The biggest question heading into Week 17 is which teams will sit their starters--or at the very least, strongly consider resting starters after one or two drives.
12 squads have something to play for this weekend: the Bills, Chargers, Falcons, Panthers, Patriots, Rams, Ravens, Saints, Seahawks, Steelers, Titans, and Vikings. And the way these games have been scheduled, all teams vying for a final playoff spot will compete at the same time. And because tentative 6th seeds Tennessee and Atlanta each have tough matchups, there's little risk that the outside-looking-in Chargers, Bills, or Seahawks will throw in the towel by halftime. In other words, we should see full-go offenses for all five of these teams for most/all of their contests.
But according to Ventura County Star reporter Joe Curley, Rams head coach Sean McVay has hinted that some of his starters "won't play at all." It makes sense, since they're simply oscillating between the 3rd and 4th seed, which is meaningless with no dominant NFC #1 seed.
On the flip side, per ESPN's Michael DiRocco, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone has said they will "do everything we possibly can to win this game, period." So it appears Blake Bortles and his overachieving healthy receivers have a good shot at fantasy relevance against a sub-part Tennessee pass D--though the Titans' stout run D serves as a warning for those considering the injury-prone Leonard Fournette, who has no business touching the ball more than a dozen times, if at all.
Meanwhile, Philly reporter Zach Berman writes that Eagles head coach Doug Pederson wants to get Nick Foles "as many reps as he can and then be smart about it." So what does that mean? As it currently stands, any Philadelphia starter could play the whole game, none of the game, or some of the game. If you have Eagles on your roster, the timing is pretty bad given their fairly easy home matchup against the Cowboys. But it's hard to recommend any of them as more than dart throws.
And then there's the Lions: head coach Jim Caldwell isn't considering resting his starters, according to reporter Tim Twentyman. If this holds, with a near-dream matchup against the Packers, Detroit's healthy passing offense could dominate.
All of this is fluid. Who knows what pressures these and other coaches are receiving from upper management. Who knows whether injuries--moderate or minor--will give teams greater license to sit some guys who would be starting if this weren't Week 17.
So if you're competing this weekend, this is what you're up against. Information surely will change. Let's see how things shake out in the coming days.
12 squads have something to play for this weekend: the Bills, Chargers, Falcons, Panthers, Patriots, Rams, Ravens, Saints, Seahawks, Steelers, Titans, and Vikings. And the way these games have been scheduled, all teams vying for a final playoff spot will compete at the same time. And because tentative 6th seeds Tennessee and Atlanta each have tough matchups, there's little risk that the outside-looking-in Chargers, Bills, or Seahawks will throw in the towel by halftime. In other words, we should see full-go offenses for all five of these teams for most/all of their contests.
But according to Ventura County Star reporter Joe Curley, Rams head coach Sean McVay has hinted that some of his starters "won't play at all." It makes sense, since they're simply oscillating between the 3rd and 4th seed, which is meaningless with no dominant NFC #1 seed.
On the flip side, per ESPN's Michael DiRocco, Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone has said they will "do everything we possibly can to win this game, period." So it appears Blake Bortles and his overachieving healthy receivers have a good shot at fantasy relevance against a sub-part Tennessee pass D--though the Titans' stout run D serves as a warning for those considering the injury-prone Leonard Fournette, who has no business touching the ball more than a dozen times, if at all.
Meanwhile, Philly reporter Zach Berman writes that Eagles head coach Doug Pederson wants to get Nick Foles "as many reps as he can and then be smart about it." So what does that mean? As it currently stands, any Philadelphia starter could play the whole game, none of the game, or some of the game. If you have Eagles on your roster, the timing is pretty bad given their fairly easy home matchup against the Cowboys. But it's hard to recommend any of them as more than dart throws.
And then there's the Lions: head coach Jim Caldwell isn't considering resting his starters, according to reporter Tim Twentyman. If this holds, with a near-dream matchup against the Packers, Detroit's healthy passing offense could dominate.
All of this is fluid. Who knows what pressures these and other coaches are receiving from upper management. Who knows whether injuries--moderate or minor--will give teams greater license to sit some guys who would be starting if this weren't Week 17.
So if you're competing this weekend, this is what you're up against. Information surely will change. Let's see how things shake out in the coming days.