Week 16 Fantasy Football Rankings, Projections and Matchups to Love

Kristopher KnoxDec 18, 2025

The NFL kicked off Week 16 with a fantastic playoff-caliber showdown between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams. It was a fitting way to start the week for fantasy football enthusiasts, many of whom are locked in postseason matchups themselves.

Moving forward, every lineup decision will be critical. With that in mind, let's run through some rankings, fantasy projections and top matchups for the remainder of the Week 16 schedule.

As a reminder, there will be two games on Saturday, so don't forget to set those lineups. All rankings and analysis are based on point-per-reception (PPR) scoring.

Quarterback

1 of 5

AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

Chargers QB Justin Hebert

1. Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills: 27.6 points

2. Drake Maye, New England Patriots: 22.5 points

3. Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles: 21 points

4. Brock Purdy, San Francisco 49ers: 20.1 points

5. Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens: 20 points

6. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys: 19.8 points

7. Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals: 19.4 points

8. Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers: 18.8 points

9. Bo Nix, Denver Broncos: 18.7 points

10. Joe Burrow, Cincinnati Bengals: 18.6 points

11. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans: 18.2 points

12. Jared Goff, Detroit Lions: 18 points

Matchup to Love: Justin Herbert at Dallas Cowboys

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert has largely underwhelmed in fantasy over the last month-plus. While he's averaged a solid 18.1 fantasy points per week, Herbert hasn't reached 15 points since 9.

Injuries along the offensive line certainly haven't helped Herbert, but neither have some recently tough matchups. Fortunately, this week's matchup is anything but daunting.

No team has surrendered more fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season than the Dallas Cowboys. Herbert should be considered a strong streamer who can jump back over his season average.

Running Back

2 of 5

AP Photo/Matt Durisko

Dolphins RB De'Von Achane

1. De'Von Achane, Miami Dolphins: 29.5 points

2. Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions: 28.8 points

3. Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons: 28.2 points

4. Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers: 27.6 points

5. James Cook, Buffalo Bills: 26.6 points

6. Travis Etienne Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars: 25 points

7. Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts: 23.5 points

8. Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagles: 23 points

9. Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 21.7 points

10. Javonte Williams, Dallas Cowboys: 20.2 points

11. Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals: 19.5 points

12. Josh Jacobs, Green Bay Packers: 19.3 points

13. TreVeyon Henderson, New England Patriots: 19 points

14. Derrick Henry, Baltimore Ravens: 17.7 points

15. RJ Harvey, Denver Broncos: 17.5 points

16. D'Andre Swift, Chicago Bears: 17 points

17. Woody Marks, Houston Texans: 16 points

18. Quinshon Judkins, Cleveland Browns: 15.4 points

19. Breece Hall, New York Jets: 15.3 points

20. Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings: 15.2 points

Matchup to Love: De'Von Achane vs. Cincinnati Bengals

The Miami Dolphins were running the ball well during their four-game winning streak, but they got away from the ground game during Monday's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, starting back De'Von Achane still managed to tally 18.7 fantasy points.

Miami should be back to leading with the run this week, as quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been benched for rookie seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers. Achane should see a sizable workload as the Dolphins look to ease in Ewers while attacking a bad Cincinnati Bengals run defense.

No team has surrendered more fantasy points to opposing running backs than Cincinnati. The Bengals have actually surrendered 2.5 more points each week to opposing backfields than the next-closest team.

Wide Receiver

3 of 5

AP Photo/Matt Patterson

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson

1. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions: 37.7 points

2. Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals: 35 points

3. CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys: 31.2 points

4. Nico Collins, Houston Texans: 30 points

5. A.J. Brown, Philadelphia Eagles: 28.8 points

6. Chris Olave, New Orleans Saints: 26 points

7. Jameson Williams, Detroit Lions: 22.8 points

8. Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 22.5 points

9. George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys: 22.3 points

10. DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers: 20.8 points

11. Michael Wilson, Arizona Cardinals: 19.5 points

12. Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers: 19.4 points

13. Jaylen Waddle, Miami Dolphins: 19.2 points

14. Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos: 19 points

15. Jauan Jennings, San Francisco 49ers: 18 points

16. Wan'Dale Robinson, New York Giants: 16.6 points

17. Zay Flowers, Baltimore Ravens: 16.5 points

18. DeVonta Smith, Philadelphia Eagles: 16.4 points

19. Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders: 16 points

20. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings: 15.5 points

21. Jakobi Meyers, Jacksonville Jaguars: 15.3 points

22. Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 15.1 points

23. Ladd McConkey, Los Angeles Chargers: 15 points

24. Stefon Diggs, New England Patriots: 14.9 points

25. D.J. Moore, Chicago Bears: 14.7 points

Matchup to Love: Justin Jefferson at New York Giants

OK, so we're not calling for Justin Jefferson to be a top-tier scorer this week. However, managers should trust that he'll finally have the sort of bounce-back game that managers have been awaiting.

Jefferson has struggled with J.J. McCarthy behind center, and he hasn't reached 15 fantasy points since Week 9. Against a suspect Cowboys secondary last week, he had just 4.2 fantasy points.

It's worth noting, though, that McCarthy tried to get the ball to Jefferson often last week. The two just failed to connect. Jefferson was targeted on eight of McCarthy's 24 pass attempts.

Expect the two to finally get on the same page this week, against a New York Giants defense that has surrendered the third-most fantasy points to opposing receivers.

TOP NEWS

Bleacher Report3h

Bleacher Report14h

Bleacher Report3h

Tight End

4 of 5

AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Eagles TE Dallas Goedert

1. Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals: 25 points

2. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers: 22 points

3. Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders: 20 points

4. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons: 19 points

5. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles: 16 points

6. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs: 15.5 points

7. Darren Waller, Miami Dolphins: 15.3 points

8. Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans: 15.2 points

9. Tyler Warren, Indianapolis Colts: 15 points

10. Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills: 14.4 points

11. Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns: 12.2 points

12. Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears: 12 points

13. Oronde Gadsden II, Los Angeles Chargers: 11.8 points

14. Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys: 11.5 points

15. Theo Johnson, New York Giants: 11.2 points

Matchup to Love: Dallas Goedert at Washington Commanders

While the Philadelphia Eagles' offense has had their fair share of ups and downs this season, it has operated well over the past two weeks. Tight end Dallas Goedert has been a big part of the surge, too, tallying 17 targets and 14 catches in that span.

Goedert yielded 15.8 fantasy points in Week 14 and 25 fantasy points in Week 15. Those are the only double-digit games Goedert has had since Week 8. However, a third big game in a row appears likely, as the Washington Commanders have struggled to contain opposing tight ends this season.

Only the Bengals, Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers have surrendered more fantasy points to opposing TEs than Washington.