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Fantasy Mad Libs: Starts and Sits for Week 12

Most of us are writing on a quicker deadline this week, anxious to get our fantasy advice out into the world, copying and pasting some thoughts on why we are thankful (usually something about how we are beyond excited to be writing fantasy football advice instead of just shouting moves at our friend).

But I was reminded of something today as I hurriedly figured out my lineups; we have three Thursday games. It's our annual "Who Will Get Tired And Underperform First" contest, figuring out who will disappoint us first; will it be Rob Kelley or maybe an uncle, passed out on the couch? Let's take a look.

Editor's Note: New users that sign up on FantasyAces, make a $20 deposit, and enter any game will receive our full season NFL (or NBA) Premium Pass for free, a $59.99 value. Just email [email protected] with your new FantasyAces username - and boom, that's it! We will email you with your Premium pass.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

A Thursday Thanksgiving Preview

The Minnesota Vikings draw the short straw and have to visit Detroit on Thanksgiving. Detroit has the advantage of being a Thanksgiving host every year, which is the only advantage of playing for Detroit, and kicks off at 12:30 AM ET. It's great, because unless you're one of those people who drinks whiskey in a garage as you deep fry a turkey first thing in the morning (that's not projecting, we actually did that last year. God bless Texas) it's impossible that you're drunk at that point. Enjoy a fully healthy Vikings defense that will give the Detroit Lions hell, meaning that unless you're a defensive enthusiast AND Minnesota resident, you will not enjoy the first game.

Next up is Redskins vs. Cowboys! Everyone's favorite afternoon match-up, this game will guarantee one random fantasy football blowout for someone at the table (likely in the form of human bullet Ezekiel Elliott or oddly-resurgent Dez Bryant). Enjoy the uncle you didn't really know that well until your aunt brought him from eHarmony bitch and moan about fantasy advice. He may ask you if you have anything to help his buzz, and then make some sort of hand motion towards drugs. Avoid this person and his bad fantasy drafting.

And then, Steelers vs. Colts at 7:30 PM ET. This will be the game that is arguably the least entertaining, due to Andrew Luck's injury, but it will be a good time for your grandfather to learn who Le'Veon Bell is and why he's "the shit" before your brother/brother-in-law bitches about Luck being hurt and the Colts being bad despite their record. Everyone will be asleep at halftime, due to a classic Thanksgiving case of the "itis." If you've eaten enough, you will not wake up until the next slate of games on Sunday.

Enjoy the holiday!

 

Running Back

Carlos Hyde will either be on my bench or will ruin my week.

Carlos Hyde is unquestionably the RB1 in San Francisco, and has a very exciting fantasy schedule going forward, so now makes a very interesting time to buy Hyde low... or you can wait a week, because Hyde is not going to find much daylight against the Miami Dolphins. My column seems to keep finding offensive players to bench due to the Dolphins' defense, and Hyde may become a flex play at best in hopes he falls into the end zone.

Dear Terrance West, do you like like me? I like like you this week.

It's hard to get overly excited about anyone running in Baltimore, but since Week 5 the run defense in Cincinnati has been incredibly porous and showed no sign of improvement following their bye week. The issue with starting West is obvious; he's not guaranteed to hold onto the workload, but Week 12 is a do-or-die moment for the Ravens. Some RB will succeed, and if it's not West it could be a Kenneth Dixon coming out party. West still holds the snap count advantage, so it's his job as a decent RB2/flex.

Am I going to really start James Starks in Week 12?

It's a strange week when I'm calling a 30-year old Packers RB an "overlooked talent," but Starks has been largely overlooked (though increasingly more owned). Despite the offensive problems in Green Bay, Starks is seeing consistent fantasy work and could be worthy of a flex position if you owned one of the many RBs who went down last week.

 

Wide Receiver

Don't hand me my money back, I'm going double-or-nothing on Tyrell Williams.

I'm a huge fan of Tyrell Williams in fantasy; an increasing number of targets, two of his last three games started have resulted in over 100 yards receiving, and as of now Travis Benjamin is likely to see a matchup with human nightmare A.J. Bouye in this game against Houston. All systems are go for Williams, and he's arguably a WR1 in Week 12.

I will be discarding my Randall Cobb and replacing him with two cards from the deck

I have a hard time recommending anyone playing in green and yellow who catches the ball, but the guy who went from 15 targets a month ago to never topping 9 targets in November is a really hard start in Green Bay's third straight road game, this time in Philly. Randall Cobb may not be startable again save for a Jordy injury or a breakout week.

I am out of options, and will be swiping right on Dorial Green-Beckham (owned in less than 5% of leagues)

In that same matchup, we find a very interesting offensive situation. In the last month, the Eagles have lost Josh Huff, have not committed fully to Jordan Matthews, and have misplaced Nelson Agholor's hands entirely... so may I interest you in some DGB? Matthews escaped a tough match-up against Seattle with five receptions on eight targets after not being targeted once the week before. Beckham's role may be expanding or he may have just had a good week, but this week's "If You're Desperate" pick is.... well, it's certainly desperate.

 

Tight End

Parachute? I don't need no parachute, I have Zach Ertz

Zach Ertz may be the biggest offensive beneficiary of an easy matchup against the Packers, who just gave away a "buy one, get one free" touchdown deal to the Titans tight ends. Philly is in a bit of a predicament right now, but Ertz has been widely dropped in many leagues and if you just lost Zach Miller (be still my heart...) consider Ertz.

Don't cry kids! We will bury Julius Thomas in the yard

As a Julius Thomas owner in too many leagues, I couldn't be less thrilled with this matchup for the Jaguars against the Buffalo Bills. Thomas is not getting the targets in any situation and this will be a nail in the coffin of a tough week for tight ends.




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