Fantasy Football Week 11: Updated Rankings for Sunday's Action

Week 11 of the football season should be considered as the equivalent of boxing's championship rounds for fantasy enthusiasts. We're beginning the home stretch, and winning in the ensuing weeks will help forge playoff berths—and a shot at the title—for many owners. Starting the right players is crucial in this situation.

As we know, painful as it is, sometimes making the right call in fantasy isn't rewarding. We've all had a running back with a great matchup lost due to injury in the game's first quarter. Unfortunately, no one can predict that kind of scenario (at least until time travel is invented), so we'll have to settle for positional rankings.

Based on criteria involving current trends, recent injuries and strength of opposition, here's a look at the top players for every position for Sunday's action in Week 11 of the NFL season.

Quarterback

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Peyton Manning	St. Louis Rams
2	Aaron Rodgers	Philadelphia Eagles
3	Tom Brady	Indianapolis Colts
4	Andrew Luck	New England Patriots
5	Drew Brees	Cincinnati Bengals
6	Matthew Stafford	Arizona Cardinals
7	Matt Ryan	Carolina Panthers
8	Robert Griffin III	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
9	Philip Rivers	Oakland Raiders
10	Colin Kaepernick	New York Giants
11	Cam Newton	Atlanta Falcons
12	Russell Wilson	Kansas City Chiefs

After glancing briefly at these rankings, your first feeling may be outrage. After all, how on earth could the author possibly rank Robert Griffin III above Russell Wilson? It's simple really. While Wilson may quarterback a better team, Griffin has a far superior fantasy matchup.

Washington is facing off against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary that is allowing 18.1 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks. That's good enough for the fifth most in the league. Meanwhile, Wilson faces the NFL's top-ranked pass defense, as the Kansas City Chiefs are only allowing 205.3 passing yards per game. That translates into only allowing 13.8 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks.

Jeff Haynes/Associated Press

So, that brings us to our next question. If the Chiefs defense is so good, why is Wilson ranked in the top 12 to begin with? Well, that's another simple answer. It has to do with his ability to run.

Through nine games this year, Wilson has rushed for 500 yards and four touchdowns. He's already approaching his career high of 539 rushing yards in 2013. Here's a nifty stat from ESPN's Ed Werder:

Wilson's ability to generate fantasy points with his arm and his legs makes him one of the few quarterbacks who can put up any kind of points against a very good Chiefs defense.

Running Back

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Mark Ingram	Cincinnati Bengals
2	Arian Foster	Cleveland Browns
3	Matt Forte	Minnesota Vikings
4	Marshawn Lynch	Kansas City Chiefs
5	Ahmad Bradshaw	New England Patriots
6	Eddie Lacy	Philadelphia Eagles
7	Frank Gore	New York Giants
8	Jamaal Charles	Seattle Seahawks
9	C.J. Anderson	St. Louis Rams
10	LeSean McCoy	Green Bay Packers
11	Rashad Jennings	San Francisco 49ers
12	Ryan Mathews	Oakland Raiders
13	Alfred Morris	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
14	Shane Vereen	Indianapolis Colts
15	Jeremy Hill	New Orleans Saints
16	Andre Ellington	Detroit Lions
17	Terrance West	Houston Texans
18	Jonathan Stewart	Atlanta Falcons
19	Jerick McKinnon	Chicago Bears
20	Steven Jackson	Carolina Panthers

Of all the running backs in the league, Mark Ingram sits atop the Week 11 rankings? Absolutely. In fact, have you seen him run lately?

Over the past three weeks, Ingram has been garnering plenty of attention from New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton. The running back has carried no less than 24 times in each of those contests and has produced three consecutive 100-yard efforts.

Following his outstanding performance against the San Francisco 49ers, fantasy guru John Paulsen of 4for4.com posed this question:

Luckily, Ingram's fantasy owners don't need to be asking that same question in Week 11, as the running back is set to take on the reeling Cincinnati Bengals. This team has been terrible against the run this season, and that showed in Week 10 when all three Cleveland Browns ball-carriers found the end zone.

Heading into Sunday's contest, the Bengals are giving up an average of 21.6 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs—that's the fourth most in the league.

Wide Receiver

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Calvin Johnson	Arizona Cardinals
2	Jordy Nelson	Philadelphia Eagles
3	DeSean Jackson	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
4	Demaryius Thomas	St. Louis Rams
5	Julio Jones	Carolina Panthers
6	Kelvin Benjamin	Atlanta Falcons
7	A.J. Green	New Orleans Saints
8	Emmanuel Sanders	St. Louis Rams
9	Mike Evans	Washington Redskins
10	Jeremy Maclin	Green Bay Packers
11	Randall Cobb	Philadelphia Eagles
12	T.Y. Hilton	New England Patriots
13	Roddy White	Carolina Panthers
14	Alshon Jeffery	Minnesota Vikings
15	Brandon LaFell	Indianapolis Colts
16	Michael Crabtree	New York Giants
17	Greg Jennings	Chicago Bears
18	Larry Fitzgerald	Detroit Lions
19	DeAndre Hopkins	Cleveland Browns
20	Andrew Hawkins	Houston Texans
21	Odell Beckham Jr.	San Francisco 49ers
22	Vincent Jackson	Washington Redskins
23	Golden Tate	Arizona Cardinals
24	Cordarrelle Patterson	Chicago Bears
25	Brandin Cooks	Cincinnati Bengals

There are plenty of deep threats at the wide receiver position in the NFL, but not many are more enticing than DeSean Jackson in Week 11. Not only has Jackson established himself atop the pecking order in Washington's receiving corps, but he has a good rapport with Griffin and a solid matchup on the way.

