On Target: Yeah, He's that Good

For others, this is the start of your playoffs, which means it's win now or go home. Whichever the case, it's all about making the right decisions about whom to start and sit. You should be checking the matchups, the weather, injury reports and, of course, targets. Some players are seeing a whole lot more action coming their way while many others are falling off and just not getting enough looks to generate the points you need to win each week. Of course, we've got a slew of the same old names, but if you start looking deep enough, you just might find a few surprises capable of coming up big for you at the most opportune moment.

So let's hit the leaderboards.

Week 12 Target Leaders

(Click column headings to sort.)

Moving on to the cumulative numbers:

Overall Targets Leaderboard

(Click column headings to sort.)

Dez Bryant, WR DAL - While he's always been a must-start, his increase in target percentage should definitely be noted as it jumped from 24.4 percent to 26.1 percent this week. The Cowboys said they wanted to get him even more involved in the offense and, true to their word, he was the most-targeted player on the field throughout Sunday's game. However, he's seen no red-zone looks in the last three games and has just two touchdowns in his last six, both of which came in the same game. He'll look to break that scoreless trend this week as the Raiders are giving up more than 80 yards per game to opposing No. 1 receivers and have allowed 21 touchdowns through the air this season.

Vernon Davis, TE SF - While the 49ers may have thrown the fewest passes in the NFL this season, Davis is always a huge threat in that offense. His 25.3-percent target rate is the highest of any tight end and his 45.2-percent target rate inside the red zone leads the NFL. He has touchdowns in back-to-back games, three touchdowns in his last four games and nine touchdowns all year. He does have a fairly tough matchup this week against the Rams, who rank fifth in the league against tight ends and allow just 40.9 yards per game to the position. But with the possibility of Michael Crabtree returning to join Anquan Boldin and Mario Manningham, the defensive backs are going to have their hands full all game, leaving some mismatched coverage on Davis by linebackers who will struggle to keep pace.

Eric Decker, WR DEN - A few weeks ago, it was noted that Peyton Manning was doing a phenomenal job of spreading the ball around and Decker, Demaryius Thomas and Wes Welker were seeing a fairly similar number of targets. However, since their Week 9 bye week, Decker has seen just five targets per game, and his target percentage has dropped to just 19.1 percent. Heading into the bye, it was at 21.1 percent, and while the difference may not seem like much, just look at how little his 15 targets have done for fantasy owners these last three weeks.

Red Zone Target Percentage

Larry Fitzgerald, WR ARI - Not only has he seen more targets lately, he's seen a big jump in red-zone looks the last two weeks, jumping from a 32-percent red-zone target rate to 35.7 percent. Obviously, he's always had the talent, but the difference lately is that Carson Palmer has finally stepped up his game, throwing for a ridiculous 733 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions these last two weeks. Fitzgerald has three of those touchdowns, and now the two will match up against a 26th-ranked Eagles pass defense that ranks 16th in the league against No. 1 wideouts and gives up 83 yards per game to them.

Martellus Bennett, TE CHI - It's been a rough road for Bennett since Jay Cutler went down, and you're not only seeing a hit in the number of targets, but in red-zone looks as well. Before Cutler was injured, Bennett was seeing 28.6 percent of the team's red-zone targets. Today, he's looking at just 24.2 percent, and his touchdown last week was just his first in his last four games. He's shown a boost in his yards after the catch these last two weeks, so perhaps Josh McCown has some renewed faith in his tight end. One can only hope as they face Minnesota this week, a team that ranks 18th in the league against opposing tight ends and allows 58.7 yards per game to them.

Potential Risers (those who failed to make the cut this week):

Tavon Austin
Jarrett Boykin
Rueben Randle
James Jones
Brandon Pettigrew

Potential Fallers

Chris Givens
Dexter McCluster
Robert Woods
Kris Durham
Scott Chandler

Week 13 Matchup to Watch

Green Bay Packers at Detroit Lions - Nothing better than some fantasy fireworks on Thanksgiving, and it all kicks off with this matchup. Detroit's pass defense ranks 27th, Green Bay's ranks 29th and both quarterbacks love to air it out. Matt Flynn has Jordy Nelson, Jarrett Boykin and James Jones to look for all game while Matthew Stafford adds Nate Burleson to his arsenal that obviously includes the best wide receiver in the game in Calvin Johnson. The Packers could tone it down early while they establish the run with Eddie Lacy, but both teams should be heaving the rock heavily in the second half. Get those receivers active.

A very happy Thanksgiving to you all.

Eat lots!