 TD
17	Alfred Morris, WAS	105 RUS
18	Lamar Miller, MIA	75 RUS
19	Daniel Herron, IND	75 RUS
20	LeGarrette Blount, NE	75 RUS, 1 TD
21	Latavius Murray, OAK	55 RUS, 95 REC
22	Frank Gore, SF	60 RUS, 1 TD
23	Steven Jackson, ATL	75 RUS
24	Chris Johnson, NYJ	50 RUS
25	Jeremy Hill, CIN	45 RUS
26	Jonathan Stewart, CAR	45 RUS
27	Denard Robinson, JAC	45 RUS, 1 TD
28	Trent Richardson, IND	55 RUS
29	Terrance West, CLE	75 RUS, 1 TD
30	Giovani Bernard, CIN	50 RUS

Sleeper: Isaiah Crowell, CLE (vs. CIN)

Marc Serota/Associated Press

Isaiah Crowell has yet to earn the trust of some owners with his ownership percentage hovering around 74 percent.

The brave ones will pounce, though.

Crowell is a bit of an up-and-down commodity, but he plays well in favorable matchups when given enough opportunities, as his last five outings show:

WK	OPP	ATT	YDS	TD	PTS
10	@Cin	12	41	1	10
11	Hou	14	61	0	7
12	@Atl	12	88	2	20
13	@Buf	17	29	0	3
14	Ind	14	54	1	11

That outing at the top of the list is quite notable. Crowell gets another shot at the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 15. His AFC North rivals entered last weekend allowing the sixth-most points to backs on the season and let Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell loose for 41 points on his own last Sunday.

Crowell is the lead back in Cleveland at home against a defense he has already found success against and might just be worse off than last time around.

What is not to like?

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Projections
1	Antonio Brown, PIT	145 REC, 1 TD
2	Calvin Johnson, DET	95 REC, 2 TD
3	Jordy Nelson, GB	100 REC
4	Dez Bryant, DAL	100 REC, 2 TD
5	Demaryius Thomas, DEN	165 REC, 1 TD
6	Alshon Jeffery, CHI	120 REC, 1 TD
7	Odell Beckham Jr., NYG	95 REC, 1 TD
8	Jeremy Maclin, PHI	65 REC, 1 TD
9	Josh Gordon, CLE	90 REC, 1 TD
10	Emmanuel Sanders, DEN	115 REC, 1 TD
11	T.Y. Hilton, IND	75 REC, 1 TD
12	A.J. Green, CIN	95 REC, 1 TD
13	Mike Evans, TB	120 REC, 2 TD
14	Randall Cobb, GB	105 REC, 1 TD
15	Julio Jones, ATL	80 REC
16	Steve Smith, BAL	60 REC, 1 TD
17	DeAndre Hopkins, HOU	75 REC
18	Kelvin Benjamin, CAR	80 REC, 1 TD
19	Julian Edelman, NE	90 REC
20	Golden Tate, DET	75 REC
21	Keenan Allen, SD	65 REC
22	Sammy Watkins, BUF	60 REC, 1 TD
23	Roddy White, ATL	95 REC
24	Brandon LaFell, NE	100 REC
25	Vincent Jackson, TB	75 REC
26	Martavis Bryant, PIT	80 REC
27	Jordan Matthews, PHI	75 REC
28	Kenny Stills, NO	80 REC
29	Andre Johnson, HOU	95 REC, 1 TD
30	Eric Decker, NYJ	75 REC
31	Jarvis Landry, MIA	45 REC, 1 TD
32	Anquan Boldin, SF	50 REC
33	Charles Johnson, MIN	90 REC, 1 TD
34	Marques Colston, NO	75 REC
35	Pierre Garcon, WAS	55 REC

Sleeper: Odell Beckham Jr., NYG (vs. WSH)

The first rookie in NFL history with 90 or more yards in six consecutive games is Odell Beckham Jr., the No. 12 overall pick in last year's draft by the New York Giants.

Beckham has four trips to double digits in his last six outings, with last week's 11 catches for 130 yards and a score getting him a cool 19 points—not even a season high (Week 12, 26 points).

Washington is up next for Beckham, which means he might just flirt with his season high. The unit entered last weekend allowing the eighth-most points to receivers. Starting in Week 11, it allowed 36, 24 and 40 points over the course of three weeks.

In other words, Beckham seems a lock to find the end zone at least once. The Washington secondary cannot account for him on every down, which means he is set to extend his historic streak in the process.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Projections
1	Rob Gronkowski, NE	120 REC, 1 TD
2	Jimmy Graham, NO	75 REC, 1 TD
3	Julius Thomas, DEN	55 REC, 1 TD
4	Antonio Gates, SD	35 REC, 1 TD
5	Greg Olsen, CAR	65 REC, 1 TD
6	Martellus Bennett, CHI	25 REC
7	Delanie Walker, TEN	80 REC, 1 TD
8	Travis Kelce, KC	70 REC
9	Jared Cook, STL	65 REC
10	Mychal Rivera, OAK	55 REC
11	Coby Fleener, IND	45 REC
12	Jordan Reed, WAS	35 REC
13	Owen Daniels, BAL	45 REC
14	Jason Witten, DAL	65 REC
15	Kyle Rudolph, MIN	50 REC

Sleeper: Delanie Walker, TEN (vs. NYJ)

Eric Gay/Associated Press

Owners continue to jump ship on Tennessee Titans tight end Delanie Walker, a safe move considering his two total points in his last two games.

Owners on the market for spot-production may want to take advantage.

Walker has three double-digit performances this year and is just a few weeks removed from a 15-point outburst with five catches for 55 yards. Besides, those two points last week are deceptive—Walker was targeted a team-high 10 times, but rookie Zach Mettenberger missed him more than a few times.

Jake Locker will be back under center next week against the New York Jets, a defense that ranks among the five teams that allow the most points to the position on average. Walker is in for a major rebound performance just in time for owners in playoff matchups.

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats as of 6 p.m. ET on December 8. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.