Fantasy Football Saturday Mailbag for Week 11
Good Morning, Footclan, and a very warm welcome to Week 11 of The Fantasy Footballers’ Saturday Morning Mailbag! It’s Saturday, it’s early, and as always, I am here to select a handful of your questions from The Fantasy Footballers’ Discord server, answer some of the hot topics that didn’t quite make it to that week’s edition of The Footcast. The Ballers’ Discord is home to the biggest and best online fantasy football community in the world, and is your go-to if you are looking to talk about all things fantasy football. Head over today and get involved with thousands of members across dozens of dedicated channels for start/sit questions, trade advice, and waiver wire insights, as well as exclusive areas which are only available to members of the Footclan.
¡Hola, Foot Clan! ¡Bienvenidos a otra emocionante edición del Buzón de Correo de los Sábados de los Futbolistas de Fantasía!
Sorry, FootClan, I am headed to Madrid this weekend for the final NFL International Series matchup between the Washington Commanders and my beloved Miami Dolphins, and I may have gotten a little carried away with myself there.
Question #1 – Trade Advice (RB Playoff Primer)
Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
Sup Ballers! Am I crazy for wanting to trade D’Andre Swift straight up for Alvin Kamara or Woody Marks? I’m most likely locked for the playoffs, and that Bears schedule terrifies me – BigSnagNasty
Answer: First things first, BigSnagNasty – congrats on locking up your playoff spot and moving one step closer to that #FootClanTitle! I applaud your strategy in wanting to get prepped well ahead of the fantasy-offseason – fine-tuning your squad before your trade deadline will give you the possible chance of a championship…and given the way rookie Kyle Monangai performed in his absence, I understand why you may not see D’Andre Swift as part of those plans.
It may only have been one game, but the Bears clearly saw enough from their 7th-round rookie RB to continue to give him over 30% of the rushing workload once Swift returned from injury. Don’t hear what I’m not saying – Swift is still the guy in this Chicago run offense…but he and the coaching staff now know that they have a young back in Monangai that can spell the 6th year veteran should he need to shoulder less of the burden out of the backfield.
Then we have that Bears’ schedule you mentioned – and at first glance…woof. Chicago has the 2nd-worst strength-of-schedule at the RB position for the remainder of the season – but as scary as it looks on paper…they are all very much winnable games. Swift is a back who doesn’t tend to get game-scripted out of Ben Johnson’s plans, and given what should be a series of competitive games to close out the year, I don’t expect to see the perennial fantasy RB2 come off the field too often, as Chicago pushes to make the postseason for the first time in half a decade.
If you are in a Full-PPR league, I would have perhaps considered the move for Kamara given the sheer volume of targets we traditionally see him receive…but with only five targets more on the season than Swift, it feels as if we are seeing the end of the once-reliable pass-catchers’ dominance in this format. Swift has been a top-20 guy at the position in five out of eight starts this season and has put up double-digit fantasy points in 75% of his appearances. He’s as safe an RB2 for your team as they come…stay the course.
Question #2 – Trade Advice #2 (Lions WR Special)
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Hey Ballers! I need some help! I just traded for Amon-Ra St. Brown…but I also have Jameson Williams, and don’t particularly want to start both Lions receivers. Another team is offering me Ricky Pearsall for Williams. Do I take it? – sirwentwer
Answer: Kudos sirwentwer – acquiring the overall WR3 in fantasy at this stage of the season is some excellent trading work, and although it’s risky business making that kind of deal when you already have one of his fellow Lions pass-catchers on your roster…I’d have done exactly the same thing.
At this stage of the season – as we head towards the fantasy playoffs – there is only one thing I care about…and that’s winning! And the most tried and tested way of doing that is having the best players on your squad – and if those players just happen to have one of the most attractive strength-of-schedules from here on in…that’s even better. Detroit may have a tricky matchup as they travel to the 13th-ranked Philadelphia Eagles pass defense this weekend – but after that, it is smooth sailing for Jared Goff and his weapons, with the Lions being able to look forward to the 3rd easiest run of games at the WR position through Week 17. That said…I don’t know if I would want to start two of them in any given week, and there’s no way ARSB is leaving my starting lineup from here on in – so, what to do with Jameson Williams?
