Fantasy Football Week 12 Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: Brian Robinson Jr. leads the slate as a week winner

Week 12 is going to be fun. We have six teams on bye (Atlanta, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, New Orleans and the Jets), and Fantasy managers might have some interesting lineups during a crucial week.

The good news is we have some standout players coming back from injury with Mike Evans (hamstring), George Kittle (hamstring) and Sam LaPorta (shoulder) all slated to return to action, and maybe Isiah Pacheco (leg) could return as well. Given all the star players on bye, we’ll take whatever reinforcements we can get.

One of the interesting storylines to follow is the Giants with Tommy DeVito starting for the benched Daniel Jones, and what that means for Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Malik Nabers. I’m starting both with their matchup against Tampa Bay.

We also want to see what Anthony Richardson does against the Lions after his impressive performance against the Jets in Week 11. Jonathon Brooks is also slated to make his NFL debut in Week 12, and we’ll see what that means for Chuba Hubbard. And in that same game, it could be a great week for Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs given the matchup with the Panthers.

I’m excited to see what happens in Week 12. And I hope all of your lineups are ready to go. The Fantasy playoffs are approaching, so let’s get a win and build some momentum heading into the postseason.

At the beginning of the season, Brian Robinson Jr. outperformed Bijan Robinson, leading Fantasy managers to think they drafted the wrong “B. Robinson” this year. That’s changed lately, but Brian Robinson Jr. still has a solid campaign. And he should have a big outing in Week 12 against the Cowboys.

Robinson has scored at least 13.1 PPR points in six of eight games this season. He returned from a two-game absence with a hamstring injury in Week 11 at Philadelphia and scored 14.2 PPR points with 16 carries for 63 yards and a touchdown and one catch for 9 yards on one target.

This week, he’s facing a Dallas defense coming off a Monday night loss to Houston, and Robinson should have fresh legs since he last played on Thursday night in Week 11. And this is a great matchup since running backs have had plenty of success against the Cowboys of late. In their past five games, five running backs have scored at least 12.1 PPR points, with seven touchdowns allowed.

I like Austin Ekeler as a sleeper in Week 12, but Robinson has top-12 upside in all leagues. Look for “B. Robinson” to dominate Dallas in this game.

Commanders (vs. DAL)

The Cowboys have been a mess offensively since Dak Prescott (hamstring) got hurt, and now the offensive line is banged up. Right guard Zack Martin (ankle/shoulder) and left guard Tyler Smith (ankle/knee) did not practice Wednesday, and this could be a disaster if both are out against the Commanders. It’s also Dan Quinn, the former defensive coordinator in Dallas, facing his former team. And the Cowboys have scored 16 combined points without Prescott the past two games while allowing eight sacks and seven turnovers.

• Buccaneers (at NYG)
• Cardinals (at SEA)
• Bears (vs. MIN)

Packers (vs. SF)

I liked the Packers DST in Week 11 at Chicago, but the defense was a slight letdown with only three sacks and no turnovers while allowing 19 points. This week, the Packers DST should be avoided with a matchup against the 49ers. San Francisco has just two turnovers in the past three games, and Brock Purdy has been sacked three times or less in eight games in a row. You should find another DST for Week 12.