Bold Week 17 predictions: Who will surprise in the fantasy football championships?
Our analysts reveal their boldest predictions for the fantasy playoff semifinals. Which will come to pass in Week 17?
Jared Goff ready to roar in Week 17
In three of Jared Goff's last four games, he's passed for over 300 yards with multiple touchdowns. He is an absolute lock to hit those marks in Championship Week against an outrageously soft Chicago defense, a group that's allowed 26.2 points per game and 7.7 yards per pass attempt. The Bears have no hope of containing Detroit's loaded receiving corps. Goff is about to deliver a top-three positional finish at the best possible time. — Andy Behrens
Ezekiel Elliott should feast on Thursday Night Football
Ezekiel Elliott sits as RB18 on the industry ranking page, which baffles me. The Titans have strong run-defense stats, but it’s a group riddled with injury. Given that Tennessee has nothing to play for Thursday night — the Titans have an AFC South championship game pending next week against Jacksonville — several key defenders could be limited or out. Elliott is also looking at a workload increase, with Tony Pollard ruled out.
Don’t complicate things; Zeke has scored a touchdown in eight straight games, and he’s likely to make it nine Thursday night. I've bumped Zeke to RB6 on my current board. (If you'd like a deeper cut, I'm trusting Cole Kmet against a Lions team that he scored twice against a month ago.) — Scott Pianowski
Tyler Allgeier set to take over Falcons backfield
Tyler Allgeier has averaged 17.5 carries since Caleb Huntley went down two games ago and is playing extremely well. He also saw a career-high in targets during Desmond Ridder’s second start last week and now gets a friendly matchup with Arizona after facing a string of top-15 run defenses. Allgeier has gotten 5.7 YPC at home this season, plays for the league’s run-heaviest team and should have a positive game script Sunday with Atlanta favored. He’s poised to bring home fantasy titles this week. — Dalton Del Don
Rookie RB should COMMAND week-winning work
Brian Robinson Jr. plunges in for two touchdowns on Sunday. He was averaging 5.9 yards per carry in the three games prior to Week 16, when he became just another back to flounder against the 49ers. His letdown line against a great team with that run defense doesn't deter me from being optimistic about the player. The Browns offer a gorgeous rebound spot.
Cleveland has struggled to stop the run all season and it's not getting better. The Browns have allowed 4.9 yards per carry since Week 12 alone. With Antonio Gibson not practicing this week, Robinson should see the healthy majority of the backfield work this week. — Matt Harmon
