RADIO
Week 13 is bearing down on us, and in the fantasy football world that means most folks are going into the last game of the regular season for them. Going into the do or die week, we'd much rather feel like we've got players on our squad that are more prone to "do" rather than "die".
While we'd all like to think we have a grasp on player and team trends, each week of football serves to remind us that "any given Sunday" is a real thing. We have upsets, expectations that are exceeded, injuries, and so on. For some of you the playoffs are already clinched, for many others you are in the middle of a dogfight for those last spots, and for some the dream is dead, but perhaps you are in a keeper or dynasty league and can make some moves based off of the changes we're noting.
Let's look at players who are on the rise heading into Week 13.
Week 13 Fantasy Football Risers
Philip Rivers - QB, SD
It'd be cheating to repeat with Matthew Stafford here, right? He definitely deserves it with his five touchdown performance on turkey day, but we'll give the nod to Philip Rivers instead. Don't read that as Rivers not deserving it though, as he posted a 300 yard, 4 touchdown game in a victory over Jacksonville after an absolute embarrassment against Kansas City the week before.
I fielded a lot of questions from panicking owners wondering if they should cut bait on Rivers and the San Diego offense for the rest of the season. Sadly enough, the Chargers offensive line is still extremely banged up and the running game just isn't happening for San Diego this year. This means that Rivers will always have the chance to perform well since the onus of the offense is entirely on his arm.
The issue moving forward is that they face Denver, Kansas City, Miami, Oakland, and Denver again to finish out the year. Three of those matchups (DEN x2, KC) are scary. Luckily Weeks 15 and 16 are most owners' semifinals and finals weeks, but the two weeks before them are treacherous. While Rivers is undoubtedly on the rise with his great performance on Sunday, keep your head on a swivel for alternatives in the approaching weeks.
C.J. Anderson - RB, DEN
Remember the second half that C.J. Anderson had last year? Also known as the reason why he was a first rounder this year? Well he showed that familiar burst again on Sunday night against the Patriots, including the nail in the coffin in overtime where he took a halfback toss to the left all the way to the house. He rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, adding on four catches for 40 yards. While Ronnie Hillman didn't have a bad game by any means, it was clear that Anderson was the best runner that night. Perhaps he's just a mudder. His mother was a mudder, his father was a mudder, okay I hope I have Seinfeld fans that are reading this.
While Hillman isn't going away, this performance may have pushed C.J. back to the 1A slot in the Denver backfield moving forward. Next week brings a juicy matchup for this backfield against the soft Chargers run defense, and then some trickier games against the Raiders, Steelers, and Bengals before a rematch with the Chargers in Week 17. Perhaps Brock Osweiler is just what the doctor ordered for Anderson and the Broncos.
Sammy Watkins – WR, BUF
Sammy Watkins has quickly established himself as a real boom or bust type in the NFL. While that sounds like an indictment of Sammy, it's more about the Buffalo Bills. Watkins' owners and Bills' fans alike who have watched Buffalo operate all year have probably ripped out chunks of hair regarding how little love Watkins seems to get. Tyrod Taylor definitely loves the deep ball and in true boom or bust receiver fashion, most of Sammy's routes are of the deep variety. Just this past weekend we saw Taylor connect with Watkins on two deep balls, with Watkins showing his ability to fight for the ball and win that battle.
The Bills will face the Texans, Eagles, Redskins, Cowboys, and Jets to finish the year. With the exception of Darrelle Revis, none of those teams have a particularly frightening cornerback that can really take Watkins out of the gameplan. That job seems to be on the Bills' play calling. Granted, a strong defense and LeSean McCoy make for a tempting gameplan to center around, especially with Rex Ryan at the helm because we saw how much he loved to lean on the running game and a strong defense in New York. Perhaps Greg Roman will open up the playbook a bit more and get Sammy the ball more, but that is difficult to count on. Regardless, with Sammy's showing against the Chiefs on Sunday he is undoubtedly trending upwards.
T.Y. Hilton and Donte Moncrief – WR, IND
It was tempting to talk about Jeremy Maclin here, but let's take a look at the situation in Indianapolis instead (but I'm sure people are aware of Maclin's good performance on Sunday and the subsequent confidence boost that his owners should be feeling). Yes, the Colts faced the Buccaneers which always profiles well for the passing attack, but both Hilton and Moncrief had been pretty lackluster ever since the Colts beat up the Saints defense in Week 7. This boxscore was a welcome sight for owners of both of these pass catchers.
With default Fleaflicker scoring, Hilton had scored only 11.8 points in the past three weeks while Moncrief had only racked up 8.9 points. Those are totals, not averages. On Sunday against Tampa Bay, Hilton scored 20.5 and Moncrief scored 11.4. Looking forward, the Colts will face the Steelers, Jaguars, Texans, Dolphins, and Titans. Andrew Luck will return for the Colts at some point towards mid-December by all accounts, though Matt Hasselbeck seems to be holding his own out there for Indianapolis. That said, Luck coming back will certainly be an upgrade for the passing offense. Couple this with Ahmad Bradshaw going down and Frank Gore being reportedly "beat to crap", and Hilton and Moncrief should be leaned on that much more.
Julius Thomas - TE, JAC
Okay so Julius Thomas deserves a repeat mention here, partly due to his own performance but also because no one else really stood out as a riser. Last week he found the end zone for the first time since Week 6, although it was accompanied with only 28 yards. This week against the Chargers he scored again, but this time with 116 yards.
Julius Thomas makes for an interesting case because the Jaguars refuse to run the ball, even in a plus matchup against a defense like the Chargers. Couple this with Blake Bortles growing into a good (fantasy) quarterback and you've got a match. Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns are trending upwards as surrounding talent, though Hurns' concussion could have Thomas seeing even more targets while he's out. Back to back weeks of Thomas getting the red zone looks and converting bodes well for momentum moving forward.
Thomas saw eight targets in Week 11 and ten targets this week. It'd be nice for some consistency to stick with Thomas moving forward, and things are trending in that direction. Thomas and the Jags get to beat up on the Saints defense in Week 16, so keep that in mind as well if you're planning for the playoffs.
Other Risers to Note: Russell Wilson (QB, SEA), Tyrod Taylor (QB, BUF), Eddie Lacy (RB, GB), Chris Ivory (RB, NYJ), Jarvis Landry (WR, MIA), Antonio Gates (TE, SD)
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