Tag: Mike Williams

Instant analysis of Chargers’ 45-10 victory over Jaguars

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez delivers his recap on the Los Angeles Chargers’ victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Los Angeles Chargers snapped their three-game losing streak with a huge win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Here is our instant analysis from the Chargers’ 45-10 victory:

Injury Report

There weren’t any injuries that occurred today.

Play of the Game: Mike Williams’ receiving touchdown

Entering the game, Williams had yet to post a touchdown reception this season. But that quickly changed as quarterback Philip Rivers found him for a phenomenal 44-yard catch over a defender that went for a score.

Notable Number

213: Austin Ekeler totaled 213 yards from the line of scrimmage, becoming the first Charger to do so since Lionel James in 1985.

Quick Takes

  • Happy Birthday to quarterback Philip Rivers! On his 38th birthday, Rivers had quite the performance, finishing 16-of-22 passing for 314 yards and three touchdowns.
  • What do you do when facing one of the league’s worst run defenses? You run the ball, and that they did, tallying 191 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries.
  • The offensive line was at their best, only allowing one sack on the afternoon. Not only did they keep Rivers upright for nearly the entire contest, but they did an outstanding job to create lanes in the running game.
  • The red zone offense flipped a switch after a season’s worth of woes, going 3-of-3. We saw some creative play-calling and utilizing the running backs more.
  • It took some time, but wide receiver Mike Williams finally found the end zone. He finished with a pair of catches for 63 yards. Wide receiver Keenan Allen had a strong outing, finishing with five receptions for 83 yards.
  • Up big in the fourth quarter, the backups got some snaps, including quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who finished 3-of-5 for 26 yards and a passing touchdown to tight end Virgil Green. We also saw some mobility at the position, as he ran the ball four times with a long of nine.
  • The defense was unable to force a fumble from quarterback Gardner Minshew, but they brought him down twice, both who came from defensive end Joey Bosa. Bosa now has 10.5 sacks.
  • The run defense department had its ups and downs. While they had their fair share of stops at or before the line of scrimmage, they were easily gashed in the trenches to create openings and they had a few missed tackles.

Up Next

The Chargers return to Dignity Health Sports Park to take on the Vikings on Sunday, Dec. 15 at 1:05 p.m. PT.

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Chargers’ offense needs rapid red zone improvement

The Chargers haven’t been able to close out games, but they also haven’t been able to score points.

The Los Angeles Chargers have found nearly every single way in the book to lose games. Each of their losses has been within seven points or less.

How are the Chargers getting so close to winning contests, but struggling to come out on top? One of the biggest issues that has required detailed attention all season, but has not improved is the Bolts’ inability to score points in the red zone.

It just so happens that’s where two of their games were lost — running back Melvin Gordon’s fumble vs. Titans and quarterback Philip Rivers’ game-ending interception against the Chiefs.

The team has been by haunted within their opponent’s 20-yard line by turnovers and simply settling for field goals, which is why the Chargers are No. 22 in scoring this year, averaging just 19.8 points a contest.

Through 12 games, the offense currently has a red zone efficiency of 46.34%, which is 26th in the league, per Team Rankings. For comparison, last year they had a percentage of 64.41%, which was eighth-best in the league.

“I think when you go back and look at certain things,” Steichen says. “Obviously, you want to put our guys in the best position. Sometimes, they make a play, but obviously, we have to do a better job of looking at what we’re doing. Whether it’s the situation where we’re running it or we’re throwing it.

Obviously, it’s a cat-and-mouse game when you’re playing against defensive coordinator. You might think he’s going to be in a two-deep shell and then he plays man. There’s that we have to do a better job of self-scouting and trying to see what they’re going to be in,” offensive coordinator Shane Steichen said on red zone woes.

One of the biggest issues is that they aren’t utilizing the right players. Wide receiver Keenan Allen is getting the majority of the looks, but it’s nearly always short of the sticks on quick slants or flats.

Allen, who is the best receiver on the team, is nearly always getting open but he may not be the top option on third-down situations in the red zone.

You’d think that the Chargers would take advantage of wide receiver Mike Williams’ size and leaping ability to finally help him score for the first time this season on jump ball situations. But they haven’t and instead have used him on shorter routes or teams are sitting in his routes because Rivers will stare him down from the get go.

And then there’s tight end Hunter Henry. Henry has gotten a fair share of red zone looks, a few of which have resulted in touchdowns. But it’s not on a consistent basis and lately he’s been running posts or crossing routes, which means that Rivers will read the linebackers and if he doesn’t like it, he’s going elsewhere which hasn’t been working.

