Fantasy football projections, Week 11: Steelers-Browns featuring Antonio Brown, Eli Rogers, Terrelle Pryor, more

The Week 11 matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cleveland Browns features division rivals both hoping to rebound from tough losses. We’ve got the fantasy projections courtesy of numberFire.

When wide receiver Antonio Brown scored on a 15-yard touchdown with 42 seconds left in Week 10, it looked like the Steelers had sealed the deal against the Dallas Cowboys. Unfortunately, on the ensuing possession, Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott rushed up the middle for a 32-yard touchdown with just nine seconds remaining. Nevertheless, the back-and-forth shootout benefited Brown’s fantasy owners greatly. He finished with a season-high 14 catches for 154 yards and a touchdown. The effort marked the second time this season that Brown has caught at least 10 passes and reached the 140-yard plateau. The Browns have been leaky defensively all year long. Brown should be all over their secondary unit and rise well above his projections on Sunday.

Teammate Eli Rogers probably won’t have numbers that are as spectacular as Brown’s, but he does find himself heading into Cleveland as the team’s No. 2 receiver. That’s because Sammie Coates is currently playing with two broken fingers. That might explain his troubles with holding onto the football. Nevertheless, having Rogers act as the No. 2 isn’t just a handout from head coach Mike Tomlin. Rogers has 10 catches for 145 yards and a touchdown in the last two weeks combined. If Cleveland somehow manages to bottle up Antonio Brown in Week 11, Rogers might be a steal for fantasy owners.

It’s been a long football season in Cleveland. The team faces the prospect of being the first to go 0-16 since the 2008 Detroit Lions. Fortunately for fantasy owners, there is one bright spot on the squad. It’s wide receiver Terrelle Pryor. That being said, even he has suffered lately. Pryor has been held to less than 50 receiving yards in three of the last four games. In what figures to be another big loss against Pittsburgh, he should be the only player doing anything in the passing game on Sunday. Since Cleveland is up against constant passing situations often playing from behind, Pryor just may rise above his projections in Week 11. It should be noted, however, that Pittsburgh has done a great job defending fantasy wide receivers this year.

The only other player on Cleveland’s roster worth any consideration in fantasy leagues is running back Isaiah Crowell. He too hasn’t exactly been the greatest over the past month or so. He’s been held to less than 30 yards rushing in five of the last six games. Crowell concedes passing situations to teammate Duke Johnson. He’ll be hard-pressed to see more than 10 or 12 carries against the Steelers. That makes him worthy of riding the fantasy bench moving forward and unlikely to get anywhere close to his projected totals.