Fantasy football waiver wire: 5 running backs to target for Week 16

The moment of truth has arrived. Week 16 marks the championship round in fantasy football (unless you’re in one of those weird leagues that plays into Week 17), and if you’re still alive, congratulations. Lineup decisions will be more important than ever with fantasy glory just within your grasp.

The waiver wire doesn’t have as much importance at this time of year compared to the bye weeks, but fantasy owners could still stand to shore up their roster depth. In addition, dynasty/keeper league owners might want to start looking ahead to 2017 and stash potential breakout players for next year. With that in mind, here are the top waiver options at running back for Week 16, owned in less than 50 percent of Yahoo! standard leagues.

It looked like Dixon won the backfield competition for good after putting up 81 total yards against the New England Patriots. Instead, Terrance West once again saw more touches than Dixon last week. The rookie was held to nine carries for 36 yards, and was strangely invisible in the passing game with just one target. The good news is that he scored another touchdown, but Dixon is a risky flex play against the Pittsburgh Steelers this week.

Finally unleashed after missing most of the year with a knee injury, Lewis turned 20 touches into 104 total yards against the Ravens. It was an especially surprising performance with the Ravens boasting one of the best run defenses in football. Of course, LeGarrette Blount still vultured a goal line touchdown and James White remains a factor on passing downs. The Patriots’ backfield is impossible to predict from week to week, so Lewis is a pretty big gamble. He does have a good matchup with a checked-out New York Jets team this week.

DeMarco Murray continues to dominate touches in the Titans’ backfield, but Henry is still doing a lot with limited action. He played a key role in Tennessee’s comeback win over the Kansas City Chiefs, rushing for 58 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries. Seeing more playing time in recent weeks, Henry is an appealing flex option against the Jacksonville Jaguars this week.

If you like touchdown vultures, you’ll love Gillislee. He got another one on Sunday, his seventh of the season. Gillislee doesn’t have much standalone value with LeSean McCoy dominating, but goal line carries are enough to keep him on the RB3 radar. The Bills take on the Miami Dolphins next.

The Giants are stubbornly sticking with an RB committee even though it hasn’t been that effective. In the past two games, Rashad Jennings has 33 carries for just 83 yards, while Perkins has 26 carries for 101 yards. The rookie probably won’t do enough to earn fantasy value this season, but he’s a good dynasty stash for 2017 with Jennings getting up there in years (he turns 32 in March).