| SUNDAY SALUTES | ||
|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | Pass-Rush | TD |
| Jordan Love | 389-6 | 4 |
| Justin Fields | 312-55 | 3 |
| Baker Mayfield | 347-10 | 3 |
| Jayden Daniels | 233-47 | 2 |
| Lamar Jackson | 156-54 | 3 |
| Running Backs | Yards | TD |
| D’Andre Swift | 16-93 7-72 |
1 |
| Alvin Kamara | 19-77 7-42 |
1 |
| Jordan Mason | 24-123 2-37 |
1 |
| Derrick Henry | 24-199 3-10 |
2 |
| Chuba Hubbard | 18-104 4-17 |
1 |
| Wide Receivers | Yards | TD |
| Nico Collins | 12-151 | 1 |
| Jayden Reed | 7-139 | 1 |
| Dontayvion Wicks | 5-78 | 2 |
| CeeDee Lamb | 7-98 | 1 |
| Mike Evans | 8-94 | 1 |
| Tight Ends | Yards | TD |
| Tucker Kraft | 6-53 | 1 |
| Pat Freiermuth | 5-57 | 1 |
| Travis Kelce | 7-89 | 0 |
| George Kittle | 4-45 | 1 |
| Dallas Goedert | 7-62 | 0 |
| Placekickers | XP | FG |
| Younghoe Koo | 2 | 4 |
| Jake Moody | 3 | 3 |
| Joshua Karty | 0 | 4 |
| Evan McPherson | 4 | 2 |
| Chase McLaughlin | 3 | 2 |
| Defense | Sack – TO | TD |
| 49ers | 6-3 | 1 |
| Falcons | 1-2 | 2 |
| Broncos | 5-1 | 0 |
| Browns | 3-1 | 1 |
| Buccaneers | 6-2 | 0 |
Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts
QB Anthony Richardson – Hip
RB Tyler Badie – Back
RB Cordarrelle Patterson – Ankle
RB Jonathan Taylor – Ankle
TE Taysom Hill – Rib injury
WR Christian Watson – Ankle
WR Rashee Rice – Knee
Chasing Ambulances
QB Anthony Richardson – He was hit hard on his hip and left the game temporarily, then re-entered the game and then got hit again on a run and left the game for good. He is expected to have a hip pointer. Richardson downplayed the injury but also couldn’t confirm he would play this week. Joe Flacco will take his place if needed.
RB Cordarrelle Patterson – He injured his ankle and was carted to the locker room. His status will be determined on Monday, but the Steelers are already without Jaylen Warren and if Patterson missed Week 5 versus the Cowboys, Najee Harris will be forced into a heavy workload.
RB Jonathan Taylor – He suffered a high-ankle sprain on his right ankle – the same one that’s been a problem throughout his career. He could miss extended games if not land on short-term IR. Trey Sermon is the No. 2 back and will be a hot free agent because of it, but it all depends on the official prognosis on the injury. The Colts could elect to find a free agent to help as well.
TE Taysom Hill – Left the loss to the Falcons with what was initially termed as an abdomen injury and later updated to be a rib injury. Hill bruised his lung on the other side a few weeks ago and this is new injury. It is not ideal for a utility player that almost exclusively runs the ball.
WR Christian Watson – The oft-injured Watson missed ten games with hamstring issues last year, but hoped to be beyond that for this season. He was tackled on Sunday and his legs were caught awkwardly underneath him and injured his ankle. The prognosis on his injury should be known by Monday.
WR Rashee Rice – The Chiefs already lost Marquise Brown before the season started, and now the star receiver Rice was carted off after being hit in the knee. Patrick Mahomes threw an interception, and in the process of trying to tackle the interceptor, he inadvertantly hit his own team mate in the knee. While there has not been an official diagnosis as of this writing, HC Andy Reid did say, “it didn’t look good.” Any absence of Rice will force Travis Kelce to assume a much larger role as he did this week after Rice left. Xavier Worthy should also see more work. The fear is that he injured his ACL.
Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables
WR Wan’Dale Robinson – The Giants’ No. 2 receiver in Thursday’s game was Robinson, who totaled 11 catches for 71 yards for a career-best performance. Robinson turned in seven catches for 61 yards last week and benefits from being the other guy to Malik Nabers. Depending on how quickly Nabers recovers from his concussion of Week 4, Robinson could end up as the No. 1 wideout this week in Seattle.
RB Bijan Robinson – Was only given seven carries and gained 28 yards compared to the “hotter hand” of Tyler Allgeier (8-60). But Robinson added four catches for 46 yards and had a touchdown catch called back on a penalty. The Saints were devoted to slowing down Robinson.
RB Chase Brown – The Bengals’ back had a big game when he ran for 80 yards and two scores on 15 rushes, and caught two passes for 12 yards. But they were facing the Panthers and Zack Moss (15-51 rush) also caught four passes for 27 yards and a touchdown. The Panthers have an above-average secondary, and that led to a good showing by the backfield.
RB Chuba Hubbard – Turned in one of his career-best performances when he ran for 104 yards and a score on 18 carries and added four receptions for 27 yards. Hubbard enjoys a better situation now that the Panthers are throwing better but remains very sensitive to the quality of the opponent. His time as the primary back is likely drawing to an end soon.
RB Jonathan Brooks – The rookie becomes eligible to return from the NFI list this week, and HC Dave Canales said that Brooks was in the final stages of recovery so his debut should be soon. In small leagues, there’s a chance he might have been discarded along the way. It’s also time to consider Plan B if you own Chuba Hubbard but not Brooks.
