Three backfields were among the most notable surprises and disappointments in Week 12. Interestingly, one of the teams with an eye-catching backfield change also had another stellar performance from a rookie, making that player a pleasant surprise. Finally, a dud from a speedy wideout halted his momentum.
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Top 5 Fantasy Football Takeaways
Let’s dive into the biggest takeaways from Week 12.
Fantasy Football Week 12 Surprises
Travis Etienne isn’t Going Anywhere
Travis Etienne and Bhayshul Tuten had a tight split in Week 11. The former had a 49% snap share and 19 rush attempts versus a 32% snap share and 15 attempts for the latter. According to the Fantasy Points data suite, Etienne ran 10 routes compared to four for Tuten and two for LeQuint Allen in Week 11. Thus, Etienne was Jacksonville’s lead running back, but Tuten was more efficient, rushing for 74 yards at 4.9 yards per carry, while Etienne had 73 yards at 3.8 yards per carry.
Both players were limited in practice all week, and neither had an injury designation for Week 12. Despite last week’s data point, Etienne proved his lead-back status wasn’t in jeopardy on Sunday. He handled 15 rush attempts for 86 yards, and Tuten had just seven attempts for 17 yards.
Etienne had an even more commanding lead in snaps and routes. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Etienne played 40 snaps and ran 17 routes. Conversely, Tuten played only 13 snaps and ran just six routes, while Allen had nine snaps and ran two routes. Tuten is still one of the top handcuffs, but Etienne remains in the low-end RB1 to high-end RB2 range.
The Packers Have a Competent RB if Josh Jacobs Misses More Time
Josh Jacobs’ status was unclear until Sunday. So, he might return as soon as Week 13. However, Green Bay got a yeoman’s effort from Emanuel Wilson against the Vikings.
The Packers beat the Vikings 23-6, and they leaned heavily on Wilson. The bruising running back handled 28 of the backfield’s 36 rush attempts, and three of Chris Brooks‘ eight rush attempts came on Green Bay’s final drive. Wilson converted his massive workload into 107 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Wilson ran only three routes compared to nine for Brooks. Yet, Wilson had two targets, two receptions and 18 receiving yards. Brooks caught his only target for a five-yard reception. Wilson carries some game-script risk if the Packers are in a negative game script, but he’s a fantastic plug-and-play RB2 whenever Jacobs is out.
A Young Tight End Might Be in the TE1 Mix
Colston Loveland barbecued the Bengals for six receptions, 118 receiving yards and two touchdowns on seven targets in Week 9. Gamers who hoped that effort would be enough for him to take a stranglehold on a full-time gig were disappointed. Instead, Loveland ran 40 routes (51.9% route participation rate), and Cole Kmet ran 41 routes (53.2% route participation rate) in two subsequent contests.
Nevertheless, the rookie right end was more productive than Kmet, and Loveland tallied 0.20 targets per route run (TPRR), seven receptions (3.5 per game), 95 receiving yards (47.5 per game), 2.38 yards per route run (YPRR) and 6.5 half-PPR points per game. He was the TE17 in half-PPR scoring in those two games.
Loveland played 42 snaps and ran 26 routes in Week 12, versus 41 snaps and 17 routes for Kmet. Loveland also had five targets, four receptions, 49 receiving yards and a touchdown. Kmet had one target, one reception and three scoreless receiving yards.
Loveland has tallied at least 40 receiving yards and three receptions in four consecutive games, scoring at least one touchdown in two of those contests. He’s played well enough to warrant low-end TE1 consideration. If he could tilt the scales for routes slightly more in his direction from Kmet, Loveland could emerge as a weekly lineup lock.
Fantasy Football Week 12 Disappointments
D’Andre Swift Might Have Been Bypassed
D’Andre Swift had a dreadful game against the Steelers — eight carries for 15 scoreless yards, one target, one reception, 14 scoreless yards and a fumble lost. Meanwhile, Kyle Monangai had 12 carries, 48 yards and one rushing touchdown.
A look under the hood is even more damning for Swift’s fantasy value. Monangai played 35 snaps and ran 18 routes. Swift played 29 snaps and ran 15 routes. Swift’s fumble occurred early in the second quarter, and he returned to play after it.
Therefore, the playing-time advantage for Monangai wasn’t the result of Swift ending up in the doghouse. Instead, Chicago’s backfield might simply be a hot-hand situation, rendering Swift and Monangai as risky Flex or desperation RB2 options.
Jameson Williams is Still Jameson Williams
The Jameson Williams vibes were high after Dan Campbell took over the play-calling duties in Week 10. The speedy wideout had the following stats in Campbell’s first two games as the play-caller:
- 89.2% route participation rate
- 11.4-yard average depth of target (aDOT)
- 35.3% air yards share
- 18.1% target share
- 0.20 TPRR
- 19.6% first-read rate
- 10 receptions
- 207 receiving yards
- 3.14 YPRR
- 2 touchdowns
The Lions won a thrilling 34-27 overtime contest against the Giants on Sunday. Sadly for managers with Williams, he was a non-factor. Williams played 67 snaps, matching Amon-Ra St. Brown for a skill-position-player high. However, Williams had three targets and zero receptions.
The offense went through Jahmyr Gibbs and St. Brown. Williams will have better days down the stretch. Nevertheless, he’s still a boom-or-bust WR3 or Flex rather than the must-start player he appeared to be in the prior two games.
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Josh Shepardson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Josh, check out his archive and follow him @BChad50.