Johny The Greek's Cornerback Corner: Week 17
What are the best CB options for IDP fantasy football leagues in Week 17?
Welcome back to the Cornerback Corner! As is tradition, we’ll start with transparency and get right into this week’s calls.
Last week, I made 88 calls for leagues of all shapes and sizes. Of those 88 calls, 9 were declared inactive or were injured during play, which caused them to miss their projection (early in the game). Subtracting those players, we’re left with 79 “adjusted” calls.
Of those, 61 were correct (matched, beat, or were within a slim margin of their projection on Yahoo and MFL), and 18 were incorrect (didn’t match or beat projection and weren’t even close), giving us 77% accuracy for Week 16.
Of those 61 correct calls, 28 were “massive hits” (doubled, tripled, or more, their projection), giving us a 45% massive hit rate on correct calls for Week 16.
We are 75% accurate overall for the season, with 41% of all correct calls ending up as “massive hits.”
Week 1: 78% accuracy, 34% massive hit rate
Week 2: 71% accuracy, 43% massive hit rate
Week 3: 76% accuracy, 50% massive hit rate
Week 4: 66% accuracy, 53% massive hit rate
Week 5: 89% accuracy, 40% massive hit rate
Week 6: 80% accuracy, 40% massive hit rate
Week 7: 70% accuracy, 52% massive hit rate
Week 8: 81% accuracy, 43% massive hit rate
Week 9: 72% accuracy, 34% massive hit rate
Week 10: 76% accuracy, 23% massive hit rate
Week 11: 70% accuracy, 39% massive hit rate
Week 12: 83% accuracy, 31% massive hit rate
Week 13: 71% accuracy, 46% massive hit rate
Week 14: 70% accuracy, 40% massive hit rate
Week 15: 74% accuracy, 50% massive hit rate
Week 16: 77% accuracy, 45% massive hit rate
Please see THIS or THIS if you need a primer in cornerback streaming or what’s being discussed in this article (for new readers).
When I list the corners each week, it’s always STARTER/BACKUP/BACKUP in “depth chart/what we’ve seen” order if we’re dealing with an injured cornerback.
Keep an eye on the weather this week and throughout the fantasy playoffs. If you’re debating between two corners and one of them is playing in a snowstorm, then that factor will decide for you.
Make sure you set alarms for inactives this week! We've got all kinds of moving parts with games on Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Don’t lose your matchup because you forgot about the random Saturday or Wednesday games and Donte Jackson was inactive again etc.
In general, I would NOT trust any backup corners this week. If you’ve read this all season then you’re well aware of how insane it is trying to nail down who will even be our cornerback options each week. This position lends itself to fluctuation, shenanigans, displacement, and surprises out of left field. Make your opponent beat you in these title games, don’t do it for them by trusting something iffy.
Good luck my friends, go get those titles!
Chiefs at Steelers
Outlook: To kick off Week 17 we’ve got a pair of Christmas day games including this likely defensive struggle with an early total of just 41.5 points and Kansas City favored by a touchdown. Kansas City is within the middle of the pack for passing offense (yards per game), while Pittsburgh is within the worst third of the league. Both teams are within the worst third of the league for targeting their wide receivers. This matchup will be “deeper leagues only” across the board. Pittsburgh has a slightly better outlook for their corners overall.
Kansas City Chiefs
Trent McDuffie (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Chammari Conner (CB/S): SOLID, deeper leagues only, if healthy. He was inactive last week due to a concussion.
Joshua Williams (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 58% of snaps last week.
Nazeeh Johnson (CB): SIT, he only played 44% of snaps last week and has been displaced by Williams for several weeks now. If Chammari is active this week, I would think Nazeeh would play even fewer snaps than we saw last week.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Joey Porter Jr/James Pierre (CB): Porter picked up a knee injury after 26% of snaps last week, if he can play this week he would be SOLID. Pierre has been the preferred backup for Pittsburgh for most of this season, he played 82% of snaps last week and if Porter or Donte is inactive, he would have a similar role this week. I would just skip it though (SIT), we don’t need to even be thinking about backup corners in championship week.
Donte Jackson (CB): SOLID, if healthy, he was inactive last week due to a back injury.
