I started the week a little squeamish about starting Devin Singletary in Week 16 against Cleveland. With C.J. Stroud (concussion) hurt and a tough matchup with the Browns, it felt risky to trust Singletary at this point in the season. Or maybe not.
He's clearly established himself as the No. 1 running back in Houston after he played 75 percent of the snaps in Week 15 at Tennessee, with Dameon Pierce relegated to just four snaps against the Titans and 12 snaps in the past two weeks. Against Tennessee, Singletary had 30 total touches (four catches on five targets), and he turned that into 170 total yards.
Singletary has now scored at least 12.5 PPR points in five of his past six games. And given his expected workload, even with Case Keenum starting for Stroud against Cleveland, that should make him a flex option in all leagues.
He's proven he can catch the ball out of the backfield this season with two games with at least four receptions in his past four outings. He's also scored three rushing touchdowns in his past six games and has three games with at least 112 rushing yards over that span.
The Texans will likely lean on him again in Week 16, and the Browns have struggled against opposing running backs of late. A running back has scored at least 13.6 PPR points against Cleveland in five of the past six games, with six touchdowns over that span.
I'm not expecting another game with 21 PPR points for Singletary like he scored against the Titans. But he should prove to be a solid flex option in all leagues, and I like him as a sleeper in Week 16.
Now, here are some other sleepers I like for the Fantasy semifinals. Good luck in all of your playoff matchups and happy holidays. You can find my million-dollar contest tournament lineups for both DraftKings and FanDuel over at SportsLine.
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Week 16 Sleepers
Week 16 Preview
Sleepers
Sleeper QBs
Flacco should be considered a No. 1 Fantasy quarterback in all leagues for Week 16 at Houston. He comes into this game with at least 20.2 Fantasy points in all three starts for the Browns, with at least two touchdowns in each outing and at least 311 passing yards in his past two contests. This week, he gets to face a Texans defense that has allowed five of their past seven opposing quarterbacks to score at least 23 Fantasy points. It wouldn't surprise me if Flacco is a top-10 Fantasy quarterback in Week 16.
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Mullens is a great streaming quarterback to use in Week 16 against Detroit. He just scored 21.1 Fantasy points in his first start for the Vikings in Week 15 at Cincinnati, and he took advantage of playing with great weapons in Justin Jefferson, T.J. Hockenson and Jordan Addison. He should have the chance for another quality outing against the Lions, who are No. 6 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks, and four of the past six quarterbacks against Detroit have scored at least 23.2 Fantasy points. It wouldn't surprise me if Mullens is a top-10 Fantasy quarterback in Week 16.
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Smith will return as the Seahawks starter in Week 16 at Tennessee after missing the past two games with a groin injury. The last time we saw Smith he scored 35.9 Fantasy points at Dallas in Week 13 in his best game of the season. I hope he stays hot in this matchup with the Titans, who have allowed five quarterbacks this year to score at least 22.2 Fantasy points, and my only concern for Smith is Kenneth Walker III taking over this game on the ground. I still expect Smith to have his sixth game with multiple touchdowns, and he's worth using as a low-end No. 1 Fantasy quarterback in deeper leagues for Week 16.
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Sleeper RBs
It will take some guts to trust Harris in Week 16 given how bad he's been lately with 9.7 PPR points or less in three games in a row against Arizona, New England and Indianapolis, but this is a bounce-back spot for him and potentially Jaylen Warren. The Bengals just lost key run stuffer D.J. Reader (quad) for the season, and Harris should have the chance for another quality outing against Cincinnati. In Week 12, Harris had 15 carries for 99 yards and a touchdown against the Bengals, and he has either a touchdown or 100 total yards in four of his past five games against Cincinnati. Harris is worth using as a borderline No. 2 running back in all leagues. And Warren makes sense as a flex option in this matchup as well.
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We'll see if the 49ers get Arik Armstead (ankle) and Javon Hargrave (hamstring) back for Week 16 against the Ravens, but both were missed in Week 15 against Arizona. James Conner, Emari Demercado and Michael Carter combined for 21 carries for 177 yards and two touchdowns against San Francisco, and the Ravens could look to lean on Edwards in this matchup on the road. He'll be the main running back with Keaton Mitchell (ACL) out for the season, and Edwards has scored a touchdown in six of his past eight games, with 10 touchdowns over that span. I don't mind Edwards as a flex option in Week 16, especially if Armstead and Hargrave remain out for the 49ers.
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The Steelers are beat up defensively with both safeties out in Minkah Fitzpatrick (knee) and Domatnae Kazee (suspension) and tackling at the second level of the defense could be a problem. That should help Joe Mixon, who is a must-start Fantasy running back, but Brown is also worth using as a flex in Week 16. He's done well over the past two games in tandem with Mixon with three catches in each of those two outings against the Colts and Vikings, and he's scored at least 8.1 PPR points in each game. He also has three games in a row with at least seven carries. Brown could be awesome with more work, but just use him as a flex in this matchup.
