Fantasy Football Week 12 Rankings: Targets for This Week's Injured Stars

NFL fantasy football managers jostling for playoff positioning need a successful Week 12 to keep their championship aspirations intact. Many gamers are already facing a notable lead or deficit after big Thanksgiving performances.

Philip Rivers, Case Keenum, Keenan Allen, Marvin Jones Jr., Jamison Crowder, Kyle Rudolph and Hunter Henry were among the top contributors in a Thursday slate stuffed with big fantasy outings. Although every team has had its bye week, the updated rankings lost some major star power after the holiday's three games.

With Week 12 already underway, managers are still scrambling for the optimal starting lineup—a process complicated by the weekly batch of injuries.

After scoping the NFL's injury reports, via ESPN.com, for notable fantasy players whose status is uncertain, let's examine some waiver-wire replacements available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo Sports leagues.

Injury Report

Out:

QB Jay Cutler, MIA (concussion)

QB Jameis Winston, TB (shoulder)

RB Devonta Freeman, ATL (concussion)

RB Aaron Jones, GB (knee)

WR John Brown, ARI (toe)

WR Chris Hogan, NE (shoulder)

WR Allen Hurns, JAC (ankle)

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT (hamstring)

WR Robert Woods, LAR (shoulder)

Questionable:

RB Matt Forte, NYJ (knee)

RB Ty Montgomery, GB (ribs - doubtful)

WR Danny Amendola, NE (knee)

WR Kelvin Benjamin, BUF (knee)

WR Dontrelle Inman, CHI (groin)

WR Will Fuller, HOU (ribs)

WR DeAndre Hopkins, HOU (foot)

WR Rishard Matthews, TEN (hamstring)

WR Emmanuel Sanders, DEN (ankle)

TE Charles Clay, BUF (knee)

TE Jimmy Graham, TE, SEA (ankle)

QB Rankings

1. Tom Brady, NE (vs. MIA)

2. Russell Wilson, SEA (at SF)

3. Carson Wentz, PHI (vs. CHI)

4. Matt Ryan, ATL (vs. TB)

5. Cam Newton, CAR (at NYJ)

6. Ben Roethlisberger, PIT (vs. GB)

7. Drew Brees, NO (at LAR)

8. Alex Smith, KC (vs. BUF)

9. Andy Dalton, CIN (vs. CLE)

10. Tyrod Taylor, BUF (at KC)

11. Marcus Mariota, TEN (at IND)

12. Jared Goff, LAR (vs. NO)

Waiver-Wire Target: Tyrod Taylor, Buffalo Bills (48 Percent Owned)

Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

Fantasy managers have nightmares about making a lineup call as catastrophic as the Buffalo Bills benching Tyrod Taylor for Nathan Peterman. 

As a quarterback with the same career interception percentage (1.5) as Aaron Rodgers—the stat's all-time leader among qualified passers—watched on the sideline, an ill-prepared rookie threw five interceptions in Week 11's 54-24 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

On Wednesday, head coach Sean McDermott mercifully named Taylor his Week 12 starter against the Kansas City Chiefs. Per ESPN.com's Mike Rodak, he would not commit long-term to his comically superior option.

"Every position is the same," McDermott said. "We evaluate every week who we feel like has earned the right to be the starter."

This mismanaged madness gives roughly half of fantasy gamers an opportunity to at least steal a valuable streamer off the waiver wire.

Kansas City has allowed the ninth-most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. While its fourth-worst rushing defense will yield a heavy workload for LeSean McCoy, Taylor has chipped in 27.5 rushing yards per game with three touchdowns on the ground in his last four contests.

Buffalo's schedule remains ripe for exploitation beyond Sunday. With two games apiece against the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins joined by a Week 14 encounter against the Indianapolis Colts, all three opponents rank among the bottom six in Football Outsiders' Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA) against the pass. 

As long as he stays in the starting lineup, Taylor carries fantasy clout for the rest of the year.

RB Rankings

1. Todd Gurley, LAR (vs. NO)

2. Le'Veon Bell, PIT (vs. GB)

3. Mark Ingram, NO (at LAR)

4. LeSean McCoy, BUF (at KC)

5. Kareem Hunt, KC (vs. BUF)

6. Leonard Fournette, JAC (at ARI)

7. Alvin Kamara, NO (at LAR)

8. Lamar Miller, HOU (at BAL)

9. Tevin Coleman, ATL (vs. TB)

10. Carlos Hyde, SF (vs. SEA)

11. Jordan Howard, CHI (at PHI)

12. Christian McCaffrey, CAR (at NYJ)

13. DeMarco Murray, TEN (at IND)

14. Dion Lewis, NE (vs. MIA)

15. Alex Collins, BAL (vs. HOU)

16. Jay Ajayi, PHI (vs. CHI)

17. Joe Mixon, CIN (vs. CLE)

18. Doug Martin, TB (at ATL)

19. Marshawn Lynch, OAK (vs. DEN)

20. Adrian Peterson, ARI (vs. JAC)

Waiver-Wire Target: Devontae Booker, Denver Broncos (30 Percent Owned)

Dustin Bradford/Getty Images

A thorn in C.J. Anderson's side over the past few weeks, Devontae Booker's workload spiked significantly last weekend.

Having played between 22-25 snaps in each of the last three games, the running back logged a season-high 48 snaps in the Denver Broncos' Week 11 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Anderson, meanwhile, played 30 snaps. He has not participated in half of Denver's plays since Week 7.

