As we’ve said over the past few weeks, it feels pointless to waste time on the top-10 PPR studs. That’s like putting ’turkey’ on the shopping list for Turkey Day — some things go without saying. However, we will talk about the guys who have emerged as top-25 RBs over the past month. Jeff Wilson Jr. (vs. Texans in Week 12) was an RB1 filling in for Elijah Mitchell in San Francisco early in the season, and he’s an RB1 again now that he’s reunited in Miami with former Niners coach Mike McDaniel. The Dolphins have a juicy matchup with Houston — the most generous D to RBs in fantasy — so lock in JWJ and use running mate Raheem Mostert as a high-floor flex.
Another back who enters the elite conversation is Rachaad White (vs. Browns), who has not completely taken over for Leonard Fournette but certainly seems poised to receive a higher touch share. Cleveland allowed Buffalo’s Devin Singletary and James Cook to each rack up 86 rushing yards in Week 11, and Tampa needs its running game to take pressure off Tom Brady. Both White and Fournette are superb plays this weekend.
WEEK 12 PPR RANKINGS:QBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
It’s no surprise to us that Tony Pollard (vs. Giants) continues playing explosive football on the ground and through the air. He and Ezekiel Elliott are both worthy of starts this weekend, but Zeke has a lower PPR floor and become touchdown-dependent for the first time in his illustrious career. Something that is a bit surprising: Devin Singletary (@ Lions) and James Conner (vs. Chargers) have been reintroduced to the top 20. Buffalo has needed Singletary to step up during Josh Allen’s rut, while Conner finds himself the lone cook in an Arizona RB kitchen. Both Detroit and L.A. rank among the top-five most generous defenses to RBs in PPR scoring, so both backs are no-brainers.
WEEK 12 STANDARD RANKINGS:QBs | RBs | WRs | TEs | D/STs | Kickers
Miles Sanders (vs. Packers) and Dameon Pierce (@ Dolphins) worried us a bit in Week 11 — each looked largely ineffective against the Colts and Commanders, respectively. However, they have very little competition in their respective backfields, and they face squads that have each allowed RB1s to post 18-plus PPR points last week. Stick with them.
The good times should continue to roll for PPR studs Aaron Jones (@ Eagles) and Antonio Gibson (vs. Falcons). Jones has little competition from AJ Dillon anymore, and Gibson has proven to be a much more valuable PPR asset than Brian Robinson Jr. We also expect a great Thanksgiving weekend for Gus Edwards (@ Jaguars) if he can return from his hamstring injury. Kenyan Drake had a rough Week 11 against Carolina, and the Gus Bus should roll against a Jags squad that surrenders the ninth-most PPR points to RBs. He won’t catch (m) any passes, but he’ll have plenty of yards on the ground.
Rhamondre Stevenson (@ Vikings) had a rough go against the Jets, but he’s way too involved as a runner and pass-catcher to bench. Minnesota looked quite beatable against the Cowboys — Pollard and Zeke racked up 122 yards and two TDs on the ground and 114 yards and two TDs through the air. ‘Mondre is an RB2, and teammate Damien Harris is a flex, at best, in PPR formats.
David Montgomery (@ Jets) should continue to see bell-cow usage, but New York stifled Stevenson so we’re cautiously keeping Monty just outside our top 25, which shows how deep the rankings are this week. We also tread lightly with Cordarrelle Patterson (@ Commanders), who coughed the ball up in Week 11 and now faces a Washington D that looked very motivated in a win over Houston (Dameon Pierce almost ended up on the side of milk cartons). And Michael Carter (vs. Bears) has now posted 29 or fewer ground yards in three of the Jets’ past four weeks, so temper your expectations against an underrated Bears D (and don’t bother with James Robinson).
Najee Harris (@ Colts), D’Onta Foreman (vs. Broncos), Isiah Pacheco (vs. Rams), and D’Andre Swift (vs. Bills) all have tough matchups, and there’s on the start-sit bubble in shallow leagues. Harris showed he can still get volume, especially with Jaylen Warren (hamstring) dinged up, so he’s tough to sit. Ditto for Pacheco with Clyde Edwards-Helaire (ankle) ailing. Swift has more upside in PPR formats, but he’s basically a TD-or-bust player, and Foreman hardly gets any targets, so his floor is especially low in PPR.
