2009 Fantasy Football Start and Bench Advice: Week 12

Here is our Week 12 Fantasy Football Start and Bench Advice for the 2009 Fantasy Football Season. Start ‘EM & Sit ‘Em Advice was meant to be bold, yet calculated. We know that and we understand that. We also understand that fantasy owners aren’t looking for answers to the obvious questions, which is why we have addressed more dilemma-like situations entering Week 12 of the 2009 fantasy football season.

Week 12 Start & Bench Advice

Should I start LeSean McCoy (vs. WAS) or Thomas Jones (vs. CAR) ?

I like both runners this week, as LeSean McCoy faces the 25th ranked Redskins rushing defense and Thomas Jones faces the league’s 26th ranked rushing defense and Carolina has given up 11 rushing touchdowns so far this season. Both should rush for over 100 yards and both should score… it’s just a matter of which back scores twice, or which back has more receiving yards. Honestly, both should be starting unless you’re stacked at running back right now. If forced to pick just one, I roll with McCoy. I expect McCoy to rack-up over 140 total yards and 1TD. I see Jones rushing for 110 and 1TD. Again, both should dominate in similar fashion in Week 12.

Should I start Carson Palmer (vs. CLE) or Matt Ryan (vs. TB) ?

In Week 12, Carson Palmer goes up against a poor Browns’ passing defense (26th), while Matt Ryan and the Falcons face a respectable 14th ranked Bucs unit. While most would go Palmer in this situation, I say roll with Matt Ryan. Palmer has just one passing touchdown in three games, while Ryan is coming off a great Week 11 outing (200+/2TDs) and has six multiple touchdown performances this season. Both are solid starts, and again Palmer’s match-up is much easier, but Roddy White is going to have a big game in this one… Ryan is going to feed him all day!.

Should I start Ryan Grant (@DET) or Kevin Smith (vs. GB) ?

tavaner is a contributor of fantasy footballxtreme I start Ryan Grant with no hesitation in this matchup. The Lions surrender over 116 ypg on the ground and won’t be able to load the line with Aaron Rodgers dropping back to pass. Grant posted a respectable 90 yards rushing, adding another 17 with three receptions last time these teams met in week 6. Meanwhile Kevin Smith will take on a Packer defense that has not allowed over 59 yards rushing the last three weeks and held Smith to 61 yards rushing in their last game. In that game GB got out early in the second half to a big lead and reduced Smith to a non- factor. I expect a similar outcome this week.

Should I start Knowshon Moreno (vs. NYG) or Marion Barber (vs. OAK) ?

tavaner is a contributor of fantasy footballxtreme This matchup is closer than you might think. Marion Barber is the RB start in this situation as he got the bulk of the carries last week against a stout Redskin defense and rushed for 99 yards on the ground. This week he faces a Raider defense that surrenders 157 ypg on the ground and should have a strong game. While the Giants snapped a four game losing street last week Denver will prove a tougher matchup at Mile High, especially for Eli Manning and Steve Smith. Another facet to consider if the health of Kyle Orton. If he cannot perform well the Giants can stack the line against Knowshon Moreno and limit his effectiveness. As it is Moreno is an RB2 against the Giants this week, just not as strong a start as Barber will be.

Should I start Ricky Williams (@BUF) or Ray Rice (@PIT) ?

xyz is a Fantasy Football Xtreme contributor Most already know what a great game Ricky Williams had last Thursday night against Carolina. In case you forgot, he totaled 138 yards and 3 touchdowns on 24 touches. That’s pretty impressive considering he is 32 and in the midst of his 9th season, but will it continue this week in Buffalo? Sure can. Even though Maurice Jones-Drew had pedestrian numbers last week against Buffalo (66 yards rushing), on the whole Buffalo is still ranked 31st against the run, giving up a whopping 166 yards per game. That said, the real question is do you start him over a stud player like Ray Rice? I say yes, with an exception. If you play in PPR, I still start Rice with no questions asked, but in standard scoring I say go ahead and start Ricky over Rice simply because of how good Pittsburgh is on defense overall (#1), and in particular against the run (#1). I wouldn’t blame anyone if they still went with Rice either way, but I think when a tough matchup presents itself and you have a great option on the bench, it makes sense to play that option.

