Fantasy help,
Stafford may struggle on Turkey Day
Expect Carson Palmer to surge
Key injuries include Andrew Luck
Fantasy football owners are getting ready for a heaping helping of football in Week 12, with playoff implications aplenty. Our weekly info helps you assemble your optimal lineup.
STUDS
QB Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals: If Palmer doesn’t have a huge game against the league’s second-worst pass defense, something ’s wrong. The veteran quarterback played a decent game in Minnesota considering how much pressure he faced. The Atlanta Falcons will not hit him nearly as much.
RB Jay Ajayi, Miami Dolphins: No back in the league is running harder than Ajayi is right now, which is bad news for a San Francisco 49ers defense that has surrendered at least 25 fantasy points to running backs every week over the last two months.
WR Doug Baldwin, Seattle Seahawks: Baldwin might not throw a touchdown this weekend, but he should have plenty of opportunities to catch one. The Seahawks offense is clicking, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary hasn’t been very good at covering No. 1 receivers.
RB Lamar Miller, Houston Texans: In terms of yards allowed, the San Diego Chargers run defense has been quite good. The unit has allowed rushing touchdowns in all but two games this season, though.
DUDS
QB Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions: Last weekend, the Minnesota Vikings defense looked a lot like the unit that was dominant earlier this season. Stafford had a rough game against the Vikings when the Lions traveled to Minnesota before padding his fantasy stats in overtime. Don’t expect great production from Stafford on Thursday.
WR Mike Evans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Evans is having a fantastic season as Jameis Winston’s No. 1 option, but the Seahawks have a guy named Richard Sherman, who has been pretty darn good at taking out No. 1 options this season. Evans is a WR2 at best this weekend.
TE Tyler Eifert, Cincinnati Bengals: The Baltimore Ravens pass defense has managed to limit every tight end it has faced this season. Baltimore has yet to give up double-digit fantasy points to a tight end and has allowed them only one touchdown.
RB Devonta Freeman, Atlanta Falcons: Two reasons Freeman finds himself on this list: Only one team has allowed fewer fantasy points to running backs than the Cardinals this season, and Tevin Coleman is set to return from injury, which will cut into Freeman’s workload.
SLEEPERS
RB Wendell Smallwood, Philadelphia Eagles: Week 11 was rough on Eagles running backs as Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles left the game with injuries. That leaves Smallwood as the top option in Week 12. The Green Bay Packers run defense has been ravaged by injuries and has allowed more than 20 fantasy points to opposing running backs in each of the last four games.
WR Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals: Andy Dalton has to throw to someone, right? A.J. Green is hurt, and we’ve already mentioned how good Baltimore is against tight ends. Boyd, a rookie out of Pitt, should fill the void as Dalton’s top target against a banged-up Ravens secondary.
RB Mike Gillislee, Buffalo Bills: Gillislee impressed after LeSean McCoy left early in Week 11 because of injury, racking up 72 yards on 14 carries. The Jacksonville Jaguars run defense has been solid, but if the Bills can get up early, they will feed Gillislee a ton of carries in the second half.
QB Ryan Tannehill, Miami Dolphins: Tannehill has played well in the second half after a slow start to the season. He has thrown two touchdown passes in consecutive games and should make it a third against the 49ers. San Francisco has allowed multiple touchdown passes in all but two games in 2016.