Week 11 of the 2019 NFL season is here, with four teams (the Packers, Giants, Seahawks and Titans) off with byes.
As always, we’re here to help with your weekly decisions with our fantasy lineup advice. Each week, we give you the studs (players with plus matchups due to the defense they’re facing or their team situation), duds (players with tougher matchups or who are in muddled roster situations at the moment) and sleepers (a player you might consider starting who could be in for a big week).
Here are the names we’ve got for Week 11, and as we always say, good luck!!
Studs
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QB Derek Carr, Oakland Raiders
The Bengals just got thrashed by Lamar Jackson, and although Derek Carr isn’t a possible NFL MVP, he’s a good bet to put up big numbers against Cincy.
RB Brian Hill, Atlanta Falcons
He’ll fill in for the injured Devonta Freeman and gets a juicy matchup against the Panthers, who have allowed the fourth-most yards to opposing rushers in 2019.
WR D.J. Moore, Carolina Panthers
I think we’ve underappreciated just how good Moore has been this year. Ignore the fact that he has one touchdown. In his past five games, he’s seen eight or more looks, caught at least five of them and totaled 73 yards or more. And now the Falcons — who won’t put up another performance like they did against the Saints — loom.
TE Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Rams
The Bears aren’t great against opposing tight ends and Everett has seen a significant uptick in volume recently.
Duds
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QB Carson Wentz, Philadelphia Eagles
Consider this a placeholder for every Eagles player who will face the Patriots’ defense that’s gotten a week of rest.
RB Ronald Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Saints’ rushing defense will keep him in check, and somehow, Peyton Barber continues to get significant playing time too.
WR Stefon Diggs, Minnesota Vikings
It could be a rough day against the Broncos’ Chris Harris, and you probably can’t sit him, so just don’t expect a huge day.
TE O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Resist the temptation to pick him up after last week’s breakout game. That happened to come against the Cardinals, the NFL’s worst team at defending tight ends. He’ll have a tougher time against the Saints.
Sleepers
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QB Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers
Not a great Week 10 against the Seahawks, but the Cardinals — who just allowed him to throw four touchdowns in Week 9 — are up next.
RB Austin Ekeler, Los Angeles Chargers
A game against the Chiefs is a perfect recipe for Ekeler to catch a lot of passes in a catch-up effort.
WR Mohamed Sanu, New England Patriots
The last time we saw him on the field, he caught 10-of-14 passes for 81 yards and a touchdown. He might be more than a sleeper against the Eagles after the bye.
TE Jared Cook, New Orleans Saints
He’s suddenly valuable in the tight end wasteland — he had 74 yards last week and caught a pair of touchdowns in his two games before the Saints’ Week 9 bye. Plus, the Bucs are awful at defending tight ends (11.7 fantasy points per game allowed, second-worst in the NFL).
Here are the power rankings for the players competing in the Mayakoba Golf Classic beginning Thursday.
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The 2019 Mayakoba Golf Classic tees off this Thursday and marks the PGA Tour’s return from a three-event swing through Asia. El Camaleon Golf Club in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, remains host of the annual event which has been a staple of the fall portion of the Tour’s schedule. The Greg Norman-designed course measures 6,987 yards and plays as a par 71 under tournament conditions.
The 128-man field is fronted by defending champion Matt Kuchar and World No. 16 Tony Finau. Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, who were all victorious in Asia, are all absent this week in wait of next month’s Hero World Challenge. Next week’s RSM Classic will be the final full-field event until the Sony Open, running Jan. 9-12, 2020.
Here are my top-30 fantasy golf rankings for the 2019-20 Mayakoba Golf Classic at El Camaleon Golf Club.
30. Russell Henley
Strong approach game at a course requiring golfers to take tight angles and dodge bunkers.
29. J.T. Poston
Returns to North America off of two top-30 finishes at the WGC-HSBC Champions and Zozo Championship.
28. Keegan Bradley
The 47th-ranked golfer in the world placed T-13 in a strong field at the Zozo Championship, but he was previously in poor form in North America and missed the cut at the Houston Open.
27. Aaron Wise
Tied for 10th last year following a missed cut in 2018. Bounced back from missing the cut at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open with a third-place finish at the Bermuda Championship.
26. Dylan Frittelli
Is closing in on the top 100 of the Official World Golf Rankings with a T-22 result at the Zozo Championship. Has a strong approach game and hits greens in regulation others can’t.
25. Cameron Champ
Photo Credit: Mark Konezny – USA TODAY Sports
Played in just two events since his win at the Safeway Open in September. Relies more heavily on his off-the-tee game than approaches.
24. Sebastian Munoz
Gained 1.56 strokes per round putting during his victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Hasn’t been able to recapture the success with the flat stick.
23. Russell Knox
Had three straight top 10s at this event before skipping last year’s tournament. Was the co-runner-up in 2016.
22. Graeme McDowell
The 2016 champion hasn’t finished better than T-24 since and missed the cut last year.
21. Charley Hoffman
The 2015 champ has missed four straight cuts since his victory. He can still create scoring opportunities but isn’t in consistent four-round form.
20. Jhonattan Vegas
One of the best in the field by Opportunities Gained. Finished T-10 in 2017 and made the cut in four of his last five tries.
19. Denny McCarthy
A spectacular putter who’s waiting to put it all together. The approach game is one of his greatest struggles as he’s often left saving par.
18. Rory Sabbatini
Finished T-33 at the Zozo Championship and T-31 at The CJ Cup. Enters the week 75th by the OWGR.
17. Danny Lee
Photo Credit: Brian Spurlock – USA TODAY Sports
Last year’s runner-up is coming off a T-10 at the Zozo and a solo runner-up at The CJ Cup against much stiffer competition.
16. Pat Perez
The 2017 champ rebounded from a T-34 finish in 2018 to tie for sixth last season. Was solo third at the Shriners but finished T-51 and T-31 in the first two events in Asia.
15. Harris English
Hasn’t played since a T-4 at the Houston Open. Ranks third in the field in Greens in Regulation Gained over everyone’s last 36 rounds.
14. Kyle Stanley
A great course fit who excels on the approach and can create scoring opportunities.
13. Scottie Scheffler
The recent Korn Ferry Tour grad is an expert ball striker. Finished T-28 at the Houston Open but rebounded with T-3 at Bermuda.
12. Billy Horschel
Played all three events in Asia with a top showing of T-6 at the Zozo. He has six top 10s and just two missed cuts in 25 events in 2019.
11. Charles Howell III
Well-experienced at this venue. Placed T-7 in 2017 and T-4 in 2018 before a missed cut last year.
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10. Lanto Griffin
Photo Credit: Eric Bolte – USA TODAY Sports
The current FedExCup points leader and winner of the Houston Open didn’t compete in any of the Asian tournaments. Excels off the tee and on the greens, but can struggle with the approach.
9. Abraham Ancer
The best golfer on the PGA Tour hailing from Mexico has a top finish of T-9 in 2018.
8. Chez Reavie
Four straight made cuts in this event with a top showing of T-4 in 2017. An excellent ball striker who has a great approach game.
7. Kevin Kisner
Ranks 35th in the world after finishing T-9 in each of the final two events of last season’s FedExCup Playoffs. Not in great form after finishing outside the top 25 in the final two events in Asia.
6. Joaquin Niemann
Has slipped back to 55th in the world after peaking at 50th with his breakout win at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier. Finished T-60 in this event last year.
5. Emiliano Grillo
Photo Credit: Steve Flynn – USA TODAY Sports
His 15th-place finish here last year was his worst result in his last three appearances. Leads the field with 1.91 total strokes gained per round in this event since 2015.
4. Jason Day
The winner of MGM Resorts The Challenge: Japan Skins. Hasn’t finished higher than T-22 in a stroke-play event since the Travelers Championship.
3. Matt Kuchar
Last year’s champ. He had three other top 10s and two runner-ups last season but none since the RBC Canadian Open.
2. Tony Finau
The top-ranked golfer in the field by the OWGR. An expert ball striker with a great approach game and more than enough distance for this shorter venue.
1. Viktor Hovland
Leads the field in Strokes Gained: Ball Striking, Strokes Gained: Approach and Opportunities Gained over everyone’s most recent 36 rounds. Had disappointing showings at The CJ Cup and Zozo Championship but was T-10 at The Greenbrier and T-11 at the European Tour’s BMW PGA Championship.
Fantasy football waiver wire claims to make ahead of Week 11.
Need a fresh face for your fantasy football roster this week?
It’s never too late for a few extra points to add to your win column.
