It was a busy week of football in the NFL with Thanksgiving giving fans a full day of football on Thursday before Sunday’s slate of games. This week was full of dud performances. Maybe it was the extra amount of Thursday football or the Thanksgiving hangover, but a decent amount of players did not get much done in Week 12. Narrowing everything down, here is the biggest fantasy bust at each position for Week 12 of the NFL season.
Quarterback– Eli Manning
113 Passing Yards, -1 Rushing Yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT
After a few competent weeks of football, Eli Manning (and the entire Giants offense) regressed back to its old ways on Thursday. They did very little against the Washington Redskins, who had struggled to stop opposing quarterbacks in the prior three weeks. This is Manning’s worst fantasy performance of the season, totaling less than 4.00 fantasy points. Against a banged up Redskins squad, the expectation was that he might be an OK streaming option.
Outside of Evan Engram, Manning does not have a healthy or reliable receiving target. Manning is now on pace for his lowest passing yardage total since 2008. Try and avoid starting Eli Manning for the remainder of the season.
Running Back– Jordan Howard
6 Rushing Yards, 2 Receptions, 13 Receiving Yards, 0 TDs
It was a bad day all around for the Chicago Bears (especially for their two running backs). Since Jordan Howard is the lead back, he gets the bigger bust designation (over Tarik Cohen who finished Sunday with negative yardage). Howard averaged less than 1.00 yards per carry on Sunday, as the Eagles defense bottled up the run and forced Chicago to throw the ball. The six yards rushing was the lowest total of Howard’s career. Earlier in the season, Howard was held to just seven yards rushing. He followed that game up with 140 yards on the ground and two touchdowns.
Wide Receiver– Michael Crabtree
0 Receptions, 0 Receiving Yards, 0 TDs
Getting ejected from a game for fighting is a quick way to land yourself on the bust list, which is exactly what Michael Crabtree did on Sunday. Crabtree and Aqib Talib got into an altercation early in Sunday’s game which resulted in both players getting ejected. Crabtree did not catch a single pass before his ejection. The Raiders offense played well without Crabtree, picking up a big win to move within a game of the AFC West-leading Chiefs.
Tight End– Greg Olsen
1 Reception, 10 Receiving Yards, 0 TDs
The Carolina Panthers welcomed their star tight end on Sunday but did not need him to do much on Sunday. Greg Olsen had just a single catch on Sunday while shaking off some rust after being sidelined for about two months. Olsen is a reliable tight end going forward even if he did underwhelm against the New York Jets on Sunday.
Defense – Pittsburgh Steelers
28 Points Allowed, 307 Yards Allowed, 4 Sacks, 0 Turnovers
The Pittsburgh Steelers were supposed to have an easy time of things. They were 14-points favorites over the beat up Green Bay Packers but again, the Steelers played to the level of their competition. As they have done previously with the Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts, the Steelers really struggled to earn the win.
The Green Bay Packers gave Steelers fans a bit of a scare on Sunday night, keeping the game close while moving the ball efficiently against one of the best defenses in football. The Steelers lack of turnovers hurt their overall performance on Sunday, leading the Steelers to put up only 4.00 fantasy points. The 4.00 was the lowest total an opposing defense finished with since the Packers lost Aaron Rodgers to injury.
Kicker– Nick Novak
1 FG 20-29, 0 Pats, 1 Missed FGs, 1 Missed PAT
Almost everything went perfectly for the Chargers on Thursday, almost. Their kicker, Nick Novak, seemed to be dealing with a fair amount of pain on Thursday, leading him to miss a 35-yard field goal and an extra point. Novak’s health for the Chargers game next weekend is questionable. Although he could have a good game in Week 13 against Cleveland, playing it safe and grabbing a healthy kicker is a better decision. And see who the Chargers go with because they are playing the Cleveland Browns. They should be able to move the ball and create some opportunities for their kicker.
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