The final week of the fantasy football season is upon us. Championship time.
If you didn’t make it, that’s OK! There’s always next year and there’s still plenty of ways to stay engaged as the NFL season winds down. If you did, let’s lock in for the penultimate week to make sure you come out on top.
In today’s Winners Club you’ll find:
Holiday football sounded a bit better in theory than in practice. As always in the NFL, there was still plenty of theatrics: A 61-yard Greg Joseph game-winning kick for the Vikings, the Steelers honoring the late Franco Harris with a much-needed win and the back and forth of the Cowboys-Eagles game.
But Week 16 was still littered with poor performances and one-sided results, beginning with the Jaguars’ 19-3 win over the Jets on Thursday and ending with the Chargers’ 20-3 victory over the Colts on Monday, where Justin Herbert clinched the first playoff berth of his career.
The worst loss of the weekend was the Rams’ 51-14 demolition of the Broncos, which was apparently the turning point for Nathaniel Hackett, who got the ax Monday, a rarity for coaches in their first season. Denver was expected to compete in the cutthroat AFC West with Rusell Wilson under center and is instead 4-11 and the laughingstock of the league.
Now, congratulations are in order for those of you who made your fantasy championships!
It’s quite the feat to get through months of injuries and bad beats to the precipice of greatness. And even if you’ve already locked up some sort of prize by making the final, don’t settle for second place. Bring home that trophy, ring or offseason of bragging rights this week.
The first step toward doing so starts with Jen Piacenti’s recommended waiver wire pickups.
She warns managers to not tweak things just for the sake of doing so. These additions are primarily depth adds, not plug and play starts. And for those of you who survived Jalen Hurts’ absence last week, the Eagles quarterback aims to return for Week 17 to bring your team to glory.
Michael Fabiano also shared his top fantasy takeaways from Week 16.
More news of note: Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is again in concussion protocol and his status against the Patriots is in doubt, Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt is retiring at the season’s end, the Jets are reportedly expected to move on from former No. 2 pick Zach Wilson after the season, the NFL flexed the Ravens-Steelers Week 17 matchup to Sunday Night Football in place of Rams-Chargers and the Bills took the No. 1 spot in the latest NFL power rankings.
Take a peek ahead to the Week 17 NFL betting guide and the current playoff picture in the NFC and AFC with two weeks of regular-season action remaining.
Bowl Season Picks Back Up Today
The bowl game schedule slowed down a bit around Christmas, but on the other side of the holiday there’s at least three games on the schedule every day this week.
Frankie Taddeo has three underdog moneyline picks and the info on the line movement in the UCF-Duke and Iowa-Kentucky games.
And check out Pat Forde’s ultimate bowl game breakdown for expert picks.
Tuesday
Camellia Bowl, 12 p.m. ET (ESPN): Georgia Southern (-5) vs. Buffalo | Total: 67
First Responder Bowl, 3:15 p.m. ET (ESPN): Memphis (-7.5) vs. Utah State | Total: 59 | Game preview
Birmingham Bowl, 6:45 p.m. ET (ESPN): Coastal Carolina vs. East Carolina (-7) | Total: 65.5
Guaranteed Rate Bowl, 10:15 p.m. ET (ESPN): Wisconsin (-3.5) vs. Oklahoma State | Total: 45 | Game preview
Wednesday
Military Bowl, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN): UCF vs. Duke (-3.5) | Total: 62 | Game preview
Liberty Bowl, 5:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Kansas vs. Arkansas (-3) | Total: 68.5 | Game preview
Holiday Bowl, 8 p.m. ET (Fox): No. 15 Oregon (-14) vs. North Carolina | Total: 75 | Game preview
Texas Bowl, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN): Texas Tech vs. Ole Miss (-3.5) | Total: 71 | Game preview
Thursday
Pinstripe Bowl, 2 p.m. ET (ESPN): Syracuse vs. Minnesota (-10) | Total: 42
Cheez-It Bowl, 5:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): Oklahoma vs. No. 13 Florida State (-10) | Total: 66 | Game preview
Alamo Bowl, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 20 Texas (-3.5) vs. No. 12 Washington | Total: 66.5 | Game preview
Friday
Duke’s Mayo Bowl, 12 p.m. ET (ESPN): Maryland vs. No. 23 NC State (-1) | Total: 46
Sun Bowl, 2 p.m. ET (CBS): Pittsburgh vs. No. 18 UCLA (-6) | Total: 53
Gator Bowl, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 21 Notre Dame (-2.5) vs. No. 19 South Carolina | Total: 51.5
Arizona Bowl, 4:30 p.m. ET (Barstool): Ohio (-1) vs. Wyoming | Total: 42.5
Orange Bowl, 8 p.m. ET (ESPN): No. 6 Tennessee vs. No. 7 Clemson (-4.5) | Total: 63.5
In Other News
NBA Christmas Day Winners and Losers: There’s a whole lot to digest from the league’s holiday showcase, from Nikola Jokić’s big game against the Suns to the Warriors’ upstaging the Grizzlies sans Steph Curry. Rohan Nadkarni broke it all down.
Best NFL Draft Prospects in CFB Playoff: Albert Breer talked to a few draft evaluators to get a gauge on the top players set to play in Saturday’s semifinal games. Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter seems to be a surefire top-five pick, though there’s plenty more talent on the Bulldogs and beyond.
Thanks for reading, and good luck in your championship matchups this week!
And one more programming note for the holiday schedule: Winners Club will be coming to you Saturday again this week, not on Thursday or Sunday like usual. Look out for a comprehensive College Football Playoff breakdown in that edition. Until then.
