Fantasy Football Sleepers: Week 12
Trevor Lawrence (QB) Jacksonville Jaguars
The first-overall pick in this year’s drafts has been inconsistent but has shown flashes of what the Jags hope he will become. While he’s not a safe pick, he has an ideal matchup on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons who are allowing the second-most fantasy points to quarterbacks at over 20 points per game. Coming off a rough week against the 49ers I expect him to bounce back this week against a much more favorable opponent.
Tyrod Taylor (QB) Houston Texans
Speaking of favorable opponents, Taylor gets to take on the Jets this week who have claimed their spot in the conversation for the worst team in the league. The overall numbers against quarterbacks this season do not reflect just how terrible they’ve been as of late despite them still being a bottom ten team when it comes to slowing down fantasy quarterbacks. With an ability to run for extra points and an opponent who can’t stop embarrassing themselves, Tyrod is a solid streaming option for Week 12.
Tony Jones (RB) New Orleans Saints
Alvin Kamara will not play on Thanksgiving night and as of now, Mark Ingram’s status is very much in question due to a sprained knee he suffered just a few days back on Sunday. If Ingram is out Jones is a no-doubt start despite a tough matchup against the Bills. However, if Ingram can suit up we still won’t know how large of a role he will be able to handle. Starting Jones would become infinitely scarier, but there is a chance he still sees a large amount of volume in this game. If Ingram is out, plug in Jones. If Ingram plays he may still give you solid flex numbers. The good news is the game is Thursday so we should have a lot of answers very soon.
Dontrelle Hilliard (RB) Tennessee Titans
This backfield has been a nightmare to figure out and we don’t yet know if Jeremy McNichols will be back or not this week. We at least got some reprieve with Adrian Peterson being cut from the team so he’s no longer muddling up the backfield. D’Onta Foreman is still the back-to-own for me most weeks, but this week I prefer Hilliard if McNichols sits. Last week playing from behind, we saw Hilliard get seven carries for 35 yards and more importantly he caught eight of his team-leading 10 targets for 47 yards. I expect the Titans to be losing to the Patriots this week and their best hope with injuries to A.J. Brown, Julio Jones, Marcus Johnson, and of course Derrick Henry may be trying to dink and dunk downfield with their running back.
Tevin Coleman (RB) New York Jets
I’m relying on the Jets’ vast incompetence on this one. Despite Ty Johnson making it overwhelmingly clear he is the better back than Tevin Coleman, would anyone be shocked if we inexplicably saw a whole bunch of Coleman against the Texans? Between the Jets not knowing what they’re doing and the opponent being the Texans, which could lead to a rare positive game script for New York, Coleman could hold some desperation flex value this week. I would expect Johnson to be the better option, but with Michael Carter sidelined there should be plenty of touches to go around in this backfield.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine (WR) Tennessee Titans
I’m going with Westbrook here because he may be the last man left standing in this WR corps. Brown has not yet been ruled out, however, reports to this point have not been great. With Jones and Johnson already out, Westbrook-Ikhine will likely serve as the de facto WR1. Last week we saw him catch seven passes for 107 yards. The hope is he can replicate that performance this week. The only fear is the Patriots take him out of the game and that would leave Chester Rogers as the sleeper option. Nevertheless, if I’m rolling the dice on a Titans’ wideout this week I’m going with Westbrook-Ikhine.
Laviska Shenault (WR) Jacksonville Jaguars
With Jamal Agnew now on season-ending injured reserve, the hope is Shenault can reclaim his job as the offenses X-factor. The role entails him essential being a hybrid running back/wide receiver, getting the ball in space, and seeing a lot more targets both short and long. This is what we expected from him coming into the season until Agnew hijacked the role. Preferably I’d like to scoop Shenault up and stash him this week. However, if you need him for a spot start he might be worth rolling the dice on as he has now gone from a luxury piece to a necessity for the Jags offense.
Mack Hollins (WR)Miami Dolphins
Hollins is becoming the ultimate boom-or-bust option for Miami. In his last five games in three of them, he has caught a TD, including a 65-yard bomb last week. Unfortunately in those other two games, he gave you zero points. This is the risk you run with this option. DeVante Parker and Will Fuller have once again been ruled out and Hollins is as good an option as any of their receivers to slide into the Parker role and be the WR2 behind Jaylen Waddle. Hollins is a TD or bust option, but he is seeing plenty of looks in the red zone.
Juwan Johnson (TE) New Orleans Saints
Let’s not complicate this. Adam Trautman is done for at least four weeks and Johnson slides into the starting role for the Saints. If the Saints get down near the red zone, expect Johnson to be a top target. We saw him have a multi-touchdown game early in the season and that continues to be in his range of outcomes. It’s unlikely he gives you a monster game, but three catches for 35 yards and a TD is very possible.
Anthony Firkser (TE) Tennessee Titans
Firkser is falling into the category in Tennessee of: somebody has to catch the ball. He’s as good an option as any and that qualifies him to be a sleeper streaming option this week. Of the Titans’ tight end tandem he is the best and despite a tough matchup, the volume may be there out of necessity. If you are looking for a dart throw this week at tight end you can do a lot worse than Firkser. Especially if A.J. Brown is ultimately ruled out or limited and that’s the way things look to be trending.
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This too helped members identify that Byron Pringle would thrive again in Week 11.
