Happy Friday and welcome back to my weekly Start/Sit HUB! Mike Hubbard Jr here, providing you with information that can help you win your fantasy league week in and week out. For all things fantasy football, follow me on Twitter (@FantasyHubbard). You can tweet me or message me with any questions you might have regarding the fantasy football season.
Week 12 has arrived and hopefully there is a warm seat for you in a playoff bracket. Keep grinding and play smart. Always keep fighting. Stay informed and be strategic.
I hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving with friends and family and of course food and football. We had Bills/Lions as an appetizer, Giants/Cowboys for dinner, and Patriots/Vikings for dessert. Bills handed the Lions their first loss since before Halloween. The Cowboys kept Barkley and the Giants contained in an 8-point win. And finally, a kickoff return TD and Justin Jefferson were too much for the Patriots to overcome.
The week 12 games I’m interested in the most this weekend are the Bengals/Titans, Chargers/Cardinals, and Eagles/Packers. Who scores more points, Chase or Henry? Can Murray and DHop outlast Herbert and Allen? and will the Eagles finally shut down the run?
I’m here every week during the fantasy football season with start and sit suggestions that can impact your team each week. My decisions as always include obvious and not so obvious picks. I would also like to clarify that my sit suggestions are based on the assumption you have or can add a player that has a better chance at success. Good luck this week and continue to check out my weekly articles.
START OF THE WEEK
Start – Geno Smith – Oh baby the Seahawks are playing the Raiders. That means start your Seahawks this week. Almost every offensive position is a good matchup against Vegas. I picked Geno Smith because he has been fantastic. Geno has multiple TD passes in 8 of his 10 games this season. He has set a career high with 17 TD passes and has only thrown 4 INTs. He has played great and has weapons to compliment his comeback player of the year performances. Raiders have allowed opposing QBs 4 rushing TDs and 17 passing TDs. Every QB to face the Raiders this season has 222+ passing yards. Russell Wilson is the only QB not to throw or run for a TD (2nd time they played in week 11).
Buccaneers @ Browns
Start – Rachaad White – I really like Rachaad White in this game. Leonard Fournette is probably going to be a gametime decision so White should get plenty of action even if Fournette is able to play. The Browns defense has allowed 13 rushing TDs and 3 receiving TDs to opposing RBs this season. Rachaad is capable of rushing and receiving. Tom Brady had only 29 passing attempts in his last game hinting that if they don’t need to force throwing then they won’t. Bucs should be able to run all over Cleveland on Sunday.
Sit – Kareem Hunt – Hunt has a bad matchup this week and is in a position with less-than-ideal opportunity. Hunt has single digit rushing attempts in 4 of his last 5 games, has only surpassed 50 rushing yards once back in week 2, and his best receiving game was a 4 catch 30-yard performance. It has been a month since Hunt found the endzone and it appears that might be delayed at least another week. Bucs run defense is great, and if any RB has a chance to make an impact it would most likely be Chubb.
Bengals @ Titans
Start – Joe Burrow – Burrow is coming off a 4 TD performance and might be getting his best pass catcher Ja’Marr Chase back. In Burrows last 5 games he has 13 passing TDs and 3 INTs. He also has 3 300+ passing yard games in those last 5 games. He gets a good matchup against the Titans defense who have allowed 1 passing TD in every game this season and 2 or more in 6 of 10 games.
Sit – Robert Woods – Woods is having a season to forget individually despite the Titans being 7-3. Woods had one of his better games last week when he caught 6 of 7 targets for 69 yards. That is only the 2nd time he had over 40 receiving yards this season. Woods also has just 1 TD all season back in week 4. Treylon Burks had a great game last week making Woods a little more of an afterthought, especially on a run heavy team.
Texans @ Dolphins
Start – Jeff Wilson Jr – When your RB plays the Texans you start him in fantasy. Jeff Wilson is RB1 in Miami and should get a good workload. The Texans have allowed over 1500 rushing yards to RBs this season which is almost 200 more than next worst LA Chargers. Texans are also tied for most RB rushing TDs allowed with 13. Tua and the Dolphins have a great ariel attack, but this week I think they know they can run up and down the field and feed Wilson and Mostert.
