For some fantasy teams, the most important Thursday Night Football game of the season is hours away. If you’re in a position where you need to win out, good luck and I hope this helps you. I’m going to be sharing my week 12 rankings, which are constructed through statistical analysis, matchup data, sportsbook data, and film. Let’s go get a win!
Week 12 QB Rankings
Tier 1
1. Lamar Jackson @ LAC
2. Jalen Hurts @ LAR
3. Jayden Daniels vs DAL
Tier 2
4. Kyler Murray @ SEA
5. Justin Herbert vs BAL
6. Jared Goff @ IND
7. Bo Nix @ LV
8. Brock Purdy @ GB
9. Baker Mayfield @ NYG
Tier 3
10. Anthony Richardson vs DET
12. Tua Tagovailoa vs NE
13. Drake Maye @ MIA
Tier 4
14. Patrick Mahomes @ CAR
15. Russell Wilson @ CLE
16. Geno Smith vs ARI
17. C.J. Stroud vs TEN
18. Matthew Stafford vs PHI
19. Sam Darnold @ CHI
Tier 5
20. Jameis Winston vs PIT
21. Caleb Williams vs MIN
22. Will Levis @ HOU
23. Bryce Young vs KC
24. Gardner Minshew vs DEN
Must Start: QB
Anthony Richardson vs DET
ESPN Projection - QB18
For the FTR start of the week, the players that will be eligible for this list are all close to being ranked as a back-end QB1/TE1 based on ESPN’s PPR projections. Fresh off the bench, Richardson came in and scored a season-high 28.08 points in week 11. While I’m not fully convinced Richardson is an elite quarterback, the low-end QB1 options are fairly weak.
The Lions have allowed the 4th least fantasy points to quarterbacks this year, but we’re just starting Richardson purely off upside. There’s a very real chance that Richardson is extremely disappointing, but most quarterbacks around this range also have a low floor. However, with Richardson and his rushing upside, he has a ceiling that no quarterback in this range can match.
Week 12 TE Rankings
Tier 1
1. Brock Bowers vs DEN
2. George Kittle @ GB
3. Travis Kelce @ CAR
4. Trey McBride @ SEA
Tier 2
5. David Njoku vs PIT
6. T.J. Hockenson @ CHI
7. Cade Otton @ NYG
Tier 3
9. Mark Andrews @ LAC
10. Will Dissly vs BAL
11. Sam LaPorta @ IND
12. Dallas Goedert @ LAR
13. Hunter Henry @ MIA
Tier 4
14. Tucker Kraft vs SF
15. Zach Ertz vs DAL
16. Jake Ferguson @ WAS
17. Cole Kmet vs MIN
18. Dalton Schultz vs TEN
Tier 5
19. Pat Freiermuth @ CLE
20. Ja'Tavion Sanders vs KC
21. Noah Fant vs ARI
22. Isaiah Likely @ LAC
23. Colby Parkinson vs PHI
24. Chig Okonkwo @ HOU
Must Start: TE
Mark Andrews @ LAC
ESPN Projection - TE16
For Mark Andrews, this fantasy season has been a disaster so far. Andrews is averaging 9.1 PPG which is a bit surprising. That said since week six, Andrews has scored 14 or more points four times. The issue is that in those other two games he scored less than five points. Taking a similar approach to Richardson, I’m shooting for upside when ranking these low end TE1s.
With Andrews, he actually has a fairly good matchup when you take a look at PFF’s TE Matchup Tool. In week 12, Andrews has a 23% matchup advantage, good for 6th on the week. The Chargers have allowed the 8th least fantasy points to tight ends (100.6), but overall, the matchup tool takes a bit more priority. If you have Andrews, you probably have to start him anyway, but this is one of the weeks I would feel slightly confident.