The Buffalo Bills will face off against the New York Jets on Sunday and while most fantasy leagues are done there are still some that play through Week 17 so here’s some fantasy advice for the game.
The Buffalo Bills will end their season traveling to New Jersey to play the New York Jets. This game is meaningless from a playoff standpoint but it’s important for many other reasons. It’s important to newly appointed Bills interim head coach Anthony Lynn. It’s important for EJ Manuel to put his best foot forward if he wants a free agent contract from the Bills or another team this offseason.
It’s important for the guys playing for their spot on the team next year knowing there is usually high turnover on the roster when there are head coaching changes and it’s important if you are one of those few people who play in fantasy football leagues which end this week whether it’s a total points league or a head to head league.
Most people avoid keeping their season open this week because a lot of times the best players can be benched but for those still playing here’s some advice on the Bills and Jets for Week 17.
Quarterbacks:
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The Bills will be starting EJ Manuel for the first time since the infamous game against Jacksonville in London. While he has an intriguing matchup against a terrible Jets secondary he’s not startable if you’re still alive in your league. The same can be said for Ryan Fitzpatrick who will be the Jets quarterback. Fitzpatrick has struggled all year and has thrown just 10 touchdowns to 17 interceptions.
Running Backs:
LeSean McCoy has been one of the best running backs in the league this season. He’s rushed for the fourth most yards in the NFL but the Bills offense is about to change with their switch at quarterback and it will be interesting to see how it affects McCoy. There will be less option running plays that Tyrod Taylor used to use and defenses won’t need to spy Manuel the way they have to Taylor. The increased attention on Shady and a stout Jets defensive line could mean fewer points than average for McCoy this week. Matt Forte and Khiry Robinson were placed on injured reserve this week. Bilal Powell will get the bulk of the carries for the Jets and look for him to have a good week against a Buffalo defense which has shown no capacity to stop the run recently. Both Powell and McCoy are good starts this week.
Wide Receivers:
Last week Bills fans didn’t get the Christmas gift they were wishing for of keeping their playoff hopes alive but they did get to see Sammy Watkins explode with seven receptions for 154 yards and a touchdown. It was great to see Watkins at his peak again. He’ll have a different quarterback this week but he should still have a nice game. The rest of the Bills receivers including Marquise Goodwin and Robert Woods have not been consistent enough this season to start. Brandon Marshall and Quincy Enuwa have both been solid receiving targets for the Jets with just shy of 800 yards each. That’s impressive considering the performance of Jets quarterbacks this season. Marshall and Enuwa only have seven touchdowns combined which is the reason that neither were fantasy beasts this year. Expect both of them to have a good performance against a Buffalo secondary that has a huge hole at safety. I’d favor Marshall over Enuwa since he’s more likely to end up with a touchdown between the two.
Tight Ends:
I called it here last week that Charles Clay would be a good spot start if you were scrambling for a tight end. Clay had his best game of the season with 8 receptions, 85 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Look for him to have another good week against the Jets but with fewer touchdowns than last week. The Jets barely use their tight ends in the passing game and so none of them merit a start.
Defenses:
The Jets came into the season thinking they had one of the best units in the league. Expectations never met reality though and they are the second worst scoring fantasy football defense this season to only the Cleveland Browns. They belong on the bench as Buffalo has a high scoring offense and the NFL’s top rushing attack. The Bills defense is the 15th ranked defense in average points per game. With a favorable matchup against a turnover-prone quarterback they could do well this week. I’d rather stick with a more consistent defense than the Bills but if you have no better options they are not a bad start this week.
Next: Buffalo Bills at New York Jets: Three Keys to the Game
When Buffalo and the Jets face off this week it will be for pride but my guess is you’ll see a lot of men with a lot of pride on that field on Sunday and we could have a nice entertaining divisional matchup as the finale to the season.