We are now in the home stretch of the fantasy football season, which means we know which of our teams look like contenders and which ones are fighting for a playoff spot. We need to cater our pickups toward our team situations. It’s now time to improve our rosters.
Let’s take a look at the top Week 11 waiver wire targets and pickups that fantasy managers should consider adding to their rosters. As always, all players are rostered in less than 50% of Yahoo leagues.
I have done away with FAAB recommendations this year, as there are too many variables to account for. Instead, I replaced it with my opinion on how aggressive fantasy managers should be in pursuing the player on a scale of 1-10.
Russell Wilson, QB | PIT
Rostered: 21%
The Pittsburgh Steelers are still a run-first offense, but there’s no denying Russell Wilson’s ability to make plays when needed. It’s these timely throws that have helped his fantasy value.
Wilson has 19+ fantasy points in two of his three starts, and he hasn’t really faced a situation where he’s had to air it out a ton, with fewer than 30 pass attempts in each start.
FIRST TD AS A STEELER!!!!!!!!
📲 Stream on NFL+: https://t.co/COxKRnr6Mc pic.twitter.com/qaxvtHNvcM
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 10, 2024
Next week, things might be much different. The Steelers have a home date against the Baltimore Ravens’ pass-funnel defense. The way to beat the Ravens is through the air, so we could see Pittsburgh throw more than usual, with success in doing so.
Wilson is at least a viable streamer.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.5
Matthew Stafford, QB | LAR
Rostered: 62%
The perception of Matthew Stafford’s fantasy viability does not meet reality. On the surface, he looks like a terrible option, but he’s actually played pretty well. The issue with Stafford has been Kyren Williams stealing all of the touchdowns.
Over the last two weeks (before Monday Night Football), Stafford started throwing multiple scores, with four in Week 8 and two in Week 9. Unsurprisingly, this coincided with the returns of Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp.
The Los Angeles Rams’ remaining schedule of pass defenses is pretty difficult, though. In fact, they don’t have a single game against a team that isn’t top 10 against the pass until the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17.
As a result, I cannot recommend adding Stafford right now. However, if he’s able to torch the Miami Dolphins’ second-ranked pass defense, I may reconsider.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Bo Nix, QB | DEN
Rostered: 33%
Quietly, Bo Nix has been a pretty solid fantasy quarterback. Right around Week 5, the rookie appeared to turn a corner. Since then, he’s averaged 20.6 fantasy points per game.
This year, anything over 18 is really good.
The Denver Broncos may want to be a run-first offense, but they don’t exactly have the talent at running back to do it. As a result, Nix has been throwing a bit more, hitting 30 pass attempts in four of his last five.
Over the next two weeks, the Broncos face two bottom-eight pass defenses. Only the Chargers in Week 16 represent a truly challenging opponent. Nix is a borderline QB1 for the rest of the season and well worth adding if you need QB help.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0
Ricky Pearsall, WR | SF
Rostered: 37%
The volume isn’t quite there for Ricky Pearsall, but the talent sure looks to be.
Pearsall has improved in every game this season. Against the Bucs, the rookie caught four passes for 73 yards and an impressive catch-and-run touchdown.
First NFL TD for Ricky Pearsall ‼️
📺 #SFvsTB on FOX pic.twitter.com/J8kjN1jYLB
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) November 10, 2024
With the San Francisco 49ers healthy, returning Deebo Samuel Sr., Christian McCaffrey, and Jauan Jennings, it may be hard for Pearsall to have any consistency. Still, we’ve seen enough to believe he’s worth rostering.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0
Alec Pierce, WR, | IND
Rostered: 15%
With Michael Pittman Jr. out, the Indianapolis Colts needed more from their ancillary players. On the surface, it may appear they got it from Alec Pierce.
Pierce caught four of seven targets for 81 yards and a touchdown, but most of his production came during garbage time. He has splash-play upside and is always liable to produce on limited volume, but Ierce is not someone who can be trusted in lineups.
I would not add him.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Adonai Mitchell, WR | IND
Rostered: 6%
Between Pierce and Adonai Mitchell, I would much prefer the rookie, if adding one of them. Mitchell caught all six of his targets for 71 yards and looked like a much more complete receiver.
Pittman could be back next week — or he could also be done for the season. That makes adding Mitchell highly speculative, as any fantasy value he might have is contingent upon Pittman remaining out. Nevertheless, he’s a name to monitor.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Marquez Valdes-Scantling, WR | NO
Rostered: 1%
Has any wide receiver played with a better group of quarterbacks than Marquez Valdes-Scantling? When Derek Carr is the worst QB of your career, you know you’ve had it good.
MVS could not be fantasy-relevant with Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, or Josh Allen. On one of the most depleted WR corps in the league, the Buffalo Bills still didn’t think Valdes-Scantling was worth hanging onto, cutting him earlier this year.
