Los Angeles Rams RB Kyren Williams has already secured a spot as one of the greatest waiver wire pickups in the history of fantasy football. Added after Week 1, Williams has been an elite RB1 by every definition. Should fantasy managers expect more of the same on Thursday night against the New Orleans Saints?
Should You Start Kyren Williams in Week 16?
Earlier in the season, there was definitely some trepidation surrounding Kyren Williams and whether what he was doing was sustainable. At this point, all doubt has been removed. In the free PFN Discord, he no longer appears in any start/sit questions. Fantasy managers know the deal.
There is actually no conceivable scenario where anyone would even be able to ask about whether to sit Williams, unless you’re in a league with very unconventional settings. There is exactly one running back you should start over Williams on a weekly basis, and his name is Christian McCaffrey.
Williams has six 20+ point fantasy outings this season. Since returning from IR, he’s done it three times, with his “down week” being 14.3 points in a game where he ran for 114 yards (he just happened to not score).
This week, Williams is going to put his fantasy managers on his back and carry them to the finals.
Overall, the Saints look like an imposing matchup. They’ve allowed the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs. But, as my buddy Frank Ammirante pointed out on Twitter, the Saints have been eviscerated on the ground lately, allowing 125.75 rushing yards per game over their last four.
Trending Start/Sit Searches for Williams
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It also allows us to see the most popular trending searches, and we’ve jotted some of them down below to help provide some clarity.
Should You Start Kyren Williams or Alvin Kamara?
Unless the question is should you start Christian McCaffrey or Kyren Williams, the answer to any start/sit question involving Williams is the Rams RB. The Start/Sit Optimizer has Williams projected for 21.1 points against 20.1 for Alvin Kamara.
This is a brutal spot for Kamara. He makes his hay catching passes, but the Rams have been the best team in the NFL at defending pass-catching running backs. No team has seen a lower percentage of their total receiving yards allowed go to running backs than the 8.4% allowed by the Rams.
Kamara will still see his fair share of volume through the air, especially if Chris Olave is out again. However, we have seen what can happen when he faces a tough defense against running backs out of the backfield. He caught three passes for negative 11 yards two weeks ago. Obviously, it won’t be that bad, but Kamara could be in line for a very inefficient 3-4 receptions this week.
Should You Start Williams or Rachaad White?
As I indicated on Twitter earlier this week, I am taking the L on Rachaad White. It was just a process fail. The fact that I was right about White being a below-average rusher just never mattered, and I should’ve known that. He is an elite pass catcher strapped with massive volume and a goal-line role. Nothing else matters.
If Williams is the league-winning waiver wire running back, White is the league-winning drafted running back (although a strong case can be made for Raheem Mostert as well).
White has scored at least 13 fantasy points in nine straight games and at least 15.9 fantasy points in eight of those nine. He’s essentially put up RB1 numbers in eight of nine games. White is an RB2 when he doesn’t score and an elite RB1 when he does. That is exactly what we want in a fantasy running back.
This week, White gets a Jaguars defense that gives up a 22.8% target share to running backs. It’s going to be yet another big game for one of the best receiving backs in the league. White is a must-start that the Start/Sit Optimizer has projected for 16.5 fantasy points…but not at the expense of Williams.
