Week 13 Fantasy Football Rankings: Position-by-Position Breakdown

For most fantasy football leagues, Week 13 is the penultimate week of the regular season and studying the latest rankings in order to walk away victorious has never been more important to owners.

Bye weeks are no longer an excuse, but injuries have taken their toll on most teams at some point this season. With three Thursday games and a schedule full of intriguing divisional and interconference matchups, this week is crucial for fantasy owners.

Here is a position-by-position fantasy breakdown heading into Week 13. When in doubt, start the higher-ranked player on each list.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Projections
1	Aaron Rodgers, GB	25 Points
2	Peyton Manning, DEN	24 Points
3	Andrew Luck, IND	23 Points
4	Tom Brady, NE	22 Points
5	Drew Brees, NO	21 Points
6	Matthew Stafford, DET	19 Points
7	Tony Romo, DAL	18 Points
8	Ben Roethlisberger, PIT	17 Points
9	Colin Kaepernick, SF	16 Points
10	Philip Rivers, SD	15 Points
11	Ryan Tannehill, MIA	14 Points
12	Josh McCown, TB	14 Points
13	Cam Newton, CAR	13 Points
14	Robert Griffin III, WAS	12 Points
15	Jay Cutler, CHI	12 Points

Few quarterbacks deal with more scrutiny than Washington Redskins star Robert Griffin III, but fantasy owners must take a leap of faith and use the former No. 2 overall pick as their starter in Week 13 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Indianapolis' pass defense is ranked 20th in the NFL, allowing 249.4 yards per game. If there was ever a time for Griffin to return to the elite form he showed in his rookie season, it would be Sunday afternoon against the Colts.

After throwing for just 106 yards, zero touchdowns and zero interceptions in Week 12, Washington must look to give Griffin more opportunities to lead the team to victory. With a larger workload, Griffin could have a huge statistical game in a favorable matchup at the most opportune time for fantasy owners.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Projection
1	DeMarco Murray, DAL	22 Points
2	LeSean McCoy, PHI	22 Points
3	Jamaal Charles, KC	20 Points
4	Le'Veon Bell, PIT	18 Points
5	Matt Forte, CHI	18 Points
6	Marshawn Lynch, SEA	17 Points
7	Eddie Lacy, GB	16 Points
8	Arian Foster, HOU	16 Points
9	Trent Richardson, IND	15 Points
10	Alfred Morris, WAS	15 Points
11	Andre Ellington, ARI	15 Points
12	Rashad Jennings, NYG	14 Points
13	Mark Ingram, NO	13 Points
14	C.J. Anderson, DEN	13 Points
15	Ryan Mathews, SD	12 Points
16	Lamar Miller, MIA	11 Points
17	Denard Robinson, JAX	11 Points
18	Justin Forsett, BAL	11 Points
19	LeGarrette Blount, NE	10 Points
20	Jeremy Hill, CIN	10 Points
21	Jerick McKinnon, MIN	9 Points
22	Tre Mason, StL	9 Points
23	Isaiah Crowell, CLE	8 Points
24	Shane Vereen, NE	8 Points
25	Frank Gore, SF	7 Points

Two running backs to consider this week will go head-to-head Sunday when the Green Bay Packers play the New England Patriots. If you have Eddie Lacy or LeGarrette Blount on your roster, get them into your lineup in Week 13.

Lacy has continued to emerge as a No. 1 running back in fantasy this season and has put up big numbers in the passing game and on the ground. With over 1,000 all-purpose yards and nine total touchdowns, fantasy owners should be starting Lacy every week without exception.

Add in a favorable matchup against a beatable New England front seven (giving up 108.2 rushing yards per game), and Lacy should have a big fantasy output.

On the other side of the field, Blount has stolen the show from backup Jonas Gray and emerged as the Patriots’ preferable option as the primary between-the-tackles back. In Blount’s first start with New England since being released by Pittsburgh, he amassed 78 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Fantasy owners should be wary of Shane Vereen stealing carries and Gray eventually being used more often, but Blount is a legitimate red-zone threat and a bruising back who will get touches in Bill Belichick’s offense.

Owners should use Blount as a Week 13 flex against Green Bay's 30th-ranked run defense.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Projection
1	Calvin Johnson, DET	22 Points
2	Antonio Brown, PIT	22 Points
3	Dez Bryant, DAL	20 Points
4	Jordy Nelson, GB	20 Points
5	Demaryius Thomas, DEN	19 Points
6	Brandon Marshall, CHI	18 Points
7	A.J. Green, CIN	18 Points
8	Mike Evans, TB	17 Points
9	Randall Cobb, GB	17 Points
10	Jeremy Maclin, PHI	16 Points
11	Julio Jones, ATL	16 Points
12	Odell Beckham, NYG	15 Points
13	Kelvin Benjamin, CAR	15 Points
14	T.Y. Hilton, IND	14 Points
15	Andre Johnson, HOU	14 Points
16	Emmanuel Sanders, DEN	14 Points
17	Josh Gordon, CLE	13 Points
18	Roddy White, ATL	12 Points
19	Vincent Jackson, TB	12 Points
20	Sammy Watkins, BUF	11 Points
21	Mike Wallace, MIA	10 Points
22	Percy Harvin, NYJ	10 Points
23	DeAndre Hopkins, HOU	9 Points
24	Alshon Jeffery, CHI	8 Points
25	Julian Edelman, NE	8 Points
26	Keenan Allen, SD	8 Points
27	Brandon LaFell, NE	7 Points
28	Eric Decker, NYJ	6 Points
29	Michael Floyd, ARI	6 Points
30	Golden Tate, DET	5 Points
31	Steve Smith, BAL	5 Points
32	Reggie Wayne, IND	5 Points
33	Martavis Bryant, PIT	5 Points
34	DeSean Jackson, WAS	5 Points
35	Michael Crabtree, SF	5 Points

