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16 NFL players to start, stay in your league

Online Niel November 19, 2024

There are only three weeks left in the fantasy football playoffs, and there are three situations you could find yourself in:

You’re first or second, look good and make the fantasy playoffs
You’re a bubble playoff team and one loss could completely derail your season
You’re near the bottom of the league and looking to avoid punishment in the last place of your league

Either way, no matter what situation you’re in, you’re probably in desperate need of figuring out who to start this week.

Week 12 offers a wide range of potentially high-scoring soccer games. The Kansas City Chiefs get a matchup with a weak Carolina Panthers defense. The Denver BroncosThe offense seemed to figure a few things out last week, and now they’re experiencing a lack of luster Las Vegas Raiders defense. explosive Miami Dolphins‘ the offense is faced with New England Patriots. The list goes on and on.

With that, here are 16 players to start or participate in your fantasy football games this week.

Players will start in week 12

Quarterbacks

Is Patrick Mahomes good? Yes. Is it a good fantasy start? Not really. However, facing the Carolina Panthers this week, it’s hard to bet against him. While there is a world where the Chiefs get up early and just hand the ball over for the entire second half, Mahomes’ upside is too good to bench him for another week.

Don’t look now, but the Chargers have started to lean more on the pass. Through the first four weeks of the season, the Chargers have run the ball more than 26 times just once. They’ve thrown at least 27 times in five of their last six. The Baltimore Ravens have given up the third-most points per game to opposing quarterbacks this year.

Run back

I understand. The Broncos’ backfield has been an enigma all season. Just when Javonte Williams looks like the main man in the Mile High City, Audric Estime comes in and gets the bulk of the snaps and carries against Kansas City. He looked good in that role too, but a week later, it’s back to Williams. It doesn’t make sense.

Regardless of who gets the nod for Denver in Week 12, Williams should have a productive performance. The Raiders have been atrocious against the run all year and have surrendered at least four receptions to running backs in all but one game this year as well.

Isiah Pacheco he’s expected back this week, but that doesn’t matter. Why? Because the Carolina Panthers are bad and Hunt has looked too good for his role to evaporate in the first week Pacheco returns. This is the key. Pacheco’s injury was pretty bad, and the Chiefs likely won’t give him a full workload in his first week back. Even if they do, Kansas City will be close to the goal line a lot, and you can bet the house that Hunt will get a few of those goal line carries.

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Wide receivers

Chargers rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey broke out in Week 8 for 29.1 PPR fantasy points. What’s crazy, though, is that in his last five games that week, he’s racked up the second-fewest targets over that span. McConkey does a lot with very little in this Chargers offense, so imagine what he could do when he has to do a lot.

The Baltimore Ravens are a very good football team. They will score and the Chargers will have to keep up the pace. With Baltimore surrendering the most non-PPR fantasy points to opposing receivers on the year, McConkey will have plenty of opportunities to go bananas in Week 12.

The Cleveland Browns have been atrocious against wide receivers all year, surrendering the fourth-most non-PPR fantasy points per game to wideouts. Mike Williams might have only managed one target in his two games with Pittsburgh so far, but with the Steelers facing a divisional foe, Pittsburgh could very well be relying on their new tool that Cleveland doesn’t know much about to gain an advantage. Will Williams score 20+ points? No, but four receptions, 50 yards? Maybe and with so many good teams bye this week, this could be a very solid addition to the FLEX.

Tight ends

The New York Giants have been great at defending tight ends all year. Furthermore, Mike Evans could return to the Bucs offense this week. So why the hell would you ever start Cade Otton?

Well wouldn’t you say Otton won it this week? Outside of a mediocre outing against San Francisco where the entire Bucs offense couldn’t get going, Otton had at least eight receptions and 70 yards in three of his last four games. We know this Tampa Bay offense can support two stud fantasy pass-catchers, and Otton is this team’s second obvious option.

While neither option for the Carolina Panthers is great against the Kansas City Chiefs, you can imagine the Panthers will pass the ball a lot. The Chiefs are phenomenal at shutting down opposing teams’ top options, and Chuba Hubbard is Carolina’s only real option. With Hubbard likely locked out, the Panthers’ passing game should see some openings, and Sanders is the only pass-catcher who has really done anything since the departure of Diontae Johnson.

Sure, Jalen Coker got eight targets in the team’s last game, but it was Sanders who got into the end zone. Sanders has at least eight PPR fantasy points in each of the last two games and now faces a Chiefs defense that has given up the fourth-most non-PPR fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends.

As was the case with Mike Williams, Sanders probably won’t win your week, but he could be a good upside streaming option.

Players to sit through week 12

Quarterbacks

The Philadelphia Eagles have given up the sixth fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks on the season. While it may not affect Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua too much, Stafford could have a very difficult time finding the end zone. After all, Philadelphia surrenders touchdowns on just 46 percent of opponents’ red zone drives. They were very good against the close pass. Kyren Williams will likely score if the Rams are going to win (more on him in a moment).

While Jordan Love has been fantastic all year, he would have scored just 14 points last week if not for a rare rushing touchdown. Now Love faces another tough matchup in San Francisco. Even potentially without Nick Bosa, the 49ers defense is still very good under pressure, which will make it difficult for Love to produce in fantasy.

Run back

Will Dobbins’ history with the Baltimore Ravens help the Chargers in their upcoming matchup on Monday night? May be. But Dobbins will have a tough day. Not only did Gus Edwards eat into Dobbins’ role in Week 11, but this is a game where the Chargers could play from behind and Dobbins isn’t really a pass-catcher. Oh, the Ravens also gave up the seventh-fewest non-PPR points per game to opposing running backs.

As talented as Kyren Williams is, he just wasn’t the same when both Kupp and Nacua were healthy. He played in just four games where both players were healthy for the entire game and only scored more than 12 PPR points in one of those games. The receiving work just doesn’t exist.

Now facing an Eagles defense that gives up the fourth-fewest fantasy points per game to opposing running backs? Count me in.

Wide receivers

This one is quite simple. He wasn’t that good. He was hurt in Week 11 and plays a strong Bears secondary. Stay very, very, very far away.

Meyers has been solid since the departure of Davante Adams, but facing Pat Surtain and the Broncos secondary in Week 12, Meyers will have a hard time getting anything done.

Tight ends

The Tennessee Titans are giving up the fifth fewest non-PPR points per game to tight ends. With Nico Collins making his triumphant return to the Texans lineup in Week 11, the Texans’ passing attack will lean even less on Schultz, who hasn’t scored all year and hasn’t even had a game with more than four receptions.

The San Francisco 49ers are tied with the Tennessee Titans for allowing the fifth fewest non-PPR points per game to opposing tight ends. With Nick Bosa dealing with an injury, the Packers will likely lean on the run early and often in this game. When they are forced to pass, Love will likely look to the guys not around Fred Warner more than Kraft.

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