RADIO
Whether due to their own play, the play of others, or injuries, players' stock increases and decreases on a weekly basis. Perhaps more than any other, the NFL is a league that experiences ups and downs at a rapid pace. With only 16 games, there’s little room for error and seemingly endless opportunities for improvement. The same goes for fantasy football; managing rosters effectively is key to winning that championship.
Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year. In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back.
These are the key risers and fallers heading into Week 13 of the NFL season.
Week 13 Fantasy Football Risers
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Miami Dolphins
After an undeserved benching following a 24-0 shellacking of the Jets, Ryan Fitzpatrick returned to the Dolphins' starting lineup to beat down the Jets once more. Tua Tagovailoa's thumb injury is poised to cost him multiple games and if Fitzpatrick keeps winning, I find it hard to believe the Dolphins will go back to Tua. As for production, Fitzpatrick was right back to his old self. Excluding Week 1, Fitzpatrick scored at least 18 fantasy points in every start he's made this season. He was a QB1 in Week 12 and he will be a QB1 for as long as he remains the starter.
Tight Ends! (Finally)
For the first time all season, I'm going to say some nice things about tight ends. 11 of them broke double digit fantasy points this week and only Tyler Eifert was truly fantasy irrelevant. Evan Engram, T.J. Hockenson, Kyle Rudolph, Travis Kelce, Hunter Henry, and Hayden Hurst all saw at least eight targets and the top seven tight ends caught at least five passes.
Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers
For a couple weeks now, Deebo Samuel was expected to return after the 49ers' bye. That happened and not only did Samuel return to being the team's WR1, he absolutely smashed. Samuel caught 11 of 13 targets for 133 yards against what is supposed to be a good pass defense. The 49ers do not have a tough opponent remaining on the schedule. If Samuel can remain healthy, he has the potential be a league winner in the playoffs.
Amari Cooper, Dallas Cowboys
It feels like Amari Cooper was largely written off after Andy Dalton went down. He had one miserable game with Ben DiNucci under center. Other than that, Cooper has been rock solid. He's not the WR1 he was with Dak Prescott, but with Dalton back the past two weeks, Cooper has lines of 6-81 and 6-112-1. The Cowboys' rest of season schedule will see them needing to throw against unimposing pass defenses. Only the Ravens in Week 13 pose a potential problem, but given all their injuries and Covid players, that could end up being the easiest of them all. Cooper should be locked into lineups as a high WR2 the rest of the way.
Kenyan Drake, Arizona Cardinals
I considered putting Kenyan Drake here last week, but he was just so inefficient that I hesitated. I guess I shouldn't have because, as we know, volume is king in fantasy football, especially at the running back position. Drake has completely vanquished Chase Edmonds to the backup role, commanding 22 carries and four targets last week. Drake is still inefficient, but that doesn't matter when you can fall into the end zone and touch the ball over 20 times. Kyler Murray always keeps the offense humming so it looks like those that stuck with Drake are going to be rewarded, but I'd recommend avoiding watching and just looking at the end results.
Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers
After a two month stint on IR, Austin Ekeler returned last week and not only looked fully healthy, but was immediately thrust back into the feature back role. Ekeler was given a whopping 30 opportunities (14 carries, 16 targets) in the Chargers' first two score loss of the season. Not much more needs to be said. The Chargers have a favorable rest of season schedule and Ekeler is a locked in RB1.
Week 13 Fantasy Football Fallers
Jared Goff, Los Angeles Rams
We know Jared Goff comes with both a low floor and a high ceiling. The problem with ever using Goff in fantasy is not just the extreme volatility, it's the unpredictable nature of it. Goff went into Tampa Bay and eviscerated the Bucs' previously formidable pass defense. Then, at home against a depleted 49ers' secondary, Goff fell flat, barely mustering up five fantasy points. Impressively, Goff completed exactly 19 passes for exactly 198 yards in both of his dismal outings against the 49ers. Next week's game at Arizona projects to be a shootout and Weeks 15 and 16 look extremely promising against the Jets and Seahawks, but Goff has proven he cannot be trusted.
Will Fuller, Houston Texans
Misplaced trust in a doctor apparently resulted in Will Fuller mistakenly taking a banned substance in violation of NFL policy. Fuller is done for the season. He can be dropped in all redraft leagues.
Aaron Jones, Green Bay Packers
I love watching Aaron Jones run. He's a fantastic player. Unfortunately, the Packers do not agree. Sure, you can argue the score contributed to Jones' 54% snap share on Sunday night, but you'd be wrong. Jones has hit the 60% snap threshold just three times all season. In an overtime thriller against the Colts two weeks ago, Jones played 50% of the snaps. As if that isn't bad enough, the Packers simply do not run at the goal line. Conventional wisdom suggests NFL teams would be wise to throw to get to the goal line and then run to get in. Jones has been running effectively into the red zone and then Rodgers throws for the scores. Jones has just one touchdown in his past four games. He's still an RB1 from the perspective of there not being 12 running backs better than him, but he's topped his 17.6 fantasy points from Week 1 just once all season and finished higher than RB12 just twice, and not since Week 4. Jones is an every week top 12 play that you can be certain won't give you top 12 production.
Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys
Andy Dalton played fine on Thanksgiving. The reason Ezekiel Elliott did not produce is because Ezekiel Elliott is not good at football. I am sure he will be able to produce with Dak Prescott back next year, but Zeke is not the same player he was from 2016-2019. He looks noticeably less explosive and while I will never advocate for benching a running back simply due to a fumble, I certainly support benching a running back permanently if he hits a certain number of fumbles in a season. I think five is a fair number. Elliott has fumbled six times this season. Tony Pollard is the better player. It's not close. As a Cowboys fan, I've been calling for the team to cut Elliott since before they extended him. I stand by that. Fantasy managers cannot cut Zeke, but he's by no means anywhere near a must start.
Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints
I am doubling down on Alvin Kamara. Last week, I said, "I caution everyone against overreacting to one game, but it's entirely possible that Kamara is a touchdown or bust RB2 the rest of the season. I wouldn't say that's likely, but with Hill, I don't see many 5+ reception games in Kamara's future." After two weeks of Taysom Hill starting, I'm ready to declare Kamara a touchdown or bust RB2 the rest of the season. With Hill, Kamara has one reception for negative two yards across two games. It seems unthinkable that you have the depth to bench Kamara, but if by some miracle you have incredible running back depth, yes, you should consider benching Alvin Kamara.
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