It’s championship week in most leagues, so there aren’t many roster holes that need to be plugged. There are teams everywhere who rode Adrian Peterson and Drew Brees to the title game, and they aren’t too worried. But there are also teams that got this far on the backs of Russell Wilson, James Jones and Dennis Pitta, and those owners might have some issues. Wilson faces San Francisco next week, and while he’s been on a roll, I wouldn’t want my season’s fate hinging on that matchup. And any team that is relying on Jones or Pitta is likely in trouble.
So here is a quick list of players who might make a difference in your championship game in non-standard leagues.
Two QB Leagues – Terrelle Pryor
By beating up on KC, the Raiders did little other than hurt their own draft pick, but it’s nice to see that they can still win a game. There have been whispers about Pryor getting some snaps for the last month, but not much has come from it. The way I see it, Oakland should at least try to see what they have in Pryor, if only to justify the million fantasy teams named “Pryor Offenses.” They appear to have a favorable matchup against the Panthers next week, and the possibility of a Pryor vs. Newton showdown might actually sell some tickets to this one.
TD Only Leagues – Curtis Brinkley
With Ryan Mathews out for the year, the hottest pickups this week will likely be Jackie Battle and Ronnie Brown. If you are tapped out of FAAB dollars or have a terrible waiver priority and could use a lottery ticket RB, then Brinkley isn’t a bad option against the Jets. Mildly Embarrassing Admission Of The Week: Every time I see Curtis Brinkley’s name (which is more common than it should be), I can only picture Tom Hanks yelling it in this scene.
PPR Leagues – Dexter McCluster
Three straight players from the AFC West and no Broncos? It’s all about the garbage time. McCluster, along with the rest of the Chiefs offense, has had a very inconsistent year. He’s always a threat in the open field, yet Romeo Crennel has an odd aversion to putting the ball in his best players’ hands (Jamaal Charles owners are nodding). With Bowe out for the year, there will be more targets for Dexter, and his Week 16 matchup with Indianapolis should be a good one, so I would say he’s worth flex consideration in PPR leagues.
Return Yardage Leagues – Dwayne Harris
Harris may have been scooped up last week when it sounded like Dez Bryant was out for the year, but it’s looking like Dez will play out the season. In standard leagues, Harris is droppable, but in return yardage leagues he definitely has value. Dallas won’t risk putting Dez back on punt returns, so that leaves all the receiving duties to Harris. He’s also been getting looks in the passing game, and if Bryant does further injure his fingers, Harris would be in line for a starting job.
IDP Leagues – Josh Bynes
If Ray Lewis or Dannell Ellerbe do in fact play next week, then you can go ahead and stop reading right now. At this point they’re still listed as day-to-day, and that makes Bynes the man in Baltimore. The Ravens have been falling apart down the stretch, but there are still stats to be had. In his first start, Bynes put up 11 tackles (9 solo) and that line should be pretty consistent as long as he’s the starter.
