2021 NFL Fantasy Football Start/Sit – Week 17

We don’t have a Thursday game this week, so you will have a few extra days to tinker with your lineups.

I’ve been watching for new players placed on the COVID List, which haven’t been as fast and furious as this time last week. I still expect plenty of new names on the list by the kick-off this weekend. It really does throw a new wrench in fantasy football and sports betting.

Since the CDC reduced the amount of time asymptomatic people have to quarantine from ten to five, some of the names could be removed from the COVID list faster than in previous weeks.

Can Bengals QB Joe Burrow replicated his 525-yard performance he had against the Ravens?

Here is our Fantasy Football Sit/Start for Week 17 of the 2021 NFL season…and enjoy our awesome MS Paint masterpiece of QB Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams.

I want to explain what I mean by “sit” and “start.” Of course you are going to start some of the guys i say to bench this week, because you probably used high draft picks or a lot of money in an auction for them. My ‘sit’ players are guys I am just not completely sold that they will have good weeks. If you have a guy that you are on the fence about, maybe this will help you pick between the players.

START’EM

  • QB Matthew Stafford (Los Angeles Rams) – Stafford didn’t have a good game against the Vikings last week. He threw three interceptions and only had 197 passing yards. He will have a much easier time this week as he faces the Ravens, whose secondary has been ravaged by injuries. He should have a big fantasy week against Baltimore.
  • WR Jaylen Waddle (Miami Dolphins) – Waddle finally returned from injury last week and caught ten passes for 92 yards and a touchdown. He’s clearly the #1 target for Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa. Miami plays Tennessee this week, who have a few key players that were just placed on the COVID list (LB Bud Dupree & DB Buster Skrine).
  • TE Cole Kmet (Chicago Bears) – Kmet has a solid match-up this week against the Giants. He hasn’t caught a touchdown pass this year, but he’s been a fairly consistent PPR tight end. He also gets more targets when QB Justin Fields is in the game, who I expect will start this week. 
  • RB Michael Carter (New York Jets) – Carter had 118 rushing yards on 16 attempts against the Jaguars. He isn’t getting a ton of targets in the passing game like he was when Jets backup QB Mike White was in the game. He has a tough match-up against the Bucs, but I still think he could be a top-ten fantasy running back this week.
  • QB Joe Burrow (Cincinnati Bengals) – I had Burrow as my poster boy last week and he delivered. He passed for 525 yards and four touchdowns against the Ravens horrible secondary. He will have a more difficult time against the Chiefs on Sunday, but I still think he will be a top-seven fantasy quarterback.
  • Buffalo Bills Defense & Special Teams – The Bills defense have bounced-back from a few subpar games early this month. They had two interceptions and a sack against the Patriots. They face the Falcons this week and Atlanta’s offense struggles against good-to-great defenses. The Bills should be a defense you should stream this week.
  • WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (Detroit Lions) – St. Brown was lost in the shuffle early this season, but after a number of Lions wide receivers went down with injuries, he’s excelled. He has 35 receptions over his last four games. He faces Seattle this week, who has one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL.
  • RB Ronald Jones II (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – Last week, Jones was the starting running back in place of injured RB Leonard Fournette. He gained 65 yards on 20 attempts and scored a touchdown. I do worry about RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn taking some snaps away since he did play well last week. The Bucs face the Jets this week and will most likely run the ball a lot in this game.
  • TE Hunter Henry (New England Patriots) – Henry couldn’t replicate the same production he had against the Colts two weeks ago. He only had one catch for nine yards against the Bills. He has a better match-up this week against the Jaguars. I expect the Patriots will get out to a double-digit lead early in this game and will run the ball and increase their short passing routes.
  • WR Antonio Brown (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) – Brown returned from suspension last week and caught 10 passes for 101 yards. He should see a similar number of targets as Bucs WR Mike Evans is on the injury report with a hamstring injury and is also now on the COVID list. We will see how many times the Bucs will pass the ball against the Jets this weekend.
  • RB Javonte Williams (Denver Broncos) – Williams is coming off one of his worst games of his young career. He had seven rushing attempts for twelve yards and two receptions for eight yards. The only thing that saved him was that he got a red zone carry and scored a touchdown. He faces the Chargers this week, who has one of the worst run defenses in the NFL. I expect Williams will get plenty of work on Sunday.
  • Cleveland Browns Defense & Special Teams – The Browns defense struggled against the Packers last week, but it was expected. They had some players on the COVID list and the Packers offense is on a tear right now. Cleveland faces the Steelers on Monday Night Football, and Pittsburgh’s offense is going through a rough stretch. The Browns are a nice streaming defense this week.
  • QB Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys) – The Cowboys trounced Washington 56-14 on Sunday Night Football. Prescott had 330 passing yards and four touchdowns in the win. He faces the Cardinals this week, who have had some injuries to key players in recent weeks. They aren’t at the level they were early this season.

