Waiver Wire Week 11 | 2023 Fantasy Football

This is the Waiver Wire Week 11! Week 10 on the Wire was a solid one for us. Keaton Mitchell, DeMario Douglas, Joshua Dobbs, and Noah Brown all were in the Overall Top 10 and all had very strong fantasy performances. This week we are looking to do it again.

Week 11’s Bye Weeks are less impactful than Week 10’s horror show (Philadelphia, Kansas City, Miami and The Rams. Yikes, but we survived). Week 12 will be a fun one with zero teams on Bye and The NFL letting all of us fantasy managers relax and enjoy full lineups for Thanksgiving week. Keep an eye out for Week 13 because Byemageddon Part 2 will be no picnic, with six teams missing on Byes.

Upcoming Bye Weeks

Week 11

Atlanta

New England

Indianapolis

New Orleans

Week 13

Baltimore

Buffalo

Chicago

Las Vegas

Minnesota

New York Giants

NOTE: All players are available in about 75% or more of Yahoo Leagues unless listed as a SHALLOW LEAGUE ADD.

Quarterbacks

NOTE: There is not a single QB worth spending a lot of faab on that is available in less than 25% of Yahoo Leagues. There is not one available in less than 30% of them.

SHALLOW LEAGUE ADD: Matt Stafford | Los Angeles Rams (41%)

Stafford may be available in your league as fantasy managers may have let him go due to injuries. He has promising matchups left on the schedule against Seattle (Week 11), Arizona (Week 12) and Washington (Week 15). Superflex managers should prioritize him. Stafford will also benefit from the return of Kyren Williams.

Jameis Winston | New Orleans Saints (0%)

Speculative Superflex managers with room on their roster may want to make a lowball bid on Winston. Derek Carr should return for Week 12, but there is no guarantee. If Winston gets the start, he will be a mid QB2 with a strong matchup.

Running Backs

Ty Chandler | Minnesota (8%)

Chandler was in this Waiver Wire column and my Sleepers article last week, but who is counting? Hopefully, many of you grabbed him for cheap in multiple leagues like I did. Alexander Mattison suffered a concussion in Minnesota’s win over New Orleans, and Chandler should have at least one week with a huge workload. Chandler was basically in a split with Mattison for touches for most of the game and finished with 45 yards and a TD. Expect him to catch a few passes this week as well. When Mattison returns, this backfield is shaping up into a split. Aggressively bid on him if you are RB-needy.

Kenneth Gainwell | Philadelphia (26%)

Gainwell scored a TD in Week 9 and caught five passes in Week 8. He is one of the more valuable handcuff RBs in football due to the quality of the Philadelphia offense. Gainwell could also see increased opportunities with Dallas Goedert sidelined. If D’Andre Swift were to miss time, Gainwell would be an every-week mid-RB2.

Rico Dowdle | Dallas (4%)

Dowdle is one of the most valuable handcuff RBs in football. The Cowboys offense is rolling, and we want pieces of it. Although Dowdle passing him by in any capacity would be galaxy-brained thinking, Tony Pollard has been uninspiring over the last two weeks.

Dowdle has been efficient. He also displayed his talent this week, rushing for 79 yards and a TD as Dallas completely demolished the Giants. This is a bad week for Waiver Wire RBs, so if you have roster space grab Dowdle’s contingent upside. He should be rostered in way more leagues than he is now.

Leonard Fournette | Buffalo (24%)

Fournette’s presence in the Buffalo backfield is only a matter of time. I am writing this article before the Bills play on Monday Night Football, but the recent play of James Cook and Latavius Murray has left a lot to be desired. For Buffalo to make a run this year in the AFC playoffs, it feels like they will need a dose of playoff Lenny. I love stashing him wherever I can, and so should you.

Elijah Mitchell | San Francisco (17%)

Mitchell’s lack of opportunities in a blowout win were disappointing. He ran eight times for 23 yards in San Francisco’s 33-3 drubbing of the Jaguars. The idea that he will be a playable handcuff is out the window. He is strictly a contingent value play, but if McCaffrey were to miss any time, Mitchell would be an RB2.

Joshua Kelley Los Angeles (19%)

Zamir White Las Vegas (2%)

Tank Bigsby Jacksonville (9%)

Trayveon Williams Cincinnati (0%)

Michael Carter New York Jets (1%)

Jamaal Williams New Orleans (23%)

All four players would be significant waiver wire additions if the RB ahead of them missed time. Consider rostering these players if you have the space on your roster.

Wide Receivers

NOTE: SHALLOW LEAGUE ADDS- Brandin Cooks (38%) and DeMario Douglas (36%) should be rostered everywhere.

