Here we go again. Right in time for week 4 with a thriller between the Jags and Bengals comes the second half of this weekly recap. There are a lot of exciting matchups in week 4 and I cannot wait for Tom Brady to light up the Patriots for 800 yards. In the first quarter.
Baltimore Ravens vs Detroit Lions
Good: Justin Tucker, the Greatest of All Time
Not much I can say here that hasn't been said already. Just wow. So what if it was a delay of game. Who cares. Grow up. Although I do feel for Lions fans, even though you do want to tank it never gets easier losing games, especially in the most Lions fashion possible.
Bad: The Ty'Son Williams Hype Train
Well, so much for that. Williams put up a miserable 2.2 fantasy points this week, and while it could be a flash in the pan, I wouldn't keep him in your starting lineup long enough to find out. The Ravens only having 22 rushing attempts is most likely the lowest they will have all season; it's just a matter of who gets the majority of those carries going forward.
Denver Broncos vs New York Jets
Good: Broncos D/ST, understanding the assignment
Chances are, there was one guy in every fantasy league that was SUPER high on the Broncos for these first three weeks. Considering I was one of those guys, I don't blame them. Combine an improved defense, competent offense and a schedule that Alabama would go 3-0 during and you have yourself the perfect streaming defense. Sadly you might have to dump them off now before the next contest vs the Ravens. It'll be sad to see them go.
Bad: Game Scripts
The Broncos dominating the Jets was never really in question. Nor is it surprising that the game was pretty much over by halftime, and the Broncos were left just wasting time on their next couple of offensive possessions. It's not surprise that despite the beatdown, most Denver players had rather pedestrian statlines. Courtland Sutton and Noah Fant were hardly needed, as was Teddy Bridgewater who was delegated to handoff duties. Expect a decent bounce-back for them next week, as well as Tim Patrick, who I am especially high on going forward.
Miami Dolphins vs Las Vegas Raiders
Good: The Mike Gisecki Resurgence
How's that for a bounceback? Gisecki became Jacoby Brissett's favorite target for this contest, catching 10 (!!) passes just two weeks removed from a fat 0 in the opening week. Him and Jaylen Waddle got 25 targets between the two, and I only expect that to go up with Brissett in the short term.
Bad: Kenyan Drake's ADP
Well how did we end up here? Drake was a popular backup this year in fantasy, as Josh Jacobs was recovering from injury and was figured to have a limited role in the passing game regardless. Just as expected, Josh Jacobs gets hurt, Drake gets started in nearly 40% of leagues and... he becomes the backup to Peyton Barber. Huh? Given this is a best case scenario for Drake and it clearly didn't pan out, I doubt we see him cracking starting lineups anytime in the near future.
Seattle Seahawks vs Minnesota Vikings
Good: Shootouts
The Vikings have become quite a good home for fantasy players this year, huh? Kirk Cousins is a top 5 QB, Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson are picking up right where they left off, and whichever of Dalvin Cook/Alexander Mattison starts tends to do well. Such is what happens when you cannot play defense and have to put up 30+ points a game to have a chance to win. While this for sure will regress, I'm not sure it will be that much of a setback, and I'd feel confident stacking the Vikings going forward.
Honorable mention: Take out all the position players I listed and replace them with Seahawks and nothing changes. It's funny how football works sometimes.
Bad: Hit or Miss tight ends
Wow this is a reach for the "bad" category, but from a purely fantasy perspective you can't ask much more here. While Tyler Conklin and Gerald Everett are bound for a good game or two every now and then, it's too much to ask for to leave them in your starting lineup and sleep peacefully at night. For now. Really guys, I didn't have anything else for bad. Unless you happened to draft one of these defenses. Which would be dumb.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Los Angeles Rams
Good: Cooper Kupp and Matt Stafford's breakfast club
Cooper Kupp, WR1. The more I type it, the weirder it gets. Given how much these two appear to be on the same page however, it makes total sense. While 30ppg is clearly unsustainable, I can for sure see Kupp staying as a top tier wide reciever, as long as him and Stafford continue these breakfast dates and corner chats. Get them in a buddy cop movie and they will post the greatest fantasy season of all time.
Bad: Bobby Trees
So much bad here I'm not sure which to choose, so I'm going with the one that hurts the most because of the man we just talked about. Robert Woods has been better historically than Kupp, been a bigger focal point on the offense than Kupp, and was hyped up as this being his blowup year. Well, so much for that so far. At least he's a good blocker? He is too talented to stay like this for long, so while I don't feel confident starting him, he is more than likely to rebound at some point. Honorable Mentions: The ugliness of the Bucs RBBC is rearing its head (looking at you, Ronald Jones owners), and everybody who drafted Bucs D/ST in the 10th round is having a panic attack. As they should.
Green Bay Packers vs San Fransisco 49ers
Good: Returning to form
Fantasy aside - holy shit this was a good game. Been too long since we've seen an Aaron Rodgers masterclass, and the 49ers look legit. These players seem to have recovered from their slow starts, with Rodgers and George Kittle getting some of their prestige back. Even Brandon Aiyuk showed up! Exciting!
Honorable mention: That one dude who bet like $12 on two fullbacks to score and won $2500. I aspire to be like you one day. You are my hero. I also really like fullbacks.
Bad: 49ers Running Backs. Always.
Sigh. Well that was dissapointing.
Yes, Trey Sermon had a touchdown. Yes, it gave fantasy owners enough relief to feel good about starting him. But I have zero confidence in him maintining the starting job. Him and Kyle Juszczyk basically split carries and Kyle was more active in the passing game, which doesn't bode well given the eventual return of Eljiah Mitchell. Maybe it was rookie nerves, but given the way the 49ers run offense, I'm hoping Sermon didn't blow his chance.
Dallas Cowboys vs Philadelphia Eagles
Good: Cowboys D/ST. Wait, the Cowboys D/ST?
Dallas unloaded on offense, with Dak Prescott throwing almost as many touchdowns (3) as incompletions (5), en route to a beatdown of the Eagles. We all kind of expected this, however. Do you know what we didn't expect? This sudden resurgence of the Cowboys defense! Besides a week 1 warmup vs the Super Bowl champs on the road, they held the Chargers offense to 16 points, then followed that up with a multiple turnover, 1 TD game in Philly. Talk about inspiring. Now, Dallas gets a CMC-less Carolina offense, followed by a stretch where they do not play a single 2020 playoff team until Week 11. Tasty.
Bad: Handing off the ball, apparently
Two carries. Two. Carries. Not three, not four. Two Carries.
I mean, come on. I get some of the hesitation towards Miles Sanders - the threat of a committee was there, a bad offense, etc. But I did not see this coming whatsoever. From a purely coaching standpoint it makes no sense either. How do you expect to win a football game like that??? Just baffles me. Anyways, I'm fulling expecting Philly to make up for it and run the ball 48 times next week, so don't give up on Sanders just yet. Or do. I don't know anymore.
Well that's it for Week 3 - tune in soon for my start/sit advice, game previews and much more as I prepare for my Texans to lose by 59 points. Oh well.
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