Welcome to the Week 16 Blitz Pickup, where we review the most interesting facts, figures and notes from every NFL game each week. We’ve reached Championship Week in most leagues, and you need all the information you can get your hands on. Just like a running back hitting a crucial chip on a blitzing linebacker, we’re going to make sure nothing gets by, all so you can make the plays you need to reach fantasy football paydirt. It’s down, it’s dirty. It’s the Week 16 Blitz Pickup!

Note: All point totals and rankings are PPR unless otherwise noted.

Check out the Blitz Pickup from previous weeks

Week 1 Blitz Pickup Week 2 Blitz Pickup Week 3 Blitz Pickup Week 4 Blitz Pickup Week 5 Blitz Pickup Week 6 Blitz Pickup Week 7 Blitz Pickup Week 8 Blitz Pickup Week 9 Blitz Pickup Week 10 Blitz Pickup Week 11-No Article, Happy Thanksgiving! Week 12 Blitz Pickup Week 13 Blitz Pickup Week 14 Blitz Pickup Week 15 Blitz Pickup

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Thursday Night

Jaguars 19 at Jets 3

After throwing more interceptions than touchdowns last season, Trevor Lawrence is fourth among starting quarterbacks in touchdown to interception ratio this season… Travis Etienne had 22 rush attempts, his most since Week 9, but still has not scored since that Week 9 game against the Raiders… Etienne trails only Derrick Henry in running back fumbles this season… Despite Lawrence’s recent surge of quality play, Christian Kirk has not caught a touchdown since Week 10. Kirk still leads the Jaguars’ receivers with seven touchdowns… One week after catching three scores, Zay Jones caught just one pass and had his lowest fantasy output of the season… Evan Engram (TE5) has caught a higher percentage of targets than any other top-10 fantasy tight end and has 100+ yards in two of the past three games…

Zach Wilson started his second game in a row for an injured Mike White, but was pulled in the third quarter for Chris Streveler… White has been cleared to play, and Streveler and Wilson are both expected to be inactive in Week 17… No Jet running back had an effective game, though Michael Carter caught all five of his targets… Garrett Wilson has just eight catches for 46 yards in the past two weeks, but was WR3 in the time that White started at quarterback…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Saturday Early Games

Bengals 22 at Patriots 18

Joe Burrow has thrown for 575 yards and seven touchdowns in the past two games… Joe Mixon tied a season high with seven receptions, but still has not scored since his monster Week 9 game. Five of his eight scores this season came in that one game… Trenton Irwin had a career day in Week 16 and has scored in two of the past three weeks… Ja’Marr Chase is second in the league in redzone targets to wide receivers… Tee Higgins has essentially scored in four straight games (he played only one snap in Week 14)…

Mac Jones threw two scores for just the second time this season… Jones has regressed in every passing category in his sophomore campaign… Rhamondre Stevenson had his second terrible fantasy game in the last three weeks and is questionable with an ankle injury for Sunday… Tyquan Thornton has played the most snaps of any New England wide receiver in the past three games. It has not translated to his fantasy production, however. Thornton is just fourth in targets among Patriot wideouts in that timeframe… Jonnu Smith left the game in concussion protocol and is out for Week 17… Hunter Henry is questionable for Week 17 with a knee injury…

Saints 17 at Browns 10

Andy Dalton threw his first interception since Week 10, but also had just 92 yards on eight completions… Alvin Kamara scored for the first time since his Week 8 explosion… Kamara’s 110 total yards were also a high since Week 8… With Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry, and Chris Olave all out, Rashid Shaheed led the Saints wideouts in receiving. Shaheed was only third among the Saints’ receivers in snaps, however… Taysom Hill rushed for his first score since Week 5…

Deshaun Watson rushed for his first touchdown with the Browns… Watson has thrown for two touchdowns and three interceptions in four games as the starter… Nick Chubb needs 150 yards in his final two games to set a new career high. He has already tied his career best with 12 rushing touchdowns. With 9.6 fantasy points, Chubb would set a new career high for a season there as well… Donovan Peoples-Jones had his worst game yet with Watson at quarterback. Meanwhile, Amari Cooper had his best game of Watson’s four starts… David Njoku is tied for the second-most redzone targets among tight ends this season…

