Most fantasy football leagues end in Week 17, but if you are still playing for a championship, our Week 18 rankings will be updated through Sunday morning. If you aren’t a member, be sure to subscribe to Fantasy Consigliere, and listen to The Fantasy Consigliere Podcast for early 2026 values.
Quarterback
Start of the Week: Bo Nix (v LAC)
Nix played great again with a Christmas Night road win over a determined Kansas City squad, and I’m expecting big passing numbers this weekend as Denver looks to lock up the No. 1 seed in the AFC. Last year, Nix completed 26-of-29 passes for 321 yards and four touchdowns in the finale, so look for him to light up the backups for Los Angeles.
Start: Matthew Stafford (v ARI)
Sean McVay sounds angry about the loss on Monday night, and the Rams are taking the rare stance of playing their starters (despite being locked into a wild card spot) with the hopes of getting some momentum before the postseason. In the first meeting this year, Stafford threw for 273 yards and three touchdowns, and we’ll see if LA tries getting him atop the MVP race.
Start: Jaxson Dart (v DAL)
Facing the Raiders certainly helped, but Dart paid off for fantasy owners last week with nine carries for 48 yards and two touchdowns on the ground (in addition to 207 passing yards). Based on how vulnerable Dallas is on the backend, Dart will hope to do more through the air to provide more optimism for 2026.
Start: Jared Goff (@ CHI)
The Christmas loss to Minnesota that ended Detroit’s season was very disappointing, but Goff didn’t have much of a shot with all the pressure he faced. After the Bears were just lit up by Brock Purdy for five total touchdowns last Sunday night, Goff should be in position for a bounce-back performance—and he had five scores of his own against Chicago in Week 2.
Sit of the Week: Josh Allen (v NYJ)
There is a chance Allen does enough in limited action to pay off as a QB1 (especially getting to face the Jets), but I’m assuming Buffalo will give him just enough playing time to get a decent lead in the final game at Highmark Stadium. Plus, we might not see much running for Allen as he deals with a foot injury, so he’s more of a high-end QB2.
Sit: Sam Darnold (@ SF)
We’ll have to keep an eye on the status of Renardo Green (neck) for San Francisco, but if he’s back, the Niners will be difficult to throw on—and they’ll be fired up at home to make sure the NFC runs through them. During the current six-game winning streak for the Seahawks, Darnold has averaged a modest 218.2 passing yards and 1.3 passing touchdowns per game.
Sit: Aaron Rodgers (v BAL)
Maybe the Steelers will be better offensively without Rodgers having Myles Garrett potentially breaking the sack record on his mind, but the absence of DK Metcalf due to a suspension really limits the firepower at his disposal. I wouldn’t expect a repeat of Week 14 versus Baltimore when Rodgers had 20.96 fantasy points (more than half his passing yardage went to Metcalf, and he was boosted by a rushing touchdown).
Sit: Jacoby Brissett (@ LAR)
Brissett was helped by “garbage time” to boost his numbers with another multi-score game last week, but the wheels have fallen off for Arizona—and the QB1 magic hasn’t been there in the two most recent losses. Now facing an angry defense for the Rams, I’d consider Brissett a low-end QB2 option.
Running Back
Start of the Week: James Cook III (v NYJ)
If there is a player for Buffalo who might see close to his usual workload, it’d probably be Cook—who currently leads the NFL in rushing by 47 yards over Jonathan Taylor. Also, with how efficient the star runner is, he might not need to handle a bunch of carries to pay off as an RB1 versus a New York defense that is allowing the sixth-most rushing yards per game (135.0).
Start: Kenneth Walker III (@ SF)
Walker was bottled up with 10 carries for 20 yards in the Week 1 loss to San Francisco, but I think we could see Seattle lean on his big-play potential with the NFC West and No. 1 seed on the line. In the two most recent divisional games for Walker, he had 111 total yards and a touchdown and 164 total yards and a touchdown.
Start: Tyrone Tracy Jr. (v DAL)
Tracy didn’t have the most productive day last week in Las Vegas (15 carries for 57 yards), but he looked good again—and the workload has been steady with 15+ touches in each of his past six healthy outings. Improvement for Dallas versus the run didn’t show itself on Christmas, so look for Tracy to come through as an RB2 for Week 18.
Start: Dylan Sampson (@ CIN)
Sampson didn’t start last week in his return, but he ended up handling 14 touches—with the matchup (and a slugfest) being reason for him having just 27 total yards. This week, the draw couldn’t be better with Cincinnati allowing an NFL-high 148.9 rushing yards per game, so Sampson is strongly positioned as a FLEX.
Sit of the Week: Breece Hall (@ BUF)
Hall ripping off a 59-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter last week (when down 42-3) allowed him to pay off in a big way for fantasy owners, but will the Jets lean on him in the finale? I’d expect them to be thinking about draft position when it comes to Hall’s workload, and the Bills limited him to 10 carries for 29 yards in the first meeting this year.
