Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 16: Malik Nabers, Tyrone Tracy Jr. Cody Manning •

The New York Giants (2-12) will be on the road to visit the Atlanta Falcons (7-7) in Week 16. 

Both franchises have their own unique storylines to follow in the last three weeks of the season. For New York, they could end up with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft but also have the Las Vegas Raiders who enter the weekend with the same record.

Atlanta made a seismic change earlier this week when they announced they benched Kirk Cousins in favor of their first-round pick Michael Penix Jr. in their push for a spot in the postseason. 

This a big week for fantasy football managers to secure a spot in the championship game. If you have been leaning on the pair of rookies from the Giants, there is one to trust, and there is one you should avoid this Sunday. 

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Malik Nabers

The star rookie receiver is coming off his best game since Week 4. In Week 15 against the Baltimore Ravens, he caught 10 balls for 82 yards and scored his first touchdown since Week 3. Nabers now has 90 receptions for the season, the only player in NFL history to have more through 12 games is Odell Beckham Jr. (91 receptions) per NFL Pro. 

He has a great matchup this Sunday to help propel his fantasy managers into the championship game. Per Pro Football Reference, he faces an Atlanta defense that has allowed the fourth-most PPG to receivers this season. 

Over their last four games, they have allowed four receivers to finish with at least 75 receiving yards and have given up eight touchdowns to the position in those contests. The Falcons are the only team in the league that has surrendered 20 receiving touchdowns to receivers. 

The only concern with Nabers this weekend is if Drew Lock can consistently get the ball in his hands, other than that, he is a high-end WR1. 

Verdict: Start ‘Em

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Tyrone Tracy Jr.

Tracy Jr. hasn’t crossed 100 total yards since the Giants’ Week 10 loss in Germany to the Carolina Panthers. A big reason for the rookie running back’s lack of production in his last four games is that he isn’t touching the ball as much as he was in the middle of the season. 

In the last four weeks, he has only one outing where he finished with at least 15 touches, which he turned into 83 total yards and a touchdown. 

He does draw a tough matchup this Sunday afternoon. Tracy Jr. will go against the Falcons’ defense which has allowed the sixth-fewest PPG to running backs this year per Pro Football Reference. They have only given up four rushing touchdowns to running backs, which is the second-lowest in the NFL. 

Only one running back crossed 60 rushing yards against Atlanta in their last four games, which was Aaron Jones, who finished with 73 rushing yards. In those four contests, they only gave up three touchdowns to the position. 

Between the inconsistent touches Tracy Jr. has seen recently, and facing a defense that has been rough for running backs in fantasy football, I would consider other options this weekend. 

Verdict: Sit ‘Em

The Cincinnati Bengals (6-8) will host their divisional rivals the Cleveland Browns (3-11) in Week 16. 

Cincy has an opportunity to sweep Cleveland for the first time since the 2017 season. The Browns will not only want to avoid that but they can stick it to their rivals by eliminating them from the playoffs with an upset win. 

With this being a must-win for the Bengals to have any hope of sneaking in the backdoor to the postseason, I expect their best players to play at their best, and their fantasy football managers should bet on that happening. 

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Tee Higgins

Higgins is coming off a bounce-back performance in Week 15 against the Tennessee Titans. He finished with five catches for 88 yards and a touchdown on eight targets. He has caught a touchdown in four of his last five games. 

In Week 16 he faces a Cleveland defense that allows the fifth-most PPG to receivers this year per Pro Football Reference. In their last four games, they have allowed three receivers to register at least 75 receiving yards and given up five touchdowns to the position. 

When these two franchises met in Week 7, Higgins collected four balls for 82 yards and a touchdown on eight targets. That was one of his four games he had at least 80 receiving yards this season. 

Higgins is a high-end WR2 who should get the volume of targets that can turn into a great Sunday afternoon for his fantasy managers. 

Verdict: Start ‘Em

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Chase Brown

The lead running back for Cincinnati has been on a tear since taking over the backfield. Per NFL Pro, Brown has played 85.3% of the Bengals offensive snaps since Week 10. He has been productive in the passing game, generating the third-most receiving yards over expected (+76) and the most receptions for first downs (12) by any running back in that span.

