First and foremost, Happy Belated Thanksgiving! I hope you enjoyed it with family and friends and that your fantasy football lineup just made it that much sweeter. This version of “Shore Thing Sleepers” will be constructed of games from Sunday and Monday because what’s better than Thanksgiving leftovers?
As always, I’ll recap last week’s article. It was one of those weeks where, despite the result not being the best, I was pretty decent everywhere around the board except for one player who weighed the score down. We had three decent winners in Roschon Johnson (+2.8), C.J. Stroud (+1.6) and Xavier Legette (+0.8). Then Justin Watson and Jeremy McNichols were either 0.3 points over or under projection. Still, due to injuries in the Commanders’ RB room, McNichols is an interesting option that might be available on the waiver wire. The whiff of Isaiah Likely scoring seven points under projection was the only thing weighing the total down to 1.8 points under projection. Considering everything, I’ll take it!
Well, enough of the chitter-chatter! Let’s gobble up some leftover sleepers to consider in your Week 13 start/sit decisions!
Fantasy Football Start/Sit Consideration: Week 13 Sleepers
Quarterback
Bryce Young (Carolina Panthers)
With his recent performances, the murmurs are happening that Bryce Young can finally move up from the kids’ table. Since getting the starting job back in Week 8, he is averaging 196 passing yards, 1.2 touchdowns, 0.7 interceptions and 13.7 fantasy points per game. More impressively, he has not thrown an interception in back-to-back games and has finished in the top 17 in both those weeks. Young has also thrown a touchdown in every game during this four-game span!
This week, he faces his divisional opponent, the Buccaneers. Although Tampa Bay’s defense performed well against the Giants last week, it was primarily because it was led by Tommy DeVito. A 10.8-fantasy point performance by DeVito is tied for the lowest score that the Buccaneers have allowed this season. In the nine other games, a quarterback has scored at least 14.4 fantasy points.
That 14.4-fantasy point performance was by Spencer Rattler, and that’s where the Buccaneers are getting demolished this season. In the three divisional games this season, the Buccaneers are allowing an average of 342 passing yards, three touchdowns, an interception and 26.1 fantasy points against NFC South competition.
The former first-overall pick might be finally turning the page with his impressive recent performances. With him starting to bubble, facing a Buccaneers’ defense still struggling, especially against divisional opponents, it’s not that far-fetched to start trusting Young.
Running Back
Travis Etienne (Jacksonville Jaguars)
You never mess with an original Thanksgiving family recipe. We want the 2022-2023 version of Travis Etienne, not whatever this 2024 version of him is. He started the season just fine, scoring 12+ fantasy points in four of his first five games.
However, since suffering a hamstring injury in Week 6, he has not scored over 6.3 fantasy points. Facing the Texans might just help him return to his original form, though! Etienne has seen 11+ carries in six games this season, all coming in games when he didn’t suffer an injury or was returning from an injury.
The Texans have been struggling with 11+-carry running backs since Week 7. In all but one game during that span, there has been a running back with that carry quota to score at least 10.5 Points Per Reception (PPR) fantasy points. The average rushing yards these running backs have is 79.5, with half of them scoring touchdowns.
The Jaguars are also having injuries at the receiver position, which means Etienne could see a sprinkle of targets! Getting a well-needed rest coming off the bye week, it’s possible we can have flashbacks to when he was killing it the previous two years and prior at Clemson.
Audric Estime (Denver Broncos)
It must be a “Cyber Monday” sale for running backs with their last names beginning and ending in E. Audric Estime was the talk of the town when he had 14 carries for 53 rushing yards and 5.3 fantasy points in Week 10. Then, in the next two games, he had a combined nine carries for 40 scrimmage yards and seven fantasy points. I intend on taking advantage of this sale on “Monday Night Football” with Sean Payton‘s havoc creation of this trio of Broncos running backs. We’ve now gone five straight games where a Broncos running back has not been the leading fantasy scorer in the backfield for consecutive weeks.
The matchup of the Browns couldn’t be any more sweeter. Cleveland has allowed a running back to score 12.9 fantasy points in four straight games, but that’s not even the part that has me salivating. Let’s take a closer look at the last two games after the bye!
