Week 11 Waiver Wire Pickups: Sleepers Available in Majority of Fantasy Leagues

Zach Buckley@@ZachBuckleyNBAFeatured Columnist IVNovember 17, 2022

Week 11 Waiver Wire Pickups: Sleepers Available in Majority of Fantasy Leagues

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    INGLEWOOD, CA - OCTOBER 16: Ben Skowronek #18 of the Los Angeles Rams runs for a touchdown against the Carolina Panthers at SoFi Stadium on October 16, 2022 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
    John McCoy/Getty Images

    The waiver wire should be active in Week 11 of the 2022 NFL season.

    It's hard enough navigating around the four teams on a bye: Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Upping the difficulty for fantasy football managers, though, are all of the injuries accumulated over the previous 10 weeks.

    So, whether you're covering for Tyreek Hill's off week or Cooper Kupp's ankle injury, either way, you might be in the market for roster reinforcements. Let's help find a few of them here by spotlighting our top waiver-wire target—rostered in less than 60 percent of Yahoo leagues, per FantasyPros—at each of the three marquee positions.

Quarterback: Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers (58 Percent Rostered)

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    SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 13: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers drops back to pass against the Los Angeles Chargers during the first quarter of an NFL football game at Levi's Stadium on November 13, 2022 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
    Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

    Jimmy Garoppolo has become a regular waiver-wire recommendation this season, which makes total sense.

    San Francisco's reliance on its rushing attack limits his ceiling, so he's not someone fantasy managers in shallow leagues will want to rely on week-to-week. When they need a streamer, though, it's hard not to be swayed by the strength of his supporting cast and improved efficiency.

    Last week, he completed 67.9 percent of his passes for 240 yards, didn't throw a pick and scored his second rushing touchdown of the season. In his three games prior, he had 834 passing yards and six passing touchdowns against three interceptions.

    He's in a groove, and he could be at his best Monday night against an Arizona Cardinals defense allowing the seventh-most fantasy points to quarterbacks, per Yahoo.

Running Back: Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers (26 Percent Rostered)

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    PITTSBURGH, PA - NOVEMBER 13: Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jaylen Warren (30) warms up before the national football league game between the New Orleans Saints and the Pittsburgh Steelers on November 13, 2022 at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA. (Photo by Mark Alberti/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
    Mark Alberti/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

    Your eyes are not deceiving you, folks. Rookie Jaylen Warren is, in fact, the most explosive player in the Steelers' backfield.

    Moreover, Pittsburgh finally seems to be coming around to that idea.

    Najee Harris still handles the heavier workload, but that won't continue if Warren keeps doing so much more with his touches. While Harris rushed for a season-high 5.0 yards per carry on Sunday, that's Warren's per-carry clip for the season. The rookie has 318 scrimmage yards on 53 touches (6.0 yards per), while Harris has 572 on 152 (3.7).

    Warren has set a season-high in carries in each of his last two outings. If that trend continues, he'll deliver his first double-digit attempts and perhaps a huge rushing output to go along with them.

Wide Receiver: Ben Skowronek, Los Angeles Rams (5 Percent Rostered)

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    Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Ben Skowronek (18) against the San Francisco 49ers in an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 30, 2022, in Inglewood, Calif. The 49ers won 31-14. (AP Photo/Jeff Lewis)
    AP Photo/Jeff Lewis

    While most injuries force NFL teams to tinker with their approach, Kupp's ankle surgery will have L.A. doing a top-to-bottom overhaul.

    The offense didn't run through Kupp as much as he was simply the offense. He had twice as many receiving yards as anyone on the team (812) and easily doubled up their next-closest wide receiver in receptions (75).

    The Rams will take a committee approach to replace their top pass-catcher, but it's possible Ben Skowronek winds up playing the most significant role. He was already an active bail-out option for Matthew Stafford with his short-area quickness and ability to separate. Moving forward, Skowronek might end up being the preferred option.

    A leap of faith is required here, since Skowronek hasn't had a touchdown catch all season and only once surpassed 50 receiving yards. Everything is different in L.A. now, though, so that lack of previous production could be meaningless.

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