Week 16 was a breath of fresh air for the most part as players actually played up to their potential and what happened was mostly expected aside from a few bumps here and there. The catastrophe that was Week 15 left a bad taste in most fantasy managers’ mouths so it was nice to return to some relatively normal NFL action. 

If you were able to make it into your championship week, congratulations — you made it to the top of one of the weirder fantasy football seasons to date, and now is the time to take the crown. For those of us that have been eliminated or are attempting to avoid last place, there’s always next year. After an entertaining Week 16, here are the players who were studs and those who were duds.

Week 16 Studs

The Cincinnati Bengals Offense

The entire Bengals offense had a field day against the hobbled Ravens. Here is a look at some of the compiled statistics for Cincinnati’s playmakers:

Joe Burrow: 525 passing yards, 4 touchdowns

Joe Mixon: 18 carries and 6 receptions, 135 combined yards, 1 receiving touchdown, and 1 rushing touchdown

Tee Higgins: 12 receptions, 194-yards, 2 touchdowns 

Ja’Marr Chase: 7 receptions, 125-yards

Tyler Boyd: 3 receptions, 85-yards, 1 touchdown

If you started any of these players, you were probably happy with the output. Burrow’s passing yards set a Bengal’s franchise record and the rest of Cincinnati’s prominent playmakers had great fantasy performances. This offense is now in a territory of its own as Field Yates of ESPN reported that the combination of Burrow, Mixon, Chase, and Higgins has become “the first team in NFL history to have a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher, and 2 1,000-yard receivers all 25 or younger in the same season.”

When at their best, this Bengals offense can be unstoppable and it will be interesting to see how they progress in future seasons. 

Dak Prescott (QB, DAL)

In a similar fashion to the Bengals, the Cowboys absolutely stomped Washington on Sunday Night Football. The game itself seemed over before it could really get going as the Cowboys put up 21 points in the first quarter and then 21 more in the second quarter. Those 42 first-half points can be credited to the Dallas defense and their stellar signal-caller, Dak Prescott. 

Dak put up an entire game’s worth of statistics in the first half with 321 passing yards and 4 touchdowns. One can only imagine what his stat line would’ve been like if Washington had played any sort of respectable football in the first half. Despite barely playing in the second half, Prescott’s monster performance turned in 31.3 fantasy points which surely pleased managers who started him in Week 16.

Rex Burkhead (RB, HOU)

Rex Burkhead came away with one of the more unexpected fantasy performances in Week 16. In a stunning game where the Texans were expected to lose by almost everyone, Burkhead came away with 149-yards and 2 touchdowns on 22 carries while Houston took down the Chargers. David Johnson was ruled out of this game so Rex had the Houston backfield pretty much to himself.

Burkhead is not a player that you should be considering in your fantasy championship but there is a lesson to everyone who passed on him this week. When there’s a clear case for volume from a running back, follow that volume. 

Justin Jackson (RB, LAC)

Similar to Rex Burkhead and on the other side of the field, Justin Jackson came away with heavy volume that led to the top running back finish of the week. Against the Texans, Jackson took over an inflated Austin Ekeler role as he finished with 64 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns on 11 carries along with 8-receptions for 98 yards.

If managers started Justin Jackson, he should’ve carried them to the fantasy championship in Week 17. Jackson should go back to his usual role as Austin Ekeler’s lesser clone in the Chargers backfield while he plays more of a complementary role. 

Davante Adams (WR, GB)

Davante Adams just knows when to show up for fantasy managers. In Week 16, Adams finished with 10-receptions for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns while continuing to be the clear number one wide receiver in Green Bay. There really isn’t much else to say other than this is what we have come to expect from Davante Adams over the years.

Consistent production that is top tier nearly every week, Adams takes on a struggling secondary against the Minnesota Vikings. He should definitely take advantage of this matchup and please managers along the way who have him in their fantasy championships. 

Week 16 Duds

Tyreek Hill (WR, KC)

Earlier in the week, Tyreek Hill was looking like a candidate to miss Week 16 due to Covid protocols but he was able to pass through and suit up for the Chief’s matchup against the Steelers. After his performance though, managers would have rather had him miss Week 16. Hill caught all 2 of his targets for 19-yards while the Steelers made it a goal to shut him down and let the rest of the Chiefs offense do whatever they wanted.

Hill should be in line for a bounce-back performance in Week 17 but his extremely low floor is always concerning.

Rob Gronkowski (TE, TB)

While the Buccaneers were missing their two top receivers in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, Rob Gronkowski seemed to be in line for a larger role in the receiving game against the Carolina Panthers. Unfortunately, that was not the case as Gronk finished with 1 reception for 23-yards on the game. Tampa Bay was dominant as they leaned heavily into the rushing attack while Antonio Brown seemed to be the only receiver soaking up targets. This outcome was not thought of in the range of possibilities by anybody who started Gronkowski but it is what it is. The Buccaneers are heading into a favorable matchup against the miserable Jets defense so the possibility for a blow-up performance from Gronk is certainly there. 

Melvin Gordon III (RB, DEN)

Melvin Gordon isn’t a running back you expect massive totals from on a weekly basis but he usually has a decent floor that managers can count on. However, in Week 16 against the Raiders, he put up a miserable performance along with the rest of the Denver offense. Melvin Gordon finished with a whopping total of 0 yards as he amassed 7 carries for -4 yards and 1 reception for 4 yards. My condolences if you had to start Gordon in your playoff matchup because this performance had him finish at .5 Half-PPR fantasy points.

A better showing for Gordon should be on the horizon for Week 17 as the Broncos match up against a Chargers defense that just allowed nearly 150 rushing yards to Rex Burkhead in Week 16.

George Kittle (TE, SF)

Over the last three weeks coming into Week 16, George Kittle had been on an absolute tear as he racked up a combined 425 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns. That trend came to a stop during San Francisco’s matchup with Tennessee on Thursday Night Football. Kittle only managed to see 3 targets come his way while he caught two of them for 21 yards. To make matters worse, Kittle had a shot at a touchdown early in the game but Jimmy Garapolo completely botched that opportunity with an interception in the red zone.

If you were able to make it through Week 16, Kittle could be a heavy contributor in Week 17 as the 49ers head into a favorable matchup against the Texans. 

Matthew Stafford (QB, LAR)

Matthew Stafford laid an egg of a performance in Week 16 as he passed for 197 yards, 1 touchdown, and 3 interceptions. These kinds of dud performances have randomly been sprinkled into Stafford’s career in the past so I wouldn’t worry too much about this game. If he is starting in your fantasy championship game, play him with confidence.

The Rams are taking on an extremely depleted Ravens secondary that just got shredded by the Bengals. Stafford could be in line for a major rebound with that advantageous matchup looming.