Ten intriguing things to chew on as we recap Week 6, Buzz-style…
No.1 Receiver: We knew an Odell Beckham
Jr. breadout was coming and it happened in Week 6.
Slump Busters (Who Ya Gonna Call?)
When can you officially begin to use the word “bust”
to describe your first-round draft pick? Here at the Buzz, we pondered
that question last week with respect to running back Lamar Miller.
Miller had failed to find the end zone through five weeks and was
limited to less than 4 yards a carry despite heavy usage. In like
manner, Odell Beckham Jr. was being labeled a bust due to his lack
of touchdowns (1) and the non-existence of a breakout game. So,
let’s return to our question. When can you refer to a high
draft pick as a bust? The answer is you might want to wait until
six weeks have passed. Two of Week 6’s biggest games came
courtesy of Miller and Beckham Jr. and here’s hoping you didn’t
benched them…or worse, traded them prior to this week’s
action. Miller popped off for 178 total yards and two TDs against
an overmatched Colts run defense. Beckham caught 8 balls for 222
yards and 2 TDs. So, what can we expect from both going forward?
Defenses know that stopping each guy is the key to winning against
the Texans and Giants. The good defenses will limit their production…but
against poor defenses or defenses with missing pieces due to injury,
there will be more big games to come. Bottom line: These performances
were coming. It was only a matter of time.
Pittsburgh’s Puzzling Performance on
the Road (Part Two)
We attempted to chronicle/explain the Steelers’ awful performance
in Philadelphia several weeks ago and the prevailing thought was
that it was likely their mulligan for the season. But, after another
awful day on the road (vs. Miami), one has to wonder how a team
can look so good one week and so inept the next? The injury to Ben
Roethlisberger (torn meniscus) has to be taken into account
when evaluating what took place, but three fantasy points from Antonio
Brown to go along with zero for Sammie
Coates and one for TE Jesse
James just leaves you scratching your head. If you had told
anyone before the game that Jay
Ajayi (200-plus rushing yards, 2 TDs) would double the fantasy
production of Brown and Le’Veon
Bell combined, you would have been scorned for such idiocy.
It just goes to show that in the world of fantasy football, sometimes
science gives way to the absurd. Now, we get to see what Landry
Jones can do in Week 7.
Shady is Kicking Butt and Taking Names
Ezekiel Elliott and David Johnson have been hogging most of the
headlines with respect to running backs in fantasy football in 2016,
but LeSean McCoy has been arguably the best of the bunch and Sunday’s
masterpiece was especially sweet for him given that it all happened
in front of former coach, Chip Kelly. There’s little doubt
Kelly’s presence gave McCoy some special incentive, but he’s
far from a one-game wonder this season. McCoy has now registered
three games of 110-plus yards rushing out of his last four and is
on pace to score 20 total touchdowns. Defenses know he’s coming
every week, but the fact that Tyrod Taylor can also run creates
opportunities for McCoy that otherwise wouldn’t be there.
And, the Bills offensive line is opening up some massive holes as
evidenced by the fact that understudy Mike Gillislee is averaging
7 yards a carry. By the way, if Gillislee is available as a free
agent in your league, go get him. Much like Alfred Morris, he could
easily be a RB1 if something were to happen to McCoy (or Elliott
in Morris’s case).
Better Late Than Never…
Another mantra of fantasy football is that when a RB doesn’t
break out during his first two years in the league, he likely never
will. Every once in a while, the stars align for a journeyman RB
(remember Justin Forsett in 2014) to find tremendous success on
a new team. Or, in the case of Christine Michael, an old team. The
former, however, is true of Terrance West who has taken the Baltimore
starting RB job by the throat the past three weeks, gaining 325
yards and scoring 3 TDs. As for Michael’s numbers over his
past three outings…how about 284 yards and 5 TDs? The rare
journeyman breakthrough is currently turning into a duet and neither
Michael nor West appear ready to slow down any time soon. And, they
play on teams that would much rather run inside the 5-yard line
than throw the ball (ask Russell Wilson owners how they feel about
that). History suggests one of these guys will eventually tail off,
but I think this represents a bucking of that trend. Both came cheap
on draft day. Both may have a lot to say when it comes to crowning
your eventual league champion, too.
Home Sweet Home?