Cory Trice (CB): With both Porter getting injured early and Donte already inactive, it was Trice as the second replacement corner last week playing 79% of snaps. SIT. We aren’t chasing backup cornerbacks with iffy matchups the week of fantasy championships. I’m not at least, you probably shouldn’t either.
Cameron Sutton/Beanie Bishop Jr (CB): SIT them both, they played just 31% and 27% of snaps respectively last week.
Ravens at Texans
Outlook: The second Christmas day game sits at 45.5 points for the early total with Baltimore favored by 1.5 points. That looks perfect, higher total, low spread, that’s Vegas telling us to expect a shootout and a “back and forth affair”, which is exactly what we want for our corners.
Baltimore is a top-ten passing attack while Houston is among the middle of the pack. Houston is within the top third of the league for wide receiver targets while Baltimore is within the worst third of the league. It will be “medium to deeper leagues” for both sides and, in general, we can fire up the usual suspects and be looking good here.
Baltimore Ravens
Ar’Darius Washington (CB/S): IDEAL, he played 100% of snaps as a starting safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo last week.
Marlon Humphrey (CB): SOLID, he played 93% of snaps last week. This would have been IDEAL if Houston hadn’t lost yet another wide receiver last week. I just don’t see our normal amount of wide receiver targets coming from them now missing Tank Dell along with Stefon Diggs. It’s still a great matchup, just not perfect.
Brandon Stephens (CB): SOLID, he played 93% of snaps last week.
Nate Wiggins (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 82% of snaps last week.
Houston Texans
Derek Stingley (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Kamari Lassiter (CB): SOLID, he played 99% of snaps last week.
Jeff Okudah (CB): SIT, he played just 51% of snaps last week but many sites have him projected as a full-time cornerback, which is not the case and hasn’t been all season.
Seahawks at Bears
Outlook: The Thursday game for Week 17 sits at 45.5 points for the early total with Seattle favored by a field goal, that’s a nice setup so far. Seattle is the 5th best passing attack in the league while Chicago is now the second worst overall. Both teams are within the top ten for targeting their wide receivers.
We can fire up our Chicago corners in an ideal setup this week and it will be “medium to deeper leagues” for Devon Witherspoon and our Seattle corners who have some positive factors (Chicago’s tendency to target WRs often) and some not-so-positive factors (Chicago now the second worst passing attack in the league).
Seattle Seahawks
Coby Bryant (CB/S): IDEAL, he played 100% of snaps as a safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo and perhaps elsewhere (cheat code).
Devon Witherspoon (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Tariq Woolen (CB): SOLID, he played 82% of snaps last week.
Josh Jobe (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 59% of snaps last week.
Chicago Bears
Tyrique Stevenson (CB): SOLID, borderline ideal as crazy as that sounds. He was back up to 100% of snaps last week and fully displaced Terrell Smith. It’s been a battle between those two for this slot for weeks now but it appears Stevenson has regained his starting role. The matchup for him is perfect, it’s just a question of if we trust it or not. This could be a kill shot if you need it. It could also be a trap, after Stevenson got into it with Jameson Williams last week we saw more of the behavior that got him displaced by Terrell Smith in the first place. It’s a risky coin flip overall, I’d only pursue this if you’re projected to lose and need to take some risks.
Kyler Gordon (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 69% of snaps last week.
Jaylon Johnson (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Chargers at Patriots
Outlook: The first of three Saturday games for Week 17 sits at just 40.5 points for the early total with Los Angeles favored by a field goal. Both passing attacks are ranked within the worst third of the league for yards per game through the air. Los Angeles is among the middle of the pack for targeting their wide receivers while New England is within the worst third of the league. It will be “deeper leagues only” for our Los Angeles corners and “medium to deeper leagues” for our New England options in this setup.
Los Angeles Chargers
Elijah Molden/Ja’Sir Taylor (CB): Molden was inactive last week with a knee injury, if he can play this week he would be SOLID and he usually plays full snaps. Taylor saw an increase in snaps with Molden being inactive last week, we do NOT need to chase this. If it’s not Molden then skip it (SIT Taylor).
Tarheeb Still (CB): SOLID, he played 95% of snaps last week.
