Stars of Week 11

QB: Ben Roethlisberger, PIT: 30-45, 299 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs                                                    

RB: Latavius Murray, MIN: 15 carries 95 yards, 2 TDs                  

WR: Antonio Brown, PIT: 10 catches, 144 yards, 3 TDs                                              

TE: Ricky Seals-Jones, ARZ: 3 catches, 54 yards, 2 TDs 

Ben Roethlisberger has had a down year for the Steelers, and has actually been a weak link for his team this season. This past Thursday, however, Roethlisberger played like he did in his hay day, hooking up with star WR Antonio Brown for 3 TDs, and tossing a fourth TD along the way as well. The duo lands here in the coveted stars of the week section. Brown remains the top WR in the league, while Roethlisberger remains a matchup dependent QB. I’ve never been a big Latavius Murray fan, as he but he played a key role in the Vikings’ win against the Rams. He’s an RB2 for the remainder of the season. We’ve got a rookie TE as our final top performer, as Ricky Seals-Jones caught two TDs in the loss against the Texans. We’ll take a closer look at him below. 

Week 11 Takeaways – A Closer Look 

Each week we take a closer look at a handful of performances and sort out what such performances mean going forward.

- Marcus Mariota, QB – TEN: 22-33, 306 yards, 1 TD, 4 INTs

Analysis: Marcus Mariota was a popular bust-out pick in the preseason, and I was well on board this train. However, I will admit that I whiffed here. Mariota has regressed this season, his third in the league. After seemingly putting it together during the second half of the 2016 season, Mariota looks uncomfortable this year, struggling with his reads and appearing to lack confidence. The running game has also taken a step back from last year, which has only complicated things for Mariota. The Titans’ QB is droppable if you need roster space, but if there’s a silver lining, it’s that his schedule becomes incredibly favorable down the stretch – starting this coming week against the Colts. He’s a QB2 until further notice, but there’s a slight chance he can straighten the ship in time to help for the playoffs. So if you so desire, you can hold him for another week and see if there’s a rebound in the works. 

- Samaje Perine, RB – WAS: 23 carries, 117 yards, 1 TD 

Analysis: Samaje Perine’s name circulated around fantasy draft circles as a rookie RB to keep an eye on. Prior to week 11, Perine had largely disappointed in the opportunities he received. In week 11 however, the rookie RB from Oklahoma had his best game to date, surpassing the century mark and scoring his first rushing TD against the Saints. With both RBs Rob Kelley and now Chris Thompson out for the season, and Samaje Perine will have the lead chair to himself for the rest of the year, and the Redskins will give him every chance to earn the starting tailback spot for next year and beyond. While his game against the Saints was certainly a step in the right direction, I still have concerns about Perine. Going into the Saints’ game, Perine averaged a paltry 3.2 yards per carry. That being said, Perine should be the lead RB pickup this week due to his overall situation, with the hope that he’ll repeat his success from week 11. For my money, Perine falls more in the flex category than RB2, but he will be elevated dependent on matchups. If you need an RB, look to Perine first.

- Kenny Stills, WR – MIA: 7 catches, 180 yards, 1 TD 

Analysis: The Miami Dolphins’ season has been a train wreck, but the team has skill players that demand our attention for fantasy purposes. For this piece, we’ll give a look to Kenny Stills, who had 180 yards receiving from 7 catches, to go along with one TD. While Stills has Jarvis Landry and DeVante Parker ahead of him in the pecking order, he has been targeted at least 8 times in four of the last five games. With the Dolphins likely to be trailing in most games going forward, the team will need to air it out quite a bit. As we’ve witnessed, Stills has a nice connection with backup QB Matt Moore, so who starts for the Dolphins next week will bear relevance to Stills outlook. But even if Cutler returns, Stills remains relevant. For those of you in leagues with 12 teams or more, Stills can serve as a viable flex option. 

- Corey Coleman, WR – CLE: 6 catches, 80 yards, 0 TDs   

Analysis: The Cleveland Browns have perfected the art of serving as the league’s doormat. At some point – likely when the team finally finds a competent QB – they’ll flip the script. In the mean time, we take a look at the Browns’ most relevant wide receiver for fantasy purposes – the talented Corey Coleman. The second year WR from Baylor returned to the team from his broken hand, and he was the center of attention for the Browns office. Quarterback DeShone Kizer targeted Coleman 11 times in the loss against the Jaguars. With very little competition for targets, Coleman figures to get ample throws his way, and has an opportunity to be a WR3/flex player for the duration of the year. With the Browns likely to be trailing in every game, they will go to the air plenty. So if you need a WR, Corey Coleman is a nice add.

