Tunnel Vision of Week 6

Tunnel Vision – a look back at Sunday for fantasy free agents, injuries and notable performances.

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass-Rush TD
Kirk  Cousins 373 – 16 3
 Matthew Stafford 251 – 12 4
 Jalen Hurts 115 – 44 3
 Patrick Mahomes 397 – 31 2
 Dak Prescott 445 – 10 2
Running Backs Yards TD
Jonathan Taylor 14-145 rush
1-13 catch
2
Leonard Fournette 22-81 rush
6-46 catch
2
Darrell Henderson 18-94 rush
5-59 catch
2
Joe Mixon 18-94 rush
3-27 catch
1
Darrel Williams 21-62 rush
3-27 catch
2
Wide Receivers Yards TD
Cooper Kupp 9-130 2
CeeDee Lamb 9-149 1
Adam Thielen 11-126 1
Jaylen Waddle 10-70 2
D. Peoples-Jones 4-101 2
Tight Ends Yards TD
Noah Fant 9-97 1
Mike Gesicki 8-115 0
Travis Kelce 8-99 0
Mark Andrews 5-68 1
O.J. Howard 6-49 1
Placekickers XP FG
Matt Prater 4 3
Greg Zuerlein 2 3
Matthew Wright 2 3
Chris Boswell 2 3
Daniel Carlson 4 2
Defense Sack – TO TD
Colts 2 – 3 0
Raiders 5 – 4 0
Rams 4 – 4 0
Cowboys 2 – 2 1
Cardinals 5 – 3 0

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

QB Baker Mayfield – Shoulder
QB Dak Prescott – Calf
RB Latavius Murray – Ankle
RB Kareem Hunt – Calf
RB Antonio Gibson – Shin
WR Odell Beckham – Shoulder
WR Kadarius Toney – Ankle
WR C.J. Board – Arm
WR Parris Campbell – Foot
WR T.Y. Hilton – Quad
WR Terrace Marshall – Concussion
WR Chris Conley – Neck

Chasing Ambulances

QB Baker Mayfield (CLE) – Said that he dislocated the shoulder on his non-throwing arm, and it slipped out during a non-contact play. Mayfield says he will play through the injury, and the Browns have lost most of their receivers anyway.

QB Dak Prescott (DAL) – Injured his calf at the end of the win over the Patriots. The Cowboys are on bye, so he’ll have two weeks to heal up.

RB Latavius Murray (BAL) – Injured his  ankle and had to limp off the field. Head coach John Harbaugh said he did not think it was “overly serious,” but more information should be known at least by Wednesday at the latest. The Ravens already have a committee backfield, so missing Murray won’t make Devonta Freeman, Le’Veon Bell, or Ty ‘Son Williams become more relevant. Williams might be active for game day if Murray was to miss any time.

RB Kareem Hunt (CLE) – The Browns were already without Nick Chubb (calf), and then Hunt was carted off the field with a calf injury. The severity will be determined on Monday but the problem is that the Browns play on Thursday night. There may not be time for Chubb or Hunt to be healthy enough to play. D’Ernest Johnson would likely be the primary rusher, despite only three runs on the year. Demetric Felton could see an uptick from his standard two receptions each week. The Browns face the visiting Broncos, who feature one of the best rushing defenses, so it may not matter much in any case.

RB Antonio Gibson (WAS) – He was  already questionable with a lingering shin injury, but Gibson re-aggravated it after ten carries. If he misses Week 7 at the Packers, or even if he continues to be limited, J.D. McKissic will handle the backfield needs. He already ran eight times for 45 yards against the Chiefs and caught a season-high eight passes for 65 yards. He’s already a fantasy option in reception point leagues but rises in value if Gibson is not healthy this week.

WR Odell Beckham (CLE) – Injured his shoulder during a catch and left the field. He jogged to the locker room to be further evaluated. Beckham returned later in the second half, so the injury is not considered serious, but Beckham has a history of shoulder issues.

