With Week 11 coming to an exciting conclusion on Monday Night Football, fantasy football managers have quickly set their sights on improving their rosters ahead of Week 12. With waivers set to run tonight in most leagues, we will jump right into some of the top waiver wire adds for those of you that are lucky enough to play in IDP leagues. You truly don’t know what you are missing until you try it. Let’s dig in.
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Note: Rostered percentages provided via Yahoo! leagues
Linebacker
Isaiah Simmons (LB – ARI): 3% rostered on Yahoo!
After impressing for three straight weeks on limited snaps, the Arizona Cardinals went ahead and handed Isaiah Simmons 68 percent of the defensive snaps in Week 11. The eighth overall pick from the 2020 NFL Draft responded by recording nine solos, one assist, one sack, two tackles for loss, and one QB hit. The good news is that the bulk of his snaps actually came at inside linebacker. He still saw snaps at slot corner and outside linebacker, but this snap shift is certainly an encouraging sign. Yes, De’Vondre Campbell was limited by a calf injury that he suffered in Week 10, but Simmons has surely earned himself some snaps in the middle. Expectations should be tempered as we will need to see what his snap count looks like when Campbell is healthy but Simmons’ fantasy arrow is pointing up. Add and stash in the hopes he permanently earned himself at least 60 percent of the snaps, wherever the might come, going forward.
Alex Singleton (LB – PHI): 3% rostered on Yahoo!
Alex Singleton was excellent again in Week 11, racking up eight solo tackles, four assists, one sack, one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery, and one QB hit. He is going to be a hot commodity after balling out for two consecutive weeks, so be prepared to be aggressive if he is still available in your league. Singleton has played 100 percent of the snaps in each of the last two games and is locked in as a starter due to his incredible play (and injury). There is no telling how long Singleton playing at an LB1 level will last, but ride the wave while you can. Add Singleton wherever possible.
Christian Kirksey (LB – GB): 10% rostered on Yahoo!
Kirksey is healthy and starting for the Green Bay Packers, but it appears that more than a few may have missed the memo. Still available in 90 percent of Yahoo leagues, Kirksey needs to be added wherever possible. He has weekly LB1 upside, and while he will be inconsistent he is safe to trust as an LB2 option. Kirksey recorded six solos, five assists, one interception, and one pass defended in Week 11. He has played 100 percent of the snaps in each of his two games since returning from injury and should continue to thrive on a defense that rounded back into form while he was on the shelf.
Rashaan Evans (LB – TEN): 7% rostered on Yahoo!
Rahaan Evans has disappointed in what was supposed to be a breakout season, falling to third on the depth chart, albeit on a team that uses the 4-3 as its base. That means he has still seen 76 percent of the snaps on the season. However, with IDP stud Jayon Brown lost for the season, Evans will see his role expanded. He should log a higher percentage of the snaps, likely around the 88 percent mark he has seen in each of the last two weeks. Evans had his best outing in over five weeks in Week 11, recording five solos and four assists against the Baltimore Ravens. Evans is more LB3 than LB2 at this point, but has the talent and expanded role to work his way back into that conversation in short order. Add Evans where needed.
Defensive Line
Olivier Vernon (DE – CLE): 0% rostered on Yahoo!
Don’t look now, but Olivier Vernon has five sacks in the last three weeks. Vernon did his best Myles Garrett impression in Week 11, racking up three sacks, despite his stud bookend being inactive. The Browns hosted a sack party against a decimated Eagles offensive line, but Vernon’s recent success makes him someone who needs to be added where available. Vernon finished Week 11 with four solos, one assist, three sacks, three tackles for loss, one safety, and one pass defended. His outburst has vaulted him up to being the DL11 since Week 4. Too talented to be sitting on wires, Vernon should be added, even if just as depth, in all competitive formats.
Carlos Dunlap (DE – SEA): 12% rostered on Yahoo!
Carlos Dunlap has been excellent since being traded to the Seahawks. With the two sacks he recorded in Week 11, he now has three sacks in his three games with them. Since he joined the Seahawks Dunlap is the DL2 overall and the DL7 in average fantasy points per game. In Week 11, Dunlap recorded two solos, two assists, two sacks, two tackles for loss, and three QB hits. He is by far the best edge rusher on the team, so he is going to be given all the snaps he can handle. Dunlap has recorded 7.5 or more sacks in each of the last seven seasons, topping out with 13.5 in 2015 and nine just last season. A DL1 talent with likely DL2 production the rest of the way, Dunlap needs to be snapped up wherever available immediately.