Jason Katz’s Week 16 RB Rankings
1) Christian McCaffrey | SF (vs. BAL)
2) Kyren Williams | LAR (vs. NO)
3) Alvin Kamara | NO (at LAR)
4) Rachaad White | TB (vs. JAX)
5) James Cook | BUF (at LAC)
6) Jahmyr Gibbs | DET (at MIN)
7) Joe Mixon | CIN (at PIT)
8) Josh Jacobs | LV (at KC)
9) Tony Pollard | DAL (at MIA)
10) Jonathan Taylor | IND (at ATL)
11) Raheem Mostert | MIA (vs. DAL)
12) Travis Etienne Jr. | JAX (at TB)
13) Derrick Henry | TEN (vs. SEA)
14) Isiah Pacheco | KC (vs. LV)
15) Saquon Barkley | NYG (at PHI)
16) Breece Hall | NYJ (vs. WAS)
17) Aaron Jones | GB (at CAR)
18) David Montgomery | DET (at MIN)
19) Kenneth Walker III | SEA (at TEN)
20) Ezekiel Elliott | NE (at DEN)
21) De’Von Achane | MIA (vs. DAL)
22) D’Andre Swift | PHI (vs. NYG)
23) Austin Ekeler | LAC (vs. BUF)
24) Najee Harris | PIT (vs. CIN)
25) Jaylen Warren | PIT (vs. CIN)
26) Bijan Robinson | ATL (vs. IND)
27) Javonte Williams | DEN (vs. NE)
28) James Conner | ARI (at CHI)
29) Chuba Hubbard | CAR (vs. GB)
30) Ty Chandler | MIN (vs. DET)
31) Jerome Ford | CLE (at HOU)
32) Devin Singletary | HOU (vs. CLE)
33) Gus Edwards | BAL (at SF)
34) Antonio Gibson | WAS (at NYJ)
35) Chase Brown | CIN (at PIT)
36) Zack Moss | IND (at ATL)
37) AJ Dillon | GB (at CAR)
38) D’Onta Foreman | CHI (vs. ARI)
39) Jerick McKinnon | KC (vs. LV)
40) Tyjae Spears | TEN (vs. SEA)
41) Roschon Johnson | CHI (vs. ARI)
42) Zach Charbonnet | SEA (at TEN)
43) Rico Dowdle | DAL (at MIA)
44) Tyler Allgeier | ATL (vs. IND)
45) Kareem Hunt | CLE (at HOU)
46) Justice Hill | BAL (at SF)
47) Clyde Edwards-Helaire | KC (vs. LV)
48) Jamaal Williams | NO (at LAR)
49) Latavius Murray | BUF (at LAC)
50) Chris Rodriguez Jr. | WAS (at NYJ)
51) Kenneth Gainwell | PHI (vs. NYG)
52) Khalil Herbert | CHI (vs. ARI)
53) Miles Sanders | CAR (vs. GB)
54) Samaje Perine | DEN (vs. NE)
55) Joshua Kelley | LAC (vs. BUF)
56) Zamir White | LV (at KC)
57) Ameer Abdullah | LV (at KC)
58) Dalvin Cook | NYJ (vs. WAS)
59) D’Ernest Johnson | JAX (at TB)
60) Cordarrelle Patterson | ATL (vs. IND)
61) Jordan Mason | SF (vs. BAL)
62) Jaleel McLaughlin | DEN (vs. NE)
63) Ty Johnson | BUF (at LAC)
64) Chase Edmonds | TB (vs. JAX)
65) Royce Freeman | LAR (vs. NO)
66) Patrick Taylor Jr. | GB (at CAR)
67) Dameon Pierce | HOU (vs. CLE)
68) Isaiah Spiller | LAC (vs. BUF)
69) Matt Breida | NYG (at PHI)
70) Michael Carter | ARI (at CHI)
71) Jeff Wilson Jr. | MIA (vs. DAL)
72) Trey Sermon | IND (at ATL)
73) Emari Demercado | ARI (at CHI)
74) Boston Scott | PHI (vs. NYG)
75) Tyler Goodson | IND (at ATL)
76) Pierre Strong Jr. | CLE (at HOU)
77) Kevin Harris | NE (at DEN)
78) Dare Ogunbowale | HOU (vs. CLE)
79) Kene Nwangwu | MIN (vs. DET)
80) Trayveon Williams | CIN (at PIT)
81) Israel Abanikanda | NYJ (vs. WAS)
82) Kyle Juszczyk | SF (vs. BAL)
83) Raheem Blackshear | CAR (vs. GB)
84) DeeJay Dallas | SEA (at TEN)
85) Tank Bigsby | JAX (at TB)
86) Alec Ingold | MIA (vs. DAL)
87) C.J. Ham | MIN (vs. DET)
88) Myles Gaskin | MIN (vs. DET)
89) Patrick Ricard | BAL (at SF)
90) Craig Reynolds | DET (at MIN)
91) Kenyan Drake | GB (at CAR)
92) Michael Burton | DEN (vs. NE)
93) Deneric Prince | KC (vs. LV)
94) JaMycal Hasty | NE (at DEN)
95) Brandon Bolden | LV (at KC)
96) Hunter Luepke | DAL (at MIA)
97) Keith Smith | ATL (vs. IND)
98) Rhamondre Stevenson | NE (at DEN)
99) Alexander Mattison | MIN (vs. DET)
100) Brian Robinson Jr. | WAS (at NYJ)
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