A wacky way to finish the regular season

It is said in many fantasy football circles that Week 17 should not be a thing. Teams that have already locked up a playoff spot will likely rest their starters for part of or the whole game.

Seeing as how these are the players that you actually drafted, this really throws off the entire concept of drafting the best players. Of course, there are some teams that are still on the playoff cusp and will be fighting tooth and nail to secure a spot. Other teams, like the Panthers and Broncos are in the postseason , but are merely playing for playoff seeding. They must walk the fine line between winning the game, but also keeping their players healthy for their Super Bowl aspirations. And there are other games being played by teams such as the Cowboys, Titans, and Browns in which the worst thing they can do is to win and damage their great draft position. In short, Week 17 is kind of wacky. Throw in the firing of Chip Kelly, and things can go to a whole new level of weirdness.

I never really thought about it until this season, but I am now a firm believer in this position. One of my leagues actually ended play last week and I found it much more enjoyable. Of course, an argument could be made that navigating the intricacies and difficulties of Week 17 really reveals who is the better fantasy manager, but I no longer support that.

So all that being said, it’s worth discussing with your league buddies over the offseason whether or not your league should be playing football in Week 17 or maybe just enjoying the games for what they are. But you wouldn’t be reading this unless you had a game to play, so let’s get to it.

The Chip Kelly Effect: In a rather unsurprising move, the Eagles fired coach/GM Chip Kelly brining the Chip Kelly Experiment to an unceremonious end. The Eagles have no shot at making the playoffs and their team is in a rather strange position. Philly will likely make some major changes in the offseason to return to a more traditional roster and scheme, but for now, they’re stuck with the players they have. No one can really predict how Philly’s interim guy (Pat Shurmur) will coach , but I’d expect quarterback Sam Bradford to play his hardest. His NFL career is probably on the line. The Cowboys defense is no pushover but beatable. Inversely, I would doubt the Eagles would risk having players that they have invested heavily in (Demarco Murray) get hurt, and they’ll likely examine some younger players and other guys that are on the roster bubble. Tread lightly while playing any Eagles this week.

Ryan Fitzpatrick (QB, NYJ): The Jets are one of the aforementioned teams that have everything to play for this week. Win, and they are in the playoffs. They get to play the Bills sans-Stephon Gilmore, a unit that has struggled mightily without the former South Pointe star. Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall have been playing consistently very well, making Fitzmagic a great play at QB if you are in a bind.

Teddy Bridgewater (QB, MIN): The Vikes also have something to play against Green Bay. The winner takes the NFC North crown and will host a playoff game. But the Vikes also want to save Adrian Peterson for the playoffs. This will likely translate into lots of passes and a shift in workload to Jerrick McKinnon.

Jerrick Mckinnon (RB, MIN): As mentioned above, the Vikings will likely try to save Peterson as much as possible for the postseason while still winning. Look for McKinnon to get 10-plus carries.

Bilal Powell (RB, NYJ): The Jets are still very much alive and they need to beat out the Bills for a playoff spot. Powell has been outplaying Chris Ivory as of late, especially in the passing game. Powell should be due for another good day in case you are in a dire need at RB.

Cameron Artis Payne (RB, CAR): Jonathan Stewart may return this week, but I doubt it would be for anything more than to ice the game against the Bucs and to get him back into the swing of things before the playoffs after missing the past two games. The Panthers are going to need CAP to get better for a Super Bowl run. They will likely use this game to get him some much-needed experience against a beatable Bucs defense.

Terrance Williams (WR, DAL): Dez Bryant has now been placed on WR. While the Cowboys offense doesn’t exactly strike fear into anyone without Dez, who else is Kellen Moore going to throw to?

This story was originally published December 30, 2015 at 5:58 PM with the headline "A wacky way to finish the regular season."