Winners and losers: Henderson, Lawrence paint playoff masterpiece

play1:09Can Trevor Lawrence keep up his hot fantasy play vs. Broncos?Tristan H. Cockcroft explains why Trevor Lawrence is outside the top 10 of his fantasy quarterbacks for Week 16 despite a stellar game vs. the Jets.

play0:59How James Cook delivered for fantasy managers in Week 15Eric Moody places James Cook firmly on the RB1 radar for his matchup in Week 16 vs. the Browns.

play1:06Should fantasy managers have Dallas Goedert active in Week 16?Eric Karabell reacts to Dallas Goedert’s big fantasy game vs. the Raiders.

Eric Moody: TreVeyon Henderson back on the RB1 radar (1:00)Eric Moody reacts to TreVeyon Henderson’s nice fantasy game vs. the Bills. (1:00)

Can Trevor Lawrence keep up his hot fantasy play vs. Broncos?Tristan H. Cockcroft explains why Trevor Lawrence is outside the top 10 of his fantasy quarterbacks for Week 16 despite a stellar game vs. the Jets.

Tristan H. Cockcroft explains why Trevor Lawrence is outside the top 10 of his fantasy quarterbacks for Week 16 despite a stellar game vs. the Jets.

How James Cook delivered for fantasy managers in Week 15Eric Moody places James Cook firmly on the RB1 radar for his matchup in Week 16 vs. the Browns.

Should fantasy managers have Dallas Goedert active in Week 16?Eric Karabell reacts to Dallas Goedert’s big fantasy game vs. the Raiders.

Matt Bowen and Tristan H. CockcroftDec 14, 2025, 05:50 PM ET

Week 15 of the 2025 fantasy football season featured standout performances by TreVeyon Henderson, Trevor Lawrence and Trey McBride while Joe Burrow, Quinshon Judkins and Ladd McConkey disappointed.

Can Trevor Lawrence keep up his hot fantasy play vs. Broncos?

7. James Cook III, RB, Buffalo Bills: Cook’s 31.5 points in Sunday’s comeback win over the Patriots are his most since Week 8 against Carolina (33.6). Cook scored three touchdowns in Foxborough, and he played a volume role again, finishing with 111 total yards on 24 touches. Cook has now had 20 or more touches in four straight games, and the fading Browns’ run defense is on tap in Week 16. You can play Cook as a fringe RB1 for that matchup. — Bowen

How James Cook delivered for fantasy managers in Week 15

Eric Moody places James Cook firmly on the RB1 radar for his matchup in Week 16 vs. the Browns.

8. Bo Nix, QB, Denver Broncos: Nix had 29.08 points in the Week 15 win over Green Bay, his second highest total of the season. Nix completed 24 of 32 passes for 302 yards — and four touchdowns. He was dealing. One of the best games I’ve seen Nix play this season. Rhythm throws to multiple levels of the field. And he did it against a really good Packers defense. Nix will be a mid-tier QB1 for the Week 16 matchup with the Jags. –Bowen

Should fantasy managers have Dallas Goedert active in Week 16?

Eric Karabell reacts to Dallas Goedert’s big fantasy game vs. the Raiders.

1. Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals: Did you start Burrow in the fantasy playoffs? I did. And the 5.5 points he put up in Sunday’s loss to the Ravens are probably going to bury my squad for the year. Rough. Burrow was sacked three times and he threw two picks, with one going back the other way for six points. Burrow has now thrown multiple interceptions in consecutive games, and he will slide down in my ranks as a lower-tier QB1 for the Week 16 matchup in Miami. — Bowen

What we know: Adams, who was listed as questionable this week due to a hamstring injury, pulled up on a route during the fourth quarter versus the Lions. Adams went to the locker room and did not return. He caught four of nine targets for 71 yards (11.1 points) before re-injuring his hamstring.

What’s next: If Adams is down for the Week 16 matchup against the Seahawks on Thursday night, both Jordan Whittington and TuTu Atwell would elevate on the depth chart opposite of Rams No.1 Puka Nacua. — Bowen

Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers What we know: Watson suffered a chest injury on a deep ball throw versus Denver in the third quarter that was intercepted by Patrick Surtain II. Watson grabbed at his shoulder when he hit the ground, and he was later declared out of the game. Watson had three catches for 29 yards before exiting.

What’s next: If Watson is out for the Week 16 game versus the Bears, and potentially beyond, both Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed would see an increase in usage. Reed, who is available in over 50% of ESPN leagues, caught all five of his targets for 55 yards (10.5 points) in Denver, his second game back since injuring his collarbone earlier in the season. — Bowen

What we know: Odunze was ruled out shortly before the Sunday kickoff after he aggravated the foot injury that kept him sidelined for Week 14. Burden, who played 39% of the offensive snaps and scored 14.4 fantasy points, left in the third quarter because of an ankle injury.

