NFL Player News

Raiders quarterback Matt McGloin will make his second straight start Sunday against Tennessee despite the fact that previous starter Terrelle Pryor returned to practice on Wednesday. McGloin was taking the first-team reps.

McGloin played well in his debut as a starter in Week 11 against Houston. He completed 18 of 32 passes for 197 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Texans quarterback Case Keenum ended up being a pretty disappointing Fantasy start Week 11. After coming into the week as a potential top 10 quarterback, Keenum didn't even get to finish the 28-23 loss vs. Oakland, replaced by Matt Schaub in the third quarter.

Well, Keenum gets a chance at redemption Week 12 vs. Jacksonville, as coach Gary Kubiak is going back to Keenum after benching him Week 11. Now, the question beckons: Is Keenum a trustworthy Fantasy start Week 12?

Quarterbacks have had good success against Jacksonville. Quarterbacks are averaging 261 passing yards and 23.6 Fantasy points per week, which is the third-highest average. Seven quarterbacks have thrown multiple touchdowns against the Jaguars, including the last two -- Ryan Fitzpatrick and Carson Palmer. Quarterbacks have totaled 24 touchdowns (20 passing) to nine turnovers (four interceptions) against Jacksonville.

Even though Keenum was a huge disappointment Week 11, don't overlook him Week 12, if you are in need of a quarterback. The Jaguars are a favorable matchup and let's not forget Keenum threw for three touchdowns Week 9 and Week 10.

Even lousy games are fine Fantasy performances for Lions prolific quarterback Matthew Stafford. Take the last two games, for instance. He completed a meager 46 percent of his passes combined against Chicago and Pittsburgh, but averaged 290.5 yards and tossed five touchdowns.

Bottom line: He should remain in all lineups. Stafford ranks third in the NFL with 3,198 passing yards and is tied for third with 21 touchdowns. And he is playing at home in Week 12, where he has been particularly explosive. Stafford threw for 845 yards and four touchdowns in his last two efforts at Ford Field.

His numbers shouldn't suffer against a mediore Tampa Bay pass defense. The Buccaneers rank 18th in the NFL in passing yards allowed (2,403) and 23rd in touchdowns yielded through the air (19). The aerial circus that is the Detroit Lions offensve should go on as planned.

It's no wonder that Stafford is ranked at least fourth this week among all NFL quarterbacks of each of the three CBSSports.com senior Fantasy writers. He is a no-brainer for inclusion in all lineups. Just stick him in there and watch the points roll in.

Rams quarterback Sam Bradford underwent surgery to on his left knee Monday afternoon, coach Jeff Fisher told ESPN. Bradford tore his ACL on Oct. 20 against Carolina, ending his season.

"He said everything went very, very well," Fisher said. "It's a very, very healthy knee considering the circumstances and so they were pleased."

Coming off a disastrous Week 11 performance in which he committed four turnovers (three interceptions and one fumble), Jets quarterback Geno Smith has already received a vote of confidence from coach Rex Ryan and isn't concerned about losing his job.

"I haven't seen a timer on that, so no, I don't have any concerns," he told The Star-Ledger.

He should be concerned about his trip to Baltimore in Week 12, though. The Bills' four sacks were a big reason for his Week 11 struggles, and the Ravens rank third in the NFL with 34 sacks. They haven't forced many turnovers, but Smith has done a good enough creating those himself, throwing eight interceptions to just one touchdown in his last five games. Apart from Week 5 at Atlanta, when he had three touchdown passes, he's thrown 10 interceptions to one touchdown on the road this year.

"I don't think statistics tell every part of the story," he said. "Obviously, I don't want my stats to look like that. But I've gotten better. I've become a smarter player. I've just made poor decisions in some situations in the game."

You'd have to be pretty desperate to use Smith in Fantasy this week. Of the three CBSSports.com Fantasy Football analysts, only Dave Richard ranks him in his top 24 at quarterback.

Raiders coach Dennis Allen said Monday he hasn't made a decision yet about his starting quarterback for Week 12 vs. Tennessee. Allen said he first wants to talk to quarterback Terrelle Pryor about his status after sitting out Week 11 at Houston with a knee injury.

Allen added Matthew McGloin has "earned the right" to be in the discussion to start after he threw three touchdowns and led Oakland to a 28-23 win Sunday.

Texans coach Gary Kubiak said Monday quarterback Case Keenum will start Week 12 vs. Jacksonville. Keenum was replaced during Sunday's loss against Oakland by former starting quarterback Matt Schaub.

"I have total confidence in him," Kubiak said of Keenum. "We had team problems, not just quarterback problems in the third quarter (Sunday).

Packers coach Mike McCarthy ended all speculation Monday about the potential for quarterback Aaron Rodgers (collarbone) to return to the lineup Week 12 vs. Minnesota by naming Scott Tolzien the starter for Sunday's game.

"I don't make medical decisions. We know he wants to return as soon as he can. When he can, that's when it happens," McCarthy said of Rodgers.

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson turned in a solid performance as he threw for multiple touchdown passes for the fifth straight game Sunday afternoon against the Vikings in Week 11.

Wilson fired a 19-yard pass to Doug Baldwin in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown with 10 seconds remaining in the first half. On a broken play, Wilson flipped a shovel pass to Marshaw Lynch, who took it in 6 yards for a score in the fourth quarter.

With the game well out of hand, Wilson was taken out of in favor of Tarvaris Jackson in the fourth quarter. He completed 13 of 18 passes for 230 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. He was sacked just once and finished with a 151.4 passer rating in a 41-20 victory.

Wilson will get a bye before he looks to extend his multi-touchdown streak to six games in Week 13 against the Saints.

Good was good enough for Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill against San Diego on Sunday. He passed for 268 yards and one touchdown, but a rejuvenated ground game and a strong defense resulted in a win.

Tannehill, who also threw one interception, spread the ball around in the first half, hitting four different receivers for 20-plus yards by early in the second quarter. Though he completed just 8 of 14 for 115 yards after intermission, his 39-yard scoring strike to tight end Charles Clay midway through the third quarter proved to be the game-winner.

A far more difficult challenge lies ahead for Tannehill, who added 21 yards on four carries. The shutdown defense of Carolina will be coming to town next Sunday.