SIT’EM

  • RB Chuba Hubbard (Carolina Panthers) – Many expected Hubbard would slide into the role that injured RB Christian McCaffrey left, but the Panthers offense has been awful. He isn’t getting many touches and hasn’t been a factor in the passing game, at all. He’s owned in 64% of leagues, which is way too high for his production. I’d rather start Dolphins RB Duke Johnson or Texans RB Rex Burkhead this week.
  • QB Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals) – Murray looked like a possible MVP candidate early this season, but his numbers have been pedestrian since he suffered an ankle injury against the Packers back in Week 8. He faces the Cowboys this week, who are coming off one of the more dominant defensive showings this season. He has a bad match-up in the fantasy playoffs.
  • WR Courtland Sutton (Denver Broncos) – Sutton is still owned in 67% of leagues and he has the production of a guy who should only be rostered in 15-team leagues. He only has eleven receptions combined over his last five games. Also, the Broncos passing offense isn’t as good with QB Drew Lock at quarterback. Broncos QB Teddy Bridgewater is still in concussion protocol as of early Tuesday morning. Considering that he spent the night in the hospital after his concussion roughly ten days ago, I could see them being overly cautious with him.
  • RB Mark Ingram II (New Orleans Saints) – Ingram has been a mainstay in this section all season. Many had high hopes that a return to New Orleans would see an uptick in production, but that hasn’t been the case. He isn’t doing anything with the limited amount of carries he’s receiving, so it’s time to drop him.
  • QB Russell Wilson (Seattle Seahawks) – Wilson is another quarterback that doesn’t look like he’s at 100% right now. He isn’t passing enough to be a fantasy stud and he isn’t doing anything with his feet. Yes, he faces the Lions, but Detroit is better than people think. I’d rather start Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa or Eagles QB Jalen Hurts this week.
  • WR Jerry Jeudy (Denver Broncos) – I am listing Jeudy here because I assume that he will be covered by the Chargers best cornerback…and I’m betting that Denver will start QB Drew Lock this weekend. Jeudy hasn’t scored a touchdown all season and he only had two catches for 25 yards the last time he faced the Chargers.
  • TE Ricky Seals-Jones (Washington Football Team) – Seals-Jones had one of the worst outings this year against the Cowboys. He only had one catch for NEGATIVE four yards. He did have four receptions the last time he faced the Eagles, but he’s not a red zone target. I’d rather start Bears TE Cole Kmet or Raiders TE Foster Moreau (if Darren Waller doesn’t play).
  • Las Vegas Raiders Team Defense & Special Teams – The Raiders face Colts RB Jonathan Taylor this week. It’s a tough opponent and he’s been a walking 100+ yard performance. The Colts do have some offensive linemen on the COVID list, but they could get a couple of them back this week.
  • TE Evan Engram (New York Giants) – Last week, Engram scored his first touchdown since Week 9. He gets around five targets per game, but he has only cracked the 50-yard mark twice all season. You should only start Engram if you’re in a real jam.
  • Baltimore Ravens Defense & Special Teams – The Ravens pass defense is horrible right now and they are just missing too many players in the secondary. I would avoid the ravens D/ST like the plague.

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sweetbob-author-picAbout the Author…

Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.