WR Kadarius Toney (NYG) – After blowing up in Week 5, the rookie rolled his right  ankle in the first quarter and did not return. This was the same ankle that he tweaked the previous game and was questionable to play the Rams. He passed a pregame medical check but re-aggravated the injury.

WR T.Y. Hilton (IND) – He led the Colts with four catches for 80 yards in his 2021 debut but went down with a quad injury and then walked off on his own. Hilton said  he did not believe it was serious, so pending unexpected bad news, Hilton should be available to play at the 49ers this week. It is encouraging that he stepped in and immediately assumed the No. 1 receiver role.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

QB Tua Tagovailoa (MIA)  – Returned from injured reserve, and his broken ribs appeared to be healed when he ran for 22 yards on three rushes. He also threw for 329 yards and two scores to Jaylen Waddle. What was just as good as seeing him immediately renew his connection with Waddle was that he also threw for 115 yards and eight catches to Mike Gesicki, And it was with Will Fuller and Davante Parker out.

WR Jamal Agnew (JAC) – When DJ Chark was lost for the year, it was assumed that Laviska Shenault would benefit most. For the last two games, Shenault caught seven passes while Agnew totaled 11 receptions.  Shenault still fields more targets, but Agnew’s gaining more value the last two weeks.

WR Rashod Bateman (BAL) – Had his first NFL game and while he ended with only 35 yards on four catches, what is notable is that his six targets tied with Mark Andrews for the team-high. Lamar Jackson only threw 27 passes, so the rookie fielded better than one in every five passes. And the Ravens had limited reasons to pass in the blowout win over the Chargers. This week hosting the Bengals will be a critical divisional matchup, and Bateman is quickly integrating into the offense.

RB Chuba Hubbard (CAR) – Christian McCaffrey landed on injured reserve for at least three weeks, but the Panthers appear to be in good hands with the rookie Hubbard. He ran for 61 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries versus the Vikings and added one catch for four yards. Hubbard handled all but one carry for the backfield. The next couple of matchups are at the Falcons and Giants. Hubbard caught as many as five passes in a game, and that role should help support his fantasy value until McCaffrey returns.

RB Khalil Herbert (CHI) – The former third-string back got the start in Week 6 and ran for 97 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. He added two receptions for 15 yards and handled every backfield touch.

RB Chris Evans (CIN) – Samaje Perine was out on the COVID-19 list, and that allowed the sixth-round rookie out of Michigan to increase his playing time in the win over the Lions. Joe Mixon had a big day in Detroit, but Evans (4-18) saw his first work as a rusher, and added three catches for 49 yards and his first NFL touchdown. He looked good enough that he could start to see more use and muddle the backup role behind Mixon.

QB Jared Goff (DET) – The Lions now have the added pressure of being the only winless team. And head coach Dan Campbell was not pleased with his starting quarterback Jared Goff despite couching his postgame press conference in mostly “whole team” terms. He said that Goff needs to step it up after he posted just 202 yards and one interception on the blowout loss to the visiting Bengals. He’s unlikely to be benched since David Blough isn’t likely the answer either. And he’s been given one of the youngest, most mediocre sets of wide receivers.  The Lions play at the Rams this week, and the losing streak sounds like the Lions are reaching the point of “we gotta do something different because this isn’t working.”

QB Matt Stafford (LAR) – Matt Stafford just threw four touchdowns at the Giants, and that’s the second time in four games he’s accomplished it. He’s hitting a very sweet spot in the schedule with his next games going against the Lions, Texans, and Titans. He’s thrown for two touchdowns to Cooper Kupp in three of the last five weeks.

WR Sterling Shepard / Kadarius Toney (NYG) – The rookie Toney only caught three passes but left in the first quarter with a re-aggravated ankle injury. But Sterling Shepard returned from his hamstring injury and caught a team-high ten passes for 76 yards. In the three full games that he played, he’s averaged nine catches for 93 yards.

