Week 11 Fantasy Avengers

 Hey everyone, I hope all of your teams secured victories in week 10, despite the failure of your week 10 fantasy avengers. Kalen Ballage was the only player who answered the call of Fantasy Avenger. Drew Lock, Brandin Cooks, and Jerick Mckinnon all finished well below their week 10 rank and its no surprise that all of their teams lost their real life games. Drew Lock looked like a deer in the headlights, throwing 4 interceptions to a team who only had three picks on the year. Mckinnon left the game early with a neck injury, but before that he wasn't getting much done on the ground, rushing for a meager 1.8 yards per carry. Brandin Cooks is the least disappointing of the three because while the targets were still there the weather played a huge factor which limited his upside.  With such a disappointing showing this past week, I will put a greater emphasis on weather games, especially when it comes to quarterbacks and receivers. I will also put more weight behind rushing defensive stats, rather than just holistically looking at the offensive unit.     

    Playoffs are just around the corner and I sincerely hope that your team is on its way to securing a spot. If not, I hope that you are at least in the running. If you are stuck making a tough decision this week, I hope that my advice can help make the choice a bit easier. I'm starting my research much earlier this week, because I want to ensure that I build the best Avengers line-up. So without further ado it is time to meet your week 11 Avengers. 

Damien Harris (Fantasy Pros Rank #17) 

Harris has been sneaky good this season. He has totaled double digit carries in all but one game and has averaged an excellent yards per carry with 5.5. Last week, against one of the top run defenses in the league, the Baltimore Ravens. Harris saw 22 carries which turned into 121 yards. It was his highest rushing total on the season and he ended the week as the 20th overall fantasy running back. Unfortunately for Harris, Cam Newton has been limiting his upside. When the Patriots get around the goal line, there's a 50/50 chance that Newton takes it himself. That could easily be the case this week, but I have other plans for this rising God of Thunder. In week 11 the Patriots will be traveling to Houston to face off against the Texans. As it stands the Texans rank dead last in terms of yards per carry as well as rushing yards allowed on the year. With those two stats and the fact that Harris has become worthy of the starting role in New England, it gives me confidence that he can finish well beyond his week 11 rank of 17. The threat of Cam stealing touchdowns will still remain present throughout the game, however with Harris' efficiency and his ability to rush for chunk yardage, tells me that his touchdowns will be coming from outside of the 5-yard line. Look to Harris this week to show how electric he can be on the field, while simultaneously proving that he is worthy to be started in your line-up going forward. 

Alex Smith (Fantasy Pros Rank #21) 

It has been quite a journey for Alex Smith in recent years. He has been chewed up and spit out by the brutal sport that is football, but after all the blows he still has the drive to come back. Alex Smith imbues all the qualities of Captain America both on and off the field. This week Smith will do his best to lead his team to a victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. While one may not see Smith as the optimal fantasy QB on week by week basis, I believe that he has what it takes to provided fantasy value in this particular match-up. In his first two games as the starter, Smith has lead the league in both pass attempts and pass yards. What has been holding him back is his lack of touchdowns, he has only thrown one in two games. This week, versus a team that ranks as a bottom 5 passing defense we could see Alex Smith positively regress towards the mean by tossing a couple touchdowns on Sunday. He has a top tier receiver in Terry Mclaurin and has two excellent receiving backs coming out of the backfield. These skill players combined with Alex Smith's ability to make the right throw, could lead to a big fantasy day for the future comeback player of the year. Look to Alex Smith to be your week 11 Captain America. 

Tee Higgins (Fantasy Pros Rank #18) 

Higgins had his best game of the season last week. He finished as the 10th best receiver in fantasy posting a stat line of 7 receptions, 115 yards, and 1 touchdown. Over the course of the season we have seen Higgins become more involved and that came to fruition last week. I am a little hesitant to say it, but I think Higgins has become the WR1 on this team. Over the past 5 weeks Higgins has lead the team in targets in three out of five, and tied for the lead in one. With the target share Higgins has received and his deep threat ability, he could be on his way to another week of fantasy success. In week 11, Higgins will be traveling to DC where he will be facing a top half passing defense. While that does not bode well for a player looking to put on the Iron Man Armor, I believe Higgins will be able to overcome this difficult match-up. As I laid it out above, Higgins already has the target share for his team, but with a stellar 15.1 yards per reception he is always one big play away from having a great fantasy day. Look to Tee Higgins to suit up into the gold and red armor this week. 

Adrian Peterson (FantasyPros Rank #42) 

In his prime Adrian Peterson could be counted on to Hulk out on opposing defenses each and every week. Now that he is nearing the end of his career, the only way he can truly Hulk out is if he sees enough carries in a great match-up. It appears that this week he might get both. With star rookie running back D'Andre Swift missing the game due to a late week concussion, AP is primed to take on the starting role for this offense. Before Swift took over the starting role for this backfield, Peterson was seeing upwards of 15 touches a game. The Lions backfield is far from the most desirable in the NFL. However, with the Panthers giving up 4.8 yards per carry and 14 rushing touchdowns on the year, it is difficult to not start a player who is expected to receive the bulk of the carries. One last item in Peterson's favor is that Stafford has a bad thumb. If Stafford is limited, the Lions could lean even more on their running game. Look to Peterson to Hulk out on the Carolina Panthers and in your line-up for week 11. 

Shield Agents:

Kalen Ballage (Rank #18) has done really well with the starting RB role in LA. In his two games as the starter he has finished as the RB4 and RB17. This week he gets to enact revenge on the man that held him back for two years, Adam Gase. 

Duke Johnson (Rank #15) has done well as the fill in for starter David Johnson and this week he takes on the Patriots who have been surprisingly bad on the ground. As it stands the Patriots currently rank 20th versus running backs and the last time he played a below average rushing defense he finished as the RB10 with an 80% rush share. 

Amari Cooper (Rank #25) is a bit of a stretch to finish above his 25th weekly rank. That being said he's in a great match-up and has a large share of the targets for the Cowboys. With those two factors, and Coopers we could see him overcome his ranking this week. 

Kirk Cousins (Rank #17) is playing the Cowboys, the team that ranks dead last in terms of yards allowed. However, the reason I couldn't make him Captain America is the fact that this could be another Dalvin Cook running back clinic. 

Sources:

TheFantasyFootballers.com

Pro-football-reference.com

Fantasypros.com