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Kirk Hollis | Archive | Email |  
Staff Writer


Tuesday Morning Buzz
Week 5 Fantasy Football Recap
10/07/14


Week Five gave us a return to normalcy if you will and some things that continued to leave us scratching our heads. Let’s get to this week’s recap…Go!

Minnesota @ Green Bay
Sometimes scores can be deceiving. You would think from the score of this game (42-10, Green Bay) that Aaron Rodgers went nuts and threw for a bunch of yards and touchdowns. And, you would be right about the TDs part. But, because the game got out of hand, Rodgers sat the entire fourth quarter and the Packers took the air out of the ball in the second half. But, one person’s trash is another’s treasure…or something like that. Green Bay’s lead allowed Eddie Lacy to do some serious work, albeit on only 13 carries. Lacy has been the victim of some brutal matchups so far this season, so look for this type of game to be his norm going forward, not some sort of aberration. Here’s a cool stat for the Vikings: Christian Ponder completed passes to ten different receivers. Here’s the problem: Only two went to Cordarrelle Patterson…for eight yards. Yuck.

Baltimore @ Indianapolis
Nothing stood out like a sore thumb other than Andrew Luck rushing for a touchdown, which is something he’s prone to do more than most quarterbacks. It keeps his value sky high even if he’s not taking T.Y. Hilton and Reggie Wayne for the ride as neither found the end zone or topped 100 yards (they did however combine to catch 16 passes). Ahmad Bradshaw rightfully got nearly twice as many carries as Trent Richardson for the Colts and Justin Forsett definitely made the most of his touches, carrying the ball only six times, but scoring a TD and catching 7 balls for 55 yards. He’s Baltimore’s best bet moving forward, particularly with Torrey Smith in permanent no-impact mode.

Ben Tate

Ben Tate's return from a knee injury was promising, rolling up 123 yards on a ground against the Titans.


Cleveland @ Tennessee
These Browns are fun to watch and because their offensive line is so good, they’re a good bet for fantasy production week-in and week-out. This week, that meant Ben Tate (123 yards rushing upon returning to the lineup), Brian Hoyer (292 yards, 3 TDs), and Travis Benjamin (2 rec TDs). The obvious omission from the list of productive Browns would be Jordan Cameron who was supposed to be the second coming of Rob Gronkowski, but has instead been relegated to occasional duties. You shouldn’t give up on Cameron just like you shouldn’t have given up on Justin Hunter or Kendall Wright after four weeks (146 yards rec., 3 TDs). Easy to say now, huh? Knowing when to keep a player vs. turning him loose can be one of the most frustrating parts of fantasy football. Just hang on to Ben Tate moving forward. If he can stay healthy ( a big ‘if’), big things are possible.

Pittsburgh @ Jacksonville
Le’Veon Bell is having a fantastic second season running the football. He’s on pace for over 1,500 yards and is gaining 5.3 yards per carry. The only beef? He has one rushing touchdown through five games. The Steelers are doing most of their scoring through the air, which is great for owners of Antonio Brown or Heath Miller (or even Michael Palmer…Michael Palmer?). The problem is that Bell could be a truly elite fantasy running back if he could just get across that goaline more often. In Jacksonville, it’s time to give Toby Gerhart 30 carries in a game. Seriously. How can anyone actually know what he can do running the ball when he gets FOUR carries? Turn him loose. If he flops, he flops…but at least you know what you’ve got.

