Booms, Busts, Battlestar Galactica: NFL Week 17

After a year of positive COVID tests, empty stadiums and some of the wildest finishes the NFL has ever seen, the regular season is over.

For those of you with heartless (Hans Gruber-level evil, to be honest) commissioners making Week 17 consequential to your fantasy season or making a last-ditch effort to cash in on daily fantasy competitions, picking your line up was about embracing chaos and letting Jesus take the wheel of your respective lineups.

Some of your gambles paid off. Others, not so much.

Here is your final booms and busts column of the NFL season.

Booms

Cam Newton QB New England Patriots

With Newton and the team reportedly parting ways at the end of the season, it seems the former MVP wanted to go out with a bang. Not only did he throw for 242 yards with three touchdowns, but Newton also showed soft hands catching a 19-yard pass for a score.

It wasn't the greatest year for the Auburn alum, but he may get a call from a quarterback desperate team in the offseason.

Jonathan Taylor RB Indianapolis Colts

In his last regular season game as a rookie, Taylor went from starter to star, rushing for 253 yards and two scores to finish as the third-most productive rusher in the league.

With Marlon Mack's contract expiring at the end of the season, expect the former Wisconsin Badger to be high on a lot of expert's draft boards next season.

Kirk Cousins QB Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings may have been eliminated from the playoffs, but Kirk Cousins had a vintage, "YOU LIKE THAT?" performance Week 17 without Dalvin Cook backing him up, throwing for 405 yards and three touchdowns to end the teams disappointing season on a high.

Even with his off games, Cousins managed to finish as the 11th most productive quarterback in fantasy according to Fantasy Pros, ahead of Matt Ryan, Ben Roethlisberger and Cam Newton.

Brandin Cooks WR Houston Texans

Despite the Houston Texans having a Solo: A Star Wars Story-level disappointing season, Brandin Cooks managed to earn the trust of Deshaun Watson. In the last game of the regular season, Cooks caught 11 balls for 166 yards and two scores.

In his last two games, the former Oregon State athlete caught 18 balls for 307 yards and three touchdowns. If the team decides to keep him, he could be in for a similarly productive season with Will Fuller potentially leaving via free agency in 2021.

Busts

D.K. Metcalf WR Seattle Seahawks

Managers hoping Metcalf would carry them to the promised land in the playoffs found themselves triggered like the Star Wars fandom over the mere mention of The Last Jedi. In Week 17, he only caught three balls for 21 yards, being overshadowed by Tyler Lockett.

After a monster 177-yard performance against the Eagles in Week 12, Metcalf has only reached the 80-yard mark once to close out the season, averaging 52.8 yards per game and only scoring one touchdown in the last five games. He may be a hot commodity in fantasy drafts next year, but his end of the year run this season might hurt his stock.

Robert Woods WR Los Angeles Rams

Despite playing 99 percent of offensive snaps, Woods was only able to muster four receptions and 36 yards with John Wolford spreading the ball around like the ladler in Oliver Twist, leaving him and his managers asking for more. Six players had at least four targets with four receptions being the highest achieved on the team, which means there wasn't a whole lot of opportunity to shine with the backup quarterback behind center.

Woods, like many of the receivers in this offense, are consistently inconsistent and as long as Jared Goff and Sean McVay are running the show, it would be tough for fantasy managers to expect anything else from the former USC receiver next year.

Allen Robinson WR Chicago Bears

Garbage Time MVP Allen Robinson scored two touchdowns the last time he faced the Packers after they went up 27-3 in the second quarter. In Week 17, Green Bay made sure to play him the whole 60 minutes, only allowing Robinson to catch two balls for 37 yards.

Despite having bad to mediocre quarterbacks his entire career, the Penn State product has proved he can produce with anyone throwing him the ball. And with unrestricted free agency on deck for him in the offseason, his value may skyrocket on draft boards depending on the situation he signs up for.

DeAndre Hopkins WR Arizona Cardinals

When Kyler Murray went down, the entire Cardinals offense suffered, but no one suffered more than Hopkins who brought down four of his 10 targets for 35 yards as Arizona let its chance to punch its ticket to the playoffs slip away.

While this season ended in disappointment, Hopkins and Murray have developed good chemistry with one another that may bring better results in the future. Look for Hopkins to go early in next year's fantasy drafts.