Fantasy Football Week 12 Sit Em, Start Em: All Eyes On Mario Manningham
WR Start: Mario Manningham, New York Giants
The Giants wide receiver position has been ravaged by injuries. With Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith out, Manningham will get a major boost in targets, and defensive attention.
Even with a full compliment of wideouts Manningham received 55 targets, and his rapport with Manning continues to augment week by week.
He has developed into a dynamic, big-play weapon with a 25+yard reception in seven of the eight games he's played.
After a ten-reception performance in week ten (16 targets), Manningham was targeted only three times last week. He should see a bounce back in activity against Jacksonville's putrid 28th ranked pass defense that's allowed 67 percent completions and 20 touchdowns through the air.
He's been presented with a golden opportunity to be "the man", and judging by his clutch ability, he will respond admirably.
WR Sit: Pierre Garcon, Indianapolis Colts
After exploding onto the scene in 2009-2010, Garcon has reverted back to raw form. He's second in the league in dropped passes, and appears to have lost confidence in his skills.
Even with Dallas Clark out (and Austin Collie missing time), Garcon is still seeing a decrease in traffic his direction (70 targets). Quite simply, Manning doesn't trust him.
He's capable of the spectacular, but those moments have been few and far between.
Garcon has been held scoreless and without a 20-yard reception for four consecutive weeks. His meal ticket was the deep ball, and that has all but vanished.
On the season, he has just one touchdown and one 100-yard game.
His luck is unlikely to change this week against the Chargers number one rated pass defense. They've held opposing quarterbacks to a 74.8 QB rating and have allowed nine touchdowns against nine interceptions.
Sitting a wideout on a team quarterbacked by Manning is not an easy decision, but it's the prudent one.
The Giants wide receiver position has been ravaged by injuries. With Hakeem Nicks and Steve Smith out, Manningham will get a major boost in targets, and defensive attention.
Even with a full compliment of wideouts Manningham received 55 targets, and his rapport with Manning continues to augment week by week.
He has developed into a dynamic, big-play weapon with a 25+yard reception in seven of the eight games he's played.
After a ten-reception performance in week ten (16 targets), Manningham was targeted only three times last week. He should see a bounce back in activity against Jacksonville's putrid 28th ranked pass defense that's allowed 67 percent completions and 20 touchdowns through the air.
He's been presented with a golden opportunity to be "the man", and judging by his clutch ability, he will respond admirably.
WR Sit: Pierre Garcon, Indianapolis Colts
After exploding onto the scene in 2009-2010, Garcon has reverted back to raw form. He's second in the league in dropped passes, and appears to have lost confidence in his skills.
Even with Dallas Clark out (and Austin Collie missing time), Garcon is still seeing a decrease in traffic his direction (70 targets). Quite simply, Manning doesn't trust him.
He's capable of the spectacular, but those moments have been few and far between.
Garcon has been held scoreless and without a 20-yard reception for four consecutive weeks. His meal ticket was the deep ball, and that has all but vanished.
On the season, he has just one touchdown and one 100-yard game.
His luck is unlikely to change this week against the Chargers number one rated pass defense. They've held opposing quarterbacks to a 74.8 QB rating and have allowed nine touchdowns against nine interceptions.
Sitting a wideout on a team quarterbacked by Manning is not an easy decision, but it's the prudent one.
QB Start: Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh Steelers
In six starts since his return from suspension Roethlisberger has fallen into a pattern: two good, two bad, two good. If the pattern continues he's on pace for a poor effort on Sunday, but six games doesn't make a trend.
He followed up two sub-200 yard efforts with 387 (296 in the fourth quarter) and 275 in his last two starts with seven composite touchdowns. He also ran for 55 yards against Oakland, the largest single-game rushing figure of his career.
Overall, Roethlisberger sports the number three passer rating in the NFL at 101.9 and a 12:4 touchdown to interception rate.
Pittsburgh's offensive attack is more pass heavy than in years past, utilizing the big play with speed on the outside. Mike Wallace caught long balls of 52 (TD), 37 and 27 last week and Big Ben averaged 9.5 yards per attempt.
Buffalo's pass defense ranks a respectable tenth, but that says more about their 32nd ranked rush defense than the quality of secondary play. They've allowed 20 passing touchdowns against just four interceptions forced (two last week).
QB Sit: Jon Kitna, Dallas Cowboys
Kitna has posted 124.1 and 129.7 QB ratings over the last two weeks. Despite only 46 total pass attempts in those starts, he's thrown six touchdown passes (one interception) and ran for a seventh score.
