Welcome back, and thanks for joining me as we go through this week’s quick grades!
Usually this article is published Friday mornings, but we’re pushing it out early this week because of the Thanksgiving holiday. This week’s Quick Grades article is stuffed with players from all 16 games as well as a bonus holiday section grading only players from Thursday’s slate. In honor of tomorrow’s holiday, I’d like to take a few minutes and talk about what I’m thankful for right now.
I’m thankful for my four beautiful children. I’m thankful to be married to my high school sweetheart and best friend. I’m thankful for my parents and sister. I’m thankful for my in-laws. I’m thankful for friends and extended family. And after that, I’m thankful for football season. It may seem like just a game, but this game has been a bit of light in an otherwise dark year. Sports have that awesome power to unite people, and so do fantasy sports. Except, sometimes this imaginary game can bring us even closer than the real thing. After all, in fantasy, you are the GM, you are the coach deciding who goes in your starting lineup, and you rack up wins and losses. It means something, and it gives us all a reprieve from any stresses we’re dealing with at home, at work, or in the world at large.
I’m thankful to be able to write this article every single week. I recently published my 300th solo article with FantasyPros, and reaching that milestone wouldn’t have happened without people in the fantasy community continuing to read these articles. So, I’m also thankful for you! I say it sincerely that I am truly grateful to anyone who takes the time to read my articles and provide feedback. Do you love reading the Quick Grades article? Great! Do you think I’m a clown whose grades are downright ridiculous? Let me have it! The engagement with readers is the best part of it all! It feels like I’m just shooting the breeze, talking football and enjoying every minute of the conversation. Seriously, it’s the best.
I’d like to ask that for this week (if you feel so inclined), please drop a line on Twitter (@ZaktheMonster) and let me know what you’re thankful for this year, what your favorite Thanksgiving side is (unless it’s green bean casserole), how sports have brightened your world, your favorite plays of the week, or how crazy some of these grades are. I’m thankful for the fantasy football community. Every single one of you.
Once the season begins, the most difficult part of any fantasy manager’s week is start or sit decisions. These lineup choices can make or break a week, but unfortunately, not everyone has time to sit down and read lengthy fantasy advice articles. That’s where Quick Grades comes in. Each week of the football season, I’ll be providing a condensed and easily digestible chart of grades for over 250 fantasy-relevant players based on the following four criteria:
Fantasy Ability
Despite a tough matchup, Derrick Henry broke through on a long run last week
Expected Volume
Travis Kelce is always heavily targeted as one of Kansas City’s top pass-catching options
Matchup
Tyreek Hill got loose for 200 yards against Cincinnati’s porous secondary
Surrounding Talent
Sam Darnold has one of the weakest receiving corps in the league
Each of those criteria will be graded on a scale of 1-25, with the cumulative total resulting in a final grade (A+ to F) and a recommendation based on that grade. The criteria are weighted differently based on position, so it’s not a direct 1-for-1 conversion. Surrounding talent refers to offensive line for RB, quarterback play for WR and TE, and skill-position talent for QB.
The players are sorted by grade in descending order with the highest grades at the top and the lowest at the bottom. The highest-graded players receive A+ (Must start), and the lowest receive F. However, there are varying degrees of the F grade, and some players with this grade are flex plays, desperation plays, Hail Mary plays, or should remain on your bench, depending on the grade and position.
I’ll also include D/ST grades, and just like the skill-position players, there will be four criteria used for grading on a scale from 1-25, and final grades will be from 1-100. The four criteria for a D/ST grade are: Matchup, Turnovers, Sacks, and Points Allowed.
