We are now firmly in the second half of the 2023 fantasy football season. The NFL landscape continues to shift, and fantasy managers should always be looking to improve their 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.
Top Waiver Wire Pickups in Week 11 | Quarterbacks
Note: As always, all players are rostered in 50% or less of Yahoo leagues.
Joshua Dobbs, Minnesota Vikings (52% Rostered)
Joshua Dobbs is slightly over the threshold, but he’s too good to ignore entirely. In his first start for the Vikings, Dobbs threw for 268 yards and one touchdown while adding 44 yards and another touchdown on the ground. He’s now scored at least 26 fantasy points in three straight games.
Dobbs is the real deal. He has plenty of weapons in Minnesota, and his best one is coming back in a week or two. He is an every-week QB1. If you need a QB, do what it takes to get Dobbs.
FAAB Recommendation: 15-20%
Top Waiver Wire Pickups in Week 11 | Running Backs
The Week 11 waiver wire is actually pretty solid at running back. Devin Singletary, Ty Chandler, and Keaton Mitchell are worthwhile pickups.
Devin Singletary, Houston Texans (49% Rostered)
On the list of things I could not possibly have seen coming, Singletary finishing the 1 p.m. ET slate as the overall RB1 on the week would be very high.
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Singletary absolutely crushed it, carrying the ball an absurd 30 times for a career-high 150 yards and a touchdown. He looked better this week than Dameon Pierce has at any point this season. I see no reason Pierce should get his job back when he returns.
FAAB Recommendation: 20-40%
Ty Chandler, Minnesota Vikings (7% Rostered)
Chandler only ran for 36 yards, but he saw 13 carries, including multiple goal-line looks. Most importantly, Chandler looked quicker and more explosive than Alexander Mattison.
I think there’s a real chance Chandler usurps Mattison as the lead back. And this offense remains potent with Dobbs under center. Chandler absolutely needs to be on more fantasy rosters in the event he becomes the lead back.
FAAB Recommendation: 10-20%
Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks (40% Rostered)
I will preface this by saying this is still Kenneth Walker’s backfield. He is the lead back and the only one startable in fantasy. But Zach Charbonnet is good, too. And most importantly, he’s the clear RB2.
Charbonnet actually saw 11 opportunities against the Commanders. He totaled 82 yards, which is respectable. He just has no touchdown upside with Walker around. But if Walker were to get hurt, Charbonnet would instantly be an RB1. That type of player needs to be on rosters as the playoffs near. Add him.
FAAB Recommendation: 10-20%
Keaton Mitchell, Baltimore Ravens (47% Rostered)
It appears not enough people bought into the Mitchell hype last week. Perhaps it was justified, though. Although Mitchell is clearly an electric player, he only carried the ball three times and saw just a single target this week.
Mitchell did amass 66 yards and a touchdown on his four touches. He’s proven that if he does find his way into more volume, he will be startable in fantasy. For that reason alone, he’s worth picking up.
FAAB Recommendation: 8-12%
Ezekiel Elliott, New England Patriots (41% Rostered)
Ezekiel Elliott benefited from Rhamondre Stevenson missing some time with a back injury, but even before that, he was running as well as he has all season.
Zeke carried the ball 13 times for 54 yards while adding two catches for 34 yards. He also proved that if something were to happen to Stevenson, he’d be startable as an RB2. This late in the season, he’s worth putting on your bench.
FAAB Recommendation: 8-12%
Tyjae Spears, Tennessee Titans (40% Rostered)
It feels like Tyjae Spears has been here every week this season. He’s not quite bad enough (fantasy-wise) to drop, but he’s not really good enough to start, either. He’s just one injury away. And if that were to happen, he’d be an every-week RB2.
Each game is about the same for Spears. He carries the ball 4-5 times and sees about 4-5 targets. At worst, fantasy managers can plug him in and know they won’t get zero. He’s at least worth rostering.
FAAB Recommendation: 5-10%
Rico Dowdle, Dallas Cowboys (4% Rostered)
I’m really not sure what’s going on with Tony Pollard, but he does not look like the same guy anymore. Does that mean Rico Dowdle is going to take his job? No. But could we potentially see more Dowdle going forward? Maybe.
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The real reason to add Dowdle is he’s the clear RB2 for the Cowboys. If Pollard gets hurt, Dowdle becomes Pollard. And based on what we’ve seen so far, that might end up being better than Pollard.
At this point in the season, it’s almost impossible to find upside handcuffs. Dowdle is one of them. Stash him if you’re a playoff team.
FAAB Recommendation: 5-10%
Top Waiver Wire Pickups in Week 11 | Wide Receivers
We don’t have a clear priority add off the Week 11 waiver wire at wide receiver, but Demario Douglas, Noah Brown, and A.T. Perry are interesting options.
