Hello and welcome to the Week 12 fantasy football usage report on PlayerProfiler.com! First, my apologies to those of you expecting your usually scheduled content from Wyatt Bertolone, who is taking a well-deserved week off. My name is Ted Chmyz, the head editor here at PlayerProfiler, and I will be filling in with the top 10 usage takeaways of Week 11. With the formalities out of the way, let’s get started.
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Week 11 Fantasy Football Usage Report
Do the Jets Even Have Receivers?
The big question heading into the Jets’ Week 11 game was who would be their WR1 with Garrett Wilson on IR for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, Thursday night provided no obvious answer. A different player led New York in each of routes, targets, and fantasy points. Here are the full stat lines for all three of those wideouts:
- Isaiah Williams: 76% route participation rate, two targets, one catch, 1.1 half-PPR points
- John Metchie: 70% route participation rate, three targets, three catches, 12.0 half-PPR points
- Adonai Mitchell: 61% route participation rate, six targets, one catch, 1.5 half-PPR points
The player with the most upside here is Mitchell, a 2024 second-rounder whom the Jets acquired from the Colts in the Sauce Gardner trade. He easily led the team with a 53% air yards share on Thursday, and he has a history of flashing talent and posting exciting peripheral stats when he plays. However, Mitchell also has a history of making mental errors (this one absurd play from earlier this season is the AD Mitchell experience in a nutshell). Perhaps the tanking Jets are the right environment for him to finally shine, but he’ll need to stay on the field.
Metchie and Williams are both young players who have bounced around the league, the former as a throw-in in trades and the latter as a free agent. Between the two, Metchie actually managing some production is a more encouraging sign than Williams running two extra routes … but there’s not much to get excited about here.
Tyrod Taylor taking over for Justin Fields should bring more competence to this passing attack, but I recommend waiting to see who (if anyone) Taylor develops a connection with before chasing any of these WRs on waivers.
Michael Wilson’s Massive Day
Jacoby Brissett set a new regular-season NFL record with 47 completions on Sunday. With Marvin Harrison Jr. sidelined thanks to a mid-week appendectomy, his top receiver in this record-setting performance was Michael Wilson.
Wilson, a third-year receiver out of Stanford, absolutely made the most of his opportunity, catching 15 of a whopping 18 targets for 185 yards — that’s the most receiving yards any player has recorded so far this season. Even without a TD, he racked up 26.0 half-PPR points.
Unfortunately, with MHJ returning and Brissett unlikely to repeat this performance any time soon, it’s hard to get too excited about this performance. Wilson is worth a speculative add in deep leagues in case this explosion gives him an increased role going forward, but that’s about it.
Sean Tucker’s Massive Day (The Sequel)
Since joining the Buccaneers as a UDFA in 2023, Sean Tucker has appeared in 38 NFL games. He has only finished as a top-20 RB in half-PPR points twice … and both times he was the overall RB1 for the week. In case you somehow missed it, the second of Tucker’s massive games came on Sunday, as he popped off for 140 total yards and three combined touchdowns against the Bills.
Tucker saw 19 carries, easily more than Rachaad White‘s 10. This was his first time leading Tampa Bay in carries this season, although he did see RB rush shares of 41% and 44% in the previous two weeks. Given how well he performed, Tucker should continue to see more carries than White going forward. White, who ran 16 routes to Tucker’s six, will likely remain the lead passing-down back.
However, there is an elephant in this Buccaneers RB room. That elephant’s name is Bucky Irving, as the second-year standout returned to practice last week for the first time in nearly two months while dealing with shoulder and foot injuries. Tucker’s upside while Irving is out is clear, but it may be hard for him to maintain fantasy relevance when Bucky returns, which could be as soon as Week 12. Still, Tucker is someone to add if he is available in your league.
Bhayshul Tuten’s Breakout Ends Early
Three quarters into the Jaguars’ upset over the Chargers, Jacksonville’s backfield was officially on takeover watch. Fourth-round rookie Bhayshul Tuten led Travis Etienne in attempts, 14 to 12, and his 43% snap share was easily above his previous career high of 29%. He also simply looked better than his veteran teammate, averaging more yards per carry and adding a TD to boot.
However, Tuten then suffered an ankle injury on the second play of the fourth quarter. He did not return, and, although he reportedly said after the game that he was good, you never know with these injuries.
Tuten is still a must-add, and Etienne managers should still be worried. But there’s a chance this injury prevented what may have been the beginning of a potentially league-winning backfield takeover from the rookie.
Jaylen Warren Goes Down
Tuten wasn’t the only running back to exit Week 11 early with an ankle injury but then provide a positive update after the game. Jaylen Warren left the Steelers’ win over the Bengals and did not return, but told reporters afterward that he could have.
