At least Hall of Fame wide receiver Marvin Harrison can rest easy. The individual NFL records for most catches in a season by both a running back and a tight end fell on Sunday in Week 16, but at wide receiver, Harrison's amazing mark of 143 from 2002 is going to live another year, and probably for many more to come.
For former running back Matt Forte and tight Jason Witten, however, a couple of Stanford alums etched their names in the record books, and fantasy managers were the big winners. Carolina Panthers sophomore Christian McCaffrey caught 12 passes to sail past 100 for the season in a 24-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, surpassing Forte's 102 catches in 2014. Philadelphia Eagles veteran Zach Ertz caught his 100th pass in Week 15, but his 12 in the 32-30 comeback win against the Houston Texans gave him 113 for the season. Witten held the mark at 110 catches in 2012.
For McCaffrey, the preseason promise from his coach of 200 rushing attempts, questioned by many skeptics after he earned a mere 117 in his rookie season, has proven prophetic. McCaffrey entered play with 194 rushes, and his 21 against the Falcons pushed him well over 200. McCaffrey was the high scorer among running backs for Week 16 entering the Chiefs-Seahawks night game, with 29.8 PPR points, the eighth time this season he reached 26 or more in a game, and he achieved this despite backup quarterback Taylor Heinicke starting.
McCaffrey could enter Week 17 as the top fantasy scorer this season, and regardless of how that finishes, he should be a top-5 selection in all 2019 leagues. Let this be a reminder that sometimes coachspeak works out, but also that diminutive size -- well, for a lead running back, at least -- is not so much of a deterrent anymore. McCaffrey, listed at 5-foot-11, also sailed past 1,000 rushing yards against the Falcons and should breeze past 2,000 scrimmage yards in Week 17 against the New Orleans Saints. The record for scrimmage yards in a season, by then-Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson with 2,509 in 2009, seems safe for this season.
For Ertz, after catching between 74 and 78 footballs the past three seasons, with between 816 and 853 receiving yards, this has been his best campaign as well, and his record-setting performance came with a backup quarterback as well, though Nick Foles is obviously more seasoned than Heinicke. Still, while Ertz probably ends up the No. 2 tight end in fantasy, as Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce entered Week 16 with a 33.8-point lead, we appreciate the massive statistics. Remember, in a season with New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski underachieving (zero catches Sunday!) and perhaps a mere five or six tight ends proving truly worthy of weekly activation, Kelce and Ertz have stepped up to score as the top wide receivers do. Each deserves top-25 overall attention in 2019 drafts.
By the way, the NFL leader in receptions entering Week 16 was Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas, and he caught 11 more, including the winning touchdown in the comeback win against the Pittsburgh Steelers, to give him 120 catches on the season. I doubt he gets the 24 he needs in Week 17 to break Harrison's record.
Second down: The big news entering Sunday was about Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley II and whether he would play through a knee injury. As of Sunday morning, Gurley, the leading PPR scorer regardless of position entering Week 16, figured to play, but his name was on the late-afternoon inactive list, sending many a fantasy manager into panic. Those who added presumed top backup C.J. Anderson enjoyed a robust and surprising 23.2 PPR points on 167 rushing yards and a touchdown. Yes, that C.J. Anderson, the one who was teammates with McCaffrey on the Panthers but barely played. The one whom the Raiders signed briefly after his release and the one the Rams signed after Week 15 ended embarrassed the Cardinals, and Gurley could sit again in Week 17. Anderson, active in less than half of 1 percent of ESPN standard leagues this week, could matter yet again.
Anderson is the rushing leader for the week pending the two remaining games, but five others reached 100 rushing yards as well. One of them was Atlanta Falcons sophomore Brian Hill, who had 15 rushing attempts in his two-season career but when Tevin Coleman left because of a groin injury, Hill stepped up and broke a 60-yarder on the way to 115 rushing yards. Coleman seems unlikely to suit up in Week 17 so Hill, a Wyoming product chosen in the fifth round of the 2017 draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, could play a prominent role against the leaky Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense.
Third down: The top quarterbacks for Week 16 achieved their season-best fantasy outings by each scoring a pair of rushing touchdowns. For Green Bay Packers veteran Aaron Rodgers, they were the first of his season. Rodgers injured a knee in Week 1 and entered this week 10th among quarterbacks in fantasy points, quite a disappointment since he was the first passer off the draft board in most leagues and a second-round choice overall. Rodgers played catch-up against the beleaguered New York Jets and needed to throw for 442 yards, tying a season best, and two touchdowns in an overtime win. Rodgers could still end up a top-5 fantasy quarterback; it is likely the Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes goes first at the position in 2019, earlier than he should, of course, but Rodgers could go second. Still, it is wise to wait until the middle rounds for a fantasy quarterback.
Meanwhile, Texans starter Deshaun Watson nearly pulled out a stunning win in Philadelphia with his four touchdowns, two passing and two -- nearly untouched -- on the ground. Watson threw for 339 yards, the first time he eclipsed 300 since Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys, and 119 of them came outside the pocket, including 80 in the second half. Unlike Rodgers, who is normally not much of a running threat, Watson is. He entered play fifth among quarterbacks in rushing yards behind rookies Lamar Jackson (Ravens) and Josh Allen (Bills), and the Panthers' Cam Newton. Rushing yards matter. Watson can also finish his season as a top-5 fantasy quarterback. Rodgers is 12 years older, but as Watson showed during his rookie season and inconsistently in 2018, in a successful return from a torn ACL, he boasts Newton-like upside.
Fourth down: After Steelers star Antonio Brown, who delivered his top outing of the season with 44.5 PPR points against the Saints, the top wide receiver performance from Week 16 entering the final two games was by Jets veteran Robby Anderson, with nine catches for 140 yards and a touchdown for the third consecutive game. Anderson was the most-added wide receiver in ESPN standard leagues over the past seven days, and his recent stretch has really aided fantasy managers. Anderson has averaged 23 PPR points over the past three games. With rookie quarterback Sam Darnold looking like a future top-10 fantasy quarterback, this combination should not be ignored in 2019. The Jets probably will add running back help during the offseason, but if they do not, perhaps Elijah McGuire has a future in the fantasy realm. McGuire, like Anderson also one of the three most-added players in ESPN leagues (Green Bay's Jamaal Williams was first), scored 23.5 PPR points on 85 total yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Jets play at New England in Week 17, if that matters in your league.
One wide receiver that probably will not be helping fantasy managers in the final week is Demaryius Thomas of the Texans. A cart transported Thomas from the Philadelphia field because of a suspected torn Achilles. Thomas was active in 25 percent of ESPN standard leagues and replaced by Vyncint Smith, who scored an acrobatic touchdown late against the Eagles. The Texans finish in Week 17 with a home game against the tough Jacksonville Jaguars defense, and Smith, an undrafted rookie from Limestone College, could be a 2019 sleeper depending on the other Texans receivers, as staying healthy has been challenging for Will Fuller V and Keke Coutee as well this season.