Demario Douglas, New England Patriots (36% Rostered)
I was stunned to see Demario Douglas still available in so many leagues. He is very clearly the Patriots’ WR1 going forward. He’s now seen at least seven targets in three straight games and has over 50 receiving yards in three of his last four.
Against the Colts in Germany, Douglas caught six of nine targets for 84 yards. He was the only pass catcher on the Patriots to do anything of note. He’s not going to blow the doors off any fantasy matchup, but he’s a startable WR3/4.
FAAB Recommendation: 10-15%
Noah Brown, Houston Texans (24% Rostered)
I was way too dismissive of Noah Brown last week. I didn’t properly account for what would happen if Nico Collins got hurt. Well, that’s exactly what happened, which forced Brown into another prominent role.
Brown caught seven of eight targets for 172 yards. It was his second consecutive game with over 150 yards.
With C.J. Stroud already looking like a top-10 quarterback and the surefire Rookie of the Year, as long as Brown is the WR3, he’s clearly fantasy-viable. It’s time to pick him up.
FAAB Recommendation: 5-10%
Jayden Reed, Green Bay Packers (21% Rostered)
Jayden Reed is still operating as the Packers’ WR3 behind both Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson. I still believe Reed is the most talented WR on the team.
This week, he caught all five of his targets for 84 yards and a touchdown. He was the highest-scoring receiver on the team.
Watson has been droppable for weeks. Doubs is purely touchdown-or-bust. Reed is the one with the most upside. He’s worth putting on benches to see what happens.
FAAB Recommendation: 5-10%
Rashid Shaheed (50% Rostered) and A.T. Perry, New Orleans Saints (0% Rostered)
After Michael Thomas went down with a knee injury, it was the rookie A.T. Perry who stepped up. He wasn’t an every-down player, but whenever a receiver catches a touchdown, fantasy managers’ ears perk up.
Perry caught two of four targets for 38 yards and the aforementioned score. Most importantly, he looked like he belonged on an NFL field.
MORE: Fantasy TE Streamers and Rankings Week 11
At this point, we don’t know how long Thomas might be out, if at all. Given his history, it could be a little bit. Perry is still a purely speculative add that you absolutely cannot start next week. But I do think there’s enough upside here to take the shot.
Additionally, Rashid Shaheed saw nine targets in this game. His playing time also increased with Thomas out. We know Chris Olave is locked in as the WR1, but Derek Carr or Jameis Winston has to throw to someone else. Both Shaheed and Perry are worth looks.
FAAB Recommendation: 3-5% on both
Brandin Cooks, Dallas Cowboys (38% Rostered)
With nine catches for 173 yards and a touchdown, we must take notice of the Brandin Cooks resurgence. However, it is equally important to remember the Cowboys were facing the Giants, and Dak Prescott was able to do whatever he wanted. Just last week, Cooks caught one of two targets for seven yards.
I have no problem if you want to pick Cooks up. He’s on one of the best offenses in the league and one of the most pass-heavy offenses. But I must caution against trying to chase this week’s production.
FAAB Recommendation: 0-5%
Elijah Moore, Cleveland Browns (42% Rostered)
It was a nice bounce-back game for Elijah Moore against the Ravens. He caught five of seven targets for 44 yards and a touchdown. It was nice to see after Moore had seven targets combined in his last two games.
With that said, had Moore not scored, I’m not sure anyone would really be paying attention to him. His role still seems to be very random, and I don’t view him as a reliable starting option. He’s worth adding in deeper leagues, but I would leave him on the waiver wire in standard-sized leagues.
FAAB Recommendation: 0-5%
Top Waiver Wire Pickups in Week 11 | Tight Ends
The tight end position is not in a good spot this season, and this is the worst week for TEs on the waiver wire yet.
Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals (58% Rostered)
I know I broke the roster percentage rules for this one, but there really isn’t much out there that is appealing. Trey McBride, however, is very appealing.
If you’re in one of the 42% of leagues where he’s still available, the arrow continues to point up now that Kyler Murray is back.
McBride caught eight of nine targets for 131 yards against the Falcons. He now has 28 targets over his last three games. That type of volume is enough to chase for any player, let alone a tight end. He’s a clear top-12 option for the rest of the season.
FAAB Recommendation: 15-25%
Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (22% Rostered)
This is a carryover from last week’s waiver wire column. As I mentioned then, Cade Otton was likely to go back to being an afterthought in the Bucs offense. He did just that with two catches for 10 yards. But he still posted a 6-70-2 line two weeks ago. We know he has that in him. There are certainly worse TEs you can throw a dart at.
FAAB Recommendation: 0-5%
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