- Ricky Seals-Jones, TE – ARZ: 3 catches, 54 yards, 2 TDs  

Analysis: The most off-radar performance for this week comes from Cardinals rookie tight end Ricky Seals-Jones. The undrafted free agent comes with no fanfare, and he was at zero percent ownership prior to this weekend. Two touchdown catches later, we’ve got a new name to evaluate for fantasy leagues. With the Cardinals’ season virtually over, perhaps Seals-Jones will have an opportunity to continue to develop. Without much else to evaluate – Seals-Jones only had one other offensive snap prior to this game – it’s hard to take anything other than a wait and see approach here. All that said, I don’t believe Seals-Jones will be a factor for fantasy purposes, as he has a subpar QB situation and no NFL history to back up one solid game. If you’re in a very deep league and need a speculative tight end, you can roll the dice. But otherwise Seals-Jones won’t be anything more than a low end TE2, at best.

Rapid Fire Pickups 

Each week we throw out potential free agent pickups from each position for deeper leagues, in each case 1) someone who has NOT been referenced above, and 2) a player available in most leagues.

QB: Case Keenum, MIN

RB: Austin Ekeler, LAC

RB: Rod Smith, DAL

WR: Josh Doctson, WAS

WR: Dontrelle Inman, CHI

TE: Charles Clay, BUF

Week 12 Rankings 

Quarterbacks:

1. Tom Brady, NE (vs. MIA)
2. Russell Wilson, SEA (at SF)
3. Carson Wentz, PHI (vs. CHI)
4. Cam Newton, CAR (at NYJ)
5. Ben Roethlisberger, PIT (vs. GB)
6. Matt Ryan, ATL (vs. TB)
7. Alex Smith, KC (vs. BUF)
8. Drew Brees, NO (at LAR)
9. Marcus Mariota, TEN (at IND)
10. Tyrod Taylor, BUF (at KC)
11. Jared Goff, LAR (vs. NO)
12. Andy Dalton, CIN (vs. CLE)
13. Jacoby Brissett, IND  (vs. TEN)
14. Derek Carr, OAK (vs. DEN)
15. Ryan Fitzpatrick, TB (at ATL)
16. Josh McCown, NYJ (vs. CAR)
17. Joe Flacco, BAL (vs. HOU)
18. Blake Bortles, JAX (at ARZ)
19. DeShone Kizer, CLE (at CIN)
20. Paxton Lynch, DEN (at OAK)

Running Backs:

1. Le'Veon Bell, PIT (vs. GB)
2. Todd Gurley, LAR (vs. NO)
3. Kareem Hunt, KC (vs. BUF)
4. LeSean McCoy, BUF (at KC)
5. Mark Ingram, NO (at LAR)
6. Leonard Fournette, JAX (at ARZ)
7. Alvin Kamara, NO (at LAR)
8. Carlos Hyde, SF (vs. SEA)
9. Jordan Howard, CHI (at PHI)
10. Lamar Miller, HOU (at BAL)
11. Christian McCaffrey, CAR (at NYJ)
12. DeMarco Murray, TEN (at IND)
13. Dion Lewis, NE (vs. MIA)
14. Jay Ajayi, PHI (vs. CHI)
15. Tevin Coleman, ATL (vs. TB)
16. Joe Mixon, CIN (vs. CLE)
17. Doug Martin, TB (at ATL)
18. Alex Collins, BAL (vs. HOU)
19. Marshawn Lynch, OAK (vs. DEN)
20. Adrian Peterson, ARZ (vs. JAX)
21. Jamaal Williams, GB (at PIT)
22. Isaiah Crowell, CLE (at CIN)
23. Damien Williams, MIA (at NE)
24. Rex Burkhead, NE (vs. MIA)
25. Bilal Powell, NYJ (vs. CAR)
26. Devontae Booker, DEN (at OAK)
27. Frank Gore, IND (vs. TEN)
28. Duke Johnson, CLE (at CIN)
29. Kenyan Drake, MIA (at NE)
30. C.J. Anderson, DEN (at OAK)
31. Derrick Henry, TEN (at IND)
32. Danny Woodhead, BAL (vs. HOU)
33. J.D. McKissic, SEA (at SF)
34. James White, NE (vs. MIA)
35. Jonathan Stewart, CAR (at NYJ)
36. LaGarrette Blount, PHI (vs. CHI)
37. Tarik Cohen, CHI (at PHI)
38. Eddie Lacy, SEA (at SF)
39. Corey Clement, PHI (vs. CHI)
40. Marlon Mack, IND (vs. TEN)

