The New England Patriots will face the Los Angeles Chargers 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 TE Hunter Henry.
Is Hunter Henry Playing in Week 17?
Henry is not listed on the injury report this week, so barring any unexpected setbacks, he is on track to play this weekend.
We’ll continue to monitor the Patriots’ 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 Hunter Henry in Week 17?
It would appear that we have found the best way to utilize Drake Maye’s upside. Is it a little late? Sure, but better late than never, and Henry might be able to put you over the edge as you battle for supremacy in your league.
Last week, he posted his sixth top-10 finish at the position, partly because Maye acted as if he had Henry rostered on his fantasy team (four end zone targets). The usage in close has been there when New England has gotten the opportunity to score, and while that’s encouraging, that’s not all he offers.
Henry offers plus athleticism and has been trusted with vertical shots this year. He’s cleared 50 air yards in four of his past five games, something that gives him the potential to pay off your trust even if you’re skeptical about an offense that enters this week with a sub-20 point projection.
You’re going to have to deal with the confusion on whether it is Austin Hooper (3+ catches in six straight games) or Henry making plays while you’re watching, but this offense pretty clearly wants to feature its chain-moving tight ends; Henry has been on the right side of that committee often enough for me to consider him a viable low-end TE1 this week, even in a tough matchup.
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.
Hunter Henry’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 17
As of Saturday, Henry is projected to score 9.1 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 3.4 receptions for 37.7 yards and 0.3 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 Chargers' Defense
After some rough games against better competition, Week 16 appeared to be more of the same for the Chargers' defense. Denver scored touchdowns on each of its first three drives, a week after Los Angeles failed to force a punt vs. Tampa Bay.
At one point, LA was on a streak of 15 straight drives without forcing a punt, the longest by any defense all season. However, they bounced back with one of its best halves of the season, though their 67.2 grade (D+) was still their third-worst of the season.
Breaking it down by half, the Chargers had the worst Defense+ grade of any unit in the first half in Week 16 but the sixth-best in the second half.
The Chargers' biggest concern remains a faltering pass defense, which recovered after a horrid start vs. the Broncos. But since Week 11, Los Angeles ranks 26th in defensive EPA per dropback (-0.17) after ranking second from Weeks 1-10 (0.10).
Regardless, the arrival of Jim Harbaugh and Jesse Minter from Michigan has had an instant impact on the LA's defense. Los Angeles has ranked in the top five for most of the season, a massive improvement from a unit that never ranked higher than 24th under Brandon Staley.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Hunter Henry’s Week 17 Fantasy Ranking
Our Weekly Consensus PPR Rankings are below — both positional and overall. They were last updated at 3:45 PM ET on Saturday, December 28. If you're in a Superflex league, make sure you check out our Weekly Consensus Superflex Rankings.
Week 17 TE PPR Rankings
1) Brock Bowers | LV (at NO)
2) Trey McBride | ARI (at LAR)
3) George Kittle | SF (vs. DET)
4) Jonnu Smith | MIA (at CLE)
5) Sam LaPorta | DET (at SF)
6) Mark Andrews | BAL (at HOU)
7) Travis Kelce | KC (at PIT)
8) T.J. Hockenson | MIN (vs. GB)
9) Dalton Schultz | HOU (vs. BAL)
10) Pat Freiermuth | PIT (vs. KC)
11) Chigoziem Okonkwo | TEN (at JAX)
12) Tucker Kraft | GB (at MIN)
13) Dalton Kincaid | BUF (vs. NYJ)
14) Brenton Strange | JAX (vs. TEN)
15) Jake Ferguson | DAL (at PHI)
16) Hunter Henry | NE (vs. LAC)
17) Juwan Johnson | NO (vs. LV)
18) Stone Smartt | LAC (at NE)
19) Zach Ertz | WAS (vs. ATL)
20) Kyle Pitts | ATL (at WAS)
21) Mike Gesicki | CIN (vs. DEN)
22) Will Dissly | LAC (at NE)
23) Noah Gray | KC (at PIT)
24) Isaiah Likely | BAL (at HOU)
25) Grant Calcaterra | PHI (vs. DAL)
26) Cole Kmet | CHI (vs. SEA)
27) Austin Hooper | NE (vs. LAC)
28) Noah Fant | SEA (at CHI)
29) Ja'Tavion Sanders | CAR (at TB)
30) Foster Moreau | NO (vs. LV)
31) Tyler Higbee | LAR (vs. ARI)
32) Michael Mayer | LV (at NO)
33) Tommy Tremble | CAR (at TB)
34) Daniel Bellinger | NYG (vs. IND)
35) Dawson Knox | BUF (vs. NYJ)
36) Payne Durham | TB (vs. CAR)
37) Tyler Conklin | NYJ (at BUF)
38) Jordan Akins | CLE (vs. MIA)
Chargers at Patriots Trends and Insights
Los Angeles Chargers
Team: Thursday’s win was the second time in 32 days in which the Chargers won a game in which they allowed 27+ points and lost the turnover battle – the other 31 teams had done it five times up to that point.
QB: Justin Herbert’s aggression seems to be fading. After posting a 10.1-yard average depth of throw against the Chiefs in Week 14 (his fourth double-digit effort of the season), his rate checked in at 8.2 yards in Week 15 against the Buccaneers and 6.8 in Thursday's win over the Broncos.
Offense: Los Angeles averaged a season-high 3.1 points per possession on Thursday night, punting on just 27.3% of their possessions (their fourth game this season with a sub-30% punt rate).
Defense: The Chargers eventually forced a punt after failing to do so on 16 straight drives—that’s the longest streak this season and one shy of matching the longest in franchise history.
Fantasy: Gus Edwards ran 14 times for 68 yards (43 on a single carry) and two touchdowns on Thursday night – that was the sixth instance in which a running back had two rushing touchdowns on under 15 carries since the beginning of November – teammate J.K. Dobbins was responsible for two of the other five.
Betting: Unders are 7-3 in Los Angeles’ past 10 games played on extended rest.
New England Patriots
Team: New England is in the midst of their second five-game losing streak of the season – from 2010-17, they didn’t lose five games in a single regular season.
QB: Drake Maye has completed 15-of-17 third-down passes over his past three games (88.2%)
Offense: The Patriots scored on 30% of their drives against the Bills on Sunday, matching their highest mark of the season.
Defense: New England’s defense came to play on Sunday, holding the Bills to just four-of-11 on third down (in their two games prior, they allowed a 57.7% conversion rate).
Fantasy: On his 238 touches this season, Rhamondre Stevenson has as many fumbles as rushing touchdowns (seven) and as many fumbles lost as touches gaining 30+ yards (three).
Betting: Home underdogs on short rest have covered just seven of their past 24 games.