Week 11 of the NFL season was very quiet compared to the week prior. The Cowboys blew out the Vikings in their home stadium, a game many thought Minnesota would win. The New York Jets gave up a last-second punt return touchdown to the New England Patriots and lost while only gaining seven second-half yards. Other than that, the day was not very eventful for fantasy or reality with little of note occurring.
Week 12 will have another intriguing slate of games headlined by a potential Sunday Night Football battle as the Philadelphia Eagles host Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. In this article, I will pinpoint some of the best performances and pickups for the week to help you set your lineup.
Quarterback:
Start of the Week: Josh Allen BUF
Josh Allen has been struggling, by his standards, ever since their bye week. Over the last four games, Allen has scored under twenty fantasy points in three of his last four games. However, he will play in a very easy matchup against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving in a game with shootout potential. Josh Allen should feast against this poor defense and bounce back against Detroit on the national stage.
HM Starts: Lamar Jackson BAL, Joe Burrow CIN
Streamer of the week: Taylor Heinicke WAS
Taylor Heinicke has clinched the starting job for the Washington Guardians. He was very solid in his first start, as he threw for 191 yards. This week, he plays a bad Atlanta Falcons defense who are giving up points to every team they play. If you need a quarterback, I would look at Heinicke, as he should throw for a couple of touchdowns this week against Atlanta.
HM: Marcus Mariota ATL, Matt Ryan IND
Running Back:
Start of the Week: Najee Harris PIT
Najee Harris had his best performance of the season against the Cincinnati Bengals last week. Harris and the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing the Indianapolis Colts on Monday. While they don’t have the worst rushing defense in the NFL, Indiana has given up some notable performances on the ground (Josh Jacobs and Derrick Henry). Start Najee with confidence this week as he looks to build on last week and feast on a below-average defense.
HM: David Montgomery CHI, Miles Sanders PHI
Waiver Priority: Samaje Perine
The waiver wire is kind of light with running backs this week, but Samaje Perine offers intrigue as a stash. Joe Mixon left the game with a concussion, which paved the way for over 30 Samaje Perine fantasy points. Mixon will likely return next week, but all owners of the Bengals’ bell cow need to rush to the wire for Perine as he is an essential handcuff for the fantasy football playoffs.
HM: Matt Breida NYG, Kyren Williams LAR
Wide Receiver:
Start of the Week: Tee Higgins CIN
Tee Higgins was on a tear last week as he had his second-best game of the season with nine receptions for 148 yards. In week eleven, he is playing a weak Tennessee Titans secondary who are giving up the fourth most fantasy points per game to wide receivers. Despite the potential of a Ja’Marr Chase return, I still really like Higgins to put up another WR1 performance in what could be a back-and-forth game.
HM: Tee Higgins CIN, Mike Williams/Josh Palmer LAC
Waiver Priority: Treylon Burks TEN
Treylon Burks broke out last week against the Green Bay Packers with seven receptions on eight targets for 111 yards. The former first-round pick might have finally found his groove in Tennessee’s offense, as he looked dominant coming off an injury. Burks is only owned in 22% of fantasy leagues, and his high target share makes him a must-add for the remaining stretch of the season.
HM: Van Jefferson LAR, Jameson Williams DET
Tight End:
Start of the Week: TJ Hockenson
TJ Hockenson has been peppered with targets ever since joining the Minnesota Vikings. With 28 targets through three games, Hockenson has emerged as Kirk Cousins’ second option. Hockenson is the type of player that will be on many championship rosters and will help his owners win this week with his easy matchup against the New England. The Patriots are allowing the 8th most fantasy poitns per game to tight ends, and if he doesn’t get injured, TJ Hockenson should have a monster week.
HM: David Njoku CLE, Gerald Everett LAC
Waiver Priority: Juwan Johnson NO
Juwan Johnson has quietly been on a tear recently, as he has found the end zone five times in his last five games. During that stretch he is the overall TE2. He has proven to be the favorite redzone target of Andy Dalton, and he has taken full advantage. Every team that does not have Travis Kelce should run to the waivers to pick him up, as his redzone upside makes him a weekly start.
HM Waiver Priorities: Greg Dulcich DEN, Austin Hooper TEN
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