The Las Vegas Raiders will visit the Houston Texans in Week 16. Here’s the latest fantasy football news and advice to help you with your lineups this week and moving forward, specifically regarding RB Ashton Jeanty.
Is Jeanty Playing in Week 16?
Jeanty is not on the injury report and barring a surprise, he is expected to play.
We’ll continue to monitor the Raiders’ injury report leading up to kickoff for any changes. You can also visit and bookmark our Fantasy News Tracker for the latest updates.
Should You Start or Sit Jeanty in Week 16?
How crazy is it that I’m looking at Ashton Jeanty’s nine-carry 35-yard performance in Philadelphia on Sunday as a win?
Man, this season hasn’t gone as planned.
In the shutout loss, Jeanty gained yardage on every carry he got. The game script worked away from him and averaging a tick over one yard per target is a problem, but there was a glimmer of league average blocking and it made me smile.
If you spent up on Jeanty, you’re either not reading this, not reading this about that league, or just in it for my witty banter.
I appreciate you all the same regardless, so let’s try to appeal to all three of those situations.
If Jeanty cost you this season, do not use that as an excuse to make an error in 2026. We don’t yet know what this situation looks like for next season, obviously, and I don’t think we have enough data to say that Jeanty isn’t the generational runner we thought he was.
Of the bottom-5 teams in RB yards per carry before contact last season, four of them rank 16th or better in 2025 (MIami, Tennessee, New England, and Pittsburgh). Run blocking is a skill, but the difference between historically bad and league average is reasonably small and a tweak here-and-there can change things in a significant way.
Jeanty has been better than the traditional RB average before contact on just 44.5% of his carries this season, ranking him 42nd of 43 running backs. But stick with me here.
If we get him to league average in this regard, that’d be roughly an 11 percentage point bump. It may sound simplistic, but when Jeanty picks up 2+ yards before contact this season, he’s averaging 6.4 yards per carry (under two yards before contact: 2.3 yards per carry).
You’re not here to watch me spin numbers, so I’ll cut to the chase. An 11 percentage point increase works out to an extra 6-7 rush yards per game with an uptick in scoring trajectory. That may not sound like much, but I promise you that it is.
That figure is based just on his current volume, but if each carry is worth a little more, that gives each drive a little more hope at extending and extended drives mean more touches. More touches means more points.
It’s a complicated statistical argument that is simple in practice: a small improvement can have a large result. Think of it like cinnamon: a pinch more and the product changes.
After a slow start, Jeanty’s 17-game pace is for 90 targets. Everything you dreamed as possible for 2025 is still on the table for 2026 if this offensive line trends toward league average.
As for Week 16, he’s a flex at best. The Texans haven’t allowed a RB to hit a dozen PPR points in six of their past 12 games, a run that includes offenses in Jacksonville, Baltimore, and Kansas City that carry more ways to threaten this elite defense than what Vegas is trotting out there weekly.
TLDR: Consider benching Jeanty this week and consider reinvesting in 2026. Fantasy football can be complicated.
Are you looking for start/sit advice for other players in your lineup? Read our Fantasy Football Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em Cheat Sheet.
Jeanty’s Fantasy Points Projection in Week 16
Jeanty is projected to score 11.9 fantasy points in PPR formats.
We project Jeanty to rush for 65 yards and 0.7 rushing touchdowns, while adding 1 receptions for 3 receiving yards.
Check out the free PFSN Fantasy Start-Sit Optimizer for the latest projections and advice for your lineups this week.
Week 16 Weather Impact: Raiders at Texans
Since the Texans play in a dome, there is no weather impact for this Week 16 matchup. Temperatures will be a comfortable 72 degrees Fahrenheit with no wind.
