Andrew Garda
Moderator
As we ramble into Week 13 of the NFL season, we’re down about ten fantasy starters including about six running backs. The ranks of potential fantasy studs have been thinned badly, and so the variations for your lineups are going to be a little bit unique.
Luckily, cash games don’t require a high variation in lineups. Even though you want the best lineup possible, unlike GPPs, which need a little more uniqueness to really cash out.
Subscribers can see all the staff picks subscribers can head here. I’ve gathered some of the staff picks so everyone can get a peek into what we’re all thinking.
Staff Trends
Matt Hasselbeck
Hasselbeck is a solid option which won’t cost you much at $5900, and has a few key weapons in the form of Donte Moncrief and T.Y. Hilton. [SIZE=10pt]According to Footballguys’ Passing Matchups, the Steelers' pass D has allowed an average of 30.8 points per game to opposing quarterbacks over the past four weeks[/SIZE] and if you look at what quarterbacks have done over the course of the season, allowing an average of 298 passing yards per game and average two touchdowns allowed a week. Hasselbeck isn’t a Hall of Famer, but he’s got the offense working pretty well so he’s a good option to help save money at a position.
[SIZE=10pt]DeAngelo Williams[/SIZE]
On the other side of the Pittsburgh-Indianapolis battle is Williams who, even at $7500, seems like a good bet for production. While the Colts aren’t the automatic-double-digit producers for opposing running backs from a few years back, they still allow a ton and the average for starting backs works out to just over 14 fantasy points a game over the last four weeks. Williams will get plenty of chances to run, so he’s definitely a guy worth having on your roster.
Glaring Omissions
Williams is the closest thing to a “stud” running back in anyone’s lineups. No Adrian Peterson, no Todd Gurley (I guess for a rookie, the jury is really still out for the term stud), No Devonta Freeman – which should tell you people see more value in the “lower” tier backs this week.
Diamonds in the Rough
David Johnson (the Cardinals running back not the Chargers tight end) is all over the lineups and seems a good value at $6300 since he will get the start against St. Louis and all the carries. If the Cardinals get out ahead early, he might really see a high volume of carries.
Kamar Aiken ($5200), Doug Baldwin ($4100) and Brian Hartline ($2000) all made appearances as well. Each has a bit of risk to them, but Hartline seems to have a nice connection with Austin Davis, Aiken is kind of the last man standing in Baltimore and Matt Schaub looked for him last week while Baldwin had a huge game last week. Of the three I like Hartline the most for price though his matchup is tough and I like Aiken the least because I dislike the offense, the matchup and the tendency for Baltimore to use their tight ends.
Luckily, cash games don’t require a high variation in lineups. Even though you want the best lineup possible, unlike GPPs, which need a little more uniqueness to really cash out.
Subscribers can see all the staff picks subscribers can head here. I’ve gathered some of the staff picks so everyone can get a peek into what we’re all thinking.
Staff Trends
Matt Hasselbeck
Hasselbeck is a solid option which won’t cost you much at $5900, and has a few key weapons in the form of Donte Moncrief and T.Y. Hilton. [SIZE=10pt]According to Footballguys’ Passing Matchups, the Steelers' pass D has allowed an average of 30.8 points per game to opposing quarterbacks over the past four weeks[/SIZE] and if you look at what quarterbacks have done over the course of the season, allowing an average of 298 passing yards per game and average two touchdowns allowed a week. Hasselbeck isn’t a Hall of Famer, but he’s got the offense working pretty well so he’s a good option to help save money at a position.
[SIZE=10pt]DeAngelo Williams[/SIZE]
On the other side of the Pittsburgh-Indianapolis battle is Williams who, even at $7500, seems like a good bet for production. While the Colts aren’t the automatic-double-digit producers for opposing running backs from a few years back, they still allow a ton and the average for starting backs works out to just over 14 fantasy points a game over the last four weeks. Williams will get plenty of chances to run, so he’s definitely a guy worth having on your roster.
Glaring Omissions
Williams is the closest thing to a “stud” running back in anyone’s lineups. No Adrian Peterson, no Todd Gurley (I guess for a rookie, the jury is really still out for the term stud), No Devonta Freeman – which should tell you people see more value in the “lower” tier backs this week.
Diamonds in the Rough
David Johnson (the Cardinals running back not the Chargers tight end) is all over the lineups and seems a good value at $6300 since he will get the start against St. Louis and all the carries. If the Cardinals get out ahead early, he might really see a high volume of carries.
Kamar Aiken ($5200), Doug Baldwin ($4100) and Brian Hartline ($2000) all made appearances as well. Each has a bit of risk to them, but Hartline seems to have a nice connection with Austin Davis, Aiken is kind of the last man standing in Baltimore and Matt Schaub looked for him last week while Baldwin had a huge game last week. Of the three I like Hartline the most for price though his matchup is tough and I like Aiken the least because I dislike the offense, the matchup and the tendency for Baltimore to use their tight ends.
