Plenty of fantasy football players enjoyed a bountiful Thanksgiving slate. Others enter Week 12’s weekend scrambling to salvage a win.
Anyone who started Kirk Cousins, Jordan Reed, DeSean Jackson, Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell or Antonio Brown is thankful for the head start. Those on the other side of their big games need a holiday miracle to snag a crucial victory with the fantasy playoffs rapidly approaching.
And then there are managers staring at a giant zero courtesy of Eric Ebron. Come on, man.
After feasting on three Thursday games loaded with top talent, the updated Week 12 rankings don’t contain the usual star power atop each position. Let’s run through the premier options across the board, highlighting some of them to start with pride alongside others worth expelling to the bench.
Quarterback
Start: Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders
Opposing a Houston Texans squad currently fourth in passing defense, Derek Carr led several fantasy teams to a Monday-night triumph by registering 295 passing yards, three touchdowns and an interception. While guiding the Oakland Raiders to a fourth-quarter rally in Mexico City, he also solidified his standing as a top-12 fantasy option.
Aside from Week 9’s victory over the Denver Broncos—the toughest matchup for any quarterback—the second-year passer has accounted for a touchdown in every game this season. Although his yardage tallies have fluctuated, he has completed at least 60 percent of his passes every time.
As noted by Pro Football Focus, he also received stellar protection from his offensive line Monday night:
Once a terrifying matchup, the Carolina Panthers have now relinquished the eighth-most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks under ESPN.com standard scoring. The defense has tightened up, allowing 70 points over the last four games, but it hasn’t fared well against top quarterbacks this season:
In a game against reigning MVP Cam Newton, Carr is the better Week 12 play.
Sit: Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins
Ryan Tannehill will have streamer allure this weekend against the San Francisco 49ers, who have relinquished the fifth-most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks. The Miami Dolphins quarterback enters the favorable matchup having completed at least 70 percent of his passes with two touchdowns in consecutive games, but he still brandishes limited upside.
No team has thrown fewer passes this year than Miami’s 300, and it shows in Tannehill’s middling 228.9 passing yards per contest. Against an atrocious 49ers defense that surrenders 5.2 yards per carry and 179.5 rushing yards per game, head coach Adam Gase will give breakout back Jay Ajayi all the work he can handle.
The Los Angeles Rams nearly shut out the Dolphins last Sunday before saving his real and fantasy employers. The Miami Herald‘s Andre Fernandez noted his late-game heroics:
They shouldn’t have any reason to pass late against a team that hasn’t won since Week 1. San Francisco has only lost twice by single digits, so expect efficient but tame numbers from Tannehill as Ajayi wins fantasy matchups.
Running Back
Start: Rashad Jennings, New York Giants
If this list feels light on stars, remember that Bell and Elliott already suited up on Thursday. That makes Ajayi and David Johnson the top guys this weekend and allows Rashad Jennings to sneak his way into the top 10.
The 31-year-old entered Week 10 with 340 rushing yards to his name, and he compiled 75 of them in Week 1. Most onlookers waited for rookie Paul Perkins to phase out the unproductive veteran, but the New York Giants stayed loyal instead.
Jennings has enjoyed an unanticipated revival over the past two games, recording 238 total yards on 44 touches. His return to fantasy relevancy couldn’t have occurred at a better time, as the G-Men get the winless Cleveland Browns next.
Saved by the putrid 49ers, the Browns have yielded the second-most rushing yards and fantasy points to running backs. They have lost their last three games by a combined 61 points, a trend that forebodes plenty of handoffs to Jennings.
Last year, he went from dud to fantasy stud by procuring 521 yards and two touchdowns over his final four games. He’s on his way to leading patient owners to a playoff push with another late outburst.
Sit: Isaiah Crowell, Cleveland Browns
On the other end of Week 12’s Giants-Browns matchup, Isaiah Crowell’s fantasy investors are experiencing opposite emotions.
Crowell stormed out of the gate with five touchdowns over eight games. He averaged 98.5 rushing yards per contest through Week 4, which led owners to comfortably start him as a stable No. 2 rusher.
