First off, Happy Thanksgiving to all! I hope you have a wonderful time relaxing, eating food, and watching football with your family and friends. This week is a great time to reflect and be grateful that we get to play a game like fantasy football or even watch the NFL. Week 12 of the NFL Season is already here. It’s flying by, sadly, so make sure you sit back and enjoy it. It’s mind-boggling it’s already this deep into the season. Also, enjoy the chaos, as this fantasy football season is unlike anything we have ever experienced. It’s a scary sight. Look below at my running back start/sit for Week 12. Make sure to enjoy this NFL Sunday because there aren’t many left.
Week 11 is in the books, and it was a chaotic week again. We saw big-time performances from names like Tony Pollard, Jamaal Williams, and others. At the same time, we saw injuries occur to others. Sigh. Now we are onto Week 12 in what will hopefully be a much better football week. I’ll be helping the Nerd Herd out this season with some running back Start/Sit for that week of fantasy football. Analysis and reasoning will be provided for every player that I mentioned. I’m here to help you win your fantasy football week and, ultimately, the championship. You might remember me from last year as I covered whom to start/sit at tight end. This year, I’m covering the running back start/sit.
Be sure to follow our other start/sit articles and authors; they contain great advice to help you each week.
Changing the Call (QB): Jayson Snyder
The Cutback (RB): Jake Oliver
Slant Pattern (WR): Tristan Cook
12 Formation (TE): Ethan Wyatt
Flex on ‘Em (FLEX): Evan Brown
IDP Start/Sit (IDP): Jon Glosser
There is one thing I want to note. For this article and every running back start/sit article I write, I won’t be including players like Jonathan Taylor or Austin Ekeler. These are apparent starts so long as they aren’t on bye or injured. If you don’t start them, well, you’re a Taco. I’ll be focusing on players that are a bit harder to decide whether to start or what to expect from them. All scoring in this article series will be PPR. All stats/RB# number finishes come from FantasyPros. So, let’s make this a great season as we get to watch over 200+ games of NFL football. It’s back! Good luck with this dynasty fantasy football season.
Week 11 Recap
This is my recap of my picks from Week 11. They qualify as a “win” if they finish above the consensus for the “start” and a “loss” if they finish below the consensus for the “sit” in PPR scoring. Hopefully, Week 12 running back Start/Sit fare better!
Gibson was another great start finishing as the RB17 with RB1 usage. He finished with 72 yards on 18 carries and three catches for 31 yards. Another easy start to call was Devin Singletary. He was only the RB9 with 18 rushes for 86 yards and a touchdown. He added two catches for 11 yards. Solid game all around. Pacheco had a good game, with a career-high 107 yards on the ground. That is his RB room from now on. Kareem Hunt was a solid sit with only 32 yards and two catches for 22 yards. Another meh showing. I was shocked to see 2021′ Najee Harris show up. Hopefully, that’s a sign of things to come, as he was the RB3 overall, oops.
Week 12 Running Back Start/Sit
Start: Jeff Wilson, MIA, RB15
This is my massive start of the week, as we are finally seeing just how dominant Wilson can be with a steady stream of rushes/targets. Week 12 brings him Houston, the worst rush defense in the NFL. Sign me up to watch Wilson destroy them. Jeff Wilson has 170 yards on 26 carries since being acquired by the Dolphins. he also has five receptions on eight targets for 45 yards. Plus, he has two touchdowns. Yep, Wilson’s quickly becoming an RB1 for the rest of the season. Next year, that’s a vastly different story. This week though? Expect big numbers.
Start: Rachaad White, TB, RB24
You already know how much I love White, but I could easily see him surpass this ranking if Leonard Fournette misses the game or doesn’t play much. White blew up in Week 10 with 105 rushing yards on 22 carries. That’s without any targets, which was the first time all season he had zero targets. That won’t happen again. White’s the clear future at running back for the Bucs, and that takeover could be happening in Week 12.
Start: Rhamondre Stevenson, NE, RB13
Rhamondre is a massive start this week on Thanksgiving. He’s facing a weaker Vikings defense that has been prone to giving up points to running backs. Stevenson struggled a lot last week against the Jets with only 26 yards on 15 attempts. His day was purely saved by the fact he had 56 yards receiving over six receptions. I think he can get into the end zone on Turkey Day and get way more than 26 yards on the ground. I mean, Tony Pollard absolutely wrecked the Vikings. So can Rhamondre.
Honorable Mentions: Leonard Fournette (RB29), David Montgomery (RB18)
Sit: D’Onta Foreman, CAR, RB31
I don’t trust Foreman or the Panthers’ offense in this matchup against the tough Broncos defense. That includes Foreman, who isn’t actually a great running back unless he’s facing the Falcons or Bucs. In two games against non-NFC-South opponents, Foreman has 18 rushes for 47 yards. OUCH. I would expect a tough go for him this Sunday.
Sit: Samaje Perine, CIN, RB28
So, Perine went off last week against the woeful Steelers in the absence of Joe Mixon, who suffered a concussion. Big Whoop. Yes, he scored three touchdowns on four catches for 52 yards. That won’t be replicated, especially if Chase returns in week 12. Meanwhile, he was absolutely miserable running the ball. He had 11 carries for a measly 30 yards, which is a pathetic 2.7 yards per carry. Against the Titans, he will be hard-pressed to come near his numbers from Week 11.
Honorable Mentions: Latavius Murray (RB30)
Good luck this week with your running back start/sit dilemmas!
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As always, May the Force be with You…
