Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 13: Final Lineup Advice for Fantasy Football Owners

Week 13 marks the final matchup of the regular season in many fantasy football leagues, which means it is do-or-die time for owners who are on the fringes of playoff contention.

Crazy things tend to happen over the course of the fantasy football season, which is why making the playoffs regardless of seed is paramount. Doing so may take some unconventional decisions, though, as the fantasy landscape is much different now than it was earlier in the year.

For those who are either looking to break into the playoffs or improve their seeding, here is a rundown of lineup moves that may seem unpopular on the surface, but should go a long way toward helping you win in Week 13.

Start 'Em

QB Andy Dalton (CIN)

Dalton has performed like a weekly fantasy starter this season, but it is possible his owners have wrestled with whether to put him in their lineups at times since he was drafted as a backup by most.

That shouldn't be the case in Week 13, though, as Dalton is arguably the top signal-caller on the board and is in line for a huge game against the rival Cleveland Browns.

Cleveland is allowing over 265 passing yards per game and has surrendered 23 touchdowns through the air, which ranks 30th in the NFL. That's not to mention the fact the Browns are seemingly a team in disarray—especially after losing to the Baltimore Ravens on a last-second blocked field goal returned for a touchdown in Week 12.

Dalton is completing nearly 66 percent of his passes this season with 23 touchdowns and just six interceptions, and his previous outing against the Browns was an excellent one as he threw for three touchdowns and misfired on just six passes.

That has been the norm for Dalton in 2015 as offensive coordinator Hue Jackson believes he now has the attitude needed to be an elite quarterback in the NFL, according to Robert Mays of the MMQB:

"I think there's a confidence level that all great quarterbacks play at, and I think he's playing that way right now," Jackson said. "There are glitches as you go, but he's been able to get himself back in the groove like he needs to."

Dalton's confidence may be at an all-time high, but the opposite is likely true in Cleveland as the Browns struggle through another awful campaign.

With the Browns just looking to get to the finish line, Dalton will add some insult to injury with another strong outing Sunday.

RB C.J. Anderson (DEN)

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

Most fantasy owners likely spent a first-round pick on Anderson, which certainly hasn't paid off—he has registered just 658 total yards and three touchdowns on the season after dominating down the stretch in 2014.

Anderson finally gave his owners what they have been waiting for in Week 12, though, when he rushed for 113 yards, caught four passes for 40 yards and scored two touchdowns in an upset win over the New England Patriots.

Despite that outing, it is understandable why there may be some apprehension with regard to starting Anderson since he is stuck in a timeshare with Ronnie Hillman. Since Brock Osweiler has taken over at quarterback, however, Denver has been committed to the run, and it has been successful with the ground game as well.

There is enough room for two running backs to be fantasy relevant in the offense, especially in Week 13 when the Broncos face a San Diego Chargers team that is allowing a league-worst 4.9 yards per carry and has surrendered 12 rushing touchdowns.

Denver's offense has turned into a run-first attack to complement its fantastic defense, and that should lead to another great showing for Anderson, which is music to the ears of fantasy owners who have remained patient with him.

WR Brandon LaFell (NE)

LaFell is the third or fourth option at best on the Patriots offense when quarterback Tom Brady has his full assortment of weapons, but with seemingly everyone around him going down with injuries, he enters New England's Week 13 clash with the Philadelphia Eagles as the top target.

With Julian Edelman out, tight end Rob Gronkowski listed as week-to-week and receiver Danny Amendola coming off an injury but expected to play (per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com), LaFell is in line for a big workload Sunday.

LaFell hasn't truly broken out in his six games this season since returning from an injury of his own, but everything is lining up for him to do so in Week 13, and NFL Network's Adam Rank is among those who believe he will, per NFL Fantasy Football:

While LaFell isn't cut from the same cloth as Edelman and Amendola in terms of racking up catches out of the slot, he can burn teams with plays deep down the field.

The Pats have been taking some shots lately, and while they haven't paid off quite yet, LaFell is happy to keep opposing defenses honest, according to Kevin Duffy of MassLive.com: "It's tiring, especially when we're throwing two or three back-to-back. But at the end of the day I love being the guy to be able to take the top off the defense. And Tom is trying to find me, so I love it. We didn't do that a lot last year. We've been doing it a lot this year and I love it so far."

This may finally be the week that LaFell goes off as he will face an Eagles secondary that has been torched in recent weeks and ranks 31st in the NFL with 25 passing touchdowns allowed.

Brady is almost certainly going to get his touchdowns against Philly, and based on process of elimination, LaFell figures to be the main beneficiary.

Sit 'Em

QB Philip Rivers (SD)

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Rivers is coming off a week in which he threw for 300 yards and four touchdowns, reached 40,000 career passing yards and passed Joe Montana on the all-time passing touchdowns list. Despite that, his owners must resist the urge to start him provided they have another decent option in place.

The Bolts have become a volume passing team since rookie running back Melvin Gordon and the running game have been ineffective, and that has led to some big games for Rivers. 

His receiving corps is somewhat depleted, though, with Keenan Allen out for the season, and he certainly isn't immune to poor performances as evidenced by his 178-yard, no-touchdown, one-interception performance against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 11.

In Week 13, the Chargers will face the NFL's best pass defense in the form of the Denver Broncos. Denver is allowing a league-low 197 yards per game through the air along with 11 passing touchdowns to 10 interceptions overall.

The Broncos have a pair of excellent corners in Aqib Talib and Chris Harris that should be able to shut down the likes of Stevie Johnson, Malcom Floyd and Dontrelle Inman, which severely limits Rivers' fantasy ceiling.

RB Antonio Andrews (TEN)

Jeff Haynes/Associated Press

Andrews has become the de facto starting running back in Tennessee, which has in turn made him somewhat fantasy relevant as a flex option, but he is best left on the bench in Week 13.

The second-year back out of Western Kentucky lacks explosion as he has plodded to a yards-per-carry average of just 3.7. His main value comes as a short-yardage back who can find paydirt, yet Andrews hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 5.

He is also coming off an awful game in which he rushed for 32 yards on 11 carries against what was previously a porous Oakland Raiders run defense.

Tennessee takes on the Jacksonville Jaguars this week, and while Andrews did gain a respectable 78 yards against the Jags a couple weeks ago, Jacksonville is tops in the league in terms of yards-per-carry allowed at just 3.3.

The Jaguars are much easier to pass on, which makes this a Marcus Mariota game. Add in the fact that Andrews has competition for touches with rookie David Cobb, and there isn't much to like about his prospects in Week 13.

WR Brandin Cooks (NO)

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

Cooks has come on in recent weeks after a disappointing start to the season, with five touchdowns over his past four contests, but that hot streak figures to be extinguished Sunday.

The second-year wideout will go up against the Carolina Panthers and cornerback Josh Norman, who has looked the part of an All-Pro in 2015. Norman is a huge reason why the Panthers are allowing under 224 passing yards per game and are the only team with more interceptions (18) than touchdown passes surrendered (13).

Cooks is well aware what he'll be up against in Week 13 when Norman will likely shadow him everywhere on the field, according to Christopher Dabe of the Times-Picayune:

"He's a good player," Cooks said. "He's a smart, instinctive player. He's a smart player that's out there that's playing good ball right now. It's a great matchup."

Cooks actually fared better than most against Norman earlier in the season as he caught seven balls for 79 yards, but he was kept out of the end zone.

Norman has made a habit of essentially taking elite receivers out of games this season, and while Cooks should log some catches due to his propensity for running short routes, the potential for a huge game just isn't there.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.