Fantasy managers are looking at Valdes-Scantling because he scored 25.9 fantasy points last week. But let’s analyze his production so far.
In two games with the New Orleans Saints, MVS does have an impressive 100% catch rate. He’s also seen a whopping four targets — he just happened to catch three passes for 109 yards and two touchdowns against the Atlanta Falcons.
Notably, that all came in the first half. MVS did not garner a single second-half target.
MVS ran 18 routes and played 55% of the snaps. This was as flukey as flukes get. Do not add him.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
John Metchie III, WR | HOU
Rostered: 1%
Let’s give credit where credit is due. John Metchie III played his best game as a pro on Sunday night against the Detroit Lions, catching five of six targets for 74 yards and a touchdown.
John Metchie missed his entire rookie year after he was diagnosed with leukemia in 2022.
Two years later he's making BIG plays for the @HoustonTexans ❤️ pic.twitter.com/lICeHix1uC
— NFL (@NFL) November 11, 2024
Metchie has overcome considerable adversity to even be a useful piece of an NFL roster, and seeing him succeed is awesome. With that said, don’t go adding him in fantasy.
It’s notable that Metchie played ahead of Robert Woods, but he still ran fewer routes than both Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson. With Nico Collins expected to return, Metchie is about to drop to WR4. C.J. Stroud is not sustaining more than two fantasy-relevant WRs, let alone four. There is nothing here for fantasy.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Sterling Shepard, WR | TB
Rostered: 13%
Given the prolific nature of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense, it’s understandable that fantasy managers are looking for whoever might be the answer at WR with Chris Godwin done for the season and Mike Evans sidelined with a hamstring strain.
But it’s not Sterling Shepard.
The veteran receiver has just one game with double-digit fantasy points all season. He caught one pass for seven yards against the 49ers last week. Even with the depleted Bucs’ WR corps, Shepard still ran fewer routes than both Ryan Miller and Rakim Jarrett.
The Bucs are on bye this week, and Evans has a chance to return afterward. There is no reason to add Shepard.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Jauan Jennings, WR | SF
Rostered: 60%
Jauan Jennings is well above the 50% rostership threshold. Typically, I wouldn’t bother listing him, but this is a case where we’re talking about a player who should be rostered in 100% of leagues. So, for those 40% of you out there, get to steppin’!
The 49ers got their players back following the bye. Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel Sr., and Jennings all looked healthy, playing together for the first time this season.
Many fantasy analysts out there were hyping up Samuel as a buy, but I had him (and still do) as a sell. Part of that is because of Jennings.
Most famous for his 46.5-point explosion in a Week 3 game where both Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk didn’t play, Jennings is now set to serve as the 49ers’ WR2 for the remainder of the season. In his first game back from a hip injury, he caught seven of 11 targets for 93 yards.
I would rather have Jennings than Samuel rest of season. If he’s still out there on your waiver wire, this is an all-in move.
Aggressiveness Rating: 10.0
Quentin Johnston, WR | LAC
Rostered: 41%
At this point, I think this is who Quentin Johnston is. He only has 20 receptions on the season but seems to have a nose for the end zone, scoring five times.
You can certainly use Johnston in desperation scenarios, knowing there’s a higher-than-expected chance he scores. With that said, he’s never going to produce like a first-round WR.
Johnston saw just two targets against the Tennessee Titans, catching both for 24 yards and a touchdown. The excitement from fantasy managers likely stems from his 4-118-1 game two weeks ago.
Johnston has now had two 22-point games, two games in the 10-12-point range, and three total duds. That’s actually not terrible for a waiver wire pickup.
You will never feel good about having Johnston in lineups, but if you need a Hail Mary swing, there are worse options.
Aggressiveness Rating: 1.0
Gabe Davis, WR | JAX
Rostered: 18%
Gabe Davis is rostered in 18% of leagues, which is about 18% too many.
Other than Week 6 against the Bears, Davis has not had a single useful week for fantasy. Last week, he caught one pass for 19 yards against the worst pass defense in the NFL.
With Mac Jones likely starting for the remainder of the season, even Brian Thomas Jr. won’t be startable in fantasy. What hope does Davis have? Do not add him anywhere.
Aggressiveness Rating: 0.0
Rashod Bateman, WR | BAL
Rostered: 29%
Can you really trust Rashod Bateman every week? No. Does he have spike week upside, though? Absolutely.
Bateman bounced back after two massive duds with six receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown. He’s now hit double-digit fantasy points in five of his last eight games. At the very least, he’s worth putting on your bench for potential games where the Ravens need to throw.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.5
Jaylen Warren, RB | PIT
Rostered: 51%
Slightly over the rostership threshold, Jaylen Warren is good enough to warrant discussion. The Steelers have gone back to their timeshare between Najee Harris and Warren, with the latter getting healthy.
