Fantasy Football Quarterback Streaming Week 16: Joe Flacco Can Lead You to a Championship
Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens
Yahoo Ownership: 18% owned
After grinding all season to earn a spot in your league's fantasy championship game, putting your fate in the hands of Joe Flacco isn't an easy thing to do, I fully get that. But Flacco is in a superb spot this week.
The Baltimore Ravens are massive 13.5-point home favorites against the Indianapolis Colts. They are the biggest favorite of the week, and Baltimore's 27.5-point implied total is Week 16's third-highest clip.
Per our schedule-adjusted metrics, the Colts rank last in both overall defense and pass defense. They have allowed the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing passers. Over their last two non-blizzard games, Indy has let Blake Bortles go off for 25.06 points in Week 13, and they made Brock Osweiler look really good on his way to 25.46 points in relief of Trevor Siemian in Week 15.
In addition to the dreamy matchup, Flacco has been playing some good ball lately. He's thrown for at least 269 yards in three straight games, racking up 5 passing scores and a rushing touchdown in that span.
| Opponent | Attempts | Completions | Yards | Passing Touchdowns | Fantasy Points | Weekly Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lions | 36 | 23 | 269 | 2 | 18.66 | QB7 |
| Steelers | 35 | 20 | 269 | 2 | 16.76 | QB14 |
| Browns | 42 | 26 | 288 | 1 | 21.82 | QB9 |
Sure, Baltimore being a huge favorite could lead to a run-heavy game script. But Flacco just attempted 42 passes in a 17-point win over the Cleveland Browns, and he has been a markedly better -- and more efficient -- quarterback in wins throughout his career.
| Split | Games | Yards Per Game | Touchdowns | Interceptions | Adjusted Yards/Attempt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 91 | 232.5 | 125 | 47 | 7.66 |
| Loss | 61 | 232.5 | 71 | 82 | 4.98 |
Flacco also performs much better at home, posting an adjusted yards per attempt of 7.18 in Baltimore, compared to a 5.74 mark on the road.
Yes, it's Joe Flacco, but the dude checks just about every box this week.
Unless Bortles (54% owned) is available in your league, you're likely choosing between Flacco or Nick Foles, this week's top streamers. You can make a good argument for Foles -- more on him in a second -- but it's hard to top Flacco's combination of a delightful matchup and solid recent play.
We have Flacco as our QB15 for the week, projecting him for 16.93 points.