Houston @ Dallas
Both teams stayed true to who they are and the result was a combined 293 yards from Arian Foster and DeMarco Murray. Foster’s day was perhaps Sunday’s most encouraging fantasy development as he proved once again that if he feels good, he can deliver the mail. As for Murray, 31 more carries means that DeMarco is on pace for 416 carries this season (and yes, 2,144 yards). Hard to say if the Cowboys should spell him more, but history suggests “yes” given his rushing style. If you’re a Murray owner, you like the 31 carries, but you also want to win fantasy games in December. That’s something to think about. Elsewhere in this game, Tony Romo was productive for a second week in a row (324 yards, 2 TDs) while Ryan Fitzpatrick (154 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT) was not. Is Dallas’s defense for real? They were supposed to be bad on a legendary scale…

Atlanta @ NY Giants
The Buzz will say it again…get Antone Smith the ball!! Everytime Smith touches the ball, something big happens. Smith is averaging 11 yards a carry this season and 26 yards a reception. In 2013, he averaged 29 yards a carry on five carries. I love Steven Jackson- he is the ultimate between-the-tackles warrior. But, Smith needs to be more involved. In other news, so much for Roddy White touchdown “guarantee”. And, so much for Victor Cruz being a guy you can count on in a weekly lineup. The emergence of Odell Beckham, Jr. on Sunday mean Cruz’s numbers continue to dip along with waiver wire hero, Larry Donnell (0 catches). Finally, here’s hoping Rashad Jennings (knee) gets well soon. He’s a better option at running back for the Giants than Andre Williams, although Williams does have a nose for the goaline, so pick him up this week if he’s available.

St. Louis @ Philadelphia
The Eagles either fall way behind and then rally furiously to win…or they get way ahead and then almost lose. One thing that is certain: The Eagles offense continues to struggle. LeSean McCoy is unable/unwilling to run between the tackles and Zach Ertz is forced to stay home and pass protect or sit out so someone else can, limiting his usefulness. Austin Davis put up another huge stat line for the Rams (375 yards, 3 TDs) and Davis can no longer be ignored as a low-end QB1 fantasy-wise. I know Kirk Cousins burned us last week when we anointed him, but Cousins still has potential and so does Davis. He’s turning Brian Quick into a guy that should be cracking starting lineups more often than not and St. Louis into a team that shouldn’t be viewed as a fantasy wasteland. Stay tuned.

Buffalo @ Detroit
I promise to never open up a game recap with a discussion of kickers again, but this was the tale of two kickers. Dan Carpenter hit a 58-yarder to win the game and Alex Henery couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn. I would expect Detroit to have Matt Prater on speed dial at this point. As for non-kickers, it was mostly a troublesome day for fantasy hopefuls in this defensive struggle. Calvin Johnson was supposed to return to some semblance of form (didn’t happen), Reggie Bush was supposed to carry the load for the injured Joique Bell (didn’t happen), and C.J. Spiller was supposed to be a decent option vs. a team that stops the running game up the middle (wasn’t the case). Unless you started Golden Tate or Kyle Orton (surely not Orton, right?), you were disappointed with the overall results.

Chicago @ Carolina
You have been waiting and watching. Watching Kelvin Benjamin put up great numbers through four weeks as a rookie. Noting that every fantasy publication is now calling him an every-week starter. Then, on Sunday…he only secures 3 of 11 targets for 38 yards and loses a fumble. Now what? Benjamin owners have the right to be frustrated. Martellus Bennett owners? Not so much. You’ve already gotten more from Bennett prior to this past weekend than anyone could have dreamed, so keep starting him and don’t complain about one bad game. If it’s PPR gold you’re looking for, look no further than Matt Forte. TWELVE catches? 105 yards receiving? That’s Marshall Faulk territory. In case you’re still a young twenty-something or even a teenager, that’s a big-time compliment. Oh, and Greg Olsen was very Shannon Sharpe-like in this one (that a big-time compliment, too).

Tampa Bay @ New Orleans
Trying to predict the role of Pierre Thomas in the New Orleans offense is like trying to catch the wind. Thomas was the star of this game on both sides, as he totaled 112 yards from scrimmage and 2 TDs, helping the Saints to an overtime win. Drew Brees continues to struggle, but if your league doesn’t count off for interceptions (he threw three more of them and is on pace to throw 20 this season), he came through for you as well. And, it sure was nice to see Vincent Jackson factor heavily into the Buccaneers offense. V-Jax has a history of being hot and cold, but the concern this year so far had been that there was no “hot” to speak of. Put that to rest along with the notion that any Saints wide receiver is really worth starting week in and week out.

