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Fantasy Football Week 13 Rankings: Projections to Love and Matchups to Exploit
November 30, 2018
Depending on the size and format of your fantasy league, your playoffs may be staring in Week 13. If they don't, they're likely right around the corner. Either way, this week is going to be an important one, and making the right lineup decisions will be critical.
Since we're done with byes for the NFL season, you should have your entire roster available. On one hand, this is great because it means you can play all your best options. On the other, it means you have more decisions to make throughout your lineups.
We're here to help by ranking our top players at each fantasy skill position—quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end—and providing projections for each. We'll also take a closer look at the matchups we absolutely cannot pass up in Week 13.
*Fantasy matchup rankings via FantasyPros.
Quarterbacks
1. Patrick Mahomes at Oakland Raiders: 330 yards passing, 3 TDs
2. Cam Newton at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 260 yards passing, 50 yards rushing, 2 TDs
3. Ben Roethlisberger vs. Los Angeles Chargers: 325 yards passing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
4. Jared Goff at Detroit Lions: 300 yards passing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
5. Andrew Luck at Jacksonville Jaguars: 240 yards passing, 3 TDs, 2 INTs
6. Jameis Winston vs. Carolina Panthers: 320 yards passing, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
7. Baker Mayfield at Houston Texans: 290 yards passing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
8. Russell Wilson vs. San Francisco 49ers: 280 yards passing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
9. Deshaun Watson vs. Cleveland Browns: 240 yards passing, 30 yards rushing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
10. Lamar Jackson at Atlanta Falcons: 160 yards passing, 70 yards rushing, 2 TDs, 1 INT
Cam Newton at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sometimes the fantasy stars align, and one of our favorite players of the week also has our favorite matchup of the week. This is happening in Week 13, which means if Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton is on your roster, it couldn't be happening at a better time.
Newton is a must-start every week, no matter who he is going up against. This week, though, he's visiting the rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who are a complete mess defensively. Tampa has allowed an average of 391 yards per game (27th in the NFL) and 30.7 points per game (31st).
Only two teams have allowed more fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season.
Running Backs
1. Christian McCaffrey at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 85 yards rushing, 8 receptions, 100 yards receiving, 2 TDs
2. Todd Gurley at Detroit Lions: 140 yards rushing, 2 receptions, 30 yards receiving, 2 TDs
3. Kareem Hunt at Oakland Raiders: 120 yards rushing, 2 receptions, 25 yards receiving, 2 TDs
4. Saquon Barkley at Philadelphia Eagles: 100 yards rushing, 4 receptions, 38 yards receiving, 1 TD
5. Phillip Lindsay at Cincinnati Bengals: 120 yards rushing, 2 receptions, 20 yards receiving, 1 TD
6. Nick Chubb at Houston Texans: 110 yards rushing, 1 reception, 10 yards receiving, 1 TD
7. Aaron Jones vs. Arizona Cardinals: 120 yards rushing, 1 TD
8. Matt Breida at Seattle Seahawks: 80 yards rushing, 2 receptions, 20 yards receiving, 1 TD
9. Austin Ekeler at Pittsburgh Steelers: 40 yards rushing, 8 receptions, 60 yards receiving
10. Lamar Miller vs. Cleveland Browns: 90 yards rushing, 4 receptions, 40 yards receiving
Phillip Lindsay at Cincinnati Bengals
Though he came into the league as an undrafted rookie, Phillip Lindsay has quickly established himself as a significant piece of the Denver Broncos offense.
"He's a guy you can count on, week in and week out to make plays," Denver quarterback Case Keenum said, per Jon Heath of Broncos Wire.
The Broncos are going to count on Lindsay early and often this week against the Cincinnati Bengals. This is great news for fantasy owners because the Cincinnati defense is a shambles. It is currently allowing a league-high 31.5 points per game along with 147.5 yards rushing per game.
No team has allowed more fantasy points to opposing running backs this season.
Wide Receivers
1. Tyreek Hill at Oakland Raiders: 7 receptions, 140 yards receiving, 1 TD
2. JuJu Smith-Schuster vs. Los Angeles Chargers: 7 receptions, 130 yards receiving, 1 TD
3. Antonio Brown vs. Los Angeles Chargers: 5 receptions, 70 yards receiving, 2 TDs
4. Kenny Golladay vs. Los Angeles Rams: 5 receptions, 65 yards receiving, 2 TDs
5. DeAndre Hopkins vs. Cleveland Browns: 7 receptions, 110 yards receiving, 1 TD
6. Adam Thielen at New England Patriots: 7 receptions, 110 yards receiving, 1 TD
7. Davante Adams vs. Arizona Cardinals: 6 receptions, 110 yards receiving, 1 TD
8. Mike Evans vs. Carolina Panthers: 6 receptions, 105 yards receiving, 1 TD
9. Brandin Cooks at Detroit Lions: 5 receptions, 110 yards receiving, 1 TD
10. Julio Jones vs. Baltimore Ravens: 6 receptions, 100 yards receiving, 1 TD
Kenny Golladay vs. Los Angeles Rams
There are two big reasons why we love this week's matchup for Detroit Lions wide receiver Kenny Golladay. The first is that he's going to be Matthew Stafford's primary target in a game that could have Detroit playing catch-up for most of the game.
The Rams average 35.4 points per game, third most in the NFL. If they get out in front early, the Lions will be passing often. With Golden Tate now playing for the Philadelphia Eagles and Marvin Jones on injured reserve, Golladay and Theo Riddick will be Stafford's top two options.
While the Rams have a lot of big names on the defensive side of the ball, they haven't been a complete shutdown unit against opposing pass-catchers. In fact, only four teams have allowed more fantasy points to opposing receivers in 2018.
Tight Ends
1. Travis Kelce at Oakland Raiders: 6 receptions, 95 yards receiving, 1 TD
2. Jared Cook vs. Kansas City Chiefs: 6 receptions, 90 yards receiving, 1 TD
3. Rob Gronkowski vs. Minnesota Vikings: 6 receptions, 90 yards receiving, 1 TD
4. Cameron Brate vs. Carolina Panthers: 5 receptions, 85 yards receiving, 1 TD
5. Zach Ertz vs. Washington Redskins: 5 receptions, 80 yards receiving, 1 TD
6. David Njoku at Houston Texans: 5 receptions, 65 yards receiving, 1 TD
7. Gerald Everett at Detroit Lions: 4 receptions, 40 yards receiving, 1 TD
8. Greg Olsen at Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 6 receptions, 75 yards receiving
9. George Kittle at Seattle Seahawks: 6 receptions, 70 yards receiving
10. Eric Ebron at Jacksonville Jaguars: 6 receptions, 70 yards receiving
Cameron Brate vs. Carolina Panthers
Sunday's NFC South matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers should be a competitive one. We expect there to be plenty of scoring in the game, as do our friends at OddsShark, who list the over/under at 54.5 points.
This is great news for the owners of any pass-catchers involved in this game. We particularly like Tampa tight end Cameron Brate and Panthers tight end Greg Olsen. We're ranking Brate a little higher because the Buccaneers aren't likely to lean on the run game as much as Carolina does. However, both have incredible fantasy matchups.
Carolina has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing tight ends this season, while Tampa has allowed the fourth-most.