Last week I discussed the idea of assessing your fantasy football roster to determine what kind of team you need to build moving towards the playoffs. If you are locked in, you need to look forward to matchups and set your roster up for success in the playoffs. You need to make sure you have starters with good matchups, and high value backups that could jump into workhorse roles if there are injuries ahead of them.
If you are on the outside of the playoffs and still have a shot to get in there are only a couple more weeks to do it. You need to win each week so it is not worth looking too far in the future for matchups. You need to manage your roster almost perfectly this week. Making the right waiver wire additions as well as the correct drops can determine if you make the playoffs or not. Dropping some of the roster cloggers below could not only help your team, but hurt your opponents. These players mentioned below have had poor performances recently and hurt the teams that started them.
If you can move a roster clogger from your starting lineup to an opponents, you are doing your team a huge service.
Quarterbacks
Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans (70.1% Rostered, 26.4% Started)
I was considering putting Ryan Tannehill on the watch list this week, but decided he was worthy of being in the main list. First of all, the Titans are on bye in Week 13 so Tannehill can not help you get a victory this week. He has had some decent weeks, but he is not worthy of being stashed through the bye week. The Titans have been plagued by injuries and it is really having an impact on Tannehill.
Ryan Tannehill in the huddle without Derrick Henry, Julio Jones or AJ Brown pic.twitter.com/jzaM8OZms8
— FantasyPros (@FantasyPros) November 21, 2021
Tannehill has not thrown multiple touchdown passes in any of the Titans last four games. In addition, he has thrown at least 1 interception in three of the last four games. Following the bye, the Titans face the Jaguars who seem like they would be a decent matchup. But in reality, they have been a pretty bad defense to target. Since Week 5, the Jaguars have only given up more than 200 passing yards twice. They have held two teams to no passing touchdowns.
Running Backs
Michael Carter, New York Jets (80.2% Rostered, 7% Started)
This Saturday the Jets put Michael Carter on the IR, keeping him out of your fantasy football lineups for the remainder of the regular season. If you are locked in the playoffs and do not need the roster spot, feel free to hold onto Carter. If you need to win to get into the playoffs, Carter is not going to help you.
Carter started off his career slow, but he has had a pretty decent stretch since he started to get significant work. He has not surpassed 100 rushing yards in a single game. Though he has multiple games with over 100 scrimmage yards.
Wide Receivers
Emmanuel Sanders, Buffalo Bills (69.7% Rostered, 24.6% Started)
Emmanuel Sanders was almost on this list last week, but I decided I wanted to give him another week. But after only seeing three targets in Week 12, I needed to add him. This type of volume just is not enough to be of any fantasy football value.
Sanders had a very good stretch of fantasy games from Week 3 through Week 6. Over that span, he had two games with two touchdowns and over 70 yards in three of four games. Since then, Sanders has only surpassed 30 yards once and hasn’t found the endzone. Without any touchdowns, Sanders needs to see more volume to be rosterable.
Tyler Boyd, Cincinnati Bengals (68.8% Rostered, 19.4% Started)
Tyler Boyd has been one of the more frustrating fantasy football WRs to roster this season. He has had several decent weeks, but he has also had his fair share of stinkers. The problem is that the majority of Boyd’s big games came while on fantasy managers benches. While his bad games he typically has been in more starting lineups.
Boyd has been on the field for at least 70% of the offensive snaps in all but two games this season. But even with all of those snaps he has been the 2nd or 3rd among Bengals’ WR nearly every week. In addition to being 3rd in snaps, he is being targeted the least of all Bengals WRs.
Bengals WR targets during 9 games together:
Tee Higgins – 67 (24%)
Ja'Marr Chase – 67 (24%)
Tyler Boyd – 48 (17%)— Mike Clay (@MikeClayNFL) November 28, 2021
With him on the field so much there are likely more points to come. They just are not predictable enough to justify a spot on my starting lineup. I would prefer to send this roster clogger elsewhere to let someone else make the mistake of starting him.
Tight Ends
Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams (73.6% Rostered, 29.3% Started)
Tight end is always tricky. If you do not have one of the top options, streaming is your best option. Last week I highlighted that. Unfortunately, that is what Higbee has turned into. Just a streaming option. But in Week 12 he was started by just about 1/3 of the teams that roster him.
Tyler Higbee is playing on nearly all of the offensive snaps for the Rams. He has not been able to turn his high usage into reliable fantasy points. Even though Higbee has seen at least 5 targets in each of his last three games, he has left fantasy football managers looking for more at the TE position. If you do not get a touchdown from Higbee you are not getting the number of points you want from your TE.
High-key funny Tyler Higbee is the number 1 TE in RZ targets but he's TE16.. lol
— LaQuan Jones (@RealDealFantasy) November 27, 2021
Roster Clogger Watch
Zack Moss, Buffalo Bills (68.5% Rostered, 13.2% Started)
About an hour before the Bills kickoff on Thanksgiving night it was announced that Moss would be a healthy scratch. This is not the first time that Moss has been a healthy scratch either. Last time was Week 1, which he followed up with several decent fantasy football games.
This time is different. Matt Breida has started to emerge as a big part of the Bills offense. In Week 11, Breida had more snaps and carries than Moss. In the Thanksgiving matchup, Breida was second in snaps and carries to Singletary. It’s looking like he may have jumped Moss on the depth chart. I am willing to give Moss one more chance since he has played decent. If he is a healthy scratch again next week or is behind Breida on the depth chart, he is droppable.
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots (56.4% Rostered, 18.9% Started)
Depending on your league’s scoring format, Hunter Henry is likely a top-10 option at the TE position on the season. His high rank is based almost entirely on his 7 touchdowns from Week 4 through 10. But since that seven game stretch, Henry has not been able to find the endzone.
This lack of touchdowns has made him unstartable in fantasy football. The good news for Henry managers is that his targets have been pretty consistent for the majority of the season. He also is still being targeted in the redzone and endzone, which is promising. In Week 12, two of his five targets were in the redzone, and one was in the endzone. Henry will find the endzone again, so I am not sure he is drop-worthy yet, but he is not a very safe start.
Mac missed a wide-open Hunter Henry for a touchdown. Read the safety coming down, saw it the whole way. Just missed the throw. #Patriots
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) November 28, 2021
In addition, the Patriots have not had their bye week, so you will have to make a decision with Henry in Week 14 anyways.
