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As the playoff picture begins to solidify in fantasy football leagues, the NFL playoff race is just beginning it’s most dramatic phase. Down the stretch, when teams are giving their all to earn a playoff spot, our fantasy teams are in the midst of their own postseason action. If you think about it, things work out quite nicely: If our players excel in the late stages of their NFL season as they push for a playoff spot (or try to knock another team out as the underdog), our fantasy rosters will produce at a high level as well. Up until Week 16, every single NFL team will, in all likelihood, give their best effort to pick up meaningful wins.
This makes our fantasy playoffs incredibly competitive. I’m not sure how everyone’s playoff format is structured, since we all play with various styles and setups, but there are two aspects of fantasy football playoffs that I highly recommend if your league permits:
1) Two-week playoff rounds — You just fought for at least a dozen weeks to get into the elusive playoffs, don’t let your hard work boil down to just one week of action.
2) Excluding Week 17 from your league’s playoffs — while some of the best NFL teams rest their studs before the postseason, fantasy owners are put at a disadvantage only because their players are excellent real-life assets.
Again, I realize these aren’t feasible options for everyone out there, but I personally couldn’t imagine playing fantasy football playoffs without two-week scoring rounds and/or the elimination of the abnormally frustrating Week 17 in the NFL.
Here are my Top 50 RBs for Week 11 vs. FantasyPros' ECR rankings:
Fantasy Football rankings - Week 11
View Available Players| # | Player (team) | Matchup | ECR™ | vs. ECR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Le'Veon Bell (PIT) | at CLE | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | Ezekiel Elliott (DAL) | vs. BAL | 4 | +2 |
| 3 | David Johnson (ARI) | at MIN | 3 | 0 |
| 4 | DeMarco Murray (TEN) | at IND | 2 | -2 |
| 5 | LeGarrette Blount (NE) | at SF | 6 | +1 |
| 6 | LeSean McCoy (BUF) | at CIN | 5 | -1 |
| 7 | Jay Ajayi (MIA) | at LA | 8 | +1 |
| 8 | Lamar Miller (HOU) | at OAK | 9 | +1 |
| 9 | Latavius Murray (OAK) | vs. HOU | 11 | +2 |
| 10 | Jonathan Stewart (CAR) | vs. NO | 10 | 0 |
| 11 | Todd Gurley (LA) | vs. MIA | 14 | +3 |
| 12 | Spencer Ware (KC) | vs. TB | 7 | -5 |
| 13 | Frank Gore (IND) | vs. TEN | 12 | -1 |
| 14 | Doug Martin (TB) | at KC | 13 | -1 |
| 15 | Theo Riddick (DET) | vs. JAC | 15 | 0 |
| 16 | Mark Ingram (NO) | at CAR | 19 | +3 |
| 17 | C.J. Prosise (SEA) | vs. PHI | 21 | +4 |
| 18 | Carlos Hyde (SF) | vs. NE | 18 | 0 |
| 19 | Robert Kelley (WAS) | vs. GB | 16 | -3 |
| 20 | Jeremy Hill (CIN) | vs. BUF | 17 | -3 |
| 21 | Isaiah Crowell (CLE) | vs. PIT | 22 | +1 |
| 22 | Giovani Bernard (CIN) | vs. BUF | 23 | +1 |
| 23 | Jordan Howard (CHI) | at NYG | 20 | -3 |
| 24 | Terrance West (BAL) | at DAL | 28 | +4 |
| 25 | Chris Ivory (JAC) | at DET | 27 | +2 |
| 26 | Darren Sproles (PHI) | at SEA | 26 | 0 |
| 27 | Kenneth Dixon (BAL) | at DAL | 29 | +2 |
| 28 | Ryan Mathews (PHI) | at SEA | 24 | -4 |
| 29 | Rashad Jennings (NYG) | vs. CHI | 31 | +2 |
| 30 | Jeremy Langford (CHI) | at NYG | 40 | +10 |
| 31 | Thomas Rawls (SEA) | vs. PHI | 30 | -1 |
| 32 | James Starks (GB) | at WAS | 25 | -7 |
| 33 | James White (NE) | at SF | 32 | -1 |
| 34 | Tim Hightower (NO) | at CAR | 33 | -1 |
| 35 | Paul Perkins (NYG) | vs. CHI | 36 | +1 |
| 36 | Ka'Deem Carey (CHI) | at NYG | 52 | +16 |
| 37 | Dion Lewis (NE) | at SF | 39 | +2 |
