NFL Week 11 fantasy football start ’em, sit ’em

Start Jimmy Garoppolo: He’s been a borderline fantasy starter in recent weeks, and a favorable matchup against the Cardinals pushes him into clear “start” territory.
Sit Kareem Hunt: The Browns backup hasn’t been getting as many touches this season, and the Bills' defense is unlikely to be where he turns things around.
Start George Pickens: Pickens’ role in the Steelers’ offense has increased since the Chase Claypool trade.

Estimated Reading Time: 8 mins

Deciding who to start or sit can be as easy as looking at the PFF rankings and starting the player ranked higher. This start’em, sit’em column digs a step deeper, looking into why someone you might typically start might not have a good week, or why someone overlooked might have a good week. In many cases, it’s the usual starters who should star, but we want to explore the borderline players too.

QUARTERBACKS

START

Daniel Jones, New York Giants

Jones has scored the 10th-most fantasy points per game over the past four weeks.
His 382 rushing yards are the fourth-most among quarterbacks this season.
The Giants have the third-best matchup for quarterbacks this week, according to PFF's strength of schedule tool.
New York faces the Lions, who have allowed the most fantasy points per game to quarterbacks this season.
Jones averaged a touchdown on 4.9% of his passes against man defenses, compared to 1.6% against zone, over the past two seasons.
The Lions employ man defense at the fourth-highest rate on pass plays compared to the other 31 teams.

Jimmy Garoppolo, San Francisco 49ers

Garoppolo has scored the 11th-most fantasy points per game over the past six weeks.
His 0.51 yards per dropback ranks 10th among all quarterbacks and third among quarterbacks under 200 rushing yards.
Garoppolo is averaging 8.1 yards per attempt, which is the third-most at the position this season.
The 49ers face the Cardinals, who have allowed the seventh-most fantasy points to quarterbacks this season.

SIT

Russell Wilson, Denver Broncos

Wilson has finished as a top-14 fantasy quarterback only once this season.
His 70.4% adjusted completion percentage is the lowest among quarterbacks with at least 300 dropbacks this season.
Wilson has an 8.9% turnover worthy-throw rate against man defense this season, compared to 2.5% against zone.
The Raiders call man defense at the sixth-highest rate in the NFL.

Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders

Carr ranks 29th in fantasy points per game among quarterbacks over the past four weeks.
The Raiders face the Broncos, who have allowed the fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks.
Carr averages 8.4 yards per attempt against man defense, compared to 6.8 against zone.
The Broncos utilize zone defense at the fourth-highest rate in the league.

RUNNING BACKS

START

Isiah Pacheco, Kansas City Chiefs

Pacheco ran 16 times for 82 yards in the Chiefs' victory last week.
He took over as the clear lead back on early downs for Kansas City.
The Chiefs' offensive line has the third-best edge over the Chargers' defensive line in the run game, according to PFF's offensive line/defensive line matchup chart.
That is in part because the Chiefs' offensive line now ranks second in the league.
The Chargers have allowed the third-most fantasy points to running backs this season.
The Chiefs are heavy favorites, which should allow them to run both early in the game and late.
All three of the Kansas City starting wide receivers are dealing with injuries, which could also lead to the team relying more on the run.