Another reason why the team hasn’t been able to find success when the field shrinks is because far too often they seem to forget about running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler and rely heavily on Rivers to get the job done, especially within the five.

Lastly, which ties into all that’s been mentioned. Get creative with the play-calling to create mismatches and get players open. Despite this touchdown being just shy of the red zone, it shows what they need to do.

Ekeler and Gordon ran a route to the left, Gordon went into the flat and Ekeler on a wheel route up the sideline. It froze up the linebacker and Ekeler was wide open for the score.

The bottom line is that it’s puzzling that a team with so much talent on the offensive side of the ball has struggled to find an identity in the red zone. In order to be more efficient the Chargers need to do a better job with play-calling, route combinations to set up mismatches and run the ball more in tight quarters.

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Chargers’ final injury report vs. Jaguars in Week 14

The Los Angeles Chargers had their final practice on Friday before traveling to the east coast to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

The Los Angeles Chargers had their final practice on Friday before traveling to the east coast to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Here is a look at the final injury report with designations ahead of the Week 14 bout:

Both teams appear to be relatively healthy heading into this weekend’s matchup.

For the Chargers, linebacker Nick Dzubnar is the only one who is questionable with a concussion that he sustained in the loss to the Denver Broncos. Wide receiver Mike Williams was a full go after being limited with a knee injury on Thursday.

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Injury update: Chargers look healthy ahead of Week 14 matchup

The Los Angeles Chargers released their second injury report ahead of the Week 14 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday.

The Los Angeles Chargers had their second practice ahead of the Week 14 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday.

Here is a look at today’s injury report:

Wide receiver Mike Williams was the only player that was restricted due to a knee issue that he’s been dealing with for the majority of the season. Linebacker Thomas Davis was given his weekly veterans day off.

Here is a look at the Jaguars’ injury report:

The Chargers have one more practice on Friday before the injury designations are released before the Week 14 matchup.

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Good, bad, ugly from Chargers’ loss to Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez delivers the good, the bad and the ugly from the Chargers’ 23-20 loss to the Broncos.

The Los Angeles Chargers suffered a heartbreaking loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 13.

Here is the good, the bad and the ugly from the game:

The Good

WR Keenan Allen and Mike Williams

Quarterback Philip Rivers wasn’t great, but he wasn’t bad. But one of the biggest reasons why he was able to bounce back after an underwhelming start was because he benefited from Allen and Williams.

Allen got the best of cornerback Chris Harris Jr. and the rest of the secondary, winning with his savvy route running, including a beautiful corner route to get behind the coverage for a touchdown. Allen finished with six catches for 68 yards and a score.

Meanwhile, Williams continued to serve as the big playmaker for the offense, reeling in a couple deep passes, including one on a critical 4th-and-11 when he made an adjustment to come down with a one-handed grab to keep to drive going late in the game. He finished with five catches for 117 yards.

Linebackers

The group came together as one on Sunday, with all members making key plays. Rookie Drue Tranquill was all over the field, finishing with three tackles for loss. Second-year Kyzir White, who finally saw the field for an extended period, was a threat in pass coverage, finishing with a pass defended and was close to an interception. Denzel Perryman made the defensive play of the game when he intercepted a pass late in the game to set his team up for a field goal. Thomas Davis finished with six tackles.

Derwin James and Adrian Phillips

The return of James and Phillips was felt right away. James was utilized all over the field, but he was at his best filling in the alley to stop running back Phillip Lindsay, limiting him to 58 yards rushing. Phillips, on the other hand, was delivering hard hits all evening long and was a key contributor on third-down situations.

The Bad

Special teams

The Chargers let running back Troymaine Pope take over as the team’s punt returner after cornerback Desmond King struggled with fumbling the football. But Pope replicated King’s woes by muffing a punt in the second quarter, which ultimately led to a field goal.

Penalties

Linebacker Drue Tranquill’s roughing the kicker call could fall under the special teams category, but it was just one of many costly penalties committed by Los Angeles. In total, they were hit with seven for 82 yards, including a few false starts by offensive tackle Russell Okung

The Ugly

Defensive pass interference penalty

You never want to blame the officiating, but this is what it came down to. Cornerback Casey Hayward was hit a questionable penalty with seconds remaining in the game to set the Broncos up for the game-winning field goal. In reality, Hayward stayed in his tracks to make a play on the uncatchable ball, while wide receiver Courtland Sutton was the one who initiated the contact. They never reviewed the penalty, thus ending the game in what would’ve likely been an overturned call.