The way I see it, you have two options – the first being to bench Jamo and keep him for a “break glass in case of emergency” type of situation. Detroit hosts Dallas in Week 14 before welcoming Pittsburgh to the Motor City just two weeks later in Week 16 – the two worst fantasy defenses against wideouts, at home, in a dome, in the space of just three games…delicious. In these scenarios, both Amon-Ra and Jamo could absolutely feast, and in all honesty, I’d happily start them both due to their outrageous upside if I needed a home-run play to either make or stay-in my fantasy playoffs. The second option is to move him before your trade deadline…but I’d be looking for so much more than the potential fourth option for Mac Jones in San Francisco…Mr. Ricky Pearsall. There’s too much ambiguity surrounding exactly when the sophomore WR will return to action and just what his role will be when he finally does.
After all, this is an offense that rotates around Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle, with a little smattering of Jauan Jennings for good measure – so who knows what we will get from 2024’s 31st overall pick when he is back in the 49ers lineup. If you are looking to move Jamo on, to sell high after his huge breakout game against the Commanders last weekend, and chase a potential cut-price league winner like Jaylen Waddle or Zay Flowers. The upside may not be there for these two particular WRs, but the diversity and floor will give you a much better chance of winning in the playoffs…good luck!
Question #3 – Season-long Strategy (Ice-Cold Mile-High WR Edition)
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What’s up, Ballers? Can I get a temperature check on Courtland Sutton for the rest of the season? He’s had one good game in the last month, and Bo Nix hasn’t looked great at all – Matt Fontaine
Answer: Remember that Outkast song “Hey Ya!”, when Andre 3000 asked a generation “what’s cooler than being cool?” – well, Courtland Sutton and Bo Nix must have been sharing their retro Spotify playlists, because they have been ice cold as a pairing for the best part of a month now. I don’t know what’s changed in the Broncos’ locker room these past five weeks, but after starting the season as the overall WR11 in Denver’s first handful of outings, Sutton’s form in the same number of games since has him sitting as the WR37 – a major step backwards after such a positive opening to the year for the eight year veteran.
Despite Sutton finishing outside of WR3 territory in three of his last five games, the Broncos are getting it done in the win column…just. Removing the blowout 44-24 win over the Cowboys, Denver has won their other four games since Week 6 with a combined margin of just nine points – a far cry from their 28-3 victory over the Bengals back in Week 3. The reason being, it could be argued, is down to the continuing dominance of born-again, two-legged rusher, J.K. Dobbins, and the pass-catching prowess of rookie back, R.J. Harvey. The double-initialled duo have been pivotal in Denver’s successes of late – but with Dobbins looking set for a potential stint on the sidelines – should we expect to see a return to form for Broncos’ aerial attack, and in particular Courtland Sutton?
I’m putting my chips on a firm no. Despite a relatively kind stretch of games between Weeks 13 and 16, the Broncos will face off against divisional rivals Kansas City and their 3rd-ranked pass defense twice before the season is out – once at home this week and on the road at Arrowhead in championship week. I am out on Sutton – he may still be Bo Nix’s number one guy, but his stock is fading, and if I could move him on for a Michael Pittman, Jordan Addison, or Brian Thomas Jr., I would make that deal in a heartbeat.
Question #4 – Season-long Strategy (Dick White Edition)
Hey Ballers and Ducers! What are you doing with Rachaad White? I feel like he is losing touches to Sean Tucker and is just a roster clog that I can’t drop because of the Bucky Irving injury – sCTEboom
Answer: Two more weeks of Dick White! Following the news that Bucky Irving – despite a return to practice – would miss Week 11 (and potentially Week 12), it appears as if we are in for at least another fortnight of Rachaad White leading this Tampa Bay backfield.
