The Dallas Cowboys will face the Philadelphia Eagles 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 QB Cooper Rush.
Is Cooper Rush Playing in Week 17?
Rush is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Cowboys’ 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 Cooper Rush in Week 17?
Brandon Aubrey has made more 55+ yard field goals this season (six) than the Cowboys have made 55+ yard plays during the regular season since the start of 2023 (five).
Things aren’t great in Dallas these days, but Cooper Rush does have 290 passing yards or multiple touchdown tosses in four of his past five games. Like half a dozen quarterbacks that will be gracing NFL fields this week, his value is not what we are worried about as much as it is his ability to get his top option involved.
Mission accomplished up to this point.
The Eagles’ defense is elite, and Rush isn’t likely to finish the week with top-15 or even top-20 numbers (Week 10 in this spot: 23 passes for 45 yards with zero touchdowns and zero interceptions). But if he can get CeeDee Lamb his required 10 looks, the fantasy community will give Rush a nice firm handshake and nod.
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.
Cooper Rush’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 17
As of Sunday morning, Rush is projected to score 13 fantasy points in Week 17. This includes 225 passing yards, 1.2 passing touchdowns, and 0.8 interceptions. It also includes 4.5 rushing attempts for -0.3 yards and 0 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 Eagles' Defense
The Philadelphia Eagles remain the second-ranked defense despite collapsing at the end of the Week 16 loss to the Washington Commanders, which snapped their franchise-record 10-game win streak. But while the ending was disappointing, the Eagles' overall performance continued some encouraging trends.
The Eagles had their best defensive EPA per rush (0.74) all season, thanks to forcing two fumbles on Brian Robinson Jr. Philadelphia leads the league in defensive EPA per rush (0.18) for the season while still ranking third in pass success rate.
However, Sunday was not the pass defense's best day, with the Eagles recording -0.31 EPA per dropback. That was their second-worst performance all season, which nullified the unit producing its highest takeaway rate (38.5%) in any game as well.
C.J. Gardner-Johnson's mid-game ejection hurt the defense tremendously. Following the safety's ejection early in the third quarter, the Eagles averaged a horrendous -0.64 EPA per dropback. Philly had been treading water with -0.11 EPA per dropback prior to his departure.
The good news is that circumstance won't have any residual effect on the defense beyond Sunday, though it doesn't speak well to the safety depth. With upcoming matchups against backup quarterbacks for the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants, Philadelphia's defense is still well-positioned for a strong finish to the regular season.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Cooper Rush’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 QB PPR Rankings
1) Josh Allen | BUF (vs. NYJ)
2) Lamar Jackson | BAL (at HOU)
3) Joe Burrow | CIN (vs. DEN)
4) Jayden Daniels | WAS (vs. ATL)
5) Baker Mayfield | TB (vs. CAR)
6) Sam Darnold | MIN (vs. GB)
7) Kyler Murray | ARI (at LAR)
8) Jordan Love | GB (at MIN)
9) Bo Nix | DEN (at CIN)
10) Jared Goff | DET (at SF)
11) Brock Purdy | SF (vs. DET)
12) Tua Tagovailoa | MIA (at CLE)
13) Matthew Stafford | LAR (vs. ARI)
14) C.J. Stroud | HOU (vs. BAL)
15) Justin Herbert | LAC (at NE)
16) Patrick Mahomes | KC (at PIT)
17) Caleb Williams | CHI (vs. SEA)
18) Aaron Rodgers | NYJ (at BUF)
19) Geno Smith | SEA (at CHI)
20) Bryce Young | CAR (at TB)
21) Cooper Rush | DAL (at PHI)
22) Joe Flacco | IND (at NYG)
23) Russell Wilson | PIT (vs. KC)
24) Michael Penix Jr. | ATL (at WAS)
25) Drake Maye | NE (vs. LAC)
26) Aidan O'Connell | LV (at NO)
27) Tyler Huntley | MIA (at CLE)
28) Mac Jones | JAX (vs. TEN)
29) Kenny Pickett | PHI (vs. DAL)
30) Mason Rudolph | TEN (at JAX)
31) Drew Lock | NYG (vs. IND)
32) Spencer Rattler | NO (vs. LV)
33) Dorian Thompson-Robinson | CLE (vs. MIA)
Cowboys at Eagles Trends and Insights
Dallas Cowboys
Team: The Cowboys are 10-3 in their last 13 regular season games played on or after November 19 (they are 9-10 otherwise).
QB: The Cooper Rush experience may not be perfect, but the numbers don’t lie -- in 2024, the splits by starting QB:
- Win%: Rush (57.1%), Dak Prescott (37.5%)
- Non-TO%: Rush (87.8%), Prescott (85.1%)
- Red Zone TD%: Rush (55%), Prescott (45.5%)
Offense: Dallas has scored on at least half of their drives in consecutive games after having one such performance this year prior.
Defense: Opponents have scored a touchdown against Dallas on 26-of-29 goal-to-go trips this season and are a perfect 13-of-13 since Week 9 in such situations.
Fantasy: Brandon Aubrey has more 55+ yard made field goals this season (six) than the Cowboys have 55+ yard plays during the regular season since the start of 2023 (five).
Betting: Over tickets have cashed in four of Dallas’ past five road covers
Philadelphia Eagles
Team: Can they get lucky win #13 this week? This franchise has hit that total three times, and they’ve won the NFC in each instance (2004, 2017, and 2022)
QB: Philadelphia’s one-seed shots took a huge shot on Sunday – none of the QBs on the three favorites in the NFC have a greater drop in QB+ from home to road than Jalen Hurts.
Offense: Philadelphia was just three-of-16 on third down against Washington (18.8%), their second-worst rate of the season.
Defense: The Eagles forced a turnover on 38.5% of Commander drives last week and found a way to lose. In their first seven games this season with a double-digit forced turnover percentage, Philadelphia was 7-0 and had outscored their opponents by 93 points.
Fantasy: Saquon Barkley ran for 109 yards in the first quarter against the Commanders on Sunday, giving him the most in a first quarter since 2011. Who did he unseat? Saquon Barkley in 2019 – against the Commanders – on December 22 (2019).
Betting: Overs are 8-3 in Philadelphia’s past 11 home divisional games.