Fantasy: Week 12 Rankings - Analysis

theScore's Justin Boone is currently ranked second in FantasyPros' Most Accurate Expert Competition and is the top-ranked pro over the last two seasons. Scroll down to see his rankings for Week 12. 

A final rankings update will be available on Sunday morning.

Quarterbacks

• The Colts will have to play the rest of the season without top running back Ahmad Bradshaw, which will impact the offense, but won't slow down Andrew Luck's impressive fantasy campaign. Bradshaw won't be missed when the Colts take on the Jaguars this week. Luck threw for 370 yards and four touchdowns in Jacksonville earlier this season. 

• Jay Cutler may not be playing great real life football (he's second in the league with 12 interceptions), yet Smokin' Jay really only has two bad fantasy outings this season. He can be frustrating to watch, and I worry about his matchups with the Lions in Weeks 13 and 16, but Cutler should be a solid start against the Buccaneers on Sunday. 

• Losing Brandin Cooks will hurt the Saints offense, however this week New Orleans faces a defense that has injury woes of its own. The Ravens secondary simply isn't the same without cornerback Jimmy Smith, and Drew Brees has more than enough weapons to take advantage in the Superdome. 

• Even in a fairly solid matchup, it's tough to trust Colin Kaepernick as a QB1. Kaepernick has been held under 20 fantasy points in eight of his 10 games this season, and isn't making enough plays with his legs to compensate for his lack of production through the air. 

• Tony Romo would be higher on the list if I didn't think the Cowboys were going to run at will on the Giants. Romo had a three-touchdown game against New York in Week 7, but I think the team will let DeMarco Murray and Joseph Randle do the heavy lifting this time around against a Jon Beason-less Giants defense. 

• Josh McCown would be even higher on the list if he wasn't still Josh McCown. Even with Mike Evans, Vincent Jackson, and Austin Seferian-Jenkins, McCown is still capable of disappointing against a Bears defense giving up the most fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. He's a borderline QB1 in fantasy this week. He has a very high ceiling, but an extremely low floor. 

• Other solid streaming options besides McCown include Joe Flacco, who may find himself in a shootout against a forgiving New Orleans secondary, or Eli Manning, who had three touchdowns in his last meeting with the Cowboys.

Running Backs

• Arian Foster is practicing, but the team is still calling him day-to-day. While official word may not come down until later in the week, the expectation at the moment is that he will play. If he does, he gets to take on a Bengals defense that has surrendered a rushing touchdown in nine of 10 games this season. If Foster doesn't suit up, Alfred Blue will be an excellent RB2, coming off his 156-yard performance last week.

• While LeSean McCoy isn't posting 200-yard games (those are reserved for Le'Veon Bell and, of course, Jonas Gray), he does have 85 or more total yards in seven outings this season. If he had managed to do a better job of finding the end zone, owners wouldn't be nearly as frustrated. As it is, McCoy has just two scores on the year and many of the fantasy teams that drafted him have likely traded him away. If you've held on, you will be rewarded with this week's matchup against a Titans team that gave up 204 yards to Bell on Monday night.

• Speaking of Gray, do not make the mistake of thinking he is a season-changer. Gray is the power back in the Patriots system, and as we all know, Bill Belichick loves to rotate his backs depending on the game plan. This week against the Lions' stout run defense, Gray won't find nearly as much room to maneuver. 

• Rashad Jennings is back and healthy. After emerging from last week's game without any setbacks, Jennings is poised to go on a run, starting with a matchup against the Cowboys this week. The Giants then face the Jaguars and Titans over the next two weeks. 

• When Montee Ball was sidelined, I preached my belief that C.J. Anderson was the most talent back on the Broncos' roster. Ronnie Hillman got the first crack at the job and performed well enough to keep Anderson on the bench. Now, Anderson is the last man standing in Denver's backfield with Ball re-injured and Hillman sidelined for an undetermined amount of time. Anderson has 278 total yards and a touchdown over the last two weeks and could make a major impact on fantasy leagues down the stretch. 

• Beware of Trent Richardson. With Bradshaw out, Richardson is the Colts clear lead back, but be warned that it could be a mirage, even if he has a big game in Week 12. Richardson has struggled since arriving in Indy and more touches won't solve the problem. Despite that, he could have his best game of the season this week in a friendly matchup with the Jaguars. 