Finding receivers that won’t let you down in Week 13 is imperative to your success, and Tampa Bay’s Mike Evans and Houston’s DeAndre Hopkins will be keys to victory.

For fantasy owners who took the educated risk drafting a rookie like Evans and didn’t abandon ship when he went the first three games without a touchdown, you are being rewarded tenfold with his recent streak of success. Over the last four games, Evans has 24 receptions for 505 yards and six touchdowns.

Tampa Bay has a favorable matchup against a Cincinnati Bengals pass defense that gives up 243.5 yards per game, and fantasy owners should start Evans as a borderline WR1/WR2 with high expectations.

One receiver who owners are down on is Hopkins. With the season-ending injury to quarterback Ryan Mallett, via John McClain of the Houston Chronicle, the Texans will once again turn the reins over to Ryan Fitzpatrick:

The good news is that Hopkins and Fitzpatrick were developing a nice rhythm before the QB was benched. In Fitzpatrick’s final two starts, he targeted Hopkins 22 times for 210 yards and one touchdown.

Houston squares off against a Tennessee Titans team that is coming off a beating at the hands of the high-powered Philadelphia Eagles offense. No one will mistake the Texans for the Eagles, but Houston has the blueprint to have a big offensive day against the Titans.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Projection
1	Rob Gronkowski, NE	18 Points
2	Jimmy Graham, NO	18 Points
3	Antonio Gates, SD	14 Points
4	Jason Witten, DAL	14 Points
5	Martellus Bennett, CHI	13 Points
6	Julius Thomas, DEN	12 Points
7	Charles Clay, MIA	12 Points
8	Travis Kelce, KC	11 Points
9	Greg Olsen, CAR	10 Points
10	Delanie Walker, TEN	10 Points
11	Owen Daniels, BAL	9 Points
12	Larry Donnell, NYG	8 Points

It took awhile for the Dallas Cowboys to once again lean on tight end Jason Witten in the passing game, but he has caught 20 passes over the last four games compared to 23 receptions through the first seven games of the season.

Witten has also scored three touchdowns over the last four games, including a crucial score against the New York Giants Sunday night. While Witten still isn’t amassing the yardage owners would like, the red-zone dependence on him should result in a steady stream of touchdowns.

Against a beatable Philadelphia defense on Thursday, Witten should be a big part of the Dallas game plan and should have a big day on the stat sheet.

Team Defenses

Rank	Team	Opponent	Projection
1	Seattle Seahawks	San Francisco	16 Points
2	Arizona Cardinals	Atlanta	16 Points
3	San Francisco 49ers	Seattle	14 Points
4	Houston Texans	Tennessee	14 Points
5	Miami Dolphins	New York Jets	14 Points
6	Cincinnati Bengals	Tampa Bay	12 Points
7	Detroit Lions	Chicago	12 Points
8	Carolina Panthers	Minnesota	12 Points
9	New York Giants	Jacksonville	10 Points
10	St. Louis Rams	Oakland	10 Points
11	Oakland Raiders	St. Louis	10 Points
12	Minnesota Vikings	Carolina	8 Points

The Cincinnati Bengals defense was dominated early in the season, but has excelled over the past two weeks, allowing just 23 total points.

With a matchup against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense that has only scored 20-plus points once since Week 6, fantasy owners who stream defenses should pick up Cincinnati if they are available.

Kickers

Rank	Player	Projection
1	Stephen Gostkowski, NE	14 Points
2	Justin Tucker, BAL	14 Points
3	Adam Vinatieri, IND	13 Points
4	Cody Parkey, PHI	12 Points
5	Chandler Catanzaro, ARI	12 Points
6	Mason Crosby, GB	11 Points
7	Phil Dawson, SF	10 Points
8	Brandon McManus, DEN	9 Points
9	Nick Novak, SD	8 Points
10	Dan Bailey, DAL	7 Points
11	Shayne Graham, NO	6 Points
12	Dan Carpenter, BUF	6 Points

Philadelphia Eagles kicker Cody Parkey had the best game of his young career, hitting five of his six field-goal opportunities and all four of his extra points.

Philadelphia will likely be involved in a shootout against Dallas on Thursday, and fantasy owners should expect Parkey to play a big role in keeping the score close.

*Stats via NFL.com.