What’s next: Odunze, who has been dealing with a stress fracture in the foot, is week to week. Burden’s status for Week 16 wasn’t immediately clear. The Bears’ wide receiver room would be noticeably limited if neither can play, as the team would have DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus and Devin Duvernay as their top three names on the depth chart. — Cockcroft

What we know: Neal injured his hamstring on a touchdown run in the second quarter versus the Panthers, and he did not return to the game. Neal finished with 32 total yards and 10.2 points.

What’s next: With Neal now possibly out for the Week 16 matchup versus the Jets, and Alvin Kamara still down with a knee injury, Audric Estime could see his role expand. Estime, who is available in over 98% of ESPN leagues, has three rushes for 11 yards and three receptions for 39 yards in relief of Neal on Sunday. — Bowen

What we know: He got his left ankle caught under a defender as he was tackled for a 2-yard loss in the first quarter, and was ruled out shortly thereafter. Knight finished with minus-0.2 fantasy points, with that being his only touch.

What we know: He suffered an ankle injury on a 4-yard carry midway through the first quarter, and while he was in and out of the game trying to play through it briefly, he exited for good in the second quarter.

What’s next: Marks was seen jogging on the sidelines later, so it doesn’t appear that his injury is severe. That said, he’ll bear watching during the practice week. Jawhar Jordan handled the majority of the rushing work in Marks’ absence, with Dare Ogunbowale spelling him at times, which should be the same arrangement if Marks misses Week 16. — Cockcroft

1. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots: It’s eerie how similar this and his Week 10 game were. Henderson scored 30.1 fantasy points, had a pair of 50-plus yard touchdowns on which he was clocked at faster than 20 mph on each, per Next Gen Stats, and ran for 105 more yards than expected Sunday. In Week 10, he scored 28.0 fantasy points, had a pair of 50-plus yard, 20-plus mph touchdowns, and ran for 93 more yards than expected. Henderson continues to show traits of a prospective superstar, and though he’ll be a fantasy RB2 for Week 16 against the Baltimore Ravens, he’ll bring even greater upside to his two matchups after that (@NYJ, MIA). — Cockcroft

2. Trevor Lawrence, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Heating up significantly over the past month, Lawrence on Sunday obliterated his previous career-best performance, tearing apart a terrible New York Jets defense for 44.30 fantasy points. He completed five touchdown passes, three of them at least 10 yards downfield, and even ran for a 15-yard score in the first quarter. With the effort, Lawrence has a position-leading 102.46 points over the past four weeks, and he’s now seventh at the position in scoring for the season (260.60). Still, he has one of his toughest matchups all season in Week 16 (@DEN), which will keep him outside the top 10 in the positional rankings. — Cockcroft

3. Kyle Pitts Sr., TE, Atlanta Falcons: In a “Thursday Night Football” 29-28 comeback shocker, Pitts carried the Falcons on his way to 45.6 fantasy points, the fifth-most points by a tight end since 1960. It gave his managers who started him in 46.3% of ESPN leagues a comfy cushion to begin their matchups. Pitts has now scored at least 15 points in each of his past three games while working with Kirk Cousins, and his 29.0% target share during that time span makes him seem much more like a weekly fantasy playoffs starter rather than the inconsistent player he has been over his five NFL seasons. He’ll next face the Arizona Cardinals. — Cockcroft

4. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions: Would you believe that his 41.4 fantasy points set a new personal best? It’s hard to fathom, considering how productive St. Brown has been in his five NFL seasons, but he can now claim two of his best single-game scores this year (his 39.2 in Week 2 was his third best). He has six games of 30-plus points since the beginning of 2023, tied for second and behind only Ja’Marr Chase (7). It’s a great sign that St. Brown’s ankle injury is completely behind him, and he’s a clear fantasy WR1 for Week 16 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. — Cockcroft

5. Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals: McBride had a season-high 37.4 points Sunday, and he did that against the Texans’ top-tier defense. McBride caught 12 of 13 targets, finishing with 134 yards and two touchdowns. It’s the route running, the matchup ability and the coverage awareness with McBride. He’s also the best tight end in the league on the tape. Lock him in as the overall TE1 for the rest of the fantasy playoffs with matchups against the Falcons in Week 16 and the Bengals in Week 17. — Bowen

6. Travis Etienne Jr., RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: He scored a season-high 31.5 fantasy points, fewer than five shy of his career best (36.4, in Week 5 of 2023), with the most remarkable takeaway that he scored three receiving touchdowns to double his career total. Etienne continues to be a force for the surging Jaguars, even if his yards-per-carry rates have been uninspiring of late. He’ll have his work cut out for him in Week 16 against the Denver Broncos, but he warrants fantasy RB2 status regardless. — Cockcroft

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