Fantasy Football Week 16 WR Rankings feat. Mike Evans, Brian Thomas Jr. and more
This is it. For most leagues, it's the semifinals of the fantasy football season. At Sportskeeda, we have you covered for those all-important lineup decisions with our wide receiver rankings and a preview of the best matchups for the weekend. Get your fantasy teams optimized before the weekend and get ready for a wild playoff Week 16.
Fantasy Football WR Rankings for Week 16
Fantasy Football Best WR Matchups for Week 16
The Premier Matchup
#1] Mike Evans vs. the Dallas Cowboys
Some things go well with each other: peanut butter and jelly, salt and pepper, and Mike Evans in the fantasy playoffs. The All-Pro receiver could build on his legendary resume of playoff performances with a fantastic fantasy matchup this week.
The Buccaneers are in a must-win situation in Week 16 and fighting for a spot in the NFL playoffs down the stretch of the regular season. With a desperate offense, Evans is an elite fantasy option this weekend as he faces a Cowboys secondary that struggles with defending wideouts this season.
Since Week 12, Dallas has allowed the third-most passing yards (1,041), the fourth-most passing touchdowns (6), and the fifth-most targets per game (40).
In just the last four games, the Cowboys have allowed three significant fantasy performances to Terry McLaurin (WR7, 102 yards, and a touchdown), Ja'Marr Chase (WR1, 177 yards, and two touchdowns), and Jalen Coker (WR11, 110 and a touchdown).
That was with a secondary with its best corner, Trevon Diggs, healthy and in the lineup. The All-Pro cornerback suffered a season-ending knee injury last week against Carolina and will be out for a significant amount of time.
We expect the Buccaneers to push the pace through the air as they have the highest percentage of passing plays (67.9%) among all the road teams in Week 16.
With the fourth-highest passing yards per game (258.7) and the seventh-highest receptions per game this season (23.5), Evans is in line for another memorable fantasy playoff performance in primetime on Sunday Night Football. It doesn't hurt that Tampa Bay wants Evans to surpass 1,000 receiving yards this season, which could extend his streak to an incredible 11th consecutive season.
The Next Best Option
#2] Brian Thomas Jr. vs the Las Vegas Raiders
By now, you may have heard Brian Thomas Jr. is having a fantastic rookie campaign in an otherwise forgettable year in Jacksonville. The rookie of the year candidate could strengthen his case this weekend with an enticing matchup with a poor Raiders pass defense.
The dynamic rookie continues to show up each week of the final stretch run of the fantasy playoffs and could solidify himself as a must-own in all fantasy formats going into 2025.
With Trevor Lawrence hurt, Thomas Jr. could have had a reasonable excuse for not contributing this year. However, backup Mac Jones has stepped in and has been a serviceable backup for this Jaguars offense. Thomas Jr. and Jones have clicked in their previous three games, turning 22 receptions into 267 yards and three touchdowns.
With so many trailing situations on the road this season, Jacksonville has run 59.4% of its plays through the air, the fourth-most among road teams in Week 16.
The Raiders have been exploited at home this season with a 58.4% passing rate while allowing a passing touchdown in seven consecutive games. Highlighted by multiple touchdown performances by Baker Mayfield (3), Bo Nix (2), Tua Tagovailoa (3), Joe Burrow (5) and Patrick Mahomes (2) during that span.
Thomas is an excellent WR1 play this week and should be heavily involved in this matchup of equally poor defense. It doesn't hurt that Maxx Crosby has been shut down for the rest of the season, either.
The Last Resort
#3] Josh Downs vs the Tennessee Titans
Josh Down is not a must-play in the semifinals this weekend. But if you find yourself in a tough spot or need a favorable matchup to exploit, Downs could provide some sneaky fantasy points in Week 16.
Playing a fantasy receiver with a quarterback like Anthony Richardson is risky. His rushing ability in high-scoring redzone opportunities puts a cap on Downs' upside. Richardson's league-worst completion percentage (47%) is on pace to be a historically low mark for an NFL quarterback so it's not a passing offense ideal for fantasy greatness.
However, where Downs can make up for a lack of scoring opportunities is in his volume as a pass catcher in the slot. He's impacting fantasy scores when he's exploiting the intermediate areas of the field for easy targets and points. It may surprise you that the Colts have trended more to the passing game at home this season despite Richardson's inconsistencies in the passing game.
Compared to the other 15 teams playing in their home stadiums this weekend, Indianapolis has run the third-highest plays through the air (61.7%) with Downs getting a 19.1% target share.
The second half of this play depends on the play of the Tennessee secondary. The Titans have experienced the highest passing percentage (64.5%) on the road this season while allowing the second-highest completion percentage (71.8%) and the second-most passing touchdowns allowed (8) in its previous four games.
The Titans have also allowed a receiving touchdown to a wideout in five of his last six games while allowing consecutive double-digit reception games to slot specialist Ja'Marr Chase (11) and Brian Thomas Jr. (12).