Week 15 of the 2025 fantasy football season featured standout performances by TreVeyon Henderson, Trevor Lawrence and Trey McBride while Joe Burrow, Quinshon Judkins and Ladd McConkey disappointed.
Who were the big winners and losers around the league?
Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analyses.
Jump to a topic:
Ranking winners | Ranking losers
Biggest injuries and what's next
Ranking fantasy winners of Week 15
1. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots: It's eerie how similar this and his Week 10 game were. Henderson scored 30.1 fantasy points, had a pair of 50-plus yard touchdowns on which he was clocked at faster than 20 mph on each, per Next Gen Stats, and ran for 105 more yards than expected Sunday. In Week 10, he scored 28.0 fantasy points, had a pair of 50-plus yard, 20-plus mph touchdowns, and ran for 93 more yards than expected. Henderson continues to show traits of a prospective superstar, and though he'll be a fantasy RB2 for Week 16 against the Baltimore Ravens, he'll bring even greater upside to his two matchups after that (@NYJ, MIA). -- Cockcroft
2. Trevor Lawrence, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Heating up significantly over the past month, Lawrence on Sunday obliterated his previous career-best performance, tearing apart a terrible New York Jets defense for 44.30 fantasy points. He completed five touchdown passes, three of them at least 10 yards downfield, and even ran for a 15-yard score in the first quarter. With the effort, Lawrence has a position-leading 102.46 points over the past four weeks, and he's now seventh at the position in scoring for the season (260.60). Still, he has one of his toughest matchups all season in Week 16 (@DEN), which will keep him outside the top 10 in the positional rankings. -- Cockcroft
Tristan H. Cockcroft explains why Trevor Lawrence is outside the top 10 of his fantasy quarterbacks for Week 16 despite a stellar game vs. the Jets.
3. Kyle Pitts Sr., TE, Atlanta Falcons: In a "Thursday Night Football" 29-28 comeback shocker, Pitts carried the Falcons on his way to 45.6 fantasy points, the fifth-most points by a tight end since 1960. It gave his managers who started him in 46.3% of ESPN leagues a comfy cushion to begin their matchups. Pitts has now scored at least 15 points in each of his past three games while working with Kirk Cousins, and his 29.0% target share during that time span makes him seem much more like a weekly fantasy playoffs starter rather than the inconsistent player he has been over his five NFL seasons. He'll next face the Arizona Cardinals. -- Cockcroft
4. Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR, Detroit Lions: Would you believe that his 41.4 fantasy points set a new personal best? It's hard to fathom, considering how productive St. Brown has been in his five NFL seasons, but he can now claim two of his best single-game scores this year (his 39.2 in Week 2 was his third best). He has six games of 30-plus points since the beginning of 2023, tied for second and behind only Ja'Marr Chase (7). It's a great sign that St. Brown's ankle injury is completely behind him, and he's a clear fantasy WR1 for Week 16 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. -- Cockcroft
5. Trey McBride, TE, Arizona Cardinals: McBride had a season-high 37.4 points Sunday, and he did that against the Texans' top-tier defense. McBride caught 12 of 13 targets, finishing with 134 yards and two touchdowns. It's the route running, the matchup ability and the coverage awareness with McBride. He's also the best tight end in the league on the tape. Lock him in as the overall TE1 for the rest of the fantasy playoffs with matchups against the Falcons in Week 16 and the Bengals in Week 17. -- Bowen
6. Travis Etienne Jr., RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: He scored a season-high 31.5 fantasy points, fewer than five shy of his career best (36.4, in Week 5 of 2023), with the most remarkable takeaway that he scored three receiving touchdowns to double his career total. Etienne continues to be a force for the surging Jaguars, even if his yards-per-carry rates have been uninspiring of late. He'll have his work cut out for him in Week 16 against the Denver Broncos, but he warrants fantasy RB2 status regardless. -- Cockcroft
7. James Cook III, RB, Buffalo Bills: Cook's 31.5 points in Sunday's comeback win over the Patriots are his most since Week 8 against Carolina (33.6). Cook scored three touchdowns in Foxborough, and he played a volume role again, finishing with 111 total yards on 24 touches. Cook has now had 20 or more touches in four straight games, and the fading Browns' run defense is on tap in Week 16. You can play Cook as a fringe RB1 for that matchup. -- Bowen
Eric Moody places James Cook firmly on the RB1 radar for his matchup in Week 16 vs. the Browns.
