Fantasy football advice, Week 12: Who to start/sit for Rams vs. Bengals

After briefly exciting everyone about a playoff run, the St. Louis Rams have lost three in a row to fall to 4-6 and only barely on the fringes of the playoff conversation. The Cincinnati Bengals, meanwhile, have lost two in a row since starting 8-0. They're still safely in first in the AFC North, but could use a win over St. Louis Sunday to right the ship, as it were.

The Rams are likely to go back to Nick Foles as their quarterback, after last week's starter Case Keenum was bad and suffered a concussion. The team hasn't officially said Keenum is out or that Foles is the starter, but has been preparing that way all week. For Cincinnati, after weeks of exceptional health, the team has quarterback Andy Dalton, wide receiver Marvin Jones and tight end Tyler Eifert all on the injury report. All three are expected to be fine for Sunday, but their presence on the report is an indication of things turning less rosy for the Bengals.

Start ‘em: Yes, the Bengals might stack the box in an effort to stop Todd Gurley. No, it doesn't matter. ... The Rams' defense is strong in just about any matchup; add in the Bengals' occasional propensity to fall apart, and this is a must-start unit.

Sit ‘em: Regardless of who actually starts at quarterback for the Rams — Nick Foles or Case Keenum — you can't possibly consider using either one. There hasn't been a good game out of those two in a long time. ... The arrival of Wes Welker and the disintegration of the team's quarterbacks has ruined what had been a decent fantasy run for Tavon Austin. Between them, Kenny Britt and Jared Cook, there isn't a St. Louis pass-catcher worth a look. ... Greg Zuerlein hasn't offered much in the way of upside this year.

Start ‘em: You're starting A.J. Green. I know, it's been frustrating, and he's only cracked 10 fantasy points once since Week 3, but it's still A.J. Green, and if he goes off the week you bench him, you'll never forgive yourself. ... Tyler Eifert has five games of double-digit fantasy points this year. Only Rob Gronkowski and Gary Barnidge have more. ... Mike Nugent has seven-plus fantasy points in six straight games. ... The Bengals' defense gets to feast on either Nick Foles or Case Keenum this week.

Start ‘em?: With two of his last four games being awful for fantasy, and against a strong defense, maybe you can bench Andy Dalton this week. Odds are he's your best option, but he's not a guy you just start no matter what. ... Listen, good luck figuring out the Jeremy Hill/Giovani Bernard mess. Every time we recommend one higher than the other, it flips. Both are high-ceiling flex options, but overall, who knows.

Sit ‘em: There are weeks it makes sense to toss Marvin Jones out there as an optimistic flex play. This isn't one of them. ... Mohamed Sanu did well last year when Green, Jones and Eifert were all hurt. They aren't hurt.