Fantasy football season is getting into crunchtime. In most leagues, Week 11 means you have three weeks left to solidify your playoff position, sneak into a final playoff spot, or collapse and fall out of relevancy. We wouldn't want you to do that without the best sleeper picks to save your season. So, yeah, that Brian Hill guy you'd never heard of until last week -- he'll factor heavily into start 'em, sit 'em decisions. Things change quickly in the NFL, and our sleeper picks reflect that.
Some weeks our sleepers are on the border of being pretty straightforward starts, but not this week. Sure, Hill is pretty obvious with Devonta Freeman out, but he was a relative unknown a week ago. Auden Tate and Tre'Quan Smith have been passed over by fantasy owners time and time again this season. Tyler Eifert and Jack Doyle are basically the definition of old, slow, unexciting tight ends. And maybe they aren't automatic starts, but they certainly deserve more consideration than you were likely to give them.
WEEK 11 NON-PPR RANKINGS:
Quarterback | Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end | D/ST | Kicker
As they say, defense wins championships. It's not totally true in fantasy football, but you also don't want to start the incorrect D/ST. The streams are light this week, but ideally we have three suggestions who can come through for you.
Last week, we were mostly right about Kareem Hunt, at least for PPR owners. He played a huge role in the Cleveland passing game and should be a vital part of that offense going forward. Ronald Jones also had a solid game, although it was surprising that it came through the air, and Joe Mixon got a heavy workload despite trailing all game.
Week 10 was also when we said Kyler Murray was "due" on the road, and oh boy, was he ever. On the bad side, Zach Pascal disappointed, but we redeemed ourself with a solid volume day from Gerald Everett.
Just a reminder before you get into it: Sleepers aren't automatic starts. In a lot of ways, we hope you have two better options than someone like Ballage. But give these guys more consideration when you set your lineups this week than you may have been planning on.
To see our Week 11 busts, click here.
WEEK 11 PPR RANKINGS: Running back | Wide receiver | Tight end
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Week 11 Fantasy Sleepers: Running backs
Kalen Ballage, Dolphins vs. Bills (Billy Heyen). I accidentally nearly put Ballage down as my bust running back for this week, too. That's the type of player he is. But if he can get 20 or more touches again against a defense in the lower half of the league against running backs, he should find his way to some decent fantasy numbers via that volume.
James White, Patriots @ Eagles (Vinnie Iyer). When New England's actual running game gets shut down, White should be seeing a lot of short passes come his way as an extension of the running game.
Brian Hill, Falcons @ Panthers (Matt Lutovsky). The Panthers have been torn apart by running backs over the past five games, allowing 11 rushing scores and two receiving touchdowns. Hill received virtually all the Falcons backfield work after Devonta Freeman (foot) exited last week, and he’ll likely receive a similar workload this week.
WEEK 11 DFS LINEUPS:
Y! cash | Y! GPP | DK cash | DK GPP | FD cash | FD GPP
Week 11 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Quarterbacks
Nick Foles, Jaguars @ Colts (Heyen). Foles returns to a matchup with a middling pass defense. Dede Westbrook (shoulder) should be healthy after the bye, and DJ Chark will still do his thing. Foles should probably have a rock solid floor in Week 11.
Sam Darnold, Jets @ Redskins (Iyer). Washington is weak in the secondary, so Darnold can be streamed if you need him as a fill-in for Russell Wilson or Aaron Rodgers.
Derek Carr, Raiders vs. Bengals (Lutovsky). Carr has clearly burned a lot of fantasy owners because he remained sub-50-percent owned in Yahoo leagues entering Week 10 despite averaging 289 passing yards and 2.3 touchdowns in his previous three games. He didn’t do much last Thursday (218 yards, TD), so perhaps the cold shoulder was justified, but a matchup this week against a Bengals defense allowing the third-most fantasy points per game (FPPG) to QBs will make him worth starting.
MORE WEEK 11 DFS: Values | Stacks | Lineup Builder
Week 11 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Wide receivers
Tre'Quan Smith, Saints @ Buccaneers (Heyen). Smith looked to surpass Ted Ginn Jr. as the Saints' No. 2 WR a week ago, and now he gets a matchup with the defense allowing the most fantasy points to WRs in 2019.
Will Fuller, Texans @ Ravens (Iyer). He has a fair shot to return from his hamstring injury after the bye, and given Marlon Humphrey works more out of the slot now and Marcus Peters should chase DeAndre Hopkins, Fuller can make big plays outside vs. Jimmy Smith. ( Update: Fuller has been ruled out for Week 11, making Kenny Stills a viable sleeper this week.
Auden Tate, Bengals @ Raiders (Lutovsky). Tate basically disappeared in the second half last week, but he played every snap and had a respectable six targets for the game. With A.J. Green (ankle) still hobbled and Tyler Boyd also banged up, Tate could be Cincinnati’s top target against an Oakland defense allowing the third-most standard FPPG to WRs.
MORE WEEK 11:
Waiver wire | FAAB planner | Trade values | Snap counts | Fantasy playoff SOS
Week 11 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Tight ends
Tyler Eifert, Bengals @ Raiders (Heyen). The Raiders have allowed the third-most FPPG to tight ends in 2019, and Eifert caught a touchdown from Ryan Finley in the rookie's first start. Maybe the rookie QB will continue trusting his tight end as the narrative often suggests.
Jack Doyle, Colts vs. Jaguars (Iyier). They need him to produce badly with their wideouts hurting, and this matchup calls for that in the passing game.
T.J. Hockenson, Lions vs. Cowboys (Lutovsky). Hockenson hasn’t done much since Week 1, but he has 13 targets over the past two games. Jeff Driskel targeted him six times last week, and this week he faces a Cowboys defense allowing the fourth-most standard FPPG to TEs.
Week 11 Fantasy Sleepers: Defenses
Dallas Cowboys @ Lions (Heyen). Jeff Driskel (assuming he starts) isn't scaring anyone. Fire up the Dallas defense in a matchup that should be full of sacks and turnovers.
Oakland Raiders vs. Bengals (Iyer). They rolled in prime time against the Chargers last week and will keep it going in the Black Hole against another turnover-prone NC State QB.
New York Jets @ Redskins (Lutovsky). Washington has scored 18 points over the past three games...total. Dwayne Haskins starting debut wasn’t terrible, but he did take four sacks. When you add in the INT issues we saw from him earlier in the year, the Jets make for a high-floor, high-ceiling play.