Week 16 Fantasy Football Rankings And Tiers. Is Calvin Ridley BACK?
Dwain McFarland breaks down the Week 16 fantasy football positional rankings with player analysis, team totals and spreads for every game on the slate.
It is time to make those tough lineup decisions for Week 16 of the fantasy football season.
Below, you’ll find positional rankings, player analysis, team totals and spreads for every game on the slate.
Notes:
- Players are now tiered across all positions (RB, WR and TE) to help with flex decisions in larger formats. Because of this, TEs might not have a player deserving of Tier 1 compared to RBs and WRs.
- Defensive yards and TDs allowed exclude overtime play.
- All references to defensive ranks are for this week (bye Week teams excluded).
Last updated: 2:30 p.m. ET, Dec. 21. Please refer to our Rankings page for updates!
Quarterback Rankings & Tiers - Week 16
| Rank | Tier | Player | Team | Pos | Opp | Team Total | Spread | PPG | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Tier | Team | Pos | Opp | Team Total | Spread | PPG | Zack Moss | Taylor is my RB7 and a top-15 option on the Week 16 slate. | Ty Chandler | Devin Singletary | Chuba Hubbard | Robinson weighs in as my RB12, but I am eight spots behind industry consensus in my flex rankings. | Pacheco is my RB14 this weekend and would be inside my top 10 if he wasn’t coming off an injury. | Rank | Tier | Player | Team | Pos | Opp | Team Total | Spread | PPG | James Cook | Diggs is a SMASH play in Week 16 as | my WR7 and No. 15 overall flex option | . | Christian Kirk | Zay Jones | Evan Engram | Trevor Lawrence | Ridley is | my WR15 | this weekend and ranks 12 spots ahead of industry consensus as a top-35 overall play. He is a SMASH play, assuming Trevor Lawrence suits up. | Joe Flacco | C.J. Stroud | Derrick Henry | Cooper is my WR16 this weekend and files in 14 slots ahead of industry consensus as my No. 35 player overall. | Rank | Tier | Player | Team | Pos | Opp | Team Total | Spread | PPG |
| 2 | 4 | Trey McBride | ARI | TE | CHI | 19.5 | 4.0 | 8.3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | 4 | Sam LaPorta | DET | TE | MIN | 25.0 | -3.0 | 11.8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | 4 | T.J. Hockenson | MIN | TE | DET | 22.0 | 3.0 | 11.8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | 4 | David Njoku | CLE | TE | HOU | 21.3 | -2.5 | 9.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | 4 | Evan Engram | JAC | TE | TB | 20.8 | 0.0 | 9.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | 4 | George Kittle | SF | TE | BAL | 26.0 | -5.0 | 10.7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | 5 | Jake Ferguson | DAL | TE | MIA | 24.3 | 1.5 | 8.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | 5 | Dalton Kincaid | BUF | TE | LAC | 27.8 | -11.5 | 7.1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | 5 | Isaiah Likely | BAL | TE | SF | 21.0 | 5.0 | 3.7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | 5 | Cole Kmet | CHI | TE | ARI | 23.5 | -4.0 | 9.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | 5 | Dallas Goedert | PHI | TE | NYG | 27.3 | -12.0 | 7.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | 5 | Dalton Schultz | HOU | TE | CLE | 18.8 | 2.5 | 8.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 14 | 6 | Darren Waller | NYG | TE | PHI | 15.3 | 12.0 | 7.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 15 | 6 | Taysom Hill | NO | TE | LAR | 21.0 | 4.0 | 8.3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | 6 | Kyle Pitts | ATL | TE | IND | 22.8 | -1.0 | 6.7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | 6 | Hunter Henry | NE | TE | DEN | 14.0 | 6.5 | 7.1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | 6 | Pat Freiermuth | PIT | TE | CIN | 17.5 | 2.0 | 5.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 19 | 7 | Tucker Kraft | GB | TE | CAR | 20.8 | -5.0 | 3.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 20 | 7 | Tyler Conklin | NYJ | TE | WAS | 20.0 | -3.0 | 5.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 21 | 7 | Cade Otton | TB | TE | JAX | 21.8 | -1.0 | 6.1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 22 | 7 | Gerald Everett | LAC | TE | BUF | 16.3 | 11.5 | 5.9 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 23 | 7 | Chigoziem Okonkwo | TEN | TE | SEA | 19.8 | 2.5 | 4.4 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 24 | 8 | Tanner Hudson | CIN | TE | PIT | 19.5 | -2.0 | 5.8 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 25 | 8 | Logan Thomas | WAS | TE | NYJ | 17.0 | 3.0 | 6.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 26 | 8 | Juwan Johnson | NO | TE | LAR | 21.0 | 4.0 | 4.2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 27 | 8 | Tyler Higbee | LAR | TE | NO | 25.0 | -4.0 | 5.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 28 | 8 | Noah Fant | SEA | TE | TEN | 22.3 | -2.5 | 3.5 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 29 | 8 | Jonnu Smith | ATL | TE | IND | 22.8 | -1.0 | 6.1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 30 | 8 | Michael Mayer | LV | TE | KC | 15.5 | 10.0 | 4.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31 | 9 | Noah Gray | KC | TE | LV | 25.5 | -10.0 | 3.7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32 | 9 | Tommy Tremble | CAR | TE | GB | 15.8 | 5.0 | 2.9 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 33 | 9 | Donald Parham Jr. | LAC | TE | BUF | 16.3 | 11.5 | 4.2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 34 | 9 | Dawson Knox | BUF | TE | LAC | 27.8 | -11.5 | 3.2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 35 | 9 | Durham Smythe | MIA | TE | DAL | 25.8 | -1.5 | 2.7 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 36 | 9 | Lucas Krull | DEN | TE | NE | 20.5 | -6.5 | 1.6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 37 | 9 | Daniel Bellinger | NYG | TE | PHI | 15.3 | 12.0 | 1.9 |
Reminder: I have leveled my tiers across RB, WR and TE to help with flex lineup decisions. So, getting to Tier 1 is hard — often, Tier 2 is where you will find my highest-ranked TE.
Tier 4 – T.J. Hockenson
Hockenson has been two different players this season — the version with and without Justin Jefferson in the lineup. The veteran TE has a substantial 21% target share with Jefferson, but it is astronomical without him at 28%. Of course, targets are enormous in fantasy, and Hockenson averages 17.3 points in games without Jefferson. That drops to 12.9 in contests with Jefferson.
In Week 15, with Jefferson back, Hockenson stayed true to those numbers.
Despite the return of Jefferson, Hockenson ($5,800) has allure in DFS tournaments this weekend, with many players likely going with names like David Njoku and Evan Engram at lower prices. But ultimately, Hockenson is still the No. 2 target in an offense fighting for a playoff position — just like those options. That makes Hockenson an intriguing way to get in on the Vikings-Lions matchup with pricey WR1s and chalky RB options.
Hockenson is my TE4 and a borderline to-50 flex option.