Fantasy Football Week 12 Rankings: Projections and Matchups to Love

With six teams out of the picture thanks to Thanksgiving festivities, owners now more than usual must lean on top-tier matchups for production when it comes to Week 12 start 'em, sit 'em decisions.

There's still plenty of value floating around on the boards. That said, it won't be easy to replicate say, a Matthew Stafford of the Detroit Lions in an elite matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, where he posted an eye-popping 34 points for owners before going home for turkey.

Alas, owners must hunt for such values amid the leftovers. Here's a look at player rankings for each position and a sampling of the top matchups at each.

Week 12 Schedule

Sunday, Nov. 29	Time (ET)
Monday, Nov. 30	Time (ET)
New Orleans at Houston	1:00 pm
Buffalo at Kansas City	1:00 pm
San Diego at Jacksonville	1:00 pm
Minnesota at Atlanta	1:00 pm
Miami at N.Y. Jets	1:00 pm
N.Y. Giants at Washington	1:00 pm
Oakland at Tennessee	1:00 pm
St. Louis at Cincinnati	1:00 pm
Tampa Bay at Indianapolis	1:00 pm
Arizona at San Francisco	4:05 pm
Pittsburgh at Seattle	4:25 pm
New England at Denver	8:30 pm
Baltimore at Cleveland	8:30 pm

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Carson Palmer	22
2	Drew Brees	18
3	Brian Hoyer*	16
4	Blake Bortles	12
5	Tom Brady	12
6	Ben Roethlisberger	11
7	Andy Dalton	10
8	Philip Rivers	10
9	Matt Ryan	10
10	Marcus Mariota	10
11	Derek Carr	10
12	Alex Smith	9
13	Matt Hasselbeck	8
14	Kirk Cousins	8
15	Eli Manning	8

It's an odd time when a quarterback by the name of Brian Hoyer has his name highlighted, but so it goes in Week 12.

Hoyer has actually been quite the boon for owners on the hunt for value. He stepped into the fold for the Houston Texans a few weeks into the season and turned it on with 17 or more points in five straight games before suffering an injury in Week 10 that held him out last week, too. 

But Hoyer's healthy just in time for an encounter with the New Orleans Saints, the miserable defense coughing up the most points to quarterbacks on average.

Look at it this way—Hoyer gets to toss it up to DeAndre Hopkins on pretty much every down against a defense that has allowed 14 passing scores over its past three outings.

It's hard to one-up that, but Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota also sits in a great spot. The rookie has a date with the Oakland Raiders, which could really stop here without much in the way of analysis.

To elaborate, though, Mariota has 17 or more points in two of his last three, and five trips to double digits total. Oakland allows the fourth-most points to quarterbacks, with seven opponents tossing two or more scores against the unit.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Adrian Peterson	15
2	Devonta Freeman*	14
3	LeSean McCoy	13
4	Charcandrick West*	13
5	Mark Ingram	13
6	Thomas Rawls	12
7	Todd Gurley	12
8	Chris Ivory	11
9	Chris Johnson	11
10	T.J. Yeldon	11
11	LeGarrette Blount	10
12	Javorius Allen	9
13	DeAngelo Williams	9
14	Lamar Miller	9
15	Frank Gore*	8
16	Doug Martin	8
17	Carlos Hyde*	8
18	Giovani Bernard	8
19	Latavius Murray	7
20	Alfred Blue	7
21	Antonio Andrews	7
22	Danny Woodhead	7
23	Darren Sproles	7
24	Ronnie Hillman	6
25	Melvin Gordon	6

Call it the tale of those named Chris in Week 12. 

Chris Ivory of the New York Jets, who quietly entered Week 12 as fantasy's seventh-highest scorer at the position, has another monster matchup this week in an AFC East clash with the Miami Dolphins.

Ivory only managed three points one week ago, but don't forget he's gone for 10 or more points six times this year and for more than 20 in half of those. One such occurrence came in Week 4 on the road against these same Dolphins, where he ran it 29 times for 166 yards and a score, good for 22 points.

Miami's had a coaching change since, but the Dolphins have still allowed 23 or more points to opposing backs in four of their last five.

Then there's the Arizona Cardinal's' Chris Johnson, formerly known as CJ2K. His career revival continues this weekend with a rematch against the San Francisco 49ers.

