Fantasy Football Week 16 Recap: 32 Things You Need To Know

You knew Week 16 and the second round of the fantasy football playoffs were going to be weird when Gardner Minshew, Malik Willis, Tyler Huntley, Josh Johnson, Brady Cook, Max Brosmer, Quinn Ewers, and Chris Oladokun played meaningful snaps. Those quarterbacks were a combined zero percent rostered when the season started, but now must throw or hand off to other players we need to help us win championships.

This is why fantasy football is a cruel, cruel game. You spend 14 or 15 weeks manicuring a perfectly structured roster only to see Patrick Mahomes blow out his knee or Josh Allen get outscored by Quinn Ewers. But if you made it through, or are still alive for Monday night, congratulations!

Before we get to the Week 16 Monday Night Football game with the San Francisco 49ers and the Indianapolis Colts, let’s look at the good, the bad, and the injured from a wild Week 16 in the NFL.

Stud Players

Which players put up the best performances in Week 16?

Trevor Lawrence is now a top-five quarterback in both total fantasy points and fantasy points per game for 2025. He is the QB1 for Week 16 heading into Monday Night Football and has been a top 13 quarterback in each of the last six weeks. With back-to-back QB1 finishes in Weeks 15 and 16, Lawrence looks like a league-winning player at the position after accounting for another four total touchdowns against Denver.

Justin Herbert contributed through the air and on the ground in a blowout win against the Dallas Cowboys. Herbert finished the game with 300 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, 42 rushing yards, and another score on the ground for his first 30-point fantasy game of 2025.

Ashton Jeanty rushed for over 100 yards for the first time since September 28 as he gashed the Houston Texans for 128 yards on the ground and another 60 through the air. He finished with two total touchdowns and 31.3 fantasy points for the top mark at the position through Sunday. His 26 opportunities were his second-most of the season.

Chase Brown was an efficiency machine against the Miami Dolphins. He rushed for more than five yards per carry and had more than 10 yards per reception. That allowed him to total 109 yards on 16 touches and score three total touchdowns. Brown has double-digit fantasy points in nine straight games, but Sunday’s total was his highest of 2025.

Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell looked like the old-school tandem of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart (shoutout to those of us who have been playing fantasy football forever) as they rocked the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon. Warren finished with 151 total yards and two rushing touchdowns, while Gainwell had 128 total yards (including 78 receiving yards) and a receiving touchdown. Both were top-eight quarterbacks heading into Monday Night Football.

Puka Nacua posted 40.5 half-PPR fantasy points on Thursday night and now has the best wide receiver game of 2025 fantasy football. His 225 yards and two touchdowns were magnificent, and he put the icing on the cake with a long overtime touchdown. With that massive game, Nacua now sits one point behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba (who also dominated on Thursday night) for the most fantasy points by a wide receiver in 2025.

Chris Olave is now one of just six wide receivers to have more than 240 points in PPR formats in 2025. He led all wide receivers in points on Sunday, putting up 31.8 thanks to 148 yards on 16 targets and two receiving touchdowns. Despite a wild ride at quarterback this season, Olave has been one of the best values of the entire season.

Parker Washington had several down weeks but bounced back in a big way with 145 yards and a touchdown against the Broncos on Sunday. His 10 targets were his second-most of the season, and the yards were a season-high. The Jaguars’ passing attack is tough to predict with so many weapons, but Trevor Lawrence is elevating many receivers right now.

George Pickens continues to outplay CeeDee Lamb, and he had 130 yards and a touchdown in a losing effort against the Chargers on Sunday. After back-to-back games under 40 receiving yards, Pickens bounced back in a big way and was the only bright spot of the offense on Sunday.

Harold Fannin is now officially a top 10 tight end this season after scoring 17.5 fantasy points, including two touchdowns – one receiving and one rushing. He and Shedeur Sanders seem to have developed real chemistry, and with no David Njoku on the roster next year, Fannin might be drafted as a top-five option.

Chig Okonkwo had his best game of the year on Sunday, catching six passes for 44 yards and a touchdown. The Titans found a soft spot in the middle of the defense against the Chiefs and kept feeding Okonkwo over and over again. It was his first game with a touchdown this season.

Dud Players

Which players disappointed fantasy managers the most in Week 16?

Josh Allen missed part of Week 16’s game against the Cleveland Browns with a foot injury, which forced him into his first game under 10 fantasy points all season. He accounted for just 130 passing yards, 17 rushing yards, and no touchdowns. James Cook picked up the slack with 134 total yards and two scores, but Josh Allen’s fantasy managers who enjoyed a QB1 season are now facing an uphill climb to advance.

Jaxson Dart somehow played a whole game and finished with just 33 passing yards and seven rushing yards. This was either a team desperately trying to get the number one pick or a quarterback who couldn’t solve the Minnesota Vikings' pass rush, but Dart looked bamboozled all game. His 1.02 fantasy points were worse than players like Gardner Minshew and Max Brosmer.

Rico Dowdle finished the must-win game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with 15 total opportunities but only came away with 43 total yards and no scores to put up a dud with six fantasy points. It was his worst game since October 26, but that was a game where he only touched the ball eight times.