Game planning/Play-calling

You can blame one player, area or the penalty for the Chargers’ loss on Sunday but ultimately, it fell on the lack of execution with the planning, especially coming of a bye week and the play-calling as a whole. On the offensive side of ball, it was all vanilla and the red zone efficiency continues to be a problem, as they were 0-1 in a critical situation. The lone turnover by Rivers killed them, as it resulted in a touchdown. The defense played a great game as a whole, allowing only 219 yards. But the lack of pass rush and a few broken coverages bit them hard for two passing touchdowns.

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Instant analysis of Chargers’ 23-20 loss to Broncos

Chargers Wire’s Gavino Borquez delivers his thoughts from the Chargers’ 23-20 loss to the Broncos.

The Chargers were hit with another gut-punch on Sunday.

Los Angeles lost on a game-winning 53-yard field goal by Broncos kicker Brandon McManus as time expired. The field goal was set up by a questionable defensive pass interference call against cornerback Casey Hayward, putting Denver in field goal range.

With the loss, the Chargers drop to 4-8 on the season.

Here is our instant analysis from the Week 13 matchup.

Injury Report

There weren’t any notable injuries in today’s game.

Play of the Game: Mike Williams’ 38-yard reception

On 4th-and-11 with a little over two minutes left, Williams came up clutch again with a monstrous reception. He fell, got up and brought in the ball with his left hand over cornerback Isaac Yiadom.

Notable Number

17: 17 of the Chargers’ last 25 games have been decided by a single possession.

Quick Takes

  • Quarterback Philip Rivers looked like he was going to get benched in favor of Tyrod Taylor early on when he looked rattled and was missing his receivers, but he turned it around towards the end of the half when he found running back Austin Ekeler for the score.
  • Rivers’ second half was more promising. He benefitted from running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler in the short passing game, wide open receivers and big catches from his pass-catchers, including Williams’ reception on fourth-down.
  • It was evident with the 29 carries that the Chargers wanted to revolve around the running game to bring them success instead of having the same episode of the past two games. Running backs Melvin Gordon and Austin Ekeler combined for 115 yards (4.0 yards per carry)
  • Three sacks may suggest that it was a poor performance from the offensive line, but on two of them, Rivers had time to get rid of the ball and elected to walk into the pressure.
  • The battle between WR Keenan Allen and CB Chris Harris Jr. went in favor Allen, who had six receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown.
  • As for the matchup between CB Casey Hayward and WR Courtland Sutton, Sutton got the best of Hayward, as he amassed four receptions for 74 yards and two scores.
  • Despite what the scoreboard shows, the Chargers defense had a phenomenal outing, holding the Broncos to 218 total yards.
  • Led by linebacker Drue Tranquill and his three tackles for loss, Denver’s running game was held to 84 yards on the ground.
  • Safety Derwin James was used all over the field, but he made his biggest impact as a pass rusher, putting rookie Drew Lock under duress on a few plays. Adrian Phillips delivered some huge blows and came up big on third-down situations.

Up Next

The Chargers travel to Jacksonville to take on the Jaguars next Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1:05 p.m. PT.

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Chargers WR Mike Williams still seeking his first touchdown reception

Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams continues to make big plays, but he has still not scored this season.

Believe it or not, Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams has not posted a touchdown this season.

Following a campaign where he scored 11 times, Williams has not sniffed the end zone yet. Through 11 games, the former Clemson product has 33 catches for 661 yards, three yards shy from his total a season ago.

But Williams is still active, getting it done by doing what he does best, making acrobatic catches for big gains. He is currently second in the league with 20 yards per reception, and has six catches of 43 yards or more this season.

Quarterback Philip Rivers has been trying to make sure that his big-bodied target gets his, but it just hasn’t been there for Williams. He has 10 targets inside the red zone. He also has five targets inside the 10-yard line, but has not been able to punch it in.

“Touchdowns obviously not there. Zero with five games left. I mean, I’m capable of getting one a game. So that’s five, a few off from last year, but who’s to say I can’t come out and get three or two (per game)?

“You never know when those types of games hit. Mine kinda hit near each other last year, so the touchdowns kinda stood out. But this year, why can’t I have three for the rest of the season? Once you get that once, it just stacks. I haven’t even got that one yet,” Williams said.

Williams has been playing on a tender knee that he sustained in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts. He has missed one game, but that came when suffered a back injury against the Miami Dolphins.