| 38 | Jerick McKinnon (MIN) | vs. ARI | 41 | +3 |
| 39 | Derrick Henry (TEN) | at IND | 43 | +4 |
| 40 | Matt Asiata (MIN) | vs. ARI | 37 | -3 |
| 41 | T.J. Yeldon (JAC) | at DET | 35 | -6 |
| 42 | Duke Johnson (CLE) | vs. PIT | 34 | -8 |
| 43 | Chris Thompson (WAS) | vs. GB | 38 | -5 |
| 44 | Mike Gillislee (BUF) | at CIN | 44 | 0 |
| 45 | DeAndre Washington (OAK) | vs. HOU | 46 | +1 |
| 46 | Peyton Barber (TB) | at KC | 49 | +3 |
| 47 | Dwayne Washington (DET) | vs. JAC | 47 | 0 |
| 48 | Damien Williams (MIA) | at LA | 48 | 0 |
| 49 | Charcandrick West (KC) | vs. TB | 50 | +1 |
| 50 | Akeem Hunt (HOU) | at OAK | 65 | +15 |
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Notes & Analysis:
- Le’Veon Bell appears to have the most generous fantasy matchup at the RB position this week as he and the Steelers travel to Cleveland. He’s this week’s top play.
- Ezekiel Elliott continues to post monstrous stats behind Dallas’ elite O-line. I don’t think there’s a defense in the NFL that can remotely extinguish this blazing-hot rookie’s pace.
- LeGarrette Blount is a touchdown machine for one of the most prolific offenses in the NFL. Against a pathetic 49ers run defense, I’m fully expecting RB1 Blount to touch the ball 20+ times with multiple goal line chances.
- LeSean McCoy should be healthy and fresh off his bye, which is bad news for the Bengals defense that just gave up 118 rushing yards to the struggling Giants RBs.
- Latavius Murray also returns to action after a bye week after running all over the Broncos in Week 9. The lead back in an efficient offense with a road-grading set of linemen, Murray is a borderline RB1 on Monday Night Football.
- Todd Gurley has settled in as a somewhat steady RB2, which is far from where we expected (and drafted) him to be at this point. The reason I have him a few notches higher than the ECR is the fact that Jared Goff will be under center in Week 11. A chance of scenery in this dry offense can’t hurt.
- Frank Gore has performed extremely well as a weekly fantasy starter in 2016 and he should remain a high-end RB2 for the foreseeable future, and certainly at home against the Titans in Week 11.
- Mark Ingram struggled to find much room against the Broncos last week, but the Panthers shouldn’t pose the same threat this Thursday. Ingram can be relied upon as a quality RB2, even in a timeshare with Tim Hightower.
- I was high on rookie C.J. Prosise last week and he certainly didn’t disappoint after racking up 156 yards from scrimmage against the Pats. Now, with C-Mike once again off the team and Thomas Rawls attempting to come back from a lengthy injury, this is Prosise’s backfield for the time being. He’s an upside RB2/3 at home against Philly.
- Robert Kelley isn’t a stellar athlete, but he’s a dependable runner who can get the yardage needed when his number is called upon. With Matt Jones looking like a healthy scratch once again, Kelley is in line to provide RB3 numbers at the very least.
- Jordan Howard suffered a lower-body injury last weekend... unless he didn’t? The Bears are annoyingly cryptic in regard to their players’ injuries, so this is a situation to monitor. He’d be a low-end RB2 if he’s healthy, but Jeremy Langford could find himself in the RB3 picture if he gets the start.
- After if seemed Darren Sproles was the lead dog in Philly, Ryan Mathews surfaced once again with a huge Week 10 performance. I’m finding it tough to believe either one of them will be anything more than an RB3 gamble in Week 11 when they travel to Seattle.
Be sure to check back throughout the week for updated rankings.
Good luck!