• Much like Anderson, Isaiah Crowell has been the best back on the Browns' roster all season. Now, it looks like he's getting his chance to prove it. With Ben Tate off to Minnesota, Crowell will only need to split carries with Terrance West. Over the last two weeks, Crowell has begun to receive more snaps, and outside of a Week 13 date with the Bills, the Browns schedule is extremely favorable for running backs the rest of the way. 

• Giovani Bernard appears ready to return to action, but his role is unclear. Rookie Jeremy Hill has fared well as the team's starter and may have turned the Bengals backfield into a timeshare. Hill is ranked higher this week as an RB2, while Bernard is a low-end RB2, or even a Flex play since he could be eased back into the offense as the club tries to keep him healthy for the stretch run. 

Wide Receivers

• Brandon Marshall reaffirmed himself as a WR1 with 202 yards and three touchdowns over the last two weeks. There are tougher matchups on the horizon, but this week's battle with the Buccaneers sets up nicely for the veteran receiver. Tampa Bay has struggled to contain star receivers all season allowing over 100 yards or a touchdown to Julio Jones (twice), Antonio Brown, and Kelvin Benjamin. 

• Mike Evans has become a fantasy savior for many owners, averaging 152.7 yards per game with five touchdowns over the last three weeks. Evans should continue to post WR1 numbers this week versus the Bears, and can be considered a high-end WR2 the rest of the season.  

• If you held Josh Gordon on your roster this long, you have to play him on Sunday. There is no wait-and-see approach at this point. The team is talking about potentially limiting him in his first game back, but Gordon has WR1 ability, and it sounds like he can't wait to show the league what they've been missing for the last 11 weeks. If you're not starting him with confidence, you should have traded him away. 

• Jordan Matthews may not have the physical gifts of some of the other members of this rookie class, but he certainly has chemistry with Mark Sanchez. Matthews has put up back-to-back 100-yard games, adding three touchdowns in that time. The Eagles offense can make stars out of anyone in a given week. With another good matchup, Matthews remains a low-end WR2 versus the Titans. 

• With Allen Robinson out, Cecil Shorts and Allen Hurns become very intriguing plays for owners searching for a spark. Shorts is averaging 8.7 targets per game and has scored in three of his last four games against the Colts. Hurns already has two multi-touchdown games on the year. With increased snaps, he could deliver, especially in garbage time. 

• Kenny Stills and Marques Colston should see more targets with Cooks sidelined. Much like the Eagles offense, it's often difficult to predict which Saints receiver will deliver a big fantasy day. Brees will find the open man, and the younger Stills is more of a threat downfield, giving him an edge as a fantasy play this week. 

• Michael Floyd finally came on last week, scoring on both of his receptions, totalling 54 yards on the day. Larry Fitzgerald may miss Week 12, potentially resulting in more targets for Floyd. The bad news is that the Cardinals are on the road against the Seahawks' elite secondary, which allows the fewest fantasy points to wideouts. Drew Stanton isn't scared to throw downfield to Floyd, but this may not be the week you want to trust in that combo. 

Tight Ends

• Despite being knocked out of last week's game with an ankle injury, Julius Thomas appears to have a chance to play on Sunday. It's a situation that will need to be monitored all week. If he is ruled out, Jacob Tamme will move into the TE2 range. 

• Welcome to the TE1 conversation, Coby Fleener. The Colts tight end was the beneficiary of Dwayne Allen's ankle injury in Week 11. Taking over for Allen against a Patriots team that can't cover his position, Fleener caught seven passes for 144 yards. Allen will likely miss this week as well, giving Fleener another excellent matchup, this time versus the Jaguars. 

• In his last meeting with the division rival Cowboys, Larry Donnell caught seven passes for 90 yards, both season highs. There is nothing to suggest Donnell won't be able to post a similar stat line as the Cowboys continue to struggle with tight ends. Fire Donnell up as a TE1. 

• While the Broncos did well against the position last week, they are normally susceptible to tight ends. Enter Charles Clay, who can be hit-and-miss himself, but is set up nicely to be a low-end TE1 in Week 12.  

• Kyle Rudolph delivered all of zero fantasy points in his return to action last week, playing only 14 snaps. Until we see his usage increase, he should be on your bench. Marcedes Lewis is the latest tight end coming back from injury, and owners may want to learn from the Rudolph situation and exercise caution.

• Jordan Reed is dealing with a hamstring injury which may keep him out Sunday versus the 49ers. Niles Paul performed well in Reed's absence earlier in the season and would have TE1 upside if Reed misses the game. 

Defense/Special Teams

Kickers