By MIKE HERNDON

It’s the last big bye week of the NFL season, with six teams off this week. That means a lot of you will likely have holes in your lineups. Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson won’t play this week. Nor will D.J. Moore or Davante Adams. Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs and T.J. Hockenson will also need to be replaced in your lineups.

Hopefully, your bench is fully stocked and your waiver bids were successful. Next week, we’ll only have to worry about the Cardinals and Commanders in the last week of byes. In the meantime, here are Week 13’s starts and sits, with a couple waiver wire possibilities should you need them.

QB:

Starts:

Tua Tagovailoa, Dolphins: Two of his last three starts have been disappointments – and last week’s game against the Jets was downright dreadful for fantasy purposes – but he gets the Commanders this week. Wheels up.

Waiver wire special: If you’re looking for a bye week filler, Indy’s Gardner Minshew has a date with the Titans’ porous secondary this week and is likely available on your wire. Use responsibly.

Sits:

Matthew Stafford, Rams: He threw for four touchdowns last week, but Cleveland’s defense has yielded the fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks of any team in the league.

RB:

Starts:

Najee Harris, Steelers: Don’t look now, but Harris has regained fantasy relevance. Last week’s 99 yards and a touchdown represented his best game of the season and he’s maintained a steady workload even with the emergence of Jaylen Warren (who is also a fine play this week). Arizona’s defense should present a fine opportunity for an encore.

Alvin Kamara, Saints: He’s probably already in your lineup anyway, but the Lions’ defense has been slipshod lately and practically every Saints receiver is injured or concussed, meaning Kamara should get a ton of work in the passing game.

Waiver wire special: If your wire is anything like all of mine, running backs with bankable workloads are long gone. You’re looking for anyone who can possibly score a touchdown or get some receiving yards. Antonio Gibson has been getting a roughly even snap share with Brian Robinson in Washington, and with the Commanders likely to be playing catch-up against Miami, he’s a good bet to get some receiving work. It’s not much, but it’s something.

Sits:

Zach Charbonnet, Seahawks: He’s likely to get a lot of work with Kenneth Walker III expected to miss another week, but like last week, he may not have room to do much with it against a strong Cowboys’ defense and with game script unlikely to be in his favor.

Brian Robinson, Commanders: Speaking of negative game script, Robinson’s likely to get buried in it against the Dolphins. Don’t be surprised if he’s actually on the downside of the snap split in Washington’s backfield this week.

WR:

Starts:  

Michael Pittman, Jr., Colts: He’s had a combined 25 targets in his last two games, popping for 107 yards last week, and he’s got the Titans’ secondary this week. Fire him up.

Deebo Samuel, 49ers: The way to attack the Eagles is through the air, and assuming Darius Slay will often by occupied with the downfield threat of Brandon Aiyuk, this figures to be a good spot to get the ball in Samuel’s hands and let him create.  

Waiver wire special: With Jalen Ramsey and Xavien Howard making life difficult on the outside, Washington may look to attack the slot more against the Dolphins this week. That should mean plenty of looks for Curtis Samuel, who had 100 yards last week after being an afterthought the two weeks prior.

Sits:

Drake London, Falcons: He’s clearly the go-to receiver in this offense, but he’ll also likely be drawing a lot of Sauce Gardner this week. Find a better option.

Nico Collins, Texans: If Tank Dell, who missed practice on Wednesday, can’t go, his target share will likely rise, but so will the likelihood that he’s shadowed by Patrick Surtain. Not great.

TE:

In a week with T.J. Hockenson, Cole Kmet, Isaiah Likely and Dalton Kincaid all on a bye, we give you two waiver wire specials: Tampa Bay’s Cade Otton, who has a great matchup with Carolina, and the Chargers’ Gerald Everett, who scored against the Ravens last week and is one of the last men standing after Keenan Allen in LA’s passing game.

Categories: Fantasy Football