Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 12: Smart Matchup Plays, Sleepers and More

While there is still plenty to be sorted out in the 2014 NFL playoff puzzle, the fantasy football regular season is drawing to a swift close, with just two to three more weeks remaining before the standings are set in stone and each fantasy owner learns their fate.

By now, most fantasy managers are looking through reams of data and trying to decipher which teams are liable to get blown over in the coming weeks.

Some franchises, like the Tennessee Titans, are content to play for next year, which could hamper production, while others, like the Chicago Bears are desperate to restore order in chaotic campaigns. Matchups indeed play a crucial role in the fantasy playoff push. 

Here is a look at a couple of the top matchup plays for Week 12, two sleepers to possibly insert in the starting lineup and two players that should be confined to bench duty.


Smart Matchup Plays

Josh McCown, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (vs. Chicago)

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Josh McCown is back in play, folks. 

After spending several weeks watching Mike Glennon attempt to take command of the Bucs' rudderless ship, McCown has looked a bit more the part over the past two weeks since reassuming the starting role. 

He threw for over 300 yards and two touchdowns on Nov. 9 against the Atlanta Falcons, and followed that up with two more scores (and no picks) against the Washington Redskins in Week 11. Soft opponents, to be sure, but McCown doesn't seem to be playing down to the competition. He's also developed a nice rapport with rookie wide receiver Mike Evans, who had over 200 receiving yards against the Skins.

The Chicago Bears defense is in complete disarray, giving up the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season, per Yahoo Sports. McCown should also have some familiarity with the Bears' schemes considering he quarterbacked that team for much of the 2013 season.

If McCown can find some way to get Vincent Jackson going alongside Evans, this offense could be surprisingly explosive over the final few weeks of the regular season.

Brandon Marshall, WR, Chicago Bears (vs. Tampa Bay)

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Same game, but another smart matchup. Tampa Bay has given up 20 passing touchdowns this season and is allowing 279 receiving yards this season, per ESPN.com. Brandon Marshall has had an up-and-down season playing for a struggling Bears squad, but he should be all set to light up Alterraun Verner and the Bucs' listless secondary.

Marshall has 15 catches for 202 yards and three touchdowns over the course of the past two weeks. As SB Nation points out, he isn't afraid to demand the football when the occasion calls for it:

Marshall is a WR1 when everything is clicking, which hasn't been the case for much of the season. Indeed, he's had four games this season with three or fewer receptions. Those days appear to be behind him, much to the delight of fantasy owners who actually had to toy with the idea of demoting him in a mostly barren October.

Sleepers

Larry Donnell, TE, New York Giants

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

It's tough to find reliability at the tight end position if one isn't lucky enough to have someone like Rob Gronkowski or Julius Thomas (and even then, health isn't guaranteed). Oftentimes, it seems there is nowhere to turn for a sleeper at this position.

Don't look now, but Larry Donnell might be back in some fantasy owners' good graces and worth a start in Week 12. Donnell caught the attention of a great many fantasy managers with a three-touchdown performance against the Washington Redskins early in the season, only to come up with just one catch over his next two games.

He's been better in recent weeks, notching two touchdowns in his last three games and making a spectacular catch in Week 11 against the San Francisco 49ers, a leaping effort that the New York Daily News' Ralph Vacchiano considered one of the best he's seen all year:

Donnell has a fine opportunity to prove his worth for scavenging fantasy owners against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 12, who are giving up 10.89 fantasy points per game to tight ends, per Yahoo Sports. The last time the Giants played the 'Boys, on Oct. 19, Donnell had seven catches for 90 yards.

Trust issues will be a problem between Donnell and fantasy owners for quite some time, but he's proven in recent weeks he can put up fantasy points without seeing much of the football.

Terrance West, RB, Cleveland Browns

Tony Dejak/Associated Press

Yes, the Houston Texans limited West to just 12 yards on five carries in Week 11, but he could be an interesting choice for running back-starved fantasy owners with a promising matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. Mike Smith's squad has allowed 122.4 rushing yards per game this season and given up 13 scores on the ground.

The Browns have utilized a committee approach in the backfield this season, but West isn't likely to get lost in the shuffle anytime soon.

Head coach Mike Pettine likes what he's seen from West and Isaiah Crowell, which doesn't bode well for Ben Tate's usage in the coming weeks.

"There's an explosiveness there with the young backs, just a little bit more pop," he said, via ESPN.com's Jeremy Fowler.

Crowell out-carried West, 14-5, against the Texans, but the former gave up a costly fumble in that contest. This could very well restore West to the lead back role he assumed in Week 10, when he carried the ball 26 times for 94 yards and a touchdown. West has yet to fumble this season.

Few things are certain in the Browns backfield, but West could be a nice fill-in back with a tantalizing matchup on the slate.

Sit 'Em

Philip Rivers, QB, San Diego Chargers

Gregory Bull/Associated Press

Philip Rivers was garnering MVP attention thanks to his red-hot start to the 2014 season, but he just hasn't been himself over the Bolts' past two games.

Week	Opponent	CMP/ATT	YDS	TD	INT
9	Miami Dolphins	12/23	138	0	3
11	Oakland Raiders	22/34	193	1	0

Injuries might be to blame here. Tight end Antonio Gates told U-T San Diego's Michael Gehlken that Rivers has been playing with "a very severe rib injury" in the past few weeks. For a quarterback with zero ability to escape a pass rush, that would be a difficult psychological hurdle to overcome, knowing that any shot might bring excruciating pain.

However, Rivers himself gave the impression there is nothing to worry about.

"I'm no more banged up than other quarterback in the league," Rivers said, via Gehlken. "All good."

The murkiness surrounding his health doesn't inspire much confidence, nor does playing a St. Louis Rams squad that held the mighty Denver Broncos offense to just seven points in Week 11.

Sure, Peyton Manning threw for nearly 400 yards in that contest, but he wasn't working through the struggles that Rivers will have to contend with and is surrounded by much better offensive weapons. Rivers may return to elite QB1 status at some point this season, but the revival is unlikely to come against the Rams.

Brandon LaFell, WR, New England Patriots

Steven Senne/Associated Press

The Detroit Lions have been downright scrooge-like when it comes to opposing wide receivers looking for fantasy points. They are allowing just 17.09 points per game to that position group, lowest mark in the league, per Yahoo Sports.

This doesn't bode well for LaFell, who is coming off a three-catch, 62-yard performance against the Indianapolis Colts, a game which his New England Patriots won by a score of 42-20. That being said, his grabs were still impressive, per Bleacher Report's Erik Frenz:

Quarterback Tom Brady will likely be checking down to Julian Edelman quite a bit in the face of the Lions' formidable pass rush. He's also likely to rely on the incomparable Gronk to get tough completions in this game. And perhaps the Patriots will turn to the running game in this contest, considering Jonas Gray's heroic performance against the Colts.