Bills 35 at Bears 13

Josh Allen threw for just 172 yards, but had three total touchdowns for the seventh time this season… James Cook just missed his first career 100 yard rushing game. Cook’s 17.8 fantasy points were a career high, however… Devin Singletary led Cook in snaps and usage, and had his first 100 yard rushing game of the season… Since a 22.2-point fantasy performance in Week 13, Stefon Diggs has scored 22 points total in the three ensuing games… Dawson Knox has caught 75 percent of his redzone targets. That’s the highest percentage among the top 25 tight ends in redzone usage…

After scoring a rushing touchdown in six straight games, Justin Fields has not found the endzone in back-to-back games… Khalil Herbert played on over 40 percent of snaps in his first game off of IR and had one third of the backfield touches… Dante Pettis scored his third touchdown of the season, his best since his rookie season… Cole Kmet has led all of the Bears’ pass catchers in targets and receptions since Darnell Mooney was placed on IR…

Seahawks 10 at Chiefs 24

Geno Smith is the only quarterback with over 100 pass attempts who has completed at least 70 percent of his passes. Smith has set career highs in every passing category this season at age 32… Kenneth Walker saw his highest usage and had his first 100 yard game since Week 9… With Tyler Lockett out, Laquon Treadwell saw his highest usage of the season across stints with several teams… Lockett is questionable for Week 17 but is pushing to play… Noah Fant has scored in three of the last four games…

Patrick Mahomes is having his best rushing season, and has the highest completion percentage of his career at 66.9 percent… Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco split snaps almost identically. Pacheco had the far higher usage rate, but McKinnon scored for the fourth straight game… Kadarius Toney has scored twice in five games as a Chief. He had zero scores in 12 games with the Giants… Travis Kelce is still on pace to set career highs in almost every receiving category…

Giants 24 at Vikings 27

Daniel Jones threw for over 300 yards for just the second time this season. His efficiency numbers are all career highs, and he is on pace to set career highs in all counting stats except touchdown passes… Saquon Barkley saw a season-high 10 targets… Barkley has not gone consecutive games without scoring yet this season… Isaiah Hodgins and Richie James both had season highs in targets, catches, and yards… Darius Slayton has not scored since Week 10 and does not have a 100 yard receiving game yet this season…

Kirk Cousins has thrown for 1656 yards and 13 touchdowns in his last five games. He is QB4 overall in that timeframe… Dalvin Cook has just two 100 yard games this season… Justin Jefferson has set career highs in every category except for touchdowns. He has scored in six of his last eight games and needs just two scores to match his career best of 10 from last season… T.J. Hockenson (TE2) had his second two touchdown game of the season…

Lions 23 at Panthers 37

Jared Goff continued his career-long streak of games without an interception while throwing three touchdowns for the second time in three games… Jamaal Williams played his fewest snaps of the season and had his lowest fantasy output on the year… Williams has not scored in three games… DJ Chark had his first 100 yard game since 2020… Amon-Ra St. Brown has the highest catch percentage among the top 10 fantasy wide receivers… Shane Zylstra caught three touchdowns for the first time in his career. Travis Kelce is the only other tight end with a three touchdown game in the last two seasons…

Sam Darnold has thrown a single touchdown without an interception in each of his four games this season… Chuba Hubbard out-snapped D’Onta Foreman, but Foreman saw more carries… Both running backs set career highs for rushing yards in a game… D.J. Moore has scored in three of four games…

Falcons 9 at Ravens 17

Desmond Ridder was far more effective in his second career start, but still has not accounted for a touchdown… Tyler Allgeier has taken complete control of the snaps and usage in the Falcons’ backfield over Cordarrelle Patterson, except in the redzone… Drake London has over 90 yards receiving in two of the last three weeks…

Tyler Huntley will make his fourth straight start in Week 17… Huntley has just one passing touchdown in four games as the primary quarterback… Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins split snaps and carries evenly. Edwards outgained Dobbins 99-59 on the ground… Huntley attempted just four passes total to three different wide receivers, completing one pass to each… While Mark Andrews continues to lead the Ravens in receiving, he has now failed to score in eight straight games…

