Fantasy Football: 5 Things We Learned in Week 11
The Quarterback Armageddon Is Upon Us
Week 11 was particularly devastating for two teams who lost their quarterbacks. Alex Smith suffered a brutal leg injury and will miss the rest of the season and Marcus Mariota re-injured his elbow.
On a related note, we once again witnessed a mid-game quarterback benching from the Buccaneers. As of Monday morning, we don't know who will start for the team for the rest of the season, but for fantasy purposes, the differences between Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jameis Winston are negligible compared to the effects Smith's and Mariota's injuries will have on their teams.
Starting in Washington, Colt McCoy will likely be the quarterback going forward. We haven't really seen McCoy play since 2015, but he looked decent filling in this week on short notice. He managed to toss a touchdown with one of his 12 pass attempts, so there's at least some hope that he can keep a couple players relevant for fantasy. He played less than a half of football, but we can analyze who he targeted and try to learn something from that.
Josh Doctson led the team with five targets once McCoy took over. If he can maintain that kind of volume, he might be worth an add on the waiver wire this week. Jordan Reed drew three targets and caught McCoy's touchdown pass. Reed hasn't been himself this year and confessed this week that he was still suffering pain related to his previous foot surgeries, but he could benefit from a change in quarterback. And lastly, rookie Trey Quinn had two targets following the quarterback change, which is notable in that it was his NFL debut.
For the Tennessee Titans, Blaine Gabbert will likely take over again if Mariota has to sit. If Mariota plays but is less than 100 percent, we can expect the same stumbling offense the team fielded earlier this season, but if Gabbert gets the nod, we need to at least know who he was looking for when he passed the ball.
Tajae Sharpe led the team with Gabbert's targets, drawing five of them. Sharpe has been just off the fantasy radar this year and is worth monitoring for now. Jonnu Smith had three targets after the switch and kept his minor hot streak rolling. Most importantly, Corey Davis was an afterthought in Gabbert's time. If Gabbert plays, it'll be hard to start Davis with any sort of confidence.
These quarterback injuries dramatically shift the landscape of the their teams for fantasy. Obviously, neither team's offense will be as potent with the backup quarterback (or an injured starter) in there, but there's still some value to be eked out of either team for fantasy.
