We’re almost 10 full weeks into the NFL season, and it’s time for a throwback edition of the fantasy football waiver wire! There’s no school like the old school, and as I went through the best options to pick up, it quickly evolved into a “turn back the clock” week. Several former fantasy-relevant players re-emerged as the best pickups going forward. Sometimes you just have to play the oldies, so let’s go back to some familiar heroes to get some current fantasy success this week.
The NFL officially started the second half of the regular season with a big Week 10 that featured several surprises and a few narrow escapes. Looking ahead to Week 11, for the second straight week, there are four teams on a bye with 14 games scheduled. While the Browns, Packers, Raiders and Seahawks are coming back from their byes, the Cardinals, Buccaneers, Giants and Panthers have their bye in Week 11.
In addition to players on bye, every week there are new injuries that occur that change the fantasy football landscape and open up new opportunities for players. Grabbing players with bigger opportunities can give your fantasy football team just the boost it needs coming into the last few weeks before the fantasy football playoffs.
Before we get to the pickups, here are some of the players who left early or were sidelined on Sunday with injuries to monitor in the coming week.
Injuries from Week 10 to watch:
- RB Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings
- RB Najee Harris, Pittsburgh Steelers
- RB Tank Bigsby, Jacksonville Jaguars
- WR Malik Nabers, New York Giants
- TE Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
- TE Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles
With those injuries in mind, here are some of my top names to watch on the Week 11 waiver wire.
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, New Orleans Saints
The Saints WRs were wiped out by injuries the last few weeks, and on Saturday, I wrote that you should stash Marquez Valdes-Scantling. MVS hasn’t been on fantasy radars in a while, but he did have good years with the Packers and Chiefs before starting this season with the Bills. Buffalo cut Valdes-Scantling after he didn’t make much of an impact, but he landed with the Saints almost immediately.
The veteran was the top option on the depth chart with Chris Olave (concussion), Bub Means (ankle) and Rashid Shaheed (knee) on IR and Cedrick Wilson Jr. (shoulder) out for this week.
Even though he only had one catch with the Saints before this week, MVS came through with a monster game on Sunday. He had the highest total of any wide receiver on the main DraftKings slate, hauling in three catches for 109 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Welcome to the DOME!
📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/QRmg5SRBZn
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) November 10, 2024
We’ve seen big games from MVS before, but this run could have staying power since the Saints want to be aggressive on offense under offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and QB Derek Carr. They also don’t have many WR options, so Valdes-Scantling should keep getting opportunities. He only had three targets, but he hauled them all in and should only get more comfortable in the offense. Next week, the Saints play the Browns before their Week 12 bye. In Week 13, MVS returns with a top-10 WR matchup against the Rams before games with the Giants and Commanders.
Depending on your league, there are other great wide receivers to consider as well if Valdes-Scantling is too risky. Cedric Tillman is still available in over 40 percent of leagues as the Browns come off their bye week, and Quentin Johnston, who I featured here last week, continues to be a good pickup. The Ravens’ Tylan Wallace, 49ers’ Ricky Pearsall and Colts’ Adonai Mitchell also had big weeks and are worth a look.
RB Cam Akers, Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings looked like they were in a smash spot against the Jaguars, but the offense never got rolling, and they only managed 12 points on four field goals.
Aaron Jones ($6,700; 12.1 FPTS) was in and out of the game while managing an injury.
🚨Aaron Jones INJURY🚨
Vikings star RB is hurt after a short run…looks to be his midsection. Possibly an injury to his ribs‼️
He is being evaluated in the blue medical tent now!
Cam Akers 📈#skolpic.twitter.com/9u6i6X8QwS
— FANTASY UMPIRE (@FantasyUmpire) November 10, 2024
While he was in and out, Cam Akers ($4,700; 5.7 FPTS) opereated as the fill-in running back. He ended up with 13 carries for just 38 yards and added a nine-yard catch. While those numbers aren’t anything amazing, it was clear that he’s the main option the Vikings will go to if Jones is out or needs a smaller workload.
Akers has shown plenty of fantasy upside in his career with the Rams and Vikings and even during his brief run with the Texans earlier this season. The Vikings brought him back at the deadline and he got six carries and two catches last week against the Colts as well.