From his play this season, you wouldn’t be able to tell that Williams has been banged up. The bye week that occurred should’ve been beneficial for him, as he had that time to rest his body and clear his mind before the final stretch.

It all starts on Sunday against the Broncos.

Williams has at least 55 yards receiving in his last three games and at least five receptions in the past two against Denver. Most likely lined up across from cornerback Isaac Yiadom, Williams will look to exploit his inexperience in the starting role and end his scoring drought.

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First injury report for Chargers ahead of matchup vs. Broncos

The Los Angeles Chargers released their first injury report ahead of the Week 13 matchup against the Denver Broncos.

Fresh off their bye, the Los Angeles Chargers started practicing to get ready for their Week 13 matchup against the Denver Broncos.

Here is a look at the first injury report of the week:

Every single player on the roster practiced in some sort of fashion Wednesday. There were four players that were limited participants — linebacker Thomas Davis (knee), wide receiver Mike Williams (knee) and offensive tackles Russell Okung (groin) and Sam Tevi (knee).

It’s promising to see Okung and Tevi back out on the field. Tevi, who had a minor procedure on his knee, has been out since Week 9. Meanwhile, Okung has missed the last two games. Trey Pipkins and Trent Scott have started in place of the two.

Williams dealt with a knee issue earlier this season. It’s likely that he will be good to go for Sunday’s contest, but it’s something worth monitoring throughout the course of the week.

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Targets, touches and touchdowns: Week 11

We are on to Week 11, and Thanksgiving – and the fantasy playoffs – are both coming up fast.

No better time than the present to take stock what’s gone down in the fantasy season so far, and we’ll do it today through the lens of 10 surprising statistics.

We are on to Week 11, and Thanksgiving – and the fantasy playoffs – are both coming up fast.

No better time than the present to take stock what’s gone down in the fantasy season so far, and we’ll do it today through the lens of 10 surprising statistics.

Let’s dig right in, starting with …

1. Through play Sunday, Packers’ Aaron Rodgers ranked sixth among fantasy quarterbacks with 220.8 total fantasy points (Huddle Performance scoring) but only has finished among the top 12 QBs in three weeks out of 10 on the season.

And one of those weeks wasn’t Week 10 as Rodgers totaled 12.3 fantasy points in a 24-16 win over the visiting Panthers on the snowy Lambeau Field tundra. That means Rodgers has had his second- and third-worst fantasy weeks of the season the last two games and they’ve come right after a three-week tear in which he averaged 33.7 points while throwing for 1,017 yards and accounting for 11 total touchdowns in Weeks 6-8. The bottom line is that Rodgers’ consistency is far from reliable with as many sub-13-point fantasy games as 30-point plus outings and a full 61.1 percent of his total fantasy points coming in just four of his 10 contests.

2. Since his first start in Week 3 Giants rookie Daniel Jones ranks fourth among all quarterbacks with 190.6 fantasy points.

Jones’ Giants came up short in the crosstown (East Rutherford, N.J.) battle against the Jets on Sunday, but he won the fantasy QB battle outscoring counterpart Sam Darnold 33.4-24.0. Jones’ point total was only topped Sunday by studs Lamar Jackson (35.6) and Patrick Mahomes (34.3) and gave the first-round Duke rookie three games of 33.4 points or more among his eight starts. In his other five starts, though, he hasn’t topped 19.9 points while averaging 16.9. In those three big games, Jones accounted for four TDs in each one with nary an interception. In his other five contests, he has five total TDs and eight interceptions, making Rodgers’ aforementioned swings seem almost normal by comparison. With the right matchup, though, Jones can deliver, making him a prime choice – as we detailed in this space a week ago – if you’re streaming QBs and shooting for elite upside

3. Baker Mayfield came out of Sunday tied for 24th among quarterbacks with nine touchdown passes in as many games played.

As most should remember, Mayfield tossed a rookie single-season record 27 scoring passes in 13 starts a season ago. Those fantasy general managers who selected Mayfield among the first five QBs in fantasy drafts this summer certainly do, but the Browns’ QB only delivered two startable (top 12) weekly QB finishes on the season while throwing three more interceptions (12) than scoring passes.  Sunday’s two scoring tosses marked his first multiple-TD-pass game of the season, but it resulted in 20 fantasy points, ranking him 13th among QBs in Week 10 and upping his season average to 17.7 per game (27th overall).

