Postseason Shootout | RealTime Fantasy Sports

RealTime DFS Strategy: Week 12

Sun Nov 27 10:02am ET
By MIKE BARNER
Contributing Writer

No teams will be on a bye for Week 12, which helps offset additional games being played Thursday. Let’s dig into the teams that will take the field for the weekend slate and highlight some players to consider for your DFS lineups, as well as a few to possibly avoid.

Quarterbacks

Justin Herbert, LAC at ARI ($7,000): Herbert has dealt with a lot of injuries at wide receiver this season. He began the season by throwing at least two touchdown passes in three of his first four games. Since then, he has thrown at least two touchdowns in just two of six games. However, Keenen Allen is back, and he immediately made an impact with five receptions for 94 yards last week. The Cardinals are tied for the second-most passing touchdowns allowed in the league, so this has the makings of being one of Herbert’s finer performances.

Geno Smith, SEA vs. LV ($6,000): Smith has already set a new career best with his 17 touchdown passes this season. He has at least two touchdown passes in eight of 10 games. This is a great matchup for him against the Raiders, who have allowed the sixth-most passing touchdowns (17) in the league.

Player to Avoid

Aaron Rodgers, GB at PHI ($5,800): The good news with regards to Rodgers is that he has thrown at least two touchdown passes in a game eight times this season. The bad news is that he isn’t racking up many passing yards, throwing for fewer than 230 yards in four of the last five games. The Eagles have only allowed 10 passing touchdowns all season, so if Rodgers can’t produce many scores in this game, his overall stat might be ugly.

Running Backs

Josh Jacobs, LV at SEA ($7,700): Jacobs was busy in a win over the Broncos last week, rushing 24 times for 109 yards. He also caught three of four targets for an additional 51 yards. He already has more rushing yards through 10 games this season (930) than he had over 15 games last season (872). The key is, he has been given at least 20 carries in five of the last seven games. Another juicy stat line could be coming versus a Seahawks team that has allowed the fifth-most rushing yards per game in the league.

Jeff Wilson Jr., MIA vs. HOU ($5,900): The Texans have allowed the most rushing yards per game and the fifth-most rushing touchdowns in the league. Deploying running backs against them on a weekly basis in DFS has been a sound strategy. It’s not ideal that Wilson has splits carries with Raheem Mostert, but he had 17 carries against the Browns in Week 10, compared to just eight carries for Mostert.

Player to Avoid

Alvin Kamara, NO at SF ($7,300): The 49ers have a great defense. They have been particularly tough against running backs, allowing the second-fewest fantasy points per game to the position. As if this matchup wasn’t discouraging enough, Kamara only has three total touchdowns this season, each of which came in Week 8 against the Raiders.

Wide Receivers

DK Metcalf, SEA vs. LV ($6,500): For those who decide to roll with Smith at quarterback, stacking him with Metcalf is a viable strategy. As previously mentioned, the Raiders have allowed a lot of touchdowns through the air. Metcalf has four receiving touchdowns this season and has been targeted inside the red zone at least one time in each of the last six games.

Terry McLaurin, WAS vs. ATL ($5,800): McLaurin has been more productive since Taylor Heinicke took over at quarterback. With Carson Wentz at the helm for the first six games of the season, McLaurin caught 22 passes for 367 yards and one touchdown. Over five games with Heinicke, he has 28 receptions for 425 yards and a touchdown. The Falcons have allowed the fourth-most passing yards per game in the league, potentially setting up McLaurin for another valuable stat line.

Player to Avoid

Allen Lazard, GB at PHI ($5,800): The Packers have certainly been trying to get Lazard involved, throwing him 25 targets over the last three games. The problem is, he only posted a modest 12 receptions for 189 yards and a touchdown. The Eagles have allowed just six touchdown receptions to wide receivers, so Lazard enters this matchup with limited upside.

Tight Ends

Travis Kelce, KC vs. LAR ($7,700): With injuries piling up at wide receiver, the Chiefs relied on their star tight end to dispatch the Chargers last week. He was targeted 10 times, finishing with six receptions, 115 yards and three touchdowns. He has recorded at least six receptions and 81 receiving yards in five straight games and has the highest floor of any tight end in the league.

Foster Moreau, LV at SEA ($3,400): The Seahawks have been torched by tight ends this season, allowing the second-most fantasy points per game to the position. Tight ends are averaging 14.9 yards per reception against them, and have caught five touchdown passes. Moreau is averaging 12.0 yards per reception this season, leaving him with a favorable chance to exploit this matchup.

Player to Avoid

Mark Andrews, BAL at JAX ($6,500): This is more about balancing your budget than anything else. With all of the injuries at tight end, it makes sense to either pay up for one of the top-tier options, or just punt this position with a player who has a really cheap salary. For those who don’t want to punt it, Kelce is a safer option than Andrews, who will be playing in his second game since dealing with a shoulder and a knee injury.

Mike Barner has been covering fantasy sports since 2007. His work has appeared in Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, SportsLine and RotoWire. Mike was also a finalist for the 2018 FSWA Basketball Writer of the Year award. Follow Mike on Twitter @rotomikebarner.

RealTime DFS Strategy: Week 12

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