{"id":205797,"date":"2024-12-21T16:45:55","date_gmt":"2024-12-21T21:45:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=205797"},"modified":"2025-09-25T12:12:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T16:12:28","slug":"dfs-sleepers-week-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2024\/12\/21\/dfs-sleepers-week-16\/","title":{"rendered":"DFS Sleepers Week 16"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few extra primetime games mean the slate is not as complete for DFS. That said, many matchups have large spreads and high-point totals. Injuries have opened the door for some cheaper players to shine. These are Week 16 DFS Sleepers.<\/span><\/p>\n

*<\/span>All prices are based on a $60,000 budget listed on FanDuel.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Week 16 DFS Sleepers<\/span><\/h2>\n

Quarterback<\/span><\/h3>\n

Drake Maye<\/span><\/h4>\n

After a promising start, the <\/span>New England Patriots<\/span><\/a> have fallen back down to earth. They’ve lost four games in a row, but it hasn’t been due to <\/span>Drake Maye<\/span><\/a>. The rookie has impressed despite the Pats’ lack of weapons and competent offensive line.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fantasy-wise, Maye’s rushing ability gives him a solid floor. He’s scored at least 11 fantasy points <\/span>in every game<\/span> he’s started this season. What makes Maye an intriguing option this week is the fact that the Patriots are <\/span>14-point underdogs<\/span><\/a>. They will likely play from behind, which will force Maye to pass the ball a lot to keep them in the game.<\/span><\/p>\n

It’s been a common occurrence with quarterbacks like <\/span>Jameis Winston,<\/span><\/a> who has put up a few monster fantasy performances. If there was ever a week for Maye to attempt 50 passes, it’s this week, and he’s good value at $6,800.<\/span><\/p>\n

Running back<\/span><\/h3>\n

Tyjae Spears<\/span><\/h4>\n

Last season, Tyjae Spears was a nice foil to <\/span>Derrick Henry<\/span><\/a> in the <\/span>Tennessee Titans<\/span><\/a>‘ backfield. Spears handled most of the receiving work in contrast to Henry’s power running. Spears <\/span>was slated<\/span> for a more prominent role this season, but Tony Pollard had other ideas. Pollard has been the lead back all season, and Spears has fought through a few injuries.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, Pollard is questionable to play this week with an ankle injury. He left the game last week, and Spears scored a season-high 27.2 fantasy points, primarily due to catching six passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. If Pollard can’t go, Spears becomes a smash start against a Colts defense <\/span>allowing<\/span> 18 fantasy points per game<\/span><\/a> to running backs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Even if Pollard plays, he could be limited. Spears is definitely worth a shot at $5,900.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wide Receiver<\/span><\/h3>\n

Jalen Coker<\/span><\/h4>\n

It’s been a tough season for the Carolina Panthers, but one bright spot has been <\/span>Jalen Coker<\/span><\/a>. The undrafted rookie has stepped up when asked to in the offense. He showed off his speed last week with an <\/span>83-yard touchdown<\/span><\/a> against Dallas. The Panthers are short-handed at receiver. <\/span>Xavier Legette<\/span><\/a> is out, and David Moore is questionable with a concussion.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Coker himself is questionable with a quad injury, but he practiced in a limited fashion on Thursday and Friday. That suggests he’s more likely to play than not, and he will see an expanded role. <\/span>Bryce Young<\/span><\/a> has also been more comfortable when playing at home, and Coker is one of his favorite targets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Coker’s $5,200 price is exceptionally <\/span>cheap<\/span> in a week <\/span>that many<\/span> of the top receivers have excellent matchups.<\/span> Picking up a Ja’Marr Chase or Puka Nacua and balancing it out with Coker is a solid plan.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tight End\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Brenton Strange<\/span><\/h4>\n

Evan Engram<\/span><\/a> is out for the season with a torn labrum. Brenton Strange has been a solid <\/span>tight end<\/span> option in his absence. Last week, Strange saw a colossal 12 targets and caught 11 of them for 73 yards. Christian Kirk is also missing, so Brian Thomas Jr is the only reliable target for the Jags<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Mac Jones targeting Strange 12 times suggests that he trusts him. They face a Raiders team that allows the <\/span>fourth most fantasy points<\/span><\/a> to tight ends and has struggled all season in general. <\/span>Strange<\/span> is only $5,200, and last week, he showed that he has the upside <\/span>to<\/span> be<\/span> a TE1 in the Jaguars’ current situation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Main Image: Joe Rondone\/The Republic \/ USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A few extra primetime games mean the slate is not as complete for DFS. That said, many matchups have large spreads and high-point totals. Injuries have opened the door for some cheaper players to shine. These are Week 16 DFS Sleepers. *All prices are based on a $60,000 budget listed on FanDuel.\u00a0 Week 16 DFS […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5318,"featured_media":205818,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[32632,59],"tags":[9936,10076,32529,9888],"class_list":["post-205797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dfs","category-fantasy","tag-brenton-strange","tag-drake-maye","tag-jalen-coker","tag-tyjae-spears"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205797","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5318"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=205797"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205797\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":205819,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/205797\/revisions\/205819"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/205818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=205797"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=205797"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=205797"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}