The Washington Commanders will face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 17. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Commanders skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 17 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Jayden Daniels, QB
Jayden Daniels has been a top-seven producer at the position in four straight games and has seemingly found our silly game so easy that he’s now elevating Jamison Crowder to vintage levels.
The rookie has four straight games with at least 30 rushing yards and multiple touchdown tosses — a fifth straight would make him the first in NFL history to accomplish that feat. Currently, he’s in a class with Lamar Jackson, Cam Newton, Randall Cunningham, and Mitch Trubisky as the players to have done it in four straight.
Every fun stat thas an outlier — shoutout to all the Mitch Trubisky fans who are out there!
Daniels is everything we wanted Robert Griffin III to be, and there’s no reason to think that this train will get knocked off the tracks any time soon.
Brian Robinson Jr., RB
Brian Robinson Jr.’s lack of involvement in the passing game has been one of the storylines that only bothers fantasy managers, but we’ve seen signs of life lately (five catches over the past two games after tallying four in his previous six games).
We feel good about him getting the work near the goal line if Washington finds themselves in such a spot, so adding even just 3-4 targets per game would elevate him from low-end RB2 to weekly asset.
With the Commanders’ offense clicking (98 points over the past three games), I think you’re getting quality exposure wherever you can – Robinson qualifies as such.
Terry McLaurin, WR
What a difference a QB makes. Terry McLaurin’s on-field target share this season (20.7%) is essentially identical to last season (20.6%), but his production relative to the expectation of those looks has spiked from -4% to +44.3%).
With the Commanders rediscovering their potent form from earlier this season, you’re blessed with the opportunity to click McLaurin into your lineup. I think his lasting impact from this season will have nothing to do with him — it’ll be in fantasy managers attempting to unearth the next uber-talent who is a QB away from elite status.
Malik Nabers is going to be the layup answer, and that doesn’t make it wrong. That said, it doesn’t have to be a player with a rookie QB. Rome Odunze could check this box. Could Jerry Jeudy make a jump like this? Maybe Josh Downs?
Zach Ertz, TE
Concussion protocol had Zach Ertz labeled as iffy last week and him being inactive would have saved us all. Instead, the veteran suited up and played a full role, giving us just a single catch (36 routes) in the exciting win over the Eagles.
Ertz ended November with three straight games of 7+ targets, which suckered me into thinking he was ready to emerge as the secondary pass-catching option in this offense behind Terry McLaurin, but that dream appears dead at this point.
That’s now back-to-back-to-back-to-back games in which his yardage total has regressed, a trend that is too strong to overlook for average scoring equity.
I’m confident that the Commanders will be able to score, and it might well come through the air against a defense that allows the league’s highest red zone completion percentage. However, pinning down where Jayden Daniels is going to distribute the ball has proven to be a fool’s errand (eight different Washington players have a touchdown reception this season).