In Week 11, Alvin Kamara had 67 rushing yards and 89 combined yards, which sounds decent! Just remember, that was the game where Taysom Hill had 138 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. So, two players scored 12.9+ fantasy points with 67+ rushing yards. In Week 12, Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris both had 41+ rushing yards, 13+ receiving yards and 7.4+ fantasy points.
Is it just me, or does it sound like the Browns can’t stop the run? He might only be projected a low total as of publication, but that’s just part of this “Cyber Monday” savings because I estimate (or should I say “Estime”) that he will outscore that projection!
Wide Receiver
Xavier Legette (Carolina Panthers)
Hopefully, we’ll go from feasting on turkey legs on Thursday to seeing Xavier Legette feast against the Buccaneers on Sunday. Legette has been a blessing for Young since he’s regained the starting role. Since Young returned as the starter, Legette has averaged 3.7 receptions on 5.7 targets for 40.7 receiving yards, 0.5 touchdowns and 10.9 fantasy points in those four games.
It’s quite ironic that the Buccaneers have allowed a receiver to have exactly four catches on six targets in two of their last four games. Those receivers oaveraged 53.5 yards, 0.5 touchdowns and 12.3 fantasy points, with a floor of 7.4 fantasy points. The Buccaneers have also gone back-to-back games of allowing a receiver duo to have five-plus targets to score 9.7+ fantasy points! So, let this 23-year-old rookie enjoy his feast!
Marquez Valdes-Scantling (New Orleans Saints)
The relative that you haven’t seen in years has finally returned home, and it’s time to live up to the good old days! You cannot explain it better than that for Marquez Valdes-Scantling because in his past two games, he has totaled five receptions for 196 yards and three touchdowns. He’s now scored as many touchdowns in his past two games as he did in the last two seasons combined!
He now looks to continue this two-game streak of 87+ receiving yards and a touchdown against the Rams. In the last five weeks, Los Angeles has allowed the seventh-most fantasy points to wide receivers. In three of the last four games specifically, the Rams have allowed a receiver to have 63+ receiving yards, and all of them have scored a touchdown.
Yes, you read that correctly! Valdes-Scantling, who has gone 87+ receiving yards and scored a touchdown in consecutive games, faces the team where every receiver with 63+ receiving yards in three of the last four games has scored a touchdown and 15.3+ fantasy points.
Tight End
Kyle Pitts (Atlanta Falcons)
Gather the family and go see the rollercoaster named the “Kyle Pitts Experience.” This rollercoaster is full of ups and downs, loop-de-loops and bumps. It’s what you signed up for!
We are currently on the bumpy part of the ride, as in two of his last four games, Pitts has seen four-plus receptions, 55+ yards and 9.5 fantasy points! The other two games in that span have resulted in one reception and no scores. While we don’t know what the rest of the experience will encounter, I believe this next part of the ride will be one of the most exhilarating parts!
In four non-divisional home games this season for Pitts, he is averaging 3.2 receptions for 40.2 yards, 0.2 touchdowns and 8.7 fantasy points. That includes three games where he scored at least 7.9 fantasy points! This week, he faces the Chargers, who allowed Mark Andrews to go for five receptions, 44 yards and a touchdown to score 15.6 fantasy points last week in Los Angeles. However, in their last two road games, the Chargers have allowed a tight end to see an average of five receptions, seven targets and 7.9+ fantasy points!
So, please remain seated and keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times. After all, it wouldn’t be a rollercoaster without any bumps!
Check out all of our Week 13 fantasy football content:
- Fantasy Football Whiplash! | Week 13 News & Notes (2024)
- Week 13 Fantasy Football Advice Mailbag (2024)
- Week 13 NFL DFS Picks & Lineup Advice (2024)
- Week 13 Shore Thing Sleepers (2024)
- Week 13 In the Scope Targets (2024)
- PropKings: NFL Week 13 (2024)
Thanks for reading this week’s “Shore Thing Sleepers.” If you’re looking for more fantasy content like this or need help with the last-minute fantasy football start/sit decisions for your roster, you can find me on Facebook at “Fantasy Sports Start or Sit’Em Questions” or on Twitter/X @FSSOSEQ.
*Photo Credit: Bob Donnan – USA TODAY Sports*