We’re also not excited about trying to figure out if Latavius Murray (@ Panthers) will get more touches than Melvin Gordon and if Cam Akers (@ Chiefs) is truly the Rams’ lead back. All three backs have solid matchups this week and can work as flexes, but their floors and ceilings are relatively low. (Update: Gordon was waived on Monday, paving the way for Murray to get 15-plus touches.)
Ultimately, you shouldn’t need to dig too deep for starters this week. Deep leaguers can try James Cook (@ Lions) or Elijah Mitchell (vs. Saints), but for the most part, the options are as good and plentiful as Thanksgiving leftovers.
Note: We’ll be updating these RB PPR rankings throughout the week, so check back for analysis and the latest player movement.
Week 12 fantasy RB PPR rankings
Rankings based on full-point PPR scoring leagues.
Rank Player 1 Saquon Barkley, Giants @ Cowboys 2 Austin Ekeler, Chargers @ Cardinals 3 Josh Jacobs, Raiders @ Seahawks 4 Christian McCaffrey, 49ers vs. Saints 5 Kenneth Walker III, Seahawks vs. Raiders 6 Derrick Henry, Titans vs. Bengals 7 Jeff Wilson Jr., Dolphins vs. Texans 8 Rachaad White, Buccaneers vs. Browns 9 Jonathan Taylor, Colts vs. Steelers 10 Nick Chubb, Browns vs. Buccaneers 11 Dalvin Cook, Vikings vs. Patriots 12 Alvin Kamara, Saints @ 49ers 13 Travis Etienne Jr., Jaguars vs. Ravens 14 Tony Pollard, Cowboys vs. Giants 15 Devin Singletary, Bills @ Lions 16 James Conner, Cardinals vs. Chargers 17 Miles Sanders, Eagles vs. Packers 18 Dameon Pierce, Texans @ Dolphins 19 Aaron Jones, Packers @ Eagles 20 Antonio Gibson, Commanders vs. Falcons 21 Gus Edwards, Ravens @ Jaguars 22 Jamaal Williams, Lions vs. Bills 23 Rhamondre Stevenson, Patriots @ Vikings 24 David Montgomery, Bears @ Jets 25 Samaje Perine, Bengals @ Titans 26 Cordarrelle Patterson, Falcons @ Commanders 27 Najee Harris, Steelers @ Colts 28 Michael Carter, Jets vs. Bears 29 Latavius Murray, Broncos @ Panthers 30 Brian Robinson Jr., Commanders vs. Falcons 31 Damien Harris, Patriots @ Vikings 32 D’Onta Foreman, Panthers vs. Broncos 33 Ezekiel Elliott, Cowboys vs. Giants 34 Isiah Pacheco, Chiefs vs. Rams 35 Cam Akers, Rams @ Chiefs 36 D’Andre Swift, Lions vs. Bills 37 James Cook, Bills @ Lions 38 James Robinson, Jets vs. Bears 39 Tyler Allgeier, Falcons @ Commanders 40 Jerick McKinnon, Chiefs vs. Rams 41 Elijah Mitchell, 49ers vs. Saints 42 AJ Dillon, Packers @ Eagles 43 Trestan Ebner, Bears @ Jets 44 Kareem Hunt, Browns vs. Buccaneers 45 Kyren Williams, Rams @ Chiefs 46 Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Buccaneers @ Browns 47 Kenyan Drake, Ravens @ Jaguars 48 Travis Homer, Seahawks vs. Raiders 49 Deon Jackson, Colts vs. Steelers 50 Dontrell Hilliard, Titans vs. Bengals 51 Chris Evans, Bengals @ Titans 52 Benny Snell Jr., Steelers @ Colts 53 Caleb Huntley, Falcons @ Commanders 54 Chuba Hubbard, Panthers vs. Broncos 55 Kenneth Gainwell, Eagles vs. Packers 56 Melvin Gordon III, Broncos @ Panthers 57 Alexander Mattison, Vikings vs. Patriots 58 Matt Breida, Giants @ Cowboys 59 Keaontay Ingram, Cardinals vs. Chargers 60 Nyheim Hines, Bills @ Lions 61 Eno Benjamin, Texans @ Dolphins 62 Raheem Blackshear, Panthers vs. Broncos 63 Isaiah Spiller, Chargers @ Cardinals 64 Justice Hill, Ravens @ Jaguars 65 Rex Burkhead, Texans @ Dolphins
Week 12 RB PPR fantasy projections, rankings from Draft Sharks
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