Let me start by telling you all that I went a clean 4-0 last week in fantasy football. I know, hold your applause.
But really, though, there are so many people to thank. I want to thank the Jets for not understanding the true definition of going with the hot hand at running back (seriously, where was Chris Ivory after halftime?). I would like to thank… well that’s it really because my dynasty league was the only one with any drama.
Heading into week four we begin the “bye” weeks for teams. Arizona, Cincinnati, Seattle, Denver, and St. Louis are all on bye this week, which means there will be a mad scramble to replace A LOT of Round 1 talent on your rosters. By my count we have the top-2 defenses (Bengals and Seahawks), the number three and six quarterbacks in fantasy football (Manning and Wilson), seven top-25 caliber wide receivers (A.J. Green, Emmanuel Sanders, Demaryius Thomas, Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, and Percy Harvin), and three top-15 running backs (Marshawn Lynch, Gio Bernard, and Zac Stacy).
In other words, the waivers are your friend this week.
Well lets figure this out together and see if we can’t make up for some of those losses and find some talent that may stick for this week and (possibly) beyond.
First a recap of Week 3 recommends and how they fared:
Kirk Cousins, Washington Redskins- Last Week: Not Real, but has spot start value
Key Piece Of Advice From Last Week: “I’m not going to get into the whole “Cousins v. Griffin III” debate but I will put it to you like this: the offense hums when Cousins is under center. As for your fantasy team? Cousins next three opponents are the Giants, Eagles (in Philly), and Seahawks. If you need a bye week fill-in week four for Andy Dalton, Russell Wilson, Peyton Manning, and Carson Palmer (or any other bye week for your starter when D.C. doesn’t play Seattle) he is an intriguing play.” Week 3 Line: 427 yards, 3 TD’s
As you saw on Sunday, this offense hums when he plays. Now I’m going to be that wet blanket and say that the Eagles and Giants aren’t shut down secondaries so he should (as I already pointed out) be a good spot starter for you. But the Seahawks and Cardinals loom after that so take advantage while you can.
Knile Davis, Kansas City Chiefs- Last Week: Real
Key Piece Of Advice From Last Week: “He’ll probably get a good amount of work this week against Miami with Charles recovering from that high ankle sprain, but worth the roster spot as a solid handcuff.” Week 3 Line: 132 RuYards, TD
Pretty much the definition of what he is right now. Charles has a bit of an injury history so if you have Davis try to keep him. My only qualm with him is he takes a lot for him to get what he needs to statistically (32 attempts!).
Andrew Hawkins, Cleveland Browns- Last Week: Not Real
Key Piece Of Advice From Last Week: “He’s got a shaky quarterback situation, the offense will undoubtedly go “run first,” and Miles Austin (as long as he’s healthy) will get the looks in the Red Zone because he’s bigger.” Week 3 Line: 87 ReYards
Still. No. Touchdowns. Hard to buy when the money ball isn’t there.
James Jones, Oakland Raiders- Last Week: Not Real unless your desperate for production
Key Piece Of Advice From Last Week: “His value will be in the volume of targets he gets and what he does with them.” Week 3 Line: 43 ReYards
He was out-targeted by Andre Holmes and Marcel Reese. Still a desperation play.
Week 4 Waiver Report:
Lorenzo Taliaferro, RB, Baltimore Ravens (WEEK 3: 91 RuYards, TD) – Tired of Bernard Pierce and Justin Forsett? So were the Ravens so fantasy owners rejoice and let me introduce you to this young man. Fourth-round draft pick out of Coastal Carolina looks to be the real deal. John Harbaugh and the Ravens staff rave about his running style, and averaging 5 yards a carry in your debut isn’t shabby at all. Consider Forsett’s value torpedoed and Bernard Pierce’s days as the number one back in Baltimore numbered. Verdict: Real
Blake Bortles, QB, Jacksonville Jaguars (WEEK 3: 223 yards, 2 TD’s, 2 INT’s)- Best quarterback prospect in the 2014 draft finally gets his shot. I’m generally wary of Jaguars in general (for good reason) but he makes the pieces on that offense competent and worth owning (still not saying much since most of them(Hurns, Robinson, & Lee) rely on downfield speed and Bortles has the juice to put it downfield). Consider him as a spot start once he gets his feet wet a little more. Other than that, he’s a spot starter and nothing more for now. Verdict: Not Real with a chance to prove me wrong
Owen Daniels, TE, Baltimore Ravens (WEEK 3: 8 ReYards)- Remember all that talk about Norv Turner and what he does with tight ends? Did you know Gary Kubiak does the same things? Well he does, and now that his number one tight end option Dennis Pitta is lost for the rest of the year it is time to hop on the Owen Daniels train. He didn’t put much together last week, but that was more blocking/scheme for the Browns than anything else. I’d be willing to wager he becomes a low-end TE1 or higher-end TE2. Verdict: Real
John Brown, WR, Arizona Cardinals (WEEK 3: 52 ReYards, 2 TD’s)- NOT to be confused with JARON Brown, this kid is rising quickly. I’m not going to buy too much into the “Larry Fitzgerald is done” conversation but what I will say is in a pass-first offense as a WR3 he has solid value. Pick him up and hope he can generate the scores necessary to elevate him to weekly FLEX consideration. Verdict: Real
Jordan Matthews, WR, Philadelphia Eagles (WEEK 3: 59 yards, 2 TD’s)- I think I made my thoughts on Matthews pretty clear in the offseason, but he’s starting to carve out a role in the passing game. He’s infinitely more talented than Riley Cooper, who is still lining up in the two-wide sets opposite Jeremy Maclin, so to see Foles start to look his way and him responding with quality production is a good sign. Owned in only 31% of Yahoo! leagues, now is a good time to add and stash him until he, inevitably, takes over for Cooper. Verdict: Not real until he sees increase in targets
Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Minnesota Vikings (WEEK 3: 150 yards, 27 RuYards)- I didn’t see a whole lot from Bridgewater when he took over against the Saints. From what I did gather I was impressed. he stepped in against a Rob Ryan led Saints defense and performed admirably. He’s the starter for the rest of the year with Cassel done so I’m gonna hold off giving him too much judgement, but his upcoming games against secondaries that aren’t the best bode well for his value. Plus Norv Turner is his offensive coordinator. Verdict: Real in theory
Allen Robinson, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars (WEEK 3: 79 ReYards)- He’s become a pretty reliable option in the passing game for Jacksonville. Bortles taking over could mean an increase in scoring opportunities for the rookie from Penn State. I like his size and speed, especially for red zone chances so give him a shot and see if he can’t supplement his yardage totals (154 ReYards in two games) with some scores. Verdict: Real
