Fantasy Football Week 16 Stats: Where Can We Expect Big Performances This Week?

In only his second season since entering the NFL as an undrafted rookie free agent, Victor Cruz has burst on the scene with a monster breakthrough year, possibly only overshadowed by the breakthrough of Cam Newton. With one game remaining, Cruz has 1,358 receiving yards and eight touchdowns, which is good for top five ranking among all wide receivers.

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The 49ers rush defense has received a lot of publicity for their recent dominance, but Marshawn Lynch has also been on a hot streak. He has scored at least one touchdown in each of his last eleven games and he has rushed for 100 or more yards in six of his last eight games. The Seahawks recent hot streak coincided with that run as they climbed on Lynch’s shoulders and went along for the ride.

Lynch is in a contract year, so this performance comes out an opportune time. It will be interesting to see how he is compensated in the offseason and how he performs in 2012 after he gets a chance to “taste the rainbow.” He has exceeded career highs in rushing yards and touchdowns so one has to consider whether this is just a career renaissance or whether he can be expected to repeat this after a possible pay day. It will be something to factor into your 2012 fantasy football draft strategy.

Peterson will be the guy in Minnesota next year if he is 100%, but as you get ready for fantasy football drafts next summer, this will all be a story to follow in preparation. Gerhart has proved to be a very capable backup, which could make him a very popular handcuff in 2012.

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Cam Newton has burst on the scene like nobody’s business this season. The rookie QB had plenty of doubters heading into the season but he has shown he can make plays at the NFL level. His Panthers are 6-9, which is light years ahead of their 2-14 squad last season. And much of that is due to Cam Newton.

Most fantasy football leagues are wrapping up for the season and we can start to look ahead to the 2012 NFL season for fantasy football purposes. Cam Newton’s draft placement will be one of the biggest discussions when we hit the summer. There will be leagues where someone jumps on Newton in the first round, and there might be leagues where he slides a round or two. It depends on how people trust him heading into what some view as the trap of a possible sophomore slump. He has proven doubters wrong, so we’ll see if he can do it next year.

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Here are the top 30 wide receiver projections for Week 16. You can view all the projections at numberFire.com. For more on fantasy football, check out Fake Teams. Follow us on twitter @sbnationfantasy.

Here are the top 15 running back projections for Week 16. You can view all the projections at numberFire.com. For more on fantasy football, check out Fake Teams. Follow us on twitter @sbnationfantasy.

Here are the top 15 quarterback projections for Week 16. You can view all the projections at numberFire.com. For more on fantasy football, check out Fake Teams. Follow us on twitter @sbnationfantasy.

Championship week has arrived for just about every fantasy football league on the planet. If you are reading this you likely find yourself in a battle for prizes, whether it be the grand prize or a third place prize. Week 16 will be a bit of a funky week for fantasy football because the Christmas holiday has the schedule all over the place. The biggest change is moving the Sunday slate minus Sunday Night Football to Saturday since Sunday is Christmas Day.

Houston Texans

It should be an exciting holiday weekend of football. Over the coming days we’ll break down some possible sleepers for the week ahead, as well as other generally big performances. Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday we’ll follow that up with a breakdown of all the pertinent fantasy performers.