The Vikings look like they plan to use him as a change-of-pace back when Jones is healthy. In that role, Akers is borderline own-able in standard formats, but now that Jones has an injury, he is almost a must-add in the 85 percent of leagues he is available in.
Productive running backs are hard to find on the waiver wire at this point of the season, but there were a few other notable options. Gus Edwards returned for the Chargers, Audric Estime had a much larger role than in any other game for the Broncos and Trey Benson had double-digit carries for the Cardinals.
QB Russell Wilson, Pittsburgh Steelers
Call up Pete Carroll to see what he’s doing if you need a coach for your fantasy team, but if you need a QB, Russell Wilson ($5,900; 19.1 FPTS) led his Steelers to a close win on the road in Washington against the rising Commanders.
Wilson threw for 195 yards and three touchdowns, including this game-winner to Mike Williams ($4,100; 10.2 FPTS).
FIRST TD AS A STEELER!!!!!!!!
📲 Stream on NFL+: https://t.co/COxKRnr6Mc pic.twitter.com/qaxvtHNvcM
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 10, 2024
In his new role, Williams is another blast from the past to consider, but he gives Wilson a strong secondary option and should be a sure-handed contributor for Russ moving forward.
Wilson took over for Justin Fields in Week 7 and had 24.86 fantasy points against the Jets, making him QB No. 3 for the week. He had a down week with 14.82 fantasy points in Week 8, but still got the Steelers the win. After his bye last week, he improved to 3-0 with this solid effort against the Commanders.
Wilson’s ownership is only around 20 percent, and he has a great schedule ahead. Next week, he faces the Ravens, who have allowed the third-most fantasy points per game to opposing quarterbacks. Then he faces the Browns twice and the Bengals — all favorable matchups.
If you’re shopping for a QB and looking for a more recent model, Bo Nix is still available in about two-thirds of leagues as well. He has good matchups with the Falcons and Raiders in the next two weeks and is also a strong snag.
TE Zach Ertz, Washington Commanders
This past offseason, the Commanders added veteran Zach Ertz on a one-year deal to help rookie QB Jayden Daniels ($7,500; 8.6 FPTS) adjust to the NFL. Ertz finished with four catches on eight targets for 31 yards in the close loss to the Steelers and came just inches short of converting a huge fourth down. Maybe?
Replay of the catch by Zach Ertz that was ruled short of the first down marker. pic.twitter.com/Q3vcNxopRC
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulli) November 10, 2024
Whether you think he got it or came up just short, the important thing to notice with Ertz is his consistent role. He has at least five targets in five of his last six games and had a season-high 11 targets in the Commanders’ thrilling win over the Bears two weeks ago. He only has one score and doesn’t stretch the field, but his reliable contributions make him a solid bye-week fill-in or short-term, high-floor pickup.
Some other tight ends worth considering as additions are Tanner Hudson ($2,500; 16.3 FPTS), rookie Ja’Tavion Sanders ($3,400; 8.8 FPTS) and throwback pickup Will Dissly ($8,100; 8.0 FPTS).
Packers DST
The Packers DST didn’t play in Week 9, but they are available in 70 percent of leagues and are a great option to grab looking ahead. In Week 11, they face the Bears in Chicago. The Bears offense struggled in their Week 10 loss to the Patriots and should be a favorable matchup for a hungry Packers D.
The best part of the Packers schedule is still to come, though, after the 49ers in Week 12, they finish the season with four games against the top 10 most generous matchups for defenses. During the fantasy playoffs, they face the Seahawks in Week 15, the Saints in Week 16 and the Vikings in Week 17.
Before facing the Lions in Week 9, the Packers had been very good on defense. They had 21 sacks and 18 turnovers in their first eight games and had a dominant performance against the Titans in Week 3, when they scored their one defensive touchdown. If someone dropped the Packers for their bye week, they’re worth trying to snag for that stretch run.
Other streaming options to check out for Week 11 include the Dolphins DST (vs. the Raiders), the Rams DST (vs. the Patriots) and the Texans DST (vs. the Cowboys).
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is z.thompson) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.
