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Chicago Bears Rushing Offense at Detroit Lions Rushing Defense (Tough Matchup)
Detroit (7-4) is on a two-game skid coming into this divisional showdown, and are now chasing 8-3 Green Bay for the NFC North title - meanwhile the Bears (5-6) are fighting for their playoff chances and are on a two-game winning streak. Detroit is 4-1 at home and they host the first of two showdowns with Chicago at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day.
Matt Forte remains a force to be reckoned with heading into the final five games of the season - he tore up Tampa Bay for two rushing scores last week with 23/89/2 rushing (and added 5/23/0 receiving), after torching the Vikings for 26/117/0 rushing and 6/58/0 receiving (175 yards from scrimmage) two games back. Forte is a consistent fantasy producer regardless of Jay Cutler's ups-and-downs in the other phase of the game.
The Lions' rush D is still ranked first in the NFL averaging 70.7 yards allowed per game, but they have now coughed up six rushing scores over 11 games after LeGarrette Blount and the Patriots blasted them for 20/90/2 on the ground last Sunday. Arizona had 26/46/0 on the ground two games back - most of the time it is hard to get into the end zone/gain much ground on the Lions in this phase of the game. The New England loss looks like an aberration rather than the start of a trend.
Forte is dangerous in both phases of the game, but he definitely has a tough rushing matchup to deal with in Ford Field on Thanksgiving.
Detroit Lions Rushing Offense vs Chicago Bears Rushing Defense (Tough Matchup)
Detroit (7-4) is on a two-game skid coming into this divisional showdown, and are now chasing 8-3 Green Bay for the NFC North title - meanwhile the Bears (5-6) are fighting for their playoff chances and are on a two-game winning streak. Detroit is 4-1 at home and they host the first of two showdowns with Chicago at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day.
Reggie Bush couldn't play vs. New England last weekend due to his gimpy ankle, leaving Joique Bell (19/48/0 rushing with 1/-2/0 receiving) and Theo Riddick (2/12/0 rushing with 3/40/0 receiving) to tote the load for Detroit during Week 12. Though Bush is reported to be on track for playing on Thanksgiving, we've seen this dance card before - he has made cameos in other games only to aggravate one or another of his injuries and then sit out the balance of a contest. Bell is being fed the ball at a high rate and looks like the best fantasy option heading into Turkey Day.
The Bears' defense limited the Buccaneers' backs to 22/66/0 rushing last weekend, and held Minnesota under 100 yards rushing two games back (16/96/0) - they've played some stout defense against two teams with less-than-stellar options at running back. To date, the Bears are 12th in the NFL averaging 106.8 rushing yards allowed per game to all opponents, and they have allowed just five rushing scores (tied for second-least rushing scores given up this season).
The Lions have some tough customers on their way to Detroit this Thursday - advantage, Chicago.
Dallas Cowboys Rushing Offense vs PHiladelphia Eagles Rushing Defense (Good Matchup)
Both Dallas and Philadelphia are standing at 8-3 coming into this matchup - the teams are in a two-way race for the NFC East crown with New York and Washington out of the picture at 3-8. This is the first game of the two scheduled regular-season meetings between the clubs, at AT&T Stadium where the Cowboys are 3-3 so far this season.
DeMarco Murray has piled up 143/751/4 rushing and 19/182/0 receiving over the six home games played so far this year (5.25 yards per carry on average and 9.58 yards per catch) - he's the engine that drives the Cowboys' offense. Murray has passed the 100-yards-rushing barrier in each of his last two games played (both on the road) with 19/100/0 rushing and 6/31/0 receiving at Jacksonville during Week 10 and 24/121/0 rushing with 2/22/0 receiving at New York last weekend. The only fly in the ointment for his fantasy owners of late has been the lack of TD scoring - but he is seeing touches in the mid-20's consistently, so there are plenty of opportunities for Murray to find pay dirt.
