In what can only be described as a cursed year, Tank Dell will be the 3rd primary receiving weapon to land on IR for the Texans. The WR room is already missing Stefon Diggs for the season, and previously had Nico Collins on short term IR. Dell, who leads all Texans receivers in snaps and is second only to Collins in targets, will be sorely missed as the team competes in the playoffs. Collins and TE Dalton Schultz target share should be further consolidated and we can expect the Texans to lean on Joe Mixon even more if possible.

Beyond this year, the Houston front office will have to carefully consider how best to support their young franchise quarterback heading into his 3rd season. No ancillary receivers have stepped up to fill in for injured stars this year, Stefon Diggs is on the wrong side of 30 and rehabbing his own ACL, but would otherwise be a great candidate for a 1 year extension. The 2025 rookie draft should have a few options for the Texans; Tight End Tyler Warren and receivers Luther Burden, Emeka Egbuka or Isaiah Bond could be available around the Texans 1st round pick. Diontae Johnson, while a long-shot, could be claimed off waivers this Monday or one of  Marquise Brown, Chris Godwin or Keenan Allen could be acquired in free agency. 

While we hope for a full recovery without complications for Dell, we should lower expectations for C.J. Stroud next season and raise Nico Collins and Joe Mixon in our pre-season rankings.

Lukasz Stec, @Lukasz_FF01

Jalen Hurts has been having a solid season once again. Philadelphia Eagles faced Washington Commanders in week 16, where they are pushing for #1 seed in NFC. However, Hurts suffered a concussion and had to exit the game. Kenny Pickett entered the game afterwards and kept the Eagles hopes alive in a competitive matchup. However, they did end up losing the game.

Eagles head coach confirmed that Hurts is in a concussion protocol and will be questionable to suit in week 17 when they face the Cowboys. The Cowboys have been playing really well in their last 2-3 games and they will try to ruin the Eagles plans to gain #1 seed in the NFC.

If Hurts does end up missing this game then it will also have an impact on fantasy football as most of the leagues are going into a final round. AJ Brown, Saquon Barkley and Devonta Smith may take some hit with their production and may be limited to provide a huge fantasy points.

-Sagar

The Giants lost to the Falcons 34-7 Sunday and are on their way to the number one pick in the NFL Draft. Drew Lock was the starting QB in this one, and threw two pick-sixes to the Falcons defense. Lock did throw a TD pass to his own running back, Tyrone Tracy Jr., who had a nice toe-tap catch in the back of the end zone. Tracy ended the day with 11 touches for 69 total yards and the TD.

Malik Nabers was the target leader for the Giants with 14 looks, but caught only seven for 68 yards and no TD. Wan’Dale Robinson saw 12 targets, but caught only seven for 62 scoreless yards. It’s hard to see the upside in the Giants’ offense with Drew Lock or Tommy DeVito under center, save for Nabers as a PPR flex play.

– Joel Ybarra, @metaffb

In a Carolina offense with few upside plays, Chuba Hubbard has dominated touches and become a league-winning running back. He carried the ball 25 times for 152 yards and two touchdowns versus the Cardinals Sunday, also catching four of five targets for another 13 yards. Hubbard is the RB2 in scoring in Week 16 going into Monday Night Football.

Bryce Young was another bright spot in this one, throwing for 158 yards and two touchdowns, as well running five times for 68 yards and another score. It was one of Young’s finest performances of his short career. He is the QB2 in fantasy scoring prior to Monday night’s game. With a low pass yards total, no pass catcher topped 50 yards, but both Adam Thielen and David Moore rewarded fantasy managers with a touchdown apiece.

– Joel Ybarra, @metaffb

Adam Schefter reports that the Atlanta Falcons are set to move on from quarterback Kirk Cousins prior to his $10 million roster bonus due March 17. The anticipated move is an outright release which would grant Cousins free agency status. 

The Falcons signed the veteran quarterback in the offseason to a 4-year, $180 million contract. The move at the time was viewed through the scope of the Falcons having done their due diligence on Kirk Cousins’ recovery from his Achilles injury. What drew plenty of consternation and bewilderment was when the Falcons followed up in the 2024 NFL Draft by selecting Michael Penix Jr. with the 8th pick in the first round.

The fallout as to who loses their job over this mismanagement of money remains to be seen. In the meantime, Michael Penix Jr. will be given every opportunity to show he is the quarterback of the future. With free agency status, Kirk Cousins will have many paths available to him. Due to the nature of Cousins’ poor play and injury recovery, a Russell Wilson path as a starter on a team in transition on a low budget deal looks enticing. The Cleveland Browns are a team that comes to the forefront in a scenario like that.

Jeremiah Retzlaff, @coachretzlaff1

In Week 16, the Panthers face a Cardinals defense that has been struggling against both the pass and run. Arizona is the sixth-best matchup for opposing running backs in terms of fantasy points allowed. Chuba Hubbard is one of the only playable assets in the Panthers offense, anyway, especially in the fantasy playoffs. He has not come off the field much in the last two, with 97.1-percent and 92.7-percent Snap Shares in Weeks 14 and 15, respectively.

Mike Boone (now reverted to the practice squad) was the only other back to receiver a carry in Week 15, taking two carries for 14 yards. Raheem Blackshear and Velus Jones are the only other backs on the active roster. Neither has carried the ball or received a target in the Carolina offense yet this season. There are not many backs who are going to get a more dominant share of their backfield than Hubbard. He’s a solid RB2 play against the Cardinals.

The Carolina passing attack is not exactly one to rely on in the second round of the fantasy playoffs. Adam Thielen has been the most prominent target for Bryce Young, earning 32 targets since returning from injury in Week 13. The veteran wide receiver has led the team in targets for three straight games, but brought in just five of seven passes for 51 scoreless yards in Week 15.

The Cardinals secondary has been ineffective against the run in real football terms (No. 32 in Dropback Success Rate Against), but stingy against fantasy wide receivers. They give up the 12^th-least fantasy points to receivers. Thielen is an okay PPR flex play this week. The rest of the Panthers pass catchers are low-volume avoids.

– Joel Ybarra, @metaffb