The charts are screenshots of a spreadsheet, but the link to the original can be found below. Because players are not searchable within the sheets in this article, they’ve been added to the bottom of the page so that they can be searched and referenced quickly. In addition to the player grades, I’ll provide:
- Start of the Week: A player outside of the elite, weekly must-starts who could have a big week
- Stream of the Week: The best player who will likely be available on your waiver wire
- Deep-League Stream of the Week: The best player who is less than 5% rostered in Yahoo leagues
- Fade of the Week: A notable player who could be in for a let-down performance
- Tough Calls: Two similarly valued players who may give fantasy managers difficult decisions
In honor of Thanksgiving, we’ll be tweaking these names just a bit for this week only:
- Mashed Potatoes and Gravy (Start of the Week): A player outside of the elite, weekly must-starts who could have a big week (let’s face it… you ain’t having Thanksgiving dinner without mashed potatoes and gravy… it’s not the main dish, but it’s the king of sides)
- Mac & Cheese (Stream of the Week): The best player who will likely be available on your waiver wire (mac & cheese is a prime side dish, but it’s not for everyone on Thanksgiving, and there’s usually enough left on the table to go back for more)
- Baked Corn (Deep-League Stream of the Week): The best player who is less than 5% rostered in Yahoo leagues (baked corn isn’t always on the table at Thanksgiving dinner, but when it is… oh, mama! A deep-league side-dish streamer if I’ve ever seen one!)
- Green Bean Casserole (Fade of the Week): A notable player who could be in for a let-down performance (Green Bean Casserole is the fade of any Thanksgiving feast. Seriously, it’s a not-so-good vegetable cooked in the cream of a worse vegetable)
- Splitting the Wishbone (Tough Calls): Two similarly valued players who may give fantasy managers difficult decisions
Link to Full Quick Grades Document
It’s easy to see that an ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grade makes a player a must-start, but it might not make sense at first glance why some players are rated ‘C’ or worse and still have ‘Start,’ ‘Strong Start,’ or ‘Flex’ attached to their names. Because of all the different variables that go into a player’s performance in any given week, only those players with the absolute highest potential, best matchup, and strongest talent get ‘A+’ or ‘A’ grades. Therefore, even solid plays will earn grades that may appear sub-optimal on the surface, but it’s all relative from position-to-position. The hard cutoff is 50 for every position, as grades lower than this will earn a ‘Desperation’ or ‘Hail Mary’ tag in every situation.
Now that I’ve covered the basics, let’s get to the grades. Best of luck in all your matchups this week!
Note: As always, remember to check back on FantasyPros ahead of kickoff to get the latest injury news. I’ll provide “what-if” grades in the event that an injured player doesn’t suit up, but otherwise, these grades assume full health at the time the article is published on Friday morning.
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Running Backs
Dalvin Cook is starting to become the Travis Kelce of running backs – he’s the top-ranked player nearly every week by default. After him, Nick Chubb vaults up to No. 2 after back-to-back 100-yard performances and a delicious matchup with Jacksonville where he should be able to gobble up yards. Chris Carson and Raheem Mostert are set to return, while Myles Gaskin is out once again.
There is no recommended deep-league stream of the week here, as the running backs who are less than 5% rostered do not have grades higher than ‘F Desperation.’
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy: Duke Johnson Jr.
Mac & Cheese: Gus Edwards
Baked Corn: Justice Hill 1% rostered
Green Bean Casserole: Darrell Henderson
Splitting the Wishbone: Kareem Hunt and James Conner are separated by less than a point in this week’s grades, though Hunt’s highly favorable matchup gives him the longer piece of the wishbone.
Wide Receivers
DeAndre Hopkins comes in as our highest graded option in Week 12, while Terry McLaurin makes his way into the top-3 thanks to an excellent matchup with Dallas. The usual cast of characters round out the top-10.
Mac & Cheese: Jalen Reagor
Baked Corn: Denzel Mims 5% rostered
Green Bean Casserole: Michael Gallup
Splitting the Wishbone: Justin Jefferson comes in just ahead of Allen Robinson due to a slightly better matchup and much better quarterback play. He comes out on top when the two split the wishbone here.
* If Julio Jones is out, Calvin Ridley becomes an ‘A Must Start,’ Russell Gage becomes a ‘D+ Flex,’ and Olamide Zaccheaus becomes an ‘F Desperation’
* With John Brown out, Cole Beasley becomes a ‘D+ Flex,’ and Gabriel Davis becomes a ‘D Flex’
* If Adam Thielen is out, Justin Jefferson becomes a ‘B Must Start’
Quarterbacks
Facing off against one another, Josh Allen and Justin Herbert come in with our highest grades of the week. No surprises among the top-graded options, except a Derek Carr sighting in the top-10 thanks to a fantastic matchup with Atlanta, where the Las Vegas signal-caller should be able to stuff the stat sheet.
There is no recommended Baked Corn this week, as the quarterbacks who are less than 5% rostered do not have grades higher than ‘F Desperation.’
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy & Mac & Cheese: Derek Carr
Green Bean Casserole: Ryan Tannehill
Tight Ends
Kelce and Waller as one and two should be expected every single week, but Evan Engram jumps all the way into the top-3 facing a generous Cincinnati defense. Hayden Hurst will look to bounce back from his Week 11 donut, while Jonnu Smith faces fantasy’s toughest tight end defense.
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy: Austin Hooper
Mac & Cheese: Dalton Schultz
Baked Corn: Tyler Eifert 5% rostered
Green Bean Casserole: Jared Cook
D/ST
New Orleans earns top honors against a struggling Denver defense, Miami’s rock-solid defense comes in just behind the Saints while facing the league’s worst team, and the G-Men will look to tee off against Brandon Allen, who was just elevated from the practice squad.
There is no recommended Baked Corn this week, as the D/STs who are less than 5% rostered do not have grades higher than ‘F Desperation.’
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy & Mac & Cheese: New York Giants
Green Bean Casserole: Chicago Bears
🦃🦃 Thanksgiving Special 🦃🦃
In this bonus section, grades will be reflective of Thanksgiving games only. The grades used in this section do not represent the player’s overall grade as it stands for the week. Instead, these grades represent only how each player is graded in relation to his Thanksgiving counterparts, and it can be used as a guide for Thursday-only DFS slates. Deshaun Watson isn’t the highest-graded QB of the week overall, but he is the highest-graded QB of the six who are playing on Thanksgiving.
Running Back
Most likely to feast: 🍗 Ezekiel Elliott 🍗
Wide Receiver
Most likely to feast: 🍗 Terry McLaurin 🍗
Quarterback
Most likely to feast: 🍗 Deshaun Watson 🍗
Tight End
Most likely to feast: 🍗 T.J. Hockenson 🍗
D/ST
Most likely to feast: 🍗 Washington Football Team🍗
Player Search, Find
Running Back
- Dalvin Cook A+ Must Start
- Nick Chubb A+ Must Start
- Alvin Kamara A+ Must Start
- Aaron Jones A Must Start
- Todd Gurley II A Must Start
- Derrick Henry B+ Must Start
- Miles Sanders B+ Must Start
- Chris Carson B Must Start
- Ezekiel Elliott B Must Start
- Josh Jacobs B Must Start
- James Robinson B Must Start
- Kareem Hunt B Must Start
- James Conner B Strong Start *Editor’s Note: James Conner’s status is in question after being placed on the COVID list
- Mike Davis C+ Strong Start
- Ronald Jones II C+ Strong Start
Salvon Ahmed C+ Strong Start*Editor’s Note: Salvon Ahmed is out for week 12- Duke Johnson Jr. C+ Strong Start
- Giovani Bernard C+ Strong Start
- Clyde Edwards-Helaire C Strong Start
- Antonio Gibson C Strong Start
- Damien Harris C Strong Start
- Wayne Gallman C Strong Start
- Kalen Ballage C Strong Start
- Kenyan Drake C Strong Start
- David Montgomery C Strong Start
- Zack Moss C Strong Start
Jonathan Taylor D+ Start*Editor’s Note: Jonathan Taylor is out for week 12- Raheem Mostert D+ Start
- J.D. McKissic D+ Start
- Gus Edwards D+ Start
- Adrian Peterson D+ Start
- Frank Gore D+ Start
- Nyheim Hines D+ Flex
- Leonard Fournette D+ Flex
- Devin Singletary D+ Flex
- Melvin Gordon D+ Flex
- James White D+ Flex
- Kerryon Johnson D+ Flex
- Chase Edmonds D+ Flex
- Latavius Murray D+ Flex
- Cam Akers D Flex
- Darrell Henderson F Desperation
- Jamaal Williams F Desperation
- Phillip Lindsay F Desperation
- Jordan Wilkins F Desperation
- Tony Pollard F Desperation
- Boston Scott F Desperation
- Brian Hill F Desperation
- Malcolm Brown F Desperation
- Carlos Hyde F Desperation
- Jerick McKinnon F Desperation
- Alexander Mattison F Hail Mary
- Le’Veon Bell F Hail Mary
- Devontae Booker F Hail Mary
- Matt Breida F Hail Mary
- Joshua Kelley F Hail Mary
- Justice Hill F Hail Mary
- Benny Snell F Hail Mary
- Samaje Perine F Hail Mary
- DeeJay Dallas F Hail Mary
Wide Receiver
- DeAndre Hopkins A+ Must Start
- D.K. Metcalf A Must Start
- Terry McLaurin B+ Must Start
- Stefon Diggs B+ Must Start
- Tyler Lockett B+ Must Start
- Davante Adams B+ Must Start
- Calvin Ridley B+ Must Start
- Keenan Allen B+ Must Start
- Julio Jones B+ Must Start
- Tyreek Hill B+ Must Start
- Will Fuller V B Must Start
- Michael Thomas B Must Start
- D.J. Moore C+ Strong Start
- Adam Thielen C+ Strong Start
- Cooper Kupp C+ Strong Start
- Robby Anderson C+ Strong Start
- Diontae Johnson C+ Strong Start
- Justin Jefferson C+ Strong Start
- Allen Robinson C+ Strong Start
- A.J. Brown C Strong Start
- DeVante Parker C Strong Start
- Mike Evans C Strong Start
- Robert Woods C Strong Start
D.J. Chark Jr. C Start*Editor’s Note: D.J. Chark has been ruled out for week 12- Tyler Boyd C Start
- Chase Claypool C Start
- Chris Godwin C Start
- Brandin Cooks C Start
- Tee Higgins C Start
- Travis Fulgham C Start
- JuJu Smith-Schuster C Start
- CeeDee Lamb C Start
- Marvin Jones Jr. C Start
- Curtis Samuel C Start
- Michael Pittman Jr. C Start
- Christian Kirk C Start
- Amari Cooper C Start
- Antonio Brown C Start
- Darius Slayton D+ Flex
- Jalen Reagor D+ Flex
- Jamison Crowder D+ Flex
- Sterling Shepard D+ Flex
- Nelson Agholor D+ Flex
- Jerry Jeudy D+ Flex
- Jakobi Meyers D+ Flex
- Mike Williams D+ Flex
John Brown D Flex*Editor’s Note: John Brown is out for week 12- Jarvis Landry D Flex
- Cole Beasley D Flex
- Breshad Perriman D Flex
- Brandon Aiyuk D Flex
- Henry Ruggs III D Flex
- Denzel Mims D Flex
- Marquise Brown D Flex
- Tim Patrick D Flex
- Keelan Cole D Flex
- A.J. Green D Flex
- Corey Davis D Flex
- Russell Gage D Flex
- Deebo Samuel F Desperation
- Sammy Watkins F Desperation
- Josh Reynolds F Desperation
- Damiere Byrd F Desperation
- Rashard Higgins F Desperation
- Willie Snead IV F Desperation
- Michael Gallup F Desperation
- KJ Hamler F Desperation
- Allen Lazard F Desperation
- Emmanuel Sanders F Desperation
- Jakeem Grant F Desperation
- Hunter Renfrow F Desperation
- Zach Pascal F Desperation
- Marquez Valdes-Scantling F Desperation
- Mecole Hardman F Hail Mary
- T.Y. Hilton F Hail Mary
- Steven Sims F Hail Mary
- Darnell Mooney F Hail Mary
- Cam Sims F Hail Mary
- David Moore F Hail Mary
- Anthony Miller F Hail Mary
- Greg Ward F Hail Mary
- Demarcus Robinson F Hail Mary
Larry Fitzgerald F Hail Mary*Editor’s Note: Larry Fitzgerald is out for week 12- Marvin Hall F Hail Mary
- Alshon Jeffery F Hail Mary
- Golden Tate F Hail Mary
