A third of the way through the fantasy season, and chances are, about 60-70% of us are sitting at either a game under or a game over .500…which means you are still in the thick of things. Really, unless you are 0-5, you aren’t out of it just yet, so make sure to check out this week’s Studs, Duds, and Sleepers before setting your rosters!
Studs:
Quarterbacks:
Josh Allen, Buf:
Allen accounted for four touchdowns and 374 yards last week. After a slow start he has put up 11 touchdowns and more than 900 yards in his last three games. Right now, Allen and the Bills look like the team to beat in the AFC.
Matthew Stafford, LAR:
Stafford has 12 touchdowns, is averaging more than 300 yards per game and is coming off a 365 yard appearance last week. This week, he gets a Giants team that has surrendered 10 touchdowns through the air and gives up more than 270 passing yards per game.
Others receiving votes:
Joe Burrow, Cin:
A week after going toe-to-toe with Aaron Rodgers and coming up short, I like Buroow to bounce back in a big way against the Lions this week. He has 11 touchdowns through the air, is completing more than 70% of his passes and has a completely healthy receiving corps this week.
Running backs:
Nick Chubb, Cle:
Chubb has four rushing touchdowns, is second in the NFL in terms of rushing yards (523), and leads all starting running backs in yards per carry (5.8) and is coming off a day with 170 all-purpose yards…and he gets a Cardinals defense which ranks 28th in the NFL against the run, giving up nearly 140 yards rushing per game.
Derrick Henry, Ten:
Henry leads the league in rushing touchdowns with seven and has more than 100 yards more than Chubb, the second leading rusher. The Bills may have a good defense, but until I see someone stop Henry, I will always expect 100 yards and at least a touchdown.
Others receiving votes:
Darrell Henderson Jr., LAR:
Henderson is coming off back-to-back games of 99+ all-purpose yards and has scored in three of his four games. I like his matchup this week against a bad Giants defense. This game could get out of hand quickly, which would mean a lot of work for Henderson and the Rams backs.
Pass Catchers:
Davante Adams, GB:
Adams now leads the league in targets (61), catches (42) and yards (579) and is coming off his best game of the season, 11 catches, 206 yards and a touchdown on 16 targets, and he did it against a good Bengals defense. Even though the Bears have a good defense, I look for Adams to have another big day.
Tyreek Hill, KC:
Hill has two games of 185+ yards and three games of less than 65 yards (including a 14 yard dud in Week 2). What does this mean? Not much really, but I feel like he is due, and for whatever reason, the Football Team hasn’t been able to stop anyone this year, so I doubt it starts this week against the Chiefs.
Others receiving votes:
Stefon Diggs, Buf:
If I keep predicting a big game, eventually I will be right….right? Diggs only has one touchdown on the season and has only surpassed 70 yards once, but the way the Bills offense is moving, it is just a matter of time and I think this week could be that breakout week for Diggs.
Duds:
Quarterbacks:
Justin Fields, Chi:
Fields just isn’t a good NFL quarterback at the moment. In a league where quarterbacks are putting up video game numbers week in and week out, Fields is averaging about 130 yards his three starts, is barely completing 50% of his passes, and has two interceptions to just one touchdown. Worse yet, he isn’t even getting any production with his legs.
Derek Carr, LV:
After a hot start putting up 380+ yards in each of the first three weeks, Carr has had back-to-back games of 200 yards passing with just two touchdowns and two picks. I can’t imagine losing his head coach this week is going to help him perform better.
Others receiving votes:
Ryan Tannehill, Ten:
Tannehill has passed for 215 yards or less in three of his five games this year and has just one game of multiple touchdowns. He isn’t turning the ball over much, but he isn’t putting up fantasy points either, and I don’t see that changing this week against a very good Bills defense.
Running backs:
Miles Sanders, Phi:
The Eagles have five rushing touchdowns…and their “lead” running back has exactly zero of those touchdowns. In fact, Sanders only has five more rushes than Jalen Hurts, 42 less yards than Hurts and zero rushing touchdowns (to Hurts’ three). He has only surpassed 55 rushing yards once this season, and that was Week 1, and I don’t see that changing this week against the Bucs.
