The Week 16 NFL DFS Yahoo main slate begins Sunday at 1 p.m. EST and features 11 games. All of the byes for the 2025 season have wrapped up, but teams playing on Thursday Night Football (Rams-Seahawks), Saturday (Eagles-Commanders and Packers-Bears), Sunday Night Football (Patriots-Ravens) and Monday Night Football (49ers-Colts) are excluded from the main slate.
Playing in guaranteed prize pool (GPP) Yahoo DFS football contests is about chasing upside, while lineups geared toward head-to-head, 50/50 or double-up formats should prioritize high floors. The players you want to target for these different contest types aren't mutually exclusive, but winning a GPP tournament usually requires finding a hidden gem or going against the grain in a spot or two while building a solid base of the same chalk plays you would use anywhere. Against-the-grain plays typically consist of big-name players in tough matchups or boom-or-bust types with uncertain roles.
Keep in mind that Yahoo DFS football contests use 0.5 PPR scoring rather than full PPR, which lowers the comparative value of wide receivers and running backs (in that order) while especially affecting high-volume pass-catchers. NFL DFS Yahoo lineups consist of one QB, two RBs, three WRs, one TE, one FLEX (RB/WR/TE) and one D/ST unit. Suggested Yahoo DFS picks for Week 16 include a QB-WR stack facing a vulnerable secondary, as well as a pair of physical veteran WRs looking to power their respective teams' playoff pushes.
QUARTERBACK
Justin Herbert, LAC at DAL ($34): Herbert has been effective as both a passer and rusher this season, as he's tied for fifth in the NFL entering Week 16 with 23 touchdown passes and has produced at least 57 rushing yards three times this season. With seven more expensive QBs on the Week 16 NFL DFS Yahoo main slate, Herbert's a strong value play in what promises to be a high-scoring showdown in Dallas against a Cowboys defense that has allowed the most passing yards (3,793), passing TDs (31) and rushing TDs (seven) to QBs, as well as the fifth-most rushing yards to the position (314). Only Steelers-Lions (52 points) has a higher over/under than Chargers-Cowboys (49.5) among games in the main slate.
Honorable Mentions: Jared Goff, DET vs. PIT ($38); Aaron Rodgers, PIT at DET ($28); Kirk Cousins, ATL at ARI ($26)
Against the Grainers: Jaxson Dart, NYG vs. MIN ($33); Tyler Shough, NO vs. NYJ ($29); Gardner Minshew, KC at TEN ($21)
RUNNING BACK
Chase Brown, CIN at MIA ($32): Brown's slow start makes his campaign look much less impressive overall, but he has consistently delivered upper-echelon production in recent weeks, producing at least 90 scrimmage yards in seven of the past eight games and scoring twice in the only low-yardage outing during the stretch. His ability to contribute as both a rusher and pass catcher keeps Brown involved regardless of game flow, and the Bengals could get the benefit of more stops than usual from their beleaguered defense against a Dolphins team that will be giving rookie seventh-round QB Quinn Ewers his first NFL start. Miami's defense is among the 10 most generous in both rushing and receiving yards allowed per game to RBs, so Brown's poised to pile up another hefty yardage total.
Aaron Jones, MIN at NYG ($18): Jones continues to work ahead of Jordan Mason ($16), but both Vikings RBs will have high ceilings relative to their modest prices against the shaky Giants run defense. Only the Bengals have given up more rushing yards to RBs than the Giants, who allow 124 yards per game on the ground to the position. Jones has notched double-digit touches in each of his last seven appearances, and he's another versatile RB who contributes in both rushing and passing situations, while Mason is more of a one-trick pony as a power runner without a multi-catch game since Week 5.
