Fantasy football advice, Week 12: Who to start/sit for Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints

Fantasy owners already had enough to deal with on Thanksgiving, whether it’s polarizing dishes, cliché racist uncles, or scalding themselves in the kitchen. So no one wants to add “being served a slice of awful fantasy lineup” to their list of gripes, which is completely understandable. So when the Rams take on the Saints during the first slate of Sunday’s football games, it’s best for fantasy owners to at least attempt avoiding that outcome.

The NFL’s top-ranked passing offense has a bit of a challenge in a capable Rams defense, but the Saints boast the volume and efficiency in the passing game to warrant multiple fantasy starters despite that. Drew Brees and Brandin Cooks can be considered mainstays in fantasy lineups for Week 12 and beyond.

If not for garbage time, Michael Thomas would have likely doomed fantasy owners who took a chance on him in Week 11. The debate between him and Willie Snead isn’t going away anytime soon, but for fantasy owners in need of a high-floor option, Thomas is the preferred receiver to own. Snead’s big ceiling in an explosive offense will give him flex appeal each week, but fantasy owners have to be aware of his downside as well.

If Mark Ingram is cleared from the concussion protocol, and there is a reasonable chance he is due to him practicing throughout the week, then he is on the flex radar in a tough matchup. Should Ingram sit, Tim Hightower would also deserve starting consideration. If both are active, Ingram is the preferred big-play option, but neither has an attractive outlook in that scenario.

Coby Fleener, Brandon Coleman and Travaris Cadet can remain on fantasy benches.

While Todd Gurley’s matchup is with one of the NFL’s worst defenses, it is a unit that has been much improved in recent weeks, especially defending the run. Furthermore, with a game script that likely has the Rams trailing by a wide margin, Gurley may be abandoned in the run game. Though he is worth starting as an RB2, fantasy owners cannot get their hopes up over a matchup that looks far better on paper than on the actual field.

With Jared Goff at the helm, fantasy owners cannot have faith in an offense that has failed to score more than 10 points in a game since Week 6. Fantasy owners need to bench every Ram not named Todd Gurley until further notice.