The Los Angeles Chargers will take on the Houston Texans in Week 17 and wide receivers Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston and Keenan Allen will all be active.
After not having much talent at wide receiver in 2024, the Chargers seriously beefed up their group in 2025.
Along with the returning McConkey and Johnston, the Chargers added Allen and rookie Tre Harris. Los Angeles has also seen a significant contribution from its rookie tight end, Oronde Gadsden.
While all of this has been great for quarterback Justin Herbert, it has made it hard for Los Angeles' receivers to post consistent production, which is frustrating for fantasy football owners when making lineup decisions every week.
Looking ahead to Saturday, here's our start or sit advice for McConkey, Allen and Johnston for the crucial showdown with the Texans.
Ladd McConkey start or sit advice
It has been a disappointing season for McConkey, who was expected to be an elite fantasy football option after an 1,100-yard rookie campaign in 2024.
Instead, McConkey ranks as WR25 overall, which makes him a weekly flex option. McConkey has been particularly disappointing since Week 11, though, ranking as WR54 overall in that span in terms of fantasy points per game.
Now, McConkey draws a matchup against a Houston Texans defense ceding the second-fewest fantasy points per game to wide receivers.
If you're starting McConkey this week, you're doing so because of what he's done in the past, which is understandable. He is also the best starting option out of the Chargers' wide receivers.
However, with the stakes being as high as they are this week, it's hard to trust McConkey in lineups given what we've seen.
Verdict: Sit
Quentin Johnston start or sit advice
Johnston finally showed a pulse last week, reeling in four catches for 104 yards and a touchdown, but he did that in an extremely soft matchup against the Dallas Cowboys, who are giving up the most fantasy points per game to wideouts.
Before that, Johnston hadn't totaled more than 53 yards in any game dating back to Week 8, ranking as WR52 overall in that span.
This week, Johnston draws a very difficult matchup against an elite Texans defense that is giving up the second-fewest fantasy points per game to wideouts in 2025.
Knowing that, the boom-or-bust Johnson is far more likely to bust, and that's enough for us to keep him on the bench.
Verdict: Sit
Keenan Allen start or sit advice
After an impressive seven-game showing earlier in the season, it looked like Allen was going to have fantasy relevance in 2025.
However, since Week 8, Allen hasn't scored a single touchdown and has only eclipsed 50 yards in a game once.
Last week was one of Allen's better performances since his numbers declined, yet he only tallied five catches for 44 yards.
Unfortunately, that's just not good enough to suggest Allen as a starting option, especially in a brutally tough matchup versus Houston's elite secondary.
Verdict: Sit
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