In Week 10, Warren carried the ball 14 times for 66 yards while adding two receptions for 29 yards. That’s 16 opportunities!
On Thursday night, we saw Chase Brown rack up nine receptions as the Bengals went extremely pass heavy against the Ravens’ pass-funnel defense. We could be looking at a heavy Warren game, and it’s not just one we’re adding him for.
Warren is a legitimate weekly RB3 with RB1 upside if Harris were to go down.
Aggressiveness Rating: 6.0
Tyler Allgeier, RB | ATL
Rostered: 43%
It can be difficult to roster a backup running back without much standalone value. Tyler Allgeier still managed to earn 11 carries in negative game script against the Saints, but this is a continuing trend where he’s just too far behind Bijan Robinson.
Allgeier hasn’t caught a pass in three weeks. Even when he scored in Week 9, he didn’t get to eight fantasy points.
With that said, Allgeier is the clear handcuff in one of the best situations in the NFL. If Robinson were to miss time, Allgeier would be an every-week high RB2, at worst.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.5
Cam Akers, RB | MIN
Rostered: 14%
Aaron Jones briefly left the Minnesota Vikings’ win over the Jaguars, and we got a glimpse of what this backfield would look like without him. It would be Cam Akers as the lead back with Ty Chandler behind him.
Akers carried the ball 13 times for 38 yards. It wasn’t impressive, but the volume is what we care about. He’d at least be a rosterable RB3, which is worth handcuff value.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.0
Audric Estimé, RB | DEN
Rostered: 3%
When a running back scores 5.3 fantasy points, we typically don’t flock to pick him up. There’s no guarantee Audric Estimé ever emerges into anything useful for fantasy. With that said, head coach Sean Payton has been talking him up for a couple of weeks now, saying he would get more looks. And that plan finally went into motion last week.
Estimé led the Broncos’ backfield with a season-high 14 carries. He only managed 53 scoreless yards, which might keep fantasy managers sleeping on him.
Estimé will largely be touchdown-dependent, as he doesn’t have a single target all season. But he does appear to be the Broncos’ primary runner and likely goal-line back. Perhaps there won’t be anything here, but Estimé is worth a pickup if you have the room.
Aggressiveness Rating: 4.0
Tyjae Spears, RB | TEN
Rostered: 46%
Returning from a three-game absence due to a hamstring strain, Tyjae Spears saw a respectable 10 touches against the Chargers. To be fair, most of them came with the game no longer in doubt in the fourth quarter. Even so, Spears looked good, carrying the ball seven times for 47 yards and adding three receptions for four yards.
Tyjae Spears returned to the Titans this week, and Tony Pollard only played four more snaps, ran two more routes, and had two more carries than him. Pollard's 56% running back rush share was his lowest of the season.
— JJ Zachariason (@LateRoundQB) November 11, 2024
Most importantly, Tony Pollard missed part of this game with a leg injury. If he were to miss time, Spears would be a weekly RB2/3. But even with Pollard healthy, Spears has some desperation Flex value and is worth a look as a bench stash.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.0
Trey Benson, RB | ARI
Rostered: 18%
Impressively, Trey Benson has hit double-digit fantasy points in back-to-back games. Of course, it was largely flukey.
First, Benson stole a short touchdown to get there. Second, he benefited from the Cardinals blowing out the New York Jets and there being a lot of time to rest James Conner.
Regardless, Benson looks like a much-improved player, one capable of handling lead-back duties, if necessary. He appears to be the clear handcuff to Conner, which is at least worth a bench stash.
Aggressiveness Rating: 2.5
Mike Gesicki, TE | CIN
Rostered: 45%
Fantasy managers who started Mike Gesicki with confidence in a dream matchup were sorely disappointed on Thursday. In a game where the Bengals scored five touchdowns, Gesicki had a mere four receptions for 30 yards.
So, why pick him up? Gesicki’s usage is still promising. He saw nine targets, it just didn’t work out.
If Tee Higgins returns, I would not trust Gesicki. But if Higgins misses another game, you can go back to the Gesicki well if you need a TE.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.0
Taysom Hill, TE | NO
Rostered: 53%
Slightly over the rostership threshold, Taysom Hill is still worth a mention. The Saints’ gadget man listed as a tight end is who he is. Most weeks, you’ll get something like the 6.22 or 7.0 fantasy points he’s provided two of the last three weeks.
Every once in a while, you’ll get the 16 fantasy points Hill had in Week 9. It really comes down to whether he scores, which is completely random.
With that said, tight end remains a wasteland. Hill has arguably more TD upside than most tight ends, given how frequently he is used near the goal line. If you have a hole at TE, Hill can fill the void.
Aggressiveness Rating: 3.0