The Eagles' rush D is ranked 16th in the NFL averaging 109.0 yards allowed per game, with six rushing scores given out over 11 contests. They limited Tennessee to 19/56/1 rushing last weekend, after coughing up 25/110/1 to Green Bay two contests back. This is a mediocre unit that has started bleeding six-point plays of late.
Murray is at home for this one and he has a good matchup to anticipate on Thanksgiving day.
Philadelphia Eagles Rushing Offense at Dallas Cowboys Rushing Defense (Neutral Matchup)
Both Dallas and Philadelphia are standing at 8-3 coming into this matchup - the teams are in a two-way race for the NFC East crown with New York and Washington out of the picture at 3-8. This is the first game of the two scheduled regular-season meetings between the clubs, at AT&T Stadium where the Cowboys are 3-3 so far this season.
The Eagles' tandem of LeSean McCoy (21/130/1 rushing with 1/1/0 receiving at Tennessee last weekend) and Darren Sproles (6/25/1 rushing with 3/14/0 receiving) is finally creating some respectable rushing totals, after a slow start over the first half of the season (the Eagles rank 12th in the NFL right now, averaging 118.7 yards rushing per game, with nine rushing scores to date). McCoy has scored TDs in two of the last three games, and has gone over 100 yards combined in two straight games, much to the relief of his fantasy owners. Sproles has posted 39 and 44 yards combined over the last two games, working into the mix as a nice change-of-pace to McCoy.
The Dallas rush D allowed 32/89/1 to the Giants last weekend (2.8 yards per carry) and gave up 21/74/2 to the Jaguars two games back (3.0 yards per carry on average) - they've been so-so at defending the goal line against opposing rushers lately. To date, Dallas is 13th in the NFL averaging 107.2 yards allowed per game, with 10 rushing scores given up over 11 games played.
The Eagles have a neutral matchup in this game, on the road in Dallas on Thanksgiving afternoon.
Seattle Seahawks Rushing Offense AT San Francisco 49ers Rushing Defense (TOugh Matchup)
Seattle and San Francisco are knotted up at 7-4 behind divisional leader Arizona (9-2) - this is the first of two scheduled clashes between these divisional rivals (with profound playoff implications for both), which will go down in Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night.
Marshawn Lynch had lingering symptoms of illness that sickened him during the game vs Arizona last week (15/39/0 rushing with 3/43/0 receiving), and may have suffered from a tight back as well. Though he gutted out the contest, it wasn't his finest moment of the 2014 season, as you can see. To date, he is the fourth-ranked fantasy back in the land (PPR scoring), with 192/852/9 rushing and 27/290/3 receiving to his credit - start him if you've got him. Russell Wilson ran for 10/73/0 rushing last week, making it three games in a row he's had more than 70 yards rushing to his credit.
The 49ers rush D gave up 27/136/1 to Washington's Alfred Morris and company last week, after holding the Giants to 21/65/0 on the ground two weeks ago. This season they are usually in between those totals, with an average of 92.9 rushing yards allowed per game (seventh in the NFL) and only six rushing scores given out over 11 contests
In the 49ers house, we give the home team a slight edge in this matchup - advantage, San Francisco.
San Francisco 49ers Rushing Offense vs Seattle Seahawks Rushing Defense (Tough Matchup)
Seattle and San Francisco are knotted up at 7-4 behind divisional leader Arizona (9-2) - this is the first of two scheduled clashes between these divisional rivals (with profound playoff implications for both), which will go down in Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night.
Frank Gore (13/36/0 rushing vs. Washington) watched Carlos Hyde (7/16/1 rushing) punch in another rushing score last weekend - Hyde is the junior partner in this committee, but he's got twice as many rushing TDs (four) as Gore (two) this season. Hyde has posted 70/255/4 rushing with 8/22/0 receiving in the understudy role this season, while Gore has ground out 171/681/2 rushing with 8/98/1 receiving as the lead back. Neither has been producing featured back numbers in the work-sharing arrangement, much to fantasy owners' chagrin.