Rotoworld's Rich Hribar highlighted other measures foreshadowing a changing of the guard in Denver's backfield:

Although he converted 14 carries into 44 yards, Booker also caught five passes for 54 yards last weekend. His expanded presence is likely not an anomaly, as recently promoted interim offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave endorsed the 25-year-old to the Denver Post's Nick Kosmider. 

"Book has really been playing some good football," Musgrave said on Wednesday. "I think Book deserves more touches. Obviously, we’ll see how the game goes."

If Musgrave gets his wish, Booker should rise to flex value against the Oakland Raiders, who have relinquished the seventh-most fantasy points per game to running backs. He's especially interesting in point-per-reception formats, as Oakland has permitted 6.4 catches per bout to opposing backs.

Anderson's investors, meanwhile, should not feel comfortable starting him even though he gashed the Raiders for 112 yards in Week 4.

WR Rankings

1. Antonio Brown, PIT (vs. GB)

2. A.J. Green, CIN (vs. CLE)

3. Julio Jones, ATL (vs. TB)

4. Brandin Cooks, NE (vs. MIA)

5. Doug Baldwin, SEA (at SF) 

6. Michael Thomas, NO (at LAR)

7. Mike Evans, TB (at ATL)

8. Alshon Jeffery, PHI (vs. CHI)

9. DeAndre Hopkins, HOU (at BAL)

10. T.Y. Hilton, IND (vs. TEN)

11. Tyreek Hill, KC (vs. BUF)

12. Devin Funchess, CAR (at NYJ)

13. Jarvis Landry, MIA (at NE)

14. Larry Fitzgerald, ARI (vs. JAC)

15. Demaryius Thomas, DEN (at OAK)

16. Robby Anderson, NYJ (vs. CAR)

17. Michael Crabtree, OAK (vs. DEN)

18. Davante Adams, GB (at PIT)

19. Mohamed Sanu, ATL (vs. TB)

20. Jeremy Maclin, BAL (vs. HOU)

Waiver-Wire Target: Zay Jones, Buffalo Bills (10 Percent Owned)

Brett Carlsen/Getty Images

Three weeks ago on Thursday Night Football, Zay Jones set career highs in receptions (six), targets (seven) and yards (53) while scoring the first touchdown of a previously grueling rookie campaign. Yet before he could headline waiver-wire columns, the Bills wideout left that game with a knee injury.

Making his return last Sunday, Jones secured four of seven targets for a team-high 68 receiving yards. He played in 53 of Buffalo's 65 offensive plays, the highest rate among a receiving corps that lost Kelvin Benjamin to a knee injury.

Per the Bills' PR Twitter account, the recent acquisition has not practiced this week but is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against Kansas City:

If Benjamin can't play, Jones will get plenty of opportunities as Buffalo's de facto top receiver. Per Football Outsiders, the Chiefs have coughed up an NFL-high 103.2 receiving yards per game to opposing No. 1 wideouts.

He still needs to cash in on those chances. Despite received 51 targets in nine games, Jones has just 20 catches. Yet the 22-year-old has improved that dreaded inefficiency by catching 13 of 19 targets dating back to Week 8.

A popular preseason sleeper could make up for lost time. He's a deep-league flier who should be owned in more than 10 percent of Yahoo leagues.

TE Rankings

1. Rob Gronkowski, NE (vs. MIA)

2. Travis Kelce, KC (vs. BUF)

3. Zach Ertz, PHI (vs. CHI)

4. Jimmy Graham, SEA (at SF)

5. Delanie Walker, TEN (at IND)

6. Jared Cook, OAK (vs. DEN)

7. Tyler Kroft, CIN (vs. CLE)

8. Jack Doyle, IND (vs. TEN)

9. Greg Olsen, CAR (at NYJ)

10. Austin Seferian-Jenkins, NYJ (vs. CAR)

Waiver-Wire Target: Tyler Kroft, Cincinnati Bengals (46 Percent Owned)

Jason Miller/Getty Images

This is the easy answer that does not help everyone, as Tyler Kroft is already on a roster in nearly half of Yahoo leagues. But what is everyone in the other 54 percent waiting for?

The Cleveland Browns have allowed the most receptions (6.6) and fourth-most fantasy points per game (10.97) to tight ends. Kroft ascended to fantasy relevancy at their expense by registering 68 yards and two touchdowns on a season-high six receptions and seven targets in Week 4.

The third-year pro has since reeled in 18 catches for 202 yards in six games, but he has also delivered touchdowns on both of his targets inside the 10. Trust the matchup unless rostering a top-shelf stud. As witnessed recently by duds from Rob Gronkowski, Zach Ertz and Evan Engram, even an elite tight end is susceptible to a low floor.

For those who need to dig deeper, Benjamin Watson has 39 catches and 50 targets in nine games since an uneventful Week 1. He gets a Houston Texans defense that has served up the fifth-most fantasy points to the position. 

While it's certainly risky to load up on Buffalo's passing offense, Charles Clay was emerging as a must-start option before suffering a knee injury. If active, he's a better dice roll than the likes of Julius Thomas, Coby Fleener, Marcedes Lewis and O.J. Howard.

Note: Fantasy ownership rates and scoring data obtained from Yahoo Sports. Other stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference unless otherwise noted.