Welcome all to Week 11 of the 2023 NFL season. Four more teams get their bye week this week, including New Orleans, who is rostered in 86% of leagues, and the Colts, who have scored 42 fantasy points over the past two weeks.
We’ve also got some top defensive options drawing tough matchups this week, as the Eagles and Chiefs square off on Monday Night Football, the Jets travel to Buffalo to face the Bills, and the red-hot Raiders (that feels weird to say) head to Miami to face the Dolphins.
With all of this uncertainty surrounding the defensive side of the ball and the fantasy playoffs rapidly approaching, now more than ever, it’s crucial to explore all available streamers available on the Week 11 waiver wire.
READ – WEEK 11 WAIVER WIRE: START, STASH STREAM
Let’s see what our options are.
FANTASY WEEK 11 DST STREAMERS
DETROIT LIONS (30% ROSTERED ON YAHOO!)
VS CHICAGO BEARS | 1 PM
The Lions are sitting at 7-2 going into Week 11 and have been the definition of boom or bust on defense over the past four weeks. The booms have included 12 points against the Raiders with six sacks and just eight points allowed, and 10 points against Tampa in a 20-6 win. The busts? The other two games in that stretch, in which they put up -2 fantasy points and allowed 38 points in each game with zero sacks and just two combined turnovers.
A more promising trend we can turn to here is Detroit’s recent success at home. They’re 3-1 at home in 2023 and have scored over 11 fantasy points per game on defense over their past three home games. This week’s game is not only at Ford Field but comes against a Bears offense that’s given up the 4th-most fantasy points to defenses over the past four weeks and the 3rd most overall in 2023.
It’s possible we may see the return of Justin Fields this week as he continues to work his way back from a thumb injury that has kept him out of Chicago’s past four games. Whether it’s been Fields or Tyson Bagent at QB for the Bears, Chicago has the league’s 24th-ranked passing offense and is tied for 2nd with 12 interceptions. They’re also 1-4 with a -45 point differential on the road this year.
Dan Campbell’s Lions are the real deal, and I trust them to take care of business in this division matchup on Sunday.
WASHINGTON COMMANDERS (21%)
VS NEW YORK GIANTS | 1 PM
If you’re like me and often look to defensive streamers on a weekly basis, you know that one of the keys to the strategy is finding the right offenses to fade and fading them hard. A few teams fit that description this year — the Patriots, Jets, and Panthers come to mind — but none better than the New York Football Giants.
The Giants have allowed almost 14 fantasy points per game to defenses in 2023, and have given up 54 sacks, which are both far and away the most in the league. It really hasn’t mattered who is in at quarterback, but it’s clear that Tommy DeVito being the team’s long-term starter is the worst-case scenario for them. DeVito’s been running for his life since his first snap, and the G Men have scored just 33 points in the three games he’s played in. DeVito can’t be thrilled, and it looks like his coach and father aren’t, either.
Bottom line — the Giants are a dumpster fire, and if the Commanders are going to salvage anything out of this season, it has to start this week. Washington’s lost three of their last four, only beating the lowly Patriots in that stretch, and their loss to Seattle last week dropped them to 4-6 and out of the NFC playoff picture for the time being. They’ve already lost to the Giants once this year, a 14-7 snoozefest at MetLife in Week 7, and they need this one badly at home to stay relevant in the NFC.
MIAMI DOLPHINS (40%)
VS LAS VEGAS RAIDERS | 1 PM
Usually, when a team fires their coach and benches their veteran quarterback in favor of a 4th round rookie, they’re essentially waving the white flag on their season. The Raiders have bucked that trend, winning two straight games since firing Josh McDaniels and awarding Aidan O’Connell the starting job in the aftermath.
Does this tell us O’Connell and Antonio Pierce know what they’re doing? Or was McDaniels just that bad at his job? Can it be both?
Regardless, the interim coach bump only carries so much weight, and I think Vegas is in for a rude awakening as they travel across the country to face Miami coming off a bye week. The Dolphins were averaging just under eight fantasy points per game over the last five games heading into their off week, and now face a Vegas offense that’s allowed the 9th-most fantasy points to opposing defenses, including eight (three sacks, two turnovers) to the Jets last week.
The Raiders struggled on early downs against the Jets for one simple reason — you, me, Antonio Pierce, the opposing defense, and everyone who’s paying attention knows they’re running the ball. Vegas has become one of the most run-heavy teams in football since Pierce took over, and he seems content to keep peppering Josh Jacobs with touches, even when it isn’t working.
Mike McDaniel is an intelligent guy and should have no problem loading up the box to stop the run on early downs while protecting the space over the top if the Raiders try to break tendency occasionally.
With Vegas heading on the road for the first time since cleaning house and facing a talented, rested defense which has had two weeks to prepare for them, I think the clock is about to strike midnight on their midseason turnaround, and fast.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Tennessee Titans (6%): The Titans look to break their two-game skid in Jacksonville against a Jags team that mustered up just three points against the 49ers last week.
Minnesota Vikings (18%): The Vikings have survived Kirk Cousins‘ injury and find themselves on a five game win streak as they head to Denver to face the Broncos on Sunday night.
Los Angeles Rams (7%): The Rams look to bounce back off three straight losses when they host Seattle, who they held to 13 points when these teams squared off in Week 1.