Trey Hendrickson (DE – NO): 7% rostered on Yahoo!
The DL15 overall since Week 4, Hendrickson has five sacks in his last four contests and is now tied with Myles Garret for first in the league with 9.5 sacks. He has been just incredible this season and has still been able to produce even with starter Marcus Davenport back to steal snaps. Hendrickson is a permanent part of the rotation and shares the field with Davenport often. Hendrickson is quickly becoming a fixture in this column, so add him wherever possible if you are tired of reading about him every week. Ignore him at your own peril, especially with the fantasy playoffs drawing nearer.
DeMarcus Lawrence (DE – DAL): 15% rostered on Yahoo!
DeMarcus Lawrence has bounced back after a slow start to the season. The DL1 in average and total fantasy points per game since Week 7, Lawrence has recorded 2.5 sacks and six tackles for loss in that four game stretch. He also recorded 13 solos, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in those four contests. In Week 11. Lawrence recorded one solo, three assists, 0.5 sacks, two QB hits, and one fumble recovery, keeping up his string of strong performances. There is absolutely no reason for Lawrence to be kicking around in 85 percent of Yahoo leagues. Add him wherever possible or risk facing him in the playoffs.
Defensive Back
Ashtyn Davis (S – NYJ): 0% rostered on Yahoo!
Ashtyn Davis has been excellent since taking over as the starter. Bradley McDougald has been sidelined since Week 7 with a shoulder injury and has no timetable for a return to the team. When all is said and done, it may not matter because Davis has been playing at a high level in his absence. He had the best IDP outing of his young career in Week 11, racking up eight solos, four assists, one tackle for loss, and one QB hit. While there is no telling what his role looks like if/when McDougald returns, he is worth a long, hard look for those in need of immediate safety help. Add Davis wherever needed.
Kamren Curl (S – WAS): 0% rostered on Yahoo!
I have waxed poetic about Kamren Curl ad nauseam and he is still listed as being rostered in zero percent of Yahoo leagues. Curl was strong again in Week 11, recording five solos, four assists, and one QB hit. He is the DB2 in overall fantasy points since he was inserted as a starter and is the DB7 and S4 in fantasy points per game. There is no reason for him to still be sitting on wires in any competitive leagues, so if you chose to add someone else last week, find a way to make room for Curl this week. With the fantasy playoffs approaching, blocking season is here. This means adding impact players just so they don’t end up on your rivals’ rosters during the playoffs is a sound and acceptable strategy. Add Curl even if you do not need him.
Vonn Bell (S – CIN): 6% rostered on Yahoo!
Bell has been the DB15/S10 over the last three weeks of the season. The former second round pick has been inconsistent, hence his low rostered numbers despite being something of a brand name due to his draft status. However, he has dropped some S1 level outings this season. He has recorded eight or more solos twice in his last five contests and is the S12/DB20 over that stretch. Still available in 94 percent of leagues, Bell went off with eight solos, five assists, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended in a plus matchup against Washington. He should be able to keep the good times rolling in Week 12 as he will square off against a struggling Giants team. Add Bell as a DB2/S2 with obvious matchup based S1 upside.
Johnathan Abram (S – LV): 12% rostered on Yahoo!
Abram has a fan favorite playing style thanks to the reckless abandon he plays with on every snap. He did not live up to the lofty expectations many had for him this season, but it is important to remember that he is still a rookie (he missed almost his entire true rookie season) who has yet to have a normal offseason with his team. He went cold after a strong start to the season but has picked things up over his last three contests. He has five or more solos in each of his last three games and has produced at a DB3/S2 level. He may not soar to the heights of a Jeremy Chinn or Antoine Winfield this season, but he is a ball magnet who will only get better as the season continues to progress. Still available in 88 percent of Yahoo leagues, Abram should be added wherever possible.
Adrian Phillips (S – NE): 9% rostered on Yahoo!
Donovan Wilson was also a consideration here, but Adrian Phillips is the proven commodity who is criminally under rostered. The former All-Pro continues to be under appreciated in IDP leagues but continues to be a strong DB3 option with DB2 upside. He has been inconsistent, but the same can be said for the majority of the defensive backs in the league. He is the DB14 overall since Week 6 and is the DB18/S11 on the season. As you can see, there is absolutely no reason for him to still be floating on waiver wires in competitive leagues at this juncture of the season. Phillips was strong again in Week 11, recording four solos, three assists, one tackle for loss, and one pass defended. Add the talented safety wherever possible.
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Raju Byfield is a featured writer for FantasyPros. For more from Raju, check out his archive and follow him @FantasyContext.