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Sleeper WRs
I'm putting Ridley in the sleepers column because of the uncertainty with Trevor Lawrence (concussion). There's a chance Lawrence could play in Week 16 at Tampa Bay, and that makes Ridley clearly more appealing than if he's catching passes from C.J. Beathard. Ridley comes into Week 16 with three games in a row of scoring fewer than 9.5 PPR points. He hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 12, and it's not for a lack of trying since he has 25 targets in his past two games against Cleveland and Baltimore. But this is a dream matchup against the Buccaneers, who are No. 4 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers. In just the past five games, six receivers have scored at least 12.9 PPR points against Tampa Bay. With Lawrence, Ridley is a borderline top-20 receiver in all leagues. Without Lawrence, Ridley should only be started in three-receiver leagues.
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Addison was great in his first start with Nick Mullens in Week 15 at Cincinnati with six catches for 111 yards and two touchdowns on six targets. That was also with Justin Jefferson back, so Addison will hopefully be fine with a new quarterback and a healthy receiving corps. This week, the Vikings should be throwing a lot at Detroit, and the Lions are No. 9 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers. There also have been four times this season where a pair of receivers have scored at least 13.2 PPR points against Detroit in the same game -- Week 2 (Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf), Week 5 (Adam Thielen and D.J. Chark), Week 10 (Keenan Allen, Jalen Guyton and Quentin Johnston) and Week 12 (Christian Watson and Jayden Reed) -- so Jefferson and Addison can both thrive in this matchup.
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After not scoring a touchdown at all in 2022, Johnson comes into Week 16 against the Bengals with a touchdown in three games in a row. The last time he failed to score a touchdown was Week 12 at Cincinnati when Johnson had four catches for 50 yards on eight targets, but I'll still trust Johnson as a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in the rematch, even with Mason Rudolph as the new quarterback in Pittsburgh. Johnson has scored at least 12.5 PPR points in three of his past five games against Cincinnati, and the Bengals have allowed five receivers to score at least 12.8 PPR points in their past three games against Jacksonville, Indianapolis and Minnesota.
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Christian Watson (hamstring) is doubtful, and Jayden Reed (toe) didn't practice all week, so both are likely out for Week 16 at Carolina. That should be great for Wicks, who just had a huge game in Week 15 against Tampa Bay. Against the Buccaneers, Wicks had six catches for 97 yards on seven targets, and he now has 13 targets in his past two games. He doesn't have an easy matchup against the Panthers, who are No. 4 in fewest Fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers, but Jordan Love should lean on Wicks with Watson and Reed not expected to play. Wicks is worth using as a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in all leagues in Week 16.
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Sleeper TEs
Schultz was OK in Week 15 at Tennessee in his first game back after being out for two games with an injured hamstring. He had four catches for 58 yards on five targets against the Titans, but that was without C.J. Stroud (concussion) and Nico Collins (calf). Stroud is out again in Week 16 against Cleveland, with Case Keenum to start at quarterback, but Collins should return to action. Even with Collins back, I still like Schultz as a low-end starter in all leagues. The Browns have been awful against tight ends of late with four touchdowns allowed in their past four games, and Evan Engram and Cole Kmet each scored at least 13.3 PPR points against Cleveland in the past two games. Hopefully, Schultz can follow suit in Week 16.
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Waller had his shake the rust off game in Week 15 at New Orleans, which was his first game back following a five-game absence with a hamstring injury. He did OK with four catches for 40 yards on six targets, but he's capable of more, especially in a favorable matchup with the Eagles in Week 16. Philadelphia has allowed five tight ends to score at least 10.8 PPR points in the past seven games, and Waller should see a healthy amount of targets with the Giants likely chasing points. He's worth using as a No. 1 Fantasy tight end in all leagues.
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Christian Watson (hamstring) is doubtful and Jayden Reed (toe) didn't practice all week, so both are likely out for Week 16 at Carolina. That should help Kraft continue to be a playmaker for the Packers. It's not an easy matchup since the Panthers are No. 9 in fewest Fantasy points allowed to opposing tight ends, but Kraft has 16 targets in his past three games and two touchdowns in his past four outings. In his past two contests against the Giants and Tampa Bay without Watson, Kraft has eight catches for 121 yards and a touchdown, and he's scored at least 10.4 PPR points in each outing. He's worth using as a streaming tight end in Week 16, especially with Watson and Reed likely out against the Panthers.
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Defense/Special Teams
- Bears (vs. ARI)
- Packers (at CAR)
- Commanders (at NYJ)
Kickers
- Tyler Bass (at LAC)
- Ka'imi Fairbairn (vs. CLE)
- Jason Myers (at TEN)
