Could last week have been a more disappointing week for fantasy quarterbacks? Yes and no. On the one side, we have Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger. Rodgers was facing a tough matchup in the Cardinals but he should have finished with more than 151 passing yards. Even Teddy Bridgewater passed for more yards against Arizona two weeks ago. Green Bay needs to get its offense on track for 2016. I'm sure Jordy Nelson returning will help but I think their issues run deeper.
Fantasy football rankings 2015: Quarterbacks, Week 17
Week 16 left us with some great and some terrible quarterback performances. We look back on Week 16 and ahead to Week 17 in our Week 17 Quarterback rankings.
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Roethlisberger’s poor showing was soul crushing and may have cost many their championship. Baltimore has had issues all season covering the pass and so this was setting up as an excellent opportunity. Big Ben went out and passed for 215 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions. That’s terrible and even worse that it happened during championship week.
Despite that awful performance, start Roethlisberger this week, if you're still playing. The first reason is because so many quarterback situations are questionable because of injury and resting for the playoffs. And the second reason is because the Pittsburgh passing game will bounce back. There's no way that the Steelers won't put up big numbers this week against the Browns.
On the other side, there was Kirk Cousins and Blake Bortles. If you started Cousins, then you probably took home the championship. His four touchdowns and 365 yards passing were nothing short of brilliant. He's going to probably be overdrafted in a lot of drafts in 2016. I like the weapons that offense has but the schedule this season helped Cousins overachieve. I don't think he's going to play much in Week 17, so watch out if you have one more game to play.
Bortles had another very good performance and should end the season as a top five fantasy quarterback. He's even put up good numbers against tough defenses. My expectations for this week are lowered, as he's facing the Texans and Houston is gunning for the playoffs. Bortles has a great offensive supporting cast and should be a mid-to-late round pick in fantasy drafts in 2016.
Andy Dalton remains sidelined but AJ McCarron is expected to play in Week 17. He only has a sprained wrist but it could end up turning into a dreaded game-time decision. Keep an eye on his availability. Andrew Luck has still not received clearance to play, and with the Colts signing Josh Freeman and Ryan Lindley, it doesn't look good. I would bet that Luck is done for the season. Stephen Morris is probably going to start for the Colts in Week 17.
Peyton Manning is on his way back from his foot injury but Osweiler will start again in Week 17. Marcus Mariota hasn't been ruled out for Week 17 but the Titans would be foolish to risk him in a meaningless game. Brian Hoyer may finally return this week. He's nearing the end of the concussion protocol and would make for a decent play against the Jaguars. Lastly, Ryan Tannehill is day-to-day with an ankle injury. He'll probably start in Week 17 but hasn't been fantasy start worthy in weeks.
My sleeper this week is Ryan Fitzpatrick. In the final week of the season, we're always looking for players that still have something to play for. The Jets will be looking to lock up a playoff spot with a win, so they'll be going all out. They're facing a tough Bills defense but I believe that Fitzpatrick will put up another good game. I believe he'll pass for about 260 yards and two touchdowns.
Quarterbacks, Week 17
(DK: Daniel Kelley; DC: Dan Ciarrocchi; AM: Andrew Miller; JD: John Daigle; SK: Scott Kaliska)
| Rk | Consensus | Tm | Opp. | DK | DC | AM | JD | SK |
| 1 | Ben Roethlisberger | PIT | @CLE | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Cam Newton | CAR | TB | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Tom Brady | NE | @MIA | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Drew Brees | NO | @ATL | 7 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | Carson Palmer | ARI | SEA | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 6 | Blake Bortles | JAC | @HOU | 4 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | NYJ | @BUF | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| 8 | Aaron Rodgers | GB | MIN | 12 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| 9 | Russell Wilson | SEA | @ARI | 5 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| 9 | Matthew Stafford | DET | @CHI | 9 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 11 |
| 9 | Eli Manning | NYG | PHI | 11 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 8 |
| 12 | Tyrod Taylor | BUF | NYJ | 10 | 11 | 14 | 15 | 13 |
| 13 | Matt Ryan | ATL | NO | 20 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 12 |
| 14 | Sam Bradford | PHI | @NYG | 13 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 14 |
| 15 | Alex Smith | KC | OAK | 16 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 16 |
| 16 | Derek Carr | OAK | @KC | 15 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 15 |
| 17 | Jay Cutler | CHI | DET | 22 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 18 |
| 18 | Kirk Cousins | WAS | @DAL | 19 | 18 | -- | 14 | 17 |
| 19 | Philip Rivers | SD | @DEN | 17 | 15 | 23 | 20 | 25 |
| 20 | AJ McCarron | CIN | BAL | 24 | 22 | 18 | 19 | 21 |
| 21 | Jameis Winston | TB | @CAR | 18 | 19 | 22 | 22 | 24 |
| 22 | Teddy Bridgewater | MIN | @GB | 23 | 25 | 19 | 21 | 20 |
| 23 | Brian Hoyer | HOU | JAC | 14 | 21 | -- | -- | 22 |
| 24 | Brock Osweiler | DEN | SD | -- | 23 | 20 | 23 | 19 |
| 25 | Zach Mettenberger | TEN | @IND | 21 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 25 | Brandon Weeden | HOU | JAC | -- | -- | 21 | -- | -- |
| 25 | Johnny Manziel | CLE | PIT | -- | -- | -- | 24 | 23 |
| -- | Ryan Tannehill | MIA | NE | 25 | 24 | -- | 25 | -- |
| -- | Ryan Mallett | BAL | @CIN | -- | -- | 24 | -- | -- |
| -- | Kellen Moore | DAL | WAS | -- | -- | 25 | -- | -- |
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