Tue Dec 23rd 2025

Week Sixteen Dynasty Takes

Week Sixteen Dynasty Takes

Quarterback Injuries and Bad Performances

• What I’ll sadly remember most about this week was the incredible number of injuries, especially to quarterbacks, and how quarterback injuries ruin the production of everyone around them. I’ll also remember how a few of the most productive quarterbacks in recent weeks laid an egg on Sunday. Josh Allen had the worst fantasy game of his entire career. Jacoby Brissett's incredible streak of 20-point games came to an end, and Trey McBride had his season. At least Michael Wilson kept his hot streak by catching one ridiculous touchdown pass. Then there were the injuries to Marcus Mariota, Jordan Love, J.J. McCarthy, Gardner Minshew, and Lamar Jackson. Managers with these quarterbacks in their superflex rosters were set back this weekend, and in most cases, the players these quarterbacks targeted were set back as well. I know many dynasty managers felt the pain of losing these quarterbacks early. Somehow, I came out unscathed by them, but I will have far less confidence starting my Packers and Ravens players and will likely bench my players on the Commanders, Vikings, and Chiefs in championship week. What a mess on such an important week!

Right and Wrong

• On the week before the fantasy championship, I have to take a victory lap on Puka Nacua, who helped carry four of my teams into the championship this week, though I could technically still lose one game on Monday night if Jonathan Taylor and George Kittle combine to score 42 points. Nacua was my favorite super sleeper in his draft three years ago. He was my most rostered player for years. I had him in six of my nine dynasty leagues until I started rebuilding in one league and sold him for five draft picks. Now I just have him on five of my rosters. In the only league with Puka that did not make the playoffs, his blowup game on Sunday at least propelled me to a win in the consolation bracket, which awards me an extra rookie pick at the end of the second round. What a time for him to have the best fantasy game of his young career on Thursday night in the semifinals. Few teams could overcome that 46-point start to the week. One manager I was facing in the semifinals posted to our chat on Friday morning, “fantasy football is so stupid… that’s all.” That’s how a lot of managers felt on Thursday night and Friday morning. I’m glad I am not one of them.
• I have to be honest, I planned to include in the “I was wrong” segment my thoughts on my most rostered player, Jaylen Warren. All week, I planned to write about how Kenny Gainwell is the new RB-1 in Pittsburgh and Aaron Rodgers’ new toy target. I planned to admit that I was wrong by having Warren on seven of my dynasty rosters. As Sunday's games unfolded and Gainwell collected targets and a touchdown, my plans to admit I was wrong were confirmed. Then, out of nowhere, Warren scored back-to-back 45-yard touchdowns in the span of six minutes, and my “I was wrong” plans were put on hold.  Believe me, I thought I was wrong because I benched Warren in two of those seven leagues. In the other five, he was my best option, so I started him. His 29 points carried me to victories in most of those leagues, too, especially in the four leagues where I have Puka and Warren on my teams. Thankfully, I didn’t lose the two games with Warren on my bench, either.

Week One Injury Report

• Quinshon Judkins
  • What a brutal injury and a terrible time of year to experience it. Judkins dislocated his ankle and broke his leg. It’s very possible that dynasty managers have lost Judkins for the entire 2026 season. That’s a huge blow to teams. It gives Dylan Sampson a great opportunity to become the starter next season unless Raheim Sanders can win the battle, but more on Sanders in the waiver wire segment.
• TreVeyon Henderson
  • Henderson was likely concussed on Sunday night. Most concussions this season have caused players to miss at least the next game. Meaning Henderson may not be available to dynasty managers in championship week. That’s a big blow to his dynasty managers. It makes Rhomandre Stevenson a viable starter in dynasty championships for managers brave enough to start him.
• Jordan Mason
  • Mason hurt his ankle early in this week's game. At the time of this article, the severity of the injury is unknown. Aaron Jones was also injured, but he came back into the game and gutted it out. If Mason cannot play in championship week, Jones would become a possible starter in dynasty lineups during championship week. But if JJ McCarthy remains out, no one on the Vikings can be trusted during championship week.
• Kimani Vidal
  • Vidal left the game with a neck injury, which allowed Omarion Hampton to get more touches than expected. If Vidal remains out, Hampton will get even more looks next week, much to the pleasure of his dynasty managers like me, who have been frustrated by his splits with Vidal and need Hampton in championship week.