Should I start Anquan Boldin (@TEN) or Mike Sims-Walker (@SF) ?

xyz is a Fantasy Football Xtreme contributor I continue to scream Mike Sims-Walker’s name from the rooftops at FFX headquarters… I hope you are listening. Stud, stud, stud. He is the next big fantasy stud at WR and I will continue to beat the drum to make sure everyone knows it. This week Sims-Walker has another great matchup against a 49er team that is simply horrible against the pass – ranked 30th overall and coming off a week 11 game where they gave up 126 yards and a TD to Greg Jennings. I think Sims-Walker is a cinch for similar numbers this week. On the other side we have Anquan Boldin facing a Tennessee squad ranked even worse – 31st overall against the pass. However, since that 59-0 debacle against New England, the Titans have tightened up and have not given up more than 85 yards to any WR – and that includes Sims-Walker, Terrell Owens and Andre Johnson. Sure, the Cardinals can throw against anyone, but Boldin is still the second option with Larry Fitzgerald around and this game will play tighter than most think. And all of that assumes Kurt Warner starts in this game – if Leinart gets the nod, all bets are off. I start Sims-Walker this week and don’t look back.

2009 Defensive Rankings Against The RUN Entering Week 12

Here are the defensive ranks against the run through Week 11.

Rk	Team	G	Yds	Yds/G	TD
1	Pittsburgh Steelers	10	692	69.2	2
2	Cincinnati Bengals	10	843	84.3	4
3	Minnesota Vikings	10	855	85.5	3
4	Green Bay Packers	10	907	90.7	3
5	Baltimore Ravens	10	921	92.1	6
6	San Francisco 49ers	10	947	94.7	9
7	Dallas Cowboys	10	1,006	100.6	4
8	Arizona Cardinals	10	1,032	103.2	7
9	Tennessee Titans	10	1,041	104.1	8
10	Philadelphia Eagles	10	1,043	104.3	7
11	New York Giants	10	1,048	104.8	14
12	Miami Dolphins	10	1,059	105.9	10
13	Indianapolis Colts	10	1,076	107.6	7
14	New England Patriots	10	1,094	109.4	3
15	Seattle Seahawks	10	1,105	110.5	8
16	New York Jets	10	1,115	111.5	8
17	Jacksonville Jaguars	10	1,121	112.1	6
18	Denver Broncos	10	1,153	115.3	6
19	New Orleans Saints	10	1,157	115.7	12
20	Detroit Lions	10	1,162	116.2	9
21	San Diego Chargers	10	1,185	118.5	7
22	Houston Texans	10	1,206	120.6	13
23	Chicago Bears	10	1,223	122.3	9
24	Atlanta Falcons	10	1,261	126.1	9
25	Washington Redskins	10	1,284	128.4	5
26	Carolina Panthers	10	1,307	130.7	11
27	Kansas City Chiefs	10	1,386	138.6	9
28	St. Louis Rams	10	1,464	146.4	14
29	Cleveland Browns	10	1,549	154.9	13
30	Oakland Raiders	10	1,577	157.7	16
31	Buffalo Bills	10	1,659	165.9	15
32	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	10	1,689	168.9	12

2009 Defensive Rankings Against The PASS Entering Week 12

Here are the defensive ranks against the pass through Week 11.

Rk	Team	G	Yds	Yds/G	TD	Int
1	Washington Redskins	10	1,616	161.6	10	6
2	New York Giants	10	1,774	177.4	17	8
3	Denver Broncos	10	1,825	182.5	10	7
4	New York Jets	10	1,829	182.9	7	7
5	Carolina Panthers	10	1,850	185	12	11
6	New England Patriots	10	1,873	187.3	14	13
7	Green Bay Packers	10	1,918	191.8	20	14
8	Chicago Bears	10	1,978	197.8	18	10
9	Buffalo Bills	10	2,008	200.8	8	17
9	Philadelphia Eagles	10	2,008	200.8	15	16
11	San Diego Chargers	10	2,026	202.6	13	10
12	Oakland Raiders	10	2,075	207.5	8	7
13	Pittsburgh Steelers	10	2,087	208.7	11	8
14	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	10	2,094	209.4	22	12
15	Houston Texans	10	2,128	212.8	11	8
16	New Orleans Saints	10	2,149	214.9	9	20
17	Baltimore Ravens	10	2,179	217.9	11	11
18	Indianapolis Colts	10	2,182	218.2	7	11
19	Cincinnati Bengals	10	2,262	226.2	12	12
20	Dallas Cowboys	10	2,293	229.3	14	7
21	Minnesota Vikings	10	2,315	231.5	14	7
22	Miami Dolphins	10	2,356	235.6	12	9
23	Seattle Seahawks	10	2,368	236.8	19	8
24	St. Louis Rams	10	2,387	238.7	15	8
25	Jacksonville Jaguars	10	2,440	244	17	9
26	Cleveland Browns	10	2,471	247.1	15	6
27	Arizona Cardinals	10	2,472	247.2	15	11
28	Kansas City Chiefs	10	2,510	251	17	7
29	Atlanta Falcons	10	2,534	253.4	16	8
30	San Francisco 49ers	10	2,561	256.1	11	11
31	Tennessee Titans	10	2,717	271.7	25	11
32	Detroit Lions	10	2,753	275.3	24	6