Here are eight waiver wire claims to make in fantasy football ahead of Week 11:
Atlanta Falcons running back Brian Hill. Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
QB Nick Foles
Big man on campus, quarterback Nick Foles, in back in the fold for the Jaguars in Week 11. Foles hasn’t played since injuring his collarbone in the team’s season opener and he now might be a good add for a late-season run. He does have a tough meeting this week against the No. 9 pass defense in the Colts, but he has meetings against bottom-feeders such as the Bucs, Raiders and Falcons in the coming weeks.
Percent owned in ESPN fantasy leagues: 9.7%
RB Brian Hill
Devonta Freeman was lost by the Falcons in their Week 10 upset of the Saints. Without him, it’ll be Brian Hill as the No. 1 back. Ito Smith’s season is already over due to a neck injury as well. In relief last week, Hill had 20 carries for 61 yards with one catch. The No. 29 Panthers’ run defense awaits this week as well.
You’re waking up on Tuesday reading all that you can about the players that you should be picking up off the waiver wire as you prepare for Week 11 of fantasy football in 2019.
But it’s likely there aren’t as many things written about who you should be dropping to grab those players. That’s what this weekly column — keep ’em or dump ’em! — will hopefully answer for you: Some help in the debate over who you should keep or drop in order to improve your team.
You’re past the worst week of byes of the entire season. Congratulations! Now you just have eight more teams off in the next two weeks. Here are some names you might be debating keeping or dropping:
1. RB Frank Gore, Buffalo Bills
The volume has gone down somewhat, although he had five carries to Devin Singletary’s eight. It’s just that Singletary did so much more (5.3 ypc to Gore’s paltry 2.4). I think it’s safe to drop him.
VERDICT: Drop him
2. WR Robby Anderson, New York Jets
So much for all that hype against a soft schedule.
VERDICT: Drop him
3. RB Jaylen Samuels, Pittsburgh Steelers
James Conner may be back in Week 11, but there’s no way you can give up on a valuable handcuff who also catches passes.
VERDICT: Keep him
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4. QB Baker Mayfield, Cleveland Browns
There’s an argument to be made about keeping him to play games against the Dolphins, Bengals and Cardinals. But are you going to trust him when your postseason might be on the line? Nope.
VERDICT: Drop him
5. RB Ty Montgomery, New York Jets
If you got him as Le’Veon Bell insurance, it’s safe to let him go.
VERDICT: Drop him
6. WR Sterling Shepard, New York Giants
It seems like Golden Tate and Darius Slayton are 1-2 on the depth chart, and it doesn’t seem like Shepard is coming back anytime soon. If you need the room, go ahead and let him go. But keep an eye on his status after the Giants’ Week 11 bye.
VERDICT: Drop him
7. RB Darrell Henderson, Los Angeles Rams
He had just four carries on Sunday and Malcolm Brown had five. But Todd Gurley had 12, so I’m holding on to him in case this is more of a trend.
VERDICT: Keep him
8. LeSean McCoy
A healthy scratch last week? Yes. But this is an actual case of NBA load management in the NFL. Per NFL.com, Andy Reid is attempting to keep him fresh down the stretch, so he still may be a factor.
Target these players on the waiver wire in Week 11.
This NFL season has been more unpredictable than any year I can remember. Constant injuries to big-name players and then even injuries to their backups have provided little room for consistency. When it comes to fantasy football, this has been the dagger for most people who thought they drafted the perfect team.
It goes to show that fantasy football is a gamble. You never really know what a player is going to do week to week and we all know projected points mean less and less each week. However it is Week 11 and for those of you who have not quit your leagues altogether, it may not be too late.
With Green Bay, Tennessee, New York (Giants) and Seattle all on a bye, here are your waiver wire pickups for Week 11 to help you make that playoff push:
(Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
WR James Washington — 18.3% rostered (ESPN)
With the revolving door of quarterbacks in Pittsburgh this season, James Washington has not had the breakout sophomore season everyone predicted. On Sunday against the rams, however, the Oklahoma State product connection finally flourished between Washington and quarterback Mason Rudolph.
Washington finished the day with six catches for 90 yards and a touchdown. As the Steelers keep winning games and having success throwing the ball, look for Washington to be included more and more in this young offense. The Steelers travel to Cleveland to face the Browns on Thursday night.
