 Time to take stock
With four weeks of tape and data in the books, I believe as a fantasy manager now is the first time you can make a truly informed decision on players on your roster. Your fantasy draft should be a distant memory, and with bye weeks approaching, the tough decisions will come thick and fast. In order for us to get these tough decisions right, we have to take a step back and objectively evaluate our players. Let’s go through some players who may be causing you some unnecessary stress.
Players to cut
The writing seems to be on the wall for A.J. Green in a fantasy sense. My hope for Green was that the volume would eventually result in one big game, and after this, we could sell our stock to an unsuspecting customer. However, even if this game were to come, I can’t see many people being interested. Tyler Boyd is Joe Burrow’s clear number one option leading the team in targets and yards. What is more worrying for AJ Green is the decline in his own involvement in the offense since Week 2 and the emergence of rookie wide receiver Tee Higgins, who has finished with more targets in both of the previous two games. Higgins was drafted to replace Green, but surpassing him on the depth chart after just four games was not in the script.
My patience has worn thin with what seems to be the WR3 on a rookie quarterbacks’ offense. In smaller leagues, I am ready to cut all ties with A. J. Green; in 12-man or larger leagues he can ride the pine until further notice.
From one aging wide receiver to another. T.Y. Hilton, has been one of the bigger disappointments in fantasy football for me. Hilton has been extremely underwhelming both on the field and in the box score as he is yet to surpass the four-reception mark in any game. It would be wrong for us to place all the blame at Hilton’s feet without considering the game plan of the Indianapolis Colts. Frank Reich wants to control the clock by leaning on his running game, limiting the opportunity for Hilton to impress. The Colts are currently on a three-game winning streak, during which Rivers has averaged 17 completions and just 207 yards a game. This is how the Colts can and will win games.
Unfortunately for Hilton, he is a part of a low volume passing offense with an aging quarterback who struggles to connect on deep passes. These circumstances are the opposite of A. J. Green, but the result is the same; in leagues smaller than 12 I am ready to let him go.
Players who are on the clock
I cannot remember a player who the entire fantasy community whiffed on as much as Drake in recent years. After finishing outside of the top 30 running backs in each of the past three weeks, Drake is officially on the clock. A lot was made about Arizona facing strong run defenses to start the season, but the remedy for this was meant to be Carolina last Sunday. Unfortunately, Drake and Arizona did not receive this message as he had his worst game of the season, finishing with just 35 yards on 13 carries. My concerns about Drake run deeper than just his fantasy production. Drake has only received five targets through the first four games and has had one carry inside the five-yard line. He is being starved of the high-value touches in this offense, and unless something changes, the outlook is bleak.
I know you are disappointed, but let’s not do anything rash. Benching Drake for the foreseeable future is a sensible decision.
Dak Prescott is on pace to throw for 6,760 yards passing which would break Peyton Manning’s record by just under 1,300 yards. This volume is bound to regress, but the porous Cowboys defense will make sure that Dak Prescott and his offense are involved in shoot-outs on a regular basis this season. This should all be great news for Gallup, but the addition of CeeDee Lamb to the offense has seen his role shrink. Lamb has already solidified his role as the teams WR2 operating mainly from the slot, leaving Gallup to occupy the role of X receiver which has significantly lowered his floor.
Gallup is someone who I would not feel comfortable starting due to the volatility in his range of outcomes, but he does provide WR1 upside on a weekly basis. Hold for the time being.
Trending upwards
When the facts change so does my opinion. Anderson is the 1A in Carolina and is proving that he is up to the task. Anderson is averaging an impressive 11.09 yards per target on 8.5 targets per game. This level of opportunity is good enough for the top 10 in the league for wide receivers. I think most people were expecting him to come into the offense as the field-stretcher, but Anderson’s average depth of target has been a career-low of 8.9 yards per target. Matt Rhule clearly trusts him from their time together at Temple University, utilizing him in several levels of the passing game. This utilization has transformed Anderson into a top-24 wide receiver who you should feel comfortable playing every week.
I still think many people are refusing to accept that Anderson is the number one wide receiver on this team which means the window to buy is still open.Â
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