Wide Receivers:

1. Antonio Brown, PIT (vs. GB)
2. A.J. Green, CIN (vs. CLE)
3. Julio Jones, ATL (vs. TB)
4. Doug Baldwin, SEA (at SF)
5. Michael Thomas, NO (at LAR)
6. Brandin Cooks, NE (vs. MIA)
7. Mike Evans, TB (at ATL)
8. DeAndre Hopkins, HOU (at BAL)
9. Tyreek Hill, KC (vs. BUF)
10. Alshon Jeffery, PHI (vs. CHI
11. T.Y. Hilton, IND (vs. TEN)
12. Jarvis Landry, MIA (at NE)
13. Devin Funchess, CAR (at NYJ)
14. Demaryius Thomas, DEN (at OAK)
15. Larry Fitzgerald, ARZ (vs. JAX)
16. Michael Crabtree, OAK (vs. DEN)
17. JuJu Smith-Schuster, PIT (vs. GB)
18. Robby Anderson, NYJ (vs. CAR)
19. Davante Adams, GB (at PIT)
20. Emmanuel Sanders, DEN (at OAK
21. Amari Cooper, OAK (vs. DEN)
22. Mohamed Sanu, ATL (vs. TB)
23. Corey Davis, TEN (at IND) 
24. Jeremy Maclin, BAL (vs. HOU)
25. Cooper Kupp, LAR (vs. NO)
26. Sammy Watkins, LAR (vs. NO)
27. Devante Parker, MIA (at NE)
28. Corey Coleman, CLE (at CIN)
29. DeSean Jackson, TB (at ATL)
30. Marqise Lee, JAX (at ARZ)
31. Kenny Stills, MIA (at NE)
32. Nelson Agholor, PHI (vs. CHI)
33. Jordy Nelson, GB (at PIT)
34. Ted Ginn, Jr., NO (at LAR)
35. Danny Amendola, NE (vs. MIA)
36. Tyler Lockett, SEA (at SF)
37. Paul Richardson, SEA (at SF)
38. Marquise Goodwin, SF (vs. SEA)
39. Zay Jones, BUF (at KC)
40. Randall Cobb, GB (at PIT)

Tight End:

1. Rob Gronkowski, NE (vs. MIA)
2. Travis Kelce, KC (vs. BUF)
3. Zach Ertz, PHI (vs. CHI)
4. Jimmy Graham, SEA (at SF)
5. Greg Olsen, CAR (at NYJ)
6. Delanie Walker, TEN (at IND)
7. Jared Cook, OAK (vs. DEN)
8. Jack Doyle, IND (vs. TEN)
9. Tyler Kroft, CIN (vs. CLE)
10. Austin Seferian-Jenkins, NYJ (vs. CAR)
11. Charles Clay, BUF (at KC)
12. Austin Hooper, ATL (vs. TB)
13. Cameron Brate, TB (at ATL)
14. Benjamin Watson, BAL (vs. HOU)
15. Julius Thomas, MIA (at NE)
16. George Kittle, SF (vs. SEA)
17. David Njoku, CLE (at CIN)
18. C.J. Fiedorowicz, HOU (at BAL)
19. Tyler Higbee, LAR (vs. NO)
20. Coby Fleener, NO (at LAR)

Defense/Special Teams:

1. Jacksonville Jaguars (at ARZ)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (vs. GB)
3. Baltimore Ravens (vs. HOU)
4. Philadelphia Eagles (vs. CHI)
5. New England Patriots (vs. MIA)
6. Seattle Seahawks (at SF)
7. Cincinnati Bengals (vs. CLE)
8. Carolina Panthers (at NYJ)
9. Kansas City Chiefs (vs. BUF)
10. Arizona Cardinals (vs. JAX)
11. Houston Texans (at BAL)
12. Atlanta Falcons (vs. TB)
13. Denver Broncos (at OAK)
14. Tennessee Titans (at IND)
15. Oakland Raiders (vs. DEN)