Fantasy Football: Week Sixteen Staff Must Start, Must Sit and Sleeper Picks

Hal Bent

START: Jonathan Stewart, RB – Carolina Panthers

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No Cam Newton? No problem in Carolina as the Jonathan Stewart show has kicked into high gear. Ineffectiveness and injuries put the former fantasy stud to the waiver wire this season. It was looking like a third straight season of ineffectiveness. Now Stewart is the lead back and he has a match-up against the Cleveland Browns who were shredded by the Bengals on the ground last week. If your fantasy team is still playing, you need guaranteed production. With 85 yards, 155 yards, and 73 yards and over 50 combined carries the last three weeks, starting Stewart is a must.

SIT: Philip Rivers, QB – San Diego Chargers

If you are still in your fantasy football league playoffs and have Philip Rivers at quarterback, get off the Rivers Train. After a strong start to the season, Rivers has trailed off recently. Since week seven he has topped 255 yards passing just twice, completed more than 70% of his passes just three times, and had more than one touchdown passing just once. This is not what you need out of your starting quarterback in the playoffs. As San Diego has lost five of their last eight games, so too have fantasy teams been struggling with Rivers at the QB spot.

SLEEPER: Matt Asiata, RB – Minnesota Vikings

Remember the mad dash early in the year to grab Asiata off of waivers? After doing nothing of value for a big stretch of the season, Asiata seems to be back. If you are short at running back or worried about losing a s starter (DeMarco Murray owners?), give Asiata a shot. He is getting touches. He is getting touchdowns. Now he faces the Dolphins who have been unable to stop anyone for the past month on the ground.