Well, you're either in or you're out. Admittedly, a disproportionate number of my teams made early exits this year—win some, lose some, right? I didn't do well on the waiver wire this year, so I struggled with injuries and bye weeks across the board all season long. FAAB is a part of the strategy and part of the game. I was off the mark regularly. No amount of draft prep, player evaluation or anything else can help you with FAAB. You're out there on your own in the dark trying to make good bids. Just another year to learn from my mistakes.
And that's O.K. Sure, it'd be nice to have more league winnings come my way, but a few bucks on the side is only there to sweeten the deal. At least for me it is. Because the deal is already pretty good. Fantasy football, especially considering it's a large part of my employment, is already a treat. It only adds, it never takes away. It can turn those final minutes of Monday Night Football into something special. Fantasy football makes those typically awful-to-watch Thursday night games a little easier to swallow. What I'm trying to say is: Win or lose, I hope we can all appreciate the game no matter the personal result or whether our fantasy teams are good or bad. Let's get rocking with the cheat sheet...
1. Which Echelon For Hassan?
The red-hot topic looming over Week 17 was the late-breaking news that Titans running back Derrick Henry is doubtful to play against the Cowboys on Thursday Night Football. All eyes are now on Hassan Haskins, a fourth-round rookie back out of Michigan. We've seen him for all of 18 touches this year. His longest play is nine yards. And it really says something about the Titans when their primary backup running back has so few touches. Granted, the backup for most of the year was Dontrell Hilliard—now on injured reserve. But I assure you, most teams’ No. 3 running backs have more than 11 carries for 50 yards.
This game is a big one for dynasty managers, who've been holding Haskins for months now. We've gotten a decent look at almost every running back from this draft class, but this is Haskins's chance to shine. It may be a bit of a pipe dream as Tennessee has lost five straight after starting the season with a 7-3 record. Haskins didn't crack my top five rookie running backs and in my first-round mock in April, in which I only selected fantasy players, he wasn't among my 32 selections.
I have lukewarm expectations for Haskins and I expect to flip an average Week 17 performance into a buying opportunity in dynasty leagues. In redraft, it's just too big a risk to start a complete question mark like Haskins, unless you really have no other options.
I view him as a buy-low in dynasty because Haskins has had a near full year to work out with pros, watch Henry every day and learn to become a professional football player. That still counts for something. He has Henry's size, just not the burst or speed. Who does, really? But just because Haskins can't go off with Malik Willis under center in an offense that's barely functioning without Henry doesn't mean Haskins has no value as a player looking to the future. (Update: Josh Dobbs will be starting for Tennessee over Willis.) This buy-low opportunity all goes out the window if he has a big game, but it's hard to see that happening against a Cowboys team that's really rolling right now, winning four or their last five. Lastly, there's always a chance he blows up, and a late-season impact game from an unknown always generates incredible discussion all offseason long—that'd be fun.
2. Week 17 Stick a Fork in 'Em
This will be my last "SAFIE" of the season since there's not much substance left to stick a fork in. That makes sense, right? And since it's basically a one-week fork, I'm going as bold as I can.
QB Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs
Yes. I've achieved fantasy enlightenment. Nirvana. I'm unironically telling you to fade Patrick Mahomes.
I believe firmly in motivation and it should be clear to anyone with a warm skull that the Broncos were playing like they wanted Nathaniel Hackett gone. Now he is! And just as we should've—and did—predict that Trevor Lawrence would blossom without Urban Meyer, I believe the Broncos will rise to the occasion. It's not so crazy to say, really. Kansas City only won by six, 34-28, over the Broncos back in Week 14. Only won by six, 30-24, against the Texans in Week 15. And perhaps, most importantly, the Broncos are still the top defense against opposing fantasy quarterbacks. Granted, Mahomes did put up 352 yards and three scores against the Broncos earlier this year, but they did pick him off three times as well.
Is anyone going to sit Mahomes, let alone stick a fork in him? No. Even if they did, it probably wouldn't be because I said so. But I will not-so-silently pat myself on the back if the Broncos shock the Chiefs and hold Mahomes to pedestrian production. You can count on it. Although this write-up does illustrate a decent reason to consider betting the under or taking the points with Denver.
3. Week 17 Friggin' Bums
Every week, I'll highlight eight players (two at each position) that I like who are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues. You can think of them as desperation plays or salary punts in DFS contests.
- QB Brock Purdy, SF (at LV)
- QB Colt McCoy, ARI (at ATL)
- RB Hassan Haskins, TEN (vs. DAL)
- RB James Cook, BUF (at CIN)
- WR Greg Dortch, ARI (at ATL)
- WR Isaiah Hodgins, NYG (vs. IND)
- TE Hunter Henry, NE (vs. MIA)
- TE Jelani Woods, IND (at NYG)
4. Weekly SI Fantasy Must-Reads
Before setting your lineups, make sure you check out some of the world-class fantasy lowdown from our SI Fantasy analysts:
