Game Info
Kickoff: Sunday, November 21st at 8:20 PM ET
Location: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
Betting Odds: PIT +5.5, 47 total via Oddsshark
Network: NBC
Pittsburgh Steelers
Quarterback
Ben Roethlisberger (Sit), Mason Rudolph (Sit)
Ben Roethlisberger could need another week before he returns from the COVID-19 list, but Big Ben hasn’t been very fantasy-relevant this year anyway. His best performances this season have been just two games with 16 or more fantasy points. Mason Rudolph wasn’t very impressive last week either with just 15.3 fantasy points.
The Chargers are allowing the sixth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks this year. I wouldn’t trust either potential Pittsburgh quarterback this week.
Running Backs
Najee Harris (Start, RB1)
Najee Harris is having a fantastic rookie season and is showing few signs of slowing down. He handled 26 carries last week and put up 105 yards with the workload. Harris is currently the overall RB4 on the season.
This week’s match-up is a juicy one for Najee. The Chargers are allowing the most rushing yards per game and the seventh-most fantasy points to running backs. Harris should be a lock for RB1 production.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Diontae Johnson (Start, WR2), Chase Claypool (Sit), Pat Freiermuth (Start, TE1), Eric Ebron (Sit)
Diontae Johnson has been good but not great lately. Over his last five games, Johnson has averaged about 14.9 fantasy points a game. Still, Johnson’s target share should keep him in the WR2 conversation most weeks. Diontae is averaging 11.25 targets a game over his last four. The Chargers’ secondary has been playing well this year, but Johnson’s workload should still be enough to keep him in WR2 territory this week.
I’m having a hard time mustering up any enthusiasm over Chase Claypool. He missed last week due to a toe injury and could potentially miss Week 11 as well. Many expected Claypool to take a big step in the right direction with JuJu out for the season, but the former hasn’t done enough to trust regularly in fantasy lineups. Chase only had ten or fewer fantasy points in five of his seven starts this year. I wouldn’t start him until we see more production.
Even with Eric Ebron returning last week, Pat Freiermuth still saw plenty of work with a season-high nine targets (third-most targets among Pittsburgh receivers). Unfortunately, Pat’s target share didn’t lead to much fantasy production. Either way, the usage is encouraging enough to keep Freiermuth in the TE1 conversation this week against a talented Chargers’ secondary that has been strangely inefficient against tight ends. Los Angeles is giving up the sixth-most fantasy points to tight ends so far this year.
Los Angeles Chargers
Quarterback
Justin Herbert (Start, Low-end QB1)
It seems like Justin Herbert is officially a boom-or-bust fantasy quarterback this year. It may be tough to trust Herbert when he’s putting up fantasy points as high as 41 and as low as 11. He has three games with 13.8 or fewer fantasy points in the past four weeks. This match-up isn’t very encouraging either. The Pittsburgh secondary is top-ten in passing yards allowed per game and is conceding the eighth-fewest fantasy points to quarterbacks.
Fantasy managers will be hoping for Herbert to boom, but I think it’s more likely he’s a bust this week. The problem is that there aren’t too many quarterbacks I would rank ahead of Justin, so I’m keeping Justin just barely inside QB1 territory this week. Many fantasy managers will have no better choice but to roll the dice.
Running Backs
Austin Ekeler (Start, RB1)
Austin Ekeler has slowed down a smidge over his last four games, but he’s still the overall RB3 on the season with one of the safest floors among fantasy running backs. This week’s match-up isn’t great. The Steelers have conceded the fifth-fewest fantasy points to running backs this year. On the other hand, Pittsburgh is allowing plenty of rushing yards per game, and they could be without T.J. Watt this week. Either way, Ekeler is a talented back with a consistent workload that should keep him in the RB1 discussion most weeks.
Wide Receivers/Tight Ends
Keenan Allen (Start, High-end WR2), Mike Williams (Flex), Jared Cook (Sit, TE2)
Averaging just under 20 fantasy points per game over his last three, Keenan Allen has done quite well lately. He’s a focal point on the Chargers’ offense with a consistent workload, but this week’s match-up could see Allen flirting with WR2 territory. The Pittsburgh defense has been formidable this year and is currently top-10 in passing yards allowed per game. Although this could be a difficult game for Keenan, I still believe he’s capable of high-end WR2 numbers this week. For what it’s worth, Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick could be inactive this week, boosting Allen’s fantasy potential.
Mike Williams has been much less dependable lately. He’s only averaging 5.9 fantasy points a game over his last four. I wouldn’t want to trust Williams in a fantasy lineup until we see more production from him again. I would look elsewhere for a potential flex play if you can afford to do so.
Jared Cook has been switching between single-digit and double-digit fantasy points each week for the past seven weeks. His inconsistency will make it tough to trust Cook. He only had one catch on three targets last week. Plus, the Pittsburgh defense has been pretty stingy against fantasy tight ends this year. I would keep Cook on the bench in 10 or 12 team leagues.
-Ryan Kruse (@ryanpkruse)