For the past 12 weeks, the incomparable Marcas Grant has handled this column. Starting today, he's officially passing the torch to me. Hopefully I'll be able to help some of you solve those confounding flex questions, like which committee back to start or which random wide receiver to plug in off waivers. Remember to use the hashtag #FixMyFlex on Twitter or to reply to the tweets from the @NFLFantasy handle to have your questions answered here each week.
Adam Humphries has a touchdown in back-to-back games from Jameis Winston, but I still have trust issues with the Buccaneer pass-catchers not named Mike Evans. Doug Baldwin didn't practice Wednesday with a groin injury, but it could have been for rest purposes as he played the full game last week. Regardless, I think the move here is to go with A.J. Green. I understand the hesitation, as he's coming off a toe injury and now has Jeff Driskel under center. However, he's the clear-cut No. 1 option for the Bengals and Driskel is likely to hammer Green with targets all afternoon. Go with the star here.
As crazy as it might sound, we currently live in a world where David Moore is a better start than Alshon Jeffery. Since Golden Tate's arrival in Philadelphia, Jeffery owns just a 15 percent target share, averages 40 yards per game and hasn't found the end zone. Now, Moore only has a 17 percent share in the Seahawks offense over that same span of weeks, but he's a big-play threat and who's posted 4-57-0 and 4-103-1 lines over his last two weeks. Jeffrey and the Eagles may struggle against Washington's defense a bit, whereas Russell Wilson and the Seahawks won't find as much resistance against the 49ers. My pick is Moore.
Talk about first-world flex problems. This one is close, and I initially wanted to lean with Nick Chubb, as he's been on fire as the Browns lead back and is even running about as many routes in the passing game as Duke Johnson. However, Aaron Jones is also on fire in the Packers backfield, and he has a much more favorable matchup as the Arizona Cardinals come to Lambeau Field this Sunday. Only the Raiders have conceded more rushing yards than the Cardinals this year, and no team has allowed more rushing touchdowns (14). The Packers are heavy favorites over the Cardinals, so Jones should see plenty of work. The Browns could be in a much tighter battle with the Texans, who boast one of the better run defenses in fantasy football.
It's hard to not pick Tyler Lockett here, as he's been phenomenal for the the Seahawks this season. However, I think the move here is to start Kenny Golladay. I don't trust LeGarrette Blount to repeat last week's performance, but Golladay has little resistance to a massive target share once again. Over the last two weeks he's seen 29 percent of Matthew Stafford's passes come his way, and he's turned those into 203 yards and a touchdown. Golladay's combination of talent and volume make him the choice for me.
Tough choices here. I think I'd go with Adrian Peterson and David Njoku. Calvin Ridley had a great game on Thanksgiving, but the 13 targets he saw on turkey day were more than he'd seen in the previous two weeks combined. His target share is too volatile for me to buy in, especially against the Ravens who play great defense and should chew up tons of clock with their dynamic new rushing attack. Peterson is a frightening start at times, as he gets forced out of action if Washington falls behind. As long as Washington can keep this game close against the Eagles, which I think they can do, he'll be a focal point of the offense. Njoku has two games with four-plus catches and 50-plus yards in his last three, and has a favorable matchup against the Texans this week. The Texans currently allow the sixth-most fantasy points to the tight end position.
I think your gut is right here, as I'd also go with Sony Michel. It's clear that the Patriots want to run their offense through Michel when he's healthy. In his last five full games, he's had 18-plus carries in four of them and rushed for 100-plus yards in three (he fell just short in a fourth as well, accumulating 98 yards on the ground). Austin Ekeler certainly has some appeal as well with Melvin Gordon out, but Michel is a safer play who also comes with a pretty high ceiling as well.
This is a close call, but I'm going to lean Austin Ekeler here. Cook looked great last week against the Packers, and should have a sizeable role in the Vikings critical game against the Patriots this weekend. However, the Chargers and Steelers game has one of the highest expected totals of the week as the offenses should trade blows all afternoon. That type of game script favors a player like Ekeler, who saw seven targets the last time he filled in for an injured Melvin Gordon. You really can't go wrong here, but the numbers favor Ekeler for me.
Alex Gelhar is a law student at UW Madison and freelance writer for @NFLFantasy. Follow him on Twitter @AlexGelhar for tweets about football, law, movies and how when Leon Trotsky was young he looked a lot like Jean-Ralphio from Parks and Rec.
