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Week 12 Fantasy Football Projections: Top Streaming Options for Byes
November 20, 2018
While only two teams have a bye in Week 12 of the 2018 NFL season, that number is misleading.
These aren't run-of-the-mill teams, these are two of the league's premier purveyors of pyrotechnics—the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams, who just combined for 105 points in Monday night's fireworks display.
The show, as they say, must go on, but it'll do so without—clears throat—Patrick Mahomes, Jared Goff, Kareem Hunt, Todd Gurley, Tyreek Hill, Brandin Cooks, Travis Kelce and Robert Woods, just to name a few.
In other words, these two byes could have far-reaching effects on fantasy teams and leagues in Week 12. So, it's best to get to know the other options at your disposal, a process we'll assist you in by highlighting the best streaming options—available in more than 50 percent of leagues on Yahoo—at the priority positions.
Quarterbacks
Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens (19 Percent Owned)
While we aren't sure how long Lamar Jackson will remain the Baltimore Ravens' starting quarterback—or even if he'll get the nod this weekend, though that seems likely—we are certain you'll want to roster him as long as there's a chance.
In his first NFL opportunity, he kept as busy as possible. He rushed a whopping 27 times for 117 yards, plus connected on 13 of his 19 pass attempts for 150 yards.
"He's essentially a combination of a QB2 and RB2, occupying a single roster spot," Yahoo Sports' Andy Behrens wrote. "... If Jackson remains at the controls of Baltimore's offense moving forward, he's a great bet to produce a series of top-10 positional finishes."
Assuming Jackson retains his post, he'll get an Oakland Raiders defense that has yielded three-touchdown passing performances to Ryan Tannehill, Nick Mullens and Josh Rosen. Equally relevant to Jackson—eight different rushers have reached at least 80 yards against the Raiders, including Phillip Lindsay, Carlos Hyde and Raheem Mostert.
Jameis Winston, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10 Percent Owned)
It's tempting to advise you to avoid the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback carousel since neither Jameis Winston nor Ryan Fitzpatrick has been able to protect the football or run away with the starting job.
But you can't ignore this passing attack. Not when it ranks first in total yards (3,610), third in yards per attempt (9.1) and tied for third in touchdowns (25). Winston has been the less-utilized member of the tandem, and he's still at 1,380 passing yards and eight touchdowns—marks that get him in the same ballpark as Marcus Mariota, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield.
Assuming Winston's relief effort in Week 11 (12-of-16 for 199 yards and two touchdowns) earns him the start for Week 12, he's at least worth rostering. Depending on the makeup of your team, there's a good chance he's worth playing, too.
Winston has attempted 30-plus passes three times this season. In those contests, he's averaged 26.7 completions for 345.3 yards. He's had issues generating touchdowns and avoiding interceptions, but both problems might be corrected against a San Francisco 49ers defense tied for 25th in passing scores allowed (21) and 31st in interceptions (two).
Running Backs
Gus Edwards, Baltimore Ravens (4 Percent Owned)
If you're unfamiliar with Gus Edwards, you're forgiven. The undrafted rookie out of Rutgers (and before that, Miami) entered Week 11 with 15 carries and no touchdowns on the season.
But now is the time to familiarize yourself, and do it quickly. He'll be among Week 12's most coveted waiver-wire pickups after breaking out against the Cincinnati Bengals for 115 yards and a touchdown (and a two-point conversion) on 17 attempts.
"I knew if I got my opportunity, I had to make the best of it," Edwards said. "I got a lot of opportunities today. (I'll) keep doing everything that I was doing before I got this opportunity."
Speaking of opportunities, Edwards' looks golden for Week 12. His physical running style should be primed to punish a forgiving Raiders defense that's allowed the eighth-most rushing yards per attempt (4.8) and nine rushing scores (tied for 13th-most).
Josh Adams, Philadelphia Eagles (32 Percent Owned)
Running back roulette has been a tricky game to play with the Philadelphia Eagles, and some owners might not be willing to gamble with the New Orleans Saints and their second-ranked rushing defense on the docket for Week 12.
But Josh Adams, the second undrafted rookie rusher on our list, appears to have claimed the always important lead gig in this backfield. While he only received seven carries in Week 11, that was still five more attempts than the rest of the team. He was also targeted six times (second-most) and paced Philly backs with 28 snaps.
Those 10 touches translated to 72 scrimmage yards and his first NFL touchdown. It also highlighted the fact he's capable of delivering decent stats on limited volume. While his 34 carries on the season are hardly eye-popping, his 6.1 yards per attempt fits that bill with ease.
Wide Receivers
Tre'Quan Smith, New Orleans Saints (26 Percent Owned)
While there's always some caution about buying a player who nearly doubled his catch total in Week 11 (10 of his 22 receptions), there are a couple reasons to think Tre'Quan Smith is still worth the risk.
For starters, he's catching passes from the brilliant Drew Brees, who has connected on an absurd (and career-best) 76.9 percent of his attempts. In other words, there won't be many wasted targets, as Smith showed while collecting 10 of the 13 balls thrown his way for 157 yards and a score.
But this also wasn't the first time Smith has been fantasy relevant this season. Sure, he'd never shown quite like this before, but he entered the contest with three scores already, two of which came in a three-catch, 111-yard outburst back in Week 5.
Lastly, you have to love his Thanksgiving matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. They've surrendered the third-most fantasy points to opposing wideouts on the season and already allowed 21 touchdown throws—14 to wide receivers alone.
D.J. Moore, Carolina Panthers (39 Percent Owned)
Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is learning what scouting staffs discovered leading up to the most recent draft—there's plenty to like about D.J. Moore.
The rookie pass-catcher busted out for seven receptions (on eight targets), 157 yards and a touchdown in Week 11. As Austin Gayle wrote for Pro Football Focus, this was a continuation of Moore's emergence as one of the league's better home-run threats:
"In Weeks 5-11, Moore has caught 28-of-35 targets for 420 yards (249 yards after the catch), 17 first downs and one touchdown across his 175 routes run. Among the 96 NFL wideouts with 100-plus routes run in the six-week span, he ranks first in yards after the catch per reception (8.89), 11th in yards per route run (2.40) and 14th in passer rating when targeted (126.2)."
The next stop on Moore's breakout train is a home date with the Seattle Seahawks. The numbers say that's more favorable than it sounds. Only 10 teams have allowed more fantasy points per game to wide receivers than this post-Legion of Boom defense.
Statistics used courtesy of NFL.com and ESPN.com. Fantasy scoring and ownership information obtained via Yahoo Sports.