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Stock Up

Chris Olave

• Olave has been one of the most steady risers in my dynasty rankings this year as he’s stayed healthy all season, and as Tyler Shough has improved. The two have chemistry together, and I believe the Saints have found their future starting quarterback, who has led them to three consecutive wins by targeting the heck out of Olave. He had a season high 16 targets in the game on Sunday and his most yards of the season with 148. His two-touchdown performance made him the second-highest scoring receiver this week, behind only Puka Nacua. He’s now my 15th-ranked dynasty receiver. He was the 8th-highest-scoring receiver going into this week, and his 36-point day on Sunday will move him up to the 6th-highest-scoring wide receiver. What an incredible season by Olave.

Tetairoa McMillan 

• McMillan would be my selection as the rookie of the year this season.  He’s completely surpassed Emeka Egbuka as the top wide receiver in this class. He’s now my 10th-ranked wide receiver in dynasty. While he’s been inconsistent at times this season, it’s not his fault, and he’s improved as the season has progressed. He’s an excellent weapon in the red zone with his big frame and has scored seven touchdowns, including one more this week. The Panthers’ quarterback play and offense are improving, too, which gives McMillan more chances and a brighter future. I wish I had a share of McMillan, but I do not. He’d be an excellent young cornerstone to a rebuilding team. Dynasty managers who drafted him early in the first round last year are pleased with their selection.

Chimere Dike

• Dike has quietly caught a touchdown pass every other week since the Titans’ bye week, and he’s emerging as their leading wide receiver. Since the bye week, he’s averaged more than five targets per game. Dynasty managers were first excited by the few good games by Elic Ayomanor this season, but forgot that the Titans drafted Dike ahead of Ayomanor and have not noticed that Dike has produced more than Ayomanor as the season has progressed. They are also prone to think of Dike as just a special teams guy because of his success in the return game and his two punt returns for touchdowns. He’s more than a return man.  He’s the first receiver they drafted to play with their first-round quarterback, Cam Ward.  

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Stock Down

Javonte Williams

• I hate to say it, but the Williams fire seems to be burning out. After starting the season as one of the biggest surprises of the year, Williams’ production has sputtered out, and Sunday’s performance was his worst of the season with just 34 yards rushing. Apart from this game, where he only got nine carries, his touches have remained high. He’s just not doing as much with them, and he’s not scoring at the ridiculous rate he did at the start of the season. He scored nine touchdowns in the first nine games of the season. In the  last six games, he’s scored just three. His yards per carry have dropped from 5.1 yards per game in the first nine games of the season to 4.3 yards per game since because he’s not had any explosive runs since the bye week. Plus, his targets have gone down from four per game in the first nine games of the season to two per game over the last six. Sadly, the hot-start dynasty managers who got off to a good start with Williams in their lineups will not continue, and it may already have cost them playoff games.

Brian Thomas

• A few weeks after I included Brian Thomas in the stock-up section of this article, I've now moved him back to the stock-down section. It’s unreal how much better Trevor Lawrence's connection is with Jakobi Meyers and Parker Washington. The Jaguars signed Meyers to a three-year extension this week, proving that his role is here to stay. Then this week, Washington gets healthy and goes nuts, scoring the third most fantasy points by a wide receiver this week with 145 yards receiving and a touchdown. The writing is on the wall for Thomas.  The only way his dynasty value will rise again is if he gets traded this offseason, and I would not be surprised at all if he does.

Keon Coleman

• Coleman was a healthy scratch this week. On a team with one of the worst wide receiver corps, Coleman cannot even earn an active role on gameday. His year was his last to try to earn Josh Allen and the coaching staff’s trust, but he’s blown his chance. The Bills have spoken by signing old man Brandin Cooks and letting him start this week ahead of the player they drafted two years ago in the second round. That says it all. Sorry for his dynasty managers, but Coleman is a bust. I’m glad I never drafted him.

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Young Guns

RJ Harvey

• Harvey has been on a tear the last four weeks, and he looked the best he has all season this Sunday, even when his touches were limited. He only had seven carries, but one was an incredible tackle-breaking 38-yard touchdown. He was also the Broncos’ second leading receiver with 71 yards on four catches. He’s proven that he can be the Broncos’ future leading back and a starter in dynasty lineups, even if he’s the lead back in a committee. I only have one share of Harvey, but I wish I had more. I traded a late first and second-round pick to move up in the first round and select him. I’m pleased with that trade.  In another league, however, I selected Colston Loveland ahead of Harvey, and now I wish I could have that trade back, especially since I have Tucker Kraft in that league.

Ashton Jeanty 

• We all knew Jeany had this in him. He’s just been on a terrible team with an awful offensive line. Still, no one expected him to have his most productive game of the year against the best defense in the league. He had a season high of 188 total yards and his first explosive run, a 51-yard touchdown, since week four. Dynasty managers expected to get cheap PPR points from Jeanty this week, but not much more. He only caught one pass, but it was a 60-yard touchdown. Jeanty’s dynasty managers are likely not in the playoffs, but at least they got one more positive datapoint to feel confident that the player they drafted at the 1.1 last year will be a big part of their rebuild in the years to come. He certainly will be.

