Which favorites are the best as core lineup builders for Week 17? Are these mostly run game friendly? Which stacks are the most appealing?
- Rams
- Chiefs
- Packers
- Patriots
- Saints
- Cowboys
- Vikings
PHIL ALEXANDER
- Saints - New Orleans needs a win and/or some help to get back in position for a first-round bye. They're favored by 13 at Carolina and implied to score a slate-best 30.5 points. This is a spot to play all sorts of Saints stacks and run it back with Christian McCaffrey. It's tough considering the prices on McCaffrey and Michael Thomas, but not impossible due to the value that opens up with some teams resting their players this week.
- Cowboys - This one is all about Ezekiel Elliott, who is somehow only priced as the RB5 on DraftKings. Washington has been destroyed by enemy running backs, Aaron Jones (192 total yards and one touchdown), Miles Sanders (172 total yards and two touchdowns), and Saquon Barkley (279 yards and two touchdowns) in each of their last three games. It's not difficult to predict how Dallas plans on attacking Washington's defense in a must-win game.
DAN HINDERY
The Rams are in a weird spot after being eliminated from playoff contention. However, there should still be some fantasy goodness here given that the Rams are home favorites with an implied team total of 28.3 points. The obvious matchup to exploit here is Tyler Higbee against a Cardinals defense that has been unbelievably bad against tight ends. The Cardinals area allowing 30% more fantasy points to opposing tight ends than even the 2nd-most TE-friendly defense. Higbee has been the league’s hottest tight end over the last month, as well. He has posted four straight games with 100+ receiving yards and has averaged 11 targets per game over that stretch.
JASON WOOD
Rams
Absolutely not a core building block this week, as Sean McVay has hinted at limiting snaps and resting his key veterans.
Chiefs
Pat Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Tyreek Hill are key pieces, for sure. That's true most weeks, regardless of the circumstances. I wouldn't touch the Chiefs running backs.
Packers
I expect the Packers to try to blow out the Lions, and Aaron Jones, Davante Adams, and Aaron Rodgers are all solidly in play as core options.
JUSTIN HOWE
The Saints are plenty motivated to win Sunday, and there's no reason to suspect they'll take their feet off the gas. Drew Brees is throwing absolute dimes right now, and he's really only throwing to three guys: Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara, and Jared Cook. None come cheaply, but all three make sense as part of a buffet of stacks from this game. Thomas remains a must-play in cash contests, while Kamara can blow up in a number of different game scenarios. Cook is volatile, but only needs 4-5 catches and a touchdown to hit cash value.
Dallas needs to win, so it's fair to expect them to keep to the tried and true. Washington "boasts" a terrible defense that can't stop anyone, and they're especially vulnerable to running backs. They've allowed one to top 90 yards from scrimmage in 8 straight games, including the likes of Bo Scarbrough and trapped-in-a-nightmare Le'Veon Bell. Ideally, the Cowboys will be able to ride 30 high-impact Ezekiel Elliott touches to a win, and as Phil pointed out, he's priced too cheaply for that kind of upside. His volume floor is strong, and his ceiling is huge as a week-winner. I'm not a huge believer in the RB-DEF stack, but both Elliott and the DAL defense do rank super-high this week.