(Photo by Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire)
Week 12 Notes
- Falcons DE Vic Beasley was back from the grave last week, with two sacks and three solo tackles. What’s sad is he’s only been credited with eight solos on the year. Both sacks came on tight coverage where Cowboys QB Dak Prescott held the ball. Don’t be fooled by the outburst, going into New Orleans Beasley will again disappear.
- The linebacker situation in Dallas has become interesting. LB Leighton Vander Esch already looks like one of the top 10 linebackers in the league, and both Dallas LBs appear to be suffering. First, it is not out of the question that LB Sean Lee becomes a part-time player when he returns from injury. The team can still use his veteran presence but for the first time in many years, this defense can move forward without him. What’s more surprising is the play of LB Jaylon Smith. His numbers have dipped since Vander Esch joined him in the lineup. Dallas is having Smith blitz often with limited success. His tackle numbers have also taken a dip. Keep an eye on the situation, it could be that there is only enough room for one IDP linebacker in Big D.
- Chargers LB Denzel Perryman was placed on IR and LB Jatavis Brown filled in nicely. Brown finished with 8 total tackles and pass defended. He’s a nice LB3 down the stretch for fantasy owners.
- Veteran Redskins LB Mason Foster just continues to be a steady LB2 for owners. Sunday was his sixth game of ten or more total tackles, including a big interception. Foster should be in lineups headed down the stretch towards our fantasy playoffs.
- Atlanta star LB Deion Jones sat this past week but is expected to be in the lineup on Thursday night. Many owners may not have a better option but if you can sit him, go ahead, Jones may need a game or two to get his groove back.
- The Giants have struggled all year to get to the QB and LB Olivier Vernon hasn’t been much help. Vernon hasn’t had a sack since Week 6. At this point, he is not a player owners cannot trust down the stretch.
- Denver rookie LB Bradley Chubb continues to ball out. He’s been amongst the best LB options since Week 6. With sacks in five straight games, you likely can ride him to the end of the year.
Happy Thanksgiving all! Enjoy the food, family, friends, and football!
Positive / Negative Home Stat Crews
Here is this week’s list of positive and negative matchups. We break down the top and bottom three matchups where home stat crews either hand out tackles and assists or are stingy with them. This metric is Tackles Per Opportunity or TPO and we can use these games to break ties for our lineups.
Note: the matchups are not favorable for fantasy owners this week. Think about getting some big-play defensive players in your lineups to make a difference.
Top 3 TPO Games at Home this week = Jaguars @ Bills, 49ers @ Buccaneers, Dolphins @ Colts
Bottom 3 TPO Games at Home this week = Patriots @ Jets, Falcons @ Saints, Browns @ Bengals
Week 12 Byes
Kansas City Chiefs
Players to replace:
DL – Chris Jones, Allen Bailey
LB – Justin Houston, Dee Ford, Reggie Ragland, Anthony Hitchens
DB – Ron Parker, Daniel Sorenson
Los Angeles Rams
Players to replace:
DL – Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers
LB – Cory Littleton, Samson Ebukam, Mark Barron
DB – Marcus Peters, John Johnson, Lamarcus Joyner
Below are the full IDP rankings for Week 12 thanks to this widget from FantasyPros: