Week 11 fantasy football buy or sell

32 seconds for 32 teams —why two AFC West rivals are teams to target and a slew of RB pickups

We’re hitting the home stretch now, just a few games away from the fantasy playoffs. Savvy owners are looking ahead to Weeks 15 and 16 while others may be scrambling just hoping to make it that far. It’s now time to consider not just present and immediate future value but also those valuable playoff weeks ahead.

Most fantasy leagues have a trade deadline either this week or next, so there’s no time to waste. The time is short to sell high at last on someone like DeAndre Hopkins or T.Y. Hilton. And with the bye weeks all but passed, now is the time to trade some of that depth you stashed all season to bolster your precious starting lineup. Players like Kareem Hunt and Travis Kelce could be perfect trade targets. Who else should you target?

Arizona Cardinals

Drew Stanton is holding down the fort for Arizona, and that’s good news for Adrian Peterson and Larry Fitzgerald. Peterson struggled with 29 yards on 21 carries and played less than Andre Ellington, but that was to be expected on a short week after a massive workload and against a top defense. He has a good schedule ahead and looks like a RB2. Fitzgerald’s schedule is a bit tougher but he continues to get a ton of looks and has been somewhat matchup proof out of the slot. He’s on pace for a 105/1200 season at age 34.

Atlanta Falcons

Devonta Freeman looks like he may be out a couple weeks, and that means it’s time to fire up Tevin Coleman. Coleman is probably owned in most leagues, but go get him if you can. He should get 20–25 touches as the lead guy and had 20/83/1 this week. Freeman had his second concussion of the season, and Atlanta’s season could be headed south, but Coleman is the sort of player that can win your fantasy league if he gets the opportunity.

Baltimore Ravens

It’s crazy, but Baltimore defense may be one of the best waiver pickups of the week if they’re available after the bye. The Ravens have had some big defensive games and they’ll face the Browns and Colts in Weeks 15 and 16, plus they get Brett Hundley and Tom Savage the next two games. Make them a priority. Pick up Danny Woodhead too, especially in PPR leagues. He should be back soon.

Buffalo Bills

Kelvin Benjamin had only 3/42 but led the team with six targets and played more snaps than any skill player. He saw two targets in the redzone and looks like the immediate WR1 for Buffalo and he has a tasty schedule ahead, so go get him and throw him into your lineup. And hey, it’s another opportunity to trade for LeSean McCoy if you missed the first window. He’s had two quiet games against tough defenses but faces a bottom 10 run defense in five of the next six games.

Carolina Panthers

Make sure Greg Olsen is owned in your league. He should be ready to go after Carolina’s bye and he may be the team’s top target immediately. Jonathan Stewart had a great 17/110 line but played his fewest snaps of the season as the offense turns more and more to Devin Funchess and Christian McCaffrey. Both continue to look like great pickups and weekly plays.

Chicago Bears

Et tu, Benny Cunningham? Cunningham randomly saw a season-high 28 snaps, just one fewer than Jordan Howard. That mostly means the end of Tarik Cohen’s value and a nuisance for Howard’s. Dontrelle Inman played his first game as a Bear and had 6/88 on eight targets, leading the team in all receptions, yards, targets, and snaps. He could be a flex guy.

Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Mixon led the Bengals in touches again and has seven straight games with 9+ points in PPR leagues. He’s established a solid floor. The high-end games haven’t come yet, but he’s not going anywhere with Jeremy Hill on IR now. Tyler Kroft could be a great short-term tight end solution with two games in a row against terrible TE defenses.

Cleveland Browns

Don’t be surprised if Duke Johnson is one of those guys that wins a few fantasy leagues down the stretch. He’s playing more snaps than ever and Cleveland has a soft rush schedule ahead. Isaiah Crowell has two straight games with a touchdown and is finally looking good but he’ll be a free agent, so it makes sense that the Browns could turn to Johnson more to see what they’ve got. Corey Coleman is a deep league pickup coming off the IR.

Dallas Cowboys

Unheralded Rod Smith led Cowboys RBs with 38 snaps to 22 for Alfred Morris. Smith only had seven touches but is clearly the guy Dallas will play when trailing, and that makes him the RB of choice against the Eagles this week. Morris had a 20-yard run but did little outside of that with 10/33 on his other runs. Darren McFadden played only one snap and can be dropped. If you’re desperate for tight end help, consider Mr. Old Reliable Jason Witten. Witten had seven catches this week and could be Prescott’s security blanket in a passing offense, and he faces a soft tight end schedule while Zeke is out. And yes, it does look like Ezekiel Elliott is finally really out for these six weeks. His next hearing isn’t until December and he’s reportedly left the country to train elsewhere. See you in Week 16, Zeke.

Denver Broncos

The Broncos stink, but Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders continue to produce. Thomas has scored a touchdown in two straight games since we told you to go get him, and Sanders had 137 yards and looks healthy. The ship may have sailed on the Denver running game, though. C.J. Anderson had just 10 carries to eight each for Jamaal Charles and Devontae Booker, and none of them are doing much right now.

Detroit Lions

Matt Stafford continues to ride hot. He’s averaging 315 passing yards over the last five games with 10 TDs in that span. Golden Tate, Ameer Abdullah, and Theo Riddick all found the endzone too. The Lions offense has finally come around and continues to produce. They have a tough closing schedule but all look like useful plays.

Green Bay Packers

Looks like Jamaal Williams will be a trendy pickup this week, but you should probably temper your expectations. Aaron Jones sprained his MCL and looks to be out 4–6 weeks, so he’s probably droppable, but Ty Montgomery may play this week and the Packers could struggle mightily against the Ravens and Steelers the next two weeks. Jordy Nelson’s value has plummeted without Rodgers, and that’s probably not a surprise. That was Rodgers’s security blanket and the guy he had such good chemistry with. It looks like Davante Adams is the better play with Rodgers out.

Houston Texans

DeAndre Hopkins had another big game and remains the #1 WR, but the red flags are screaming. Fellow receiver Will Fuller cracked a couple ribs and will miss at least one game. Maybe that means even more targets for Hopkins (is that even possible?) but it probably means the defense focuses on the one guy that can hurt them against a terrible quarterback. Houston has a rough schedule ahead including Jacksonville and Pittsburgh Weeks 15 and 16. You rode Hopkins as long as you could. Get out while the gettin’s good.

Indianapolis Colts

Did you trade T.Y. Hilton? We even gave you a pre-warning on that one. The Colts are on bye now and have the toughest passing schedule remaining of any team, so good luck if you still have him.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Leonard Fournette had his first game without a touchdown, and that’s starting to expose his otherwise weak rushing stats. He ran for just 33 yards on 17 carries against a poor run defense and has now been under 4ypc in all but two games. Four of his next five are against top 7 rush defenses, and Bortles has been throwing more lately. It’s not looking great. Be sure Marqise Lee is owned in your league. He’s averaging 10 targets over the last four games and had another good game with 6/55/1.

Kansas City Chiefs

If you’re gearing up for a playoff run, there may be no better targets than Travis Kelce and Kareem Hunt. Kelce is the tight end you want down the stretch with a soft schedule, and Hunt’s schedule is even better. He faces a bottom 10 rush defense in four of the next six games, and the other two are against the Giants and Jets. He’s going to get the ball a ton and is sure to get back into the endzone soon enough.

Los Angeles Chargers

It was another down game for Melvin Gordon with 16 rushes for 27 yards, and it might be time to start getting worried. Austin Ekeler is beginning to eat into his touches and become a problem, and Gordon faces a top 10 run defense all of Weeks 13 through 16. This looks like a team that will turn to its passing game more than its runners down the stretch.

Los Angeles Rams

If it wasn’t clear that Robert Woods is the WR1 here, it should be after four touchdowns the last two weeks and 241 yards. Three of this TDs were on short passes he broke to go the distance, so he’s an obvious sell high. Sammy Watkins has a touchdown in two straight, but he caught his only two passes of the game on one drive and still isn’t very involved in the offense.

Miami Dolphins

For a second straight week, Kenyan Drake looked far more dynamic. He out-snapped Damien Williams despite Williams getting the early looks and showed great burst on a late 66-yard TD. He has 151 yards on 16 rushes the last two weeks and continues to look like a great sleeper. Williams can be dropped if you need the roster spot. We’re still, still on the DeVante Parker train too. He keeps producing and plays a bottom-5 WR defense in four of the next six games.

Minnesota Vikings

Hope you sold Jerick McKinnon a few weeks ago when we recommended it. He’s splitting snaps evenly with Latavius Murray now and was out-touched this week. Don’t get too excited about Case Keenum yet either. There’s talk of benching him for Teddy Bridgewater even after his monster 304/4 game and the Vikings have a rough schedule with the Rams on tap before three straight road games against Detroit, Atlanta, and Carolina.

New England Patriots

Didn’t we tell you this was going to be a Rex Burkhead game? He had 13 touches and is a possible flex until Chris Hogan is back. Dion Lewis needs to be owned in all formats. He put up a solid 14/55/1 line against a top run defense and sees five of his next six games against bottom-10 defenses.

New Orleans Saints

It’s funny for a team that scored 47 and had the ball all game, but there’s not much fantasy takeaway here. Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara were beastly with 237 yards and four touchdowns between them, and the Saints barely passed. That’s become an annoying trend for Drew Brees. He’s on pace for 4200 yards and 23 TDs, which is not exactly terrible but not what you thought you were drafting. He’s not a weekly must start.

New York Giants

Told you to go get Sterling Shepard and he looks like he could be huge down the stretch coming off a monster 11/142 game this week. Orleans Darkwa seems to have established himself as the go-to Giants RB. That’s still not worth much, but he’s a usable flex play if you’re desperate.

New York Jets

So much for that Bilal Powell breakout. Even with Forte sidelined, Powell was a bust. Rookie Elijah McGuire had more touches and yards than Powell. The Jets are heading into the bye and have a brutal closing stretch. Only surprising WR Robby Anderson is a must-hold through the bye.

Oakland Raiders

Don’t sleep on Amari Cooper and Derek Carr. Oakland is only one game out of the wildcard despite a disastrous start. They face a very difficult upcoming schedule, including New England this week and the Chiefs, Cowboys, and Eagles during the fantasy playoffs. That might be bad news for Oakland fans but should be good for fantasy, where the Raiders will likely be passing plenty and doing so against average or worse passing defenses.

Philadelphia Eagles

Be careful with Carson Wentz. He’s piled up huge numbers but has already faced six bottom-10 pass defenses. This week the Eagles travel to Dallas for a tough division battle, then Wentz faces three top-10 pass defenses. If you’re fighting to get into the playoffs, this could be a rough stretch — but great Week 15 and 16 matchups will reward you if you can get there. Do go after Jay Ajayi if you’re a believer. He looks like the most dynamic Eagles back and, if he can find enough playing time, it’s a soft rushing schedule ahead.

Pittsburgh Steelers

JuJu Smith-Schuster is a clear WR2 for Pittsburgh with 290 yards his past two games and a TD in three straight. He’s an obvious sell high in theory but you probably won’t get much and might be better off just playing him. Martavis Bryant was a high pick in August, so we already thought this offense could sustain two good receivers. The Steelers play four of their next five at home, and the 1-seed is in sight. JuJu and Ben Roethlisberger look like good weekly plays going forward.

San Francisco 49ers

A special moment Sunday for Marquise Goodwin, who scored his first touchdown of the season on an 83-yard bomb just hours after he and his wife lost their newborn son to premature labor. This sport is still good sometimes.

Seattle Seahawks

Thomas Rawls has a slight lead in this backfield but it’s not worth much. Russell Wilson actually leads the team in rushing attempts. Rookie Chris Carson is second, and he hasn’t played since Week 4. Paul Richardson and Tyler Lockett showed why they’re unreliable options too, just two targets each and both on pace for around 50 catches. They’re boom or bust options.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Doug Martin’s snap count returned to its usual 55%, but he’s not producing. He’s under 4ypc in five straight games and has only five receptions all year, and Tampa has already shown they will play other RBs when trailing. He just hasn’t come through and is a questionable start until he shows something.

Tennessee Titans

DeMarco Murray finally had a big game with three touchdowns but still only out-carried Derrick Henry 14 to 11 and had a poor 3.0ypc. That’s an obvious sell candidate. Delanie Walker has 63+ yards in three straight games and is bound to find the endzone soon on sheer regression. He’s still a safe, cheap tight end option if you’re looking.

Washington Redskins

Jordan Reed is getting cut in some leagues, and he’s too talented for that. Pick him up, and play Vernon Davis in his place if he’s out. He’s had 70+ yards the last two games and one of them is a top tight end play each week. Kirk Cousins remains in the QB1 discussion. He’s had 250+ yards all but one game but had his fourth 3+ TD game. Samaje Perine is a deeper pickup. He should lead the team in carries down the stretch with Rob Kelley likely headed to the IR.

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