Julio Jones had his best game of the season on Sunday against the Buccaneers.
Credit: @darrenrovell
Week 12 delivered some pretty great numbers for fantasy owners. Starting on Thanksgiving Day, we were treated to three games along with plenty of big performances to the start the week off with a bang. We saw Antonio Brown reach 30 fantasy points for the second straight game and a Jet’s quarterback/wide receiver duo score 50 points. Fantasy football playoffs are right around the corner, and Week 12 was a big deal for many fantasy owners. Here is a list of some of the best performances from this past weekend.
Julio Jones, WR Atlanta Falcons:
It only took 11 games, but Julio Jones finally had his first big game of the season. The veteran was ranked as the second highest fantasy football wide receiver coming into the season but had been somewhat of a disappointment before Sunday’s game. Jones only had one touchdown and three games with double-digit fantasy points before Week 12. Against Tampa Bay, the elite playmaker had 12 catches for 253 yards and two touchdowns, giving him a league-leading 38.8 fantasy points in standard scoring. With an easy schedule the rest of the way, it would be great if Jones could keep some momentum going into the fantasy football playoffs. The seventh-year wide receiver is on pace for just over 1,500 receiving yards, but a mediocre four touchdowns. If he continues with this pace, Jones won’t be considered a bust, but he may drop to the second round in drafts next season.
Jamaal Williams, RB Green Bay Packers:
It has been a tough season for the Packers, they lost veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a broken clavicle back in Week 6, and they haven’t looked great since then. Apart from Rodgers, the Green Bay backfield has dealt with plenty of injuries as well. Running backs Ty Montgomery and Aaron Jones are both dealing with injuries, leaving Jamaal Williams to get the majority of the work. Williams has averaged around 20 carries per game over the past three weeks, with Sunday being his best showing so far this season. The rookie carried the ball 21 times for 66 yards and a touchdown, and also caught four passes for 69 yards and another score. The 25 total touches gave Williams 25.5 fantasy points in standard scoring, his first double-digit point performance in his short career. While it was a great showing from the fill-in running back, he has only averaged 3.2 yards per carry with a long run of 12 yards this year. The numbers haven’t been great for Williams, but the workload alone makes him a low-end RB2 while he remains the starter.
Carson Wentz, QB Philadelphia Eagles:
The Eagles are up to 10 wins, and quarterback Carson Wentz keeps showing everyone that he should be the league MVP. The second-year signal caller is on pace for 41 passing touchdowns compared to only seven interceptions and is looking to lead his team deep into the playoffs. On Sunday, Wentz threw for 227 yards and three touchdowns giving him 24 fantasy points in standard scoring. This was his seventh game in a row with multiple touchdown passes. Wentz has had great chemistry this season with Zach Ertz, Alshon Jeffery, and Nelson Agholor, all of whom scored a touchdown Sunday. The only downside is that because the Eagle’s offense is so efficient, they haven’t had to throw the ball excessively. While the touchdowns are great, Wentz hasn’t thrown for more than 300 yards since Oct. 8 against the Cardinals. The lack of yardage has capped the former first rounder’s ceiling, but he is still currently the second highest scoring quarterback behind Russell Wilson in standard scoring.
Alvin Kamara, RB New Orleans Saints:
The Saints saw their winning streak come to an end, but Alvin Kamara keeps putting up monster numbers. Kamara was the highest scoring running back this week with just 11 touches against a pretty good Ram’s defense. The rookie ran the ball five times for 87 yards and a touchdown, and he also caught six passes for 101 yards and another touchdown, giving him a career-high of 30.9 fantasy points in standard scoring. Kamara has now moved all the way up to the third highest scoring running back and is only 0.3 points behind Le’Veon Bell this season in standard scoring. The amazing part about these incredible numbers is that he is second on the depth chart in the Saint’s backfield. Mark Ingram remains the starter, but because the team was trailing most of the game, Kamara saw more important work with his prowess as a pass catcher. The rookie has been extremely efficient, averaging a historic 8.35 yards per touch this season. Kamara is on pace for 1,591 total yards and 13 touchdowns and with an easy schedule the rest of the way, his numbers could be even better than that. The Tennessee product should be an RB2 the rest of the way even without the same large workload of other star fantasy running backs.
Robby Anderson, WR New York Jets:
There hasn’t been much to love about football in New York, both the Jets and Giants haven’t been good, and there are very few fantasy relevant players from the two teams. Possibly the most valuable fantasy football player in New York is Jets’ wide receiver Robbie Anderson who is now Top-10 at the position. Anderson caught six passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns against the Panthers Sunday. The second-year playmaker’s performance gave owners 26.6 fantasy points in standard scoring and is his fifth game in a row with a touchdown. Anderson is on pace for 1,039 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns which is more than enough reason to have him rostered in every league. The connection with quarterback Josh McCown is looking good, and the pair should continue to make big plays for the rest of the season. Anderson should be valued as a low-end WR2 the rest of the way.
