Must Starts and Sits | Fantasy Football Week 12

by Matt Babich · Featured

It’s time for Start Sit Week 12 in Fantasy Football! Which players should you be starting this week, and which players should you consider benching? We will cover it all in this weekly article!

Every week of the NFL season, fantasy gamers juggle players to insert into lineups at each position. Are you questioning which players face easy matchups and which players face tougher paths to production? You are in the right place! For seasonal leagues, DFS, and more, this week’s must-start and must-sit picks can give you some guidance on setting your lineups.

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Quarterback Start Sit Week 12

Start: Bo Nix

Don’t look now, but Bo Nix might deserve Rookie of the Year. The rookie is currently ninth in fantasy points per game at his position and is fifth in expected fantasy points per game. Since Week 5, he’s produced at least 20 fantasy points in four of seven games, with 14 points being his lowest finish. With a solid rushing floor, Nix now has a more positive week-to-week outlook than C.J. Stroud and Patrick Mahomes. Yep, fantasy football is weird sometimes. However, we can either roll with it and make the smart calls or deny the data and continue to miss out. Shockingly, Nix has yet to crack into the “auto-start” tier in single-QB leagues and, before last week, was commonly on the waiver wire!


I don’t need to put together hundreds of words to describe Vegas’s defense, we know it’s very bad. We also know that Nix already shredded the Raiders back in Week 5, to the tune of 24 fantasy points. Bo Nix is now a must-start unless you have a truly elite option in front of him.

Honorable Mentions (Starts): Tua Tagovailoa, Geno Smith, Jared Goff

Sit: C.J. Stroud

Stroud is going through something of a sophomore slump right now. Last week marked five straight weeks in which he scored less than 13 fantasy points despite having great matchups in four of those weeks. His volume should be enough to get the job done, yet he’s underperforming his 12th-ranked expected fantasy points per game by four points per game. He’s struggled with accuracy, having just a 58-percent completion percentage over this stretch. To make matters worse, his lack of rushing floor makes his fantasy outlook completely dependent on the pass game.

This week, he faces a Titans defense allowing the fewest passing yards per game in the NFL. They also wield a mediocre rushing defense, meaning we’re probably gonna see another heavy Joe Mixon game this week. Too many fantasy quarterbacks with solid floors are readily available to start Stroud this week.

Honorable Mentions (Sits): Caleb Williams, Matthew Stafford, Jameis Winston

Running Back Start Sit Week 12

Start: Tyrone Tracy

Tyrone Tracy is on an incredible run lately, clearing 100 scrimmage yards in 4 of his last 6 games and scoring 3 times during that span. He’s impressed immensely as a rusher, chalking up 4.7 (No. 13) True Yards per Carry and 3.54 (No. 26) Yards Created per Touch as a rookie. The former wide receiver’s biggest issue, surprisingly, is that he’s not getting enough targets. New starting QB Tommy DeVito may be able to help with that.

Last season, Saquon Barkley drew at 17.5-percent Target Share under DeVito (4 per game). Tommy Cutlets tends to get pressured and take a lot of sacks, which could increase the number of looks for Tracy. Tracy matches up against Tampa who allow the 6th most fantasy points per game against running backs, particularly through the air. The Bucs cede the 3rd-most RB targets and receptions per game, along with the most RB receiving yards per game. Don’t let DeVito scare you away. As long as Tracy keeps this role, he’s worth a start.

Honorable Mentions (Starts): Aaron Jones, Brian Robinson, Tony Pollard

Sit: D’Andre Swift

How can you trust any Bear in fantasy football right now? Not only is their offense struggling, but the opportunities have been inconsistent week over week. It cannot be a good sign that, in his first week as the acting OC, Thomas Brown gave Roschon Johnson the two-minute, long-down-and-distance, and short-yardage work. If this is a trend, then Swift is vehemently screwed for the rest of the season.