RB Darrel Williams (KC) – Clyde Edwards-Helaire injured his MCL and landed on injured reserve for at least another two weeks. So far, the offense is in capable hands with Darrel Williams. He ran for 62 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries at Washington and added three catches for 27 yards. Jerick McKinnon was limited to only four touches. The Chiefs play the Titans and Giants next, so Williams will remain a fantasy option while Edwards-Helaire is out. The coaches trust Williams.

 WR Donovan Peoples-Jones (CLE) – The Browns keep losing wide receivers with Jarvis Landry out again in Week 6 and Odell Beckham missing the first two games and then getting nicked up the last few weeks. Peoples-Jones stepped up in Week 5 with five catches for 70 yards at the Chargers and then led the Browns with four receptions for 101 yards and two scores in the loss to the Cardinals on Sunday. His second score was a 57-yard Hail Mary touchdown that ended the first half, so don’t be too impressed with his yardage total. Jarvis Landry was activated from injured reserve and should return for Week 7 which would reduce the workload for Peoples-Jones.

RB Rhamondre Stevenson / Brandon Bolden (NE) – When James White was lost for the season, it initially appeared that Brandon Bolden was taking his place when he totaled ten catches over Weeks 4 and 5. But against the Cowboys, Bolden only ran once for a one-yard loss and caught a three-yard pass. Rhamondre Stevenson ran five times for 23 yards and a touchdown, plus caught three passes for 39 yards. And that was in a very close game where every play mattered.  The Jets show up this weekend and bring one of the worst defenses against running backs, so maybe starting Stevenson is safe? Damien Harris is the clear primary back and ran 18 times for 101 yards and a score against the Cowboys, but Stevenson appears to be working his way into being the No. 2 running back.

RB Alex Collins (SEA) – Chris Carson landed on injured reserve a few days ago, so he’ll miss the next two home games against the Saints and Jaguars.  But Alex Collins replaced him this week and ran for 101 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries at the Steelers against the No. 5 defense against running backs. The Seahawks rarely use their running backs as receivers, and DeeJay Dallas takes whatever minor third-down duty there is. But Collins looked sharp and now has two home games before their Week 9 bye.

QB Geno Smith (SEA) – Sunday night was the first time in a decade that the Seahawks started someone different than Russell Wilson. Smith debuted in a road game at the Steelers and only passed for 209 yards and one score. And with a very costly fumble that lost the game and he was sacked five times.  These next two home games against the Saints and Jaguars should get Smith much-needed time with his receivers, but he only completed 23-of-32 passes and surprisingly had no role as a rusher. Downgrades to the receiver’s prospects are realistic. Tyler Lockett caught just two passes for 35 yards, and DK Metcalf settled for just 58 yards on six receptions.

Huddle player of the week

Matthew Wright  –  The undrafted kicker filled in for the Steelers for three games last season and then was signed by the Jaguars after they  lost Josh Lambo a few weeks back. His first two starts saw him with four-of-five field extra-point attempts, and he missed his only field goal attempt.J.D. McKissic

Then he went to London.

He made a 40-yarder in the second quarter.

He made a 54-yarder with 3:40 left to play that tied the score.

He made a 53-yarder as time expired to beat the Dolphins and end the 20-game losing streak.

Salute!

Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to cry

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Teddy Bridgewater 343 3 QB Justin Herbert 207 1
RB Kenyan Drake 73 2 RB Antonio Gibson 44 0
RB Rhamondre Stevenson 62 1 RB Austin Ekeler 55 0
WR D. Peoples-Jones 101 2 WR Mike Evans 27 0
WR K.J. Osborn 78 1 WR Mike Williams 27 0
WR Marvin Jones 100 1 WR Terry McLaurin 28 0
TE Ricky Seals-Jones 58 1 TE Evan Engram 24 0
PK Matthew Wright   2 XP  3  FG PK Tristan Vizcaino   nada
Huddle Fantasy Points = 139 Huddle Fantasy Points = 31

Now get back to work…