Click Here to:

crystal ball week 12 2016

By Evan Tarracciano

Now that a few days have passed after the conclusion of the injury-riddled mess that was Week 11, owners have had time to digest how their team’s future looks. In retrospect that was certainly one of the worst weeks that I can recall from the medical standpoint. It wasn’t just the volume of players that went down, it was the quality and expectations that many had heading into the week, and the bitter disappointment which followed. The good news? The absence of that much talent creates opportunities for lesser owned players to be thrust into the spotlight and make an immediate impact. While the list of waiver-wire options that I’ve laid out below isn’t all-encompassing by any means, use it as a guideline as you approach bids this week. Keep FootballDiehards.com booked as a resource, as our amazing staff will have all the latest news and notes as it breaks from beat reporters and our sources around the league.

If you haven’t already joined me for my video Q&A sessions each Tuesday evening at 8 PM EST, I’d highly encourage you to do so! I’ve received a lot of positive feedback as to my thoughts and the layout – hopefully listeners are enjoying it as much as I am running it! This article serves as a supplementary piece to what I covered in this week’s chat, expanding on some of the more “hot button” topics that I received a lot of traffic on. Check out all of my prior videos and meet me for each new one here:

https://www.facebook.com/FootballDieHards/

Q: Can we really trust Mark Ingram at this point? Not only did he lose a bulk of the carries to Tim Hightower but now he’s in the concussion protocol. Where does he rank moving forward?
A: I’ve long been an Ingram apologist, but even I have my limits. Perhaps the most frustrating thing about Ingram in 2016 isn’t even the injuries that he’s sustained, or his lack of production versus expectations. It really boils down to the New Orleans Saints not having the courage to give him a bulk of the workload on a consistent basis, and failing to stick with their running game this season, even in competitive matchups. Ingram’s 4.7 YPC is his highest mark since 2013, yet the team has failed to give him more than 18 rushing attempts at any point this season. His ability to catch passes has helped keep his value afloat somewhat, but he can’t be trusted for anything more than a RB2 for the rest of the year. Hightower aside, the Saints just don’t have the patience to stick with the running game, and too quickly slip back to letting Drew Brees have 40 plus passing attempts.

Q: Assuming that Thomas Rawls has fully reclaimed the starting role in Seattle, who is his handcuff?
A: As a Prosise owner in several leagues, I was absolutely fuming when I read the news that he suffered a broken collarbone and would miss the rest of 2016. In his absence, Rawls will definitely see the bulk of work in the backfield – I’d assume that he receives at least 70-75 percent of the touches there. Alex Collins is now the de-facto backup to Rawls, and is worth adding in deeper formats (14 teams or larger). A 5’10 217 lb. back out of Arkansas, Rollins has been buried on the Seahawks depth chart since the beginning of the season, waiting for an opportunity to arise. Now clearly the team can’t be particularly high on him, as he was a healthy scratch last week, in favor of Troymaine Pope. This was likely due to Pope’s ability to contribute on special teams, but speaks loud enough to me. Rollins is purely a handcuff and offers little upside otherwise.

Q: With Andrew Luck likely out this week, could you provide me with a quarterback or two that you’d be comfortable streaming?
A: The three options which I discussed on air with Mike Dempsey and Bob Harris on Sirius XM radio were Eli Manning, Ryan Tannehill and Colin Kaepernick. Of the options listed, I’d rank them in the order which I mentioned earlier. Manning offers the highest ceiling of the three, and has a quality matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Tannehill offers a solid floor of 200 passing yards and 2 touchdowns, and won’t hurt owners when it comes to turnovers. The Miami Dolphins face the San Francisco 49ers, opposite Kaepernick. “Kap” is the most available option of the three players I listed, but has the hardest matchup and fewest Fantasy relevant options to work with.

Q: Plans for Thanksgiving this year?
A: I’m heading to my brother-in-law’s house over in Sandy Springs, Georgia for dinner. He’s going to be smoking the turkey this year, and I’m really looking forward to trying it out! My parents also came down from Connecticut to spend the holiday with us, I’m thrilled that they are here.

Q: One thing that I’m thankful for this year?
A: My family is healthy and happy. And that is all I need!

Q: One football player that I’m thankful for and why?
A: As part of my responses for the Football Diehards staff league (which you can find here on the site, I wrote my portion of it back in late July), I said that my “Must Have Player” this year was Mike Evans, and that my “Reach Worthy Player” was Sterling Shepard. I’ve been definitely happy with the production of both receivers, as I was able to add them to most of my teams in 2016.

