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Dropping a player from a fantasy football roster can sometimes be an easy decision but also often a dilemma. With the fantasy playoffs just around the corner, Week 12 is fast approaching, making it crucial that managers round out the edges to keep their roster in pristine condition to win a championship.
Whether it is a large sum of money on the line or the great gift of pride, make sure these players are not on your roster entering Week 12 if a more enticing candidate is available on the waiver wire.
Week 12 Fantasy Football drop list
Quarterback
Caleb Williams, Chicago Bears
It is hard to tell what is going on in Chicago these days but hearing that an offense wants to go “back to basics” is never a great sign for fantasy. The Bears likely want to use the remainder of the season to build up Williams' confidence, which is not exactly encouraging for fantasy football purposes.
Williams did not have a bad game in his first outing without Shane Waldron, as his 231 passing yards were his most since Week 4. The problem is he hasn't thrown a touchdown since Week 5 as the offense continues to focus on D'Andre Swift and the ground game. Williams added 70 rushing yards of his own in Week 11, which is nice, but he is still just the QB22 on the year. At this point in the year, there is no reason to ever start him in fantasy.
Running Back
Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars
If you weren't able to use name value to trade him at the deadline, it is time to cut your losses. Coming out of the Jaguars' Week 11 bye, there is no reason to believe Etienne will do anything to change his status as one of the biggest fantasy football busts of 2024.
With five games remaining, Etienne faces a tough schedule that includes four above-average rushing defenses. He is arguably not even the best option on his own team anymore with Tank Bigsby seemingly the new RB1 in Jacksonville. Etienne had his last chance in Week 11 with Bisby out but produced just 30 total yards on 15 touches.
Wide Receiver
Tank Dell, Houston Texans
Dell had a nice run of fantasy production while Nico Collins was out but now that the team's true No. 1 receiver is back in the lineup, his window of opportunity is likely shut. With how much weight each game has for the remainder of the season, Dell is too inconsistent to ever be placed into a lineup for the rest of the year.
With Collins active, Dell has failed to reach double digits in a single game in 2024. He has been completely blanked in two separate games on the year, including one with Collins out. The drop-off in production in Dell's second year has been disappointing, and with tough matchups against the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs and Tennessee Titans on the horizon, more of the same is likely to come.
Cedric Tillman, Cleveland Browns
He was fun for a while, but Week 11 made it pretty evident that Tillman is a fairly distant WR3 on the Browns. Working behind Jerry Jeudy and Elijah Moore, Tillman received eight targets from Jameis Winston against the New Orleans Saints but hauled just three of them in for 47 yards.
On paper, Tillman's 40 targets since Week 7 are encouraging. However, in that frame, the Browns played four defenses that were all in the bottom half of the league in passing yards allowed. Tillman has the most targets from Winston since Week 7 but is third on the team in receiving yards — behind Jeudy and Moore — in that time. Tough matchups against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs' secondaries will be less fantasy-friendly and force Winston to turn to his more trusted veteran options in a pinch.
Tight End
Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys
Tight end is such a poor field that Ferguson might still be worth a roster spot but his 2024 campaign has been nothing short of a complete flop. He entered the year as arguably Dak Prescott's No. 2 target behind CeeDee Lamb but has just 369 receiving yards through 11 weeks to show for it. Now dealing with a concussion, there is a possibility he misses a good portion of the rest of the season.
Without Prescott, nearly all of Dallas' skill position players are unstartable in fantasy. Even Lamb is not the same locked-in starter he was a year ago when he finished as the overall WR1. Prescott is no generational talent, but Cooper Rush has looked every bit like the worst quarterback in the league in his two starts. Through the Cowboys' 10 games thus far, Ferguson has just three double-digit fantasy performances.