Chase Brown

• Brown still counts as a young gun since he’s only in year three of his career, even though he’s 25 years old. He had the most fantasy points of his career on Sunday, scoring 33 points.  All of the points seemed to come in over a 45-minute real-time span, too, which quickly changed the complexion of fantasy games. Samaje Perine was the first Bengals running back to score a touchdown, making Brown’s dynasty managers tilt. But the third quarter belonged to Brown, who scored a rushing touchdown and two receiving touchdowns on three consecutive drives in the space of seven minutes. I only had one share of Brown, and in that league, it was wild to see my team’s winning percentage flip completely in such a short period of time. Brown has had an excellent season and has proven he’s worthy of a new contract and a future starting running back role with the Bengals. Sadly, my share of Brown is in a salary cap league, and my comanager and I decided earlier in the year not to extend his contract. Now he will be one of the prized free agents next season during our free agent auction. I hope we can buy him back!

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Old-Man Strength

Matt Stafford 

• Stafford sure started the semifinals off great for his dynasty managers, scoring 37 fantasy points in the high-scoring overtime match against the Seahawks Thursday night. It was his highest scoring game of the season, and he’s had an incredible season. After this week, he’ll be the second-highest scoring quarterback in the league, just behind Josh Allen. What an amazing season for the 37-year-old! Sadly, many dynasty managers in one-quarterback leagues had Stafford on their bench because they feared the Seattle defense, the loss of Davante Adams, and the terrible weather in the forecast. None of it mattered for Stafford as he and Puka Nacua kept the shootout with the Seahawks going Thursday night, even though they could not pull out the win.

DJ Moore

• Moore topped off the incredible Bears comeback Saturday night with an amazing over-the-shoulder walk-off touchdown grab. With Rome Odunze and Luther Burden out with injuries, Moore made the most of his opportunities and is now back in the good graces of his coaches and teammates after a second straight week of productive play. He’s scored more than 20 fantasy points in back-to-back weeks and scored three touchdowns. There was a time early in his season when I wondered what role Moore would play with the Bears this season, let alone in the future. He’s changed my mind with his consistent play over the last two weeks. Now it’s Rome Odunze who has become the question mark in the Bears’ passing game.

Stefon Diggs

• Diggs has been hit-or-miss this season, but for some reason, when the Patriots play at night for a national audience, he lights it up. After three consecutive weeks with four or fewer targets, this week he had ten and turned them into nine catches for 138 yards. Drake Maye made his case for the MVP award Sunday night by passing for 380 yards, and Diggs had a 23% target share. He’ll still be a tough player to trust in dynasty lineups week to week, but it was nice to see that he still has this kind of performance in him when the Patriots need it. Until the Patriots draft or sign better young receivers, they will need Diggs’ old-man strength to help their passing attack and playoff win games.

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Waiver Watch

Raheim Sanders

• Sanders was the next backup in Cleveland after Judkins left the game. Dylan Sampson was inactive with an injury, too, which cleared the way for the undrafted free agent rookie to get an opportunity to play. Judkins could miss the entire year next season, which means Sanders has a legitimate chance to battle Sampson for a starting role next season. It’s rare to find a rookie running back with a chance to be the team’s starter available this late in the season, but the circumstances have made it possible. Sanders is by far the top player to target on the waiver wire his week.

Elijah Higgins

• Higgins led the Cardinals in targets and receiving yards on Sunday, much to the dismay of Trey McBride managers. Obviously, McBride has the leading tight end role locked down for the Cardinals, but Higgins would be a fantastic handcuff, or the Cardinals could find ways to use them both in the passing game as they did Sunday. I picked Higgins up in a few leagues earlier this year, but have since dropped him. I hope to pick him back up in a few leagues this week.

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Dynasty Trades

Devin Neal <=======> Tony Pollard

• Higgins led the Cardinals in targets and receiving yards on Sunday, much to the dismay of Trey McBride managers. Obviously, McBride has the leading tight end role locked down for the Cardinals, but Higgins would be a fantastic handcuff, or the Cardinals could find ways to use them both in the passing game as they did Sunday. I picked Higgins up in a few leagues earlier this year, but have since dropped him. I hope to pick him back up in a few leagues this week.

C.J. Stroud and Matthew Golden <=======> Brock Purdy, Kenny Gainwell, and a 2026 4th round pick

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Derrick Henry and Javonte Williams <=======> Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet

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