It feels weird going into Week 12 of the fantasy football season and there’s no new starting quarterback this week to talk about.
With Ryan Mallett making his regular season NFL debut last week, the number of quarterbacks to make at least one start in the 2014 season rose to 48. There’s a good chance that number doesn’t change for a while, and will give 2-QBers a bit of breathing room, as they don’t have to worry about which backup quarterback will get a chance to chuck the pigskin around next.
Now’s also the perfect time to take a look at your 2-QB squad to determine whether or not you have a chance to make the playoffs, are a title contender, or your season is over. Evaluating your roster and coming up with possible trade scenarios to improve your team might be in order this week and next.
Week 12 Fantasy Football Quarterback Rankings for 2-QB Fantasy Football Leagues:
1. Aaron Rodgers @ MIN
2. Andrew Luck vs. JAC
3. Jay Cutler vs. TB
4. Peyton Manning vs. MIA
5. Drew Brees vs. BAL
6. Tony Romo @ NYG
7. Tom Brady vs. DET
8. Colin Kaepernick vs. WAS
9. Zach Mettenberger @ PHI
10. Josh McCown @ CHI
11. Brian Hoyer @ ATL
12. Mark Sanchez vs. TEN
13. Ryan Tannehill @ DEN
14. Matthew Stafford @ NE
15. Russell Wilson vs. ARI
16. Matt Ryan vs. CLE
17. Eli Manning vs. DAL
18. Alex Smith @ OAK
19. Kyle Orton vs. NYJ
20. Philip Rivers vs. STL
21. Robert Griffin III @ SF
22. Michael Vick @ BUF
23. Andy Dalton @ HOU
24. Shaun Hill @ SD
25. Blake Bortles @ IND
26. Ryan Mallett vs. CIN
27. Drew Stanton @ SEA
28. Joe Flacco @ NO
29. Teddy Bridgewater vs. GB
30. Derek Carr vs. KC
31. Mike Glennon @ CHI
32. Johnny Manziel @ ATL
33. EJ Manuel vs. NYJ
Week 12 Quarterbacks on the Rise:
Josh McCown
As a Mike Glennon fantasy apologist this hurts, but as a fan of quarterback madness, being able to count on Josh McCown as a borderline QB1 in 2-QB leagues makes me happy.
Last season, McCown was probably the second-most valuable fantasy quarterback outside of Peyton Manning in 2-QB leagues, as he was able to help many owners who scooped him up reach the championship round of their league.
It may sound weird, as Peyton Manning was routinely an early round pick in 2-QB leagues, and McCown was a waiver wire pickup, but it’s the players that you snatch off the waivers mid-season that can turn a season around. McCown did just that in 2013 as a member of the Bears.
In his second stint as the starter in Tampa this year, McCown is picking up where he left off last season, and has strung together two back-to-back Top-5 fantasy quarterback performances. He has a chance to make it three straight versus the Bears this week.
Ryan Mallett
New Texans starting quarterback Ryan Mallett was okay in his Houston debut. He completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 211 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in Week 11. His yards/attempt was 7.0 on the dot, and he scored 14.14 fantasy points, which was good enough for QB15.
We weren’t sure what we’d get out of Mallett, but he didn’t crash and burn, and returned mid-range QB2 numbers for fantasy owners in need of a warm body to start in their 2-QB leagues. Whether he keeps up his QB2 play remains to be seen, but for now we can say his stock is on the rise.
Week 12 Quarterbacks on the Slide:
Robert Griffin III
It’s kind of hard to keep up with the Kardashians in Washington. DeSean Jackson called out some people, RG3 is upset at himself and the team, and Jay Gruden drove a bus over his starting quarterback before being forced to park it in the garage.
The Shanahans might be gone, but the soap opera continues in Washington, and you wonder how long until E! tries to air a reality show on the dysfunctional and potentially garbage dumpsterfiring version of this current Washington “football” team.
No matter how you slice it, RG3 isn’t playing all that well. His mechanics are shoddy, and his confidence also looks to be in the dumps. Even if it came off as harsh criticism, Gruden’s dissection of his “franchise” quarterback was true.
Teddy Bridgewater
Since coming back from injury in Week 6, rookie Teddy Bridgewater has scored a grand total of 48.78 fantasy points in five games, for an average of 9.8 points/game. In three games he has scored nine or less fantasy points. He also has a 4:6 passing touchdown:interception ratio during that span.
As your QB2 in 2-QB leagues, Bridgewater has been a disappointment. He had a chance to turn things around versus a woeful Bears secondary in Week 11, but didn’t take advantage of his opportunity.
We’ll see if he can turn his stock around in the upcoming weeks, as he has some favorable matchups including contests vs. Carolina and the Jets in Weeks 13 and 14.
*Stats used in this article from FantasyData
