This article first appeared on RotoBaller.com
By Justin Carter (@juscarts)
It’s Week 6. The Kansas City Chiefs are undefeated, the Patriots have looked average at many points, and the Houston Texans are suddenly an offensive oriented team. The NFL, y’all, where things change so fast. Case in point: Amari Cooper would have been cut already if his name wasn’t Amari Cooper in all your fantasy leagues. He’s been traded, dropped, added, and dropped again in one of mine.
It’s also been a season where the tight end position looks even dubious than usual, where a combination of injuries and weak depth has ruined many of the streaming strategies that fantasy players employ. Players like Antonio Gates and Jason Witten have reached That Age where consistency because too big of a concern to ignore. Zach Ertz is maybe the most valuable tight end not featured prominently on an energy drink can–seriously, has anyone had the Gronk Monster? I haven’t because Kroger never has it on sale–and, well, things seem like a toss-up.
Alright. Let’s recap last week’s picks and then look at ten dudes who will disappoint you this week!
Week 5 Recap!
Yep, Busted.
This was a good week for my picks. Ben Roethlisberger looked abysmal about the Jaguars, who I think may have officially clinched DO NOT PLAY A QUARTERBACK AGAINST THEM status. DeMarco Murray was ineffective. Tarik Cohen was barely involved in the Chicago offense. Martavis Bryant, like Roethlisberger, suffered from Jaguars Syndrome. Amari Cooper put up another one catch, sub-ten yard performance. Jason Witten almost earned his way off this list, but a fumble dropped him under five fantasy points in Standard. And Eric Ebron–well, it might be time to drop him.
Look, I Know They Salvaged Good Fantasy Days But The Bust Signs Were There.
Kelvin Benjamin wasn’t having a great day, but a 31-yard touchdown in the second half of the game redeemed it for fantasy owners. And Will Fuller had a pair of touchdowns again, but they came on his only two catches of the game. Fuller is already looking like a boom-or-bust play that has the potential to win you a game or lose you a game depending on the week–unless he somehow keeps catching a pair of scores every time he touches the field.
Nope, Did Not Bust.
Philip Rivers played well against the Giants.
Top 10 Busts – NFL Week 6
Jared Goff (Quarterback, Los Angeles Rams)
I’m going to plagiarize myself by reposting a stat I posted last week about the Jacksonville defense: “Here are the fantasy numbers they have allowed to quarterbacks this season: Houston (Tom Savage + Deshaun Watson): 4.2, Tennessee (Marcus Mariota): 13, Baltimore (Joe Flacco): -2.9 (yes, that is a negative), and the Jets (Josh McCown): 5.” Let’s add last week’s 2.6 from Ben Roethlisberger into the mix. Kids, just say no to starting a quarterback against the Jaguars.
Ben Roethlisberger (Quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers)
Roethlisberger goes from a match-up with the leagues best passing defense to…a road game against the Chiefs, who are allowing the league’s lowest completion percentage to opposing quarterbacks. Deshaun Watson picked Kansas City apart last week…in garbage time. If the Steelers own defense can keep this close, expect Roethlisberger to defer to Le’Veon Bell. Also, expect turnovers.
Isaiah Crowell (Running Back, Cleveland Browns)
The Crow makes a comeback to this list as he takes on the Texans. Yes, they lost J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus to season-ending injuries. No, the recently signed Lamarr Houston is not going to jump in and make an immediate impact. But this is really more about Crowell’s ineffectiveness than it is about the Texans defense. He’s been a complete non-factor all season and should continue that this week.
Carlos Hyde (Running Back, San Francisco 49ers)
It’s been a wild ride with Carlos Hyde this year, who has gone from looking like someone who would be replaced to look like a sleeper pick to be a top running back to looking, once again, like someone who is about to be replaced. A lingering hip injury would make sense as the reason that Matt Breida outsnapped him in Week 5, but head coach Kyle Shanahan went ahead and said that it was Breida’s strong play, not Hyde’s injury, that cost him playing time. That is…not good if you plan to rely on Hyde moving forward.
Aaron Jones (Running Back, Green Bay Packers)
Jones has looked really good over the past two weeks, but two things have him trending down this week: the imminent return of Ty Montgomery–though Jones likely still sees the field, Montgomery will still likely end up seein the majority of the team’s snaps–and a match-up with a Vikings defense that is only allowed 80 yards-per-game on the ground.
Mike Evans (Wide Receiver, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Two words for you on this one: Patrick Peterson. Evans is going to be the toughest task so far this season for Peterson, but he’s shown he’s up to the task. Look for Jameis Winston to find DeSean Jackson more often than he finds Evans this week. There’s still potential for a touchdown–Evans is a huge target down in the red zone and the Cardinals defense defends tight ends well, which limits Cameron Brate‘s chances of snagging a touchdown that could otherwise go to Evans–but don’t expect big yardage numbers out of Evans.
Stefon Diggs (Wide Receiver, Minnesota Vikings)
I love Diggs, but it was clear watching the Vikings on Monday against Chicago that Diggs wasn’t at 100%. He’s likely to improve on his four yard performance, but with Minnesota’s quarterback uncertainty and Diggs dealing with a groin issue, expectations should be tempered going into a Week 6 game against a Packers team that is sixth-best so far this season in terms of net passing yards allowed per game.
Jarvis Landry (Wide Receiver, Miami Dolphins)
The Miami offense, barely-led by quarterback Jay Cutler, is a disaster. The Falcons are one of the best fantasy defenses against wide receivers. Landry’s on pace for a career-high in receptions this season while also averaging his lowest yards-per-game (52.5) since his rookie season. Landry’s got PPR potential even in a bad match-up, but he’s also very little scoring potential. Sit him and hope that Jay Cutler gets benched soon.
Jared Cook (Tight End, Oakland Raiders)
Cook hasn’t shown much consistency this year–or any year, really. He faces the Chargers, who haven’t given up a touchdown to a tight end this season. His quarterback will either be E.J. Manuel–and remember, Cook was held to 25 yards (and a fumble) in Week 5 with Manuel at QB–or Derek Carr, who figures to not be at 100% in his return from a back injury. There are better options this week than Cook.
Eric Ebron (Tight End, Detroit Lions)
The Lions play the Saints. You might want to roll with Ebron for that reason. Don’t. Darren Fells has essentially replaced him as the team’s primary tight end. Darren Fells. That is not a good sign at all. Avoid.
