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Week 12 of the 2023 fantasy football season will conclude with a Monday Night Football showdown between the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings. These NFC North divisional rivals are having much different seasons. While the Vikings are battling for a Wild Card spot in the upcoming NFL Playoffs, the Bears are in the mix for the first pick in the NFL draft next year.
Regardless of what each team plays for in this matchup, all that means little for fantasy football, where every game carries significant importance. Many managers will be looking for their Monday night miracles, while others are out to solidify a win.
Every result this time of year is magnified with the fantasy playoffs right around the corner, so making the right decisions will be crucial. The following breakdown can help managers do so.
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Monday Night Football Week 12 Start 'Em & Sit 'Em fantasy football
Every NFL matchup provides different fantasy football values for the players involved based on a wide number of variables. Determining which players to target and fade comes from weighing all possible factors. This strategy offers much more upside than blindly starting players in fantasy lineups based on their name value alone.
Some of the many variables that should be taken into consideration include recent individual performances, injuries to relevant players, potential game scripts, expected offensive roles, direct weekly matchups and projected team totals. This helps to accurately predict weekly outputs for each player and develop a list of desirable targets.
This process can be long and complicated, but the Start/Sit Optimizer makes it much easier. This valuable tool streamlines the lengthy process of generating fantasy projections and lineup decisions. When properly used as an advantage, it can give the user an edge over the rest of their league.
Injury reports also play an important role when making fantasy lineup decisions. For this particular game, several situations are worth noting. Minnesota Vikings superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson is apparently nearing a return from the injured reserve list and is listed as questionable. He is reportedly not expected to play with the bye week following the game to give him additional rest.
The Chicago Bears will likely be without running back D'Onta Foreman, as he is doubtful on the injury report. This means Khalil Herbert and Roschon Johnson should be expected to handle the backfield workload. Except for Foreman and Jefferson, both teams should have the rest of their usual offensive weapons available.
Considering all this and much more, here is a list of potential players to target and fade in fantasy football on Monday Night Football in Week 12 of the 2023 NFL season.
MNF Week 12 Fantasy Football Start 'Em Picks
Josh Dobbs
Josh Dobbs has been one of the breakout stars of the 2023 fantasy football season, unexpectedly ranking as the overall QB15 in fantasy points per game. He has turned it up even more in his past four outings, ranking among the top seven weekly quarterbacks in three of those games.
The Bears are allowing the 12th most fantasy points per game quarterbacks, putting Dobbs in a solid spot to keep rolling.
Justin Fields
With the exception of a game that he exited early with a thumb injury, Justin Fields has ranked among the top eight quarterbacks in fantasy football in each of his past three full contests. He has done so by throwing nine touchdowns in those matchups and rushing for 186 yards. Fields makes for an excellent fantasy option during his hot streak.
DJ Moore
Despite playing part of this season with Tyson Bagent as his quarterback, DJ Moore still ranks as the WR13 in fantasy points per game this year. He has been significantly more productive with Fields in the lineup, including ranking as the weekly overall WR1 twice.
The Vikings are in the bottom 12 in defending fantasy receivers, so this could be a big week for Moore.
Jordan Addison
With Justin Jefferson expected to be out for another game this week, Jordan Addison remains the Vikings' featured wideout. This has been beneficial to his fantasy football value, including ranking as the WR1 in PPR leagues a few weeks ago. He has also ranked among the top 30 wide receivers in three of Dobbs' starts, making him a strong choice this week.
TJ Hockenson
TJ Hockenson has been the most consistently productive tight end during the 2023 fantasy football season. He has ranked among the top 12 players in his position in nine of his 11 games this year and has finished as the TE1 in PPR leagues twice.
He is a truly elite fantasy option every week, regardless of his matchup, but the Bears allowing the fifth-most fantasy points per game to tight ends is an added bonus.
Cole Kmet
Cole Kmet enters Week 12 as the overall TE7 in fantasy football. He also enters this contest in solid form, having ranked among the top 12 tight ends in three of his past four games and six times total this season. He is a strong weekly lineup option in a position that lacks reliable options.
Managers looking to acquire any of these Week 12 targets should consult the fantasy football trade analyzer first.
MNF Week 12 Fantasy Football Sit 'Em Picks
Alexander Mattison
Alexander Mattison has been disappointing during the 2023 fantasy football season, failing to live up to the high expectations of being a featured back this year for the first time in his career. He has been unable to finish among the top 30 running backs since back in Week 6, and his value could take another hit with the emergence of Ty Chandler.
With the two now expected to share the backfield workload, they can both be left on the fantasy bench.
Khalil Herbert
With D'Onta Foreman not expected to be available for this Week 12 contest, Khalil Herbert is expected to lead the Bears' backfield, with Roschon Johnson backing him up. The Vikings' defense has struggled a bit this year, but they actually excel against the run, including allowing the fifth-fewest fantasy points per game to the position.
Herbert should be faded this week, even with a likely workload increase.
KJ Osborn
Not only should KJ Osborn be left out of fantasy football lineups in Week 12, but he has become droppable in most leagues. He has finished outside of the top 40 wide receivers in eight of his ten games this year. His value will also significantly decrease even further when Justin Jefferson eventually makes his return to the Vikings, which could come in their next game.
Darnell Mooney
Like Osborn, Darnell Mooney has become droppable in most fantasy leagues at this point. He has finished outside of the top 50 wide receivers in PPR formats in eight of his 11 games this year.
Despite a favorable matchup against the Vikings' defense that allows the 12th most fantasy points per game to wide receivers, Mooney is not a legitimate Week 12 lineup option.
