Week 11 Preview: Key Matchups and Their Fantasy Relevance

Giants at Eagles

After a record-breaking performance last week on Monday night the Eagles host the team that, prior to last week, everyone thought was the best team in the NFC.  The Giants are a very inconsistent team over the past few years and must be frustrating to watch for their fans.  The success of this team will depend on what team shows up in the playoffs… if it is the Giants from weeks 4 through 9, then the NFC is in trouble.  With a great pass rush and a very balanced offense, the Giants we have seen most of this season are able to compete against anyone in the league.  On the other hand, if the Giants from last week show up in December with their stupid penalties, turnovers and a defense that loves to allow big plays… then they are in some serious trouble and won’t make it past the wild-card round.  This week the Giants have a lot to prove against the hottest team in the league, with the most dynamic play maker in the NFL this season… Michael Vick.

Eli and the G-men will be hard-pressed to win this game on the road against a QB that has yet to turn the ball over the entire season and appears to be immune to the blitzing schemes that are run in this league.  If you have Michael Vick then you probably didn’t have an elite QB when you picked him up and will be starting him every week now, but a word of warning to those of you who own him AND Brees, Rodgers, Manning, or Rivers… Please start the guy that has been producing at a high level for a least 2 years now and NOT the one coming off of ONE epic game.  You should make sure to start your Eagles receivers until there is a drop in Vick’s performance.  LeSean McCoy has been a very solid performer this year, but his value is lowered against the Giants stout defense.  As for the Giants, you’re still starting your players on this team… but lower expectations and hope that they stabilize in this game or it will be time to be concerned.

Colts at Patriots

The defending AFC champions have had their ups and downs this season, but the Colts finally appear to be getting healthier with Collie coming back soon as well as Joseph Addai and Mike Hart due back by next week. The Patriots on the other hand have been among the strongest teams in the NFL, but after an embarrassing loss to the Browns two weeks ago there appeared to be a reason to doubt the greatness of Brady and Belichick.  They did however bounce back very strong and beat the league’s top defense and put all concerns to rest for the time being by playing their best defensive game of the year.  The nice thing about this match-up is that neither team has a defense that scares you and we can expect all of our fantasy performers to live up to expectations.  The two biggest sleepers in this game for me are the Patriots’ running backs, who have a nice match-up against the Colts who have allowed some pretty huge rushing performances this season.  As for who will win this game… I do everything in my power to NOT bet against Peyton Manning so I take the Colts in a tough road win that could join the long list of games that have been decided in overtime this season.

Raiders at Steelers

As surprising as it is, the Raiders sit on top of their division in the month of November!  They face the Steelers who are also tied for the best record in their division as well and while they did lose to the Raiders last season… they are heavy favorites to get another victory at home.  The Raiders have ridden consistent QB play (from two different guys) and a phenomenal rushing attack to their current record, but face a team that has managed to hold every rusher they have faced to under 75 yards.  Rashard Mendenhall’s fantasy value relies pretty heavily on this game as Mewelde Moore stole quite a few of his carries in last weeks loss to the Patriots.  You still need to start him, but if Moore gets more than 10 carries this week, then Rashard wont be a top 10 back anymore.  Mike Wallace proved last week that he is a dynamic player who is able to manage the double team as the team’s number one receiver if Ward needs to miss this game.