Fantasy Football Thanksgiving Starts, Sits: Settling Toughest Lineup Decisions

Thanksgiving is good for three things: family, food and football.

The latter is giving us three games Thursday, so that means you’ll probably be starting more players than usual in your fantasy football lineup early in Week 12.

If you’re on the fence about any of your players, then we have some suggestions for Thursday’s Minnesota Vikings-Detroit Lions, Washington Redskins-Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers-Indianapolis Colts matchups. Check out our start/sit advice below.

STARTS
Kirk Cousins, QB, Redskins
If you’re not lucky enough to have a quarterback like Ben Roethlisberger or Dak Prescott this Thanksgiving, then Cousins still is a solid option. The Cowboys’ pass defense is allowing 263.5 yards per game, and Cousins torched them in Week 2, throwing for 364 yards and one touchdown with one interception.

Frank Gore, RB, Colts
Plenty of folks believed 33-year-old Gore would be on his way out of the NFL in 2016, but he has been a workhorse for the Colts instead. While you should have Gore in your lineup every week anyway, he’s a must-start against the Steelers, who are giving up the third-most fantasy points to running backs. Andrew Luck is expected to miss Week 12, too, so Gore could see more touches with Scott Tolzien under center for Indy.

Theo Riddick, RB, Lions
The Lions’ matchup against the Vikings looks bad for Riddick on paper, but you have to remember that the running back essentially is all Detroit has on offense. As a pass-catching back, Riddick averages 15.25 touches per game and is a real weapon for quarterback Matthew Stafford.

Jamison Crowder, WR, Redskins
Sure, Washington has DeSean Jackson and Jordan Reed, but Crowder has been sneakily consistent all season. He has put up more than 100 yards in three of his last four games and scored in Washington’s last three contests. He already put up a touchdown against Dallas in Week 2, too.

Kyle Rudolph, TE, Vikings
We already told you in Week 9 that the Lions’ defense gives up a lot of points to tight ends, and they still do. Rudolph scored then, and he’s still a threat in Week 12, with Detroit allowing the second-most fantasy points to tight ends.

SITS
Matthew Stafford, QB, Lions
Stafford has one or fewer touchdown passes in three of the Lions’ last four games, and the Vikings are giving up the fourth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks. Stafford should be a hard pass in your Week 12 lineup.

Jerick McKinnon, RB, Vikings
McKinnon has rushed for more than 45 yards only once this season and has averaged under 3 yards per carry in four of his last five games, including three in a row. The Lions are giving up the fifth-fewest points to running backs, so don’t expect McKinnon’s fortunes to change.

Marvin Jones, WR, Lions
Jones exploded for 205 yards against the Green Bay Packers in Week 3, and that’s about all he has done this season. He has caught just two passes for 20 yards in his last two games combined, and Minnesota’s pass defense is one of the league’s toughest.

Jason Witten, TE, Cowboys
Witten perhaps is one of the more deceiving fantasy players this season. He’s an important part of the Cowboys’ offense, but he’s not very useful in most league formats. Besides his 134-yard, one-touchdown performance against the Cleveland Browns in Week 9, Witten has scored only one other time, and he hasn’t put up more than 66 yards in a game.

Dwayne Allen and Jack Doyle, TEs, Colts
The Colts’ tight ends don’t put up many points in general, and they definitely won’t if Tolzien starts for Indy. Avoid Allen and Doyle at all costs.

Thumbnail photo via Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports Images