Fantasy football waiver wire advice: Quarterback rankings for Week 16

Week 15 of the 2017 regular season is just about coming to a close with the Monday Night game remaining. Most fantasy football leagues will run their waiver wires late Tuesday or early Wednesday, but we are here to help you get a jump on the best options to consider.

We will be ranking the top five players likely to be available in your league at each of the four major positions. Some weeks there might not be five good options available, but we’ll scour for the best we can find. Additionally, throughout the week, we will update each of these articles as ownership percentages change and news arrives. The following ownership percentages come via CBS Sportsline entering Week 16.

Because we do our waiver rankings from highest percentage owned to least, Jimmy G gets the top spot in this week’s QB edition. And there’s no question he has settled into a nice groove, both on the field and in the stat lines. He is 3-0 as the starter and he has increased his fantasy total each week, getting 22 on Sunday. But here’s the problem: He faces the Jaguars this week. He’s available and he’s better than a lot of quarterbacks on a lot of rosters, but with a championship at stake, asking him to put up a big number on Jacksonville is a desperation move.

Now this is more like it. Foles delivered in a big way in his first post-Wentz start with 33 fantasy points, completing 24 of 38 passes for 237 yards and four touchdowns against the terrible Giants’ pass defense. You know who else has a terrible pass defense? The Raiders, who have to come east to face the Eagles next week. The Raiders are even worse than usual when playing on the East Coast, so get on board the Foles train and ride it to a league championship.

If Manning’s career with the Giants is just about over, he’s going out with a bang. Manning threw the ball an incredible 57 times Sunday and turned it into 33 fantasy points, throwing mainly to guys none of us have ever heard of. No matter. Now, Manning gets to return to the scene of his greatest triumph, beating the undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII, to face a Cardinals team ranked 21st in fantasy points allowed to quarterbacks. If you believe in narratives, Manning is a great option this week.

Flacco has decided to save his best for last, topping 20 fantasy points for his third game in a row Sunday for his only three 20-plus games this season. He’s been remarkably consistent in this three-game run, with two touchdowns in each and yardage totals of 269, 269, and 288. Now he draws the Colts, ranked 25th in points allowed to quarterbacks and fresh off making Brock Osweiler look like John Elway.

Recommending that you place your league championship in the hands of a rookie who has topped 20 fantasy points just once (although it was last week) seems completely insane. And maybe it is. But Trubisky makes this list because the Bears play the Browns next week, and Cleveland is ranked 31st in points allowed to quarterbacks. It is, among free-agent quarterbacks, the best Week 16 matchup on the board. Do with that info what you wish.