Week 13 Risers & Fallers Analysis for Fantasy Football

Week 13 will be the first since Week 3 that all NFL teams will be playing football. With the bye weeks in the rearview mirror, roster depth is close to meaningless at this point in the season. Now, it's all about getting yourself prepared for the playoffs.

This week's Risers and Fallers edition will be more of a "rapid fire," touching on as many players as possible to get you ready for what is likely a make-or-break week for many of you.

With that said, here are your Week 13 risers and fallers. Good luck with your fantasy football lineup and matchups in Week 13, RotoBallers!

 

Fantasy Football Risers -- Stock Up

Matthew Stafford, QB -- Detroit Lions

I know, Stafford has been bad the last three weeks. But he's had a tough schedule, and it turns considerably in his (and the Lions) favor from here on out. He should put up solid QB1 numbers with three straight home games on deck.

 

Shane Vereen, RB -- New England Patriots

It's tough to endorse any Pats RB, since their production is based solely on game plan and game flow. But the Patriots should be in for a couple of shootouts over the next two weeks with games at Green Bay and San Diego, meaning Vereen should get plenty of looks out of the backfield.

 

Arian Foster, RB -- Houston Texans

I think he (finally) plays this week. He's carried your team when he's been on the field, and the Titans run defense is awful (31st in the league in fantasy points allowed to RB position). If he plays, you start him.

 

Keenan Allen, WR -- San Diego Chargers

14 catches the last two games with a score, and over 100 yards last Sunday. And he gets the Ravens putrid pass defense this week.  Allen is a must-start this week.

 

Odell Beckham Jr., WR -- New York Giants

Beckham is the Giants best receiver, and the world got to see why on Sunday night. He has some great matchups to finish out the season (Jacksonville, Tennessee, Washington). Must-start option the rest of the year.

 

Mike Wallace, WR -- Miami Dolphins

Wallace has quietly been a consistent producer this year. Ryan Tannehill is playing well, and while he struggles with the deep ball, Wallace gets enough targets in short and intermediate routes. He faces the Jets and Ravens the next two weeks; both are in the bottom third of the league in pass defense.

 

Roddy White, WR -- Atlanta Falcons

Since Week 3, Roddy has been the best Falcons WR. And over the last three weeks, he's been great, with 23 catches and two touchdowns. Don't sit Roddy now.

 

Jason Witten, TE -- Dallas Cowboys

The TE position as a whole has been brutal this year, so when a guy scores in back-to-back weeks with more than 30 yards receiving in each game, he looks pretty good, and that's what Witten has done. It looks like he's maybe found a second wind on the season. You are probably starting him if you have him, but he's just as volatile as any other TE outside of the top options.

 

Fantasy Football Fallers -- Stock Down

Colin Kaepernick, QB -- San Francisco 49ers

Just one touchdown in each of the last five games, and no more than 263 passing yards in any of those contests. Oh, and he has Seattle twice in the next three weeks. He's not a QB1 this year.

 

All Tampa Bay Buccaneers RB

With Doug Martin back in the lineup on Sunday, he split carries with both Bobby Rainey and Charles Sims. It's impossible to determine who is going to get most of the work in a given week, so it's best to avoid this situation. Also, the Bucs stink and will probably be slinging the ball around the field a good amount of the time anyway.

 

Joique Bell, RB -- Detroit Lions

Bell had every chance to seize control of the Lions backfield, but he's been awful the past month. With Reggie Bush now likely to return on Thursday, and with Theo Riddick's involvement, you can't really trust Bell moving forward.

 

Jonas Gray, RB -- New England Patriots

I hope you didn't blow your remaining FAAB on Gray. After his historic performance against the Colts, he was shut out on Sunday, without managing a single touch.  That was likely the result of his missing practice last week, but as mentioned above, it's hard to count on any Pats RB for consistent production. Their upcoming schedule will probably have them throwing more than rushing, which means Vereen is more likely to see a lot of snaps than Gray is.

 

Sammy Watkins, WR -- Buffalo Bills

Three straight duds by Watkins since the bye week has me slightly concerned. Kyle Orton is inconsistent, and on Monday it seemed like he only wanted to throw to Robert Woods. If you have Watkins,  you're likely rolling with him, so hopefully he can turn it around.

 

Andre Johnson / DeAndre Hopkins, WR -- Houston Texans

With Ryan Mallett out for the year, the Texans will revert to Ryan Fitzpatrick, which probably isn't a good thing for any Houston pass catchers. At this point in the season, I might sit Johnson and Hopkins for more stable options, unless Fitzpatrick shows his time on the bench has improved his arm strength and pocket awareness (spoiler: it hasn't).

 

Owen Daniels, TE -- Baltimore Ravens

Just 10 total catches the past three weeks and zero touchdowns, and his next matchups are against San Diego and Miami, the third- and second-best teams against defending the TE in the league, respectively. Avoid.

 

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