Week 11 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Projections for Top 10 Players at Each Position

Week 11 has already provided fantasy owners with strong start 'em, sit 'em fantasy football lessons.

Such as avoid the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills.

But in all seriousness, sometimes everything simply goes out the window and players do not perform as expected. It happens. What owners can do to limit their exposure to duds such as Lamar Miller's nine points is dig deep into a number of variables for each player in the league to make the decisions easier.

That is a lot of work, which means it is cheat sheet time for each position.

Quarterbacks

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Peyton Manning, DEN	at STL	25
2	Aaron Rodgers, GB	PHI	24
3	Drew Brees, NO	CIN	20
4	Andrew Luck, IND	NE	18
5	Tom Brady, NE	at IND	17
6	Philip Rivers, SD	OAK	15
7	Ben Roethlisberger, PIT	at TEN	14
8	Cam Newton, CAR	ATL	14
9	Matt Ryan, ATL	at CAR	12
10	Robert Griffin III, WAS	TB	10

Start 'Em: Philip Rivers, SD (vs. OAK)

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

Owners have every right to be angry with San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers. 

The man went out in Week 9 before his bye and scored in the negatives thanks to three interceptions and a fumble. But as owners surely know, it is important to not hold grudges.

After all, Rivers is the guy who has scored 19 or more fantasy points five times this season, including a Week 6 25-point outburst against the Oakland Raiders.

Oakland enters the contest after allowing 29 points and five scores its last time out. Rivers is in for a major return to form.

Sit 'Em: Eli Manning, NYG (vs. SF)

Scott Eklund/Associated Press

It might just be all downhill from here for Eli Manning. 

Manning went to Seattle last week and posted just 11 points, the third time this season he has posted that number or fewer. He gets to return home in Week 11, but meets a San Francisco defense that surrenders the sixth-fewest points to quarterbacks this season.

Considering the 49ers just held Drew Brees and New Orleans to 17, Manning is one to avoid until further performances show he can recover.

Running Backs

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Le'Veon Bell, PIT	at TEN	22
2	Matt Forte, CHI	MIN	20
3	Arian Foster, HOU	at CLE	20
4	Jamaal Charles, KC	SEA	18
5	Marshawn Lynch, SEA	at KC	17
6	Mark Ingram, NO	CIN	17
7	LeSean McCoy, PHI	at GB	15
8	Alfred Morris, WAS	TB	14
9	Eddie Lacy, GB	PHI	14
10	Frank Gore, SF	at NYG	12

Start 'Em: Steven Jackson, ATL (at CAR)

Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press

Make no mistake, Atlanta Falcons running back Steven Jackson has been a major disappointment this season, scoring in double digits just four times. 

This is where it gets good, though—two of those outputs have come over the course of Jackson's last two outings. Whatever has changed in Atlanta is working, because in those outings the veteran back has his two highest carry totals of the season and scored in each.

Expect the quality bounce-back story to continue for Jackson, too. He next gets Carolina, a team that has allowed the fifth-most points to backs this season and in the past two weeks has allowed 25 and 21.

Sit 'Em: Bobby Rainey, TB (at WAS)

Brian Blanco/Associated Press

The stop for the Bobby Rainey train is here, folks.

Rainey was a great add for a few weeks as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers leaned on him with others injured, but just last week he lost work to rookie Charles Sims and Mike James on his way to just five fantasy points.

Agree with it or not, Rainey's time as the lead back is already over as the coaching staff gets to implementing others. Even if he was the lead man, Week 11 is a date with Washington, a team that ranks just outside the top 10 in terms of points allowed to backs.

Any way you slice it, Rainey is a bench player this week.

Wide Receivers

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Calvin Johnson, DET	at ATL	17
2	Antonio Brown, PIT	at TEN	16
3	Jordy Nelson, GB	PHI	14
4	Demaryius Thomas, DEN	at STL	14
5	Emmanuel Sanders, DEN	at STL	13
6	A.J. Green, CIN	at NO	12
7	Julio Jones, ATL	at CAR	12
8	Pierre Garcon, WAS	TB	12
9	Randall Cobb, GB	PHI	11
10	Brandon Marshall, CHI	MIN	10

Start 'Em: Martavis Bryant, PIT (at TEN)

Martavis Bryant is owned in just 77 percent of leagues.

Good luck figuring out why. For fun, here is the damage Bryant has done since getting his first NFL start:

WK	OPP	REC	YDS	TD	PTS
7	Hou	2	40	1	10
8	Ind	5	83	2	20
9	Bal	3	44	2	16
10	@NYJ	4	143	1	20

Many will point out that the Tennessee Titans rank highly against wideouts, but recall that the New York Jets were doing pretty well for themselves before a meeting with Bryant, too.

It seems that even when Pittsburgh has a bad game, Bryant is there with a big play to have a major outing. Until he suddenly drops off a cliff, which is likely given his unsustainable rate, he needs to be in any and all lineups.