Honorable Mentions: Bijan Robinson, ATL at ARI ($43); Omarion Hampton, LAC at DAL ($23); Michael Carter, ARI vs. ATL ($14)
Against the Grainers: Tony Pollard, TEN vs. KC ($28); Breece Hall, NYJ at NO ($27); Audric Estime, NO vs. NYJ ($10)
WIDE RECEIVER
Mike Evans, TB at CAR ($29): Evans looked like he didn't miss a beat in his first action in nearly two months, leading the Buccaneers with 132 receiving yards on 12 targets in Tampa Bay's Week 15 loss to Atlanta. He spent the first three weeks of the season at $33 before his injury woes began, so the buy-low window is still open on the veteran WR, who will come up short of 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his 12-year career. Evans had 16 catches for 215 yards and three TDs in two meetings with the Panthers last season, and he has failed to reach 96 yards in only one of six games between these NFC South rivals since the start of the 2022 season.
DK Metcalf, PIT at DET ($27): Metcalf has heated back up as Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers has gotten healthier, as they have linked up for 203 yards and a touchdown over the past two games. The top option in Pittsburgh's passing game has a nice opportunity to keep rolling against a Lions defense that has allowed the most receiving yards (2,408) and second-most receiving TDs (20) to WRs, trailing only the 24 receiving scores Dallas has surrendered to wideouts. Metcalf has accounted for more than half of the receiving yards and total TDs among Pittsburgh's wide receivers in 2025.
Ladd McConkey, LAC at DAL ($24): McConkey has been far less consistent in 2025 after topping 50 receiving yards in his last 10 appearances as a rookie in 2024, but he's well positioned for a bounce-back performance against the league-worst Dallas secondary. He has failed to break 40 receiving yards in any of the past four games, but McConkey preceded this stretch with 418 yards and three TDs over a five-game span, and he still holds the leading receiving total (715 yards) in the Chargers' diversified passing attack. McConkey's a riskier pick than his QB Herbert, but the two have the potential to combine for a highly effective Week 16 stack.
Honorable Mentions: Chris Olave, NO vs. NYJ ($34); Jameson Williams, DET vs. PIT ($33); Michael Wilson, ARI vs. ATL ($29)
Against the Grainers: Justin Jefferson, MIN at NYG ($23); Troy Franklin, DEN vs. JAC ($19); Xavier Worthy, KC at TEN ($17)
TIGHT END
Kyle Pitts, ATL at ARI ($21): Pitts has stepped up in the past three games, looking like the mismatch of a TE the Falcons and fantasy managers envisioned when he was drafted fourth overall in 2021. Working as the top pass catcher in a Falcons offense without WR Drake London (knee), Pitts has accumulated 24 catches for 338 yards and three TDs in the last three games, including one of the best fantasy performances in the history of the TE position (11 catches for 166 yards and three TDs) in the Week 15 win over the Buccaneers. Even if London comes back, Pitts should continue to feast against a weak Arizona defense that has allowed 40-plus points four times during their current six-game losing streak. Arizona's among the 10 most generous defenses in terms of catches, yards and TDs allowed to TEs.
Honorable Mentions: Travis Kelce, KC at TEN ($19); Juwan Johnson, NO vs. NYJ ($16); T.J. Hockenson, MIN at NYG ($14)
Against the Grainers: Dalton Schultz, HOU vs. LV ($18); Darren Waller, MIA vs. CIN ($17); Brenton Strange, JAC at DEN ($13)
DEFENSE
Buffalo Bills at CLE ($16): Shedeur Sanders has had his moments, but a Browns offense filled with rookies lacks talent and experience. Those flaws were evident in Cleveland's 31-3 loss to the Bears in Week 16, during which Chicago's defense accumulated a season-high 18.0 fantasy points. Two weeks prior, the 49ers' defense held the Browns to eight points and scored 11.0 fantasy points. Buffalo's defense has feasted in favorable matchups, producing at least 10.0 fantasy points on four occasions, and another productive outing is likely here as both offenses battle freezing temperatures in Cleveland.
Honorable Mentions: Houston Texans vs. LV ($20); New Orleans Saints vs. NYJ ($15); Kansas City Chiefs at TEN ($11)
Against the Grainers: Pittsburgh Steelers at DET ($14); Minnesota Vikings at NYG ($12); Cincinnati Bengals at MIA ($11)