This Sunday he will face a Browns defense that is allowing the ninth-fewest PPG to running backs this season per Pro Football Reference. They are one of five teams in the league that haven’t given up a receiving touchdown to a running back. 

Only one running back crossed 55 rushing yards against Cleveland in their last four games, which was Jaleel McLaughlin, who finished with 84 rushing yards. In those four contests, they only gave up three touchdowns to the position.

In the Week 7 meeting between the teams, Brown finished with 53 total yards on 17 touches but still was splitting time with Zack Moss.

Everything that was laid out might tell you to consider sitting Brown in Week 16 but he is one of those players who got their fantasy managers to this point of the playoffs. Plus you can’t ignore the volume of touches and the production he has had since Week 10. 

You have to keep playing Brown this weekend. 

Verdict: Start ‘Em

The New York Giants (2-9) will be on the road to face their divisional rivals Dallas Cowboys (4-7) on Thanksgiving. 

This has been a forgetful season for both franchises. It’s an apples-to-oranges comparison, but each will end this year with a different quarterback than they began the season with. Perhaps the biggest difference in where each currently stands, is how they looked in Week 12. 

Dallas is still fighting and it showed in their upset win over the Washington Commanders. While New York’s players ripped the team for being soft in a blowout loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

It can be hard to trust players on a team that appears to be giving up but I believe you can lean into a pair of rookies for the Giants.

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Malik Nabers  

It was a great start for Nabers in his rookie season in the first month of the season but he has been relatively quiet since September. He hasn’t topped 75 receiving yards in his last five games, despite seeing at least eight targets in those contests and having three games where he saw 10+ targets. 

The last blowup performance he had happened to come against the Cowboys in their first matchup. In that matchup, he finished with 12 catches for 115 yards on 15 targets. 

Dallas has allowed the 11th-most PPG to receivers this season per Pro Football Reference. In their last four games, they have allowed three receivers to finish with at least 85 receiving yards and have given up five touchdowns to the position. 

Could Nabers get the squeaky wheel treatment on Thanksgiving? After the loss to Tampa Bay, he complained about not getting the ball until the Giants were down 30-0.   

It’s hard to trust his quarterback situation but Nabers is due for a big game. He hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 3 and after venting his frustrations about not getting the rock early in games, it feels like Brian Daboll will force touches for his rookie receiver. 

He’s a high-end WR2 in Week 13. 

Verdict: Start ‘Em

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Tyrone Tracy Jr. 

Week 13 was a disappointing performance for Tracy Jr., who saw Devin Singletary Jr. and Eric Gray get some touches after the rookie fumbled the ball away inside the Tampa 10-yard line. He still managed 70 total yards on 13 touches. Which was the lowest volume he had the ball in his hands since Week 7.

Tracy Jr. does have a great matchup on Thursday afternoon. Per Pro Football Reference, Dallas has given up the third-most PPG to running backs this season. In their last four contests, they have allowed three running backs to finish with at least 75 total yards and have given up four touchdowns to the position.

There is some risk in playing Tracy Jr. because the coaching staff may reduce his snaps because of his fumbles in the last two games but he is worth the risk in this matchup against a defense that has struggled defending the run. He’s a high-end flex play in Week 13. 

Verdict: Start ‘Em

The Cincinnati Bengals (4-6) will be on the road in a Sunday night matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers (6-3) in Week 11. 

Cincinnati is still in the playoff race and a win can help propel them to a strong finish to the season. Los Angeles has command of one of the wildcard spots and a victory for them would start to create separation to help lock it up at some point in December. 

For fantasy football, the Bengals are facing one of the best defenses in the NFL. Outside of Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, it is going to be hard to trust anyone else in their offense this weekend. 

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Chase Brown

Can Brown overcome a tough matchup for the second game in a row? Last week against the Baltimore Ravens he finished with 94 total yards and a touchdown. 

In Week 11, he is facing a defense who are allowing the second-fewest PPG to running backs this season per Pro Football Reference. 

