Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins showed once again why he’s a top-tier option in fantasy football on a weekly basis.
Despite squaring off against the New York Jets defense, Hopkins still hauled in the most fantasy points among wide receivers in week 11. We’ll have more on him later.
The top of the leaderboard in week 11 was dominated by lesser-known names, other than Hopkins and Julio Jones. Wide receivers such as J.J. Nelson, James Jones, Tyler Lockett, Terrance Williams and Cecil Shorts were in the top-10 for points, showing once again that receivers can be found if you are willing to take a few lumps here and there on the waiver wire.
Here’s our week 12 start ’em, sit ’em guide for wide receivers in fantasy football.
Daily fantasy start of the week
DeAndre Hopkins vs. New Orleans Saints
If you want the best opportunity to score points at the wide receiver position, then Hopkins is your man.
The only issue with this pick is that likely every other DFS player will take Hopkins as their choice. But if he’s going to have the kind of day that we believe he will have against the Saints, then he’s the only option at receiver in DFS.
New Orleans allows 293 yards per game, second-worst in the NFL, and also has allowed 28 passing touchdowns, seven more than any other team in the NFL.
Despite the uncertainty at the quarterback position for the Texans, Hopkins still continues to gather double-digit targets. That will continue this week.
Start
Donte Moncrief vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Call it a hunch, but we believe Moncrief will come out of the recent fantasy slump he’s encountered.
With Matt Hasselbeck at the helm, Moncrief hasn’t had much success. In fact, it’s been since week 7 when he grabbed a touchdown pass, and since that time, he hasn’t generated much of anything in fantasy football.
But we were encouraged last week with a strong effort against the Atlanta Falcons defense.
Moncrief led all Colts receivers with eight targets and garnered 41 yards receiving. If he can continue to see targets from Hasselbeck, he will put up fantasy numbers. That should happen against Tampa Bay, which has given up the second-most passing touchdowns at 21.
Although we don’t believe the Colts will generate much with the running game, they should be able to pass on Tampa Bay, which allows more than 240 yards per game. Go with our hunch and trust Moncrief.
DeSean Jackson at New York Giants
We went against Jackson last week after waiting for him to produce in the previous two weeks. That was a bad move on our part as he turned in 87 yards receiving and one touchdown against a stingy Carolina defense.
Most of his production came on one play, but we liked that he received eight targets. That should go a long way against the New York Giants, which own the worst pass defense in the NFL.
Teams are averaging more than 300 yards passing against the Giants, and despite looking inept last week, the Redskins should bounce back against New York. Washington has been a completely difference team at home than on the road, so we’re expecting plenty of passing yards in this home contest against the Giants.
Daily fantasy sit of the week
Antonio Brown vs. Seattle Seahawks
We’ve been pretty impressed with Brown as of late.
Before the bye week for the Steelers, he was on a tear that very few wide receivers in history could duplicate. He earned 284 and 139 yards receiving in consecutive weeks, making Brown’s fantasy owners very happy in the last few weeks.
However, this week, the Seahawks should pose a problem for Brown and the Steelers. This isn’t the same defense that has dominated the opposition as in the past, but it’s still one of the best passing defenses in the NFL.
Seattle allows the second-fewest passing yards per game and has allowed only 10 passing touchdowns this season. That’s also the second-fewest in the NFL this season.
Don’t blindly take Brown this week in DFS.
Sit
Terrance Williams vs. Carolina Panthers
Tony Romo’s return was a welcomed sight for Williams, who broke out of a slump with 13.90 fantasy points last week.
That’s the first time he’s been in double digits since week 4. And against the Panthers, we don’t believe he will have much room to catch many balls, no matter who the quarterback is for the Cowboys.
Carolina is a top-10 defense against the pass, and even last week when it struggled for a quarter, it put the clamps down on the Redskins for the final three stanzas.
Williams is a deep-ball threat and his value is completely determined on having big gains and touchdowns. That’s not always a good sign for fantasy owners.
He doesn’t garner the volume needed to be a consistent starter in fantasy football, so don’t be fooled by his output last week. Grab some turkey on Thanksgiving, and stay away from Williams.
Mike Wallace vs. Atlanta Falcons
This doesn’t have much to do with Atlanta, especially considering the Falcons have been a dumpster fire lately on defense.
This move has everything to do with Wallace’s role in the Viking’s offense. He’s non-existent.
He was targeted just twice in last week’s loss to Green Bay. He netted only six yards on one carry, giving him another week where’s barely registered a blip on the fantasy radar.
That will continue again this week. He has only one touchdown this season and has reached double-digits in fantasy only once. He used to be a tough play anyway in fantasy because his value is tied to his deep-ball dependency.
However, now his value is even less, since he’s disappeared from the offensive gameplan. Go ahead and sit Wallace until you see him net a decent number of targets.
