The Monday night football matchup for Week 11 of the season has the New England Patriots and the Carolina Panthers and when it comes to fantasy football, one of the best starters in the game is Shane Vereen, as he will likely be activated before the game on MNF after being out since Week 1.
Vereen was expected to be a huge sleeper heading into this season in fantasy, as he was being looked at as a versatile back that would take over on third downs for Danny Woodhead and he also was being looked at as a applier that could be split out wide like a receiver while also taking the place of Aaron Hernandez in a number of plays, as he was considered a versatile option in the offense for Tom Brady. Vereen came through with those expectations on the first day of the season, as he rushed for over 100 yards and added 50 more receiving, but after dealing with a wrist injury, he was knocked out for the next 10 weeks and placed on the IR with the designation to return.
Vereen has been back at practice and he is expected to be back on Monday night against the Panthers and it couldn't come at a better time, as Carolina is on a five game winning streak and with the game on the road, the team will need to put up points against a very solid defense and a tough front seven, including linebacker Luke Kuechly. Vereen had 14 carries for 101 yards and seven catches for 58 yards in the Week 1 win over the Buffalo Bills and now he will be expected to be the third down back for the Patriots moving forward and with Stevan Ridley not having as great of a year as last season, there is a good chance Vereen gets a healthy amount of touches.
If Vereen is available in any league he is worth picking up and moving forward as long as he remains healthy he should be a solid fantasy starter. Vereen has the skills to put up some nice points for PPR owners and while he might be a bit sluggish coming back after being out for so long, he definitely is a player to keep an eye on and should be a solid starter on Monday night.
