2012 Fantasy Football Week 11: Quarterbacks (QB) Rankings / Projections

While Peyton Manning threw for over 300 yards last week, I’m concerned about his ability to put up big numbers with regularity in the future. At this point in time, Manning is likely one of the top six scoring quarterbacks on the season in many fantasy leagues. And yet if the defense and special teams continue to play like they’ve done in the past three-and-a-half weeks, we could see more one touchdown performances from Manning in the future, like we had in Carolina.

What also concerns me is that all of Manning’s seven touchdowns in the past three weeks have come 15 yards or close. He’s still making big plays, but the touchdowns aren’t coming as a result, and this is a problem for those of you in performance leagues, where you acquire extra points for the distance of a touchdown pass.

Just like we witnessed last week, Manning had under 150 yards passing heading into the second half. Thanks to the defense shutting down Cam Newton, a special teams touchdown and a defensive touchdown, Denver was able to play it safe on offense.

Unfortunately, a deep hookup towards the end of the game to Demaryius Thomas fell short of a touchdown as Thomas was down at the five-yard line. Instead of a second touchdown on the day, we had a Ronnie Hillman touchdown run and what should have been another strong performance left Manning owners wanting more by game's end.

This week could be a different story for Manning, but then again, we might have the same situation. San Diego comes to town this week, and anyone who is following football this year knows of the struggles Philip Rivers is having.

While Rivers should be good for over 300 yards passing and a few scores, it will be up to the Broncos defense to come up short on turnovers, to force Manning to press for touchdown scores rather than long drives that finish with field goals or rushing touchdowns to pad the lead.

If the Broncos defense continues to play at the level they’ve been in recent weeks, we could see Manning’s value slip into the low-end QB1 range rather than a top five option.

What Did We Learn From Week 10?

- Detroit struggled to put up points until late last week, but for the second week in a row, Calvin Johnson had a big day. This time, Matthew Stafford finally hooked up with Johnson for their first touchdown score together. I don’t think anyone would’ve believed it would take until Week 10 for these two to connect for a touchdown but here we are.

It’s not all bad, however, as it appears the Lions offense is on track for a strong second half. Even if it starts out slow, expect Stafford to find a way to push for 300 yards and a couple of scores. In a big game against the Packers this week, I like Stafford as a top five option at the quarterback position.

- Jason Cole, of Yahoo Sports discussed the possibility of Vick being shutdown for the rest of the season (concussion) in favor of rookie Nick Foles. The rookie played well, but he did have some big mistakes at the end of the game with an interception and fumble, as both led to defensive touchdowns.

Consider it time to cut Vick from your team as the Eagles look ready to move on from Vick and see what Foles has to offer for the future.

Sean’s Week 11 Watch List

- This could be another game where Andrew Luck throws the football for over 350 yards as the Colts face off against the Patriots. Indianapolis will mix in the run, but we know by now this offense depends on Luck to make plays in the passing game.

- With the Saints coming to town, we should anticipate Carson Palmer throwing the football close to 50 times. The Raiders defense has been horrible of late, forcing the offense to practically abandon the run through the second half as Palmer tries to help his team get back into ball games. Consider Palmer a solid QB1 play this week.

1	Aaron Rodgers	at Lions
2	Drew Brees	at Raiders
3	Matt Ryan	at Cardinals
4	Tom Brady	Colts
5	Matthew Stafford	Packers
6	Peyton Manning	Chargers
7	Carson Palmer	Saints
8	Josh Freeman	at Panthers
9	Andrew Luck	at Patriots
10	Robert Griffin III	Eagles
11	Andy Dalton	at Chiefs
12	Cam Newton	Buccaneers
13	Philip Rivers	at Broncos
14	Tony Romo	Browns
15	John Skelton	Falcons
16	Joe Flacco	at Steelers
17	Ryan Fitzpatrick	Dolphins
18	Matt Schaub	Jaguars

Week 11 Standard Rankings – RB | WR | TE | K | D |