The Arizona Cardinals will face the Los Angeles Rams 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 Trey McBride.
Is Trey McBride Playing in Week 17?
McBride 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 Cardinals’ 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 Trey McBride in Week 17?
Nobody is perfect. Once a month, we get duds from McBride, and that’s simply the price of doing business.
- Week 3 vs. Detroit Lions: Three catches for 25 yards
- Week 9 vs. Chicago Bears: Three catches for 35 yards
- Week 16 at Carolina Panthers: Three catches for 20 yards
There’s nothing in McBride’s profile to sweat, and he remains one of the best in the game. In the Week 2 meeting with the Rams, he hauled in all six of his targets for 67 yards.
That’s on par with what you should expect, and maybe Regression Claus can come to town with a score. McBride is going to be a lineup staple for years to come and will be on the shortlist for TE1 honors this summer in terms of ADP.
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.
Trey McBride’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 17
As of Saturday, McBride is projected to score 15.5 fantasy points in PPR formats. This includes 7 receptions for 71.8 yards and 0.1 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 Rams' Defense
The Rams' defense will almost certainly finish the season as a bottom-10 unit. The slow start, coupled with the disastrous Week 14 showing against Buffalo, serves as a massive anchor on the overall season numbers.
However, the Rams had a solid 75.8 (C) grade and have now posted top-10 weekly finishes in consecutive weeks and three of the last four games. The run defense excelled against the Jets, averaging its second-highest EPA per play of the season (0.29). Since Week 9, the Rams rank 12th in EPA per rush allowed, a huge jump from their 26th-place ranking from Weeks 1-8.
The pass defense is still a question mark, as only the Bills rank lower in EPA per dropback or pass success rate among current playoff teams. That probably limits LA's playoff upside, particularly given the inconsistent game-to-game performance from the passing offense.
For more insight on all other team defenses, head to our PFN Defense+ Metric Analysis.
Trey McBride’s 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)
Cardinals at Rams Trends and Insights
Arizona Cardinals
Team: Arizona is 4-15 and has been outscored by 152 points (492-340) in their past 19 road games.
QB: Kyler Murray doesn’t have more touchdown passes than interceptions in a game since doing so against the Jets in Week 10 (Arizona has lost four of five games over that stretch).
Offense: James Conner has consecutive games with a 40+ yard carry – he had one such run in his career with the Cardinals prior (794 rush attempts).
Defense: The Cardinals allowed the Panthers to average 3.0 points per drive on Sunday – Arizona falls to 1-6 this season when allowing at least 2.0 points per drive.
Fantasy: Conner is the first RB aged 29 or older with 100 rush yards, a rush TD, and 25 receiving yards in consecutive games since Latavius Murray (2019) – he joined this list in the first half last week against the Panthers.
Betting: Since the start of 2022, overs are 4-0 when the Cardinals play on extended rest (1-0 this season: 28-27 win over the Dolphins with a game that closed with a 46.5-point total).
Los Angeles Rams
Team: The Rams have won eight of 10 games after a 1-4 start, but they’ve only outscored their opponents by 27 points during that run (235-20)
QB: Matthew Stafford has thrown one touchdown pass on 46 attempts over his past two games (one TD toss every 11.7 attempts over his four games prior).
Offense: Los Angeles has won four straight games, but they’ve been walking on thin ice over their past two by converting just two of their eight red zone trips into TDs.
Defense: Opponents have converted just eight-of-18 red zone trips into touchdowns against the Rams over their past six games.
Fantasy: Kyren Williams has a league-high 15 games with 20+ carries since the beginning of last season.
Betting: The Rams have covered seven consecutive short rest games (average cover margin: 11.4 PPG).