Even though it’s Week 18 and most Fantasy leagues have ended, we still have you covered with our usual content for those of you brave enough to hold your championship in this scoring period. So you’ll still get the waiver wire and Start ‘Em & Sit ‘Em as always.
The tricky part for Week 18 is trying to figure out who will play, starting with the playoff teams. The Chargers are opting to rest their starters, and Green Bay will likely do the same since the Packers are locked into the No. 7 seed in the NFC.
The Rams could also opt to rest players in Week 18 unless they want the No. 5 seed. That wild-card spot should actually be coveted because it’s a playoff game at either Carolina or Tampa Bay instead of a potential game at Chicago or Philadelphia.
There’s always the chance the Bears and Eagles could rest players if they don’t care about getting the No. 2 seed. But, as of Monday, we expect their starters to play.
Otherwise, Seattle and San Francisco face off for the NFC West title and No. 1 seed in the NFC. And the Panthers and Buccaneers have an important game with the NFC South title on the line.
In the AFC, Denver and New England are still fighting for the No. 1 seed, while Jacksonville is trying to hold off Houston for the AFC South title. And the AFC North is still up for grabs between Pittsburgh and Baltimore, with those two teams facing off Sunday night.
The Bills could also opt to rest players in Week 18, especially with Josh Allen (foot) not 100 percent. We’ll see if we can get any updates on Buffalo and all the other playoff teams as the week goes on.
For the non-playoff teams, we don’t know who will be resting players, but we’ll keep you updated throughout the week. As of Monday, don’t plan on anyone dealing with any lingering injuries to play.
There are a lot of moving parts in Week 18, which is why we don’t recommend holding your Fantasy championship in this scoring period. But several leagues are still going on this week, and we’ll have you prepared as best as we can.
Week 18 Waivers
Injuries: Josh Allen (foot), Lamar Jackson (back), Jordan Love (concussion), Malik Willis (shoulder), Jayden Daniels (elbow), Marcus Mariota (hand), Geno Smith (ankle), J.J. McCarthy (hand), Gardner Minshew (knee) and Anthony Richardson (eye).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: C.J. Stroud (80 percent rostered). Stroud only scored 9.1 Fantasy points at the Colts in Week 13, but he’s worth a look in deeper leagues in the rematch at home in Week 18. He has multiple touchdowns in two of his past three games overall, and Indianapolis has allowed at least 23.1 Fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks in two of its past three games.
Add in this order:
Week 18 Waiver Priority List
WAIVER WIRE
Running Backs
Injuries: Breece Hall (knee), Javonte Williams (shoulder), Kimani Vidal (neck), Alvin Kamara (knee), Jordan Mason (ankle), Chris Rodriguez (illness), Bhayshul Tuten (finger), Isaiah Davis (concussion) and Raheem Mostert (ankle).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Blake Corum (73 percent rostered). I’ll update this post after Monday’s game, but prior to Week 17, Corum had scored at least 13.1 PPR points in four games in a row. He would be a borderline No. 2 running back in all leagues in Week 18 against Arizona, and he scored 26.1 PPR points against the Cardinals in Week 14.
Add in this order:
Week 18 Waiver Priority List
WAIVER WIRE
Wide Receivers
Injuries: Amon-Ra St. Brown (undisclosed), Davante Adams (hamstring), Marvin Harrison Jr. (heel), Rome Odunze (foot), Luther Burden III (quadriceps), Kayshon Boutte (concussion), Rashid Shaheed (concussion), Calvin Austin III (hamstring), Ryan Flournoy (knee) and Pat Bryant (concussion).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Ricky Pearsall (70 percent rostered) and Jayden Higgins (70 percent). Pearsall returned from a one-game absence due to injury in Week 17 against Chicago and had five catches for 85 yards on eight targets. He has now scored at least 13.5 PPR points in each of his past two games, with 15 targets over that span, and he’s worth using as a borderline No. 2 Fantasy receiver in all leagues in Week 18 against Seattle. He had four catches for 108 yards on seven targets against the Seahawks in Week 1. … Higgins had two catches for 88 yards and a touchdown on four targets in Week 17 at the Chargers, and he’s worth using as a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in all leagues in Week 18 against the Colts. In Week 13 at Indianapolis, Higgins had five catches for 65 yards on five targets.
Add in this order:
Week 18 Waiver Priority List
Injuries: George Kittle (ankle), Jake Ferguson (calf), Brock Bowers (knee), Harold Fannin Jr. (groin), Dalton Kincaid (knee), Theo Johnson (illness), David Njoku (knee), Mason Taylor (neck), Darnell Washington (forearm), Ja’Tavion Sanders (ankle) and Sam LaPorta (back).
Check to see if available in shallow leagues: Juwan Johnson (76 percent rostered), Colston Loveland (74 percent), Dalton Schultz (70 percent) and Brenton Strange (69 percent). Johnson has scored at least 13.5 PPR points in each of his past two games against the Jets and Titans, and he has 12 catches for 184 yards on 13 targets over that span. He faces Atlanta in Week 18, and he scored 10.6 PPR points against the Falcons in Week 13. … Loveland was a star in Week 17 at San Francisco with six catches for 94 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets, and he has now scored at least 10.1 PPR points in three of his past four games. … Schultz had a down game in Week 17 at the Chargers with three catches for 19 yards on four targets, but he should rebound in Week 19 against the Colts. He had seven catches for 55 yards on eight targets at Indianapolis in Week 13. … Strange had a solid outing in Week 17 at Indianapolis with three catches for 54 yards on five targets, and he had three catches for 45 yards and a touchdown on four targets in Week 13 at Tennessee. He should be considered a low-end starter in all leagues in the rematch with the Titans in Week 18.
Add in this order:
Week 18 Waiver Priority List
DST streamers
- Vikings (49 percent rostered) vs. GB
- Ravens (53 percent rostered) at PIT
- Chargers (56 percent rostered) at DEN
Kicker streamers
- Eddy Pineiro (59 percent rostered) vs. SEA
- Wil Lutz (53 percent rostered) vs. LAC
- Andres Borregales (46 percent rostered) vs. MIA