Texans 19 at Titans 14

Although the Texans continue to use both Davis Mills and Jeff Driskel, Mills has dominated the redzone usage in the past two games… Royce Freeman has operated as the Texans’ lead back since placing Dameon Pierce on IR… Brandin Cooks led the Texans in receiving and scored his first touchdown since Week 4 in his return to the lineup after missing several games to injury… After Teagan Quitoriano left with an injury, Brevin Jordan saw his most extensive usage since Week 9…

Malik Willis started his third game and had perhaps his most effective passing game, excepting two interceptions. Willis did rush for a career-high 43 yards and a score… Derrick Henry had his best rushing total since running for 219 yards in Week 8. Henry scored for the third straight game… Robert Woods saw a season-high nine targets and scored for the first time since Week 4… Treylon Burks went without a catch for the first time this season… Austin Hooper and Chigoziem Okonkwo shared primary snaps and targets…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Saturday Late Games

Eagles 34 at Cowboys 40

Gardner Minshew got the start for an injured Jalen Hurts and threw for 355 yards, his most since Week 5 of 2019… Minshew is expected to start again in Week 17… Miles Sanders scored single-digit fantasy points for the sixth time this season and the second game in a row… DeVonta Smith had his second 30+ point fantasy game of the season and is now WR9 overall… Dallas Goedert returned from IR and caught all three of his targets for a season-best 22.3 Yards Per Catch…

Dak Prescott threw three touchdowns for the third time in the past four games… Ezekiel Elliott led the Cowboys in rushing and scored a touchdown for the eighth consecutive game… Tony Pollard had season highs in targets and receptions… CeeDee Lamb (WR5) had 120 yards receiving for the second week in a row and scored two touchdowns for the second time this season… Lamb has career highs in every receiving category in the wake of the Amari Cooper trade…

Commanders 20 at 49ers 37

Taylor Heinicke threw two scores for the third time in the past four games but was benched for Carson Wentz after consecutive turnovers in the second half… It was Wentz’s first game action since Week 6… Wentz has been announced as the Week 17 starter… Antonio Gibson saw his lowest usage of the season and has been ruled out for Week 17… Brian Robinson does not have a rushing touchdown since Week 10… Jahan Dotson has scored in three straight games… Terry McLaurin saw just one target after Wentz entered the game… Curtis Samuel had his first receiving touchdown since Week 9…

Brock Purdy threw two touchdowns for the fourth consecutive game… Christian McCaffrey (RB2) has scored in four straight games… Ray-Ray McCloud had a 71 yard touchdown rush for his first career rushing score and the longest play of his career… Brandon Aiyuk had a season-long 54 yard catch… George Kittle had a season-high 120 yards receiving and scored two touchdowns for the second game in a row…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Saturday Night

Raiders 10 at Steelers 13

Derek Carr threw three interceptions and has nine in the past five games… The Raiders announced Jarrett Stidham as the starting quarterback for the rest of the season… Josh Jacobs had his fewest rushing attempts since Week 8… Davante Adams still leads the league in target share… Hunter Renfrow had his first touchdown of the season… Darren Waller has averaged over 15 Yards Per Catch in his two games since returning from IR…

Kenny Pickett led his second come-from-behind win and first career game-winning final drive… Najee Harris had season highs in targets and catches… George Pickens caught all five of his targets and the game-winning touchdown… Diontae Johnson, meanwhile, still has not scored this season… After going catchless in Week 15, Pat Freiermuth caught 7 of 8 targets to lead the team…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Sunday Early Game

Packers 26 at Dolphins 20

Aaron Rodgers is on pace for the fewest passing yards he’s had since 2015. He is just two away from his personal all-time highest interception total (13) for a season… Despite mostly mediocre rushing totals, A.J. Dillon has now scored a rushing touchdown in four straight games. Aaron Jones, meanwhile, has not scored a rushing touchdown since Week 10, although he does have two receiving scores in that time… Christian Watson had career game highs in targets and receptions before halftime, but missed the second half with a hip injury. Watson is questionable for Week 17… Randall Cobb‘s Week 12 score is the only Packers’ touchdown to a wide receiver other than Watson since Week 9 (Allen Lazard)… Marcedes Lewis scored his second touchdown of the season. Lewis has caught six of just seven targets overall this year…