In Irving’s absence, former lead-back White has been absolutely ordinary, averaging 11.7 FPPG over a five-week span, enough to see the fourth-year veteran sit as the RB19 on a points-per-game basis. We know what we are getting with White at this stage in his career – a whole load of nothing on the ground, and a potential pay-load through the air on short-yardage dump-off work. This is a back who has 3.8 Y/A on over 600 career carries – and despite being given a significantly increased role in this Bucs offense – has yet to eclipse 65-yards rushing in a single contest to date on the season…woof.
That may feel like pretty grim reading, but the hard truth is that Rachaad is the main focal point in the run game for a top-half NFL offense, and one that is majorly struggling at the pass-catching positions in the absence of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. I expect to see another busy day for White against a Bills defense that ranks 28th against the run and just gave up 225 combined rushing and receiving yards to De’Von Achane last Sunday. White will always have FLEX-worth PPR value even when Bucky Irving does eventually return to the field, so he’s not the worst hold by any means – but if he has another decent fantasy outing this weekend on the road in Buffalo, I’m selling as high as I can.
Question #5 – Waiver Wire Advice (Old Yeller Joe Mixon Edition)
What in the world do I do with Joe Mixon at this point in the season? I drafted him and have carried him all season…despite that, I am sitting in 1st place. I would really like to start thinking ahead and planning for the playoffs – Terrance
Answer: Let’s keep this brief – it may go against the mantra of us all here at Ballers’ HQ, but in Joe Mixon’s case, you absolutely 100% can cut that guy. We’ve made it all the way to Week 11, and we haven’t had even the suggestion of last season’s RB11 returning to practice, let alone seeing him there. It’s time to face facts – Mixon is pushing 30 years old, hasn’t seen the field all year, ended his previous season with a dismal run of games for fantasy purposes…and has now likely lost his starters’ role for good to increasingly impressive 4th round rookie Woody Marks.
Even if by some miracle Mixon were to return to the training field next week, it would be unlikely we would see him suit up for an actual game until Week 14 or 15, and at that point, there is no way we could even remotely trust him in our lineups heading into the fantasy playoffs.
We thank you for your service, Mr Mixon…but it’s Joe-ver.
It’s time for Rapid Round…
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Sup ballers, start/sit question: Matthew Stafford or Lamar Jackson? – Joey Jo-Jo Junior Skattebo
Answer: To borrow a line from another Outkast chart-topper – “I’m sorry, Ms. Jackson, Stafford’s for real”. We don’t know how healthy Lamar truly is, and Stafford has been playing out of his mind. Factor in the 49.5 point O/U and being at home in the dome, it’s easily Matty Snapback for me this week.
I know we “can’t cut that guy”, but are we still holding on to Ben Sinnott, aka The Senator, in Dynasty? – King Elephant
Answer: If you’d have asked me this last week, I’d have probably given you the go-ahead to pull the trigger – but after finding the end zone against Detroit and continuing his 100% catch rate on the season…you can’t cut that guy!
Should I drop Brian Thomas Jr. for Tez Johnson? – Travy
Answer: Absolutely not. Sure, BTJ has been struggling and Tampa Bay’s 7th round rookie has been making headlines these last three or four weeks…but Tez’s time as a top-target for Baker Mayfield is coming to an end. Bucky Irving and Chris Godwin should both make their returns in the next couple of weeks, and Mike Evans should return to action if the Bucs are in playoff contention. With Travis Hunter having season-ending surgery, BTJ could be a very cheap, potential league-winning, trade for target.
Who is Jonathan Taylor’s handcuff, and are they worth rostering down the stretch? – Tampa Baker Egbukaneers
Answer: I wish I had the ability to do a Listener of the Week drop in this column, because this username would 100% take the accolade for Week 11. Honestly, it’s almost impossible to say who would be the back-to-roster in Indianapolis in the event of JT missing time, but if I had to shoot my shot, I would be picking up Ameer Abdullah – but I would need to be in a whole world of trouble with my bench players to even consider starting any of them. Let’s just hope it doesn’t come to that, yeah?
That will do it for this week, FootClan – good luck in Week 11!