Sit 'Em: Reggie Wayne, IND (vs. NE)

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Reggie Wayne did right by his 72.1 percent of owners his last time out and scored a cool 13 points, but it was only his second time in double digits this season.

Not only is that a major red flag for the supposed No. 1 wideout in an offense led by Andrew Luck that takes to the air quite often, a potential shootout with the New England Patriots is not all that likely thanks to a strong defense led by elite corner Darrelle Revis.

The Patriots surrender the third-fewest points to wideouts this season. Five teams have been held to 14 points or fewer. Wayne may not be blanketed by Revis himself all night, but quality scoring opportunities are still going to be few and far between.

Tight Ends

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Rob Gronkowski, NE	at IND	14
2	Jimmy Graham, NO	CIN	13
3	Julius Thomas, DEN	at STL	11
4	Greg Olsen, CAR	ATL	10
5	Antonio Gates, SD	OAK	10
6	Martellus Bennett, CHI	MIN	10
7	Dwayne Allen, IND	NE	9
8	Mychal Rivera, OAK	at SD	7
9	Jared Cook, STL	DEN	6
10	Travis Kelce, KC	SEA	5

Start 'Em: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TB (at WAS)

Now would be the time to jump on Tampa Bay rookie Austin Seferian-Jenkins.

He has scored twice over the course of his last three outings and just last week set career highs in targets and catches with eight and five, respectively.

Week 11 should be more of the same as the Buccaneers continue to get younger players involved. Washington surrenders the 10th-most points to tight ends this season, so Seferian-Jenkins will have plenty of opportunities for another strong outing.

Sit 'Em: Zach Ertz, PHI (at GB)

John Cordes/Associated Press

A note form NFL.com's Dan Hanzus sums this one up well enough:

For a guy owned in almost 60 percent of leagues, Zach Ertz has done quite little except have high upside.

Ertz has scored a total of five points over the course of his last three games while getting outplayed by veteran Brent Celek. An encounter with Green Bay may yield some opportunities, but the Packers allowed just four points last week to tight ends.

D/ST

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Seattle Seahawks	at KC	9
2	Detroit Lions	at ARI	8
3	Arizona Cardinals	DET	8
4	San Francisco 49ers	at NYG	7
5	Pittsburgh Steelers	at TEN	5
6	Denver Broncos	at STL	5
7	Minnesota Vikings	at CHI	4
8	Washington	TB	4
9	New Orleans Saints	CIN	4
10	Houston Texans	at CLE	3

Start 'Em: New Orleans Saints (vs. CIN)

Bill Haber/Associated Press

Rob Ryan's defense in New Orleans has been a bit of a dud this season from a fantasy perspective, but two of the unit's better outings have come in the past two weeks thanks to 13 and six points.

The Saints stay home in Week 11 and welcome the erratic Cincinnati Bengals to town. Quarterback Andy Dalton is a mystery who imploded at home last week with three interceptions.

Should Dalton not be any better this week, the Saints will feast.

Sit 'Em: Philadelphia Eagles (at GB)

Elsa/Getty Images

While Philadelphia does tout the league's top scoring defense and it did post a season-high 31 points last week, try not to get too carried away.

Aaron Rodgers would like a word with the Eagles.

Rodgers effortlessly flicked six touchdowns in one half of play last week. It matters little how and why the Eagles rank where they do—a trip to Lambeau Field is a must-avoid situation.

Kickers

Rank	Player	Opponent	Projection
1	Stephen Gostkowski, NE	at IND	16
2	Mason Crosby, GB	PHI	15
3	Cody Parkey, PHI	at GB	15
4	Adam Vinatieri, IND	NE	14
5	Phil Dawson, SF	NYG	13
6	Shaun Suisham, PIT	at TEN	13
7	Graham Gano, CAR	ATL	12
8	Steven Hauschka, SEA	at KC	10
9	Chandler Catanzaro, ARI	DET	10
10	Shayne Graham, NO	CIN	10

Start 'Em: Nick Novak, SD (vs. OAK)

Denis Poroy/Associated Press

For a stretch, San Diego's Nick Novak was a great option for owners as he rattled off seven or more points in six straight games, including a pair of 15-point outings. 

Novak has since collapsed with just three points over the course of his last two games.

Of course, the best remedy for any fantasy collapse is a date with Oakland. The Raiders allow the fourth-most points to the position and have surrendered double digits their last three times out.

Sit 'Em: Josh Brown, NYG (vs. SF)

Al Bello/Getty Images

New York Giants kicker Josh Brown has proven to be a quality streaming option in each of the past two weeks and is good for a great outing every now and then, as noted by 12- and 15-point totals earlier this year.

Just do not expect Week 11 to be one of those strong showings.

With San Francisco in town, opportunities will be limited for Brown. The 49ers allow the sixth-fewest points to kickers this year. Look elsewhere for a quality start.

All scoring info courtesy of ESPN standard leagues, as is points-against info and ownership stats. Statistics courtesy of ESPN.