Fantasy Football 2014: 5 Week 16 Sleepers to Start in a Pinch

Week 16 is the championship round for most participants in the 2014 fantasy football season. So if you're reading this article, you must be desperate. Fear not, owners of Delanie Walker, Keenan Allen and Rashad Jennings. Heath Miller, Charles Johnson and Pierre Thomas are probably available to rescue your championship season.

That is, of course, unless you have superior talent on your bench, which one would expect from a championship-caliber team. In that case, the following list could still be useful to the dregs trudging through the consolation bracket or people rolling the dice in one-week fantasy leagues.  

A sleeper in this context is any player available in approximately 50 percent or more of ESPN fantasy leagues with a favorable matchup, per ESPN's fantasy points against statistic. Rankings and point totals are based on scoring leaders in ESPN standard leagues.

Defense/Special Teams: Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars

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By now, you must know it doesn't matter who squares off against Jacksonville's offense.

Tennessee ranks 29th with just 46 points on the season. But the Titans scored roughly one-quarter of that total in their previous matchup with the Jaguars (12 points in Week 6).

The league's most generous offense in D/ST points allowed has that effect on opponents, averaging 14.1 points per game. D/STs facing the Jaguars averaged a 5.6 ranking in points scored through 14 weeks, with only two opponents falling outside the top 10—the Giants (nine) in Week 13 and Cincinnati (seven) in Week 9.

A total of 19 defenses average less than seven points per game, which is the lowest score against Jacksonville this season.  

If you aren't starting Philadelphia, New England or Buffalo this week, Tennessee—available in 95.3 percent of ESPN leagues—might be the winning alternative.

Honorable mention

• Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Tennessee Titans
• Green Bay Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 15 results

• Baltimore Ravens (featured), finished first with 23 points
• New York Giants, 16th with nine
• Carolina Panthers, tied for ninth with 12

Tight end: Heath Miller, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Miller is quietly putting up top-10 numbers, averaging 5.8 points per game over the last four, according to NFL.com.

He's tied for seventh among tight ends in receptions with 56. He also ranks ninth in yardage with 652. Miller's downfall is scoring, notching just three touchdowns this season. The 10-year pro is tied for 21st among tight ends in that category.

Kansas City poses a bit of a challenge to opposing tight ends, ranking 12th with 5.9 points per game. But at this point in the season, you need consistency out of a sleeper you plug into the starting lineup.

No one widely available on the waiver wire with a better matchup has averaged as much as Miller—available in 64.9 percent of ESPN leagues—over the past four weeks.

If Delanie Walker can't go on Thursday night, Miller is the best alternative.

Honorable mention

• Dwayne Allen, Indianapolis Colts at Dallas Cowboys
• Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins

Week 15 results

• Jordan Cameron (featured), tied for 38th with zero
• Zach Ertz, tied for 15th with three
• Jared Cook, tied for 23rd with two

Apparently, Josh Hill (13) was the answer the judges were looking for. Jimmy Graham's backup vultured two touchdowns against Chicago on Monday night.

Wide Receiver: Charles Johnson, Minnesota Vikings at Miami Dolphins

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Johnson (40.8) is tied for 14th among wide receivers in fantasy scoring over the last four weeks, according to NFL.com.

He's also emerging as the WR1 in Minnesota—snap data provided by Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

------------------------	Snaps	Tgts	Recp	Yds	TDs	Pts
Charles Johnson	242	30	14	268	2	40
Greg Jennings	220	24	17	178	3	34
Jarius Wright	118	14	10	212	1	28
Cordarrelle Patterson	46	6	4	34	0	0

Miami presents an average defense in wide receiver points against, ranked 14th (20.1 PPG). Pass coverage is the weakest part of the Dolphins defense, according to PFF.

This bodes well for the second-year upstart out of Grand Valley State—Go Lakers!—available in 82.6 percent of ESPN leagues. T.Y. Hilton, Julio Jones and Keenan Allen owners should consider Johnson if a game-day replacement is needed.

Honorable mention

• Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers
• Stedman Bailey, St. Louis Rams vs. New York Giants

Week 15 results

• Donte Moncrief (featured), tied for 94th with zero
• Chris Hogan, tied for 94th with zero
• Marquess Wilson, tied for 26th with seven
• Derek Hagan, tied for 94th with zero
• Marqise Lee, tied for 73rd with one

This group didn't tank for a lack of trying. Although they combined for 36 yards and a touchdown on eight catches, they were targeted 25 times. I blame Jay Cutler for all of it.

Running back: Pierre Thomas, New Orleans Saints vs. Atlanta Falcons

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

A healthy and effective Mark Ingram keeps Thomas on the sidelines for the majority of the Saints' offensive plays. But Thomas made the most of the limited opportunities he got, averaging 1.3 points per touch on Monday night.

The eight-year veteran ranks seventh among running backs in receptions despite missing four games this season.

Atlanta's defense is a sieve on the ground and through the air, ranking 26th overall, according to Pro-Football-Reference.com. Drew Brees and the Saints should continue the offensive showcase displayed against Chicago in Week 15.

Thomas is readily available in 75.1 percent of ESPN leagues. DeMarco Murray and Rashad Jennings owners who didn't wisely handcuff Joseph Randle and Andre Williams could start Thomas in a pinch.

Honorable mention

• Matt Asiata, Minnesota Vikings at Miami Dolphins
• Toby Gerhart, Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Tennessee Titans
• Shonn Greene, Tennessee Titans at Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 15 results

• Jonathan Stewart (featured), tied for 39th with five
• Latavius Murray, tied for 28th with six
• Kerwynn Williams, tied for 19th with eight

A touchdown or two would have buffed the grime off this grouping.

Quarterback: Alex Smith, Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

There hasn't been much to recommend about Smith in 2014, averaging a 17th-ranked 13.7 PPG among quarterbacks.

But Pittsburgh's passing defense deteriorated to the point that even a dink-and-dunker like Smith is palatable. The Steelers rank 27th in quarterback points allowed (17.7 PPG). They haven't held an opposing quarterback under the league average of 15.4 PPG since Brian Hoyer and the Josh Gordon-less Browns (12) in Week 6.

Smith threw for 293 and 297 yards in the past two weeks, respectively, both setting season highs. The uptick indicates head coach Andy Reid might be opening up the ultra-conservative offense as the Chiefs fight to remain playoff-relevant, according to Terez A. Paylor of The Kansas City Star.

"

I thought that was one of the positives offensively. We were able to drive it down there. It loosens things up a bit. You saw they were playing a lot of single-safety middle and putting that extra guy in the box, obviously concerned about Jamaal and the run game. So it opened up something down the field for us. I thought Alex [Smith] did a nice job, 297 yards throwing the football.

"

Smith is available in 79.6 percent of ESPN leagues but still isn't much of a consideration outside of two-QB leagues and super-deep formats.

Honorable mention

• Kyle Orton, Buffalo Bills at Oakland Raiders
• Teddy Bridgewater, Minnesota Vikings at Miami Dolphins

Week 15 results

• Mark Sanchez (featured), tied for 25th with six
• Johnny Manziel, tied for 36th with zero
• Eli Manning, second with 22
• Joe Flacco, tied for 15th with 12

Odds are this information was only useful to one-week leagues and those in consolation brackets. Few make it this far in the playoffs with quarterback issues.

As always, take this sleeper advice with a grain of salt. There are probably better options on your bench, especially for those taking part in the championship round of your league.

If not, plug in one of these guys and cross your fingers.