The Thanksgiving Week of football came to a close with an NFC North clash between Minnesota and Chicago. We didn’t experience a great deal of surprises in the utilization department, despite 30 other teams doing battle.
Green Bay Packers wide receiver Jayden Reed saw 27% of the target share vs. Detroit, posting WR2 stats for the third straight contest. A fellow rookie, Baltimore Ravens wideout Zay Flowers, reeled in five targets for 25 yards and a TD — while adding a rushing score on his nine-utilization night — to pace the offense. Kansas City’s Rashee Rice balled out again (more on him in a bit), and Indianapolis Colts WR Josh Downs tied for the team lead in targets at 13, which ranked second entering Monday Night Football. In short, rookie receivers showed off in Week 12.
As we enter the home stretch of the fantasy season, most pecking orders have stabilized, although we’ll see a handful of transitions toward the youth movement as teams fall out of the playoff race. That means fewer notable situations arise, and some of the inclusions will be a rehashing of developing roles.
6
Arizona Cardinals wide receivers
Marquise Brown shook off a pair of uninspiring performances since the return of Kyler Murray to post a 6-88-0 line in their third game together this season. Only three players had more than Hollywood’s dozen last week. The next receiver was Greg Dortch, who saw nine targets in his second straight game replacing injured rookie Michael Wilson (shoulder). The Cards head into their bye after Week 13, so there’s probably one more game of potential utility from Dortch in a week with six bye teams to navigate. Rondale Moore didn’t run the ball this week and was targeted only three times, but tight end snagged seven of nine looks and is the safest bet any given week to be the most targeted receiver in this offense.
5
Carolina Panthers running backs
In Week 12, the Panthers once again incorporated Miles Sanders into the backfield mix with double-digit utilizations. He ran 15 times and wasn’t targeted, coming up four utilizations short of Chuba Hubbard (14 rushes, five targets). The latter continues to outshine the former Philadelphia back, and now a shakeup at quarterback puts all of this in flux as not only head coach Frank Reich was fired but also running backs coach Duce Staley. The Panthers face Tampa Bay this week, a matchup that drastically favors Hubbard, so long as the new coaching staff continues to put him into a receiving role. It’s best to avoid this backfield, if possible, but six bye teams will make that a challenge.
4
TE Isiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens
All eyes were on Likely with Mark Andrews (ankle) lost for the season, and the young tight end was on the cusp of being serviceable. The matchup was as good as it gets vs. the Los Angeles Chargers, so it was disappointing to see him post a 4-40-0 line on his six targets as WR Zay Flowers take over, but the half-dozen looks for Likely is an encouraging first step. He’s on bye in Week 13 and is only a fringe option the rest of the season based on matchups, but positional volatility make Likely worthy of a roster spot.
3
WR Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs
The rookie has been useful at times in 2023, though his recent three-game stretch entering Week 12 had gamers questioning whether Rice was still worthy of a lineup spot. He scored Sunday and not only posted 107 yards, his first game with more than 72 as a pro. The 10 targets sent his direction vs. the Las Vegas Raiders was his most since Week 3 (seven). The Chiefs face a mixed bag of a schedule the rest of the way, including the Raiders again. He’s a solid flex consideration most weeks and has WR2 potential in Week 13 vs. Green Bay with six teams on vacation.
2
TE Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers
The real question behind Freiermuth’s 11-target Week 12 showing is whether it was matchup-based production. In the four weeks prior to Week 12, Cincinnati gave up performances of 23.9 (George Kittle), 18.1 (Dalton Kincaid), 11.1 PPR points (Dalton Schultz), and Mark Andrews was injured in the Week 11 contest. Three other TEs went into double-digit PPR territory. Freiermuth went for 120 yards on nine scores, which was his best fantasy day since Week 9 of 2021. His outburst also coincides with the firing of Matt Canada as the offensive coordinator, and there’s notable intrigue with Freiermuth’s mostly cake schedule as the season heads to its critical home stretch.
1
Los Angeles Rams running backs
The Rams brought Kyren Williams back from IR last week and watched him once again destroy the Arizona Cardinals, the very team in which he shredded prior to getting hurt. Williams ran 16 times for 143 yards and posted a 6-61-2 line as a receiver. The blowout win also helped Royce Freeman rack up 13 carries for 77 yards and a score. Eight of those attempts came with LA up by at least two scores, and his touchdown was late in the contest when it was already decided. Five of his touches came during a one-score game, however. He has potential utility over the next month with the Rams facing a rather favorable schedule but is more likely to serve as depth once bye weeks conclude. Williams is an RB2 lock at this point.
