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Welcome back for Week 12 of the 2015 NFL season. The San Francisco 49ers are back home facing the Arizona Cardinals, in Blaine Gabbert's third start of the season. The 49ers will be without Carlos Hyde, starting Shaun Draughn in his place. Anquan Boldin returned last week against Seattle and put together a solid effort. Whether the 49ers offense can find consistency remains to be seen, but there are some options there.
The Arizona Cardinals on the other hand come into this game at 8-2, and having one big win over the 49ers already. The Cardinals defense had a field day, netting two pick-sixes in the first quarter against Colin Kaepernick. On the offensive side of the ball, Chris Johnson had one of his best games of the year, averaging five yards per carry and scoring a pair of touchdowns.
The 49ers are double digit underdogs, but they have a history of success at home against Arizona. I could see this being a bit more of a defensive battle, but there are some potential fantasy options on the board.
49ers
Start 'em: Nobody
Maybe start 'em: QB Blaine Gabbert, RB Shaun Draughn, WR Anquan Boldin, K Phil Dawson, 49ers D/ST - This is not a great opportunity, but the 49ers have done fairly well at home for stretches. Gabbert and Draughn are not great options, but if you have been decimated by injuries, maybe they are worth grabbing ... Anquan Boldin had a solid game back from his hamstring injury, and could make for a decent PPR option ... As for the defense? I'm not holding my breath, but I do think they could surprise us against Arizona.
Sit 'em: Everybody else
Cardinals
Start 'em: QB Carson Palmer, RB Chris Johnson, WR Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals D/ST - The 49ers defense looked good against a dynamic Falcons offense three weeks ago, but then struggled against the Seahawks. I could see a bounce-back effort this week from the 49ers defense, but Palmer, Johnson and Fitzgerald all remain must-starts at this point ... The Cardinals defense won't have the same monster performance they did in Week 3, but considering Blaine Gabbert was two drops away from interceptions last week, and threw two interceptions the week before, the chance for turnovers is there, as are sacks.
Maybe start 'em: WR Michael Floyd, WR John Brown, K Chandler Catanzaro - I don't think we see enough scoring to justify either of the back-up receivers in every league. I think one of them ends up with a solid performance, but I don't know which it will be. Floyd is questionable with a hamstring injury
Sit 'em: RB Andre Ellington, RB David Johnson, TE Darren Fells