It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Yes, we are approaching the holidays, but we are in the thick of the race to the fantasy football playoffs, while NFL teams make their own playoff bids.
As I said, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. But it wouldn’t be without some dynasty risers and fallers from Week 12.
Let’s get into it.
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Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers & Fallers
Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers
It’s obvious how important a starting quarterback is to his team, but has it ever been as clear as it has with Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins? Maybe, maybe not, but Mike McDaniel, Tyreek Hill and Jayden Waddle couldn’t be happier to see the southpaw under center these days.
On Sunday, Tagovailoa aired it out 40 times, completing 29 passes for 317 yards and four touchdowns. He’s now thrown for 605 yards and seven touchdowns across the last two games, tallying 52 fantasy points in those games.
Naturally, Tagovailoa’s value took a dip after his latest concussion, and he initially struggled upon his return. While he will always be at risk of missing extended time or early retirement, he’s the perfect distributor for McDaniel and the fast-swimming Dolphins in Miami.
There were many questions around the tight end position — specifically Trey McBride — as we entered the season. Which tight ends were in the elite group? What is McBride’s ceiling after the addition of Marvin Harrison Jr? Generally, we like our elite tight ends to be the top receiving option in their offense. Surprisingly, McBride has been just that. He posted 12 catches for 133 yards on Sunday, resulting in a season-high 25.3 fantasy points.
McBride is the only tight end to record two 100-yard receiving games this season. Remarkably, McBride is currently the TE3 on the season without registering a receiving touchdown. It’s not ideal he doesn’t have one, but he’s due for positive regression in that department, making his spot at TE3 even more impressive. He and Taysom Hill are the only top-22 scoring tight ends without a receiving touchdown, but Hill has six rushing touchdowns. The touchdowns will come, but McBride is proving himself as an emerging, elite tight end.
After suffering a torn ACL and MCL last season, T.J. Hockenson has worked his way back up to a full-time role. He made the most of it on Sunday. He caught seven of his nine targets for 114 yards en route to 18.4 fantasy points after posting 112 yards in a limited role across his first three games back in action.
Hockenson has 25 targets in his four games, proving he’s a top option along with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. There’s always some concern about how a player will return after an ACL/MCL injury, so it’s a major positive to see Hockenson balling again.
After a solid start to his Packers tenure through the first six weeks, Josh Jacobs has been spectacular across the last five games. On Sunday, he posted his third 100-yard rushing game of the season, gaining 106 on the ground, but it was his three rushing touchdowns that stole the show.
Jacobs’ 28.6 fantasy points are his highest total of the season and mark the fourth time he’s topped 20 points, all in the last five games. He’s found the end zone in three of the last four games and is averaging 20.5 carries per game in that period. He’s locked in as an RB1 with a ceiling as high as any running back.
Many predicted Jaxon Smith-Njigba would take over the No. 2 WR role from Tyler Lockett this season, but he’s looked like the Seahawks’ No. 1 WR in the last few games. After clearing 100 yards in each of the last two games, Smith-Njigba was held to 77 yards but found the end zone and finished with 19.7 fantasy points.
Smith-Njigba had gained 70 yards receiving just once in his first 25 NFL games, a mark he’s reached in each of the last three games. He’s up to 367 yards in that period to go with three scores. The first of those three came with DK Metcalf sidelined, but he’s played the last two games, going for just 129 yards and zero touchdowns. Metcalf should still be considered the No. 1 WR here, but Smith-Njigba is gaining ground.
After a tumultuous offseason and a relatively slow start to the season, Jordan Addison has found his groove. He led all wide receivers in scoring in Week 12 with 30.2 PPR fantasy points (pending Monday Night Football) as he caught eight out of nine targets for 162 yards and a touchdown.
Addison has now scored a touchdown in three of his last four games. His nine targets were a season-high. While we can’t expect Jefferson to see only five targets in many more games this season, there’s enough to go around for Addison, Jefferson and Hockenson.
It feels as though Bucky Irving is a weekly staple on the risers list, but he continues to earn it and move up the rankings. He’s this week’s RB3 (pending Monday Night Football) with 27.1 fantasy points after rushing 12 times for 87 yards and a touchdown and catching six passes for 64 yards.