This is a repeat of something we’ve noted previously this
year, but always load up on Saints in your lineup when they’re
playing at home. Yes, Mark Ingram and Willie Snead had quiet days,
but Coby Fleener is a must start at home and Michael Thomas makes
for a great start as a WR3. As for Brees and Brandin Cooks, if you
need a reminder to start either at home, there’s not much
else I can say to you that would make sense. The flip side of the
New Orleans avalanche is the bizarre case of Green Bay at home on
Sunday. Only garbage time points kept the entire offense from laying
an egg and while it wasn’t Bronco-like (more on that later),
it was pretty close. If I were a Rodgers or Nelson owner, I’d
be looking to shift gears in terms of who I am counting on to get
me to the fantasy playoffs.
Should we take Keenum and the Rams Seriously?
Conventional wisdom states that aside from Todd
Gurley, Los Angeles is a fantasy football wasteland, but Case
Keenum and Kenny
Britt’s pitch and catch act on Sunday was fairly eye-opening.
Britt has always had talent, but it seems the light bulb has gone
on for him as he now has 293 yards receiving in his last three games
including a couple of touchdowns. Tavon
Austin is a poor man’sDeSean
Jackson at best, which leaves room for a more viable target
to emerge and excel. The biggest surprise has been Keenum, however,
as he was thought to be the league’s weakest starting QB to begin
the season. Keenum has instead averaged 286 yards per game over
the last three weeks. He does have to cut down on his interceptions,
but with the Jets, Saints, and Falcons all ahead on the schedule,
you could do much worse as a backup/roster stash moving forward.
As for Britt, there are other mouths to feed in St. Louis (Austin,
Brian
Quick, Lance
Kendricks), but it’s time to start taking him seriously as a
borderline WR 2/3.
Stafford’s Stock Continues to Rise,
but Who is his Go-To Guy?
The post-Calvin Johnson era continues to be kind to Matthew Stafford
as he racked up another 4 TDs this week to bring his total for the
season to 14 against only 4 interceptions. While Calvin is working
on his dancing, Stafford is forging an identity apart from him.
But, buyer beware on Stafford. The next four defenses he faces all
rank top ten in yards allowed to opposing QBs. That includes two
matchups with the extremely stingy Vikings defense. As for who Stafford
will throw the ball to, I guess it just depends on matchups and
coverage. The previously invisible Golden Tate shook loose of his
shackles on Sunday to the tune of 168 yards and 8 catches…while
Marvin Jones got stuck on 2 catches for 10. The Jones/Tate conundrum
is a big part of why fantasy football can drive you crazy.
Stuck in Quicksand: A Tale of Bad Offense
in Denver
We referenced Denver earlier in relation to Green Bay’s offensive
struggles, but I thought it deserved a little more attention. What
can you say about Denver’s offensive ineptness last Thursday
night? C.J. Anderson began the year as if he was going to be a top-five
running back. To his credit, he had several big plays on Thursday
erased by penalty, but that doesn’t change the troubling stat
line for him (10-37, 4-34) and every other skill position player
in Denver. This is looking like an offense to avoid at the moment
as San Diego wasn’t exactly a world-class defensive opponent.
Look for the Broncos to shake things up by giving Devontae Booker
more carries in the weeks to come. After all, Booker is averaging
nearly 5 yards a tote while Anderson is only gaining 3.5. If you
own Anderson and you’re getting nervous, you’re right
where you should be unfortunately.
Changing of the Guard
From the same game, it was a third straight week of finding the
end zone for tight end, Hunter Henry. In recent years, rookie tight
ends have largely been non-factors in the fantasy realm, but Henry’s
hands, speed, route-running, and red zone prowess have him looking
like a guy that’s going to be a factor for quite some time.
In contrast, Antonio Gates suffered a couple of drops in addition
to looking more plodding than anything else. Gates was coming off
an injury, so it would be a mistake to write his obituary at this
time. But, there’s little doubt that Henry isn’t just
the future in San Diego - he’s the now. If you’re looking
for a TE to anchor down the position for the next ten years in your
dynasty league, this is the guy to own.
And Furthermore…
We'll finish with one other major changing of the guard. Jamaal
Charles was thought to be ready to take over the lead back duties
in Kansas City in Week 6, but instead it was Spencer
Ware carrying the load as Kansas City ran at will vs. the Raiders
defense. Perhaps Charles will return at some point this season to
the 15-carry a game plateau, but it's becoming fairly obvious that
Ware will likely remain the better fantasy option due to his ability
to move the chains. Just goes to show how much can change from week
to week. Charles and Arian
Foster were supposed to push Ware and Jay Ajayi to the background
on Sunday...and instead...well, you know the rest.
That's a wrap for Week 6. So nice to see running backs making a
comeback in 2016. We'll see if that trend continues next week. Until
then...