4. Sticking with the confounding and underperforming Browns, wide receiver Jarvis Landry owns more fantasy points in both standard (78.2-70.2) and point-per-reception (123.2-114.2) formats than fellow wideout Odell Beckham Jr. through nine games.

Many thought the Browns would straighten things out during their Week 7 bye, but Landry has outscored OBJ in each of the three games since then, scoring two TDs in back-to-back weeks, while Beckham remains stuck on one scoring grab, which came all the way back when the calendar still said it was summer (Week 2). In hitting a season-high, Beckham was targeted two more times than Landry (12-10) on Sunday and subsequently has two more on the season (79-77), but Landry has one more catch (45-44), 20 more receiving yards (652-632) and one more score – all to the continuing consternation of those who spent a top-two-round draft pick on OBJ this summer.

5. Packers wide receiver Davante Adams has totaled the second-most targets (57) in the league among players who have yet to notch a receiving TD.

Now, sure, Adams was sidelined with a toe injury and has missed four of the Pack’s 10 games, but this is a player who is coming off a three-year span where he ranked only behind Antonio Brown (36) with 35 touchdown grabs in 45 games – averaging .78 TDs per contest and a score every 11.6 targets. By those metrics, Adams should have around five scoring receptions right now but, instead, his lack of TDs has him ranked 31st among wideouts in terms of (standard) fantasy points per game. That said, Adams is a prime buy-low candidate if your league trade deadline has yet to arrive.

6. Chargers wideout Mike Williams is only one target behind Adams with 56 on the list of the league’s most-targeted players without a receiving score.

Yeah, we had Williams pegged for some serious TD regression after last season when 10 of his 66 targets and 43 receptions resulted in TDs – the only player in 2018 with eight or more receiving TDs and fewer than 57 receptions. But zero TDs on 56 targets and 31 receptions, including only catches on 10 red-zone targets to stand the only player with no scores among the 32 who came out of Sunday with nine or more targets inside the red zone? That’s a shocker for a still-imposing 6-foot-4, 220-pound target who has seen 12 of QB Philip Rivers’ 14 touchdown tosses go to RB Austin Ekeler (six), WR Keenan Allen (three) and TE Hunter Henry (three). We’re now expecting a Williams regression to the mean in the other direction.

7. Through Week 10, the Jaguars own the league’s most lopsided passing-to-rushing TD ratio at 14:1.

We don’t know if Gardner Minshew Mania (his 13 TD passes rank third among the league’s rookie/second-year QBs) or the second-year rise of WR D.J. Chark (six TD catches, tied for fourth among all players) are the culprits. But you can’t blame the Jags’ offensive philosophy (13th run-heaviest team at 41.9 percent) or the usage/effectiveness of RB Leonard Fournette who came out of Sunday tied for seventh in the league with 174 carries while his 4.78 yards-per-carry average ranks fifth among backs with at least 150 attempts. Fournette also was tied for seventh with 17 rushing attempts inside the opposition’s 10-yard line, but those carries shockingly have netted only four yards and his (and the team’s) one TD. It’s also why Fournette, who ranks fifth in rushing (831) and third in yards from scrimmage (1,126), ranks 11th among RBs in total standard-scoring fantasy points (118.6).

8. The Texans’ Duke Johnson leads all running backs with an average of 6.78 yards per touch.

That figure ranks 10th overall among all players, and despite averaging 5.31 yards per attempt on 54 rushes and 10.36 yards per catch on 22 receptions, Johnson ranked only 34th among running backs through Sunday with 91.5 total PPR points. Teammate Carlos Hyde is out-touching Johnson by more than a 2:1 ratio with 155 on the season, but the latter is averaging 2.10 more yards per touch and has the same number of TDs (three) while fumbling four fewer times (4-0) on 79 fewer touches. Perhaps Bill O’Brien and the Texans’ offensive brain trust took note of these very numbers during their Week 10 bye, and Johnson will at last start garnering a deservedly larger share of the team’s backfield workload down the stretch.

9. The Chiefs rank among the top four teams in scoring (28.4 points per game) and total offense (404.7 yards per game) but don’t have any running backs ranking among the league’s top 35 in terms of fantasy points per contest.

Yep, gone are the days of Priest Holmes, Larry Johnson, Jamaal Charles, Kareem Hunt and Damien Williams – at least 2018 Week 14 through the postseason Damien Williams – when rostering the lead K.C. running back had fantasy owners in near-automatic league-winning contention. Now we’re in a situation when Williams’ ho-hum 8.9-fantasy-point (standard) day led the way in Week 10 and ranked as the seventh-best fantasy outing by any Chiefs back on the season so far. It also upped Williams’ season average to 7.9 points per contest which ranks 36th among all RBs.