Arizona @ Denver
Well, that was Peyton Manning circa 2013. If you’ve been waiting for that guy to show up this year, you got your wish on Sunday and then some. Manning made it a point early and often to get Demaryius Thomas involved and Thomas proved beyond the shadow of a doubt that he remains an elite fantasy/real-world wide receiver to the tune of 8 rec, 226 yards, and 2 TDs. That’s one heckuva day. At running back, Montee Ball put owners out of their misery by way of an injury and hopefully won’t be out too long while Andre Ellington owners were thrilled with his production, albeit most of it coming on a flukish sort of play. All in all, Denver gave you your money’s worth with both Thomases doing huge things and Emmanuel Sanders continuing to be a PPR gem. As for the Cardinals, Carson Palmer can’t come back soon enough…

NY Jets @ San Diego
There are ugly days in fantasy football. There are uglier days than that. And then, there’s the kind of ugly that the Jets spewed yesterday. Thankfully, I doubt many readers of the Buzz had many Jets starting for them on Sunday, but if you did (Chris Ivory could have been in non-PPR leagues), our condolences. This game might have also birthed a new star as RB Branden Oliver (182 total yards, 2 TDs) tore through the Jets defense like it wasn’t even there and signaled a likely end to the Donald Brown era. Even when Ryan Mathews returns, Oliver is likely to maintain some sort of role given what he has shown the past two weeks. Another surprise for me was Antonio Gates getting back on the touchdown train - I will stop predicting a decline for him as the season wears on ‘cause he’ll likely make me keep eating those words if I utter them.

Kansas City @ San Francisco
Absolutely nothing stands out in this game from a fantasy standpoint other than Colin Kaepernick continuing to post the same numbers week after week - numbers that are great for a backup fantasy QB, but not really starter material. Michael Crabtree appears to be dealing with an injury to his foot again. His production was his worst, yardage-wise since 2011 and that shouldn’t be the case with Vernon Davis out. None of the receivers on either team is worth starting right now. One guy who is worthy, is Jamaal Charles who ran for better than 5 yards a carry Sunday vs. one of the league’s best run defenses. Charles looks great and a fantastic middle of the season for him appears imminent if he can stay healthy. If you’re an owner, don’t be discouraged.

Cincinnati @ New England
Well, I am breaking that no-kicker-lead-in promise quickly because I must mention that Stephen Gostkowski put up 19 points from the kicker position on Sunday night in a Patriots rout. The pride that the Patriots showed vs. the Bengals boosted the prospects of this team a great deal with Stevan Ridley and Shane Vereen combining for 203 yards on the ground and tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Tim Wright netting 185 yards and 2 TDs receiving. I don’t know what to make of the surge other than it will be interesting to see if the Pats can repeat what we saw on Sunday night when they go back on the road. For now, start Ridley and Vereen at home where they play better and start Gronk all the time. Cincinnati laid an egg in this one, in both the real world and in terms of fantasy points, but they’ll bounce back.

Seattle @ Washington
Eleven carries…122 yards. Those are pretty terrific rushing numbers. Until you consider that those numbers represent the rushing prowess of none other than quarterback Russell Wilson. Wilson added a couple of passing TDs for good measure on the way to his best QB performance of the year in fantasy football in most scoring formats. I’m pretty sure Wilson won’t see another game like that for the rest of the year, but his stock is on the rise. And, it might be even higher if Percy Harvin had not had THREE TDs called back due to penalties. I can’t even imagine what it would have been like to be a Harvin owner counting on him to win you a game. On the other side of the coin, Cousins and DeSean Jackson proved that points can be scored against the Seattle-D. You can’t be afraid to attack as we’ve said here before.

That’s the Buzz for this week. It was a wild week…but aren’t they all? Til’ next week…