Nov. 14 (UPI) — After a terrific performance in Week 10, New Orleans Saintsstar Michael Thomas tops my Week 11 fantasy football wide receiver rankings.
Pittsburgh Steelers star Antonio Brown, Oakland Raiders pass catcher Michael Crabtree, Cincinnati Bengals Pro Bowler A.J. Green and Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins round out my top 5 for Week 11.
If you have wide receivers on your team from the New York Jets, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers or Carolina Panthers, be sure to take them out of your lineup. Players from those teams are serving a Week 11 bye and will be inactive and should be considered useless, for fantasy football purposes.
If you need to pick up a fill-in or want to try out a streaming play, check out my top pickups and drops article for some of my favorite targets in Week 11.
Here are my Top 50 options at the position this week.
TOP 50 WEEK 11 RANKINGS BELOW
TOP SHELF
Oakland Raiders target Michael Crabtree hasn’t gone over 100 receiving yards in a game this year, but does have six scores in eight starts. Although he has gone two weeks without scoring, I expect him to get back in the end zone in Week 11 against a New England Patriots defense that has allowed the second-most receiving yards and third-most fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers. Crabtree is my No. 2 option for Week 11 and an obvious must-start.
The Miami Dolphins have been offensively-challneged this season, to put it kindly. But Jarvis Landry isn’t the reason why. Landry has five touchdowns in his last six games. He also has at least five catches in every game this season and leads the NFL with 61 receptions. Look for his success to continue Sunday afternoon against a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense allowing the fourth-most fantasy points per game, receiving yards and touchdowns to opposing wide receivers. Landry is a fringe WR1 in deeper leagues with this matchup.
SNEAKY PLAYS
Veteran pass catcher Larry Fitzgerald might not have Carson Palmerthrowing him the football, but he is coming off of a 10-catch, 113-yard performance against the vaunted Seattle Seahawks secondary. He should be able to find success again in Week 11 against the Houston Texans, a defense allowing the second-most fantasy points per game and touchdowns to opposing wide receivers. Start Fitz with confidence as a WR2 in Week 11, regardless of format.
New York Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard should benefit from an Eli Manning rebound down the stretch. Shepard erupted for a career-high 142 yards and 11 catches in Week 10 against the San Francisco Giants. He should produce like a WR2 again this week in a matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, a secondary that has allowed the most fantasy points per game, most receiving scores and third-most receiving yards to opposing wide receivers. Shepard is my No. 21 option this weekend.
LONGSHOTS
Jeremy Maclin has had a very quiet first year for the Baltimore Ravens, but he put together his best two games of the season in his last two starts. Maclin corralled three catches for 53 yards and a score in the Ravens’ 40-0 Week 8 win against the Miami Dolphins. He parlayed that showing into an eight-catch, 98-yard performance in Week 9 against the Tennessee Titans. This week, Maclin and the Ravens battle the Green Bay Packers. The Packers are allowing the sixth-most fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers. I have Maclin ranked as a high-end WR3.
I wouldn’t be overly excited about it, but Dontrelle Inman deserves some consideration at WR3 in deeper leagues. Inman was traded from the Los Angeles Rams to the Chicago Bear sin October, in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick. The Bears were super needy at wide receiver, because of multiple injuries to the position. In his first start, Inman had six catches for 88 yards on a season-high eight targets. I expect this target number to increase. Inman is a low-end WR3 for me this week if you are in a deeper-league jam.