Sit – Dameon Pierce – I’m picking Pierce in the sit spot due to matchup and game flow probability. Dolphins are playing at home, have won 4 straight games, and are favored by 13. Pierce should get touches early, but if the game gets out of hand whoever is playing QB for Houston will be forced to throw often to try to keep it close. Brandin Cooks could be a sneaky good play being the best pass catcher on a team that will most likely need to throw. Pierce is still a top 20 RB for me this week but proceed with caution.
Bears @ Jets
Start – Justin Fields – Justin Fields is in my start spot. You’re shocked I know. But how can he not be? The QB in Chicago is the 5th leading rusher in the NFL. Not 5th QB rushing, but 5th NFL player. The matchup isn’t great for most QBs, but Fields isn’t most QBs. He will run all over you and occasionally throw. He has improved his passing throwing 8 TD passes in his last 4 games. Josh Allen recently played the Jets and rushed for 86 yards and 2 rushing TDs. Kenny Pickett also rushed for 2 TDs against the Jets this season.
Sit – James Robinson – Robinson and almost every Jets player is in my sit spot. Michael Carter is the only Jet I would consider playing in fantasy this week. Jets made it clear that Zach Wilson is not going to start this week so it will be Mike White behind center. Regardless of QB I believe James Robinson will not get enough exposure in this game unless Carter suffers a setback.
Falcons @ Commanders
Start – Terry McLaurin – Terry is in a great spot here. He gets the weak Falcons WR defense, has Heinicke behind center, and the Commanders are hot winning 5 of their last 6 games. When Heinicke is playing QB, Terry gets a lot of looks. He has a minimum of 7 targets in games Heinicke has played in this season. Atlanta has given up 13 receiving TDs to WRs and give up nearly 200 yards to WRs each game. Terry should have a good outing at home.
Sit – Cordarrelle Patterson – Patterson is facing the Commanders who have been shutting down RBs lately. Washington has allowed just 1 rushing TD to RBs since week 6. Only 2 RBs have hit the 75 rushing yard mark against Washington this season and those 2 were Jonathan Taylor and Derrick Henry. Cordarrelle has not been involved enough in the pass game, and his rushing has been decent, but the volume is too low right now.
Broncos @ Panthers
Start – Latavius Murray – With no Melvin Gordon in the picture anymore Murray is going to be RB1 with Marlon Mack behind him. Murray set season highs in rushing attempts, targets, and receptions last week against Vegas. Panthers have given up 13 total TDs to RBs this season. Murray scored a rushing TD last week and should be able to again if he gets some goal line looks.
Sit – DJ Moore – Moore is about to play with a 3rd different QB in 3 weeks. He has not hit the 30 receiving yard mark since his huge game in week 8. In fact, other than that week 8 game, he has not reached 70 receiving yards in a game and has over 4 receptions in just 3 games. A matchup with Denver’s pass defense is not exactly what Moore would like to get him going. They recently allowed 2 WRs to go off in their last 2 games, but prior to that they only let 1 WR score a receiving TD this season. Only 3 times have WRs hit the century mark against the Broncos and 2 of them were Davante Adams.
Ravens @ Jaguars
Start – Christian Kirk – Kirk is balling out on the Jags. He has 7 receiving TDs this season which is a new career high for him in a season. In his last 2 games he has totals of 21 targets, 17 receptions, 181 receiving yards, and 3 receiving TDs. Ravens have let a WR surpass 70 receiving yards in each of their last 4 games played. This game is in Jacksonville and should be closer than expected. Ravens are favored by 4. Kirk had his best game of the season in week 10 and had a BYE in week 11 so he should be fresh and ready.
Sit – Darrell Henderson – Henderson has had a rough year that was almost over once cut from the Rams. He was claimed by the Jaguars which is better than nothing. Travis Etienne is RB1 and will get the majority of RB work. As long as Etienne is healthy, I wouldn’t consider Henderson as a starter. He is perfectly capable of success but his position on the team and rough year has him easily in my sit spot.