- Keke Coutee F Hail Mary
Quarterback
- Josh Allen A+ Must Start
- Justin Herbert A+ Must Start
- Deshaun Watson A+ Must Start
- Patrick Mahomes A+ Must Start
- Russell Wilson A+ Must Start
- Derek Carr B+ Must Start
- Kyler Murray B+ Strong Start
- Tom Brady B+ Strong Start
- Matt Ryan B+ Strong Start
- Cam Newton B Strong Start
- Aaron Rodgers B Strong Start
Lamar Jackson B Strong Start*Editor’s Note: Lamar Jackson tested positive for COVID-19 and is out for Sunday- Taysom Hill B Strong Start
- Ben Roethlisberger B Start
- Carson Wentz B Start
- Daniel Jones B Start
- Jared Goff C+ Start
- Tua Tagovailoa C+ Start
- Philip Rivers C+ Start
- PJ Walker C+ Start
- Kirk Cousins C+ Start
- Baker Mayfield C 2QB/SuperFlex
- Matthew Stafford C 2QB/SuperFlex
- Alex Smith D+ 2QB/SuperFlex
Drew Lock D 2QB/SuperFlex*Editor’s Note: Drew Lock is out for week 12- Andy Dalton D 2QB/SuperFlex
- Ryan Tannehill D 2QB/SuperFlex
- Sam Darnold D 2QB/SuperFlex
- Mike Glennon F Hail Mary
- Nick Mullens F Hail Mary
- Mitch Trubisky F Hail Mary
- Brandon Allen F Hail Mary
Tight End
- Travis Kelce A+ Must Start
- Darren Waller A+ Must Start
- Evan Engram B Must Start
- T.J. Hockenson B Must Start
- Hunter Henry C+ Must Start
- Noah Fant C+ Must Start
- Rob Gronkowski C Strong Start
- Mark Andrews C Strong Start
- Austin Hooper D+ Strong Start
- Hayden Hurst D+ Start
- Jonnu Smith D+ Start
- Dallas Goedert D+ Start
- Logan Thomas D+ Start
- Eric Ebron D+ Start
- Robert Tonyan D Flex
- Dalton Schultz D Flex
- Jordan Reed D Flex
- Mike Gesicki F Desperation
Irv Smith Jr. F Desperation*Editor’s Note: Irv Smith is out for week 12- Will Dissly F Desperation
- Jordan Akins F Desperation
- Jimmy Graham F Desperation
- Trey Burton F Desperation
- Tyler Eifert F Desperation
- Richard Rodgers F Desperation
- Tyler Higbee F Hail Mary
- Kyle Rudolph F Hail Mary
- Jared Cook F Hail Mary
- Mo Alie-Cox F Hail Mary
- Gerald Everett F Hail Mary
- Jack Doyle F Hail Mary
- Darren Fells F Hail Mary
- Cameron Brate F Hail Mary
D/ST
- New Orleans Saints A Must Start
- Miami Dolphins A Must Start
- New York Giants B Must Start
- Pittsburgh Steelers B Must Start
- Los Angeles Rams B Must Start
- Washington Football Team C+ Strong Start
- Seattle Seahawks C+ Strong Start
- Cleveland Browns C+ Strong Start
- Arizona Cardinals C Strong Start
- Green Bay Packers D+ Start
- San Francisco 49ers D+ Start
- Buffalo Bills D+ Start
- Carolina Panthers D Start
- Kansas City Chiefs D Start
- Dallas Cowboys D Start
- Cincinnati Bengals D Start
- Philadelphia Eagles F Desperation
- Indianapolis Colts F Desperation
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers F Desperation
- Baltimore Ravens F Desperation
- Houston Texans F Desperation
- Tennessee Titans F Desperation
- Minnesota Vikings F Desperation
- Detroit Lions F Desperation
- Jacksonville Jaguars F Bench
- New England Patriots F Bench
- Chicago Bears F Bench
- Los Angeles Chargers F Bench
- Atlanta Falcons F Bench
- Denver Broncos F Bench
- New York Jets F Bench
- Las Vegas Raiders F Bench
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Zachary Hanshew is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Zachary, check out his archive and follow him @zakthemonster.