It’s the most wonderful time of the year
With the bye weeks behind us
And Chase to remind us
Week 17 Thursday Night is here!
It’s the most wonderful time of the year

It’s the hap-happiest season of all
When Zeke will be eating
And hopefully keeping
His hands on the ball!
It’s the hap-happiest season of all

Dak Prescott will throw-a
To CeeDee and Noah
And Gallup and Schultz and T.Y.
Mike Vrabel is running
Out a lineup so stunning
You’ll ask yourself, “Who are these guys?”

It’s the most confusing time of the year
Some players are resting
As coaches are testing
Guys for spots next year
But fantasy championships are here!

We’ve made it. Fantasy Championship Week. If you’re still alive, hopefully it’s because you’ve put together a magical run and stand just one win away from bragging rights. Alternatively, you may be scrambling to keep yourself from swirling away down your league’s toilet bowl. Either way, you need points. You need a better start than you got from last week’s Thursday Night matchup. You need… Julius Chestnut? I can appreciate the name/season synergy, but who the heck is Julius Chestnut? Or Racey McMath? Tyroil Smoochie-Wallace? Tennessee may be looking ahead to Week 18, but we don’t have that luxury. We need points, and we need ’em NOW. At least Mike McCarthy has our best fantasy interests at heart. Hopefully.

Note: All point totals and rankings are PPR unless otherwise noted. Odds and betting information are courtesy Quarter4.

Week 17 Thursday Night Preview: Cowboys’ Offense

For as much as the Philadelphia Eagles have seemed like a foregone conclusion this season, the Dallas Cowboys are still fighting. Dallas bounced back from a walk-off loss to Jacksonville and defeated the Eagles in Week 16. The win sent a message to the rest of the league about how dangerous this Cowboys team can be. More importantly, the win kept alive their slim hopes for the NFC East crown, as well as the NFC’s top overall seed. While the ‘Boys are locked in to the playoffs, there’s still plenty to play for. That’s good news for fantasy managers, as it should mean we’ll get a maximum effort from the Cowboys. I don’t anticipate them sitting starters or pulling them before they have a chance to help you in your fantasy lineup.

Alas, not all is perfect and peachy in JerryWorld. Tony Pollard, this season’s overall RB6, is laid up with a thigh injury. Pollard has not practiced all week and is questionable to play tonight. The Cowboys will put him through a pregame evaluation, but are expected to err on the conservative side of the decision. While that’s unfortunate for Pollard’s managers, it means good news for Ezekiel Elliott fans, as Zeke should see a heavy workload regardless of whether or not Pollard can go.

Cowboys’ Offense Big Question

As I’ve said before, you don’t need my expertise to tell you to start your studs. CeeDee Lamb should be a lineup lock for you by now. I have Dak Prescott as the QB2 for the week in my Week 17 Rankings. Start him. Likewise, Dalton Schultz, Brett Maher, and the Dallas DST are all number two at their positions for me this week. The Titans are a good matchup fantasy-wise, and I don’t expect their offense to put up much of a fight in this one. That means more opportunities for the Cowboys in your lineup to score points. The biggest problem may be if Dallas gets up real big, real early. In that scenario, would Dallas opt to pull some of their big guns early to save the ammo for their Week 18 trip to Washington?

I’m shying away from Pollard here, but I’m still advocating for the rest of the Dallas skill players. There’s a real possibility that Elliott in particular scores enough by halftime to make things worth your while.

Where we may able to exploit things here would be in DFS. If Lamb, Dak, Elliott, et. al. are pulled early, others may benefit. That could lead to more snaps for guys like Noah Brown or even T.Y. Hilton. Jake Ferguson is an example of a guy who won’t start, but may see plenty of the field. Again, these are deep daily dives we’re talking here, not recommended swerves for your yearly championship rosters. But Ferguson, Michael Gallup, Brown, or Hilton should come cheap and see low ownership, with opportunities to flash.

Week 17 Thursday Night Preview: Titans’ Offense

As depressing as it may be, tonight Tennessee is running out a starting lineup reminiscent of Preseason Week 2. And they won’t be alone. Across the league, teams eliminated from playoff contention are looking ahead to next season and sitting fantasy starters for guys none of us roster. Heck, even some teams fighting for the playoffs are doing that (ahem, *cough*, Ron Rivera…) The guys you relied on to get you this far may or may not be available. And even if they are, they may not put in a full game’s work. Hey, we’re all in the same boat. The Titans haven’t been a repository of fantasy wealth this season anyway. But now they’re zigging just when we thought they were zagging:

The #Titans are expected to start QB Josh Dobbs tonight, per source.

A former @Vol_Football legend, Dobbs replaces Malik Willis against the Cowboys tonight.

— Justin M (@JustinM_NFL) December 29, 2022

That’s right, folks. We don’t even get to see Malik Willis tonight. Mike Vrabel is saving him for the must-win Week 18 game with the Jaguars. Joshua Dobbs will attempt his best Baker Mayfield impression, after signing with the team last week.

Titans’ Offense Big Question

“Who the heck are these guys?”

That’s what we’ll most likely be asking ourselves all night when Tennessee has the ball. No Ryan Tannehill. No Willis. And no Derrick Henry. I wouldn’t expect to see much of Treylon Burks or Robert Woods, either. Hassan Haskins looks to be the early-down back, with Julius Chestnut spelling him and getting some third down work. I don’t recommend starting either of them against the Cowboys’ juggernaut of a defense. I love Chigoziem Okonkwo, but I’m not sure he or Austin Hooper see much of the field, either. Could be a Geoff Swaim and Kevin Rader day at tight end. That’s fine on the field, but not in your fantasy lineup. Again, if you want a take a deep DFS shot, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine may lead the team in wide receiver snaps. He, Haskins, and Okonkwo would be the only Titans I would think of maybe considering.

Betting Lines (Courtesy of Quarter4):

Favorite: Cowboys (-12.5)

Over/Under: 38

Notable Props: Ryan Stonehouse punts (5.3); Brett Maher field goal long (41.6); Dak Prescott pass attempts (30)

Challenge Chase!

Is your run through the fantasy playoffs over too early? Still craving competition? Use that woulda-coulda-shoulda lineup 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!