November 15, 2016

Ben Ruppert's 2016 fantasy football tiered rankings for Week Eleven wide receivers (WR) - waiver wire pickups, adds & sleepers for PPR and non-PPR. These are NFL WRs to target.

What’s up everyone! Welcome back for your Week 11 fantasy football waiver wire WR options. This week we have a number of options that have emerged, several of whom are likely available in your league and could help out your WR situation.

Below you will find some deeper waiver wire grabs heading into Week 11. Check out my entries from Week 10 as well. If players like Terrelle Pryor or Tyrell Williams are still out there, PICK THEM UP FIRST. These are deeper options who will likely be available in many leagues. If you are forced to pick between two players, find me on twitter @Ben_Ruppert_21, and I will be more than happy to help you out!

Now, let’s get rolling.

Editor's Note: Once you're done here, be sure to read about even more Week 11 waiver wire recommendations, for all fantasy-relevant positions. Just click on any link: ALL - RB - WR - TE - QB - DEF - FAAB - CUTS

Week 11 Waiver Wire - Wide Receivers (WR)

The Shallow End (Under 50% Owned)

Steve Smith Sr., WR, BAL- 45% Owned on Fleaflicker

A short amount of rest in between games did little to slow Steve Smith on Thursday night. In his second game back from injury, Smith caught 5-of-7 targets for 60 yards and a TD, showing bursts of speed and throwing several tough stiff-arms. The seven targets led all WRs on the day, and his 14 over the past two weeks lead the team. Though there are a ton of options in the passing game for QB Joe Flacco, Smith has proven over the past few years to be one of his favorite, more reliable targets.

Smith played the most snaps of any WR last game, playing 61-of-82 snaps (74%). With Mike Wallace taking the majority of the deep ball attention, Smith catches many of his passes in the short-to-intermediate range and makes things happen after the catch. The Ravens have attempted more passes than any other team in the NFL to this point, so even with all the weapons on offense there should be enough volume to go around for all of these wide outs. Even at 37 years young, Smith continues to get tough yardage and pile up the receptions. He makes for a good add in all formats while he is healthy and producing.

Pierre Garcon, WR, WAS- 35% Owned on Fleaflicker

Pierre Garcon has been sneakily consistent over the past several weeks, scoring double digit points in four out of the last five games (PPR formats). This week Garcon kept things going leading the team in targets, receptions, and yards. He secured 6-of-10 targets for 81 yards as the Redskins knocked off the Vikings 26-to-20. Garcon led all WRs in snaps, playing 51-of-63 overall.

Garcon hasn’t been spectacular this season; he has yet to have a 100-yard game and only has one TD on the season. However, over the past five weeks he has averaged five receptions for 61 yards, giving him a nice double-digit floor in PPR formats. Though Jamison Crowder continues to dominate the red zone targets, the Redskins are among the top-10 teams in the league in pass attempts. He is a nice add for those looking to fill the bye week holes left by the likes of Julio Jones and Demariyus Thomas next week.

Tyler Boyd, WR, CIN- 25% Owned on Fleaflicker

In the last game the Bengals played before their bye week, Tyler Boyd was third on the team in targets behind A.J. Green and Tyler Eifert with seven, five more than Brandon LaFell. Boyd caught 5-of-7 targets for 38 yards, including a rushing attempt for three yards in the tie with Washington. Eifert played his biggest role in the offense all season, and his impact hurt LaFell more than anyone else. Boyd’s 10 targets over the past two weeks trump LaFell’s seven; he seems to be the second WR in this offense to own now over the veteran WR.

Green and Eifert will likely dominate the red zone looks, leaving Boyd free to operate in the slot. He will catch plenty of short passes, and as evidenced by last week’s game he will get the occasional end-around given his athletic abilities. He has a favorable matchup this week against the Giants (article was written before this game will be played), and then next week draws a Bills defense that has been slipping over the past few weeks. Boyd makes for a solid add in PPR formats, and should be a borderline flex option moving forward.