The only thing holding Irving back is his backfield mates, Rachaad White and Sean Tucker. Tucker saw a couple of goal-line opportunities, converting one into a touchdown. White also found the end zone on 12 carries while producing little else. Perhaps most importantly, Irving saw six targets compared to just one each for White and Tucker. White is mostly known for his pass-catching prowess, so if Irving can lead the running back room in targets, his ceiling is higher than expected.
I’m not fully ready to trust Jaylen Waddle just yet, but his 144 yards and touchdown put his ceiling back intact after a rough season thus far. His eight receptions were a season-high, as were the 144 yards. His last 100-yard game came in Week 1.
Since Week 1, Waddle had not cleared 57 yards until this week and had only topped 40 yards in four games. This should provide some confidence and open things up for Waddle. While not a huge riser, he’s trending that way.
Dynasty Fantasy Football Fallers
Everybody’s favorite new TE1 Sam LaPorta has fallen back down to earth after an incredible rookie season. He caught three passes for 19 yards on Sunday, his second-lowest total of the season. LaPorta has topped 50 yards just three times this season and has yet to sniff a 100-yard game. He’s scored three touchdowns, but outside of that, he’s provided little for his fantasy managers and has been lapped by many other young tight ends.
With Amon-Ra St. Brown dominating, Jameson Williams emerging and two high-end running backs in play, LaPorta has been unable to re-establish himself as a go-to player in the Lions’ offense. We know he’s capable, but it feels unlikely his value will match his previous high anytime soon.
Rhamondre Stevenson carried eight times for 13 yards, posting just 3.3 fantasy points in Week 12. It’s been a rough season for Stevenson, who has just one 100-yard game, back in Week 1. His 3.3 fantasy points were the fifth time he’s been held to single digits.
While he posted a couple of 20-point outings in Weeks 8 and 9, he only ran for 48 and 16 yards in those games, with most of the production coming from receptions and touchdowns. He’s been held to under 25 rushing yards in four of his 11 games. Perhaps the worst part for Stevenson is that Antonio Gibson re-emerged, taking more snaps and running more routes than Stevenson.
Marvin Harrison Jr. (WR – ARI)
As the WR27 on the season, Marvin Harrison Jr. has failed to live up to expectations. It’s fair to wonder if the expectations were too high to begin with, but there are many great receivers. Harrison is slipping below other emerging players. He caught three passes for 47 yards on Sunday, scoring 7.7 fantasy points.
Harrison has been held to single-digit fantasy points in six of his 11 games this season. He’s recorded 100+ yards just twice and hasn’t come particularly close in any other game. The Cardinals’ offense is running through Trey McBride and James Conner. There are no indications of that changing anytime soon.
Green Bay Packers Wide Receivers
There’s very little clarity in who to trust every week when it comes to Packers receivers.
Jayden Reed has emerged as the top fantasy option but has posted just 26 and 23 yards in the last two games, showcasing his low floor. He’s been held below 30 yards in five of his 11 games this season and is exclusively running out of the slot.
Christian Watson has made some big plays as of late, but he didn’t catch a single pass after going for 150 yards last week. He dropped a deep ball that was placed perfectly, marking his sixth game under 40 yards.
Romeo Doubs is the team’s most consistent outside receiver, but his target share is weak and he doesn’t have a 100-yard game to his name this season.
Dontayvion Wicks, a breakout favorite of many, has failed to capitalize on his opportunities and is unplayable at the moment.
The Packers are relying heavily on Josh Jacobs. There is no telling who Jordan Love‘s go-to player is every week.
Denver Broncos Running Backs
Javonte Williams, Audric Estime, Jaleel McLaughlin —it doesn’t matter, you can’t trust any of them. Similar to the Packers’ wide receivers, the Bronco’s top running back is different every week. The difference, however, is that the Broncos have rarely been productive running the ball.
Two weeks ago, we thought Estime was taking over the backfield, but Williams led the way last week, scoring 18.7 fantasy points. This week, Williams ran eight times for -2 yards while McLaughlin led the group with seven carries for 44 yards and Estime carried three times for 15 yards.
Williams has been the preferred pass-catcher, so he’s the most trustworthy back, but Estime is a better long-term bet in Denver. Either way, you can’t play any of them confidently right now when making fantasy start sit decisions.
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