The Green Bay Packers will face the Minnesota Vikings in Week 17. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, especially regarding WR Christian Watson.
Is Christian Watson Playing in Week 17?
Updated at 2:55 PM ET on Sunday, December 29
Watson is inactive for today's game.
The oft-injured WR injured his knee in Monday night’s shutout victory over the Saints. Fortunately, Christian Watson avoided serious injury but did not practice all week. Head coach Matt LaFleur left the door open for Watson to play, but I fully expect him to sit.
We’ll continue to monitor the Packers’ injury report. You can also visit and bookmark our NFL Injury Tracker and Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Christian Watson in Week 17?
Watson is always one play away from an injury (yeah, yeah, yeah, technically everyone is, but you understand what I’m getting at), and he’s again banged up with a vague lower-body injury.
The man runs 11 routes, finally sees a target on the 12th, and then leaves injured. The Packers’ offense takes on a different look when Watson is right, and that is something they are going to need if they want to make a playoff run. I’d be surprised if he plays a full complement of snaps this weekend, and even if he does, the Vikings own the third-highest deep ball interception rate and excel at taking away those long shots.
Jayden Reed is the only receiver I have interest in this week for the Packers, though the ancillary pieces can have some upside should Watson sit.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Week 17 Fantasy Start-Sit Advice Cheat Sheet for every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Christian Watson’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 17
As of Sunday morning, Watson is projected to score 9.8 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 2.7 receptions for 39.9 yards and 0.4 touchdowns.
Check out the free PFN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
PFN Insight on the Vikings' Defense
Week 17's win over the Seattle Seahawks wasn't the best performance for this elite defense. The Minnesota Vikings' 73.9 (C) grade was its fifth-lowest on defense this season, though they still ranked in the top 15 among all units in Week 16.
Nevertheless, the Vikings continue to excel where it matters most, which is in the passing game and on third downs. Minnesota held Seattle to a 20% third-down conversion rate, the second-best in a game all season for the Vikings. That was aided by another strong non-blitz pressure rate (45.2%), which ranked fourth-best among all teams in Week 16.
The cracks showed up in run defense, where Minnesota had its second-worst rushing success rate (53.3%) of the season. That's still an area where the Vikings have excelled this season (64.8%), though they've missed linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. But with Pace potentially returning soon, that could shore up one of the few weak spots that has emerged in recent weeks.
Brian Flores received plenty of criticism in 2023, with the Vikings struggling on defense (finished 23rd) and only showing slight improvement from the year before (27th). However, in his second season as defensive coordinator, Flores has turned them into a force that is carrying Minnesota to the postseason.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Christian Watson’s Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 7:25 AM ET on Sunday, December 29. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 17 WR PPR Rankings
1) Ja'Marr Chase | CIN (vs. DEN)
2) Puka Nacua | LAR (vs. ARI)
3) Amon-Ra St. Brown | DET (at SF)
4) Justin Jefferson | MIN (vs. GB)
5) Mike Evans | TB (vs. CAR)
6) Nico Collins | HOU (vs. BAL)
7) Terry McLaurin | WAS (vs. ATL)
8) Davante Adams | NYJ (at BUF)
9) Tyreek Hill | MIA (at CLE)
10) A.J. Brown | PHI (vs. DAL)
11) Tee Higgins | CIN (vs. DEN)
12) Brian Thomas Jr. | JAX (vs. TEN)
13) Courtland Sutton | DEN (at CIN)
14) Ladd McConkey | LAC (at NE)
15) Drake London | ATL (at WAS)
16) Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA (at CHI)
17) Malik Nabers | NYG (vs. IND)
18) Cooper Kupp | LAR (vs. ARI)
19) Garrett Wilson | NYJ (at BUF)
20) Jauan Jennings | SF (vs. DET)
21) Zay Flowers | BAL (at HOU)
22) Keenan Allen | CHI (vs. SEA)
23) DJ Moore | CHI (vs. SEA)
24) Jakobi Meyers | LV (at NO)
25) Jordan Addison | MIN (vs. GB)
26) DK Metcalf | SEA (at CHI)
27) George Pickens | PIT (vs. KC)
28) Calvin Ridley | TEN (at JAX)
29) Adam Thielen | CAR (at TB)
30) Khalil Shakir | BUF (vs. NYJ)
31) Jameson Williams | DET (at SF)
