Fantasy football projections, Week 16: Jets-Patriots featuring Bilal Powell, Tom Brady, Julian Edelman, more

The Week 16 matchup between the New York Jets and the New England Patriots features division rivals renewing acquaintances for the final time this season. We’ve got the fantasy projections courtesy of numberFire.

Running back Bilal Powell just may help fantasy owners win a 2016 championship. He’s getting hot at exactly the right time with teammate Matt Forte struggling to stay healthy. Powell carried the ball 29 times for 145 yards and two touchdowns against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 14. He followed that up with 162 total yards on 27 touches against the Miami Dolphins last week. That’s a whopping 307 total yards in two weeks. Considering the volume he’s getting and the likelihood of the Jets playing most of the second half in garbage-time mode on Saturday, Powell is poised for a third consecutive huge game. He is practically guaranteed to deliver in Week 16.

Some fantasy owners may feel the same way about his teammate and wide receiver Robby Anderson. They have good reason to do so as Anderson has developed quite the chemistry with quarterback Bryce Petty. Anderson has caught 14 passes for 240 yards and two touchdowns over the last three weeks combined. The Patriots rank in the top 10 as far as limiting fantasy points at the wide receiver position. However, much like Powell, Anderson should benefit from garbage time in the second half of the game. It will likely mean a lot of targets and a lot of fantasy points even in a tough environment like Gillette Stadium.

Tom Brady failed to throw a touchdown pass in a win over the Denver Broncos in Week 15. His effort marked the third time this year that he’s thrown for less than two touchdown passes in a game. It’s hard to imagine a repeat performance against the Jets. Only two teams have given up more fantasy points to quarterbacks than the green and white. Brady attempted 50 passes and completed 30 of them for 286 yards and two touchdowns against the Jets back in Week 7. Week 16 should see the Brady we’re used to calling the shots. He’ll get back above his projections for the final game of the fantasy season.

Running back LeGarrette Blount exceed projections as well. He only rushed for 31 yards on 17 carries against Denver last week. The good news is he managed to find a rushing touchdown for the third week in a row. Blount now has a career-high 15 rushing touchdowns on the season. He leads the NFL in that category. The Jets held him to 67 yards and no scores in Week 7. Week 16 is payback time. Blount will likely rush for 80 yards and a touchdown on Saturday.