2012 NFL Fantasy Football Week 11: Flex Play Rankings / Projections

One thing we can count on in New Orleans is a running game with multiple tailbacks coming in and out of the lineup. With Joe Vitt back from his suspension and leading the charge as the Saints' head coach, there are some changes of which we need to take note.

For one, Vitt is open about wanting to run the football more, using ball control to take pressure off the defense. A smart move, and with Sproles out of the lineup, Chris Ivory has been pressed back into action as the third option in the backfield.

Both Ivory and Mark Ingram have run the football well, and their fresh legs look to be an advantage as we creep closer to Thanksgiving. Because all three of the Saints running backs are flex-play candidates, I want to break down the recent snap counts and stats for each back for the past two weeks.

Snap Counts

	Wk 10 Snap Count	Wk 9 Snap Count
Mark Ingram	24	18
Pierre Thomas	27	21
Chris Ivory	10	13

snap count numbers courtesy of Football Outsiders

Stats

	Week 10 Results			Week 9 Results
	Rush Stats	Pass Stats		Rush Stats	Pass Stats
Mark Ingram	16 – 67			7 – 44	2 – 23
Pierre Thomas	5 – 10	1 – 6		6 – 44	2 – 26
Chris Ivory	7 – 72 – 1	1 – 13		10 – 48 – 1	1 – 2

As we can see, Thomas as led the charge in snaps both weeks but oddly enough he’s been outproduced or at least matched in terms of production by both Ingram and Ivory each week.

While Ivory is bringing up the rear in terms of touches and snaps, he’s been the top option to start of the three, as he’s scored a touchdown each week, while Ingram and Thomas have failed to find the end zone.

Ivory the goal-line back? Not that I’ve seen, as Ivory’s touchdowns have come from distances of 22 and 56 yards! What we should notice is that both Ivory and Ingram have earned more playing time, and I hope they receive it this week against a pathetic Raiders defense.

Expect the Saints to build up a big lead on Oakland in the first half and run the football over 30 times by game's end. Both Ingram and Ivory are worth starting, and I actually like Ingram as the top start of the three because he received 16 carries last week.

If the Saints continue to run the football as they have in recent weeks, we can expect Brees’ numbers to take a dip from what we saw through the first two months of the season. Coach Vitt is wise to protect his defense, and an effective running game is a great way to help them out.

1	Arian Foster	Jaguars
2	Doug Martin	@ Panthers
3	Stevan Ridley	Colts
4	A.J. Green	@ Chiefs
5	Roddy White	Cardinals
6	Calvin Johnson (I)	Packers
7	Vincent Jackson	@ Panthers
8	Reggie Wayne	@ Patriots
9	Ray Rice	@ Steelers
10	Matt Forte	@ 49ers
11	Trent Richardson	@ Cowboys
12	C.J. Spiller	Dolphins
13	Brandon Marshall	@ 49ers
14	Demaryius Thomas	Chargers
15	Denarius Moore	Saints
16	LeSean McCoy	@ Redskins
17	Jordy Nelson (I)	@ Lions
18	Marques Colston	@ Raiders
19	Eric Decker	Chargers
20	Frank Gore	Bears
21	Jamaal Charles	Bengals
22	Randall Cobb	@ Lions
23	Andre Johnson	Jaguars
24	Julio Jones (I)	Cardinals
25	Willis McGahee	Chargers
26	Alfred Morris	Eagles
27	Ryan Mathews	@ Broncos
28	Steve Smith	Buccaneers
29	Wes Welker	Colts
30	Miles Austin	Browns
31	Torrey Smith	@ Steelers
32	Larry Fitzgerald	@ Falcons
33	Mike Wallace	Ravens
34	Mike Williams	@ Panthers
35	Dwayne Bowe	Bengals
36	Dez Bryant	Browns
37	Jonathan Dwyer	Ravens
38	Reggie Bush	@ Bills
39	Steven Jackson	Jets
40	Mikel Leshoure	Packers
41	DeSean Jackson	@ Redskins
42	Steve Johnson	Dolphins
43	James Jones	@ Lions
44	Michael Turner	Cardinals
45	Brandon Lloyd	Colts
46	Jeremy Maclin (I)	@ Redskins
47	Titus Young	Packers
48	Danny Amendola (I)	Jets
49	Darrius Heyward-Bey	Saints
50	Jeremy Kerley	@ Rams
51	Felix Jones	Browns
52	BenJarvus Green-Ellis	@ Chiefs
53	Shonn Greene	@ Rams
54	Danario Alexander	@ Broncos
55	Lance Moore	@ Raiders
56	Andre Roberts	@ Falcons
57	Alex Green	@ Lions
58	Marcel Reece	Saints
59	Larod Stephens-Howling	@ Falcons
60	Vick Ballard	@ Patriots
61	Mark Ingram	@ Raiders
62	Cecil Shorts	@ Texans
63	Michael Crabtree	Bears
64	Brian Hartline	@ Bills
65	Josh Gordon	@ Cowboys
66	Ryan Broyles	Packers
67	Rashad Jennings	@ Texans
68	Jonathan Stewart	Buccaneers
69	Joique Bell	Packers
70	Chris Ivery	@ Raiders
71	Danny Woodhead	Colts
72	Isaac Redman	Ravens
73	Santana Moss	Eagles
74	Daniel Thomas	@ Bills
75	Dayrl Richardson	Jets

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