Much of fantasy football in-season owner strategy centers around which players to pick up from the waiver wire or to target in the trade market. However, roster spots are a premium resource. Cutting a player - or adding them to a trade - opens a roster spot for a key waiver wire addition or flexibility to keep a currently injured player through a missed game or two. Here are the key players to cut or trade after Week 11:
*Roster Rate referencing the percentage of myfantasyleague.com fantasy leagues where the player is rostered*
SHALLOW FORMATS
*15-18 roster spots*
Why: Lindsay is at best on the wrong side of a running back committee with Melvin Gordon on a middling-at-best Denver offense. Lindsay has more than 10 touches in just 2-of-7 active games this season and, alarmingly, Lindsay has only one reception on the season. Denver lacks any elite matchups left on their running back aSOS schedule as well. Lindsay is an injury-away option but not one of the more appealing backs within the subset.
Mark Ingram
Why: Ingram tested positive for COVID-19 this week but more concerning for his fantasy output the rest of the season is his invisible two-touch showing against Tennessee in Week 11 after a mere seven touches in Week 10. Ingram has ceded to J.K. Dobbins and somewhat to Gus Edwards in the Baltimore running back pecking order. Jacksonville in Week 15 is the next plus aSOS matchup for Ingram even if he were to have a clarified opportunity by then.
Why: Gallup is a touchdown regression candidate to close the season but sits third on a Cowboys depth chart without Dak Prescott. Also, Dallas' aSOS is one of the most difficult in the NFL over the final five games with only Cincinnati (Week 14) as an exploitable matchup. Gallup is essentially an injury-away at best in shallow formats as a streamable position.
Why: Hilton's big plays have dried up like a pond in the desert sun this season and the previously strong producer has a season-high of 12.9 PPR points in a game, his lone 10+ point performance. Hilton's snaps have sagged below rookie Michael Pittman over the past two games and Colts regularly have multiple tight ends with prominent snap totals in a given week. Mix in strong passing volume for the running back position and a reversal for Hilton is a long-shot bet.
MEDIUM DEPTH
*18-22 roster spots*
Why: Foles is working back from a hip injury but the Chicago depth chart is ambiguous with a potential quarterback change, or at a minimum, more heat on Foles than weeks ago. In addition to being a low-upside option (minimal rushing upside, more zero touchdown games this season than performances with more than two scores through the air), Foles has a rough closing schedule by aSOS with only Jacksonville in Week 16 as a carrot potentially worth the wait for streamers.
LaMical Perine
Why: Perine is set to miss time with a high-ankle sprain sustained in Week 11. But the Jets situation was stunted even with a healthy stretch from Perine. Outside of dynasty formats, shed Perine even if projected to return sometime in the fantasy playoffs. The juice (potential upside) is not worth the squeeze (roster spot value until then) with Perine in redraft.
Anthony McFarland
Why: McFarland has been a shadow since his Week 3 debut on his limited touches. Projecting a split with Benny Snell if James Conner were to miss time down the stretch points to McFarland not being the preferred goal-line option and relying on dominating the passing game work. This on a team with a deep wide receiver depth chart and Eric Ebron higher in the pecking order. McFarland's outlook is still murky sans Conner, making him an empty bench spot and de-optimized hold.
Why: Irv Smith returned to the lineup for Minnesota in Week 11 and combined with Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson's wide receiver dominance of targets, Rudolph has minimal expectation for big games in the closing weeks of the season. Rudolph has yet to surpass 10 PPR points in a game this season regardless of being pre-Justin Jefferson's rise in prominence or Irv Smith out of the lineup. The Vikings also have no premium aSOS matchups left on the schedule.
DEEP FORMATS
*25+ roster spots, more dynasty-focused*
Why: After exploiting Houston's defense for 304 yards and a rogue rushing touchdown of note in his NFL debut in Week 9, Luton has completed less than half his passes in the two games since with one touchdown and five interceptions. Luton is the rare case where, in a Superflex format, most team settings would be more beneficial to start a non-quarterback compared to Luton in the spot.
Why: Collins was a trendy pickup before and after his 12-touch outing in Week 10. However, Seattle's running backs are getting healthier by the week as Carlos Hyde returned in Week 11 and Bo Scarbrough assumed the RB2 position. Add Chris Carson back in the coming weeks and Collins is buried and his emergency usage for his week in the sun was just that - an emergency scenario for Seattle.
Why: Typically WR4/5 in the wide receiver rotation for Cincinnati in a given week, Tate now gets a quarterback downgrade from Joe Burrow to Ryan Finley for the rest of the season. Tate already had minimal utility with a single game of more than 5.0 PPR points and half of his games garnering one or fewer targets. Reserve Tate for the deepest of dynasty leagues as the 2021 depth chart best case is behind Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd as the WR3 for the Bengals.
Why: Sample has had a clear run of the starting role in Cincinnati for much of the season as a Round 2 prospect in his second year. The opportunity has not aided production, however, averaging 3.2 targets per game and eclipsing 50 yards just once. Subtract Joe Burrow at quarterback for Ryan Finley and the wide receivers now have questions for lineup viability to close the season with Sample even more removed from the lineup radar than them.