Chargers @ Cardinals
Start – Keenan Allen – Allen finally returned to the field after many games missed this season. Herbert targeted him 8 times and that was just getting him involved and back into his groove. I’m expected the same amount of targets this week or even more. He has only played in 3 games this season and is still searching for his 1st score of the year. The Cardinals have allowed 6 receiving TDs to WRs in their last 4 games. I’m expecting a lot of Herbert to Allen connections this weekend.
Sit – Rondale Moore – Moore might not even play this weekend, but even if he does, I won’t play him. He is coming off a game that he left early with a groin injury. Kyler Murray is set to start at QB on Sunday so I believe he will be all over DeAndre Hopkins and even Marquise Brown if he is able to play. Cardinals have a lot of pass catchers that play and will most likely be prioritized over Moore this week. Short week and injury? Hard pass.
Raiders @ Seahawks
Start – Geno Smith – SEE START OF THE WEEK ABOVE
Sit – Mack Hollins – I don’t think you were planning on starting Hollins this week unless you own him and are desperate for a WR. Hollins has 2 TDs this season, 1 monster 158-yard performance, and 4 games with 5+ receptions. Other than that, he has been pretty pedestrian. Davante Adams has been on fire and Carr knows he will come through. Adams has 10 receiving TDs already in the season, including 2 last week and 5 in his last 3 games. Seattle is easier to run on and they have a weakness for covering TEs. Mack could catch a bunch but the likelihood it results in good fantasy production is low.
Rams @ Chiefs
Start – Isiah Pacheco – I like Pacheco in this spot because I think KC should win handily. I don’t think the Rams will be able to put up a lot of points and the Chiefs are the highest scoring offense in the NFL. Rams average under 17 and Chiefs average 30. And they’re in KC. There should be plenty of rushing opportunities if the game is close and if the game gets out of hand. Only downside is if it is a blowout, they could just take Pacheco and give more playing time to McKinnon and Jones.
Sit – LA RAMS DST – Don’t play the Rams defense. Even if they get a few sacks, they won’t be able to stop Mahomes who is playing great. LA has given up 27+ points in 3 of their last 4 games and has not had an INT or fumble recovery since week 6 and that was the only INT following week 2. Rams aren’t playing good football and that won’t change this week.
Saints @ 49ers
Start – Brandon Aiyuk – If it isn’t broke don’t fix it. Aiyuk is playing great and fantasy owners are grateful. Yes, he only had 20 receiving yards in a blowout win, but he did also score twice. Prior to that he had 4 consecutive 80-yard games and has scored 5 TDs in his last 5 games. The Saints defense allowed 2 receiving TDs to the Cooper Kupp-less LA Rams last game. Saints will have their hands full with Deebo and McCaffrey so they will have to pick and choose throughout the game who to focus on more than others.
Sit – Alvin Kamara – Kamara has struggles on the road this season and is going into SF. He missed practice on Thursday to be aware of his game status moving forward until gametime. If he I out it could be a big upgrade. David Johnson, Mark Ingram, Taysom Hill? Regardless, I don’t like Kamara here on the road. He has 3 TDs this season, 1 rushing and 2 receiving. Those all happened in 1 game at home. I hope you have better options or hope for some short catches with long YAC.
Packers @ Eagles
Start – Aaron Jones – If the Packers want to come out of Philly with a win they are going to need to feed Jones. Teams have been running on the Eagles lately and its working. The Eagles got some veteran defensive lineman, but I would still attack them until they prove they can stop you for 4 quarters on the ground. The Eagles let Dameon Pierce rush for 139 yards, Brian Robinson rush for 86 yards with a TD, and then Jonathan Taylor rushed for 84 yards and a TD all in the last 3 games. I’m sure if we have noticed so have the Packers.
Sit – Aaron Rodgers – Like I said above you want to attack Philly by running the ball until they stop you consistently. If Rodgers tries to force things in primetime in Philadelphia, I imagine Darius Slay and James Bradberry will lock things down. Rodgers has been better lately but still has lost 5 of his last 6 starts. Philadelphia’s defense has shut down opposing QBs all season.