8. Bo Nix, QB, Denver Broncos: Nix had 29.08 points in the Week 15 win over Green Bay, his second highest total of the season. Nix completed 24 of 32 passes for 302 yards -- and four touchdowns. He was dealing. One of the best games I've seen Nix play this season. Rhythm throws to multiple levels of the field. And he did it against a really good Packers defense. Nix will be a mid-tier QB1 for the Week 16 matchup with the Jags. --Bowen
9. Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Evans, who had been sidelined since Week 7 (collarbone), scored a season-high 19.2 points in his return Thursday night against the Falcons. Evans worked multiple levels of the route tree, catching six of a team-high 12 targets for 132 yards. We saw the timing throws from Baker Mayfield on the out cuts, plus Evans was the deep ball target, bringing in three passes for 20 or more yards. With Evans back in the mix as Mayfield's top option, he'll be a fringe WR1 for the Week 16 road matchup at Carolina. -- Bowen
10. Dallas Goedert, TE, Philadelphia Eagles: Goedert scored 25.0 points in the Week 15 win over a bad Raiders team, catching six of seven targets for 70 yards, plus he added two touchdowns. Yes, Goedert did have a drop on a throw to the flat in the low red zone, but he was deployed creatively in scoring position Sunday. Goedert caught one touchdown on a shovel pass from Jalen Hurts, and he found the end zone again off a fly sweep push pass. Goedert gets the Washington defense in Week 16, which will keep him in the lower tier TE1 ranks. -- Bowen
Eric Karabell reacts to Dallas Goedert's big fantasy game vs. the Raiders.
Ranking fantasy losers of Week 15
1. Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals: Did you start Burrow in the fantasy playoffs? I did. And the 5.5 points he put up in Sunday's loss to the Ravens are probably going to bury my squad for the year. Rough. Burrow was sacked three times and he threw two picks, with one going back the other way for six points. Burrow has now thrown multiple interceptions in consecutive games, and he will slide down in my ranks as a lower-tier QB1 for the Week 16 matchup in Miami. -- Bowen
2. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Cleveland Browns: Negative game flow did affect Judkins' opportunities in the Week 15 blowout loss to the Bears. I get that. And Cleveland turned the ball over three times in the pass game. But Judkins (4.7 points) was still very inefficient when he did get touches, rushing for only 21 yards on 12 carries (1.8 YPC), while he finished with minus-4 yards receiving on three grabs. Bad football overall from Cleveland. Judkins will look to rebound in Week 16 against a Bills defense that just gave up 246 yards rushing to the Patriots on Sunday. -- Bowen
3. Ladd McConkey, WR, Los Angeles Chargers: With Quentin Johnston sidelined, one might've expected McConkey to rise to the occasion despite the challenging Kansas City Chiefs matchup. Unfortunately, McConkey scored only 4.0 fantasy points on three targets, struggling particularly in man coverage (one catch on two targets on 15 routes). It's the second straight week he has been held in check by a tough matchup, though a Week 16 assignment against the Dallas Cowboys should provide him a soft landing spot. -- Cockcroft
4. Jahmyr Gibbs, RB, Detroit Lions: In the loss to the Rams, Gibbs was held to just 9.8 points, his first game under 10 points since Week 9. Gibbs struggled to find daylight here, rushing for 38 yards on 13 carries (2.9 YPC), and he totaled 20 yards in the pass game on four receptions. The matchup mattered in this one, and that Rams defensive front is for real. There's a reason they rank as the top defense in the league versus opposing running backs. Gibbs would look to rebound in Week 16 with a home game against the Steelers. -- Bowen
5. Christian McCaffrey, RB, San Francisco 49ers: Considering he was a last-minute addition to the injury report on Saturday due to a back issue, raising concerns amongst his fantasy managers that he might not play in the 49ers' late-afternoon game against the Tennessee Titans, perhaps his 15.7 fantasy points aren't that bad an output. Still, we need points at this critical time of year, and he did play 83% of the offensive snaps while totaling 23 touches, which is very much a full-time role for him. McCaffrey should rebound in Week 16 against the Indianapolis Colts, with another week to rest the back and further recover from the illness he had mid-week. -- Cockcroft
6. Mark Andrews, TE; Isaiah Likely, TE, Baltimore Ravens: In a prime matchup against the Bengals' defense, I had Andrews ranked in the TE1 range for this one, plus I also saw Likely as an upside play in deeper formats. The Ravens are also a heavy two tight end personnel team. But on a day when Lamar Jackson attempted only 12 passes, Andrews (3.8 points) caught two of three targets for 18 yards, and Likely didn't have a single target. Andrews, who has now scored fewer than 10 points in four straight games, will slide back to the TE2 ranks for the Week 16 matchup against the Patriots, while Likely will remain a deeper league flier. -- Bowen
7. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens: He continues to endure his share of ups and downs, and for the fourth time in his past five games he was held under 15 fantasy points (14.60). Jackson took four sacks and ran twice for 26 yards, but he also had a pair of deep throws to Zay Flowers on the same second-quarter drive, and he wasn't necessarily needed to do much with his legs in a 24-0 victory that was never really close. Unfortunately, it's not enough to ease worries for his fantasy managers looking at what's a pair of tough-as-nails matchups the next two weeks (NE, @GB). Jackson's skill set is going to earn him a start in practically every fantasy league, but he's going to be one of the lower-end QB1s for next week. -- Cockcroft
Injury impact
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs
What we know: Mahomes scored only 13.06 fantasy points in Week 15, the fourth time in the Chiefs' past six games that he scored fewer than 14, and his day ended on a pair of sour notes. His Chiefs were eliminated from postseason contention for the first time in his nine NFL seasons, and he sustained a torn ACL on a rushing play late in the fourth quarter.
