It had been a relatively quiet few weeks for Emmanuel Sanders since teammate Demaryius Thomas was sent to the Houston Texans, but it was only a matter of time before he asserted himself as the top receiving threat on the Denver Broncos. There was a lot of excitement for the promising second-round pick Courtland Sutton in the immediate aftermath of the trade, but it looks like it's Sanders who will really benefit the most from the trade.

Sanders had quietly already been their top receiver since the trade, but since his overall receiving numbers didn't immediately pop, this fact was flying under the radar. He had 15 targets across Weeks 9 and 10 and produced a decent-but-not-flashy 103 yards with them. Meanwhile, Sutton was stealing the spotlight. He wasn't as efficient with his targets in the games following the trade -- catching 6 of 11 -- but he was getting chunk gains with the balls he did catch, putting up 135 receiving yards during those games.

But in Week 12, Sanders reminded us why he was a favorite late-round value in fantasy drafts this year. He caught 7 of his 12 targets and turned them into 86 yards and a score in the Broncos win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, making a couple highlight-reel grabs in the process.

Sanders' big day landed him a spot as a top-eight wide receiver in half-point per reception fantasy leagues this week (pending Monday Night Football) and should give you the confidence to put him in your lineups as an every-week starter going forward.

And if his reassured role in the Broncos' offense isn't enough to convince you, take a look at the team's upcoming schedule. In the next two weeks, they'll play the Cincinnati Bengals and San Francisco 49ers, two defenses that have been struggling, and then they get the Oakland Raiders in Week 15. It's one of the easiest upcoming schedules for fantasy wideouts, so Sanders is primed for a late-season run.