Heading into Week 11, the waiver wire pickups out there aren't overly promising, and that carries over into the NFL snap count analysis from Week 10. That doesn't mean there aren't any potential sleepers or breakout candidates -- just maybe a bit less than usual. There's still plenty of reason to be excited about Kareem Hunt, Tre'Quan Smith, and Auden Tate, and I'm not sure how you'd describe Kalen Ballage at this point -- sleeper, breakout candidate, and bust all rolled into one?
Hunt's usage in his first game back was about as encouraging as could be. He spent a lot of time on the field simultaneously with Nick Chubb (and proved his worth as a lead blocker on some of those plays, too, springing Chubb for big gains). The former Kansas City back was also targeted nine times in the passing game, which probably has PPR owners' mouths drooling as they imagine Hunt as the new Austin Ekeler.
WEEK 11 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
Ballage remains a funny case. You could probably watch all his runs all season and only be convinced of his legitimacy as an NFL back on a couple of them. He averaged less than two yards per touch Sunday. But as long as he's getting the football, he has potential.
WEEK 11 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
And if you're looking for WRs this week, both Smith and Tate have great matchups and promising trends when it comes to playing time. Tate shrugged off Alex Erickson to dominate the action (albeit not the production) for the Bengals in Week 10. Smith played more than Ted Ginn Jr. despite it being his first game back from an ankle injury, and the Buccaneers' league-worst pass defense is up next. Both those players are widely available, and Ballage is out there in more than half of leagues, as well.
Check out our 32-team breakdown of Week 10 snap counts here.
Browns Snap Counts: Nick Chubb vs. Kareem Hunt
Everyone should be happy with how this broke down. Chubb fantasy owners can look at the 57 snaps he played, the 20 carries he received, and the 116 yards he gained and feel pretty confident that he'll be just fine even with Hunt around. They were on the field together a bunch, showing Cleveland wants them involved as much as possible.
Hunt played 38 snaps, more than half of the Browns' plays, and although he received just four carries, he was heavily involved in the passing game. Hunt was targeted nine times and caught seven passes for 44 yards. It wasn't like Cleveland was down in Sunday's game a bunch, as it ended up winning, meaning those weren't just open garbage-time passes to Hunt.
Going forward, it appears that you can continue to count on Chubb as you have all season, which is probably as a very strong RB2 or a low-end RB1. Those of you who picked up or stashed Hunt and were waiting for this moment have to be pretty pleased. Double-digit touches each week for an explosive running back won't be anything to scoff at.
Especially in PPR leagues, Hunt appears to be in a similar boat as Austin Ekeler, where you feel like you can rely on him to have a solid floor due to the receiving. Obviously this was just the first week of the pair together, but if anything, Hunt would get more playing time and not less going forward. He seems like a solid FLEX play in PPR leagues and can start in standard leagues as a low-end FLEX option, too.
WEEK 11: Top waiver wire pickups
Dolphins Snap Counts: Kalen Ballage vs. Miami RBs
Ballage's Week 10 outing can be viewed in two very distinct ways.
The first: Ballage touched the ball 24 times and was on the field for 54 of a possible 66 snaps. No other running back played more than eight snaps. Ballage is the obvious bellcow in the Miami backfield.
The second: Ballage gained 45 yards on his 24 touches. Of running backs in NFL history to touch the ball at least 24 times in a game, that's the 13th-lowest total yardage, according to Pro Football Reference.
It feels like in a game the Dolphins were winning most of the time, they would've gone away from Ballage if they felt there was a better alternative. His four catches (for just two yards) show that Miami also wanted to get him involved through the air, too, which is good for some PPR value. It feels silly to rely on Ballage when you consider the yardage, but if he gets 24 touches every week, you have to at least consider playing him. He should definitely be owned in pretty much every league in the hopes that he finds a groove as the starter or manages a touchdown.
MORE WEEK 11:
Waiver wire | FAAB planner | Trade values | Snap counts | Fantasy playoff SOS
Saints Snap Counts: Tre'Quan Smith vs. Ted Ginn Jr.
Smith hadn't played more snaps than Ted Ginn Jr. in any game this season. So, you'd figure that in Smith's first game back from an ankle injury, he'd be eased back into things.
Nope. Smith played more snaps than Ginn and was second among Saints WRs behind Michael Thomas. Smith caught just one-of-two targets for 13 yards, while Ginn caught none of his three targets in a game the Saints struggled to move the ball.
It's all notable heading into a Week 11 matchup with the Buccaneers, who have allowed more fantasy points to WRs in 2019 than any other team. Smith was on our preseason All-Sleeper Team after showing a lot of promise in 2018. Injuries and lack of usage have prevented him from reaching that same level of effectiveness.
If there was ever a team for Smith to break out against, it would be Tampa Bay. Neither of these wideouts is a must-start in Week 11, but both are worth considering off your waiver wire. Even more important, for the first time this season, Smith may have surpassed Ginn.
WEEK 11 DFS LINEUPS:
Y! cash | Y! GPP | DK cash | DK GPP | FD cash | FD GPP
Bengals Snap Counts: Auden Tate, waiver wire pickup
I haven't bugged you guys about Tate in a while, so we're overdue, and thankfully, the Bengals used him in such a way in Week 10 that made him an easy discussion point this week. Tate played every one of Cincinnati's offensive snaps against the Ravens in Week 10. Tyler Boyd also might be dinged up, although that's less certain at this point.
Tate caught three-of-six targets for 36 yards. It wasn't an exciting day, but it's enough to keep us behind his cause as long as A.J. Green (ankle) is out. Tate faces one of the league's worst pass defenses in Oakland this week, making him worth a pickup off the waiver wire and possible usage as a WR3.
The receivers who would benefit from Boyd's possible absence would be Alex Erickson and Stanley Morgan Jr., both of whom played 38 snaps in Week 10. Erickson was surprisingly shut out after two big weeks, not catching either of his two targets. Morgan caught one-of-four targets for nine yards. Both could be DFS values if Boyd is out.
For snap count reactions for every team, click here.