Tyreek Hill, WR, KC- 22% Owned on Fleaflicker

Hill had one of his best games of the season on Sunday, even though he was unable to catch a TD on the day. Hill caught a career high 10-of-13 targets for 89 yards in the Chiefs win over Carolina. He also added in a run for 12 yards. He accounted for exactly half of QB Alex Smith’s passing yards on the day (178 total yards). Hill’s 13 targets were six more than any other player received, and his 89 receiving yards was his second highest total of the season (98 yards in Week 8).

Jeremy Maclin was absent during this game, meaning there were a few more targets to go around than normal. However, the volume Hill received from Smith makes him an interesting option moving forward. Over the past three weeks, Hill has more targets than any other receiving option on the Chiefs, one more than Travis Kelce (24-to-23). Jeremy Maclin had 10 targets in Week 8, before receiving only one in Week 9 and not playing due to injury this week. With Hill emerging as a go-to option for Smith, he should be speculatively added in 12+ team leagues this week.

More Options: Anquan Boldin, DET (46% owned), Chris Hogan, NE (41%), Devin Funchess, CAR (35%), J.J. Nelson, ARI (34%), Tajae Sharpe, TEN (29%), Breshad Perriman, BAL (27%), Kenny Stills, MIA (27%), Kendall Wright, TEN (24%), Cameron Meredith, CHI (20%), Robert Woods, BUF (20%), Jeremy Kerley, SF (17%)

The Deep End (Under 15% Owned)

Marqise Lee, WR, JAX- 15% Owned on Fleaflicker

Lee has been a consistent member of the Jaguars passing attack all season long, and last week was no different. He caught 4-of-6 targets for 50 yards, and ran the ball once for six yards the in Jags loss to the Texans. He now has 14 targets over the past two weeks, three more than Allen Hurns over the same span. Next week for the Jags will be a matchup with the Lions, who have given up the third most receptions and the eighth most yards to opposing WRs this season. Lee makes for a high floor, low ceiling option for those looking to fill bye week holes.

Adam Thielen, WR, MIN- 14% Owned on Fleaflicker

Adam Thielen has been a consistent option in the Vikings passing game, averaging five targets per game with a low of three and a high of eight. This week against the Redskins he caught three-of-four targets for 21 yards, including a short red zone reception for his second TD of the season. Stefon Diggs dominated the action in this one, leaving Thielen and Patterson behind. Thielen has been the more consistent option of the two, with double digit points in three of the past five games (PPR formats).

Dontrelle Inman, WR, SD- 12% Owned on Fleaflicker

With Travis Benjamin out of the game on Sunday Inman drew nine targets (tied for second on the team), catching five of them for 43 yards. He had several of those catches later on in the game to keep drives alive. A big part of Inman’s fantasy success hinges on the health of Travis Benjamin; his two highest target totals of the season (11 in Week 4, nine in Week 10) have come when a main weapon was out of the game (Antonio Gates Week 4, Benjamin Week 10). He has averaged 5.6 targets per game this season, but when you can get that number close to 10 it’s obviously a big boost to his value. The Chargers will have two weeks to prepare for a game against Houston, who has given up the third least fantasy points to opposing WRs this season.

Taylor Gabriel, WR, ATL- 5% Owned on Fleaflicker

Taylor Gabriel isn’t going to overwhelm you with the amount of touches he gets, but over the past three weeks the one’s he’s gotten he’s made count. This week Gabriel caught one of his five targets for 76 yards and a TD. It was the longest scoring play of the season for the Falcons. This was the second straight week Gabriel received five targets, and the third straight week Gabriel has scored a TD. He has 13 targets over the past three weeks, including two rushing attempts. He is still behind Mohamed Sanu in the pecking order at WR (Sanu has 19 targets over the past three weeks, and out-snapped Gabriel 46-to-34 last game), but Gabriel’s nose for the end zone makes him an interesting add in very deep leagues.

More Options: Eli Rogers, PIT (13% owned), Adam Humphries, TB (12%), Percy Harvin, BUF (10%), Seth Roberts, OAK (9%), Marquise Goodwin, BUF (8%), Russell Shepard, TB (4%), Quinton Patton, SF (4%), Robby Anderson, NYJ (2%)

That’s all for this week folks, hope you get everyone you claim! For all your WR waiver wire questions, read these articles each week and get at me on twitter @Ben_Ruppert_21. I am more than happy to lend a hand to hungry fantasy owners!