The fantasy football semifinals were a wild affair, with Puka Nacua carrying teams to victory on Thursday night while a litany of big-name stars popped off early on Sunday of Week 16. The other storyline of the week was the impact of quarterback injuries, with a slew of signal-callers departing early due to various injuries.
A lot of those starters were backups originally, so the level of quarterback play potentially available in championship week is very frightening, with a diminished playoff picture forcing the kinds of start/sit calculus usually reserved for Week 18 into play at the worst time. As we've done all year, let's take a final look at the fantasy stars you should be benching if you're in play to win a championship in Week 17.
Fantasy stars who should be benched after Week 16
WRs Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel, Washington Commanders
The Commanders decided (wisely) to shut down Jayden Daniels for the season, leaving the Washington passing attack in the respectable hands of Marcus Mariota. But that plan went up in smoke on Saturday when Mariota was forced to depart a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles with injuries to his throwing hand and quad, turning the offense over to veteran journeyman Josh Johnson.
Terry McLaurin (three catches for 53 yards) and Deebo Samuel (three catches for 35 yards) were efficient, doing their work on four targets a piece, but the actual production they delivered was barely flex-worthy. With a short week on tap ahead of a Christmas Day matchup against Dallas, it's unclear if Mariota will be available for that game, which could leave the Washington offense relying on Johnson to produce.
The Cowboys' defense has been shredded by good quarterbacks this season, but Johnson has barely played for years, leaving him vulnerable to a decent pass rush. The short week will work against the Commanders here, which could make both of Washington's primary pass catchers liabilities in championship week.
Kansas City Chiefs skill position players
We covered the Chiefs' mess in detail last week after Patrick Mahomes went down, and it didn't improve in Week 16. A matchup with the Tennessee Titans offered a reason to try players like Xavier Worthy (who got more responsibility with Rashee Rice out due to a concussion) and Travis Kelce, but that plan went up in smoke when Gardner Minshew tore his ACL early in a 26-9 road loss.
The next man up for Kansas City was Chris Oladokun, a 2022 seventh-round pick out of South Dakota State who has received limited action over the past four years. The Chiefs offense mostly ground to a halt once Oladokun went in, with the big beneficiary being Isaiah Pacheco, who turned into a checkdown machine with six receptions for 41 yards.
Worthy (2 catches for 41 yards) and Kelce (1 catch for six yards) were non-factors and now are staring at the prospect of a third-string quarterback making his first professional start on a short week against an angry Broncos defense that was shredded by Jacksonville on Sunday. There is blowout potential in this game, which could be tempting for garbage time — but tying your title dreams to an Oladokun-led offense is not optimal strategy.
Minnesota Vikings pass catchers
The star-crossed year of J.J. McCarthy may have come to an unfortunate end at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. A day after a travel fiasco delayed the Vikings' arrival in New York until close to midnight, McCarthy was off to a solid start against the Giants before departing the game with a hand injury.
It appears that McCarthy has avoided the worst-case scenario of a broken bone, but the Vikings have a short week on tap as they are set to play host to Detroit on Christmas as part of Netflix's Thursday doubleheader. With Minnesota already eliminated from the playoffs, they have no reason to force the issue with McCarthy, which could mean a start for backup Max Brosmer against a Lions team that needs to run the table to have a shot to get back to the playoffs.
The last Brosmer experience was one of the worst quarterbacked games in recent memory, and tanked the fantasy value for Minnesota's pass catchers. While the Lions are a much softer draw than Seattle's elite defense, tying any fantasy title game hopes to Brosmer would be a disaster even for players as talented as Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
WR Emeka Egbuka, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers' pass catchers have started to get healthy, with both Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan back in the fold for Sunday's loss to Carolina. Baker Mayfield has been chucking aplenty as Tampa Bay's defense is crumbling under the weight of injuries, but star rookie Emeka Egbuka's fantasy value has cratered as his teammates have gotten healthy.
Egbuka was a non-factor against the Panthers, catching just one of two targets for 12 yards in a 23-20 loss. The drop in target volume was alarming for Egbuka, who had recorded at least seven targets in every game since Week 7, while Evans, McMillan and Chris Godwin all got more looks from Mayfield here.
A one-time frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year, Egbuka hasn't topped 64 yards in a game or scored a touchdown since Week 10. Even with a friendly matchup against Miami in Week 17, Egbuka is nothing more than a dice roll flex option as Tampa Bay's season is on the brink of disaster.
WR Marvin Harrison Jr, Arizona Cardinals
We are getting very close to raising the bust question for Marvin Harrison Jr, who has been battling injuries this year and never formed a good connection with Kyler Murray before the latter went down. Harrison made his return to Arizona's lineup in Week 16 but was the clear third option in the passing game, catching just one of three targets for 14 yards in a 26-19 defeat to the Falcons.
While Michael Wilson has usurped Harrison's role as WR1 for Arizona, Jacoby Brissett surprisingly fed the football to tight ends Trey McBride and Elijah Higgins (16 targets). That kind of volume is not a good sign for Harrison, who has to earn the trust of his quarterback with just one week left in the fantasy season.
Week 17 sees Arizona take on Cincinnati, which is the worst team in the league against tight ends, meaning McBride and Higgins should be in for big workloads again on Sunday. Harrison should be benched for Week 17 and needs to be dropped to late-round flier status in 2026 drafts.