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Bye Weeks: Arizona, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Seattle,
St. Louis
Markus Wheaton has a breakout game opportunity
against the Buccaneers this week.
Grab a Helmet
Brandin
Cooks @ DAL or Markus
Wheaton v. TB: In one of those neat little NFL ironies,
the exciting rookie Cooks and his former mentor at their shared
alma mater, Oregon State, have almost precisely the same number
of receiving yards through three weekends of football (168 and 170,
respectively). Cooks earns the edge in fantasy points by virtue
of a Week 1 TD reception and about twice as many rushing yards (49
to 22). Yes, I said rushing yards. It appears both New Orleans and
Pittsburgh watched a lot of Beaver tape on these guys as both have
been utilized to run the so-called jet sweep in the pros, something
which they both specialized in down in Corvallis. Colby liked Wheaton
last week and he wasn’t great, but I think both former Beavs look
like good plays in Week 4. The opportunities are there and the competition
is weak.
Jeremy
Maclin @ SF: Remember those folks who said Chip Kelly
was nuts for severing ties with DeSean Jackson and moving forward
with the oft-injured Maclin? Yeah, I haven’t heard from them either.
Maybe they’re just waiting for Maclin to go down before hauling
out the inevitable “I told you so”s. Regardless what happens the
rest of the year, I think Kelly’s more philosophical point has been
made. Trust the system and the system will reward you. Go your own
way and…you’ll end up the 28th ranked receiver playing for a Washington
team going nowhere fast. Jackson’s been pretty good this year, especially
in the grudge match vs. his former squad. Maclin’s been better,
though. He’s the 3rd best receiver who’s garnered the 6th most targets
(tied) and his 18.5 yards/catch mark is higher than even the explosive
Jackson’s was in 2013. Apples to apples, Kelly made the right decision.
DeAndre
Hopkins v. BUF: If you’re a Hopkins owner like
myself, you love the fact the second-year receiver is both outgaining
and outscoring his more illustrious cohort, Andre Johnson. Here’s
something you’ll love even more: Bill O’Brien proclaiming
his Texans need to feature Hopkins more than they already have.
Said O’Brien after last Sunday’s loss to New York: “We
need to do a better job of getting him the ball.” Yes, Bill
O’Brien! Yes, you sure do! NFL.com writer Gregg Rosenthal
praised Hopkins’ one-handed 53-yard circus grab in the game,
which was ultimately nullified by a penalty, labeling it the “greatest
meaningless catch in NFL history.” God, I love hyperbole when
it’s about someone I’m going to be installing in my
starting lineup. Hopkins hasn’t fully surpassed his elder
in the Houston WR pecking order (only 19 targets to 27 for Johnson),
but he’s closing that gap quickly. Stop hesitating.
Grab Some Wood
Vincent
Jackson @ PIT: If you’re looking for Tampa’s #1 wideout
in the FF Today rankings, you’ll hafta hit that “Next Page” link
near the bottom of the first page. Scan down a few more names
and you’ll find Jackson wedged between a couple of 49ers (not
named Michael Crabtree) at #54, just north of a guy named Allen
Robinson, a Jacksonville receiver you probably hadn’t heard of
before last Sunday. To put it mildly, Jackson and his Tampa mates
are struggling mightily in 2014. The most damning statistic for
the former Chargers standout? He’s only caught 10 of the 25 passes
thrown his way, an absurdly low 40% catch rate that can’t possibly
lead to sustained success. I doubt Mike Glennon can be worse than
the now-injured Josh McCown, but even Glennon appeared to favor
the younger and similarly built Mike
Evans last Thursday night. Avoid Jackson for now.
Justin
Hunter @ IND: I drank every last drop of the Justin
Hunter hype Kool-Aid in August and then watched with dismay as
he started the season off by catching no more than three passes
in any of his first three contests. That would be plenty if the
grabs were impactful red zone grabs, but they haven’t been.
Hunter’s actually snared only 8 of the 21 passes Tennessee
triggerman Jake Locker has thrown his way, a catch rate even more
atrocious than the aforementioned Jackson’s. If I have one
major flaw as a fantasy GM, it’s that I’m too slow
to switch things up when it isn’t clicking. Locker to Hunter
certainly isn’t and Whitehurst to Locker doesn’t sound
like much of an improvement, so I’ll (finally) be sitting
Hunter this Sunday, probably just in time for him to go off. Man,
I need a drink…preferably something stronger than Kool-Aid.
Dwayne
Bowe or Donnie
Avery v. NE (Monday): The Chiefs possess the only receiving
corps in the NFL that has failed to tally a touchdown reception
thus far. What’s scarier is that they’ve only notched
a single 100-yard receiver in that same time frame…and I’m
talking 100 CUMULATIVE yards in three weeks of games. Donnie Avery’s
been the most productive pass-snatcher of this uninspiring bunch
(12 receptions for 110 yards) and he’s accounted for almost
a third of KC’s total WR output. Dwayne Bowe (has been),
A.J. Jenkins (never was), Junior Hemingway (uhhh…), and
Frankie Hammond (who?) account for the other two-thirds of that
embarrassing production. I doubt they’ll continue to underwhelm
like this all year, but a Monday night date with New England doesn’t
look like the likeliest occasion for a corner-turning performance.
The Patriots are currently yielding just 169 passing yards/game,
good for best in show so far.
Good luck, folks!
Quarterbacks 
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