The Seahawks' rush D held Arizona to 20/64/0 rushing last week, but got pounded for 30/190/3 rushing at K.C. two weeks ago. To date, the defensive front is ranked sixth in the NFL averaging 88.4 yards rushing allowed per game, with seven rushing scores given up - they are usually a pretty stubborn bunch, the embarrassment at Kansas City standing out as an exception to the rule.
This looks like a tough matchup for the ho-hum stable of fantasy backs that San Francisco fields.
Chicago Bears Passing Offense at Detroit Lions Passing Defense (Good Matchup)
Detroit (7-4) is on a two-game skid coming into this divisional showdown, and are now chasing 8-3 Green Bay for the NFC North title - meanwhile the Bears (5-6) are fighting for their playoff chances and are on a two-game winning streak. Detroit is 4-1 at home and they host the first of two showdowns with Chicago at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day.
The Bears' passing attack continues to perform erratically entering the holiday week, with a mere 17/27 for 130 yards, one TD and zero interceptions thrown by Jay Cutler last week (three sacks taken for -18 yards) against the Buccaneers' 22nd-ranked pass D (that averages 252.1 net yards allowed per game) last week. However, Chicago was more explosive against the Vikings with 31/43 for 330 yards, three TDs and two interceptions thrown during Week 11. During that two-game winning streak, Alshon Jeffery has handled the most passes (21 targets for 14/157/2 receiving), followed by Brandon Marshall (15 for 10/122/2), Matt Forte (12 for 11/81/0) and Martellus Bennett (11 for 8/66/0). All four of Cutler's TD passes have gone to his two featured wideouts.
The Lions' pass D was shredded by Tom Brady and company last week (38/53 for 349 yards passing, two TDs and one interception thrown, with zero sacks taken) after losing a game in Arizona two weeks ago in which Drew Stanton also threw for over 300 yards (21/32 for 306 yards passing, two TDs and two interceptions) - the Lions' vaunted pass rush didn't produce a sack in either game. This unit is in crisis entering this key divisional matchup, friends. The Lions are now 15th in the NFL with 26 sacks generated, while the Bears rank 18th with 27 sacks allowed.
Even though the Bears are on the road, the Lions' pass D is not playing well enough to claim an edge - advantage, Chicago.
Detroit Lions Passing Offense VS Chicago Bears Passing Defense (Good Matchup)
Detroit (7-4) is on a two-game skid coming into this divisional showdown, and are now chasing 8-3 Green Bay for the NFC North title - meanwhile the Bears (5-6) are fighting for their playoff chances and are on a two-game winning streak. Detroit is 4-1 at home and they host the first of two showdowns with Chicago at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day.
The Lions' offense is in a deep funk, with zero TDs (rushing or passing) over the last two games played - Calvin Johnson last caught a TD vs. Miami back in Week 10. With only 183 yards passing at Arizona and 264 yards passing at New England (with one interception thrown per game) Matthew Stafford has been short-circuiting his fantasy owners' lineups lately. One bright spot for Detroit is Golden Tate (11 targets for 4/97/0 receiving at New England last week) who has gone over 1,000 yards receiving for the first time in his career (72/1,047/3 receiving on the season so far). He's well ahead of Calvin Johnson's mediocre 38/578/3 receiving total.
The Bears' pass D gave up 25/48 for 301 net yards passing, one TD and two interceptions (with five sacks for -40 yards) to last year's backup quarterback in Chicago, Josh McCown - two games ago, they coughed up a more modest 18/28 for 147 net yards passing, one TD and one interception to Teddy Bridgewater and company (with two sacks for -11 yards). This year, their average net passing yards allowed, 260.5, is on the low end for NFL defenses (28th in the NFL), while the 25 passing scores surrendered to date is second-most in the NFL behind the Jets' 27 allowed.
The Bears' pass D is bad enough to provide a tonic for Stafford and company - we think the home-team Lions hold the edge in this phase of the game.
