Week 11 of the fantasy football season has a great slate of games after six teams were on a bye last week. Hopefully, your carefully curated roster is in good shape after the devastating slew of injuries that have affected the NFL. You’re in the right place if you’re in a tough situation with your start/sit questions.
Week 11 Fantasy Football Start ’ems
We’ve dug through the latest roster percentages to identify fantasy football players who you must either start or sit. Our two start options are currently being started in around 40% or fewer of leagues, whereas our two sit players are at around 70% or more. We’re also looking at players owned in a majority of leagues.
Darnell Mooney, WR, Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears have suddenly become an offensive juggernaut over the last month. As soon as quarterback Justin Fields decided to use his legs (since he was done waiting on receivers who couldn’t separate and an offensive game plan that was too bland) the Bears skyrocketed. They have five straight weeks with at least 237 rushing yards and 29 points scored.
MORE: Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer Week 11
Darnell Mooney has benefited with a more steady stream of targets, averaging seven targets per game over that span, compared to only four throughout the first five weeks. Mooney hasn’t been getting the yards needed to make him a must-start each week, but his numbers are trending upward. He reached the end zone for the first time in Week 9. I’m expecting a solid output in Week 11 against the Falcons.
Atlanta has the worst defense in the NFL against receivers, giving up 15.5 receptions for 201.1 yards and 1.2 touchdowns per game. The Bears may not throw for 200 yards total, but Mooney is in an excellent position to maximize his targets. It may be the best chance he’ll have to reach 100 yards for the first time this season.
The return of star cornerback A.J. Terrell will help the Falcons’ defense in slowing Mooney when they’re matched up. But the Bears can move Mooney around in order to avoid the Falcons’ most talented defender as much as possible.
Mike Williams, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
Whether you should start or sit Mike Williams in Week 11 is obviously tied to his status for Sunday’s game against the Chiefs. Recovering from a high ankle sprain that usually takes 4-6 weeks to heal, Williams was a limited participant in practices four weeks after suffering the injury.
With the Chargers 5-4 and needing wins to stay relevant in the AFC Wild Card chase, pushing Williams and/or Keenan Allen to return sooner than later might be necessary. A loss to the Chiefs would put immense pressure on the team to finish 5-2 against a schedule that is favorable but doesn’t have five slam-dunk wins. It’s hard to imagine 9-8 would be good enough to make the AFC playoffs considering the depth of the conference.
Williams is close to an automatic play when we know he’s available. With 495 yards and three touchdowns in seven games played, he’s capable of being a WR1 in any given week. He’s played well against the Chiefs, averaging 4.2 receptions for 67.7 yards and 0.6 touchdowns in his 10 career games against them.
This Chiefs defense has been especially prone to receivers stacking fantasy points. They’ve allowed the fifth-most fantasy points per game, giving up 13.8 receptions for 166.9 yards and 1.33 touchdowns per game. Only the Steelers have allowed more touchdowns per game.
If Williams is playing, he has to be in your lineup, even if Allen is also active. It’s likely we’ll see an offensive battle between Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert. We want as many shares in this as we can possibly get. You can even consider taking the higher on Williams’ receiving categories on Underdog Fantasy if the high-upside wideout is active on Sunday.
Week 11 Fantasy Football Sit ’ems
Michael Pittman Jr., WR, Indianapolis Colts
The best thing that could have possibly happened for Michael Pittman Jr.’s fantasy managers is Jeff Saturday’s hiring. Saturday immediately recognized that Indianapolis’ decision to start Sam Ehlinger over Matt Ryan was ill-fated and a desperate attempt to spark an offense that is simply limited by its offensive line. As soon as Ryan was reinserted as the starter, Pittman again saw his usual average of nine targets for 50-plus yards.
The high ceiling most fantasy analysts projected, including me, for Pittman this season hasn’t been there for multiple reasons. We won’t suddenly see Pittman producing touchdowns in droves or get someone likely to hit 100 yards. Pittman has two games over 72 yards and only one score on the season.
MORE: Friday WR Injury Report Week 11
While Pittman is a fine player if you need between five and seven catches for 55 yards, no one wants to start that type of predictably benign stat line on a good fantasy team. Facing the Eagles this week compounds the matter. The Eagles have been weak against the run without Jordan Davis, meaning this is likely a Jonathan Taylor game.
There’s no way I’m purposely starting Pittman against a unit allowing only 11.8 receptions for 134.6 yards and 0.67 touchdowns per game to receivers on the year. This pass rush will eat Ryan alive, and Pittman will suffer a down week.
James Conner, RB, Arizona Cardinals
Coming off his season-high in carries (21), yards (69), touchdowns (two), and snaps played (96% of all offensive plays), James Conner’s stock is booming across fantasy leagues. He’s slated to start in more than 70% of ESPN leagues. But even with Eno Benjamin’s sudden release that led to Conner’s massive leap in usage in Week 10, I’m not buying that Conner’s production is here to stay.
The Cardinals’ running game has been atrocious all season. There’s a reason why Conner was droppable as of Week 9. He had only one touchdown on the year despite five games with 10 or more total touches.
MORE: Friday RB Injury Report Week 11
His two touchdowns certainly make Conner a more intriguing play for rosters lacking two good backs or a quality flex option. However, deeper rosters shouldn’t fall into the trap of playing Conner against the NFL’s top-ranked defense against running backs, the San Francisco 49ers. Don’t forget it took 24 touches for Conner to reach 86 yards, and he hasn’t seen that volume in any other game this season.
The 49ers have been stellar against backs this season, allowing only 62.9 rushing yards, 29.8 receiving yards, and 0.44 touchdowns per game. Arizona will have to resort to their usual attack of an inefficient rushing game and pass-heavy game script. That doesn’t bode well for Conner.