Fantasy football start/sit advice, Week 16: Titans vs Jaguars
It’s a fantasy-negligible game between two bad teams. But there are questions. Read on.
Wait, did you guys realize that, if the Jacksonville Jaguars win Sunday, they take over second place in the AFC South? Like, they will be ahead of two teams in their own division, and will have swept both of those teams. That's clownshoes gibberish. They host the Tennessee Titans Sunday with a chance to complete the sweep and get to 5-10 after starting the year 0-8. The game will be played at 1 p.m. ET Sunday, and the Jaguars' chances at second place are far more interesting than most of the game's fantasy considerations.
Titans
Start in every league: Ryan Fitzpatrick, Delanie Walker
Start if you're desperate: Chris Johnson, Kendall Wright, Justin Hunter
Bench: Rob Bironas, Defense/special teams
In the season's first Titans-Jaguars game, Fitzpatrick put up 23 fantasy points and didn't even start. He's put up 20-plus fantasy points four times this season despite only starting half the time. He ought to be a fine start for anyone who needs a change-up in Week 16. ... Only the Arizona Cardinals give up more points to opposing tight ends than the Jaguars, and Walker has been fantasy's No. 11 tight end despite missing one game and leaving another with injury. With Jordan Cameron out and Antonio Gates' touches dropping, Walker's a pretty easy start.
Johnson is another one of those “if you have him, you’re probably starting him” guys. But he’s been wildly inconsistent his season, and his last seven games, he’s alternated double-digit performances with much less production. Beware of a bottoming-out game. ... Wright had his biggest game of the season in Week 15 right after one of his worst in Week 14. Part of that is because Hunter was out last week, and he should be back for this game. There’s every chance one of them has a big game, but it’s less likely both does, and who knows which it will be?
Bironas has sandwiched multi-score games with field-goal-less outings. If the team doesn’t give him the chances to score, he won’t score. ... The Titans’ defense has fallen off a cliff lately, scoring negative points in three of its last five.
Jaguars
Start in every league: Jordan Todman with a caveat
Start if you're desperate: Maurice Jones-Drew with a caveat, Marcedes Lewis
Bench: Chad Henne, Ace Sanders, Josh Scobee, Defense/special teams
The Jaguars’ running-back situation is complicated this week. If Jones-Drew is out, Todman is a veritable must-start, coming off his big game Sunday and facing a weak run defense. If Jones-Drew starts, then it becomes basically impossible to trust Todman.
On the other hand, even if Jones-Drew starts, it seems unlikely his hamstring will be at full strength. So even in what seems like a good matchup, using him is scary, even if he is active. ... Lewis, meanwhile, is less confusing. He’s been on the rise in the Jaguars’ offense, with scores in three straight games, and faces a defense that has given up seven touchdowns to opposing tight ends on the season. He’s a low-end TE1/high-end TE2, but there’s potential.
Henne has been quietly not bad of late, with three straight double-digit games and at least nine in five straight. That is very, very faint praise, though, and by and large he’s been quite subpar. ... Sanders broke his streak of four straight games with six fantasy points by scoring seven Sunday. Still, the Titans have the second-best defense against opposing wide receivers; stay away. ... Scobee has been a fine kicker on a rate basis this year; he’s only missed two field goals. The team just hasn’t put him in scoring situation nearly often enough for him to have value. ... The Jaguars’ defense is significantly better than it was early in the season, which means it’s significantly better than historically awful; it doesn’t mean it’s good.
• Week 15 fantasy football position rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | D/ST