Kristian Fulton (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week.
New England Patriots
Christian Gonzalez (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Jonathan Jones (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 66% of snaps last week.
Marcus Jones/Alex Austin (CB): Marcus was inactive last week with a knee injury, he would be SOLID if he could play this week. We don’t need to chase the backup corner here at all, the matchup isn’t great and we’ve only seen it once. That’s not something you trust for all the marbles and a fantasy football title. (SIT Austin).
Broncos at Bengals
Outlook: The Saturday afternoon game has an early total of 45.5 points with Cincy favored by 3.5. Cincy is the best passing offense in the league while Denver is among the middle of the pack. Both teams are within the top ten for wide receiver targets.
This is the ideal setup for our Denver corners, fire them up with confidence. And we can do the same for our Cincy corners, they’re in a great setup as well, but not as good as what our Denver corners have this week. I will have many options from this game streaming in my own leagues this week.
Denver Broncos
Patrick Surtain (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Riley Moss/Kris Abrams-Draine (CB): SOLID, if healthy, Moss was practicing in a limited capacity last week so we’re looking good for his return this week and in an ideal matchup. Abrams-Draine is the new preferred backup corner in Denver and would be SOLID but super risky if Moss is inactive again. Draine played just 66% of snaps last week but did quite a bit with them including an interception. The matchup here is perfect and that’s the only reason I’d even consider a backup corner like Abrams-Draine with the stakes this high.
Levi Wallace (CB): SIT, he was displaced as the preferred backup corner a couple of weeks ago.
JaQuan McMillian (CB): SOLID, he played 66% of snaps last week but the matchup is good enough to overpower the lack of ideal playing time here I think.
Cincinnati Bengals
Cam Taylor Britt (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week.
Josh Newton (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week.
Mike Hilton (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 77% of snaps last week but has been far more productive over his last two games.
Cardinals at Rams
Outlook: The Saturday night game sits at 48 points even for the early total with Los Angeles favored by about a touchdown. The Rams are a top-ten passing attack while Arizona is within the middle of the pack. Los Angeles targets their wide receivers the most across the entire league while Arizona is third-worst leaguewide for this ranking.
We can fire up our Arizona corners in an ideal matchup but it will be “deeper leagues only” for our Los Angeles corners this week against the run-first Cardinals. Unfortunately for us, the matchup is ideal for Arizona but their cornerback options are not. We need the player plus the matchup for ideal production and while we have the matchup, none of their corners have been super productive this season.
Arizona Cardinals
Starling Thomas (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 76% of snaps last week.
Garrett Williams (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 62% of snaps last week.
Sean Murphy Bunting (CB): SOLID, he played 91% of snaps last week.
Los Angeles Rams
Darious Williams (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Cobie Durant (CB): SIT/blast out the airlock, he played zero snaps last week and was completely displaced by Witherspoon out of left field. Fantastic timing for this, but it’s par for the course in cornerback-land. That’s why half of this article is just tracking these guys so we know what our options actually are every week.
Akhello Witherspoon (CB): SIT, while he did play 100% of snaps last week and has displaced Durant as the other starting cornerback, the matchup isn’t great and we’ve only seen it once. This isn’t something you can trust for your title run, skip it.
Colts at Giants
Outlook: The early total for this game is 44 points with Indy favored by 1.5 points. Both passing attacks are ranked within the worst third of the league. New York does target their wide receivers quite a bit, second most overall, but that’s mostly just Malik Nabers targets and most of that was accomplished earlier this season so that information is stale at best.
Indy is within the top third of the league for wide receiver targets but Anthony Richardson completes fewer than 12 passes per game so that’s smoke and mirrors. It will be “deeper leagues only” across the board for this one, but whoever ends up being responsible for Nabers could be in for a nice day in the box score.
Indianapolis Colts
Kenny Moore (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week and came through for us in a huge way with two interceptions.
Jaylon Jones (CB): SOLID, he played 84% of snaps last week.
Samuel Womack (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 74% of snaps last week.
New York Giants
Deonte Banks (CB): SIT, Banks, and Jackson both kept a role with the return of Banks from injury (which makes no sense). They played 61% and 78% of snaps respectively last week. They both are usable in deeper leagues with that playing time but I can’t be sure we’ll get the same setup this week. The matchup stinks anyway, I’d just look elsewhere.