Michael Carter rushed the ball 11 times on Sunday, but it was for a hollow 65 yards. He did not catch either of his two targets, nor did he score a touchdown. He seemingly had the backfield to himself, but got taken out for Corey Kiner on a couple of drives because of his inefficiency.

Brian Thomas Jr. couldn’t do anything, even though the Jacksonville Jaguars scored 34 points in Denver. Thomas caught two passes for 18 yards, ending a streak of two weeks where it looked like his production was finally heading in the right direction. Considering the Jaguars lost Travis Hunter halfway through the season, Thomas has to be considered the most disappointing bust in fantasy football in 2025.

Jordan Addison had to trade in JJ McCarthy for Max Brosmer halfway through the game and finished with just two receptions for 26 yards on Sunday. It was also the product of the Vikings forcing eight targets to Justin Jefferson so their number one wide receiver wouldn’t completely bail on this team. But Addison disappointed when fantasy managers needed him most.

Dalton Kincaid finished the game against Cleveland with one target and zero receptions. Kincaid had been ping-ponging between good and bad games all season, so this was “supposed” to be a good week but ended up being the worst game at the worst time for Dalton Kincaid managers. He has been outplayed by Dawson Knox in the second half of the season.

Travis Kelce might be at the end of the line, and if that’s the case, he goes out with a whimper instead of a bang. He caught just one pass for six yards on Sunday and now faces the prospect of a third-string quarterback in Weeks 17 and 18. He is unusable now in the championship game if his managers made it that far, and this likely closes the book on one of the best fantasy football tight ends ever.

Thud Players

Which players can we drop from our rosters after Week 16?

C.J. Stroud seemed to be turning a corner over the last couple of weeks, but in an ideal matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders, Stroud managed just 187 passing yards, one touchdown, and zero rushing yards. With a championship game on the line, Stroud going on the road to face the Los Angeles Chargers means there are likely better streaming options in your league’s waiver wire. He is too inconsistent to trust in a tough matchup.

David Montgomery has seen his usage dip four straight weeks, and it bottomed out with just four carries on Sunday against Pittsburgh. His 14 yards and 1.4 fantasy points were the low point of his season, and it’s clear he is now not part of an offense that is in desperate need of big playmakers. Against a tough front seven in Minnesota, I would not worry about starting Montgomery in championship week.

Darius Slayton has four or fewer targets in four of his last five games. And if Jaxson Dart is going to have any more games as he did in Week 16, Slayton should fall off our rosters for someone with more upside in Week 17. Slayton caught just one pass for eight yards in Week 16 and still has just one touchdown all season.

Cade Otton is becoming less involved as the wide receivers for Tampa Bay get healthier. He just finished his fourth straight game with fewer than 25 receiving yards, and he hasn’t had more than 10 fantasy points since November 9. For a position that is touchdown dependent, Otton can’t even be counted on there. He hasn’t scored this season.

Bad Blood Players

Which players’ injuries are worth monitoring after Week 16?

Lamar Jackson injured his back during the second quarter of the Sunday Night Football game against New England and did not return for the second half, giving way to Tyler Huntley to finish the contest. With the loss suffered by the Ravens, they must win out for a chance at the playoffs, and Jackson has stated he wants to play on Saturday. An MRI on Monday should give us a better sense of the severity.

JJ McCarthy suffered a hand injury in the first half against the New York Giants and was relieved by Max Brosmer the rest of the way. It appears McCarthy avoided any broken bones but will undergo further testing this week.

Gardner Minshew left the game against the Tennessee Titans with a knee injury, and the team is already stating it might be a torn ACL. This comes a week after losing Patrick Mahomes to the same injury, so it might be up to Chris Oladukon to finish out the Chiefs’ lost season.

Quinshon Judkins suffered a fractured fibula and a dislocated ankle in Week 16’s loss to the Bills, but it doesn’t appear he is dealing with any significant ligament damage. The report coming out of Cleveland has stated it might be a four- or five-month absence for Judkins, and now Dylan Sampson and Jerome Ford will take over the running back duties.

Kimani Vidal had been losing touches to Omarion Hampton the last two weeks, and now comes the news that he has a neck injury that could keep him out of Week 17. Vidal was down on the ground for a while and did not return after trainers were able to get him safely back to the sideline.

Jordan Mason hurt his ankle right after Aaron Jones hurt his ankle in the same game. But Mason was unable to return to the matchup against the Giants and is now in danger of missing the game against Detroit this coming weekend. Zavier Scott would be the Vikings' running back to use if both Jones and Mason can’t play.

TreVeyon Henderson was forced out of the Sunday night game against Baltimore with a head injury in the first half and was ruled out during halftime. He was unable to come back into the game, which allowed Rhamondre Stevenson to take over all the running back touches. Henderson now has a hard road ahead to play against the New York Jets in Week 17.

Pat Bryant was taken to the hospital after a scary hit after a reception in the Broncos game against Jacksonville on Sunday afternoon. He was immediately placed in concussion protocol, but there was fear for a period of time that Bryant did not have movement in his arms and legs. He regained that movement, but it’s hard to see him coming back for the Broncos’ next game on Christmas night.