New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara had quite a gift for his fantasy football managers on Christmas: a performance worth 56.2 points in PPR formats, as he tied the NFL record for rushing touchdowns during a game (six) in what is the championship week in most leagues.
While it wasn't the highest single-game total of 2020 -- that honor still belongs to Tyreek Hill, who scored 57.9 points in Week 12 -- it was the most by a running back this season.
In fact, it was the most by any running back since Jamaal Charles scored 59.5 points in Week 15 of the 2013 season, and it was the fifth-best single-game total by any NFL running back since at least 1950.
Only one player -- Jerry Rice, with 59.9 in 1995 -- managed more PPR fantasy points in a Week 16 game.
Considering Kamara resided on a finalist's roster in 32% of ESPN leagues, the fifth-highest rate by any running back, this game on its own might decide a lot of league championships. It gives the team that rosters him a sizable advantage entering the remainder of the Week 16 slate. And just to put into perspective what this might mean, the week's highest-scoring running back in each of the 15 previous weeks averaged 36.8 PPR fantasy points. Kamara's Friday total was nearly 20 points greater than that.
Here is the updated list of the top 15 single-game performances by any player since 1950: