NFL Weekly Grind Down: Week 12 - Page 3

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Chicago at St. Louis

Chicago Bears St. Louis Rams
Bears Rams
Sun – 1:00PM ET Edward Jones Dome
Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts
0 45.5 22.75 0 45.5 22.75
Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush
Offense 28.2 3 10 18 Offense 22.4 19 21 22
Defense 26.7 26 17 31 Defense 23.4 14 14 18
Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE
St. Louis 12 30 16 2 Chicago 10 25 13 24
Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1 Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1
Marshall 103 10.3 11.7 10.0 Givens 57 5.7 6.0
Jeffery 96 9.5 12.7 11.0 Austin 54 4.7 2.5
Bennett 23 2.0 1.3 1.0 Pettis 49 4.9 2.0
Bennett 64 6.3 5.3 2.0 Cook 56 5.8 4.0

Chicago Bears

It’ll be another week of the McCown project for the Bears as they head to St. Louis to take on a team coming off a dominant win over the Colts followed by a bye week. McCown played his 2nd full game as the Bears starter and struggled a bit against Baltimore, totaling just 216 yards and 1 TD. This week he should be able to take advantage of some better weather conditions (in the dome), and move the ball a little more efficiently. In his two full starts, McCown has targeted Alshon Jeffery 20 total times, Marshall 23 times, Bennett 10 times, and Forte 14 times. His biggest concern on Sunday will be a STL pass rush averaging 3.2 sacks per game on the season and a league high 4.7 sacks over the last 3 games. William Hayes, Chris Long and most notably Robert Quinn all rank in the Top-15 in ProFootballFocus’s pass rush ratings for D-Linemen in the 4-3 set. This could spell bad news for a Bears pass blocking unit that ranks 2nd to last in the NFL on PFF.

The Rams rush defense is a bit bipolar, but the overall theme seems to be struggling against top-end backs. DeMarco Murray, Frank Gore, Arian Foster, and Chris Johnson have all gone for 140+ yards against STL this season. The only big name back to really struggle was Marshawn Lynch who only saw 8 touches in his Week 8 game against the Rams. Matt Forte has definitely proven he’s in the class of the big name running backs this season. He’s averaging 4.4 yards per carry, 2.2 yards after contact and perhaps most surprising of all, he’s found the end zone 7 times as the Bears new coaching staff seems willing to get Forte involved in the red zone.

St. Louis Rams

For the Rams, their biggest story before the bye was the huge game from Tavon Austin. He had just two catches, but he made them count, going for 138 yards and 2 TDs (plus a return TD). But there’s a common struggle in daily fantasy when it comes to predicting the big game and chasing the big game. In the case of Austin, you may be chasing the big game. He was targeted just 3 times and while he proved he still has that big play upside he displayed at WVU, you can’t rely on three opportunities each game with Kellen Clemens throwing to you. Speaking of Clemens, he has an ESPN QBR of just 36 and his inability to move the ball downfield drags STL’s offense down and guys like Jared Cook and Chris Givens have struggled because of it.

On the ground, it’s a different story as Zac Stacy has run away with the starting job and he’s posted 224 rush yards and 3 TDs over the Rams last 3 games. His matchup against Chicago this weak is about as good as it gets too. Chicago has allowed 6 different 100+ yard rushers on the season, and at least 95 yards to an opposing RB in each of their last 5 games. In that 5 game span, they’ve also allowed 6 rushing touchdowns and rejuvenated the careers of both Brandon Jacobs and Ray Rice. Stacy is athletic enough to torch the rush defense that has the worst rating in the NFL according to PFF and should be in line for a huge day.

Fantasy Relevant

Indianapolis at Arizona

Indianapolis Colts Arizona Cardinals
Colts Cardinals
Sun – 4:05PM ET Univ. of Phoenix Stadium
Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts
1 45 22 -1 45 23
Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush
Offense 25.2 9 17 14 Offense 21.4 22 15 25
Defense 22.0 10 16 28 Defense 21.2 8 20 2
Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE
Arizona 14 3 7 32 Indianapolis 13 4 22 10
Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1 Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1
Hilton 83 8.0 9.7 9.0 Fitzgerald 80 7.9 7.5 9.0
Whalen 20 3.3 5.7 3.0 Floyd 68 6.9 6.5 11.0
Heyward-Bey 48 5.0 5.0 3.0 Roberts 50 5.0 6.0 4.0
Fleener 58 5.5 8.3 10.0 Housler 34 4.3 7.0 9.0

Indianapolis Colts

The Colts head to Arizona with some extra rest following their 30-27 TNF victory over the Titans. Their offense has had it’s ups and downs since Reggie Wayne went down, but both T.Y. Hilton and Coby Fleener have done their best to fill in. Hilton was dominant the first two weeks without Wayne, totaling 251 yards and 3 TDs. But in Week 11 he struggled against one of the best secondaries in the NFL in TEN, catching just 5 balls for 44 yards. This week he’ll likely be shadowed by Patrick Peterson, who ranks 15th in coverage ratings on PFF. With Hilton struggling, Luck’s college buddy Coby Fleener stepped in with his best game of the season. He caught 8 balls for 107 yards. Tight Ends in general have had a ton of success against Arizona, which is great news for Fleener. Things didn’t get better for ARI against the TE position last week when no-name Danny Noble caught an 62 yard TD bomb for Jacksonville. Still, outside of that one lapse they have been better over the past 4 weeks. No tight end, including Tony Gonzalez and Garrett Graham, has posted over 40 yards receiving in that span if you throw out the Noble TD.

Indy’s rushing attack is a disaster and there was a small flicker of hope for clarity when Trent Richardson name popped up on a Thursday injury report. It looks like it’s minor though, which is great for Trent and terrible for daily fantasy. Donald Brown has been really strong in limited snaps with Richardson, but the matchup this week overall could be their biggest challenge. Arizona ranks 8th on PFF’s run-stop ratings and has allowed only 1 back to go for over 100 yards against them this season. They had some early issues with backs catching the ball out of the backfield, but since Week 4 have allowed no more than 30 yards receiving to any running back.

Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals took down the not-so-feisty Jaguars last weekend and are now in the thick of the NFC Wild Card race. They’re a surprising 6-4 despite a head coach that absolutely refuses to use their most talented running back. Last week I broke down the disparity between Mendenhall and Ellington, but at this point the argument is becoming futile. That rushing game on a whole is a mystery and even though their matchup against the Colts is above-average, it’s just not worth rolling the dice on that situation until it’s more clear. If you do want to take a chance, Ellington is the best bet and should have a slightly easier matchup as the Colts will be missing one of their every-down linebackers in Erik Walden, who was suspended for a headbutt in Week 11.

Much like the Colts, Arizona’s daily fantasy value will come through the air this week. The Colts were gashed by Kendall Wright and Delanie Walker in Week 11 and have now allowed some pretty gaudy stat lines to opposing wideouts over the past five weeks:

That’s at least 15 fantasy points to 7 different wideouts over a five game span (full-point PPR). That leaves Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd in a great situation, and both saw 9+ targets from Carson Palmer a week ago. The other notable option in Arizona’s passing game has emerged out of nowhere in recent weeks. Rob Housler had been injured in the early part of the year, then had a 6 week stretch where he was irrelevant in 5 of 6 games. Now in the last two games, he’s posted 10 catches for 122 yards and a TD on 14 targets. 9 of those targets came last week and Palmer seems to be incorporating him more in the offense. He’ll face a Colts defense that has been a mixed bag against tight ends, but is coming off allowing a 10 catch, 91 yard and 1 TD performance to Delanie Walker and will be without one of their linebackers Erik Walden, as referenced above.

Fantasy Relevant

Tennessee at Oakland

Tennessee Titans Oakland Raiders
Titans Raiders
Sun – 4:05PM ET O.co Coliseum
Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts
1 41.5 20.25 -1 41.5 21.25
Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush
Offense 22.7 18 23 15 Offense 19.4 26 31 4
Defense 22.6 13 7 20 Defense 24.6 20 25 6
Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE
Oakland 22 15 27 16 Tennessee 4 27 1 25
Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1 Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1
Wright 84 8.4 8.7 12.0 Moore 74 7.4 8.7 6.0
Washington 64 6.4 4.0 3.0 Ford 16 1.6 2.0 1.0
Hunter 19 2.1 3.3 1.0 Streater 53 5.3 6.0 8.0
Walker 54 5.4 6.7 10.0 Rivera 35 3.5 4.3 6.0

Tennessee Titans

In a matchup between two 4-6 teams, the Titans will hit the road and try to bounce back from their second straight loss to a divisional opponent. Ryan Fitzpatrick will try to right some of the Titans issues and while he has yet to play the majority of a game AND get the win, he has been food for thought for fantasy owners. He also brings a different approach to this offense, which has lead to some players emerging and others disappearing. His style lends itself to throwing short, quick passes, which has benefited the likes of Delanie Walker and Kendall Wright. Here’s a look at Fitzpatrick’s target breakdown in his 4 full games played this year:

PLAYER – Wk5, Wk6, Wk10, Wk11, AVG

He’s been all over Kendall Wright and Delanie Walker. Wright has posted no less than 9.5 FP in each of those four games and Walker has a TD and at least 60 yards receiving in each of his last 2 games with Fitz at the helm. These guys should be open against the Raiders too, as the Oakland secondary allowed their 4th 300+ yard passing game (albeit with 2 QBs combined), in Week 11. The Raiders rank 23rd in PFF’s pass coverage ratings and have been torn apart by worse quarterbacks than Fitzpatrick.

On the ground, it’s a split between Johnson and Greene where Greene is getting the critical deep red zone touches and Johnson seems to see touches between the 10s. That didn’t matter to Johnson’s value in Week 11 though, as he was able to find pay dirt on 2 different occasions. Oakland’s front seven was once one of the stronger in the NFL, but they’ve now allowed Andre Brown to go for 115 yards and Ben Tate to run for 88 yards in back to back weeks.

Oakland Raiders

McGloin will draw another start on Sunday but could be in for a long day against this Titans secondary that locked down T.Y. Hilton in Week 11 and has two of the best coverage guys in all of football with Alterraun Verner and Jason McCourty. The matchup may be even better for the Titans with Denarius Moore listed as questionable and a fair amount of uncertainty for Sunday surrounding his status. Regardless, McGloin will have to use his tight end more often, as Tennessee is much more vulnerable with their linebackers in coverage than they are on the outside. Luckily for McGloin, that’s something he showed he liked to do much more than Pryor ever did. Mychal Rivera was targeted 6 times and caught 5 balls for 54 yards with McGloin on the field last week. The Titans haven’t allowed a WR to hit 100+ yards since Week 2 vs. DeAndre Hopkins but they did just let Coby Fleener go for 100+ in Week 11.

In the running game, Darren McFadden will likely sit again meaning big things for Rashad Jennings. Jennings has been superb even with McFadden on the field this season and now has a start against one of the worst rush defenses in the NFL. Donald Brown managed 80 yards on just 14 carries against them last week and they’ve allowed an opponent RB to score a TD in each of their last 5 games including multi-TDs in 4 of those 5. Jennings, who is a threat in both the passing and rushing game, should see a heavy dose of touches in a game that should be close throughout.

TEN @ OAK – Daily Fantasy Relevant

Dallas at NY Giants

Dallas Cowboys New York Giants
Cowboys Giants
Sun – 4:25PM ET MetLife Stadium
Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts Vegas Odds Sprd Total Proj.Pts
2.5 47 22.25 -2.5 47 24.75
Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush Tm Stats PPG Scoring Pass Rush
Offense 27.4 5 13 28 Offense 19.2 28 14 28
Defense 25.8 25 32 29 Defense 25.6 24 15 7
Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE Opp. Def vs. Pos QB RB WR TE
NY Giants 19 10 14 21 Dallas 32 32 23 29
Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1 Rec. Targets Total Seas Last3 Last1
Bryant 90 8.9 6.5 Cruz 98 9.8 10.5 11.0
Williams 50 5.0 6.0 Nicks 77 7.6 4.5 5.0
Beasley 37 4.5 6.5 Randle 53 5.1 3.0 3.0
Witten 72 7.2 8.0 Myers 41 4.3 2.0 4.0

Dallas Cowboys

The storyline of this NFC East Battle will be the same as it has been for the past few years. Romo vs. Eli. Over the last 3 years, that battle has lead to some exciting fantasy outputs for the two. In fact, one of the two QBs has posted 20 or more fantasy points in each of their last 5 games against each other:

romo%20vs.%20eli

Since we’re in the Cowboys section, we’ll break down Romo first. In those 5 games he’s averaged 22.42 FPPG to go with 323 passing yards, 2.4 TDs and 1.4 INTs (although 4 came in one game in 2012). While the Cowboys are just 2-3 in those 5 contests, Romo has certainly held up his end of the bargain. His top wideout, Dez Bryant, has not fared quite as well vs. the G-men. He’s admitted he doesn’t like being touched and NY does a good job of pissing him off. In those 5 games, he’s averaging just 4 catches for 67 yards and has only 1 TD. That 1 score came in the Week 1 matchup between these two teams on Bryant’s only catch; a 50-yard bomb. Jason Witten has fared a little better, averaging 7.6 receptions and nearly 70 yards with 2 scores in those 5 games. But much of that total came in his remarkable 18 reception game last season. For the most part, it has been the unknowns who step up and have huge games. The Cole Beasley, Dwayne Harris types.

As far as the current matchup goes, the Giants have forced at least one INT in each of their last four games and haven’t allowed a passing touchdown in that span. Scott Tolzien tore them up in terms of yardage, with 339 passing yards, but turned it over 3 times and failed to throw for a score. None of the three teams prior to Green Bay even reached 200 passing yards. They’ve been much improved thanks to the leadership of the recently acquired Jon Beason and are allowing under 12 points per game in that 4-week span.

New York Giants

The Giants draw a Cowboys team coming off a bye week after getting slaughtered by the Saints in New Orleans. Their defense showed signs of weakness at every possible angle and when Sean Lee went down it only got worse. Lee is expected to be out again this weekend, meaning Dallas will be without the 6th best linebacker in the NFL according to PFF’s LB ratings. That should mean big things for Andre Brown, who has seen 53 touches in two games since returning from injury. In Week 10, New Orleans backs accounted for three of the top-5 fantasy scores while combining for 244 rush yards, 3 rush TD, 16 receptions, 115 receiving yards and 2 receiving TDs. The only good news for Dallas is that the bye week should have given DeMarcus Ware some time to rest and he might be the healthiest he’s been since picking off Eli in Week 1.

Speaking of Eli, his numbers have been slightly less than Romo’s in their matchups but still impressive. He’s averaging 320 passing yards, 2 TD and 1 INT in those 5 games to total just over 20 fantasy points per game. Lately, Eli has turned into a better game manager but his stats have suffered. He’s also had interceptions in each of his past two games, but while the Giants are winning those are going to be overlooked. But you can’t look past the Week 1 450-yard game he had vs. Dallas in a losing effort and 5 games the Cowboys have had where the opposing QB threw for 390 yards or more this season and not love Eli in tournaments.

A last important injury note to watch for, Hakeem Nicks is expected to play but listed as questionable. If he sits, look for Reuben Randle to be a tremendous value option.

DAL @ NYG – Daily Fantasy Relevant


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