Adoree Jackson (CB): SIT, see above reasoning.
Cor’Dale Flott (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 61% of snaps last week.
Andru Phillips (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only due to the matchup, he played 97% of snaps last week.
Jets at Bills
Outlook: The early total for this AFC East showdown sits at 45.5 points with Buffalo favored by a field goal. Buffalo is now a top-ten passing attack while New York is among the middle of the pack. New York is a top-ten team for wide receiver targets while Buffalo is among the middle of the pack. We can fire up the usual suspects in medium to deeper leagues and be looking good for this one. It’s close to an ideal setup for our Buffalo corners with that New York wide receiver targets ranking and the likelihood of them being in a negative gamescript pretty quickly.
New York Jets
DJ Reed (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Sauce Gardner (CB): SOLID, if healthy, he played 44% of snaps last week then exited with a hamstring injury. It’s unclear who his backup was, if it’s not Sauce then skip it.
Isiah Oliver (CB): With Sauce injured early and Jalen Mills now gone to IR (we can blast him out the airlock) we saw both preferred backup corners this week with Oliver playing 77% of snaps and Echols in for 56%. If Sauce can’t play I can’t be sure who will back him up, we’ve seen both Oliver and Echols as the preferred options at different points this season. SIT Oliver. Every player in your lineup this week should be as solid as humanly possible, don’t beat yourself, make your opponent beat you.
Brandin Echols (CB): SIT, he’ll probably have some kind of role just like last week but we can’t be sure it will be a role worth pursuing in terms of playing time.
Buffalo Bills
Taron Johnson (CB): IDEAL, he played 77% of snaps last week and missed a few plays due to an injury scare but ultimately returned to the game. He’s been excellent all season and I’m very comfortable trusting him in any title games this week.
Rasul Douglas/Kaiir Elam (CB): Rasul was inactive last week due to a knee injury, he would be SOLID but risky if he could play this week. Elam has been his backup for a couple of games now and would be SOLID, deeper leagues only, if Rasul is inactive again. Elam played 100% of the snaps last week.
Christian Benford (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Cam Lewis (CB/S): If we see Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin inactive again this week then it’s very likely we’re getting Cam Lewis again. He is a safety incorrectly designated a corner and a cheat code in Yahoo and perhaps elsewhere. SIT him if Rapp or Hamlin is active, he only has value if they’re both out again.
Titans at Jaguars
Outlook: The early total for this AFC South matchup is 46 points with Jacksonville favored by 4. Both teams are within the worst third of the league for passing offense. Jacksonville is among the middle of the pack for targeting their wide receivers while Tennessee is within the worst third of the league. It will be “deeper leagues only” across the board for this one.
Tennessee Titans
Jarvis Brownlee (CB): SOLID, he played 90% of snaps last week.
Chidobe Awuzie (CB): SOLID, he played 92% of snaps last week.
Roger McCreary (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 56% of snaps last week.
Darrell Baker Jr (CB): SIT, with McCreary back healthy again, Baker Jr only played 18% of snaps last week. He only has value as a replacement corner these days and there’s no one to replace at the moment.
Daryl Worley (CB/S): SOLID, he played 97% of snaps last week as a starting safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo and perhaps elsewhere.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Tyson Campbell (CB): SOLID, he played 91% of snaps last week.
Darnell Savage (CB/S): SOLID, if healthy, he exited after 16% of snaps with a concussion last week. Jarrian Jones saw a bump in playing time with his absence but we aren’t touching that with a ten-foot pole. Not in this matchup and with the level of shenanigans we’ve seen from Jacksonville this season.
All others (CB): SIT. It’s been a dumpster fire trying to figure out who these guys will roll out at corner each week this season, there’s still no real pattern and it’s Week 17.
Packers at Vikings
Outlook: The early total for this NFC North battle sits at 45.5 points with Green Bay favored by 2. Minnesota is a top-ten passing attack while Green Bay is within the top third of the league. Both teams are among the middle of the pack for targeting their wide receivers. We can fire up our normal cornerback options in medium to deeper leagues and be looking good here.