In Warren’s absence, Kenneth Gainwell took the lead in the Steelers’ backfield and exploded for 26.0 points. He mostly got it done through the air, as he saw a whopping eight targets to go with nine carries. Rookie Kaleb Johnson also saw five carries. If Warren misses more time, Gainwell would immediately become a starting fantasy RB. He also scored 28.4 points against the Vikings with Warren absent back in Week 4.
Josh Jacobs Goes Down
Sticking with the theme of running back injuries, Josh Jacobs suffered a knee injury on Sunday. Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur told reporters on Monday that it was just a contusion, but he could still miss a week or two.
If Jacobs were to miss time, it looks as though Emanuel Wilson will serve as a bell-cow for Green Bay. He played 36 snaps and handled 11 carries and one target on Sunday. Chris Brooks, the team’s other backup RB, saw just one carry on five snaps.
MarShawn Lloyd‘s potential return from IR could change things, but I’ll believe that when I see it. For now, Wilson is a must-add and would be a must-start if Jacobs misses time.
Week Two For Traded Wideouts
It’s time to move on from the depressing world of running back health and into something more fun: wide receiver trades! This was the second week for Jakobi Meyers and Rashid Shaheed in Jacksonville and Seattle, respectively, so let’s take a look at how their usage shook out.
Meyers increased his route participation rate from 50% in his Jacksonville debut to 75% this week. That still left him well behind Parker Washington (92%), but he easily outtargeted the slot WR, six to two. At this rate, Meyers could replace Washington as the Jaguars’ WR1 (or WR2 if Brian Thomas Jr. returns) as soon as next week.
The Seahawks basically won their Week 10 matchup with the Cardinals before it even started, so this was Shaheed’s first normal game as a member of the team. The speedster posted a 73% route participation rate, behind both Jaxon Smith-Njigba (96%) and Cooper Kupp (82%). Unlike Meyers, he didn’t necessarily shine on the target front, either, earning four looks for a 9% share (JSN saw 12 and Kupp saw nine).
To be a reliable fantasy option in his new home, Shaheed will likely have to pass Kupp and become the team’s WR2. That’s certainly not impossible at this point, but he’s not necessarily trending in that direction either. I recommend holding him for at least another week or two to see how things shake out.
The Jacory Croskey-Merritt Hype Train Fully Derails
Jacory Croskey-Merritt has been potentially the most polarizing player of the 2025 fantasy football season. After Week 11, the debate over his fantasy value is dead (for now, anyway). Chris Rodriguez Jr. led the Commanders’ backfield in both snap share (45%) and carries (15), while JCM saw nine looks on a 27% snap rate. Given that he was failing to produce even as Washington’s lead back, Croskey-Merritt’s fantasy relevance is over.
For his part, Rodriguez is a priority add on waiver this week. His usage wasn’t ideal, as JCM was still involved and Jeremy McNichols is still the team’s primary backfield pass-catcher. But he finished with a solid 9.0 half-PPR points and should get at least a few more games as the team’s RB1 going forward.
Is Sean Payton Up to His Old Tricks?
RJ Harvey‘s fantasy managers (myself included) are likely tempted to curse Sean Payton’s name right now. With J.K. Dobbins likely done for the year, everything seemed clear for the second-round rookie to step up as the Broncos’ bell cow and a potential fantasy league-winner. Instead, he was outscored by fresh-off-the-practice-squad Jaleel McLaughlin, 7.9 half-PPR points to an uninspiring 6.5.
However, things aren’t all bad for Harvey. He easily led the Broncos’ backfield with a 61% snap share and a solid 66% RB rush share (11 carries to six for McLaughlin). He also saw three targets on a backfield-leading 34% route participation rate. It’s not great that McLaughlin got the goal-line TD (and Tyler Badie was still involved in obvious passing situations), but Harvey is Denver’s RB1. Better fantasy outings are in his future with this usage.
Luther Burden III Takes a (Small) Step Forward
An explosive second-round rookie out of Missouri, Burden was a popular upside pick during fantasy draft season. But he has spent most of the season buried on the Bears’ WR depth chart, behind not just Rome Odunze and D.J. Moore but also Olamide Zaccheaus. Coming into this week, Burden had averaged a useless 27% route participation rate, while Zaccheaus was at a healthy 58% as the team’s slot WR.
But the rookie passed the veteran in Week 11. Burden posted a 61% participation rate, up from his previous career high of 46%. Meanwhile, Zacchaeus fell to 14%, by far his lowest number of the season. This is a huge step in the right direction for Burden’s potential fantasy relevance.
With that said, Burden still isn’t a fantasy starter (or even worth adding in shallower formats). He finished Sunday with just 4.2 points on a 16% target share. It’s almost unheard of for three receivers on a single team to be reliable fantasy options, and this Chicago offense isn’t exactly the 2021 Bengals. Now is the time to stash Burden in deep leagues, but let’s not get too excited.
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Ted Chmyz is a fantasy football contributor for PlayerProfiler.com. Find him on Twitter and Bluesky @Tchmyz for more fantasy content or to ask questions.
