Week 12 of the 2021 NFL regular season is here, which means it's time to separate the playoff contenders from the pretenders. There are plenty of matchups to be excited about -- especially from a gambling perspective. Can the red-hot cover a touchdown spread against a top-seeded Titans team that has been ravaged by injuries? Will the Rams, losers of two straight, finally bounce back against the Packers on the road? Will Philadelphia or Washington move a game closer to Dallas in the NFC East standings?
We're here to track all the betting and fantasy angles you need to know as we approach kickoff in Week 12, including line movements, injury updates, inactive lists, depth chart news, the buzz on the betting market, key information from our partners at Caesars Sportsbook and plenty more.
Here's a look at the odds (as of Saturday) for Sunday's Week 12 slate:
Falcons (-2) at Jaguars, O/U 45.5
Panthers (-2.5) at Dolphins, O/U 42
Buccaneers (-3) at Colts, O/U 53
Jets at Texans (-2.5), O/U 44.5
Eagles (-3.5) at Giants, O/U 45.5
Steelers at Bengals (-3.5), O/U 44
Titans at Patriots (-7), O/U 43.5
Chargers (-2.5) at Broncos, O/U 47
Rams (-1.5) at Chargers, O/U 47
Vikings at 49ers (-3.5), O/U 49
Browns at Ravens (-3.5), O/U 47
Seahawks at Washington Football Team (PK), O/U 46.5
Get the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook and others for each Week 12 game, here.
Before you get to the latest buzz, let's make sure you have all the right tools to dominate Week 12:
Marquise Brown will return to the lineup for the Ravens in Week 12 barring any setbacks after dealing with a thigh injury that held him out last game. Brown will once again be a locked-in WR2 with WR1 upside. He has out-targeted all Ravens receivers and continues to be a deep target/big play threat on any possession.
Although Cordarrelle Patterson (ankle) has been trending toward returning for the Falcons against the Jaguars in Week 12 all week, he'll be a true game-time call -- and will test his injury in pregame warmups. The Falcons want to play it safe with their biggest offensive playmaker after seeing the offense falter in Week 11 without him, so the extra rest coming off Thursday Night Football might ultimately be outweighed by the long-term outlook here. For now, keep an eye on the inactives before you set Patterson in your lineups.
D'onta Foreman is expected to get the "bulk of carries" for the Titans in Week 12, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Foreman fell behind Adrian Peterson in the total carries pecking order last week, but the Titans have since moved on from Peterson. Jeremy McNichols will be inactive so Foreman's main competition for touches will come from Dontrelle Hiillard. Last week, Hillard led the Titans backs in targets and should remain involved in the pass game. Whoever takes over the red zone role will likely be most valuable and Foreman projects to have the best chance there.
ESPN's Dianna Russini reports Matthew Stafford "has elbow pain and his back has a chronic issue" and that his "health is certainly an issue" but he is still expected to play in Week 12. He has lost practice reps in recent weeks and has been sacked more than nearly any QB in the NFL since Week 9. What this could mean for you and your Fantasy rosters is a scaled-back Rams deep passing game and more of a focus on the run game -- assuming the defense on the other side of the ball cooperates. In Week 12 against the Packers, and moving forward until proven otherwise, Stafford remains a back-end QB1 option.
The Giants went back to the drawing board this week after firing OC Jason Garrett and one of the big talking points was that they had to first focus on making WR Kenny Golladay a big factor starting right away. The Giants signed Golladay to a massive $72 million contract this offseason and yet he hasn't scored a touchdown once so far in 2021. That could change in Week 12. Although the matchup isn't perfect, and the pass game is hard to trust with Daniel Jones at the helm right now, Golladay could be looking at a game plan centered around him and something in the vicinity of double-digit targets. This makes him a high-upside WR3 for maybe the first time in 2021.
