Fitzpatrick has thrown for more than 300 yards in his last two
games and three of four. This Sunday he faces a generous Jets
team who has allowed opposing passers to complete 72.3% of their
passes for 275 yards and 1.6 touchdowns. This is not the game
where Fitzpatrick throws 4+ interceptions (that will come in Week
8 when Aaron Donald is chasing him down in the backfield), this
is the one where he actually will help your lineup.
I thought Stafford would have a big year this season after a
very productive eight games in 2019, but so far that hasn’t happened.
The loss of his No.1 receiver, Kenny Golladay, to begin the year
might have something to do with the slow start. Stafford has produced
three consecutive multi-touchdown passing games, but has yet to
crack the 300-yard mark. That should change against a Jacksonville
defense that has allowed 26 FPts/G (ranked 26th), 284.2 passing
yards (28th) and 2.2 passing touchdowns (28th), despite not facing
a “murders row” of quarterbacks; Philip Rivers, Ryan Tannehill,
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Joe Burrow and Deshaun Watson.
It should come to no surprise that I advocate facing the league’s
worst pass defense. The Falcons are allowing a league-worst 34.8
FPts/G this season. That includes 345.6 passing yards and three
touchdown passes. Therefore, despite Coach Mike Zimmer’s
annual desire to run the ball and play defense, we should see
a change in strategy for Week 6. Cousins has plenty of receiving
options in Adam Thielen, rookie Justin Jefferson and a pair of
tight ends capable of catching the ball (Irv Smith and Kyle Rudolph).
In addition the offense is without their best player - running
back Dalvin Cook. This will be Cousin’s chance to shine.
The upheaval in Atlanta this week should be concerning to everyone
connected to the team. The head coach and GM were fired after
Sunday’s fifth-consecutive loss. The owner didn’t
support the long-term future of his former MVP quarterback. Perhaps
things could turn around if Julio Jones (hamstring) plays, but
Ryan hasn’t played well for three weeks, “amassing”
just one touchdown pass. Too many question marks here to play
him.
It’s not that Wentz can’t play the position, but
given the receiving options around him, it’s hard to imagine
a scenario where the Eagles franchise quarterback will produce
fantasy-worthy numbers against this Ravens’ defense. Even
if DeSean Jackson and Alshon Jeffery were to return to the lineup,
the best Eagles receiver on the field will be … Travis Fulgham?
The Baltimore defense has yielded yards this season, but just
six touchdown passes (third-best) in five games.
The Steelers defense has yet to allow a 300-yard passer this
season. In fact, they haven’t allowed a 300-yard passer
since Week 6 of 2019, a full year ago. This is not the game where
Mayfield breaks the string. He’s played against two tough
defenses this season, at Baltimore in Week 1 and against Indy
last week and he was mediocre in both with a completion percentage
below 60% and a total of 436 yards. The Pittsburgh defense is
on par with both those teams.