32) Josh Downs | IND (at NYG)
33) Deebo Samuel Sr. | SF (vs. DET)
34) Jayden Reed | GB (at MIN)
35) DeVonta Smith | PHI (vs. DAL)
36) DeAndre Hopkins | KC (at PIT)
37) Xavier Worthy | KC (at PIT)
38) Marvin Harrison Jr. | ARI (at LAR)
39) Jalen McMillan | TB (vs. CAR)
40) Jaylen Waddle | MIA (at CLE)
41) Darnell Mooney | ATL (at WAS)
42) Jerry Jeudy | CLE (vs. MIA)
43) Hollywood Brown | KC (at PIT)
44) Rome Odunze | CHI (vs. SEA)
45) Romeo Doubs | GB (at MIN)
46) Michael Pittman Jr. | IND (at NYG)
47) Amari Cooper | BUF (vs. NYJ)
48) Rashod Bateman | BAL (at HOU)
49) Quentin Johnston | LAC (at NE)
50) Jalen Coker | CAR (at TB)
51) DeMario Douglas | NE (vs. LAC)
52) Xavier Legette | CAR (at TB)
53) Wan'Dale Robinson | NYG (vs. IND)
54) Christian Watson | GB (at MIN)
55) Nick Westbrook-Ikhine | TEN (at JAX)
56) Elijah Moore | CLE (vs. MIA)
57) Marquez Valdes-Scantling | BUF (vs. NYJ)
58) Calvin Austin III | PIT (vs. KC)
59) Joshua Palmer | LAC (at NE)
60) Robert Woods | HOU (vs. BAL)
61) Parker Washington | JAX (vs. TEN)
62) Tim Patrick | DET (at SF)
63) Ray-Ray McCloud III | ATL (at WAS)
64) John Metchie III | HOU (vs. BAL)
65) Keon Coleman | BUF (vs. NYJ)
66) David Moore | CAR (at TB)
67) Devaughn Vele | DEN (at CIN)
68) Michael Wilson | ARI (at LAR)
69) Tre Tucker | LV (at NO)
70) Kendrick Bourne | NE (vs. LAC)
71) Mike Williams | PIT (vs. KC)
72) Marvin Mims Jr. | DEN (at CIN)
73) Andrei Iosivas | CIN (vs. DEN)
74) Olamide Zaccheaus | WAS (vs. ATL)
75) Kayshon Boutte | NE (vs. LAC)
76) Jalen Tolbert | DAL (at PHI)
77) Malik Washington | MIA (at CLE)
78) Brandin Cooks | DAL (at PHI)
79) Tyler Lockett | SEA (at CHI)
80) Demarcus Robinson | LAR (vs. ARI)
81) Adonai Mitchell | IND (at NYG)
82) Alec Pierce | IND (at NYG)
83) Dontayvion Wicks | GB (at MIN)
84) Allen Lazard | NYJ (at BUF)
85) Van Jefferson | PIT (vs. KC)
86) KaVontae Turpin | DAL (at PHI)
87) Darius Slayton | NYG (vs. IND)
88) Ricky Pearsall | SF (vs. DET)
89) Jamison Crowder | WAS (vs. ATL)
90) Tyler Boyd | TEN (at JAX)
91) Troy Franklin | DEN (at CIN)
92) Kevin Austin Jr. | NO (vs. LV)
93) Mack Hollins | BUF (vs. NYJ)
94) Tutu Atwell | LAR (vs. ARI)
95) Jalen Nailor | MIN (vs. GB)
96) JuJu Smith-Schuster | KC (at PIT)
97) Michael Woods II | CLE (vs. MIA)
98) Justin Watson | KC (at PIT)
99) Devin Duvernay | JAX (vs. TEN)
100) Greg Dortch | ARI (at LAR)
101) Dante Pettis | CHI (vs. SEA)
102) Lil'Jordan Humphrey | DEN (at CIN)
103) Curtis Samuel | BUF (vs. NYJ)
104) Jahan Dotson | PHI (vs. DAL)
105) Cedrick Wilson Jr. | NO (vs. LV)
106) Tylan Wallace | BAL (at HOU)
107) DJ Chark | LAC (at NE)
108) River Cracraft | MIA (at CLE)
109) Luke McCaffrey | WAS (vs. ATL)
110) Jalin Hyatt | NYG (vs. IND)
111) Ja'Lynn Polk | NE (vs. LAC)
Packers at Vikings Trends and Insights
Green Bay Packers
Team: Since the beginning of October, the Packers are 0-2 against the Lions (-13 point differential) and 9-0 against the rest of the NFL (+124 point differential)
QB: Jordan Love’s average QB+ is a point higher this season on the road than at home – he’s the only quarterback among the four NFC favorites with a split favoring the road games.
Offense: In the first half on Monday night, Tucker Kraft (63 yards) had more receiving yards than the Saints had passing yards, and Josh Jacobs had as many catches as New Orleans had completions (four).
Defense: Green Bay has taken a double-digit lead into the halftime locker room in four of their past five games – in those four games, they’ve allowed a total of 13 points in the first 30 minutes.
Fantasy: Josh Jacobs has 108 first-quarter touches this season, the third most through 16 weeks of a season over the past decade (Adrian Peterson had 112 in 2015, and so did David Johnson in 2016).
Betting: Over tickets have come through in seven of Green Bay’s past 10 road divisional games.
Minnesota Vikings
Team: The Packers were the last team without a tie to Matthew Stafford to have defeated the Vikings (Week 17 of last season).
QB: Since Week 11, Sam Darnold is 29-of-38 with 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions when in the red zone.
Offense: Minnesota has cashed in nine of 10 red zone trips over their past three games.
Defense: Over the past two weeks, the Vikings have held the Bears/Seahawks to three conversions on 22 third downs (13.6%).
Fantasy: Over the past two weeks, none of Jordan Addison’s 12 catches have gained 20 yards (career prior: one of every 4.2 receptions picked up 20 yards).
Betting: The Vikings are 6-2 ATS at home this season (previous two seasons: 6-12 ATS).