Green Bay Packers
Jaire Alexander (CB): SOLID, if healthy, he’s been inactive since around Week 8. They really do need him this week so if he plays, I think it will be full snaps.
Keisean Nixon (CB): SOLID, he played 86% of snaps last week and then sat due to the blowout.
All others (CB): Carrington Valentine played 91% of snaps last week with Jaire inactive once again, Eric Stokes was in for 62% of snaps as well. We’ve seen fluctuation between these two all season long so it’s hard to trust either with the stakes so high this week. I would SIT them both, but if you need a warm body, then Valentine would probably be your best option (only if Jaire is inactive again).
Minnesota Vikings
Byron Murphy (CB): IDEAL, he played 100% of snaps last week and has been among the best cornerback options for us this entire season.
Stephon Gilmore (CB): SOLID, he played 95% of snaps last week.
Shaq Griffin (CB): SIT, with the return of Gilmore to the lineup last week we saw Griffin back down to just 39% of snaps played. He only sees a bump/acceptable playing time if we’re missing Gilmore or Murphy.
Josh Metellus (CB/S): IDEAL, he played 100% of snaps as a safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo and perhaps elsewhere last week.
Raiders at Saints
Outlook: The early total for this game is 42.5 points with New Orleans favored by a field goal. Las Vegas is among the middle of the pack for passing offense while New Orleans is within the worst third of the league. Both teams are within the worst third of the league for wide receiver targets. It will be “deeper leagues only” for this matchup and we’re probably looking at backup quarterbacks on either side again as well.
Las Vegas Raiders
Nate Hobbs (CB): SIT, he was inactive again last week and only played 55% of snaps the week prior. He’s just too banged up and the matchup is garbage on top of that.
DeCamerion Richardson (CB): SOLID, even with Hobbs back in the lineup we still saw Richardson with acceptable playing time. He played 97% of snaps last week and about the same the week prior when Hobbs was active.
Jack Jones (CB): SOLID, he played 99% of snaps last week.
Darnay Holmes (CB): SIT, he did play 66% of snaps last week with Hobbs inactive, which tracks, but that’s not enough playing time, it’s too dependent on other variables, and the matchup stinks.
New Orleans Saints
Alontae Taylor (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Will Harris (CB/S): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week as a safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo.
Ugo Amadi (CB/S): SOLID, deeper leagues only due to the matchup and the fact that he only played 61% of snaps last week. That could be due to the blowout, but other starters such as the Honey Badger, Alontae, and Koolaid, played their full snaps. It could have been due to the gamescript, Green Bay really just ran the ball after halftime, but we can’t know for sure. I’m going to skip it personally, but he’s still a cornerback option in MFL if you need it.
Koolaid McKinstry (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Panthers at Bucs
Outlook: The early total for this NFC South showdown sits at 42.5 points with Tampa Bay favored by almost a full touchdown. Tampa Bay is now the third-best passing offense in the league while Carolina is within the worst third of the league for this ranking. Tampa Bay is within the top third of the league for wide receiver targets while Carolina is within the middle of the pack. We can fire up our Carolina corners in an ideal setup but it will be “deeper leagues only” for our Tampa Bay options in Week 17.
Carolina Panthers
Mike Jackson (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Jaycee Horn (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Chau Smith-Wade (CB): SIT, the fluctuation between him and Dane Jackson is still too recent to trust the 63% of snaps he played last week. If they switch up and go with Jackson instead this week then we end up starting a corner that doesn’t play (in championship week). We won’t be doing that.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Jamel Dean (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Zyon McCollum (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week.
Christian Izien (CB/S): SOLID, only if Winfield Jr is inactive again, without Whitehead and Winfield Jr last week we saw Izien play 93% of snaps as a backup safety incorrectly designated a cornerback in Yahoo and maybe elsewhere.
Dolphins at Browns
Outlook: The early total for this one is 44.5 points with Miami favored by 2 points. Both teams are among the middle of the pack for passing yards per game. Cleveland was a top-ten team for targeting their wide receivers but with the benching of Jameis Winston that ship has sailed. If DTR is under center then it’s “deeper leagues only” for our Miami options, upgrade them to leagues of all sizes if Jameis gets the start somehow.
