Ten Things We Learned In Week 12 (Fantasy Football)
Week 12 brought us some Thanksgiving Day football, and hopefully, you have had a lot to be thankful for in fantasy this season. Health has become wealth in fantasy football. If your team is still intact, you should have a solid chance to make a playoff run. Like always, there was a lot to unpack in Week 12, so let’s dive into the major storylines and what we learned!
1. Garrett Wilson Can Be Trusted More Without Zach Wilson
In the Jets’ first game after benching Zach Wilson, Garrett Wilson had one of his best performances of the season. Wilson caught 5-of-8 targets for 95 yards and two touchdowns and had a 28.6% target share. Mike White played well, making Garrett Wilson a safer option for fantasy managers. The Jets have a favorable upcoming schedule for wide receivers, and Wilson could become a solid top-24 option for the next four weeks.
2. Mike White Should Remain The Starter
While we have already talked about Garrett Wilson, we should talk about how Mike White should retain the starting quarterback position for the Jets. White has provided a spark to the Jets’ offense in the middle of the season in relief of Wilson two years in a row. Wilson only has one 300-yard game in seven games played in 2022. White threw for 315 yards and three touchdowns in his first game. Zach Wilson isn’t the answer in New York, and while Mike White may not be either, he should retain the starting job.
3. Josh Jacobs Is A Candidate For Fantasy MVP
Josh Jacobs keeps having week-winning performances for fantasy managers who drafted him in the mid-rounds. Jacobs is currently the RB1 on the week with 45.3 fantasy points in half-PPR formats. He rushed for 229 yards on 33 carries and had two rushing touchdowns. Jacobs also caught 6-of-7 targets for 74 yards. If Jacobs stays the RB1 for Week 12, it will be the third time he has done so this season. If Jacobs finishes strong and maintains this RB1 production, he must be in the fantasy MVP discussion.
4. Travis Etienne Says He Will Be Ready For Week 13
While players are typically overly optimistic about returning from injury, Travis Etienne said he feels good about being ready for Week 13. As of writing this article, that’s about all we know other than the foot was injured. Etienne had the injury towards the beginning of the game and did not return, so fantasy managers were left with a near goose egg. Etienne gets a solid matchup next week against the Detroit Lions, so hopefully, he is right and will be good to go, but we have to wait for more information to come out.
5. Marquise Brown May Be WR1 For The Cardinals
In his return to the field, “Hollywood” Brown led the team in targets, although DeAndre Hopkins had the better fantasy day. Brown caught 6-of-8 targets for 46 yards, and Hopkins caught 4-of-6 targets for 87 yards and a touchdown. Week 12 was their first game together, so it may be too early to tell, but Brown out-targeting Hopkins in his first game back from injury could be a sign of things to come. Both wide receivers will remain solid fantasy options, though, as they will each play a big part in the offense.
6. Justin Herbert Could Return To Form In The Coming Weeks
Justin Herbert had his best fantasy performance in Week 13 and is currently the QB3 on the week. Herbert threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns and finally had a big game for the first time since the first two weeks of the season. Herbert has had a disappointing season but has had some tough luck with injuries to his receiving core. Keenan Allen is now back and finally looks healthy. Mike Williams is still injured and missed Week 12, but he should return soon, and then Herbert will finally have his weapons entering a stretch of good matchups.
7. Isiah Pacheco Is Getting A Lot Of Work
Over the last three weeks, Isiah Pacheco has taken over as the primary ball carrier in Kansas City. He had 22 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown in Week 12 against the Rams’ solid defense. He also caught a pass for another 17 yards, which was his only target in the past three games. Due to the lack of passing volume, Pacheco’s upside is capped, but he is still a usable fantasy asset in the Chiefs’ high-powered offense. With Clyde Edwards-Helaire on IR through at least Week 15, Pacheco shouldn’t have to worry about losing touches anytime soon. Even when CEH was healthy, Pacheco started to take over, so Pacheco has league-winning upside should he continue getting the workload against Houston and Seattle in the first two weeks of the playoffs.
8. DJ Moore Has Met His Touchdown Quota
Sometimes fantasy football just makes no sense. DJ Moore had back-to-back weeks against plus matchups for wide receivers and scored less than five fantasy points in each game. In Week 12, Moore went against a tough Denver defense, catching 4-of-6 targets for 103 yards and a touchdown, and is currently the WR8 on the week. Moore has four touchdown receptions on the year, which has been his season total in the last three seasons. The Panthers have had terrible quarterback play this season, and they have had several starters. Sam Darnold now takes over, but don’t be surprised if Moore does not catch another touchdown pass in the next five games, continuing his tradition of catching four touchdown passes in a season.
9. Elijah Mitchell Can’t Catch A Break
After getting some action in the past three weeks, Elijah Mitchell has picked up a possible MCL sprain and could be missing some games. He has only played in four games all season and was getting good volume even with Christian McCaffrey on the team before his most recent injury. Mitchell will likely be a roster clogger for the rest of the season and may only be a handcuff even when healthy.
10. Josh Oliver Helps Nobody
Josh Oliver had a great game against his former team in Week 12. Oliver caught 4-of-6 targets for 76 yards and a touchdown. He actually out-scored Mark Andrews in fantasy this week and only had one fewer target. Fantasy managers who had to watch Oliver get frequently targeted in his revenge game were probably left upset as Andrews has not had a top-5 tight end finish since Week 6, which is also the last time he caught a touchdown.