Most fantasy players can agree that the most difficult part of managing your fantasy team is optimizing your lineup each week. When setting your lineup, it’s essential to take into account injuries, match ups, and probable game scripts. Before we take a look at this week’s best start/sit options, let’s see how accurate my predictions were from Week 11:
Best Start of Week 11: Mark Ingram (RB5)
Worst Start of Week 11: Carson Wentz (QB29)
Best Sit of Week 11: Michael Crabtree (WR85)
Worst Sit of Week 11: Jordan Reed (TE2)
Now, let’s take a look at this week’s top starts and sits:
Quarterbacks
Must Start:
Carson Wentz (PHI v NYG) Wentz and the Eagles couldn’t get anything going for them against the Saints in Week 10, as he threw for just 156 yards for only 3.86 fantasy points. With a chance to still win the division or a wild card spot the Eagles will have to kick it up a notch against the division rival Giants, who have allowed the 22nd most passing yards a game (256). I fully expect Wentz and the Eagles to bounce back and have a good week against the Giants to keep themselves in playoff contention.
Honorable Mentions:
Lamar Jackson (BAL v OAK)
Tom Brady (NE @ NYJ)
Eli Manning (NYG @ PHI)
Baker Mayfield (CLE @ CIN)
Must Sit:
Marcus Mariota (TEN @ HOU) Mariota left Sunday’s game against the Colts with what was originally thought to be a right elbow injury. It later was discovered that Mariota’s injury was actually a stinger. Despite not needing to be in concussion protocol, he is still questionable against the Texans on a Monday night game. The injury should scare anyone who owns him away, especially considering it’s a Monday night game, so if he were in your lineup and couldn’t go, you would have to replace him with Blaine Gabbert. The Titans are hopeful Mariota can give it a go, but even if he suits up and plays, Mariota should have a tough time against a stout Texans defense.
Honorable Mentions:
Blake Bortles (JAX @ BUF)
Matthew Stafford (DET v CHI)
Josh Rosen (ARI @ LAC)
Derek Carr (OAK @ BAL)
Running Backs
Must Start:
Matt Breida (SF @ TB) Breida finally got a much needed bye week as the 49ers running back has been battling an ankle injury for the last several weeks. Since Jerick Mckinnon went down with a torn ACL before the start of the season, Breida has been a terrific fill in for the 49ers. This season he is averaging 5.6 yards a carry and has 632 rushing yards with 3 rushing touchdowns. He has also been impressive in the receiving game, adding on 124 receiving yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. Breida will be facing the Bucs defense who’ve allowed 113 rushing yards per game and rank last in rushing touchdowns allowed with 14 on the season. Breida is a must start for Week 12 with a great matchup.
Honorable Mentions:
Josh Adams (PHI v NYG)
Phillip Lindsay (DEN v PIT)
James White (NE @ NYJ)
Nick Chubb (CLE @ CIN)
Must Sit:
Tevin Coleman (ATL @ NO) When given the opportunity for a large workload, Coleman has shown he’s more than capable of getting the job done. Unfortunately, the Falcons running back’s touches this season have been very inconsistent. The most carries he’s had in a game was in Week 2, when he rushed 16 times for 107 yards. Last week, he was only given 8 carries and managed to gain 58 yards. Coleman has been doing everything he can to try and help the Falcons win, but just isn’t seeing enough touches to be relied on for fantasy purposes. With saying all that, the Falcons will be facing the Saints who currently have the 2nd best run defense, allowing 78 yards a game and just 3.7 yards per rushing attempt. Last game against the Saints, Coleman had 15 rushing attempts for just 33 yards. In a game where I expect the Saints to put up points fast, the Falcons should have to try passing to get big plays, making Coleman a must sit.
Honorable Mentions:
Alex Collins (BAL v OAK)
LeSean McCoy (BAL v JAX)
Doug Martin (OAK @ BAL)
Adrian Peterson (WAS @ DAL)
Wide Receiver
Must Start:
Alshon Jeffery (PHI v NYG) Last week, Jeffery was listed as a sit going against Marshon Lattimore and the Saints defense. He ended up making 4 catches for 33 yards. In the 7 games Jeffery has played for the Eagles this season, he has 4 receiving touchdowns and has averaged 11.4 yards a catch with 422 yards. I expect the Eagles to come out firing this game as they look to try getting their offense going especially in the passing game, to get themselves back in the race for the division title or a wild card spot. The last time the Eagles and Giants met in Week 6, Jeffery went off for 8 catches, 74 yards, and 2 touchdowns. I can see him putting up similar numbers as the Eagles should look to utilize the big receiver in this Week 12 matchup, making Jeffery a must start.
Honorable Mentions:
Tyler Lockett (SEA @ CAR)
Jarvis Landry (CLE @ CIN)
Julian Edelman (NE @ NYJ)
Tyler Boyd (CIN v CLE)
Must Sit:
Demaryius Thomas (DEN v TEN) Last week when Thomas was listed as a start, he had no catches on just 1 target. It was a very disappointing game for the recently acquired receiver after he put up 3 catches on 3 targets for 61 yards in his Texans debut in Week 9. Keke Coutee is now back in the offense lined up in the slot and caught 5 passes for 77 yards in Week 11. With Coutee back in action and one of the best receivers in Hopkins in the lineup, it’s tough to determine how many targets Thomas will be seeing on a weekly basis as he is probably still learning the offense. With his role in the offense so difficult to predict, Thomas is a must sit.
Honorable Mentions:
Calvin Ridley (ATL @ NO)
Devin Funchess (CAR v SEA)
Robby Anderson (NYJ v NE)
Kelvin Benjamin (BUF v JAX)
Tight End
Must Start:
Cameron Brate (TB v SF) OJ Howard has been placed on IR, making Brate the Bucs starting tight end once again. Brate is averaging 9.4 yards a catch with 3 touchdowns on the season. He hasn’t had more than 3 catches in a game so far this year, but with Howard done for the season that should change. I’m looking for Brate to see much higher production in Week 12 as the Bucs are a pass heavy team. With him likely to see more red zone looks, Brate is a must start for Week 12.
Honorable Mentions:
Chris Herndon (NYJ v NE)
Evan Engram (NYG @ PHI)
David Njoku (CLE @ CIN)
Must Sit:
Antonio Gates (LAC v ARI) Last week against the Broncos, Gates had 5 catches for 80 yards and a touchdown. Although those numbers look great, Gates has just 221 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns on the season. Prior to last week, the most targets Gates has seen in a game this season was 3. The Cardinals have one of the better defenses against opposing tight ends, allowing 415 yards and 3 touchdowns to them on the season. Gates’ big game last week will have people wanting to start him, but with no consistent target volume I would hold back and keep him out of the starting lineup in this tough Week 12 matchup.
Honorable Mentions:
Benjamin Watson (NO v ATL)
CJ Uzomah (CIN v CLE)
Jeff Heuerman (DEN v PIT)
Thank you for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter for more fantasy football advice throughout the week @LonskiWilliam
