Cut ‘Em or Keep ‘Em Week 12: Should Moore be trusted again?
Looking at last week’s article, the two players I recommended keeping provided serviceable production for fantasy managers. Jarvis Landry caught three passes for 33 yards and a touchdown, while Greg Dulcich caught four balls for 30 yards on five targets. It isn’t great, but it’s about what you expect from a tight end.
A few injuries and surprise cuts have a hand in this week’s Cut ‘Em or Keep ‘Em.
Keep ‘Em
D.J. Moore (CAR)
Moore’s rollercoaster season continues heading into Week 12 after the Panthers announced Sam Darnold would start Sunday at home against the Broncos.
Denver is a tough matchup but Moore has succeeded with Darnold at QB. Darnold started 12 games last season and Moore posted a 60-848-3 line on 118 targets.
Better days could be ahead for Moore although he may not have a great game against Denver and the team’s bye is in Week 13.
Jerick McKinnon (KC)
McKinnon didn’t have a great game Sunday night against the Chargers but Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s high ankle sprain could open more snaps for McKinnon and rookie Isiah Pacheco.
McKinnon being tied to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense is a plus. McKinnon had six carries for 24 yards and one catch for zero yards with a lost fumble. He had six receptions in each of the previous two games so expect better production for the running back moving forward.
Logan Thomas (WAS)
The Commanders tight end put together his best game of the season with five receptions for 65 yards, leading the team in both receptions and yards.
His playing time has been relatively consistent all season when he’s healthy, although not where his snap share once was a few ago. He played nearly 68 percent of the snaps on Sunday.
Typically someone with only one good game on the season wouldn’t be worth keeping but Thomas is boosted by his schedule and the number of tight end injuries in recent weeks.
His next three opponents are the Falcons and the Giants twice.
Cut ‘Em
Embed from Getty ImagesMatthew Stafford (LAR)
Stafford left Sunday’s game after taking a hit in the third quarter and he was being evaluated for a concussion. Stafford missed the team’s Week 10 game for a concussion.
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As of Tuesday, Stafford was placed back in the NFL’s concussion protocol. Bryce Perkins took over for Stafford in last week’s game. It’s possible Stafford could miss some significant time before he returns.
Stafford can be dropped in most fantasy leagues, even if we find out he can play next week, based on his performance so far this season as well as the loss of Cooper Kupp.
Melvin Gordon (FA)
It’s time for fantasy managers to do to Gordon what the Broncos did to the veteran running back earlier this week — cut him.
Gordon fumbled in last week’s game against the Raiders and it was his last chance in Denver. That was Gordon’s fifth fumble this season and his 12th in 41 games with the Broncos.
The Broncos cut Gordon despite placing Chase Edmonds on I.R., so that signified they had enough of Gordon. Gordon cleared waivers and hasn’t signed with a team as of Wednesday morning. At this point, it doesn’t matter who signs Gordon unless it’s a team that suffers an injury to its starter.
Gordon can be left on waivers until we know where he ends up and that depends on the situation.
Embed from Getty ImagesIsaiah McKenzie (BUF)
I wrote about McKenzie in this article back in Week 5 and I labeled him a keep after he suffered a concussion. A lot has changed in the last seven weeks, most notably McKenzie’s production and playing time.
McKenzie went from a season-high in percentage of snaps to a season-low, according to PFF.
Khalil Shakir played more compared to previous weeks and McKenzie didn’t catch his only target. The Bills threw the ball only 27 times in last week’s win over the Browns.
The Bills have a fairly easy schedule to close out the season, so we could see that game script play out more in the next few weeks.
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