Back in Week 3, Johnson ran it 22 times for 110 yards and a pair of scores, totaling his season-high of 27 points. Johnson can be hit or miss when it comes to outbursts, but an elite matchup always seems to do the trick, and the 49ers surrender the second-most points to backs this season.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	DeAndre Hopkins	15
2	Allen Robinson	14
3	Julio Jones	12
4	Odell Beckham Jr.	11
5	Larry Fitzgerald	11
6	Antonio Brown	10
7	Demaryius Thomas	9
8	Sammy Watkins	9
9	Eric Decker	9
10	A.J. Green	8
11	Michael Crabtree	8
12	Mike Evans	8
13	Amari Cooper	8
14	Brandon Marshall	8
15	Jarvis Landry	8
16	Brandin Cooks	8
17	Stevie Johnson	8
18	John Brown	8
19	Travis Benjamin	8
20	Emmanuel Sanders*	7
21	Martavis Bryant	7
22	Danny Amendola*	7
23	DeSean Jackson	7
24	T.Y. Hilton	6
25	Jeremy Maclin	6
26	Kamar Aiken	6
27	Nate Washington	6
28	Allen Hurns	6
29	Brandon LaFell	6
30	Vincent Jackson	6

It's not hard to see the top matchups at wideout this week. Stafford's top wideout, Calvin Johnson, already set the tone in that cupcake Thursday matchup with 27 points.

Would it be crazy for New York Giants wideout Odell Beckham Jr. to come close to that total?

Maybe not. Beckham ranked more than 10 spots ahead of Megatron on the scoring list before this week and behind just three players for the top spot thanks to his seven double-digit outings. 

He enters Week 12 riding three in row, and four scores over his last three. The Washington Redskins, the team allowing the fifth-most points to receivers, doesn't stand a chance at stopping him—especially after allowing him to catch seven passes for 79 yards and a score for 13 points back in Week 3.

Sammy Watkins of the Buffalo Bills has a chance at coming close as well, thanks to a top-tier matchup. He's only scored double digits three times while dealing with injuries and poor quarterback play, but when he does he downright explodes (eight catches for 168 yards and a score for 22 points in Week 9 against the Dolphins.)

Expect an explosion this weekend on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs, the team allowing the most points to wideouts. The Chiefs have already allowed 14 touchdowns to receivers this year and no group of opposing receivers has failed to reach double digits yet.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Rob Gronkowski	12
2	Delanie Walker	10
3	Tyler Eifert	8
4	Gary Barnidge	8
5	Jordan Reed*	8
6	Antonio Gates	8
7	Jimmy Graham	7
8	Travis Kelce	7
9	Julius Thomas	6
10	Heath Miller	6

It's been an extremely odd year at tight end.

Rob Gronkowski's at the top, but after him it's a mess. Jimmy Graham's missing in action, Jason Witten's struggling, a 30-year-old veteran by the name of Gary Barnidge ranks fourth in scoring and Tennessee's Delanie Walker is right behind him.

About Walker. Mariota's favorite target is an absolute stud in the right matchup. He's not anywhere near consistent for standard-league scoring, but when he gets to play a defense such as say, New Orleans, he goes off for seven catches for 95 yards and two scores for 23 points.

Or last week, when the Jacksonville Jaguars somehow managed to hold him out of the end zone, he still mustered 10 points on eight catches for 109 yards.

Rookies need safety blankets and Walker personifies the notion. Against the Oakland Raiders—the team allowing the third-most points to the position—he's going to explode for another epic outing.

Defense/Special Teams

Rank	Unit	Projected Points
1	Cardinals	10
2	Jets	9
3	Eagles	9
4	Bills	9
5	Seahawks	8
6	Patriots	7
7	Bengals	7
8	Broncos	6
9	Chiefs	6
10	Steelers	6

The Arizona Cardinals haven't been the most consistent defense this year, nor are they close to matching the Denver Broncos' 131 total points with their 87.

But this week is an NFC West encounter with the lowly 49ers, meaning a fourth double-digit outing seems in the cards. One of the original three came against San Francisco when the unit managed to post two touchdowns for an epic 30-point outing in Week 3.

It would be silly to expect close to that total again, but then again, San Francisco does allow the fifth-most points to opposing units. The offense now features Blaine Gabbert at quarterback, who has three touchdowns to two interceptions over two starts.

Don't consider it too outlandish to think Patrick Peterson and Co. can pick off the so-so veteran a few times, if not take one back to the house. At the very least, the Cardinals won't have problems holding the offense to less than 20 points.

Kickers

Rank	Player	Projected Points
1	Stephen Gostkowski	9
2	Matt Bryant	8
3	Cairo Santos	8
4	Nick Novak	8
5	Josh Brown	8
6	Blair Walsh	8
7	Mike Nugent	8
8	Justin Tucker	7
9	Dustin Hopkins	7
10	Steven Hauschka	7

It's not every week owners would turn to Nick Novak of the Houston Texans, but now is as good a time as any.

Novak hasn't been the most consistent kicker around this year and has yet to reach double digits. That said, he does have four outings with six or more points, putting him at a decent floor each week for an owners who somehow manage to find themselves in an emergency situation.

For Novak, it's a date with the Saints this week, the team (shocker alert) that allows the fourth-most points to kickers. Pair Novak's strong floor with the fact that six opposing kickers have attempted at least two field goals, and four have reached 10 or more points against the unit, and the veteran looks like one of the top plays of the week.

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats as of November 27.