Noah Brown | Houston (25%)

Brown is red hot. Did I mention that Brown is RED HOT? Brown trails only CeeDee Lamb in receiving yards over the last two weeks. In Houston’s wins over Cincinnati and Tampa Bay, Brown combined for 13 catches and an insane 325 receiving yards.

His connection with C.J. Stroud is undeniable as Stroud has targeted him 14 times. He certainly saw an uptick with no Nico Collins in the lineup, but he has done enough to pass Robert Woods by in the WR pecking order. Will this sort of production last? No. But Brown is a fantasy starter this week, and we will use him until he trails off. Do not overthink it.

Jayden Reed | Green Bay (21%)

This is probably the last week I will be able to write about Reed. It seems like I have been writing about him for about three years (it has actually been ten weeks), but he has been a frequent subject for my waiver wire and sleepers article. Reed is starting to come on as a pro in a big way. He has 83 yards or more in two of his last three games, and it is a matter of time before he becomes the No. 1 weekly target on the Packers offense. He outgained Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs this week.

Michael Wilson | Arizona (12%)

Wilson’s first game with Kyler Murray under center was promising. He was targeted six times and nearly scored a TD. Look for the rookie to start to increase his fantasy production in the coming weeks as the improving Arizona Cardinals offense reach new heights with Murray.

Khalil Shakir | Buffalo (18%)

Buffalo has yet to play at the time I am writing this article, but Shakir is still available in 82 percent of Yahoo leagues. He has become a consistent part of the Bills offense with 14 catches the last three games played. Shakir has an easy path to exposure in the Buffalo offense and a solid floor play during Bye weeks.

Trenton Irwin | Cincinnati (8%)

Irwin has seen fantasy success in multiple games that Tee Higgins missed this season.

On Sunday, Irwin caught two passes for 54 yards and a TD. He should get another spot start on Thursday in a difficult matchup against Baltimore. Target Irwin this week if you need a spot start.

Marvin Mims | Denver (12%)

Mims has yet to play at the time of this article. I wrote this about him last week.

Rational coaching would mean finding the talented Mims increased opportunities post-Bye week. The Broncos’ 2nd-round pick has been a source of fantasy frustration for managers craving more playing time, but he has a 113-yard and 73-yard performance earlier in the season. This is a speculative addition but one that could pay off.

Odell Beckham | Baltimore (26%)

Beckham has scored TDs in back-to-back games. The volume has been inconsistent with seven targets in Week 9 and only two in Week 10. I am cautiously optimistic that Beckham is heating up. He could be a very fun start in a dream Week 12 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Rondale Moore | Arizona (8%)

Moore is trending up with Murray returning. He posted season highs in yardage (43), catches (five), and targets (eight). I prefer Wilson as a long-term stash, but Moore has a safer floor.

Tight Ends

SHALLOW LEAGUE ADD: Pat Freiermuth | Pittsburgh (36%)

Freiermuth is nearing a return from injury, and the Steelers passing game sure could use him. Freiermuth struggled to start the year, but he did have two TD catches. I will bet on Freiermuth returning to some sort of fantasy impact.

Luke Musgrave | Green Bay (23%)

Musgrave is going to start ripping off a few big fantasy performances. Over the last two weeks, Musgrave has 115 receiving yards and a TD. His 64 yards this week were a career high. Musgrave has the speed and athletic ability to rip off some big plays down the stretch.

He is a high upside addition for fantasy managers looking for an ascending player who can make an impact in the fantasy playoffs.

Cade Otton | Tampa Bay (22%)

Otton posted a fantasy dud, as Tampa rolled over Tennessee. The game flow and matchup did not help (Tennessee is strong against TEs). Otton is still a solid add if available. In his previous three games, Otton was targeted at least six times in every game.

Michael Mayer | Las Vegas (10%)

Mayer saw a slight uptick in usage with five targets- the most he has had since Week 6. He also caught a TD. Hopefully, this is a sign of better things to come. Mayer is a stash rather than a plug-and-play.

Tyler Conklin | New York Jets (11%)

Conklin is back on our radars after 13 catches in his last two games combined. He is always one of our favorite “break glass in case of emergency” floor plays at TE. Do not expect too many ceiling games, but the recent volume has been promising.

Tanner Hudson | Cincinnati

Hudson has passed Irv Smith on the Bengals depth chart.

TE Premium managers should monitor the veteran. He has had 12 targets over the last two games and was a sneaky beneficiary of Tee Higgins‘ absence. However, do not pay up for Hudson.