Week 11 Roundup

A-Z FFB
Nov 24, 2020
10 min read

I wish there was a bye week for content creators, ya know what I'm sayin? I'm burnt out, folks. But I'm not going to stop. Let's just hop right into this week's roundup!

Injuries:

DNP Week 11:

- Christian McCaffery - Shoulder

- Teddy Bridgewater - Knee

- David Montgomery - Concussion

- Kenny Golladay - Hip

- D'Andre Swift - Concussion

- Chris Carson - Knee

Injured Week 11:

- Joe Burrow - ACL/MCL (IR)*

- Mark Ingram - COVID

- JK Dobbins - COVID

- Adam Thielen - COVID

- La'Mical Perine - Ankle

- JuJu Smith-Schuster - Toe

Returning From Injury:

- Austin Ekeler - Hamstring

- Sam Darnold - Shoulder

Week 11 Takeaways:

- Redemption for Seattle

Seattle got their revenge vs. Arizona after the Cardinals handed Seattle their first loss of the year in week 7. Seattle now sits in sole possession of 2nd place in the NFC West. While they have the same record as the Rams, the Rams have a head-to-head win in week 10. The Seattle vs. LAR rematch is in week 17.

- Packers fall to the Colts in an OT thriller

While my Packers lost, this was a helluva game to watch. This game featured some huge offensive plays, defensive stands & the most holding penalties in a 5 minute (game time) span that I have ever seen. Marquez Valdes-Scantling was the pivotal name in this game. Towards the end of the 4th quarter, MVS caught a field flipping BOMB from Aaron Rodgers on 3rd & 10. This led to the game tying field goal. Fast forward to OT, the Packers won the toss. MVS catches a ball and fumbles resulting in a turnover that left the Colts in field goal position. Now I'm a huge Packers fan, but if you are one of those folks giving MVS hell then please re-evaluate your own life. Yes, it sucked... but this is a game. If you lost money on it then I have a solution, don't gamble.

- Please don't let Joe Burrow become Andrew Luck 2.0... PLEASE

Joe Burrow suffered a devastating injury vs. the Washington Football Team. In a single, brutal hit, Burrow tore his ACL, PCL, MCL & his Meniscus. That is all of the L's, if you are keeping count at home. Burrow has not been protected this year at all, this draws immediate comparisons to another career that came to and end all too soon, Andrew Luck, who retired from the game at age 29. The injury that Joe Burrow sustained will require a major surgery, and Burrow's availability for the start of the 2021 season is seriously in doubt.

Photo: nypost.com

- 16-0 & 0-16 might actually happen in 2020

The Steelers are ROLLING in 2020, the Jets are doing the exact opposite. The Steelers have a legitimate shot at a 16-0 season, assuming they choose NOT to rest any starters for the playoffs, which is unlikely for obvious reasons, they want a Super Bowl. Now the Jets on the other hand, combined with wanting the worst record in the NFL, the Jets also have approximately 0.0 winnable matchups on the rest of their schedule. Plus, with a team as laughably bad as the 2020 Jets, you know no other NFL team wants to be "that team" that lost to one of the worst teams in NFL history. If I had to pick which is more likely to happen, I would pick the Jets going 0-16. The NFL is hard, the Jets are living proof.

- Cowboys sneak out a W vs. Vikings

This football game featured two of the best catches of the year, one by CeeDee Lamb, the other by Adam Thielen. If you haven't seen those grabs yet, check them out! Kirk Cousins put up a monster game, but as we have seen from previous games where the Vikings are relying on Cousins to win them games, they fall short. Let me be clear, this is not an indictment of Kirk Cousins, he did everything he possibly could. This is an indictment of the Vikings defense, as the defense put the offense in positions that they are not equipped to win. Congrats to the Cowboys, at 3-7 they are somehow still in contention to win the NFC East if they can string together a few wins, lord knows the Eagles can't.

- Derrick Henry is 2020's first 1,000 yard rusher

King Henry lived up to his nickname on Sunday vs. the Raves. Henry rushed for 133 yards, capped off by a 29 yard game winning TD in overtime. Henry earned himself a contract extension this past offseason, so far he has proven that it is money well spent for Tennessee.

Photo: profootballnetwork.com

- Tua benched, still the starter

Just 4 weeks after taking over as the starter, Tua was benched vs. the Broncos. I have heard mixed reactions on this decision, so here is mine... 1. Brian Flores has already stated that Tua is still the starter. 2. Tua was getting obliterated in this game, sacked 6 times!!! 3. He was struggling throwing the ball.

