Fantasy Player Projections

Charlie Batch

Pittsburgh just went from old to prehistoric. With Ben Roethlisberger and Byron Leftwich out, the team will turn to its soon-to-be 38-year-old third-stringer. Batch actually has less rust to shake off than Leftwich did, and should provide similar results.

Rashard Mendenhall

Mendenhall was a bit sluggish in Week 11, but that's to be expected coming back from an Achilles injury. Fantasy owners must be patient with his recovery; it's going to be tough to count on him for another week or two.

Jonathan Dwyer

Dwyer out-performed Rashard Mendenhall last week, but it was only one game -- and Mendenhall's first game back, no less. Over time the balance will shift, beginning this week.

Isaac Redman

There's a strong possibility Redman will sit this game out due to the concussion he suffered in the Sunday night loss to Baltimore. Even if he plays, fantasy owners shouldn't bother with him; the Steelers' backfield is plenty full already with Jonathan Dwyer and Rashard Mendenhall sharing the load.

Emmanuel Sanders

Sanders' fantasy production doubled when Byron Leftwich took over for Ben Roethlisberger. There's no way to know how Sanders will do with Charlie Batch at quarterback, but Sanders remains a solid flex option for Week 12.

Mike Wallace

Last season Wallace gained just 68 yards in two games against the Browns. This week Wallace's outlook is just as bleak without Ben Roethlisberger in the lineup.

Heath Miller

Fantasy owners should put Miller back in storage until Ben Roethlisberger returns to the field. He was not the same player with Byron Leftwich running the show (Miller caught just two balls last week), and probably won't have much more success working with Charlie Batch

Shaun Suisham

This could be a favorable matchup for Suisham, with Pittsburgh relying on a third-string quarterback and a banged-up backfield. In a game the Steelers might otherwise dominate, the margins will be tighter, and the field goals more abundant.

The Browns give up 23.4 points per game, but as Dallas found out last week they are not as bad as their record suggests. Stopping the Browns means stopping Trent Richardson, which is easier said than done.

Brandon Weeden

Even though he has minimized his interceptions, Weeden has completed 60 percent of his passes just once in the past five weeks. He is still too inconsistent to be considered as a fantasy quarterback, even as a one-week fill-in.

Trent Richardson

Based on the numbers, the Steelers' run defense matches up fairly evenly with San Diego in terms of yards allowed per game and per carry, and touchdowns allowed. Of course, Richardson had his best game against the Chargers only a few weeks ago.

Montario Hardesty

Hardesty is good for a carry here or there, but nothing more. He has just 29 carries for the season, and that includes a game in which he was Cleveland's designated starter.

Josh Gordon

Lately the Browns have been unable to utilize Gordon deep downfield, as they had earlier this season. He is still the team leader in yards and touchdowns, but he's no longer a stud fantasy wideout on a weekly basis. He's a risk/reward spot start.

Greg Little

Little made a jaw-dropping sideline catch in the second half against Dallas last week. What do acrobatics have to do with fantasy, you ask? Nothing. We have to fill this space with something, and Little has given us little else to write about this season.

Benjamin Watson

Dismiss Watson's two-touchdown performance from Week 11. Fantasy owners cannot expect much from the Browns' passing game, and certainly not from their ninth-year tight end.

Phil Dawson

Dawson has scored four or fewer points against Pittsburgh in seven of his last nine games. The Browns have a more competitive team this season, but the result may not change much for Dawson.

It's a tale of two defenses: one with Joe Haden in the lineup, and one without. If Haden is healthy enough to go this week the Browns could do well for fantasy owners against a buttoned-up Steelers offense.