There's no doubt he's played solid football, but his scores the last two weeks have largely been the result of yardage after the catch and tremendous field position. He threw for only 147 yards last week, frequently looking to dump off in the face of Detroit's pressure (one completion over 20 yards).
Like most quarterbacks, pass rush, or lack thereof, usually determines his fate.
When the pocket collapses he's considerably more careless with the football. The Saints pass rush has been ordinary this season (19 sacks), but they're pass defense (2nd) has been anything but. They've allowed a paltry seven touchdowns through the air and just 186 yards per game.
Kitna's touchdown barrage ends here against the velcro coverage of New Orleans.
In six starts since his return from suspension Roethlisberger has fallen into a pattern: two good, two bad, two good. If the pattern continues he's on pace for a poor effort on Sunday, but six games doesn't make a trend.
He followed up two sub-200 yard efforts with 387 (296 in the fourth quarter) and 275 in his last two starts with seven composite touchdowns. He also ran for 55 yards against Oakland, the largest single-game rushing figure of his career.
Overall, Roethlisberger sports the number three passer rating in the NFL at 101.9 and a 12:4 touchdown to interception rate.
Pittsburgh's offensive attack is more pass heavy than in years past, utilizing the big play with speed on the outside. Mike Wallace caught long balls of 52 (TD), 37 and 27 last week and Big Ben averaged 9.5 yards per attempt.
Buffalo's pass defense ranks a respectable tenth, but that says more about their 32nd ranked rush defense than the quality of secondary play. They've allowed 20 passing touchdowns against just four interceptions forced (two last week).
QB Sit: Jon Kitna, Dallas Cowboys
Kitna has posted 124.1 and 129.7 QB ratings over the last two weeks. Despite only 46 total pass attempts in those starts, he's thrown six touchdown passes (one interception) and ran for a seventh score.
There's no doubt he's played solid football, but his scores the last two weeks have largely been the result of yardage after the catch and tremendous field position. He threw for only 147 yards last week, frequently looking to dump off in the face of Detroit's pressure (one completion over 20 yards).
Like most quarterbacks, pass rush, or lack thereof, usually determines his fate.
When the pocket collapses he's considerably more careless with the football. The Saints pass rush has been ordinary this season (19 sacks), but they're pass defense (2nd) has been anything but. They've allowed a paltry seven touchdowns through the air and just 186 yards per game.
Kitna's touchdown barrage ends here against the velcro coverage of New Orleans.
RB Start: BenJarvus Green-Ellis, New England Patriots
Green-Ellis is not an explosive ball carrier, but he makes every touch count.
In the eight games which he's received ten or more carries he's reached the end zone is six of them. In five games with 15+ carries he's averaging 93.8 yards per game and 5.3 per carry. He's a solid bet to hit the 20-carry mark for the second time this season on Thanksgiving, which will equate to productivity.
The Lions rush defense ranks 26th in the NFL allowing 131 yards per contest, 4.6 per carry and 11 touchdowns. Detroit struggled to contain a similar power-style back in Fred Jackson (25-133) two weeks back.
The Pats still favor the pass but are certainly not opposed to exploiting the weakness of their opponent. Danny Woodhead might take a handful of carries, but BJGE is the man in the running game.
Don't expect a sudden PPR surge, it's not his strength (despite four receptions at Pitt in week ten).
RB Sit: LeGarrette Blount, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The rookie has run the ball impressively since being handed over the reigns in week seven, but he'll face a different animal this week.
The Ravens and their ninth rated ground defense have held their three opponents since the bye to 253 net rushing yards (albeit 120 last week).
Blount was unable to get going against a pinching Atlanta run defense in week nine (13-46) and was held to 3.2 yards per rush last week at San Francisco.
Baltimore will almost certainly force the game into young Josh Freeman's hands on the road in a hostile environment. He hasn't been mistake prone (five interceptions) but he hasn't been asked to carry the load either (25 or less attempts in four straight weeks).
The Ravens will aim to take Blount out of the mix and let their ballhawk secondary go to work.
The Bucs have only seven rushing scores on the season, and the Baltimore D has only allowed five. Can you say reality check?
Green-Ellis is not an explosive ball carrier, but he makes every touch count.
In the eight games which he's received ten or more carries he's reached the end zone is six of them. In five games with 15+ carries he's averaging 93.8 yards per game and 5.3 per carry. He's a solid bet to hit the 20-carry mark for the second time this season on Thanksgiving, which will equate to productivity.