Now the argument was that Flores "shot down Tua's confidence by benching him". To that I say, how is leaving a rookie QB in a game that he is getting destroyed in establishing any confidence? What is he learning in those situations? After 6 sacks we already know he can take a hit... We saw what happened to Joe Burrow, the difference is that Ryan Finley can't win a game. Ryan Fitzpatrick can. I think that benching Tua was the right move, both for his confidence and for his health in the long run. The team has already made it clear he is their guy, so why let "your guy" get absolutely mauled by an opposing defense.

- Tom Brady is a sore loser

The Bucs have struggled pretty mightily in prime time games this season. Another trend that we have noticed is Tom Brady blowing off post game handshakes. Nick Foles & Jarred Goff were both given the cold shoulder by the GOAT after the game. For all the Brady has accomplished, it is honestly disappointing that he has yet to learn how to lose with grace.

Report Card:

I'm going to go off script this week. I usually recall my Starts of the Week from the podcast segment. This week I mentioned some other players in other segments of the pod that wound up being good plays this weekend. Don't worry, I'll hit on my misses too. I'll still go position by position with some of the highs and lows from the week.

QB:

Jameis Winston - I spent quite a while talking about Jameis on last week's pod. I was disappointed when it was announced Friday that not only was he not the starter, but the Saints had 0 offensive packages for Jameis vs. the Falcons. Luckily I had a couple of good pivots ready. - Wash

Derek Carr - Al & I have revamped our Game Breakdown segment, instead of covering all of the games, we pick 2 each. One of my games was the Raiders vs. Chiefs. Carr balled out in the first meeting against the Chiefs. Week 11 wasn't quite the same as week 5, but Carr still finsihed as a QB 1 on the week. - Hit

Kirk Cousins - Cousins was my official pivot, as I went with Cousins in my 'Starts of the Week' tweet for the week. Cousins torched Dallas for 314 yards & 3 TD's. Cousins has been efficient this year, but efficiency doesn't always mean productive, especially for fantasy. This week he was efficient AND productive. - Hit

RB:

Miles Sanders - In the first half this call looked golden. Sanders was rolling in the first half, and then barely utilized in the second half. Sanders finished with a 16 / 66 / 0 line and also had a fumble to subtract from his score, finishing the week as a low end RB 3. - Miss

WR:

Diontae Johnson - The season that Diontae Johnson is putting together has me so excited. This has been my guy since before I started creating content. In week 10, Diontae Johnson recorded his first career 100+ yard game. In week 11 Diontae recorded his second career 100+ yard game & his first career game with at least 10 receptions. DJ did not find the end zone this week, but he still managed a top 15 finish. - Hit

Photo: msn.com

Justin Jefferson - Another call from the podcast... this matchup was just too good. Jefferson was outdone by teammate Adam Thielen, but still managed a top 15 finish on the week. -Hit

TE:

Taysom Hill - This only applied to ESPN (and I think Yahoo?) leagues, obviously. Taysom Hill earned TE eligibility for this week only. This was before he was designated as the starting QB. So hopefully you were able to participate in this loophole, that is unless you are too high and mighty to do that... if that was the case I think a 'Chill Pill' is in order. Hill finished as the TE 1 on the week (no surprise), but you might be shocked to find that Hill also finished as a top 5 QB on the week in his first career start. -Hit

Photo: reportdoor.com

Popped Off | Dropped Off:

Popped Off:

- QB - Deshaun Watson - QB 1 | 31.2 pts.

28/37 passing / 344 yds. / 2 TD | 6 rush att. / 36 yds. / 1 TD

- QB - Justin Herbert - QB 2 | 27.7 pts.

37/49 passing / 366 yds. / 3 TD | 2 rush att. / 11 yds.

- RB - Ezekiel Elliot - RB 4 | 18.4 pts.

Rushing - 21 att. / 103 yds. / 0 TD | Receiving - 2 rec. / 11 yds. / 1 TD

- RB - Jonathan Taylor - RB 13 | 13.4 pts.

Rushing - 22 att. / 90 yds. / 0 TD | Receiving - 4 rec. / 24 yds.

- WR - Adam Thielen - WR 1 | 28.3 pts.

11 tgt. / 8 rec. / 123 yds. / 2 TD

- WR - Keenan Allen - WR 2 | 26.5 pts.

19 tgt. / 16 rec. / 145 yds. / 1 TD

- WR - Damiere Byrd - WR 4 | 23.3 pts.

7 tgt. / 6 rec. / 132 yds. / 1 TD

- TE - Travis Kelce - TE 1 | 22.9 pts.

10 tgt. / 8 rec. / 127 yds. / 1 TD

- TE - Mark Andrews - TE 3 | 18.1 pts.

7 tgt. / 5 rec. / 96 yds. / 1 TD

***********

- QB - Tua Tagovailoa - QB 25 | 7.3 pts.

