Fantasy football start/sit advice, Week 11: Vikings vs. Seahawks

One of the NFL’s best teams gets to play host to one of NFL’s worst. Yeah, this’ll go well.

Nov 17, 2013, 11:21 AM UTC

Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

The winless-on-the-road Minnesota Vikings get to travel to Washington to take on the undefeated-at-home Seattle Seahawks in a 4:25 p.m. ET game Sunday, and it's actually worse than that. The Seahawks, at 9-1, are tied for the most wins in the NFL, while the 2-7 Vikings have the league's worst record outside of Florida. It probably won't be pretty, and the fantasy outlook is similar:

Vikings

Start in every league: Adrian Peterson

Start if you're desperate: Blair Walsh

Bench: Christian Ponder (or any other quarterback), Jerome Simpson, Cordarrelle Patterson, Greg Jennings, John Carlson, Defense/special teams

Yeah, Peterson is a start-every-time guy. You knew that.

Walsh has actually had an up-and-down season. He had three straight double-digit games early in the year, but only once since the team’s Week 5 bye. That did come in last week’s game, though.

If you're considering starting a Vikings' quarterback -- Ponder or otherwise -- sorry you're stuck in a Vikings-only fantasy league. Patterson is overtaking Simpson for snaps and touches in Minnesota, but they -- along with Jennings -- are hamstrung by shoddy quarterback play, to say nothing of facing a suffocating defense. Carlson had a big game a week ago in place of the injured Kyle Rudolph, but that isn't the sort of production that fantasy owners should expect to continue. The Vikings' defense has averaged under two points a game in its last three, and has two sub-zero games on the season.

Seahawks

Start in every league: Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, Steven Hauschka, Defense/special teams

Start if you're desperate: Golden Tate

Bench: Percy Harvin, Doug Baldwin, Jermaine Kearse, Zach Miller

For a great overall team, the Seahawks aren't that deep in big-time fantasy players. Wilson is one, and is actually the fifth-highest scoring fantasy player across the NFL. He has topped 20 points four times, and his only time below 10 points was a nine-pointer in Week 4. Only the Dallas Cowboys allow more points to opposing quarterbacks than the Vikings. The Seahawks are the only NFL team with two players in the top 15 in overall fantasy scoring, with Lynch 13th overall and third among running backs. The Vikings are almost as generous to running backs as they are to quarterbacks. Hauschka is the highest-scoring fantasy kicker. Hahaha, you were wondering whether you should start the Seahawks' defense, you silly person.

If Harvin were missing this game, Tate would likely be a must-start. As is, he probably needs to be used, but there’s always the chance the team decides to unleash Harvin against his former team. Tate is the safest Seattle option, though.

It’s not yet a sure thing Harvin even plays Sunday, let alone produces. In an afternoon game, you had better be really sure he’s playing, because you’ll limit your options. Even if he does play, what incentive do the up-two-in-the-division Seahawks have to overwork a guy who has missed 10 games? Ease him in, which means ease in his fantasy production, too. Wait until after the bye. At the same time, Harvin’s return, even if it’s only theoretical, hurts the viability of Baldwin, Kearse and Miller, one way or another.