Even if this is just a blip, Swift’s matchup this week could hardly be worse. The Vikings allow the lowest EPA per rush to opposing backs (per Fantasy Life) and cede the second-lowest PPR points per game to the position. Use this week to bench Swift and see how the touches shake out.

Honorable Mentions (Sits): Chubba Hubbard, Rico Dowdle, Nick Chubb

Wide Receiver Start Sit Week 12

Start: Jauan Jennings

Major props to Jauan Jennings for what he’s accomplished this season. From the “3rd & Jauan” joke to legitimately one of the most productive receivers in football. Jennings is currently boasting a 2.67 (No. 5) Formation-Adjusted Yards per Route Run and 2.36 (No. 9) Yards per Team Pass Attempt. Translation? When Jennings is on the field, he’s getting targets and making plays, and when the 49ers are moving the ball through the air, Jennings is racking up the most production. In the three games that he’s played over 60-percent of the snaps, he’s averaged 11 targets (two in the red zone), 9.3 receptions, 119.7 receiving yards, and 1.3 TDs. That’s good for a whopping 29 (please read that again) fantasy points per game.

Who even cares about the matchup? Granted, Green Bay does rank in the middle of the pack in terms of passing production and efficiency allowed to opposing teams, and they do a good job of getting after the quarterback. However, in this case, the opportunity is too good to pass up. Just pretend “Aiyuk” is the name on the back of the jersey.

Honorable Mentions (Starts): Ladd McConkey, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Courtland Sutton

Sit: Tank Dell

For a while, I believed that Tank Dell could turn things around, especially without Stefon Diggs. Maybe he still can, but this week isn’t the week to bet on it happening. I made the case for why you should fade C.J. Stroud in the QB section above. Those struggles will trickle down to Dell. Nico Collins is rather immune to bad outings, given his profile and talent. However, Dell has cleared 15 fantasy points just twice this season and has finished as a WR3 or better just thrice this season.

Dell’s 44th-ranked target share, 55th-ranked catchable target rate, and 40th-ranked expected fantasy points per game tell the whole story. He’s not getting high target volume, his passes from Stroud aren’t exceptional, and we should not expect him to score many fantasy points.

Honorable Mentions (Sits): Deebo Samuel, Christian Watson, Cedric Tillman

Tight End Start Sit Week 12

Tight ends are perhaps the most disgusting they’ve ever been for fantasy football. If you have one of these guys, you’re probably looking to just start them every week and hope for the best:

If not, consider these options:

Start: Sam LaPorta

Prior to sustaining an injury, Sam LaPorta was on the verge of getting back on his rookie track in Week 1o. Before his early exit, he collected six targets and produced 66 yards and a long score. Two weeks prior, he caught all six of his targets en route to 48 yards and a score. This production was good for 15-plus fantasy points in each of those weeks. The key to his success, even dating back to last year, was the touchdowns. Now seemingly back in his scoring groove, he takes on the Colts, who have allowed the second-most touchdowns to tight ends on the season.

Honorable Mentions (Starts): Jonnu Smith, Will Dissly, Zach Ertz

Sit: Mark Andrews

I made a note last week that Andrews was a start if Isaiah Likely were to be inactive for a second straight week. What we saw in Week 11 was exactly why I did that. With Likely back in the lineup, Andrews was once again relegated to a sub-50-percent route participation rate and just three targets. With this opportunity, you cannot ever start him. There’s plenty of available talent out there. The three honorable listed mentions above are widely available, and I didn’t even list Hunter Henry. Don’t cling onto the past by starting Andrews again.

Honorable Mentions (Sits): Tucker Kraft, Dalton Schultz, Cole Kmet

Set Your Lineups!

It is time to set lineups! Fire up those fingers and plug in your productive players (and bench the sits!). Check back for weekly must-starts and must-sits based on the action that unfolds this season. Need some more options? Check out PlayerProfiler’s Upside Finder, or DM me on Twitter! It’s time again for a season full of ups and downs. Buckle up!

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