Is Week 18 Worthy of Fantasy Football Status?

Many fantasy football leagues finish play with Week 17 (it was Week 16 in the past when the season was one game shorter). The final week is left out because some years (like this one) see the best teams with playoff position locked in and incentive to rest their starters.

I won’t get into the argument about resting players versus keeping them in game shape (OK, but only for a second: Health is way more important than anything else. Keep these guys healthy going into the playoffs and use practice to have them game-ready).

Anyway, it got me thinking about the merits of using the last week of the season for fantasy purposes. After all, Week 18 counts in the record books, so why are we ignoring it as a fantasy community when football is SO popular?

Let’s go through some pros and cons of playing in Week 18 and see if there’s a reasonable outcome that might work for everyone (there won’t be: We’ll never all agree on anything). This won’t include every consideration, but I’ll hit the themes that make the most sense to me.

Pros and Cons of a Week 18 Fantasy Championship

Pro: It uses the entire season

This is the main argument I can get behind. This is the 2023 season. Sure, it leaks into 2024, but the season is 18 weeks long, and every team plays until the end, even if their main starters aren’t active.

Injuries happen throughout the season, as do benchings, and we don’t stop the season for that, so why exclude Week 18 because some players might sit?

Pro: It’s fun; why not continue?

And there’s this. We play fantasy football for enjoyment, so why cut it one week short? Extending into the final week would, in theory, extend the fantasy regular season, which means more games that matter for more owners.

Con: Everyone is burnt out; only a few owners are still in it

Dude, the season is long. Football isn’t as bad as the sports that play every day, but it’s a grind. Eighteen weeks is more than four months. For more than a third of a year, you’ve been looking at fantasy stuff daily-ish. Don’t you deserve a break?

Also, most owners are out of it by now anyway. This really only extends it for a few people while others are filling out the consolation bracket and trying to avoid punishments.

Con: Stars often sit

Let’s get into the week itself. This is the biggest reason for ending in the penultimate week of the season. There are rare occasions when players start resting with multiple weeks left, but the bulk of players sitting happens in the final week of the season.

Most owners will be affected in some way. Those with a lot of Ravens and 49ers will be punished at a higher rate than those with Jaguars and Texans. Week 18’s integrity is influenced by the standings.

Pro: It tests owners’ adaptability

The best owners should be tested when things aren’t perfect, right? Anyone can get lucky to have drafted Christian McCaffrey and Jalen Hurts and had first dibs to grab Puka Nacua off the waiver wire. Great fantasy owners play matchups and fill holes, they don’t just ride their stars all year without making changes!!!

Con: It puts the entire season on the most volatile week

But then again, things get crazier in Week 18 than any other because of the number of players finally getting a shot. Think about Matt Flynn throwing for nearly 500 yards and six touchdowns while filling in for Aaron Rodgers in a meaningless Week 17 in 2011.

It’s unfair for an owner who dominated all season with Rodgers to suddenly lose him for the championship week and have to face Flynn, only to get beat. That wasn’t the spirit of the 2011 season, and it’s not how we want 2023 to end either. I’m imagining someone without Lamar Jackson this week getting beat because Tyler Huntley runs for 80 yards and two touchdowns…

Pro: It gives us a reason to pay attention to teams that are out of it

Gambling and fantasy football are related in that they give fans a reason to care about teams and players they usually wouldn’t. The Jets and Patriots play in Week 18: Only draft nerds (like me) and those seriously invested in one of the teams are getting anything out of it.

If you have Ezekiel Elliott playing in your fantasy championship, though? Now you have a reason to pay attention. Keeping stakes on the games keeps us more invested in the product.

Con: It takes away attention from playoff races

But while we are worried about if Hunter Henry is catching a touchdown, the low-scoring Jacksonville/Tennessee game is determining the AFC South winner and other playoff positioning. I like taking the last week off to really focus on the playoff scenarios and draft order implications.

Should You Play Week 18?

In a traditional fantasy sense, no. I understand the arguments I briefly laid out above, but there is too much randomness in wonky Week 18 (trademark coming soon). This week will likely see Jackson, McCaffrey, Brock Purdy, Patrick Mahomes and many others sit out in preparation for the playoffs.

There are too many holes that need to be filled, and luck factors into the outcome even more than it does in the average week. I recommend doing something fantasy-esque in Week 18 but not holding your championship matchup.

Other Week 18 Ideas

I heard an interesting argument of having the fantasy championship span both Weeks 17 and 18. This, in theory, gives each owner one week to use their regular fantasy lineup and another to piece together the best roster of what's left. While I can see this as an interesting compromise, I still don't like it as much as ending with Week 17.

Daily Fantasy Sports are always a good way to get involved; you can jump on DraftKings or FanDuel and select your team, using Week 18 independently rather than affecting your fantasy season.

If you want to do something among the people in your league, set up your own little DFS in which you set rules for choosing players, such as only picking one person from each team or setting a salary cap using numbers from one of the major outlets. Everyone put in $5 and whoever gets the most fantasy points takes it all!

Get involved in Week 18 and enjoy it. It’s the last true NFL week of the season, and we will then wait until Labor Day to have another full NFL Sunday. Come up with something fun and enjoy it with your friends but leave your fantasy league behind after Week 17.