Fantasy Football: 3 stock up, 3 stock down following Week 12

Week 12 of the fantasy football season brought the usual highs and lows and either stamped your ticket to the postseason or saw your season go up in flames. There is also the chance that you are still fighting to make the playoffs and need another win or two to get in.

As you prepare for whatever is left of your regular season, it's important to pay attention to current trends and as we watched games on Thanksgiving, Black Friday and then on Sunday this past week, some clear trends are starting to form.

Here are three players with their arrows pointing skyward and three that are pointing in the other direction.

Stock Up: Jordan Love, QB, Green Bay Packers

If you need a quarterback late in this season to cover a bye week or perhaps even replace an injured starter like Kirk Cousins who you never found a sufficient replacement for, Jordan Love is getting the job done. He has been so good in recent weeks that the relatively-unknown members of his receiving corps are also good flex options going forward.

In his last two games, Love has completed 68 percent of his passes for 590 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions. Those are solid numbers in the fantasy game.

There are many who don't seem to feel that Love is the guy for the Packers, but he's showing in recent weeks that he very well may be and, at least for the rest of this fantasy season, he could be the guy for your team.

Stock Down: Puka Nacua, WR, Los Angeles Rams

Puka Nacua was a fantastic option during the first month of the season when the Rams were without Cooper Kupp and in many ways, it was the biggest story in fantasy football.

He has cooled off in a major way since.

In those first four games, Nacua caught 39 passes for 501 yards and a touchdown. In the seven games that he has played since, he has 34 catches for 423 yards and two touchdowns. All of his numbers, including his targets, are down considerably.

Nacua still has great long-term value, but your rosters may need to be adjusted accordingly for the rest of this year.

Stock Up: Bijan Robinson, RB, Atlanta Falcons

For whatever reason, the Atlanta Falcons just have not used rookie running back Bijan Robinson the way most fantasy players expected that they would. Instead, head coach Arthur Smith has insisted on sprinkling in several other offensive players such as Tyler Allgeier, Cordarrelle Patterson and Jonnu Smith.

But in the last two games, fantasy owners have started to see what they have been patiently waiting for. In his last two games, Robinson has rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns. He added a receiving touchdown through the air and is coming off of a two-score performance against the New Orleans Saints.

Smith and his staff are finally giving Robinson more touches so the hope is that he doesn't start to take those away for no apparent reason.

Stock Down: Anyone on the Patriots

Usually, you can make the case for at least one player on every team to be an option each week in fantasy football. But I can't advocate starting a single player on this incredibly bad New England Patriots team any further this season.

That includes running back Rhamondre Stevenson. He has yet to rush for 100 yards in a game this season and has scored just four touchdowns on the ground. He could still be a decent flex option if you have to, but the other options would have to be pretty poor.

The Patriots, mostly because of terrible QB play that has just sunken the value of guys like Juju Smith-Schuster and Hunter Henry, are terrible.

Stock Up: Kyren Williams, RB, Los Angeles Rams

As explained here, Kyren Williams had a fantastic return to the field in Week 12. Though he was a viable option earlier this season, any player's stock takes a hit when they miss a chunk of time. That was the case with Williams due to an ankle injury.

Going forward, he is going to be a player that you want because the Rams are a team that looks like it plans to rely on its running game down the stretch and Williams is the clear lead back in that running game.

He is going to win many fantasy players their leagues this year based on where he was drafted (if he was drafted at all) and what he ended up providing.

Stock Down: Austin Ekeler, RB, Los Angeles Chargers

Austin Ekeler wanted to be traded this offseason as he was unhappy with his contract in Los Angeles. He couldn't find a trade partner and instead had to prove to the Chargers that he needed more money next year as he worked on the last year of his deal.

Things have backfired for him this season as the Chargers are struggling through a messy year.

His numbers are down considerably as compared to year's past and once one of the most sure things in fantasy football is now a big question mark. To make matters worse, he has lost three fumbles in just eight games played this season.

Ekeler is not a guy who you are going to bench unless your other options are incredible, but he has hit a massive bump in the road. If you own him in a dynasty league, you will want to keep close tabs on the situation as he quite possibly will be wearing a different uniform next season.