Josh Gordon came back in Week 12 as though he had never been gone

Scott Ellinwood and Patrick Johnson are correspondents at FantasyPros. To read more from them, check out their profiles and follow them @ScottEllinwood and @PattJ38.

Year after year, the true contenders emerge in late November. Well, here we are at Thanksgiving, and the Browns are 7-4. Zach Mettenberger threw for 345 yards; Aaron Rodgers passed for only 209. This was a strange week in fantasy football. One NFL game was postponed to Monday night and moved to Detroit due to “Hoth-like” conditions in Buffalo. One superstar returns from suspension, another returns to form and a third is struggling.

Overall, it wasn’t a week of outliers as we saw 11 of the 13 favorites win outright. But what Week 12 lacked in upsets, it made up for with the emergence of several new fantasy impact performers, and we have it all covered with our lessons learned in Week 12.

Josh Gordon will be a stud in the home stretch

How talented is Browns WR Josh Gordon? Only projected to play 20-30 snaps in Week 12, Gordon played on 25 of the Browns 36 first-half snaps and played much of the second half as well. Was he rusty after his long suspension? The Browns targeted Gordon a whopping 16 times and Gordon caught eight of those targets for 120 yards. Most importantly, Gordon immediately and decisively established himself as the Browns top WR in his first game back. Gordon is owned in 89% of ESPN leagues. If he is a free agent, in your league he is more than worth a waiver selection and could just put your team over the top.
– Scott Ellinwood

Josh Gordon is in football shape

Gordon made his long-awaited return this week after serving a 10-game suspension. Sunday morning, rumors were swirling about Gordon only playing 20-30 snaps. As it turned out, he was in on 51 of 74 plays and picked up just where he left off last season. Gordon caught eight passes for 120 yards and could have had a TD, given a better pass from Hoyer. He looks healthy and will be a full-time starter for the fantasy playoff run. If you’ve stashed him on your bench for the past three weeks, it’s time to reap the rewards. Flash Gordon is a top-notch WR1 going forward in the league’s most efficient deep ball passing offense.
– Patrick Johnson

Denver may have found their long term back in C.J. Anderson

Last week in this space, I wrote about Bengals RB Jeremy Hill possibly establishing himself as the feature back in Cincinnati. A similar situation may be about to play out in Denver, where neither Montee Ball or Ronnie Hillman have a firm hold on the starting job. Since receiving an increased workload over the last three weeks, C.J. Anderson has staked his claim to the job. In those three games, Anderson has racked up 473 total yards and found the end zone twice. Anderson is available in 16% of ESPN leagues and should be snapped up immediately if he is available in your league. The 23-year old Anderson is an even more attractive pickup in keeper and dynasty leagues.
– Scott Ellinwood

Isaiah Crowell will be the Browns feature back before long

Owned in 74% of ESPN leagues, Browns RB Isaiah Crowell is positioned to emerge in Cleveland’s backfield as the clear starter. After releasing Ben Tate this week, Cleveland figured to split carries evenly between Crowell and rookie Terrance West, and that’s what happened. Crowell had 12 carries and West had 14. What counts is what Crowell did with those carries, gaining 88 yards (for a 7.3 average) and recording two touchdowns. West’s efforts yielded 62 yards for a 4.4 average with no scores. On the season, Crowell is gaining 4.6 yards per carry compared to 3.6 for West. Crowell, a former five-star college recruit, looks like he is about to break out. Snag him if you can.
– Scott Ellinwood

Latavius Murray could win you a fantasy championship

Murray has long been touted as a raw talent awaiting his opportunity due to his extremely rare combination of size (6’3” 225 lbs.) and speed (4.38 40-yard dash). Facing a lost season in Oakland, Coach Tony Sparano finally moved on from the aged McFadden/Jones-Drew tandem and gave Murray early playing time. The Thursday Night Football phenom exploded for a 4/112/2 stat line against the Chiefs, and yes that’s correct, on only four carries. He left in the second quarter due a concussion and did not return. However, he’s expected to play next week against Rams, who were gashed for 100 yards by Ryan Mathews on Sunday. Murray is no one week wonder; he should carry the load for the Raiders going forward, and he should be your #1 waiver wire add this week if he’s available.
– Patrick Johnson

Something is wrong with Calvin Johnson

Johnson has certainly not lived up to his lofty standards in 2014. Much of that is due to a lingering ankle injury which has forced him to miss three games and made him less effective in other contests. Nonetheless, from a fantasy perspective, Johnson has been closer to a megaflop than Megatron this year. Over the last two weeks, Johnson has caught fewer than half his targets (9 of 22) for 117 yards and no scores. On the year, he has only two 100-yard performances. Is it all related to his ankle? Maybe. Has Golden Tate taken some targets away from him? Possibly. It’s too early to think about benching him, but if you can trade him in your redraft league, you just may get more value in return that you’ll get the rest of this season from an ailing Megatron.
– Scott Ellinwood

Delanie Walker is an every week starter

Delanie Walker is a WR trapped in a TE body. Going against a defense optional Eagles team, Walker was open early and often. He turned five catches into 155 yards and had significant yards after the catch (YAC) on most of them. Most importantly, he has his young QB, Mettenberger’s eye. Walker is usually the first or second read and is the leading receiver on the team (512 yards). The Titans have one the best schedules during the fantasy playoffs: HOU, NYG, NYJ, and JAX. Having just returned from missing a game due to concussion, Walker may be available on your waiver wire. He’s a weekly starting option in a shallow pool of fantasy TEs this season.
– Patrick Johnson

Eddie Lacy is starting to heat up

After an ice-cold start to the season, Lacy is heating up just in time for the fantasy stretch run. In four games in September, Lacy recorded only 210 total yards and one touchdown. In his last four games, Lacy has now totaled 552 yards and five scores. After such a slow start, many owners must have been tempted to trade Lacy, but their patience has now been rewarded. Just like his rookie campaign, Lacy is getting hot at the right time of year. As the weather gets worse, the Packers will increasingly turn to Lacy and so should you.
– Scott Ellinwood

Dan “Boom” Herron is the new Ahmad Bradshaw

Reports broke before game time on Sunday that Boom Herron would get the start at RB in Indy. He indeed started and appeared to assume the role vacated by the injured Ahmad Bradshaw. Herron split the carries with Richardson and served as the pass catching RB. In his first meaningful action this season, he carried the rock 12 times for 65 yards and caught 5 balls for 31 yards. Most importantly, Herron proved that he belonged and could be relied on in this Andrew Luck led offense. Boom should be rostered in all leagues, especially those of the PPR variety. With T-Rich’s perpetual ineffectiveness, Herron offers RB2 upside the rest of the way against WAS, CLE, HOU, and DAL.
– Patrick Johnson