After taking our routine Week 10 Bye, Keeping it Real with Fantasy is back. Besides Myles Garret trying to end a man’s career on national television, there wasn’t much missed on Thursday Night Football. The Lance is here to help you begin to make a playoff push.

News and Injuries:

Austin Hooper (Falcons) –  The Falcons’ tight end was silently destroying the competition. Although playing one fewer game, he was tied with Travis Kelce for the most receptions by a tight end. Hooper was tied for the most touchdowns by a tight end as well and has recorded the most points by a tight end in PPR. He injured his knee during last week’s game against the Saints and is set to be back before the fantasy playoffs. 

Devonta Freeman (Falcons) –  Freeman has missed 16 games in the past two seasons. This past week, he injured his foot against the Saints and is out for at least two games. 

Emanuel Sanders (49ers) – Before exiting the Monday Night game against the Seahawks, Sanders caught two passes for 24 yards. He was hot out of the gate since being dealt to the 49ers, catching 11 passes and two touchdowns in his last two outings. A major loss for the 49ers offense. 

Tyler Lockett (Seahawks) – Perhaps the most notable injury, Lockett was injured during the overtime period of Seattle’s Week 10 win against the 49ers. He spent the night in the Bay Area with a lower leg contusion, which led to swelling in his leg. Coach Carroll was unhappy with the outcome as the injury looked severe, but it was the best possible timing for the Seahawks as they have a week 12 bye week. He “should be fine to play by their week 12 matchup against the Eagles,” according to Carroll.

Notable Starts and Sits:

Starts-

Josh Jacobs(Raiders) – With Jacobs starting to get into a rhythm and putting up lots of points for fantasy users, he is an easy start. To add to this, he will be going up against the winless Bengals, who have allowed the most yards per game in the NFL.

Josh Allen(Bills)- Going into Miami this week, Allen looks to put up another multiple touchdown game against the Dolphins, which he has done the last three times they met. Josh Allen get throw touchdowns and even run them in too. If the Dolphins defense cripples once again, Allen will be looking to have a career game. 

Courtland Sutton(Broncos) – With Emanuel Sanders being shipped off to San Francisco, that leaves Sutton as the no. 1 receiver. Even with Sanders in Denver, Sutton had a lot of targets and receptions for the team. Now that Sanders is gone, Sutton’s value will boost and he will start to score more points

Sits-

Jimmy Garoppolo(49ers)- With Emanuel Sanders and George Kittle dealing with hefty injuries, Garoppolo has to adapt to his weakening receiving core. Garoppolo has not put up amazing numbers, so taking away his top two receivers will decrease his value. 

Calvin Ridley(Falcons)- With the Panthers team holding all receivers to just 5 touchdowns, Ridley is going into Carolina against a tough pass defense. Even though his numbers should have gone up due to the absence of Austin Hooper and Mohamad Sanu Sr., his numbers have not gone up. Ridley has not gotten enough targets to make a huge impact and is being shadowed by Julio Jones in the No.1 spot. 

Ronald Jones II (Buccaneers) – With Jones being named the starter for the remainder of the season, he will be facing the Saints this week. Although the Saints did not have a hot week against the Falcons, they were able to hold off the run game. We do not anticipate them allowing Jones to have a big game.

Waiver Wires:

Jacob Hollister (Seahawks)– After Will Dissly hurt his Achilles and was ruled out for the remainder of the season, Hollister had to step up and produce for the passing offense. He is a solid pickup and an underrated tight end. He hauled in a touchdown against the 49ers after a big win on Monday night. If he continues to get targets, we expect him to play a bigger role in the Seahawks offense. 

Luke Stocker(Falcons) – With another injury to one of the best tight ends in the league, Austin Hooper, Stocker is next in line. Although we have not seen much from Stocker, he is listed at starter and will have an increased number of snaps. You should consider picking him up if your team is lacking a solid tight end.