Studs

Chris Johnson, RB, TEN – He didn’t find the endzone in this game but we can forgive him because he racked up 190 yards!  About time CJ. I’ll be treating him as a low end RB1 until im sure he really has it turned around. Hopefully he does and hopefully its not too late for you.

Drew Brees, QB, NO – The Saints have been a very good football team all year long. Brees and the offense played as close to perfect as I have seen them play all season last night and Brees ended up the top-scoring fantasy player in the NFL for week 12. If you own Brees and are headed into the playoffs, you should be ecstatic. This offense is scary to say the least and with Graham and Sproles really entrenched into this offense now, they are firing on all cylinders.

Roy Helu, RB, WAS – The Skins finally had a solid running game this week with Helu carrying the load and Torain riding the pine. We have little reason to expect Shanahan to keep riding Helu but he will remain a solid flex play for as long as he keeps being the most productive back on that offense.

Victor Cruz, WR, NYG – I am almost tempted to start rankings Cruz above Nicks but I just won’t be able to do it.  Cruz is a must-start and really ought to be above Manningham on the depth chart when both guys are healthy. Cruz’s hands and speed are a scary combination that have really proved to be a difference maker for the Giants.  Nicks is still the go-to-guy and a better red-zone target so he will remain above Cruz on my rankings but the gap is getting very narrow.

Beanie Wells, RB, ARI – Beanie is incredibly frustrating from a fantasy standpoint. He is #9 in the NFL among RBs for fantasy points scored yet he has had 4 pretty terrible games and very possibly cost you wins in each of those weeks. Bottom line with Wells is that when he is healthy, you have to start him.  The Cardinals offense relies heavily on the running game to provide balance and he WILL see a large number of carries in every start that he gets.

Johnny Knox, WR, CHI – Caleb Hanie played pretty poorly in this game but the Bears were competitive in the game and Hanie was able to exploit the Raiders’ secondary at times and find his top receiver on a fair few big plays. Knox had a great game all around and helped with kick returns too but I would be careful trusting him too much next week.  I want to see him do it next week before I bother to try and start him with my season on the line.

Duds

Jordy Nelson, WR, GB – This was a bit of an off-week for Rodgers and the Packers.  They won fairly convincingly but Jennings, Nelson AND Jones didn’t all catch TD passes.  Off weeks are tough… Keep starting Nelson as he scores far more often than not and there are a lot of mouths to feed in that passing game.

Frank Gore, RB, SF – Don’t beat yourself up for starting him, you had to. But, only one straw was going to break in that game on Thanksgiving night and it wasn’t the Ravens’. With the Rams and Cardinals as opponents over the next two weeks, Gore is sure to get things turned around.

Vincent Jackson, WR, SD – I still can’t decide what the bigger story was out of that GREAT game on Sunday between the Chargers and the Broncos; the Chargers’ continued collapse or the Broncos continued surge.  One thing is sure, talent isn’t enough.  Jackson and Rivers should easily both be top 10 fantasy producers at their positions but Norv Turner does not seem to have this team playing for anything at the moment.  VJax is just a mediocre WR2 the rest of the way and ideally you can use him in your flex.

Mike Wallace, WR, PIT – I loved Wallace this week and couldn’t have been more wrong.  I would love him again next week if they played against the Chiefs again however.  I didn’t see a lot of this game but it was disheartening that the Steelers were not able to rout the hapless Chiefs. A win is a win however so we will have to just keep playing our Steelers and not panic much over a mediocre game.

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Pick Ups

Roy Helu, RB, WAS – The inherent mess of the Shanahan running backs may have let Helu remain on free agency this long. He isn’t even owned in half of leagues and he is the one guy on the list at RB that has big-game potential.  Torain did not even touch the ball on Sunday and Helu had a pretty nice game in a win over Seattle. Shanahan might just decide to spit in the face of fantasy owners again and start Torain next week but if you are taking a chance on one of these guys, it should be Helu every single time.

Greg Little, WR, CLE – The Browns desperately need a play maker at receiver and with Little starting to emerge, at least a little, I expect them to let Colt McCoy sling the ball around some so that they can properly evaluate him for their future needs.  I believe in McCoy and expect Little to continue to perform better than a Browns receiver has since Braylon Edwards did with Derek Anderson at QB in 2007.  Little should be owned in all leagues and could make a decent flex play if the match up is right the rest of the way.

Donald Brown, RB, IND – If you are making a serious playoff push right now, Brown would probably not be any better than a bench-warmer for you. I would probably rather seek out a handcuff to your best running back instead unless your fighting tooth and nail to get into the playoffs at all.  If that is the case Brown might have another decent game next week against New England but considering how badly they are going to lose, his upside is limited as well. He is worthy of a roster spot in most leagues but as you can tell, he does not excite me.

Johnny Knox, WR, CHI – Despite how poorly Caleb Hanie played in this game, his ability to find Knox was undeniable. I’m not even ready to call Knox a solid flex-play yet but if Hanie keeps finding this speedy deep threat next week, then I will have to concede that Knox is worth starting again. I will already say that I would rather have Knox on my team than Bennett.