11/20 passing / 55 yds. / 1 TD

- QB - Baker Mayfield - QB 26 | 7.0 pts.

12/18 passing / 204 yds. / 0 TD

- RB - Miles Sanders - RB 34 | 7.6 pts.

Rushing - 16 att. / 66 yds. / 0 TD / 1 FUM | Receiving - 3 rec. / 15 yds.

- RB - Todd Gurley - RB 45 | 3.4 pts.

Rushing - 8 att. / 26 yds. / 0 TD | Receiving - 1 rec. / 3 yds.

- WR - Robby Anderson - WR 41 | 8.1 pts.

9 tgt. / 7 rec. / 46 yds. / 0 TD

- WR - DeAndre Hopkins - WR 45 | 7.6 pts.

8 tgt. / 5 rec. / 51 yds. / 0 TD

- WR - Christian Kirk - WR 50 | 7 pts.

6 tgt. / 4 rec. / 50 yds. / 0 TD

- TE - Mike Gesicki - TE 20 | 6.3 pts.

5 tgt. / 4 rec. / 43 yds. / 0 TD

- TE - Tyler Higbee - TE 26 | 4 pts.

4 tgt. / 4 rec. / 19 yds. / 0 TD

The Waiver Wire:

Quarterback:

Taysom Hill - 43% Rostered

I should expand this to 'Saints QB', but for right now, the Saints QB is Taysom Hill, and based on what we saw in week 11, he did nothing to warrant his job as the starting being in jeopardy. Hill threw for 233 yards and he is always a threat to take off and run (2 rushing TD's in week 11). If for some reason Winston enters the conversation for starting QB, sub Hill's name with Winston's. But until then, Hill is worth a start has he leads this talented Saints offense for the foreseeable future.

Andy Dalton - 10% Rostered

Andy Dalton led the Cowboy's to their first victory since losing Dak Prescott as their full time starting QB. The Cowboy's offense has a plethora of talented weapons, they are just in need of a QB that can distribute the ball to those weapons. Dalton's initial stint as the starter was cut short due a concussion, followed up by a bout with COVID-19. The Cowboys are in a 3 way tie for second place in the JV division of the NFL (AKA the NFC East). Also worth noting, Dalton is auditioning for a future NFL home, meaning that he has a lot to play for.

Kirk Cousins - 42% Rostered

My week 11 start of the week, I mentioned in the Report Card segment... Cousins has been efficient, but that does not always mean productive. Since week 5, Cousins has thrown multiple TD's in all but 1 of those games. The one off week in that time frame was Dalvin Cook's MONSTER game vs. Green Bay where Cousins simply was not needed. Cousins has a couple of nice matchups coming up (Carolina & Jacksonville).

Running Back:

Gus Edwards - 29% Rostered

With Mark Ingram & J.K. Dobbins already ruled OUT due to COVID-19, it's all aboard the Gus Bus. Edwards is going to need all of that volume, however has he has a tough matchup vs. Pittsburgh in week 12.

James White - 35% Rostered

With Rex Burkhead ruling himself out for the remainder of the year, James White seems primed to absorb even more of the receiving work out of the backfield, as that is his bread and butter in the NFL. The Pats are activating RB Sony Michel off of IR, however Michel is no threat to the receiving role in this backfield that now appears to belong solely to James White.

Wide Receiver:

Denzel Mims - 5% Rostered

Denzel Mims is doing his best out there for this pitiful Jets offense. Most of Mims's playing time has been with backup QB, Joe Flacco. That should change this week as Sam Darnold could return to action. In the 4 games that Mims has played this season, he has been a staple of the offense, playing an average of 90.5% of offensive snaps. Mims has seen 26 targets had has recorded yardage totals of: 42, 42, 62 & 71. Mims is a flex play at best, but his consistent involvement provides a safe floor if you are in need of a spot start.

Photo: newyorkjets.com

K.J. Hamler - 6% Rostered

Hamler has seen his involvement increase steadily throughout the season. Over the past 3 weeks Hamler has seen two games with 10 targets. Hamler is a big play waiting to happen, but sporadic QB play may limit his true upside. Nonetheless, Hamler finds himself in that flex category as well. If you are dealing with injuries or a bye week, you could do worse than Hamler has he faces off against the Saints in week 12.

Deebo Samuel - 60% Rostered

I'm including Deebo in the Waiver Wire section because I was forced to drop Deebo earlier this season, so chances are someone in your league had to drop him as well. Deebo was in the WR 2 conversation ahead of the 2020 season, we know he is talented and the 49ers love to get the ball in his hands in creative ways. With George Kittle still on the mend, Deebo should be primed for immediate work as soon as he returns to the lineup.