Devontae Booker, NYG:
Booker might be the top waiver wire claim in all of fantasy football this week, but prepare to be disappointed. Sure, he had two touchdowns last week, but he averaged just 2.6 ypc on 16 carries and given the lack of weapons the Giants will have on offense this week – combined with a bad matchup against the Rams – and Booker is not a starter this week.
Others receiving votes:
Any Arizona Running back:
Last week, the Cardinals leading rusher was a rookie wide receiver. In fact, they didn’t have any running back gain more than 30 yards on the ground. Sure, James Conner has five touchdowns, but with just 201 yards, he is touchdown dependent. Kenyan Drake, at 270 yards isn’t much better, and he has zero touchdowns.
Pass Catchers:
Brandin Cooks, Hou:
Davis Mills proved me wrong last week, but Cooks did not, pulling in just three passes for 23 yards. Despite how bad the Colts defense looked on Monday night, I don’t see that continuing this week.
Odell Beckham Jr., Cle:
The Browns put up 42 points and 500+ yards last week and OBJ had two catches for 20 yards….despite no Jarvis Landry. Let that sink in for a moment.
Others receiving votes:
Any Eagles Pass Catchers:
The Eagles leading receiver is averaging just 62 yards per game and they don’t have a single receiver with more than 250 yards and more than a touchdown.
Sleepers:
Trevor Lawrence, Jax:
Lawrence has had a slow start as a rookie. He doesn’t have a single game of more touchdowns than interceptions and hasn’t thrown for more than one touchdown since he threw for three in Week 1. That being said, I see that ending this week against a Dolphins team going in the wrong direction.
Geno Smith, Sea:
I’ll be honest, until Russell Wilson came out with his janky finger, I had no clue Geno Smith was still in the NFL. I wholly expected him to fall on his face. Not only did he not fall on his face, he was effective moving the offense and looked impressive. The game-ending interception was a good pass with the receiver slipping, otherwise, we may be talking about an impressive comeback.
Taylor Heinicke, Was:
Heinicke had a poor performance last week, but he has been respectable thus far and I think he will be throwing a lot this weekend. The Football Team is likely to be down quick to the Chiefs, so Heinicke should have a chance to put up some numbers.
Running backs:
James Robinson, Jax:
It is hard to call a guy a ‘Sleeper’ when he is 4th in the league in rushing yards, is averaging 5.8 ypc, and has four touchdowns, but he only has 67 carries and doesn’t seem to be getting much publicity, so here we are. I like Robinson this week against the Dolphins.
Antonio Gibson, Was:
Gibson hasn’t put up big yards, but he has four touchdowns in his last three games. The Chiefs have the second worst defense in the league, giving up more than 430 yards per game, so Gibson and the Football Team ought to be able to put up some yards and points this week.
Chris Evans, Cin:
Unless you are a Bengals or Michigan Wolverines fan, you are wondering “who?” Evans is the Bengals change-of-pace back, but he is a dynamic receiver, and with Joe Mixon dinged up and Samaje Perine on the COVID list, Evans is likely to see a significant amount of snaps this week. Don’t be surprised if he sees three or more targets in the passing game and a handful of carries.
Pass Catchers:
Adam Theilen, Min:
He hasn’t surpassed 50 yards receiving since Week 1, but he is seeing more than six targets a game and eventually things will break his way. I think that starts this week against the Panthers.
Tim Patrick, Den:
I hope you listened to me the other week and picked this guy up. Over the last three weeks, he has 15 catches and more than 225 yards receiving, including 7 for 89 last week. He gets a Raiders team in turmoil this week.
John Ross, NYG:
More than half of his yards, one quarter of his catches and all of his touchdowns came on one deep ball two weeks ago, but given the slew of injuries the Giants have at their skill positions (Barkley, Golladay, Shepard, Slayton), it is possible Ross is their number one receiver this week and first or second option on offense.