WR Xavier Leggette – The Panthers’ rookie wideout just recorded his first touchdown while catching six passes for 66 yards in the loss to the Bengals. Leggette fielded ten targets in the game, second to only Diontae Johnson. Adam Thielen is out with a serious hamstring injury, so the rookie has a chance to carve out a bigger role as they hoped when he was drafted.
Rams receivers – With Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp out, the Rams promoted a new set of starters. While Demarcus Robinson was expected to be the new No. 1 receiver, it was TuTu Atwell (4-82) and Jordan Whittington (6-62), while Robinson only had two catches for 37 yards. It points more to the volatility of relying on the current receivers, but this is an opportunity for them to get more playing time and prove what they can do.
RB D’Andre Swift – After three straight poor efforts as the Bears’ new primary back, Swift had lost the confidence of fantasy owners. He finally showed up in Week 4 when he ran for 93 yards and a score on 16 rushes against the Rams and was also the leading receiver with seven receptions for 72 yards. He’ll need to be in every starting lineup this week against the Panthers.
WR Jordan Addison – The Vikings No. 2 wideout injured his ankle in Week 1 and missed the last two games. He was active this week and served notice that Justin Jefferson is not the only weapon in the offense. Addison scored on his three catches for 72 yards and added a seven-yard rushing touchdown on an end-around.
WR Dontayvion Wicks – Jayden Reed (7-139, TD) was the top receiver in the loss to the Vikings, but Christian Watson left with yet another ankle injury and Wicks stepped up nicely with five receptions for 78 yards and two touchdowns. With Romeo Doubs also involved, there are numerous viable targets for Jordan Love when he passes, but Wicks will get a promotion for however long that Watson is out, and the fewer healthy receivers are in Green Bay, the more reliable they can be. Expect Wicks to be a hot free agent this week and he carries upside in light of the Watson injury.
RB Tank Bigsby – After an encouraging offseason, Bigsby injured his shoulder and missed Week 2, and was limited to just two carries in Week 3. Against the Texans on Sunday, Bigsby ran for a team-high 90 yards on seven carries, much of that from a 58-yard rush. Bigsby was the starter to open the game, but Travis Etienne (11-50) eventually saw more work. Bigsby has not seen any targets this year, so his production is limited to rushing attempts. But he’ll face the weaker run defense of the visiting Colts this week.
QB Joe Flacco – Stepped in once Anthony Richardson left with a probable hip pointer, and while he only threw for 168 yards and two scores, that almost entirely went to Michael Pittman (6-113, TD) and Josh Downs (8-82, TD). If Richardson is out for Week 5, the always-capable Flacco will face the same Jaguars that just allowed 345 passing yards and two scores to the Texans.
RB Bucky Irving – While the fantasy owners are getting whipped up about the prospects of Irving taking over as the primary rusher in Tampa Bay, that expectation needs to be tempered. Irving was effective again, running for 49 yards and a score with a six-yard catch. But Rachaad White also ran ten times for the same 49 yards, while White added two catches for 35 yards. They’ll face the stout Atlanta run defense this week, so the backfield won’t combine for high production.
RB Kareem Hunt – The Chiefs running back (Part 2) handled a heavy load in his debut, running for 69 yards on 14 rushes and adding two catches for 16 yards. Carson Steele helped Hunt by losing another fumble that saw him benched. Hunt looked good (4.9 YPC) running the ball, though they allowed Samaje Perine (5-14) to take the touchdown plunge. Steele may have seen his last game of any note.
QB Jordan Love – He entered the game as questionable with an expectation that he mightalso share with the running quarterback Malik Willis. The Packers lost 31-29, but that was hardly Love’s fault. Willis played no role and while Love seemed slightly gimpy, he passed for 389 yards and four touchdowns. He travels to face the Rams’ bottom-ranked secondary this week.
Huddle player of the week
RB Derrick Henry – Sunday night served up an unstoppable treat when King Henry faced the visiting Bills. He ran for 199 yards and a score on 24 carries, plus caught three passes for 10 yards and a second touchdown. Had he not fumbled into the endzone, he could have ended with 200 rush yards and three scores. He was a monster that the Bills couldn’t stop or catch.
Salute!
Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to cry
| Comedy | Yards | TDs | Tragedy | Yards | TDs | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | Justin Fields | 312-55 | 3 | QB | Anthony Richardson | 71-24 | 0 |
| RB | D’Andre Swift | 16-93 Rush 7-72 Rcv |
1 | RB | Breece Hall | 10-4 Rush 2-14 Rcv |
0 |
| RB | Chase Brown | 15-80 Rush 1-12 Rcv |
2 | RB | Travis Etienne | 11-50 Rush 1-10 Rcv |
0 |
| WR | Dontayvion Wicks | 5-78 | 2 | WR | Rashee Rice | Nope | 0 |
| WR | Jordan Addison | 3-72 | 2 | WR | Brandon Aiyuk | 2-48 | 0 |
| WR | Josh Downs | 8-82 | 1 | WR | Christian Watson | nah | 0 |
| TE | Tucker Kraft | 6-53 | 1 | TE | Kyle Pitts | not | 0 |
| PK | Younghoe Koo | 2 XP 4 FG | PK | Jake Elliott | 2 XP | ||
| Huddle Fantasy Points = 199 | Huddle Fantasy Points = 24 | ||||||
Now get back to work…