Peyton Hillis, RB, CLE – Hillis is available in around 20% of leagues at the moment and this is probably a mistake.  He is a borderline top 25 back and now that he is healthy, he must be owned.  He hasn’t played like he did last season but I never expected him to either. Bottom line is he is going to see between 12 and 15 carries and should be the primary goal line back.  This guy is too good to just be sitting on free agency.

Dump List

Bernard Scott, RB, CIN – Anyone who thinks that Scott has more in him than being a mediocre handcuff just hasn’t been watching the Bengals play.  Benson is the more dynamic threat out of the back field and Scott is only used as a change of pace.

Steve Breaston, WR, KC – I could see holding him until Orton starts and you see how he manages this offense but I wouldn’t wait.  I don’t trust Breaston at the moment and with this offense being so one-dimensional, I don’t see that changing.

LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, NYJ – LT is still owned in over 40% of leagues and I don’t get it.  McKnight has run better than he has and neither has really seen the field very much.  Cut your loses with LT now and let him be someone else’s problem as you head into the playoffs!

Lance Ball, RB, DEN – With McGahee having gotten banged up a few times, Ball isn’t value-less. But he didn’t break-out at all when he had the chance and was merely a viable replacement. McGahee has bounce back quickly from his injuries this season and I would probably let Ball go if I had my eye on someone on waivers this week.

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Joseph Addai, RB, IND – Active

Montario Hardesty, RB, CLE – Active

Peyton Hillis, RB, CLE – Active

Percy Harvin, WR, MIN – Active

Kevin Kolb, QB, ARI – Inactive

Visanthe Shiancoe, TE, MIN – Active

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Question 1: Asked by @bereninga

Should Spiller start over Ogbonnaya or Hardesty? I have all three.

Answer

I think I would, unless Hardesty AND Hillis are both inactive this week. The sheer number of carries that Spiller is bound to get combined with his big-play potential give him enough upside.  The Browns face a very stout Bengals defense this week so yardage will be tough to come by. If there is a time-share as well, then I think I would rather take the chance that Spiller breaks a big run off on the Jets.

Question 2: Asked by @Dena_Beth

Pretty sure I know the answer but should I play Victor Cruz and Steve Smith for my Wide Receivers and sit Santonio Holmes?

Answer

This seems right to me. It is admittedly close between Cruz and Holmes but with Manningham banged up and listed as questionable, I think that Cruz is bound to see an increase in targets.  Cruz has been coming along really nicely and progressing with each game. He may be a bit hit-or-miss but he has manage enough consistency that I think you need to start him and take the risk.

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Love

Andre Johnson, WR, HOU – You are right to be concerned about how Johnson will play with Leinart at QB. The only thing is that Jacksonville has a very tough time stopping elite receivers.  Leinart was at one time a starting QB in this league and he is used to having that elite receiver that you can just toss the ball up to.  I expect a very nice game from Johnson this week.

DeMarco Murray, RB, DAL – He had an off game last week and still managed double digit fantasy points.  Miami is on playing really well at the moment but Dallas is too.  As long as Romo doesn’t give the game away with interceptions, I think that Dallas wins this one with relative ease and Murray is the guy that closes it out in the end.

Cam Newton, QB, CAR – I usually have Cam at #2 in my rankings and he is there now.  I would have him at number one but I have seen Aaron Rodgers play this season and that would be insanity.  This match up for Newton is fantastic and I think he has an honest shot at being the week’s top scorer.  You probably don’t need any convincing to start him but I am expecting a huge game this week from the soon to be rookie of the year.

Jordy Nelson, WR, GB – Nelson has been great this season.  He is a big play guy that is able to make that big play with staggering consistency.  I am not ready to rank him above Jennings yet but the fact that I had to think about it is a credit to Nelson’s ability.

Donald Brown, RB, IND – Brown has taken over as the lead back in this offense and while they have been inept this year, Carolina’s defense just may be worse. If your struggling to find a replacement for Fred Jackson, you can do worse than Brown this week.

Hate

Kevin Smith, RB, DET – I ranked Smith poorly this week and partially because I also ranked Jahvid Best. But even if Best does not play, I still would have a hard time starting Smith for this game.  The Lions are at home against the Packers and regardless of how well Detroit has been playing this season I think it would be a huge surprise if they were able to take down the Packers. I expect the Lions to be forced to go to the air early and often in an effort to keep up.  Smith is still a relatively decent flex play because of his ability to catch balls out of the backfield but don’t let that big game cause you to make a foolish decision this week.

Steve Johnson, WR, BUF – The downfall of the Bills has been especially rough on Johnson’s fantasy owners.  He is no longer to be considered a WR2 and is a flex play at best. You should look for another option, especially on Revis island this week.

Sam Bradford, QB, STL – Bradford has been bad this year for fantasy owners. He has an awesome match-up this week but don’t be tempted to use him.  The only guy involved in the Rams’ passing game that I trust is Brandon Lloyd.

Shonn Greene, RB, NYJ – Normally a running back going against Buffalo ends up on the other list.  But with how well Joe McKnight played after Greene went down last week, I am concerned that there is a time-share about to happen.  Greene is still my favorite to get the lion’s share of the work and remains a low-end RB2 in my ranks.

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