As a result of the Browns’ futility, he has received 23 handoffs over their last three blowout losses. He turned those into only 38 yards, including last week’s dreadful line of 10 yards on eight carries against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Led by offseason acquisition Damon Harrison, the Giants have limited the opposition to 3.6 yards per run. Unless this game proves closer than expected, Crowell won’t get enough work to justify a start in standard leagues.
Wide Receiver
Start: Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
You see the Seattle Seahawks on the schedule and you get a bit antsy. Depending on the alternatives, you start getting some ideas. It’d be crazy to sit Mike Evans … but would it be?
Yes, it would. The Seahawks have relinquished the fifth-fewest fantasy points per game to wideouts, so it’s certainly a tough matchup. But don’t get scared off by Richard Sherman. According to Football Outsiders, they have yielded 86.3 yards per game to No. 1 receivers.
Besides, Evans entered Week 12 with an NFL-high 122 targets and has recorded at least 50 yards in every game this season. He escaped a brutal matchup against the Broncos with 59 on five receptions, so he wields a stable floor.
Gamers might have to settle for a similar line, but he’s an unsittable stud. Don’t, however, dream of starting Jameis Winston or anyone else in Tampa Bay’s passing game. Doug Martin is a decent low-end No. 2 rusher or flex play, but he’s far from a must-start.
Sit: Cameron Meredith, Chicago Bears
Becoming a team’s de facto No. 1 receiver isn’t enough to automatically thrive. Especially without a capable quarterback.
With Alshon Jeffery beginning his four-game suspension last week, Cameron Meredith managed four catches for 49 yards in Week 11’s loss to the Giants. Those four receptions on as many targets represent an uptick from his recent involvement, as he snagged one reception in each of his last three games on five combined targets.
Jay Cutler instead kept everyone involved, looking Jordan Howard’s way most often despite the running back snagging one of eight throws. Although the team officially listed its starting quarterback as day-to-day with a shoulder injury, the Bears are preparing for Matt Barkley to face the Tennessee Titans.
Per the Chicago Tribune‘s Dan Wiederer, Merdith discussed building a rapport with the next man up.
“It’s all about the chemistry we’re building in the huddle and the offense,” Meredith said. “The reps in practice will help as much as anything else. And then the extra work after practice that we put in, we’ll go in the film room and talk about plays and talk about where he wants us.”
In his last taste of action, Barkley went 6-of-15 for 81 yards and two interceptions against the Green Bay Packers. Aside from Howard, steer clear of the Bears’ offense altogether.
Tight End
Start: Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles
Uncertainty fills the air as gamers wait for a definitive word on Rob Gronkowski‘s Week 12 status. Since Jordan Reed, Ebron, Kyle Rudolph and Jason Witten all played on Thanksgiving, the updated top 10 is especially light.
Entering Week 12, only the Browns allowed more receiving yards to tight ends than the Green Bay Packers’ 726. That’s good news for Zach Ertz, whose role in the Philadelphia Eagles offense has expanded in November:
Over the last three games, the annual breakout candidate has recorded 20 catches for 187 yards and a score on 26 targets. He scored his first touchdown of the season against the Seahawks, but he had another score wiped off by a Nelson Agholor penalty.
Ertz probably won’t find the end zone, but he’s a strong candidate to post some fantasy points anyway. It’s better than taking an all-or-nothing flier on a lesser tight end scoring a touchdown.
Sit: Jared Cook, Green Bay Packers
Jared Cook can relate to his Week 12 opposing tight end. Like Ertz, he has spent his entire career trying to validate his constant sleeper status. Yet he has only scored 17 times in 111 games.
Just when everyone wrote him off once more, the 29-year-old exploded for 105 yards and a touchdown against Washington last weekend. He’s now back on the radar in an offense where Aaron Rodgers has averaged 45 pass attempts since Green Bay’s Week 4 bye.
Cook is worth a speculative add in deeper leagues, but don’t start him on Sunday. The Eagles have allowed the third-fewest fantasy points and an NFL-low 28 receptions to tight ends this season.
Also, he had 53 yards all season before Week 11’s outburst. Don’t fall for the trap again.
Note: Fantasy scoring data obtained from ESPN.com.
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