And for the reverse, it will be “medium to deeper leagues” for our Cleveland corners against a good passing attack, but one that targets their running backs and tight ends far more than their wide receivers this season, unfortunately.
Miami Dolphins
Jalen Ramsey (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Kader Kohou (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 56% of snaps last week.
Kendall Fuller (CB): SOLID, if healthy, he played 69% of snaps last week then exited with a knee injury.
Cleveland Browns
Denzel Ward (CB): SOLID, he played 96% of snaps last week.
Martin Emerson (CB): SOLID, he played 86% of snaps last week.
Cameron Mitchell (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 64% of snaps last week as the Greg Newsome replacement now that Newsome is on IR. We’ve seen this more than once so it’s trustworthy (to the extent any of this is, cornerback is always a moving target).
Cowboys at Eagles
Outlook: The early total for this NFC East matchup is 47.5 points with Philly favored by a field goal. Dallas is within the top third of the league for passing offense while Philly is within the worst third of the league. Dallas is a top-ten team for wide receiver targets while Philly is within the worst third of the league.
We can fire up our Philly corners in leagues of all sizes against a Dallas team that loves to pass the ball but it will be “deeper leagues only” for our Dallas corners against this Philly team that simply doesn’t need to pass all that often with Saquon having the season he’s had.
Dallas Cowboys
Jourdan Lewis (CB): SOLID, he played 99% of snaps last week.
DaRon Bland (CB): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Amani Oruwariye (CB): SOLID, he played 99% of snaps last week and is the third corner now that Caelan Carson and Josh Butler are on IR.
Philadelphia Eagles
Quinyon Mitchell (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only due to his production style (he doesn’t really produce, opposing passing attacks avoid him like the plague). He played 100% of snaps last week.
Darius Slay (CB): SOLID, he played 94% of snaps last week.
Cooper DeJean (CB): SOLID, he played 93% of snaps last week.
Falcons at Commanders
Outlook: The Sunday night game for Week 17 sits at 46.5 points for the early total with Washington favored by a field goal. Atlanta was a top-ten passing attack but with Penix under center, they were mediocre at best last week. He completed just 18 passes on 27 attempts with most of those targets going to their wide receivers at least. It will be “deeper leagues only” for our Washington corners against the rookie quarterback who still looks like a rookie quarterback.
And for the reverse, we can fire up our Atlanta corners in medium to deeper leagues against a Washington team that is among the middle of the pack for passing yards per game and the same for targeting their wide receivers.
Atlanta Falcons
AJ Terrell (CB): SOLID, he played 76% of snaps last week and then sat due to the blowout.
Mike Hughes (CB): SOLID, he played 92% of snaps last week.
Dee Alford (CB): SOLID, deeper leagues only, he played 64% of snaps last week.
Washington Commanders
Quan Martin (CB/S): SOLID, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Mike Sainristil (CB): SOLID, he played 95% of snaps last week.
Marshon Lattimore (CB): SOLID, if healthy, he played 85% of snaps last week and then exited with a hamstring injury. If he can’t go then just skip it, it’s the Falcons with a rookie quarterback, not the 1990 Buffalo Bills.
Noah Igbinoghene (CB): SOLID, he played 84% of snaps last week.
Lions at 49ers
Outlook: The Monday night game for Week 17 looks to be a shootout with its early 51-point total and Detroit favored by 4.. Both teams are within the top ten for passing yards per game. Both teams are among the middle of the pack for targeting their wide receivers. We can fire up everyone with a pulse for this one and hope we get the shootout that Vegas thinks we’re getting.
Detroit Lions
Terrion Arnold (CB): SOLID, he played 98% of snaps last week.
Brian Branch (CB/S): IDEAL, he played 100% of snaps last week.
All others (CB): SIT! We did not get the traditional Kindle Vildor bump in playing time like we’ve been seeing, instead, we got Ifeati Melifonwu (didn’t even know he was off IR) and Amik Robertson seeing solid playing time for the first time all season out of left field. It’s clear that Detroit is experimenting in their secondary to get the right combination for the playoffs. We won’t be participating in that experiment. If it’s not Arnold or Branch then it isn’t safe this week.
