This is the Air Yards Report Week 16! Find out which players led Week 15 in Air Yards and how YOU should use Air Yards when setting your fantasy lineups.
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What are Air Yards?
Air Yards measure how many yards the football travels past the line of scrimmage on a passing play. Some Air Yards come from completed passes and some are incomplete passes. They are not a perfect measurement of future fantasy success but a tool that we can utilize to help us make lineup decisions.
This season, we will parse through the Air Yards metric to help identify players who you should prioritize as starters in your fantasy lineups, players who disappointed but are likely to bounce back based on their Air Yards, and players you should feel free to fade despite voluminous Air Yards. With the fantasy playoffs in full swing, we will mainly focus on players rostered in most formats as opposed to those players on the fringes of the waiver wire. Hopefully, this article can help you advance this week by helping you win the flex with one of these receivers.
Air Yards Standouts Who Shined in Week 16
Terry McLaurin | Washington Commanders — 179 Air Yards (1st Overall)
Terry McLaurin had a huge Week 16, but it could have been so much better. McLaurin realized only 73 of his 179 missing several long touchdowns last week. While he draws a tough matchup against the Eagles secondary this week, McLaurin should be prioritized in fantasy lineups. The Commanders simply have no other mouths to feed with Noah Brown, Zach Ertz, and Austin Ekeler out due to injury. McLaurin could win you your week in a game that could shoot out.
Davante Adams | New York Jets — 156 Air Yards (2nd Overall)
The Jets season is in disarray. However, Davante Adams wouldn’t know it. Along with maligned quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Adams has tuned into the oldies station and relieved his glory days the past three weeks. Adams has seen at least 11 targets and 76 Air Yards the past three weeks. He has failed to finish outside of the top 18 wide receivers on the week during this time and was the WR1 overall last week scoring 42.8 fantasy points. The good times should continue to roll in Week 16.
Players Who Disappointed but Will Bounce Back
Jauan Jennings | San Francisco 49ers— Air Yards (8th Overall)
It is Week 16. We can stop denying the implausible! Jauan Jennings is the unlikeliest top 24 wide receiver on the year. But he is a top 24 receiver nonetheless, a player that likely went undrafted in your fantasy draft is top 10 in the league with a 28.5-percent target share. If you aren’t going to face the reality of the unpredictable nature of the NFL in Week 16, then when will you?
Jennings saw 121 Air Yards last week in the most disappointing Thursday night game of the season. He has seen seven or more targets in five of his last six games and should rebound against the Dolphins this week as the 49ers best wide receiver.
Tyreek Hill | Buffalo Bills — 108 Air Yards (13th Overall)
Tyreek Hill has been a tough start all year. However, if you made it to the fantasy football semifinals with him on your roster, you are in for a potential WR1 overall finish in Week 16. Hill has at least 100 Air Yards in the last three games. He has also averaged 10 targets per game during this time span. With Jaylen Waddle out this week, Tua Tagovailoa is going to force feed Hill and Devon Achane targets. This may be the first week of the season that you can confidently start Hill.
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