Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 12: Quarterbacks - Sleepers, Fades, Matchups, DFS Bargains

Start 'em and sit 'em quarterbacks for Week 12 from senior fantasy football expert Michael Fabiano.

Week 12 Start ‘Em: Quarterbacks

Byes: None

Start of the Week

Taysom Hill at Broncos (4:05 p.m. ET, FOX): Hill, a jack of all trades, drew the start last week and had two rushing touchdowns and more than 24 fantasy points in a win over the Falcons. Next up is a date with the Broncos, who have struggled to stop quarterbacks. Their defense has allowed 18-plus fantasy points to the position seven times, including four games with over 20 points (one of which was Sam Darnold)! Look for Hill to post another nice stat line this week.

Week 12 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em

• QUARTERBACKS
• RUNNING BACKS
• WIDE RECEIVERS
• TIGHT ENDS
• KICKERS
• TEAM DEFENSES

Be sure to check out my Week 12 rankings (published by Thursday morning) before finalizing any lineup decisions or if your league has special scoring rules, sign up for SI Fantasy+ for customized rankings. Members also get access to myself and our team of high-stakes winners all week long to answer your specific fantasy questions.

MORE: Week 12 Rankings, Articles, Reports & Tools Hub

Start ‘Em

Tom Brady vs. Chiefs (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS): Brady’s numbers have been up and down for most of the season, but he’s a virtual must-start in what should be a real shootout against the Chiefs. Their defense has allowed just 17.1 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, but that stat is a bit deceiving. The position has still put up 20-plus points five different times, including two such performances from Derek Carr. Look for Brady to produce a top-10 stat line this weekend.

Cam Newton vs. Cardinals (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Newton’s fantasy future looked bleak a few weeks ago, but he’s bounced back nicely to average nearly 20 points per game since Week 8. He’s rushed for four touchdowns in that time and now has nine on the season. That’s huge for fantasy fans, and it should continue when Superman faces the Cardinals. Their defense has allowed an average of nearly 20 points per game and the third-most rushing yards to opposing quarterbacks.

Derek Carr at Falcons (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Carr threw for three touchdowns and had more than 20 fantasy points in last week’s loss to the Chiefs, and I’m looking for him to stuff the stat sheet in Atlanta. Their defense has been brutal against the quarterback position, allowing a league-high 25.9 fantasy points per game. What’s more, four different field generals have scored 29-plus points against the Falcons. That makes Carr quite an attractive streamer for fantasy fans in need.

Teddy Bridgewater at Vikings (1 p.m. ET, FOX): Bridgewater is expected to be back under center for the Panthers this week, and he's in a good spot to succeed in multi-quarterback leagues against the Vikings. Their defense has struggled against the pass,  allowing 19-plus fantasy points to six quarterbacks including four with more than 22 points. That includes a 19-point performance to the very mediocre Andy Dalton just last week. Look for Bridgewater to post a nice total.

More Starts

• Justin Herbert at Bills (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• Ryan Fitzpatrick at Jets (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• Daniel Jones at Bengals (1 p.m. ET, FOX)

DFS Bargains

• Derek Carr at Falcons (DraftKings: $5,700)
• Ryan Fitzpatrick at Jets (DraftKings: $5,500)
• Daniel Jones at Bengals (DraftKings: $5,500)

Week 12 Sit ‘Em: Quarterbacks

Sit of the Week

Carson Wentz vs. Seahawks (MNF 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN): Wentz has seen his numbers tank in recent weeks, as he’s failed to score 15 fantasy points in a game since Week 7. He’s turning the ball over too much (14 interceptions), making it tough to trust him even against the softest of defenses. That’s the case this week, as Wentz faces a Seahawks team that’s been gashed by quarterbacks. Unless you’re in a multi-quarterback league, Wentz needs to be sidelined once again.

Sit ‘Em

Ryan Tannehill at Colts (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Tannehill rebounded for fantasy fans last week, scoring 21.9 fantasy points despite a tough matchup in Baltimore. He’ll draw another tough assignment this week, the Colts, who held Tannehill to a mere 10.8 fantasy points just two weeks ago. Overall, Indianapolis has held opposing quarterbacks to fewer than 13 points in games at Lucas Oil Stadium. In fact, only Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson have had success there in 2020.

Jared Goff vs. 49ers (4:05 p.m. ET, FOX): Goff has been tough for fantasy fans to trust for most of the last month, scoring fewer than 17 fantasy points in four of his last five games. That includes a 14.9-point stinker against this week’s opponent, the 49ers. Their defense has allowed 18.2 fantasy points a game to quarterbacks, which is a modest stat line for most at the position. Goff has also scored fewer than 17 points in three of his last four games against the Niners.

Kirk Cousins vs. Panthers (1 p.m. ET, FOX): Cousins has been solid in recent weeks, scoring 17-plus points in three straight games, including two with 20-plus. Still, I’m worried that the game script could keep his completion totals down this week. Carolina has one of the worst run defenses in the league, so Dalvin Cook should smash in the stat sheets. The Panthers have also allowed fewer than 18 fantasy points per game to quarterbacks, so Cousins comes with some risk.

Baker Mayfield at Jaguars (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Mayfield has a great matchup this week in Jacksonville, but can you trust him? He has failed to score more than 16 points in all but one game, and two of his “best” games came against the Bengals. The Browns are a big run-based team, so Mayfield will hand the ball off to Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt a ton. What’s more, the Jaguars defense has held two of the last three visiting quarterbacks to fewer than 17 fantasy points.

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More Sits

• Philip Rivers vs. Titans (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
• Robert Griffin III at Steelers (1:15 p.m. ET, NBC)
• Sam Darnold vs. Dolphins (1 p.m. ET, CBS)

DFS Fades

• Philip Rivers vs. Titans (DraftKings: $6,100)
• Jared Goff vs. 49ers (DraftKings: $6,000)
• Ryan Tannehill at Colts (DraftKings: $5,800)

Michael Fabiano is an award-winning fantasy football analyst on Sports Illustrated and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) Hall of Fame. You can follow Michael on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram for all of the latest breaking fantasy football news and the best analysis in the business!

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