The Lions rush defense ranks 26th in the NFL allowing 131 yards per contest, 4.6 per carry and 11 touchdowns. Detroit struggled to contain a similar power-style back in Fred Jackson (25-133) two weeks back.
The Pats still favor the pass but are certainly not opposed to exploiting the weakness of their opponent. Danny Woodhead might take a handful of carries, but BJGE is the man in the running game.
Don't expect a sudden PPR surge, it's not his strength (despite four receptions at Pitt in week ten).
RB Sit: LeGarrette Blount, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The rookie has run the ball impressively since being handed over the reigns in week seven, but he'll face a different animal this week.
The Ravens and their ninth rated ground defense have held their three opponents since the bye to 253 net rushing yards (albeit 120 last week).
Blount was unable to get going against a pinching Atlanta run defense in week nine (13-46) and was held to 3.2 yards per rush last week at San Francisco.
Baltimore will almost certainly force the game into young Josh Freeman's hands on the road in a hostile environment. He hasn't been mistake prone (five interceptions) but he hasn't been asked to carry the load either (25 or less attempts in four straight weeks).
The Ravens will aim to take Blount out of the mix and let their ballhawk secondary go to work.
The Bucs have only seven rushing scores on the season, and the Baltimore D has only allowed five. Can you say reality check?
TE Start: Brandon Pettigrew, Detroit Lions
In his second season, Pettigrew is blossoming into one of the premiere tight ends in the NFL.
He's fifth amongst TE's in targets with 74, and has thrived with Shaun Hill behind center. In Hill's seven starts he's caught 44 balls (six per game) for 455 yards (65 yards per game). Oddly enough, however, he's hauled two of his three touchdowns with Stafford at quarterback. Nevertheless, fantasy owners can be confident that Pettigrew will be heavily involved in the offensive game plan.
The Patriots haven’t been overly exposed by the TE, but Heath Miller (5-60) and Jacob Tamme (7-60) made some noise the last two weeks.
TE Sit: Marcedes Lewis, Jacksonville Jaguars
Lewis has been a fantasy godsend, second behind only Antonio Gates in touchdowns at the tight end position with eight. With that said, the injury to Mike Sims-Walker could have a marked impact on his success going forward.
The focus of opposing defenses will shift from Sims-Walker to Lewis, and space in the middle will be tougher to carve out.
The Jags also plan on utilizing more two tight end sets with Zach Miller (the other one), which should detrimentally impact his targets.
Since their bye week, the Giants have held John Carlson to two catches for nine yards, Jason Witten to one catch for seven yards and Brent Celek to nada. The Garrard/Lewis combination has been over performing to put it mildly, and the joyride ends here.
In his second season, Pettigrew is blossoming into one of the premiere tight ends in the NFL.
He's fifth amongst TE's in targets with 74, and has thrived with Shaun Hill behind center. In Hill's seven starts he's caught 44 balls (six per game) for 455 yards (65 yards per game). Oddly enough, however, he's hauled two of his three touchdowns with Stafford at quarterback. Nevertheless, fantasy owners can be confident that Pettigrew will be heavily involved in the offensive game plan.
The Patriots haven’t been overly exposed by the TE, but Heath Miller (5-60) and Jacob Tamme (7-60) made some noise the last two weeks.
TE Sit: Marcedes Lewis, Jacksonville Jaguars
Lewis has been a fantasy godsend, second behind only Antonio Gates in touchdowns at the tight end position with eight. With that said, the injury to Mike Sims-Walker could have a marked impact on his success going forward.
The focus of opposing defenses will shift from Sims-Walker to Lewis, and space in the middle will be tougher to carve out.
The Jags also plan on utilizing more two tight end sets with Zach Miller (the other one), which should detrimentally impact his targets.
Since their bye week, the Giants have held John Carlson to two catches for nine yards, Jason Witten to one catch for seven yards and Brent Celek to nada. The Garrard/Lewis combination has been over performing to put it mildly, and the joyride ends here.
Written by Adam Ganeles exclusively for TheFantasyFix.com. Check back weekly for Adam's NFL Sit 'Em, Start 'Em
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Football Advice, Fantasy Football, NFL, Adam Ganeles, Sit Em, Start Em, Week 12, Ben Roethelisberger, Jon Kitna, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, LeGarrette Blount, Mario Manningham, Pierre Garcon, Brandon Pettigrew, Marcedes Lewis, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, Tampa Bay Bucaneers, New York Giants, Indianapolis Colts, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars
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