The Seattle Seahawks will face the Arizona Cardinals in Week 12. Here’s fantasy football start-sit advice for every Seahawks skill player who has the potential to make a fantasy impact during the game.
Looking for more lineup advice? Head over to our Week 12 Fantasy Start-Sit Cheat Sheet, where we cover every fantasy-relevant player in every game.
Geno Smith, QB
Geno Smith won the game last week with a sprint to the pylon, a saving grace for an otherwise ineffective fantasy day at the office.
Smith has failed to throw a touchdown pass in two of his past three contests and has just two efforts with multiple TD tosses this season, fueling three finishes outside of the top 20 over his past five games.
The rushing production is too spotty and the passing game is too conservative to count on Smith in most one-QB formats. This matchup doesn’t scare me, though it is worth noting that the Cardinals rank as the 10th-best red-zone defense, but I think Seattle attacks the fourth-worst run defense more with Kenneth Walker III than Smith’s right arm.
Kenneth Walker III, RB
With at least three catches or a touchdown in every game this season, Kenneth Walker III has established a very nice floor that PPR fantasy managers can’t argue with.
A little irritating is the fact that Walker hasn’t offered the one-play potential that we assumed to be in his bag entering this season — he is not one of the five Seahawks with a 30-yard touch this year.
I can’t imagine we end the season with that being the case, and it wouldn’t shock me at all if we got an explosive play this weekend against a Cardinals defense that allows the eighth-most yards per carry after contact to running backs.
As long as Walker is healthy, he’s a top-15 running back for me, and in good spots like this, he’s inside of my top 10 at the position.
Zach Charbonnet, RB
Zach Charbonnet handled 32 carries in the two games that Kenneth Walker III missed but has just 33 rush attempts in the other eight games. That has relegated him to the handcuff only territory that gradually becomes more expendable with time.
The former second-round pick has been unable to find much in the way of running room when given the opportunity this season (0.38 yards per carry before contact this season), leaving me without extreme confidence that he’d rank inside of my top 15 if Walker were to get injured.
If your leagues are like mine and the waiver wire is baron, there’s no need to cut Charbonnet. However, should a win-now manager cut someone of interest to you, feel free to make the swap.
DK Metcalf, WR
The Seahawks have completely punted on DK Metcalf playing in the slot (3.8% of his routes last week), and I think that’s a good thing. Yes, those are the layup targets, but I’m OK with skirting some floor for an increase in ceiling, which is what this move by Seattle reflects.
Metcalf is currently pacing for a career-high in expected PPR points per game (14.8), and with him seeing a 29% target share in his return to action, there are clearly no limitations.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s emergence has some people dragging down their projections for Metcalf, and from a rest-of-season standpoint, I have no issue with that. However, I’m not adjusting for this matchup.
Through 11 weeks this season, the Cardinals allow the ninth-highest completion percentage when opponents throw to the perimeter and are the 11th-best (lowest) in that regard against the slot.
I have no issue in labeling this WR duo as a 1a and 1b situation — not this week, not in this spot.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR
Since 2019, four receivers under the age of 23 have strung together consecutive games with at least seven catches and 110 receiving yards: Ja’Marr Chase (twice), Puka Nacua, Justin Jefferson, and Jaxon Smith-Njiigba (current).
JSN certainly looks the part, and his upward-trending on-field target share didn’t crater with DK Metcalf back in the mix.
- Week 5: 15.6% on-field target share
- Week 6: 17.6%
- Week 7: 19.4%
- Week 8: 24.1%
- Week 9: 31%
- Week 11: 31.4%
His involvement in the red zone is what suffers the most when Metcalf is active, but if Seattle can approach their implied total in this spot (24 points), Smith-Njigba should be able to produce viable WR2 numbers. It is worth noting that Arizona is a little more vulnerable out wide than in tight, thus making Metcalf my preferred DFS play at price, though I still think you’re playing JSN with confidence.
Tyler Lockett, WR
Tyler Lockett entered this season trending in the wrong direction, and the recent emergence of Jaxon Smith-Njigba has all but ended any realistic hope of him projecting as a Flex option moving forward.
Chemistry with Russell Wilson on those deep passes was what made Lockett special for years, but the connection with Geno Smith simply isn’t the same and Father Time is a natural concern for a 32-year-old.
If you’re rounding out your roster with Lockett, I think you’re betting off streaming options that show sparks on a weekly basis. For me, Jalen Coker is a nice option for this weekend, and I’d make that move to see where the rookie goes as opposed to holding onto past production from Lockett.