Dallas Cowboys Passing Offense VS Philadelphia Eagles Passing Defense (Great Matchup)
Both Dallas and Philadelphia are standing at 8-3 coming into this matchup - the teams are in a two-way race for the NFC East crown with New York and Washington out of the picture at 3-8. This is the first game of the two scheduled regular-season meetings between the clubs, at AT&T Stadium where the Cowboys are 3-3 so far this season.
Dallas comes home after a successful two-game road trip - Tony Romo threw for 18/26 for 275 yards passing, four TDs and zero interceptions at New York last Sunday, and 20/27 for 246 yards passing, three TDs and zero interceptions 'at' Jacksonville in Week 10. During that time frame, only three Cowboys have seen more than five targets: Dez Bryant (17 targets for 13/244/4 receiving), Jason Witten (13 for 9/63/2), and DeMarco Murray (10 targets for 8/53/0). Cole Beasley seems to have supplanted Terrance Williams as the 'other' wideout in the mix with Bryant, with two targets for 2/66/1 at New York and one for 1/11/0 'at' Jacksonville - Williams saw two targets for 1/18/0 receiving at New York over the last two weeks. In fantasy terms, Bryant and Witten are the main receivers for Romo heading into this divisional showdown.
The Eagles' pass D is not strong, having allowed 20/39 for 299 net yards passing, two TDs and one interception to rookie Zach Mettenberger (with five sacks taken for -46 yards) and 24/38 for 365 net yards passing, three TDs and zero interceptions (one sack for -2 yards) to the Packers over the past two games. To date, the Eagles secondary averages 266.3 net passing yards allowed per game (30th in the NFL), with a hefty 24 passing scores given up over 11 games, vs. eight interceptions (tied for 20th in the NFL) and 38 sacks (second) generated so far. Dallas isn't particularly susceptible to allowing sacks, ranking 11th in the NFL with 21 sacks given up to date.
At home this week, Dallas has a great matchup in this phase of the game.
Philadelphia Eagles Passing Offense AT Dallas Cowboys Passing Defense (Good Matchup)
Both Dallas and Philadelphia are standing at 8-3 coming into this matchup - the teams are in a two-way race for the NFC East crown with New York and Washington out of the picture at 3-8. This is the first game of the two scheduled regular-season meetings between the clubs, at AT&T Stadium where the Cowboys are 3-3 so far this season.
Mark Sanchez recovered from the 20-53 beat down the Eagles took at Green Bay (in which he threw 26/44 for 346 yards passing, two TDs and two interceptions, with three sacks taken for -26 yards) to lead the Eagles to a 43-24 win at Tennessee last weekend. Sanchez had a slightly less productive outing, with 30/43 for 307 yards passing, one TD and two interceptions thrown (with two sacks taken for -9 yards), but his special teams and running backs took up the slack to post a lot of points for the Eagles. During the past two weeks, six Eagles have seen double-digit targets: Jeremy Maclin (19 targets for 15/152/1 receiving), Jordan Matthews (16 for 11/184/1), Zach Ertz (12 for 8/85/0), Riley Cooper (12 for 7/88/0), Brent Celek (10 for 6/59/0) and Darren Sproles (10 for 5/37/0). There are a lot of moving parts in this passing attack, as you can see.
The Cowboys' pass D is ranked 19th in the NFL averaging 247.8 net passing yards allowed per game, with 17 passing scores allowed vs. 11 interceptions and 18 sacks generated so far (tied for 11th and 27th-ranked, respectively). New York threw for 29/40 for 328 net yards, three TDs and one interception, with two sacks taken for -10 yards last week; lowly Jacksonville managed 22/37 for 262 net yards, zero TDs and one interception thrown (with four sacks taken for -28 yards) back in Week 11.
This looks like a good matchup for Sanchez and company even though they are on the road Thanksgiving day.
