Box scores never tell the whole story, so which fantasy options are rising and falling heading into Week 13? If you want to completely dominate your league, consider Fantasy Consigliere for premium analytics and next-level advice for all your leagues, all year long.
Quarterback
Stock up: Philip Rivers, LAC
Playing arguably the best football of his Hall-of-Fame-worthy career, Philip Rivers just completed a single-game NFL record 96.6% of his passes for 259 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-10 victory over the Cardinals, and for the season, he’s now on pace for a career-best 38:9 touchdown-interception ratio. Rivers surprisingly hasn’t had more than 20 fantasy points in a game since Week 5, but he has monster upside down the stretch with Melvin Gordon (knee) unfortunately week-to-week, which could lead to more volume to compliment an excellent floor.
Stock up: Baker Mayfield, CLE
We should keep in mind that Kansas City, Atlanta, and Cincinnati have three of the worst pass defenses in the league, but Baker Mayfield has been phenomenal since Hue Jackson was fired, completing 73.9% of his passes for 257.0 yards per game and a 9:1 touchdown-interception ratio over the past three games (2-1 record). And confidence for the No. 1 overall pick certainly isn’t lacking anymore after he looked hesitant before this hot streak, so Mayfield should be a strong QB2 in the good matchups to close out the year (Week 13: @ HOU, Week 14: v CAR, and Week 16: v CIN).
Running Back
Stock up: Kenyan Drake, MIA
Averaging just 8.1 carries per game this season, Kenyan Drake might be the key for Miami to turn things around and stay in the playoff race with five weeks to go. In eight games with double-digit touches, Drake is averaging 13.1 standard fantasy points per game, and in three games with less than ten touches, he is averaging just 2.0 standard fantasy points per game. If the former third-round pick is featured—whether that’s as a runner, receiver, or both—he will do damage as pay dividends for fantasy owners.
Stock up: Justin Jackson, LAC
Austin Ekeler is deservedly being viewed as an RB2 until Melvin Gordon returns, but I wouldn’t sleep on Justin Jackson providing FLEX value for at least the next couple weeks. The Northwestern product rushed seven times for 57 yards in Sunday’s win over the Cardinals, and he might handle 12-15 weekly touches to keep Ekeler from being overused, particularly on inside runs. Jackson is worth adding in all formats before we see see how Los Angeles splits the backfield on Sunday night.
Stock up: Ty Montgomery, BAL
Injuries caused him to fall out of favor in Green Bay, but Ty Montgomery is a career-4.9-yards-per-carry runner, and he looked good last week for Baltimore, rushing eight times for 51 yards as a change-of-pace option to Gus Edwards. I’m not sure how much redraft value the converted receiver will provide in 2018, but the Ravens might suddenly have their one-two punch of the future, and I would buy Montgomery in dynasty formats with his value at an all-time low.
Stock down: James White, NE
He is coming off his most productive day as a runner this year (nine carries for 73 yards), but James White had just one reception against the Jets last week, and a fully healthy skill-position group will impact his production the rest of the way. Besides Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski, Josh Gordon, and Sony Michel finally all being on the field together for an extended period of time, Rex Burkhead will also make his return to join White and Michel in the backfield; consistent RB2 value (standard leagues) and RB1 value (PPR leagues) will likely be difficult to come by.
Wide Receiver
Stock up: Amari Cooper, DAL
If the trade deadline wasn’t passed, now would be an interesting time to take offers for Amari Cooper in dynasty leagues after everyone saw him go off for an 8/180/2 line on Thanksgiving. That said, holding onto the former No. 4 overall pick might not be a bad idea, as he’s shown great chemistry with Dak Prescott, and a case could be made for Cooper trending back towards the WR1 ranks in 2019 and beyond.
Stock up: D.J. Moore, CAR
A banged-up receiving corps has allowed D.J. Moore to emerge as the team’s No. 1 wideout, and besides Christian McCaffrey (608 yards), the rookie leads the team in receiving with 565 yards. Over the past two games, Moore has gone for lines of 7/157/1 and 8/91, and he gets all favorable matchups this week and into the fantasy playoffs (@ TB, @ CLE, v NO, v ATL, @ NO). I wouldn’t be surprised to see Carolina’s first-round pick end up as one of the top fantasy wide receivers in December.
Stock down: Alshon Jeffery, PHI
Since the Eagles acquired Golden Tate at the trade deadline, Alshon Jeffery is averaging just 40.0 receiving yards per game with no touchdowns, and it’s due to Carson Wentz no longer locking onto the big-bodied receiver. In his first four games this season, Jeffery saw 39 targets, but over the past four games, he’s been targeted just 21 times—or a whopping 41.0% decrease. Alshon should have a big game or two as Philly competes for a playoff spot, but his upside and floor have both taken a huge hit.
Stock down: Marquez Valdes-Scantling, GB
I never brought into Marquez Valdes-Scantling taking over as the team’s No. 2 receiver ahead of Randall Cobb if/when everyone gets healthy, but the rookie’s decline has been merciless for those relying on him over the past two weeks, as MVS caught just two passes for 11 scoreless yards against the Seahawks and Vikings. Valdes-Scantling is probably droppable in all redraft formats at this point, and I would rather have Equanimeous St. Brown in dynasty leagues.