In their last four games, only one running back finished over 70 rushing yards, which was James Conner. For the season, the Chargers defense has only allowed one rushing touchdown and one receiving touchdown to running backs. 

One area that Brown has thrived in is in the passing attack. Per Next Gen Stats, Brown leads all running backs in targets (15) on passes under 10 air yards since Week 9, while his 13 receptions rank tied for first, and 88 yards are the third-most.

But, Los Angeles has allowed a league-low 71.2% completion rate on under 10 air-yard passes to running backs, resulting in the fewest yards per attempt allowed on such passes (4.0).

Brown is a low-end RB2 option who you can bet on his volume of touches but if you have an option with a better matchup, I would consider leaving him on the bench on Sunday. 

Verdict: Sit’ Em

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Mike Gesicki

Who would have guessed that Tanner Hudson was the tight end play for the Bengals in Week 10? Gesicki had a prime streaming spot but was a disappointment with four catches for 30 yards on nine targets while Hudson ended with six catches for 42 yards and a touchdown on seven targets. 

Gesicki has been hit-and-miss as a streaming option, which is why you may want to avoid him in Week 11. He is facing a defense that has allowed the seventh-fewest PPG to tight ends this season per Pro Football Reference. 

In the Chargers’ last four games, only one tight end crossed 50 receiving yards, which was Trey McBride. Another factor that hurts Gesicki is that they are one of two teams that haven’t allowed a tight end to score a touchdown this season.

Verdict: Sit’ Em

It’s been difficult to consistently start any Indianapolis Colts player other than star running back Jonathan Taylor in fantasy football this season.

Even with Taylor, he missed three games due to injury. 

The Colts’ previous starting quarterback, Anthony Richardson, was consistently disappointing, which led to the coaching staff making the decision to bench the second-year passer.

Indianapolis’ new starter, Joe Flacco, is too much of a game manager to trust for big points. 

And the horseshoe have no tight end threat at all. They do, however, have some weapons like Josh Downs to rely on.

Will things change heading into a Sunday Night matchup against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9?

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Joe Flacco

Like it or not, the current Colts starting offense is going to have Flacco under center for the rest of the 2024 season barring any unforeseen injuries. Despite being 39 years old as of publication, the Colts’ front office and coaching staff have said they believe their squad is in the best position to win football games with Flacco as QB1. 

And during his two starts this season, Indianapolis is 1-1. In Richardson’s five starts, the Colts are 3-3. 

However, when it comes to fantasy football, Flacco has been the better option. In the veteran’s three appearances this season, he has not recorded fewer than 14.7 fantasy points, according to FantasyPros. 

Richardson posted three weeks of fewer than 10 points and only finished with more than 13 points once in five appearances. Flacco may not be as dynamic of a playmaker, but he is certainly less prone to turnovers and more apt to pass the deep ball accurately.

However, FantasyPros still ranks Flacco as the 22nd-best quarterback option for Week 9. Going up against Brian Flores’ defense with extra prep time coming off a Thursday night game makes Flacco a risky proposition.

The Verdict: Sit ‘Em

Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Josh Downs 

Between breakout performances from Alec Pierce, the struggles of franchise wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and the consistent yet mostly tempered play of second-year Josh Downs, trusting in the Colts’ offense to establish a true WR1 has been next to impossible this season.

Part of that comes down to inconsistent quarterback play, but it also proves that the Indianapolis wide receiver corps may be loaded with too much of the same talent. That said, when Flacco is under center, his most trusted target has proven to be Downs.

While he had one of the best games of his career last week with 109 yards and a touchdown against the Houston Texans with Richardson as the Colts’ play-caller, Downs should keep up his standout season with Flacco. The North Carolina alum has been targeted at least nine times in Flacco’s three appearances, compiling 217 yards and two touchdowns along the way.

FantasyPros ranks Downs as the 27th-best wide receiver option in Week 9. There is some upside here given the fact that Downs will line up against a Vikings secondary that has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers this season, according to NFL Fantasy.

Downs is the highest-ranked Colts wide receiver this week, and he’s in a strong position to produce for fantasy managers this week.

The Verdict: Start ‘Em