Fantasy Football 2014: Most Dropped Players Owners Need to Add

Savvy owners are paying closer attention as the 2014 fantasy football season grinds into Week 11. Upon closer inspection, a diligent owner will discover potential gems whom desperate owners are dropping over bye weeks, short-term injuries or recent poor performances. Find out if players like Pierre Garcon, Chris Ivory and Eli Manning make a good fit on your bench for the playoff run.

The waiver wire becomes the only source of roster upgrades as trade deadlines pass:

• CBS Sports, November 12
• Yahoo, November 14
• ESPN, November 19
• NFL.com, November 21

If you want to be the top dog in December, it’s time to break from the pack and shore up your roster depth. All of the players listed below aren’t automatic fantasy starters—that’s why owners are dropping them after all—but they are legitimate NFL starters who could save your playoff run if needed.

Guidelines

Bleacher Report

Take notes from the Bethune-Cookman marching band—kickers are to be tolerated, but mostly ignored.

The added/dropped and total ownership percentages are based on ESPN fantasy leagues.

All scoring statistics are provided by ESPN as well, unless otherwise noted.

Defense/special teams are excluded because you can add a top-10 scoring defense each week in a process otherwise known as streaming. D/STs should be added and dropped based on the matchups, unless it is an elite unit like Miami, Buffalo or Detroit.

Don’t waste a valuable roster spot on a backup defense.

Kickers are also excluded because they are unpredictable and produce so evenly. Just two points per game separate the No. 3 kicker (Cody Parkey, 9.8) from No. 20 (Kai Forbath, 7.8).

Tight End: Delanie Walker, Tennessee Titans

Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

Walker tops the list of most dropped TEs, down 10.2 percent from last week. He is currently owned in 67.2 percent of ESPN leagues.

Walker left the Week 10 tilt against Baltimore after Terrence Williams blasted him with a clean shot over the middle. He sat out of practice Wednesday and is listed as questionable for Week 11.

It’s hard to figure out why owners are so hasty to dump the No. 8-ranked TE in overall scoring this season. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranks him fifth—tied with Dwayne Allen. Walker ranks sixth with 13.5 yards per reception among TEs with at least 25 catches.

He is Tennessee’s top receiving target, leading the team with 64 pass attempts from the trio of Jake Locker, Charlie Whitehurst and Zach Mettenberger. Walker’s 64 targets ranks fifth overall among TEs.

Walker isn’t a top-tier tight end, but he should be on your bench at worst and makes a decent starter when healthy.

He should be owned in every league whether you’re a frustrated Heath Miller, Jared Cook or Zach Ertz owner, or a Jimmy Graham, Antonio Gates or Rob Gronkowski owner looking for insurance.

Honorable Mentions

• Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers, owned in 61.8 percent of leagues, down 9.3 percent
• Heath Miller, Pittsburgh Steelers, 52.1, down 9.0

Wide Receiver: Pierre Garcon, Washington Redskins

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

Garcon is currently owned in 82.1 percent of ESPN leagues, down 4.2 percent from last week.  

Last year’s reception leader—113 catches on 184 targets—is now on pace to snag just 75 passes on 110 targets in 2014. There is a twofold cause for this drastic drop in performance.

First, free agent DeSean Jackson is stealing targets when 2013’s WR2 Santana Moss is an afterthought. Jackson is averaging 6.1 targets per game to Moss’ 4.8, according to PFF.

Second, Garcon struggled along with the entire Redskins passing game with Kirk Cousins and Colt McCoy at quarterback. Robert Griffin III’s return should boost Garcon’s production closer to 2013 standards, although a three-catch, 15 yard-performance at Minnesota didn’t reflect it.

The Vikings rank 11th in fantasy points allowed to WRs, so that dud Week 9 outing isn’t a fair indication of things to come. In fact, the calendar looks pretty favorable for Garcon down the stretch, according to Fantasy Pros.

The Week 15 road game at the Giants (eighth, 20.0 PPG) poses the last tough matchup for Washington’s WRs in terms of fantasy PA.

Stash him on your bench for now, and wait for Griffin’s return to lift Garcon back to legitimate WR2 status.

Honorable Mentions

• Steve Smith, Baltimore Ravens, 91.0, down 4.3
• Wes Welker, Denver Broncos, 42.6, down 8.2

Running Back: Chris Ivory, New York Jets

Peter Aiken/Getty Images

Ivory is currently owned in 82.7 percent of ESPN leagues, down 3.1 percent from last week.

The Jets RB1’s dip in ownership is an example of the short-sighted dropping of bona fide starters on their bye week. Ivory currently ranks 17th among RBs with 8.9 PPG and is an obvious RB2 starter every week.

Concern about the offseason acquisition of Chris Johnson is overrated, since Ivory easily outpaces Johnson in touches—13.5 per game to 10.2. Ivory also leads Johnson in red-zone looks—25 to eight—according to CBS Sports.

Therefore, Ivory is better than three times more likely to hit paydirt than Johnson when the Jets get close.

PFF grades Ivory the third-best rusher in the league, which is significant since the struggling Jets offense appears to be improving after Michael Vick took Geno Smith’s starting spot in Week 9.

Vick said as much when asked if the Jets would have been better if he started the 2014 season, according to Daryl Slater of NJ.com:

"

In my heart, yes. To sit here and say no would show a lack of confidence in myself and my teammates. But absolutely, I think if I was starting from Day 1, then maybe it would’ve been an opportunity. But that wasn’t the case. I wasn’t put in that situation. The team wasn’t put in that situation.

"

The Jets face only one tough defense in RB points allowed (PA) the rest of the way, according to Fantasy Pros—at Buffalo (third, 13.4 PPG) in Week 12.

Grab Ivory immediately if he’s available in your league. He could provide the boost your team needs to win it all.

Honorable Mentions

• Jeremy Hill, Cincinnati Bengals, 90.7, down 1.4
• Jerick McKinnon, Minnesota Vikings, 66.5, down 5.5

Quarterback: Eli Manning, New York Giants

Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

Manning is currently owned in 48.9 percent of ESPN leagues, down 2.1 percent from last week.

Perhaps owners watching that marquee matchup at Seattle flashed back to 2013 when Manning gave the game away in the third quarter. Manning’s league-leading 27 interceptions tarnished his reputation and cost seven-year offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride his job.

He ranks 11th in touchdown-interception ratio this season, according to Sporting Charts. This signals a vast improvement under Ben McAdoo, which saw Manning avoid throwing a pick on 177 consecutive attempts before that fateful blunder against the Seahawks, according to Nick Powell of NJ.com.

Manning currently ranks 13th among QBs averaging 16.2 PPG. His average actually improved after Victor Cruz was lost for the season, jumping from 15.3 through the first six games to 18.0 in the last three.

Plus, San Francisco (eighth, 15.0 PPG) is the last daunting defense in QB PA left on New York’s schedule, according to Fantasy Pros. In fact, Manning’s looking at one of the smoothest playoff schedules in the league, facing Washington (30th, 20.4) and St. Louis (25th, 18.2) in Weeks 15 and 16 respectively.

Manning shouldn’t be considered an automatic starter down the stretch, but he should be owned in every league as a solid backup and spot-start option. This is especially true if you’re a Carson Palmer, Jay Cutler or Andy Dalton owner.

Honorable Mentions

• Joe Flacco, Baltimore Ravens, 56.5, down 9.8
• Brian Hoyer, Cleveland Browns, 20.0, down 4.0

Always keep an eye on the waiver wire as the week progresses, pouncing on gems like these when your impatient league-mates drop them carelessly.