Seattle Seahawks Passing Offense at San Francisco 49ers Passing Defense (bad Matchup)
Seattle and San Francisco are knotted up at 7-4 behind divisional leader Arizona (9-2) - this is the first of two scheduled clashes between these divisional rivals (with profound playoff implications for both), which will go down in Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night.
Russell Wilson has been throwing for modest totals over the last few games - he has thrown for less than 200 yards passing in four of his last five starts, although he did get over that threshold (barely) last week, with 17/22 for 211 yards passing, one TD and zero interceptions. The counter-balance to the anemic passing numbers is that he's been over 70 yards rushing in three straight games, so depending on how your league scores rushing yards for quarterbacks, he may still be a viable fantasy quarterback. But, the lowly passing totals (and Seattle's spread-the-wealth philosophy when it comes to targets) have most of his receivers stuck in fantasy no-man's land. Aside from Marshawn Lynch (3/43/0 receiving vs. Arizona last week), it is likely that neither of the other two receivers that led the Seahawks in receiving last week - Ricardo Lockette (one target for 1/48/0 receiving) or Tony Moeaki (four for 4/34/0) were even started in your local fantasy league. There is little upside to starting a Seahawks' receiver at this point, as the pass distribution is so unpredictable.
The 49ers' pass D is ranked second in the NFL this year, averaging 207.2 net yards allowed per game, with 18 passing scores given out balanced by 16 interceptions (first in the NFL) and 22 sacks (tied for 22nd) to date. Washington's Robert Griffin III III was held under 100 yards (net) last week, with 11/20 for 77 net yards passing, zero TDs with zero interceptions thrown, and five sacks taken for -29 yards. Two weeks ago Eli Manning was blown up for five interceptions thrown on the way to 22/45 for 265 net yards passing, with one TD and two sacks taken for -15 yards. The 49ers have been all over opposing quarterbacks lately, as you can see.
This looks like a bad matchup for the visiting Seahawks.
San Francisco 49ers Passing Offense vs Seattle Seahawks Passing Defense (bad Matchup)
Seattle and San Francisco are knotted up at 7-4 behind divisional leader Arizona (9-2) - this is the first of two scheduled clashes between these divisional rivals (with profound playoff implications for both), which will go down in Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night.
Colin Kaepernick had a solid (but not spectacular) game passing the football against the Washington defense - 20/29 for 256 yards, one TD and one interception thrown, with two sacks taken for -10 yards - adding 9/14/0 rushing to the team effort. It was the fifth straight game in which he's thrown one TD and also the fifth straight game in which he's rushed for less than 25 yards. This year, games like this are what we've come to expect out of Kaepernick. Respectable, but not spectacular. He is back to relying on Anquan Boldin (12 targets for 9/137/1 receiving this week; 32 targets for 20/285/2 receiving over the past three games) and Michael Crabtree (seven targets for 5/58/0 receiving last week; 23 for 11/205/1 over the past three contests) as his top receivers - the dalliance with Brandon Lloyd and Steve Johnson fantasy owners saw earlier in the year is mostly a thing of the past. Boldin is the best option for fantasy owners entering Week 13. Vernon Davis has seen 15 targets over the last three games, but has only converted 5/37/0 and has faded from relevance as a fantasy tight end.
The Seahawks' pass D ate up the Larry-Fitzgerald-less Cardinals on Sunday, holding Arizona to 14/26 for 140 net yards passing, zero TDs and one interception thrown, with three sacks taken for -9 yards. Alex Smith only attempted 16 passes two weeks ago (11/16 for 108 net yards passing, zero TDs or interceptions, with zero sacks taken) - lately, the Seahawks' pass D is back to their shut-down ways of 2013. They rank third in the NFL averaging 208.5 net passing yards allowed per game, with 15 passing scores given up vs. seven interceptions (23rd in the NFL) and 16 sacks (29th) generated this season.
Kaepernick and company have some tough customers arriving at Levi's Stadium on Thanksgiving night. Advantage, Seattle.