Waiver-Wire choices

Quarterback:

Ryan Tannehill (Miami Dolphins) – I’ll admit that I was a bit surprised that Tannehill is only owned in roughly 17 percent of standard sized formats in ESPN leagues (the 10 team size is the standard which I judge ownership for this column). Tannehill currently ranks as the 20th best quarterback, but has taken some major strides since his turnover-filled Week 2-5 stretch. While his passing totals have been down this season compared to those of yesteryear, he presents a nice floor for owners to be comfortable with. Tannehill is an interesting pickup for Andrew Luck owners who are scrambling prior to Thursday’s contest. The Dolphins take on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12, who currently are allowing an average of over 250 passing yards per game. With the emergence of Devante Parker and a solid running game anchored by Jay Ajayi, Tannehill has several weapons to use as a fallback.

Running Back:

Wendell Smallwood (Philadelphia Eagles) – Owners won’t have a particularly clear notion of who will be the lead dog in the Eagles backfield until Wednesday’s practice report comes out, but with Ryan Mathews (knee) and Darren Sproles (ribs) currently licking their wounds, Smallwood would be the back to own. Of the two injured backs, Sproles has the best chance to suit up in Week 12, and while the team has already relied upon him as an every-down starter in prior contests, I’d have to imagine that Doug Pederson would try and limit hits to his diminutive speedster. Regardless of the situation, Smallwood still figures to be involved and should receive double-digit touches, which puts him on the FLEX radar.

**Stash Candidates** Ameer Abdullah and Charles Sims (Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers) - News broke on November 22nd that Abdullah’s followup appointment on his foot injury went well enough for him to be on track to begin practicing soon. While he likely won’t return for another week or two (as the team does have a three week window to activate him once he does return), Detroit needs him back, badly. The team has struggled mightily to run the ball in his absence, and his dual-threat versatility would be another much-needed weapon to their offensive attack. Expect him to be rushed back into action.

The news on Charles Sims has been less clear, but Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter did mention several weeks ago that the team expects him to return this season, and is open to using their IR-designated to return slot on him. While we don’t have finite details regarding what exactly the injury to his knee was or what shape he’s currently in, his ability to catch passes out of the backfield would certainly help out Jameis Winston, especially with Doug Martin barely averaging 2.4 YPC after his return. The Bucs need a more balanced attack moving forward and have been overly reliant upon Mike Evans and Cameron Brate.

Wide Receiver:

Tyler Boyd (Cincinnati Bengals) – I prefer Boyd to Brandon LaFell while A.J. Green is sidelined, purely from a physical tools standpoint. I’ve seen what LaFell’s ceiling is, and while he is a fine player, I wouldn’t rush to the waiver wire to acquire his services. Andy Dalton has typically favored one wide receiver to compliment Tyler Eifert in the passing game, so while both Boyd and LaFell will see a bump-up in their respective value(s) moving forward, I’d say that Boyd is the receiver to own. Especially in deeper formats where “Hail Mary” acquisitions can make or break a league, I’d be leaning towards the rookie.

Marqise Lee (Jacksonville Jaguars) – I actually had the opportunity to sit down and meet Lee while covering the 2014 NFL Draft in New York City. Perhaps owners have forgotten, but at one point Lee was considered among the true elite receiver prospects in his draft, and it was a shock to some that he fell to the second round. Keep in mind that the team actually selected Lee AHEAD of Allen Robinson, and has been steadfast in their commitment to seeing him succeed, even after his first two injured-plagued years in the league. What does Lee bring to the table? First, he’s been the most consistent receiver on the Jaguars, especially with Robinson’s drops and Hurns being a no-show most weeks. He doesn’t have the biggest frame at 6’0 200 lbs., but is sure-handed and has excellent body control, allowing him to make catches such as the two in comeback mode against the Detroit Lions last week. Lee makes for a nice FLEX play with upside in PPR formats.

Tight End:

Jared Cook (Green Bay Packers) – Rob Gronkowski owners who are searching for an alternative option should he miss more time, look no further. Fantasy owners know who Cook is at this point. He’s maddening to own, has mental lapses, and is prone to occasionally fumbling the ball (like he did to seal the game against the Washington Redskins last week). Yet for all of his blemishes, Cook still has plenty of upside in his pass-first and pass-often offense in Green Bay. He’s by far the better pass-catching option at tight end over Richard Rodgers, and makes for a large target in the red zone for Aaron Rodgers.