Jackson has found success with three different quarterbacks in Washington this season. He put up three 100-yard receiving games with Kirk Cousins at the helm, one with Colt McCoy and another with Griffin. According to Washington's official Twitter account, Jackson remains focused going forward:

That's a great sign considering he's about to get his best matchup of the season.

The Buccaneers are the worst team against wide receivers in the fantasy realm, allowing an average of 28.8 points per game to the position. Considering Jackson ranked first among the team's wide receivers in targets, receptions, yards and touchdowns in Week 10, we should assume he'll keep chugging along Sunday.

Even Tampa Bay knows what's on the way, via the team's official Twitter account:

If the Buccaneers are bracing for Jackson in Week 11, so should his fantasy owners.

Tight End

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Jimmy Graham	Cincinnati Bengals
2	Rob Gronkowski	New England Patriots
3	Julius Thomas	St. Louis Rams
4	Travis Kelce	Seattle Seahawks
5	Antonio Gates	Oakland Raiders
6	Dwayne Allen	New England Patriots
7	Jared Cook	Denver Broncos
8	Martellus Bennett	Minnesota Vikings
9	Greg Olsen	Atlanta Falcons
10	Mychal Rivera	San Diego Chargers
11	Larry Donnell	San Francisco 49ers
12	Zach Ertz	Green Bay Packers

Let's do a little myth-busting here. Just because a team has a great overall defense in the eyes of the NFL doesn't mean it is a terrible matchup for your fantasy players. This week, one of these examples is that of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce against the Seattle Seahawks.

Kyle Rivas/Getty Images

Heading into Week 11, the Seahawks own the league's third-ranked defense. Yes, they are a very scary unit. However, that doesn't mean they are prolific against all positions for fantasy purposes. In fact, Seattle is giving up an average of 9.9 fantasy points to opposing tight ends each week. That's the fourth most in the league.

ESPN's Trey Wingo delivered this fun fact:

Kelce's speed, athleticism and pass-catching ability make him a great matchup play. He's coming off a poor showing, catching just two passes for 19 yards against the Buffalo Bills; however, the Bills are allowing just 5.3 points to tight ends this year. One week prior, Kelce went off for 67 yards and a score against the Jets. Guess what? The Jets are allowing the second-most fantasy points to the position this season.

If a fantasy owner doesn't have one of the Big Three tight ends—Jimmy Graham, Rob Gronkowski or Julius Thomas—Kelce should be considered the next-best option in Week 11.

Defense/Special Teams

Rank	Team	Opponent
1	Denver Broncos	St. Louis Rams
2	Detroit Lions	Arizona Cardinals
3	Minnesota Vikings	Chicago Bears
4	Washington Redskins	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
5	San Francisco 49ers	New York Giants
6	Seattle Seahawks	Kansas City Chiefs
7	San Diego Chargers	Oakland Raiders
8	Green Bay Packers	Philadelphia Eagles
9	Cleveland Browns	Houston Texans
10	New Orleans Saints	Cincinnati Bengals

A defense can easily win or lose a fantasy matchup for its owner. Remember when the San Diego Chargers defense was rolling before it gave up four touchdown passes to Derek Carr and the Oakland Raiders? Yeah, that one hurt.

Luckily, there are several nice matchups for fantasy owners to exploit in Week 11. The best of the best would be the Denver Broncos against the St. Louis Rams. Currently, the Jacksonville Jaguars boast the worst offense for fantasy purposes—but they're on a bye week. The Rams are No. 2.

Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press

St. Louis is already struggling to get its ground game going with rookie Tre Mason in the backfield. The ball-carrier averaged just 3.4 yards per carry over his last two games, and now he must face the Broncos' top-ranked rush defense.

Making things even better for Denver's defense is the return of Shaun Hill under center for the Rams. Hill was terrible before suffering an injury in Week 1, and there's no reason to think he'll be any better against the Broncos secondary 10 weeks later.

Kicker

Rank	Player	Opponent
1	Adam Vinatieri	New England Patriots
2	Mason Crosby	Philadelphia Eagles
3	Shayne Graham	Cincinnati Bengals
4	Stephen Gostkowski	Indianapolis Colts
5	Brandon McManus	St. Louis Rams
6	Kai Forbath	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
7	Graham Gano	Atlanta Falcons
8	Nick Novak	Oakland Raiders
9	Billy Cundiff	Houston Texans
10	Matt Bryant	Carolina Panthers

Some people say kickers don't matter when it comes to fantasy football. Although, the only truth to that is the fact that kickers don't need to be drafted early. This is a position-based play each and every week, and fantasy owners would do well by starting a kicker going up against a defense susceptible to allowing points on the board.

This week, there are several good options—even some that can be pulled off the waiver wire. One of those is Redskins kicker Kai Forbath. The third-year pro has been nearly automatic this season, hitting 15 of his 16 field-goal attempts with a long of 49 yards.

Brandon Wade/Associated Press

Forbath has been called upon to kick at least two times in his last four games, giving him a nice chance to accumulate fantasy points. This week, his chances increase further against a Buccaneers defense that is giving up an average of 10.2 fantasy points to the position, the third most in the league.

If your kicker happens to be on a bye week or you are simply looking for a solid matchup play, Forbath should prove to be a nice option.

All fantasy football statistics courtesy of ESPN.com and current as of November 13.