San Francisco 49ers
Chavarious Ward (CB): SOLID, borderline ideal, he played 100% of snaps last week. If this Lions team weren’t as good at running the ball this would be ideal. There’s a version of this game where Detroit doesn’t need to pass a ton and Ward/Lenoir has a slow day at the office. I don’t think we’re getting that possible future, but it is out there. Big picture, Ward and Lenoir are 100% of snaps corners and very productive ones at that, they’re up against one of the best offenses in the league, and I’d be very comfortable trusting either or both in a title game this week.
Deommodore Lenoir (CB): SOLID, borderline ideal, he played 100% of snaps last week.
Renardo Green (CB): SOLID, he played 82% of snaps last week.
Byes this week: None
Week 17 at a Glance:
These are not in any particular order or ranking; they are just divided into the sections you see below. I typically identify the best matchups and then the best options within those matchups to find my favorite streaming options each week.
*If you see player/player that means starter/direct replacement*
IDEAL (our best options):
Ar’Darius Washington
Coby Bryant
Taron Johnson
Byron Murphy, Josh Metellus
Brian Branch
SOLID (matchup or playing time isn’t perfect, best in deeper leagues):
Trent McDuffie, Chammari Conner, Joshua Williams, Joey Porter Jr, Donte Jackson
Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Stephens, Nate Wiggins, Derek Stingley, Kamari Lassiter
Devon Witherspoon, Tariq Woolen, Josh Jobe, Tyrique Stevenson, Kyler Gordon, Jaylon Johnson
Elijah Molden, Tarheeb Still, Kristian Fulton, Christian Gonzalez, Jonathan Jones, Marcus Jones
Patrick Surtain, Riley Moss/Kris Abrams-Draine, JaQuan McMillian, Cam Taylor Britt, Mike Hilton, Josh Newton
Starling Thomas, Garrett Williams, Sean Murphy Bunting, Darious Williams
Kenny Moore, Jaylon Jones, Samuel Womack, Cor’Dale Flott, Andru Phillips
Sauce Gardner, DJ Reed, Christian Benford, Rasul Douglas/Kaiir Elam
Daryl Worley, Chidobe Awuzie, Jarvis Brownlee, Roger McCreary, Tyson Campbell, Darnell Savage
Jaire Alexander, Keisean Nixon, Stephon Gilmore
DeCamerion Richardson, Jack Jones, Alontae Taylor, Ugo Amadi, Will Harris, Koolaid McKinstry
Mike Jackson, Jaycee Horn, Jamel Dean, Zyon McCollum, Christian Izien (sit if Winfield Jr is active)
Cameron Mitchell, Denzel Ward, Martin Emerson, Jalen Ramsey, Kader Kohou, Kendall Fuller
Jourdan Lewis, DaRon Bland, Amani Oruwariye, Quinyon Mitchell, Darius Slay, Cooper DeJean
AJ Terrell, Mike Hughes, Dee Alford, Mike Sainristil, Quan Martin, Noah Igbinoghene, Marshon Lattimore
Terrion Arnold, Chavarious Ward, Deommodore Lenoir, Renardo Green
TRAPS (sit these players):
Nazeeh Johnson, James Pierre, Cory Trice, Cameron Sutton, Beanie Bishop Jr
Jeff Okudah
Ja’Sir Taylor, Alex Austin
Levi Wallace
Cobie Durant, Akhello Witherspoon
Deonte Banks, Adoree Jackson
Brandin Echols, Isaiah Oliver
Darrell Baker Jr, Jags corners not named “Campbell” or “Savage”
Carrington Valentine, Eric Stokes, Shaq Griffin
Nate Hobbs, Darnay Holmes
Chau Smith Wade
Benjamin St Juste
Kindle Vildor, Amik Robertson
Reminder: these are only suggestions. Your lineup is your responsibility and yours alone. However, these are the same moves I’m making myself so we sink or swim together. Remember to check for inactive players before kickoff to prevent any surprise zeroes.
For any questions/comments, to discuss specific cornerback streams, or to talk IDP in general, hit up my Twitter or email me at Johnysmack3141@yahoo.com.
Thank you for reading and good luck this week!