Tua Tagovailoa suffered a concussion during the game that was not detected until later in the week. He is out for Week 17… Jeff Wilson operated as the Dolphins’ lead back and scored for the first time since Week 12… Raheem Mostert saw one receiving target in the redzone… Jaylen Waddle had a career-long 84 yard touchdown catch. Waddle leads the league in Yards Per Reception among wideouts with over 30 targets… Tyreek Hill had a three game scoring streak snapped, but still gained over 100 yards…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Sunday Late Game

Broncos 14 at Rams 51

Russell Wilson threw a season-high three interceptions for the first time since 2020… Chase Edmonds returned from injury and played just three fewer snaps than Latavius Murray… Jerry Jeudy had his first 100 yard receiving game since Week 1 and has averaged nine targets per game the past three weeks… Greg Dulcich scored for the first time since his debut game in Week 6, but suffered an injury and was placed on IR…

Baker Mayfield threw for 230 yards for the second time in three games as the Rams’ starter and had two passing scores for the second time this season… Cam Akers had a career day with 147 total yards and three scores. Akers has been given firm command of the lead back duties in Los Angeles… After not scoring in the season’s first 14 weeks, Tyler Higbee has scored in back-to-back games, including twice in Week 16. Higbee had 9 catches on 11 targets for 94 yards… The Rams’ DST had six sacks and four interceptions, including one for a touchdown to close out the scoring…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Sunday Night

Buccaneers 19 at Cardinals 16 (OT)

Tom Brady has thrown two interceptions in each of the past three games… Leonard Fournette has already set a career mark for receiving scores (3) and is just 22 yards shy of his most yards receiving in a season… Chris Godwin had double-digit targets for the eighth time in 13 games this season. He’s had at least eight targets in all but two games he’s played… Mike Evans‘s receiving numbers are all in line with career averages except touchdowns (3). He’s on pace for his fewest since 2015, his second year in the league… Cade Otton played 84 percent of the tight end snaps and was the only Bucs’ tight end to see a target…

Trace McSorley had a career high in passing yards in his first career start, but has not thrown a touchdown against four interceptions in five appearances this season… James Conner has at least one score in six straight weeks… DeAndre Hopkins was held to just one catch for the first time since Week 4 of 2016… Meanwhile, Greg Dortch had season highs in targets and receptions to lead the Cardinals… Trey McBride has caught at least three passes in four of the past five games, but has not scored and was held to just 17 yards receiving…

Week 16 Blitz Pickup: Monday Night

Chargers 20 at Colts 3

Justin Herbert has gone back-to-back weeks without a touchdown pass for the first time in his career… Austin Ekeler (RB1) leads all running backs in targets, receptions, and receiving yards… Keenan Allen has seen 14 targets in three of the past four weeks…

Nick Foles started and threw three interceptions in the game. It was the third time this season a Colts’ quarterback has thrown three picks in a game… Zack Moss appears to be the Colts’ lead back to close out the season, for what it’s worth… Michael Pittman has not broken the 100 yard mark since Week 6 and has scored just two touchdowns on the year… Jelani Woods saw the third-fewest snaps among Colts’ tight ends in the game, but saw five targets to just two for Mo Alie-Cox, continuing a trend…

Challenge Chase!

Ever wonder how you stack up against the experts? Now’s your chance to find out! You can utilize what you learned in the Week 16 Blitz Pickup, and use teams you’ve already drafted to take me on for weekly bragging rights with Flex Fantasy. Visit https://www.flex.fan/bellyup to sign up and challenge me, as I’ll be using lineups from my own home leagues. You can play for fun, play for money, or play for both! Look for SttChaseFFB’s teams in the Flex Fantasy Arena and sign up today. I promise I won’t rub it in (much) when I win. Got something to say? Leave a comment below, follow me on Twitter @SttChaseFFB, and catch me on the Belly Up Fantasy Live podcast Sundays and Wednesdays all season long. Slàinte!