RotoExperts: Week 17 Fantasy Rankings

Week 17 brings not only cooler weather as Thanksgiving Day approaches. The first week of October also provides a look into the number of players that have been sidelined by the pitfall of injuries over the course of the previous 16 weeks of the regular season.

TSN CFL Fantasy Football users will see the impact of injuries at the receiver position, which has taken away the significant talents of Kamar Jorden, DaVaris Daniels, Derel Walker, Reggie Begelton, Emmanuel Arceneaux and Naaman Roosevelt. D’haquille Williams ($9,055) may be the next on the list as the league leader in yardage and majors could miss the Thanksgiving Day contest against the Roughriders, a potential body blow for an Eskimos team that has lost four of their last five and is coming off a brutal 30-3 loss against Winnipeg last week.

Ottawa’s Diontae Spencer ($8,450) tops the Week 17 rankings at receiver and is followed by Calgary’s Marken Michel ($6,684), the latest new featured receiver in the Stampeders offence. Williams, who has held the top spot for much of the season, is ranked at a cautious third but could yield to Bryant Mitchell ($5,778) and Kenny Stafford ($4,370) in what will be a must-win affair for Edmonton.

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Kyran Moore moves up the rankings list after his big afternoon performance against the Alouettes on Sunday. (The Canadian Press)

Saskatchewan’s Kyran Moore ($4,548) is one of the receivers who has made the climb up the rankings, as he comes off a huge afternoon against Montreal to enter this week ranked 11th overall. The possible return of Eric Rogers ($8,192) off the Stamps’ injured list puts him back in the rankings with a cautious eighth place spot.

Running back is also impacted by the loss of Argonauts do-all James Wilder Jr ($8,323), who will miss Saturday’s game against BC. The door could swing open for newcomer Dexter McCluster ($2,500), who had 119 all-purpose yards in his debut with Toronto last week. Combined with his return skills, McCluster’s bargain price will make him a popular option among Fantasy users.

The league’s top two backs face off on Friday when Ottawa’s William Powell ($10,014) meets Winnipeg’s Andrew Harris ($8,082). Both are already over the 1,000-yard mark and will be the anchor of many a Fantasy team. Saskatchewan’s Tre Mason ($4,563) is pushing toward the 1,000-yard mark and faces an Eskimos run defence that leads the league in rushing touchdowns allowed.

A change also comes at quarterback, where Edmonton’s Mike Reilly finds himself in the unusual position of third in the rankings and with a drop in salary to $13,861 following last week’s effort that saw him put up a season-low 6.7 Fantasy points. Calgary’s Bo Levi Mitchell ($10,847) takes the top spot this week as continues to put up impressive numbers despite the loss of his top receivers. It also helps that Mitchell gets a Montreal defence that is last in passing yards allowed per game.

The position takes a dip in certainty after the top three of Mitchell, Ottawa’s Trevor Harris ($8,832) and Reilly. BC could make a change at pivot after Jonathon Jennings ($6,222) finished with just 0.3 FP in last week’s loss to Calgary and might be replaced by Travis Lulay ($6,211). Saskatchewan’s Zach Collaros ($5,948) comes off a 394-yard effort against Montreal and will be intriguing against Edmonton, while Montreal’s Johnny Manziel ($6,000) comes off his best game to date but must face the Stampeders top-ranked defence.

Calgary’s D ($5,417) tops this week, but Fantasy users will also be compelled to add either Saskatchewan ($5,956) or Winnipeg ($5,837). This may not be a good week to run out one of the lower salaried defences, especially the Alouettes ($3,200), who must contend with Mitchell and the rest of Calgary’s high-powered offence.

Here are Week 17’s player rankings:

Quarterback

Running Back

Receiver

Defence