Before moving fully into Week 16, let’s look at how Week 15’s streamers did (Yahoo! scoring; 0.5-point PPR)
Quarterback: Jalen Hurts-37.82 points
Tight End: Irv Smith Jr.-5.20 points
Team Defense: Cleveland Browns-8 points
Moving to Week 16, championship week in a lot of fantasy leagues, here are my quarterback, tight end and team defense streamers for the week.
Quarterback: Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys
Hurts completed barely more than half his passes in Week 15 against the Arizona Cardinals (24-for-44). But that was the only black mark in a outing where he threw for 338 yards and three touchdowns, with 63 rushing yards and another score on the ground.
In Week 16 Hurts gets the Dallas Cowboys, who are in the bottom half of the league against quarterbacks. In Week 15, with a 49-yard touchdown pass as time expired as a noted caveat, 49ers quarterbacks Nick Mullens and C.J. Beathard combined for over 300 passing yards and three touchdowns against them. Mullens is the seventh signal caller in Dallas’ last nine games to have multiple passing scores.
Hurts easily qualified as as streamer last week, and this week as of this writing he still does. Week 16 is not the time to get cute, so I’m going back to the Hurts well this week as my top quarterback streamer.
ESPN Ownership: 46.7%
Yahoo! Ownership: 40%
Others to Consider: Tua Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins at Las Vegas Raiders (Saturday night); Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns at New York Jets; Mitchell Trubisky, Chicago Bears at Jacksonville Jaguars; Marcus Mariota, Las Vegas Raiders vs. Miami Dolphins (Saturday night); Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Saturday)
Tight End: Austin Hooper, Cleveland Browns at New York Jets
Hooper returned from a neck injury in Week 15, and finished five five catches (on six targets) for 41 yards and a touchdown against the New York Giants. He has scored in two of his last three games, with a great Week 16 matchup coming.
The New York Jets are allowing the most fantasy points per game to tight ends this season by a good margin (14.8 per game; Yahoo! 0.5-point PPR). They have allowed the most touchdowns (13), the most yards (926) and the seventh-most catches (74) to the position entering Week 16. They have allowed a touchdown to a tight end in five straight games, across the gamut at the position from Darren Waller and Hunter Henry to Will Dissly and Adam Shaheen.
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Hooper has been a fantasy disappointment this season, which has led to a drop in his ownership rates. That means there’s an opportunity to stream him for a great matchup in Week 16, with hope for a touchdown to boost his outing.
ESPN Ownership: 53.3%
Yahoo! Ownership: 48%
Others To Consider: Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams at Seattle Seahawks; Tyler Eifert, Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Chicago Bears; Dan Arnold, Arizona Cardinals vs. San Francisco 49ers (Saturday); Jonnu Smith, Tennessee Titans at Green Bay Packers (Sunday night); Irv Smith Jr., Minnesota Vikings at New Orleans Saints (Christmas Day); Jordan Akins, Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Team Defense: Arizona Cardinals vs. San Francisco 49ers (Saturday)
The Cardinals allowed 26 points and a bunch of yards to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15. But they also sacked Jalen Hurts six times with a safety and blocked kick to deliver 10 fantasy points (Yahoo! scoring) through a back door. They have 14 sacks over their last two games, with a total of 28 fantasy points (Yahoo! scoring).
In Week 16 the Cardinals will take on the San Francisco 49ers, who are depleted by injuries and will have either Nick Mullens or C.J. Beathard under center. Mullens suffered an elbow injury in Week 15, but he may lose the starting gig to Beathard on merit alone. In his eight starts this season, Mullens has taken 17 sacks and lost four fumbles (19 total sacks taken with six fumbles on the season).
From a certain perspective, Beathard starting over Mullens would be bad for the fantasy prospects of Arizona’s defense on Sunday. But Kyle Shanahan’s choice of quarterback is irrelevant, as the combination of high floor and a massive ceiling makes the Cardinals my top defense streamer for Week 16.
ESPN Ownership: 39.7%
Yahoo! Ownership: 34%
Others To Consider: Houston Texans vs. Cincinnati Bengals; Chicago Bears at Jacksonville Jaguars (check availability); Washington Football Team vs. Carolina Panthers; Los Angeles Chargers vs. Denver Broncos; Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys; Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots (Monday night, check availability)
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