The first round of the fantasy football playoffs saw wide receivers go off, with Davante Adams, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Mike Evans, Brian Thomas Jr., DeVonta Smith, CeeDee Lamb, Terry McLaurin, A.J. Brown, Malik Nabers, Rashod Bateman, Jerry Jeudy, and Jalen Coker all scoring at least 21 points.
Coker and Bateman were the only ones in this group who were likely on your bench, but you can make amends for that this week. More on that in a minute.
The point is, wide receivers are critical in the fantasy football playoffs. Start, sit decisions for your WR3 spot (if you have one) and flex positions should be based on matchups, and we have a couple of people here who have juicy ones in Week 16 and are also widely available on the waiver wire. For a full waiver wire breakdown, check out Michael Fabiano's column.
Let’s not waste any more time. Here are the top streaming WR options for Week 16 with availability data coming from ESPN.
Fantasy Football Wide Receivers Streaming Options in Week 16
Jalen McMillan, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 89% Available
I mentioned McMillan in this spot last week and he finished with five catches for 75 yards and a TD against the Chargers. He’s now seen 13 targets in the last two weeks for a 23.2% target share and scored three TDs in that time. It appears he’s finally solidified himself as the WR2 in a red-hot Bucs offense that throws the ball a ton.
Now McMillan gets two juicy matchups to finish the fantasy playoffs. The Bucs face the Cowboys in Week 16 and they give up the 10th most fantasy points per game to perimeter wide receivers. Then they face the Saints in fantasy championship week, a defense giving up the ninth-most fantasy points to outside WRs.
Mike Evans remains the unquestioned alpha for the Bucs, but McMillan has the most targets of anyone on the team outside Evans over the last two weeks. His target share isn’t quite as high as Chris Godwin’s was before the injury, but it’s trending in that direction.
Rashod Bateman, Baltimore Ravens, 80% Available
Bateman is the Ravens' big-play receiver, and boy did he deliver in Week 15. Against a beleaguered Giants secondary, Bateman had three catches for 80 yards and two TDs, finishing with 23 points. It’s his second game with over 22 points this season and he has two other games over 15 points as well.
His lowish target share (15.3%) is a bit concerning as is the fluctuation of involvement of the offense (he has four games with under 6 fantasy points). But the Ravens host a Steelers defense giving up the 11th most yards per game to opposing WRs and has given up the fourth-most posting per target since Week 9. Then they face a Browns defense giving up the ninth-most receiving yards in Week 17.
It’s certainly a gamble starting Bateman. But with the way Lamar Jackson and the Ravens' passing game are humming, he’s worth rostering at minimum.
Jalen Coker, Carolina Panthers, 98% Available
Xavier Leggette injured his groin in Week 15, putting his status for Week 16 in jeopardy. Even when Leggette was in against the Cowboys, Coker broke off an 83-yard TD catch, finishing the game with 110 yards and a TD in Week 15. If Leggette is out, Coker will feature prominently in the Panthers' offense moving forward.
The Panthers face a tough Cardinals secondary (they give up the ninth-fewest fantasy points to opposing WRs) in Week 16, but then take on the Bucs in Week 17. Tampa Bay gives up the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing WRs.
Even against the Cardinals in what should be a negative gamescript, expect the Panthers to throw the ball enough to make Coker a flex option. Adam Thielen, who I mentioned in this spot last week, is also worthy of consideration there.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Fantasy Football Streaming Wide Receivers to Add on Waiver Wire in Week 16.
