Fantasy Football Review: Unexpected names shine in Week 11

Led by running back Tony Pollard, Week 11 saw some unexpected players have big fantasy days. Let’s take a look at who boomed in Week 11 and who was a bust in standard scoring PPR (point per reception) leagues:

Boomed

RB Tony Pollard (36.9), TE Travis Kelce (35.5), WR Davante Adams (33.1), WR Amari Cooper (31.3), WR Joshua Palmer (30.6), RB Samaje Perine (30.2), RB Najee Harris (27.6), QB Patrick Mahomes (27.46), QB Joe Burrow (26.7), QB Jacoby Brissett (25.86), QB Jimmy Garoppolo (25.42), RB Derrick Henry (25.36)

Patrick Mahomes seems to always be on the boom list as he had another big day with a 27.46. Joe Burrow continues his great season as he put up a 26.7. Jacoby Brissett made his debut on the boom list with a 25.86 despite a loss to the Bills. Another former Patriots quarterback, Jimmy Garoppolo, had a big day as he registered a 25.42 behind four passing touchdowns.

The star of the week, however, was Tony Pollard led all players with 36.9 points behind two receiving touchdowns. Samaje Perine had a 30.2 behind three receiving scores. Najee Harris finally had a big game as he had a 27.6 doing most of his damage on the ground with two rushing touchdowns. Derrick Henry had a nice game on Thursday Night Football and put up a 25.36.

The leading wide receiver was Davante Adams with a 33.1 on two long touchdown catches. Amari Cooper was not far behind with a 31.3 as he torched the Buffalo secondary all day. Joshua Palmer was a pleasant surprise as he had a 30.6 against the Chiefs. Travis Kelce stole the show in that game, though, and had three touchdowns en route to 35.5 fantasy points.

Busted

DST Vikings (-8.0), DST Cardinals (-4.0), DST Chargers (-3.0), DST Broncos (-2.0), DST Giants (-1.0), RB Nyheim Hines (-0.8), WR Rondale Moore (-0.6), QB Kirk Cousins (2.2), RB D’Onta Foreman (2.4), WR Mike Williams (2.5), TE David Njoku (3.7), RB Dameon Pierce (3.7), TE Hayden Hurst (4.8), TE Dalton Schultz (5.4), WR DJ Moore (5.4), RB Saquon Barkley (5.5), RB Miles Sanders (5.8), WR Tyler Boyd (6.2), WR Justin Jefferson (6.3), RB Kenyan Drake (7.3), WR A.J. Brown (9.0), RB Joe Mixon (9.2), WR CeeDee Lamb (9.5), WR Terry McLaurin (9.6)

The only real bust at the quarterback position was Kirk Cousins, who had a miserable day. He was sacked seven times and had just 2.2 fantasy points in a 40-3 beatdown against the Dallas Cowboys.

Nyheim Hines was a major disappointment as he had a -0.8. D’Onta Foreman (2.4) struggled against the Ravens, while a guy who has been a stud as of late — Dameon Pierce — had just 3.7. The biggest letdown of the week has to be Saquon Barkley’s 5.5 points against a mediocre Lions defense. Miles Sanders and Kenyan Drake had a 5.8 and 7.3, respectively. Joe Mixon posted 9.2 points but left early with an injury.

Speaking of injuries: Rondale Moore also left early after reaching just -0.6 points. Mike Williams re-aggravated his ankle injury and left early after a mere 2.5.

D.J. Moore continues to struggle as he had a 5.4, while Tyler Boyd and Justin Jefferson did not have much success with 6.2 and 6.3 points to their respective names. A.J. Brown, CeeDee Lamb and Terry McLaurin all had decent days, but they still let down managers with a 9.0, 9.5 and 9.6 points.

At tight end, David Njoku returned to the field and had just 3.7 points. Hayden Hurst (4.8) was a letdown with Ja’Marr Chase out, while Dalton Schultz (5.4) finds himself on the bust list due to game script: the Cowboys did not need to throw the ball against the Vikings.

Five defenses were atrocious in Week 11. Minnesota gave up 40 points which led to a -8.0 in fantasy. The Cardinals were not much better as they had a -4.0 after giving up 38 on Monday Night Football. The Chargers and Broncos did not represent the AFC West as they had a -3.0 and -2.0. The Giants defense has been the main reason they currently hold a playoff spot, but they were the issue on Sunday and had -1.0 fantasy points.

Patriots Fantasy Recap

The New England Patriots defense and special teams led the way in terms of fantasy scoring: they had 17.0 behind Marcus Jones’ game-winning punt return touchdown versus the New York Jets. Rhamondre Stevenson had a nice day with 14.0 points as did Damien Harris with 11.3.

On the flip-side, every single Patriots receiver and tight end finished with less than 10 fantasy points. Despite this, the biggest letdown in terms of fantasy scoring was kicker Nick Folk: he had just 2.0 points after missing a pair of field goal attempts in windy conditions.