What's next: Mahomes will require season-ending surgery, elevating Gardner Minshew into the starting role. Minshew could be a matchups-oriented streamer in superflex leagues against the Tennessee Titans in Week 16. -- Cockcroft
Davante Adams, WR, Los Angeles Rams
What we know: Adams, who was listed as questionable this week due to a hamstring injury, pulled up on a route during the fourth quarter versus the Lions. Adams went to the locker room and did not return. He caught four of nine targets for 71 yards (11.1 points) before re-injuring his hamstring.
What's next: If Adams is down for the Week 16 matchup against the Seahawks on Thursday night, both Jordan Whittington and TuTu Atwell would elevate on the depth chart opposite of Rams No.1 Puka Nacua. -- Bowen
Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers What we know: Watson suffered a chest injury on a deep ball throw versus Denver in the third quarter that was intercepted by Patrick Surtain II. Watson grabbed at his shoulder when he hit the ground, and he was later declared out of the game. Watson had three catches for 29 yards before exiting.
What's next: If Watson is out for the Week 16 game versus the Bears, and potentially beyond, both Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed would see an increase in usage. Reed, who is available in over 50% of ESPN leagues, caught all five of his targets for 55 yards (10.5 points) in Denver, his second game back since injuring his collarbone earlier in the season. -- Bowen
Rome Odunze and Luther Burden III, WRs, Chicago Bears
What we know: Odunze was ruled out shortly before the Sunday kickoff after he aggravated the foot injury that kept him sidelined for Week 14. Burden, who played 39% of the offensive snaps and scored 14.4 fantasy points, left in the third quarter because of an ankle injury.
What's next: Odunze, who has been dealing with a stress fracture in the foot, is week to week. Burden's status for Week 16 wasn't immediately clear. The Bears' wide receiver room would be noticeably limited if neither can play, as the team would have DJ Moore, Olamide Zaccheaus and Devin Duvernay as their top three names on the depth chart. -- Cockcroft
Devin Neal, RB, New Orleans Saints
What we know: Neal injured his hamstring on a touchdown run in the second quarter versus the Panthers, and he did not return to the game. Neal finished with 32 total yards and 10.2 points.
What's next: With Neal now possibly out for the Week 16 matchup versus the Jets, and Alvin Kamara still down with a knee injury, Audric Estime could see his role expand. Estime, who is available in over 98% of ESPN leagues, has three rushes for 11 yards and three receptions for 39 yards in relief of Neal on Sunday. -- Bowen
Bam Knight, RB, Arizona Cardinals
What we know: He got his left ankle caught under a defender as he was tackled for a 2-yard loss in the first quarter, and was ruled out shortly thereafter. Knight finished with minus-0.2 fantasy points, with that being his only touch.
What's next: Michael Carter, Emari Demercado and Corey Kiner handled the rushing chores following Knight's early exit, though the team faced negative game script for much of the day. Carter would presumably handle the majority of the rushing chores, with Demercado backing him up, should Knight be unavailable for Week 16. -- Cockcroft
Woody Marks, RB, Houston Texans
What we know: He suffered an ankle injury on a 4-yard carry midway through the first quarter, and while he was in and out of the game trying to play through it briefly, he exited for good in the second quarter.
What's next: Marks was seen jogging on the sidelines later, so it doesn't appear that his injury is severe. That said, he'll bear watching during the practice week. Jawhar Jordan handled the majority of the rushing work in Marks' absence, with Dare Ogunbowale spelling him at times, which should be the same arrangement if Marks misses Week 16. -- Cockcroft