Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 16: Debating Difficult Fantasy Football Lineup Decisions

The NFL does not like to make things easy on fantasy football owners. 

To be fair, the league threw owners a bone with a Thursday Night Football showdown between the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars. That game gave owners nothing to worry about when it comes to start 'em, sit 'em decisions.

However, a pair of Saturday games, a loaded slate Sunday and then a game Monday makes life difficult on owners—especially during the holiday season.

To counteract this, let's debate some of the most difficult decisions still in front of those alive in the playoffs. For those observers from the sideline, there is still plenty to learn in order to prepare for the inevitable playoff berth next season.

Positivity is key.

Quarterback

Start 'Em: Matt Ryan, Atlanta Falcons (at NO)

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As the eighth-highest scorer at quarterback this season entering Saturday, owners are right to be wary of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. 

There was a seven-game stretch smack dab in the middle of the fantasy season in which Ryan never posted more than 15 points in a contest despite the presence of weapons such as Julio Jones and Roddy White.

With that out of the way, keep in mind that Ryan has 20, 31 and 20 points over the course of his last three games. His only other 30-point outing came in Week 1 against the New Orleans Saints—his opponent Sunday.

This may be a road contest, but proven production and a Saints defense that allows the fourth-most points to quarterbacks makes Ryan a must start.

Sit 'Em: Johnny Manziel, Cleveland Browns (at CAR) 

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Look, this has to be said: Stay far away from Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel.

Once named the starter last week, Manziel exploded into a hot commodity. Rookie hype and the ability to make plays with his feet surely lost more than a few owners their fantasy playoff contests.

Instead of an awe-inspiring debut, Manziel scored all of zero fantasy points thanks to 80 passing yards and two interceptions. As Ed Werder points out, his play outside of the pocket was awful:

Part of the problem this weekend is that the Carolina Panthers surrender the 11th-most points to quarterbacks on the year.

This may catch the eye of some, but keep in mind the defense has improved as of late and held its last four opponents to 14 or fewer points.

In his first road NFL start, Manziel needs to remain on the bench—if owned at all.

Running Back

Start 'Em: Jonathan Stewart, Carolina Panthers (vs. CLE)

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Jonathan Stewart is the starter for the home team in the Cleveland-Carolina showdown.

With DeAngelo Williams likely out of the picture—or, at the very least, hobbled, per Joe Person of The Charlotte Observer—Stewart will be free to run wild against a miserable defense Sunday.

Stewart is now healthy and has a minimum of 75 rushing yards in three consecutive games, two of which have been double-digit fantasy outings.

A third in four tries is on the way thanks to a Cleveland defense that allows the 10th-most points to backs and just last week let the Cincinnati Bengals run wild for 42 points. Four of the Browns' last five opponents have reached double digits.

Look for Carolina to lean on Stewart all day long to take pressure off Cam Newton.

Sit 'Em: Andre Williams, New York Giants (at STL)

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The situation around New York Giants running back Andre Williams is similar to Stewart's above—only in one way: Starter Rashad Jennings has been confirmed out for Sunday's encounter with the St. Louis Rams, per ESPN.com's Dan Graziano.

The rest is negative. Do not be fooled by a 20-point outburst from Williams in Week 14. As Rich Hribar of XNSports.com points out, Williams defines the term "plodding" when it comes to running backs:

"

Andre Williams is second to last in non TD points per touch (Ben Tate) at RB and 51.7% of his carries have gone for 2 yards or fewer.

— Rich Hribar (@LordReebs) December 19, 2014"

Williams will get all the work Sunday, but that is rarely a good thing against a Rams defense that surrenders the sixth-fewest points to backs this season.

Wide Receiver

Start 'Em: Golden Tate, Detroit Lions (at CHI)

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Much of what makes a successful owner just that is an ability to hop on board a developing trend.

The signals around Detroit Lions wideout Golden Tate are great.

Tate scored his first touchdown since Week 8 last weekend on seven catches for 38 yards and a score. Now he gets to re-up with a Chicago Bears defense that allows the 10th-most points to wideouts and has let every corps it has encountered to date go for double digits.

Even better, Tate caught eight passes for 89 yards on 10 targets a few weeks back against these same Bears. If a touchdown is sprinkled into that sort of equation again, he will wind up as one of the highest scorers of Week 16.

Sit 'Em: Eric Decker, New York Jets (vs. NE)

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Pump the breaks on the Eric Decker train, folks. 

The New York Jets wideout is the owner of eight or more points in each of his last two outings. Some of this has to do with the return of Geno Smith under center.

Fun times are over for Decker owners, though. A date with the New England Patriots tends to do that for most wideouts. Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner and others help to surrender just the sixth-fewest fantasy points to receivers this season.

Decker knows this all too well. Four catches and six points in a Week 7 matchup with New England speak well to that. A similar line Sunday would be no shock.

Tight End

Start 'Em: Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs (at PIT)

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Better late than never. 

The Kansas City Chiefs finally use Travis Kelce in a smart manner, as Rotoworld's Adam Levitan helps to explain:

The result is nine points in each of his last two outings and a place as the ninth-highest scorer at the position.

Expect the trend to continue, too. The Pittsburgh Steelers allow the eighth-most points to tight ends on the season.

Sit 'Em: Larry Donnell, New York Giants (at STL)

It is quite clear that the fun times are over for Giants tight end Larry Donnell.

Donnell has just eight points total over the course of his past four outings, which is lower than his 11 points in just Week 11 alone. 

This suggests Donnell is still good for a huge game every now and then, but that is only a safe bet if the matchup is right.

It certainly is not in Week 16 thanks to a trip to St. Louis. The Rams allow the second-fewest points to tight ends this year. Only one team has breached double digits and two teams have found the end zone.

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