The Minnesota Vikings are on an impressive run right now, as they won their fifth straight game by beating the New Orleans Saints 27-19 on Sunday night.
What is making this run even more impressive is how the team has been decimated by injuries. Justin Jefferson has missed the last five games for the Vikings, while Kirk Cousins and Cam Akers have both been lost for the season with Achilles injuries.
Ty Chandler was able to get 15 carries on Sunday, as another Vikings player, running back Alexander Mattison, had to leave the game due to an injury. But should fantasy football managers add Chandler from the waiver wire?
Should Ty Chandler Be a Fantasy Waiver Wire Add in Week 11?
Chandler was going to be more involved in this game because he had moved up to No. 2 on the depth chart after Akers’ injury. However, no one was expecting him to get 15 carries on Sunday, but he did and got 45 yards and one touchdown. Chandler got that many carries in large part because Mattison (eight carries for 27 yards) left the game in the third quarter with a concussion.
Football is a next-man-up mentality, and right now, the Vikings are living that out perfectly.
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Obviously, the main point here to follow is how Mattison progresses throughout the week in the concussion protocol. If he is cleared and good to go, you have to figure that he will be the main running back for the Vikings. If he cannot go, though, Chandler becomes a very interesting waiver wire guy.
In Week 11, if Mattison is unable to go, then yes, give Chandler a look. He has a very favorable matchup against the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football. The Broncos, despite playing better on defense recently, are still one of the worst units in the league. They allow 154.1 yards per game on the ground, which is the worst by over 15 yards.
The passing defense isn’t much better, ranking 27th (251.8 yards per game), while the Broncos are allowing a league-high 28.3 points. A big factor in what kind of fantasy value Chandler will have is how he does catching the ball out of the backfield. If he is able to be productive as a receiver, then he could be a very sneaky Week 11 Flex or RB filler.
You are going to have to follow the injury report on the Vikings this week and see how Mattison recovers. Like I said, if he clears the concussion protocol and is able to play this week, then there isn’t a ton of value for Chandler.
If Mattison is going to have to miss a week or even two, then Chandler is a guy you should spend some money on. The Vikings offense appears to be clicking under Josh Dobbs at a rate close to when Kirk Cousins was playing.
In the long term, Chandler isn’t going to be a huge part of the Vikings offense, but in Week 11, the recipe might be right to have him on your team.
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