Sit: Omarion Hampton (@ DEN)
I could see Hampton being active and getting some snaps despite Justin Herbert being out, but if that’s the case, it would still likely be a very quick day for the rookie. Basically, you’d be banking on an early touchdown behind a shaky offensive line and on the road versus a team playing for the No. 1 seed.
Sit: Emanuel Wilson (@ MIN)
Josh Jacobs (knee) will almost certainly rest this week, but Wilson is an important player as well—so it wouldn’t be a surprise if he saw limited work with Green Bay looking ahead to the Wild Card Round. Versus a Minnesota defense that has been very stout at times, Wilson is more of a FLEX than RB2.
Sit: Travis Etienne Jr. (v TEN)
Etienne has been less efficient on the ground over the past five weeks (3.4 yards per carry)—and that stretch started with Tennessee holding him to 12 attempts for 28 yards to close out November. If he doesn’t do damage as a pass-catcher and/or find the end zone, Etienne could be bottled up again.
Wide Receiver
Start of the Week: Courtland Sutton (v LAC)
Los Angeles has good depth in the secondary and should have guys who have played meaningful snaps suit up at cornerback on Sunday—but that doesn’t mean they will be able to stop Sutton. Earlier this season, the big-bodied wideout caught six passes for 118 yards and a touchdown versus LA, so he should be a no-doubt WR1 for the finale.
Start: Brian Thomas Jr. (v TEN)
Thomas has cooled off with a combined 57 receiving yards over the past two weeks (which came after he shows signs of emerging), but the Titans should be an opportunity to get something going ahead of the postseason. Although the Jaguars are still playing for the AFC South, I could see Thomas being a priority knowing how important he can be for them in January.
Start: Luther Burden III (v DET)
The potential of Burden was on display with an 8/138/1 line on Sunday night, and he’s had a sudden ascension this month—going for 70 total yards and 84 total yards in the two games before Week 17. The rookie wasn’t much of a factor versus the Lions in the first meeting, but I’d expect that will change to make him a clear WR2 play.
Start: Matthew Golden (@ MIN)
We are guessing that all three of Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, and Jayden Reed will be resting this weekend—so the door should be open for Golden to be featured. If so, the first-round pick has undeniable talent, and he did have a stretch early this year with 61+ total yards in three consecutive games with at least five touches.
Others: Chris Godwin Jr. (v CAR), Wan’Dale Robinson (v DAL)
Sit of the Week: Terry McLaurin (@ PHI)
The Eagles are a mystery right now in terms of whether the starters will play, but if they do, McLaurin has a difficult draw and will be catching passes from Josh Johnson rather than Jayden Daniels (elbow) or Marcus Mariota (hand). Of course, Johnson did play very well on Christmas, but Philadelphia is a much tougher opponent than Dallas.
Sit: Jordan Addison (v GB)
Those who rolled with Addison had to be thrilled on Christmas when he turned around a zero-catch day with a game-sealing 65-yard rushing touchdown—but the lack of production through the air is obviously the concern for this week. With Justin Jefferson set to be fed targets (53 yards away from 1,000), Addison should be downgraded.
Sit: Tre’ Harris (@ DEN)
Harris could be the No. 1 wideout for Los Angeles this week depending on who suits up for them, but a matchup versus Pat Surtain II won’t be easy for the rookie with Denver playing for homefield advantage. I would avoid the draw and look elsewhere if possible.
Sit: Adonai Mitchell (@ BUF)
The Bills have been stingy on the perimeter with Christian Benford and Tre’Davious White, but even if they see limited action, it’s difficult to count on Mitchell with 36.8 receiving yards per game and 4.9 yards per target in four outings with Brady Cook as the primary quarterback. Furthermore, Buffalo has depth on the outside with first-round rookie Maxwell Hairston likely getting an extended run.
Others: Colts WRs (@ HOU)
Tight End
Start: of the Week: Kyle Pitts Sr. (v NO)
Monday night showed the danger for Pitts and the pass-catchers when Bijan Robinson is on fire, but we can probably rely on the star tight end to be more of a factor in the finale. Before last week, Pitts had lines of 7/82, 6/90, 11/166/3, and 7/57/1 in his previous four games—so he’s a high-end TE1.
Start: Michael Mayer (v KC)
Opportunities have been difficult to come by for Mayer since he’s stuck behind Brock Bowers, but the former Notre Dame standout was featured in Week 17 by catching nine-of-10 targets for 89 yards. While the Chiefs are much more formidable than the Giants, Mayer can keep it going as our No. 6 tight end to close out the season.
Start: Taysom Hill (@ ATL)
Taysom Hill saw just three touches for zero yards last week after turning 16 touches into 78 yards (plus a 38-yard passing touchdown) for his final game at the Superdome—so maybe what is likely to be his final game in the NFL will lead to being featured again. If you need a big score on Sunday, Hill is at least worth a shot.
Sit of the Week: None
Injuries and resting players makes it difficult to be picky at tight end, but if you don’t have a sure thing, it’s probably a good idea to lean on players you know will see normal snaps (Brenton Strange, Isaiah Likely, etc.). And hopefully, things will be clearer by Sunday morning.