10. Through play Sunday, the Falcons’ Austin Hooper and the Texans’ Darren Fells are tied for the league tight end lead with six scoring receptions apiece.

To put that in proper perspective, that duo has as many total receiving scores this season as Travis Kelce, Evan Engram, Zach Ertz, George Kittle, O.J. Howard, David Njoku, Trey Burton, Ben Watson and Chris Herndon – combined. They also each lead their respective teams in scoring grabs by at least two – and no one needs to be reminded that these are teams, which feature WRs Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins, Will Fuller, Calvin Ridley and Kenny Stills. Hooper entered the season with 10 career TDs in three years and is on pace to match that total this year if his knee injury sustained Sunday in New Orleans doesn’t prove serious. The 6-7 Fells also came into 2019 with 10 career receiving scores – doing so in five seasons – but has definitely taken his game up a notch or three with QB Deshaun Watson distributing the rock in MVP-esque fashion.

EXTRA POINTS

  • Drew Brees and Jameis Winston each threw for at least 287 yards Sunday but combined for only one total TD on 106 total dropbacks at home against two of the worst passing defenses in the visiting Falcons and Cardinals. Go figure, on a day that featured plenty of duds from highly ranked players.
  • Since taking the reins in Tennessee in Week 7, the Titans’ Ryan Tannehill ranks third among QBs with 88.58 total fantasy points while rolling up 1,096 yards of total offense and accounting for nine total TDs and four turnovers.
  • It was too late for many of the fantasy GMs who drafted him this summer, but the Bucs’ Howard had 14.7 PPR points Sunday as he recorded his first TD catch of the season in the 30-27 shootout win over the Cardinals. In Tampa’s first eight games, including two Howard missed with a hamstring injury, he had totaled 30.6 fantasy points.
  • In making his 2019 debut with the Browns on Sunday after serving an eight-game personal-conduct suspension, Hunt had 11 touches, including seen receptions on nine targets, for 74 scoreless yards in a 19-16 win over the Bills. Starter Nick Chubb, meanwhile, had 21 yards on 22 touches, including two catches for five yards on four targets. Chubb played 57 of the team’s 70 offensive snaps (81 percent) while Hunt played 38 (54 percent), but it was the latter who finished with more fantasy points (14.7-14.1 in PPR formats.
  • If Raiders pass-catchers Tyrell Williams and Darren Waller seem like they’ve cooled off in recent weeks after hot starts, it’s because they have. After catching a TD pass in each of the first five games with his new team, Williams has been kept out the end zone the last two contests while catching 6-of-9 targets for 73 yards. Waller, meanwhile, was averaged 16.3 PPR points over his first seven games, reeling in 46-of-58 targets for 496 yards and three TDs but has totaled only 14.2 over his last two outings, catching 5-of-7 targets for 92 scoreless yards. Stay the course, though, as Williams and Waller remain the Raiders’ top aerial targets.
  • Ravens CB Marcus Peters leads all defensive players with three TDs and is one of five players – the Steelers’ Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Jets’ Jamal Adams, the Raiders’ Erik Harris and the Ravens’ Marlon Humphrey – with multiple non-offensive TDs through play Sunday. By comparison, OBJ, Fournette, Howard, Brandin Cooks, J. Moore, Adrian Peterson, Robert Woods and Dede Westbrook have each scored one TD apiece while Adams, Mike Williams, Ty Johnson, Dion Lewis, Jalen Richard, Giovani Bernard and Mark Walton are among the contingent still seeking their first foray into the end zone in 2019.
  • As much hype as the Patriots’ fantasy defense/special teams has received, the Steelers have closed the gap in recent weeks after putting forth another dominant game Sunday against the visiting Rams behind continued outstanding play from Defensive Player of the Year candidates T.J. Watt (9.5 sacks, four forced fumbles) and Fitzpatrick (tied for the league lead with five interceptions). Through Sunday, only the Panthers (with 36), had more sacks on the season than the Steelers’ 33, only the Pats (27) had more total takeaways than the Pittsburgh’s 26 and only the Ravens (five), Pats (four) and Jets (four) owned more defensive TDs than the Steelers’ three. Favorable matchups await the Pittsburgh D down the stretch as well, with games against the Browns (twice), Bengals, Bills and Jets among the team’s final seven contests. Swoop up the Steelers D/ST ASAP if they’re available on your league waiver wire.