Ideally, you would be heading into Championship Week with a healthy, loaded fantasy roster that cannot possibly be improved via waiver adds. But some of us are lurching into Week 17 on fumes. If you have problems to address this week, we have solutions. Everyone mentioned below is available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo leagues and approved for use. Let’s go earn a ring, people. It’s an empty-the-wallet week in terms of the acquisition budget, obviously. Those dollars won’t carry over to 2023, so spend it all this week.
Wide receivers (and one tight end) to add
If you’re not at least a little impressed by seven touchdowns in 10 games … well, just keep on scrolling. Dotson has been a contested-catch monster all season, and, in recent weeks, the Commanders are peppering him with targets. He’s seen 24 chances over his last three games, hauling in 15 for 235 yards and three spikes. This was Saturday’s score, in case you missed it:
Simply put, Dotson is an emerging star. Don’t leave him unattached. Even if you can’t squeeze him into your own lineup in Week 17, you should probably keep him away from your opponent.
Green Bay only managed to have a fully healthy receiving corps for roughly six quarters of action, but, hey, it was fun while it lasted. Christian Watson suffered a hip injury on Sunday at Miami and was quickly ruled out. In his absence, the Pack’s other (somewhat less) buzzy rookie was targeted six times. Doubs hauled in three balls for a modest 36 yards, but the workload alone reestablished him as a key piece in an Aaron Rodgers-led passing game. We shouldn’t need to give you a hard sell on Doubs’ situation and you might recall that the fantasy industrial complex did plenty of gushing about his talent earlier in the season. He’s an obvious target if your fantasy squad just lost Watson.
And another thing: Green Bay gets an absolute gift of a matchup against the Vikings this week. Minnesota’s defense has allowed the most receptions and receiving yards to opposing wideouts, so Doubs is a great bet to feast.
These two produced nearly identical stat lines in Week 16, combining for 23 targets, 16 receptions, 179 yards and one score. They led the Giants in all the stuff we care about for fantasy purposes. It would require a certain level of deep league desperation to start either, but, if that’s your situation, flex away. Hodgins has seen 31 targets over the past five games while James has drawn 35. The Colts are up next, coming off a short week.
Hopefully you can forgive last week’s modest output, given that Johnson and the Saints were playing in nightmarish sub-zero conditions. Johnson is still the guy that New Orleans has leaned on near the goal-line throughout the year, feeding him 10 red-zone targets over his 14 games. Seven of his 36 receptions have resulted in touchdowns. The Saints receiving corps has been crushed by injuries this year, leaving Johnson as one of the few trusted options. If anyone on this team is gonna reach the end zone against Philly in Week 17, it’s … well, OK, it’s Taysom Hill. But if anyone else is gonna score, it’s Johnson.
Running backs on the wire
Each week, Allgeier reminds us that if you want to tackle him, you’d better bring a few friends:
Allgeier has been a yards-after-contact machine as a rookie. He also appears to have ascended to the top of Atlanta’s backfield hierarchy, out-touching Cordarrelle Patterson on Saturday, 22 to 9, and out-gaining the vet by 86 yards. Allgeier is now averaging 4.9 YPC for the season and he’s caught 15 of his 16 targets. He’s headed into a stellar matchup against Arizona, a defense that’s allowed big games to Latavius Murray and Pierre Strong Jr. in recent weeks. If you have backfield needs, Allgeier is your priority if available.
Moss dominated snaps (36) and touches (13) in Indy’s backfield, making it perfectly clear that he’s the Colts back to roster if, for some reason, you can’t resist grabbing one. He offers few style points as a runner and he’s only caught one ball on two targets over the past two weeks, plus he’s tied to a hopeless offense. We’re not making any promises about Moss’ usefulness in Week 17 against the Giants, but he does seem likely to deliver another 14-18 forgettable touches.
Hubbard was definitely on an upward trajectory entering the weekend, having averaged 13.7 touches and 77.0 scrimmage yards per game over his previous three. He broke off a pair of long early runs on Saturday for the Panthers en route to a 12-carry, 125-yard performance. Detroit’s defense had not allowed a running back to rush for 80 yards since October, but Hubbard and D’Onta Foreman each had 100-plus yards by halftime in Week 16. At this point, it’s perfectly clear that Carolina intends to run the ball 40-plus times whenever game-flow allows it — and occasionally when it doesn’t. This week’s matchup with Tampa Bay is a little rough, sure, but Hubbard’s workload is not a worry.
Quarterbacks to prioritize
Since taking over for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo in Week 13, Purdy has rattled off a series of 200-yard, 2-TD games, as if doing so is really no big deal. He certainly doesn’t lack receiving weapons with the Niners:
After a string of useful efforts, it seems silly to doubt Purdy ahead of a favorable matchup with the Raiders. We’re probably not going to get a week-winning supernova performance from the rookie, but he’s not likely to face-plant, either. Purdy has been hitting all the high-yield layup throws available in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. If injuries have forced you to the wire at QB, it’s clear he can help. Purdy has averaged only 23 attempts per game over his last three, so, realistically, he won’t be a volume passer. We just have to trust that a well-designed offense and an exceptional receiving corps will yield another 200-something yards with multiple scores.
White has been cleared to return by doctors, which means Jets fans shouldn’t have to endure any additional Zach Wilson misfires this season. White’s return is a huge win for Garrett Wilson specifically and New York’s offense generally. He’s certainly on the radar as a streaming option against Seattle’s vulnerable defense, a group that’s allowed 7.4 Y/A this season. White has started six games in his pro career and he’s topped 300 passing yards in three of them.
If you need to stream your D/ST
Let’s not overthink things simply because it’s Championship Week. Jacksonville is an opportunistic defense that’s generated 24 takeaways on the season and this week’s opponent is Houston, a team with a severe shortage of offensive playmakers. Jacksonville’s D has produced three straight double-digit fantasy point totals, too. This group should probably be the week’s most-added fantasy asset — and if not them, then it’s gonna be these guys…
New York Giants (11%)
The Giants D is about to face whatever’s left of the Colts offense in Week 17, which gives this group plenty of fantasy appeal. On Monday night, the Chargers sacked Indianapolis QB Nick Foles seven times, intercepted him three times and generally made him appear cooked. It’s been a struggle for New York recently, but this defense does have 16 sacks and three takeaways over its last four games.
Follow the Yahoo fantasy crew on Twitter: Andy Behrens, Dalton Del Don, Matt Harmon, Scott Pianowski, Dan Titus and Tank Williams.