Biggest Week 6 Studs and Stinkers (Fantasy Football)
With Week 6 mostly in the books, The Fantasy Footballers review and react to the Studs & Duds performances on the latest episode. Here, I’ll highlight the best and worst fantasy finishes from Week 6 and list their upcoming schedule. Note that all fantasy points are in the 0.5-point scoring format. To get the full breakdown of Week 6 performances, don’t miss Week 6 Studs & Stinkers + Weekly Rewind, Mike the Tatman.
Biggest Studs
Stefon Diggs, WR Vikings
Week 6 vs PHI: 7 receptions for 167 yards & 3 TD on 11 targets
Upcoming Schedule: @DET, WAS, @KC
Diggs showed up in Week 6 with the 8th best performance by any fantasy player so far in 2019 (40 pts). In fact, he scored more in Week 6 than he did in the previous five weeks combined. The Vikings looked great Sunday and beat the Eagles through the air, which is a change from their previous offensive approach: run it, run it, and then run it again. Diggs was the main weapon in Week 6, and he looked electric. This comes after a strange few weeks of Diggs trade rumors and him missing practices. The Diggs experience in 2019 has been a roller coaster, with only one other week above double-digit points. Diggs’ talent has never been in question, although his usage has been all over the place. Fortunately for him, Cousins looked pretty solid this past week and fantasy owners are optimistic that this is a sign of things to come. Coming off a huge week, Diggs is a must-start until proven otherwise.
Matt Ryan, QB Falcons
Week 6 @ ARI: 30/36 for 356 passing yards & 4 TD
Upcoming Schedule: LAR, SEA, BYE
Ryan is the QB5 through the first six weeks this season despite playing some challenging defenses and dealing with an atrocious offensive line. Ryan was an absolute stud in Week 6 and paced all QB in points. Ryan has thrown for over 300 yards each of his six games this season. Additionally, he’s thrown for at least three touchdowns in four of his six games in 2019. Ryan is about as consistent and solid as you could ask for. He should continue to produce for fantasy owners and remains a plug and play option this season. However, his playoff schedule (CAR, @SF, JAX) appears to be one of the most challenging among QB…although a lot can change in the next two months.
James Conner
Week 4 @ LAC: 16 rushes for 41 yards & 1 TD | 7 receptions for 78 yards & 1 TD on 7 targets
Upcoming Schedule: BYE, MIA, IND, LAR
Prior to Week 6, Conner only scored more than 12 points once in 2019, which has been extremely disappointing for fantasy owners who drafted him at his average draft position (ADP) of 1.06. However, looking closer…Conner’s worst two weeks were against the two undefeated NFL teams, which both have incredible defenses: the San Francisco 49ers and the New England Patriots. Just when fantasy experts thought they figured him out, Conner destroyed expectations. He looked like a stud in his primetime Sunday night matchup against a respectable Chargers defense. Keep in mind that Conner did this on a Steelers offense led by third-string QB Devlin Hodges. Conner looked like a great player (mostly in the passing game) on Sunday in a situation that didn’t do him any favors. Conner remains an RB2 moving forward, but owners should feel safer with Conner’s floor moving forward. It’s reassuring to see he can still have boom games on the injured Steelers.
Biggest Stinkers
Gardner Minshew II, QB Jaguars
Week 6 vs NO: 14/29 for 162 passing yards, 0 TD, & 1 INT
Upcoming Schedule: @CIN, NYJ, HOU
Minshew Mania came to a halt as Minshew failed to achieve at least eighteen fantasy points for the first time in 2019. In fact, he only put up 6.2 points (4-point TD scoring). Minshew has been one of the most exhilarating players to watch in 2019, but it’s concerning that the “safe floor king” disappointed in a week against a middle-of-the-pack Saints defense. I still believe in Minshew moving forward.
Melvin Gordon, RB Chargers
Week 6 vs PIT: 8 rushes for 18 yards | 3 receptions for 30 yards on 4 targets
Austin Ekeler, RB Chargers
Week 6 vs PIT: 5 rushes for 14 yards | 3 receptions for 14 yards on 4 targets
Upcoming Schedule: @TEN, @CHI, GB
The Chargers struggled against the Steelers in what was the second most surprising upset of the week (Jets win was #1). Both Gordon and Ekeler disappointed fantasy owners in a matchup that was expected to shed light on their roles in this offense moving forward. Now, it remains unclear who is the more valuable player in fantasy, although Gordon received a few more carries. Both players are must starts moving forward, although the upcoming matchups are going to be very challenging. I expect Gordon to emerge as the more valuable player over the next several weeks, but both may be good trade targets if they continue to struggle in their upcoming tough matchups.
Cooper Kupp, WR Rams
Week 6 vs SF: 4 receptions for 17 yards on 6 targets
Brandin Cooks, WR Rams
Week 6 vs SF: 3 receptions for 18 yards on 3 targets | 2 rushes for 14 yards
Upcoming Schedule: @ATL, CIN, BYE, @PIT
Every Rams player struggled on Sunday versus a tough 49ers matchup despite being at home. The 49ers appear to be the real deal, especially on defense. This was the first week under 15 points for Kupp since Week 1, bringing him back down to earth. Meanwhile, Cooks recorded his third game this season under seven points. Cooks has been up and down, so this is less surprising for him than it is for Kupp. The Rams should rebound in the upcoming weeks and Kupp remains a top-5 WR for the remainder of the season.
Other Week 6 Studs
QB
- Lamar Jackson vs CIN — 21/33 for 236/0/0 — 19/152/1 rushing
- @SEA, BYE, NE, @CIN
- Deshaun Watson @KC — 30/42 for 280/1/2 — 10/42/2 rushing
- @IND, OAK, @JAX, BYE
- Russell Wilson @CLE — 23/33 for 295/2/0 — 9/31/1 rushing
- BAL, @ATL, TB
- Kyler Murray vs ATL — 27/37 for 340/3/0 — 11/32/0 rushing
- @NYG, @NO, SF
- Kirk Cousins vs PHI — 22/29 for 333/4/1
- @DET, WAS, @KC
RB
- Nick Chubb vs SEA — 20/122/2 — 5/17/0 on 6 targets — 1 fumble
- BYE, @NE, @DEN, BUF
- David Johnson🎶vs ATL — 12/34/1 — 6/68/1 on 8 targets
- @NYG, @NO, SF
- Devonta Freeman @ARI — 19/88/0 — 3/30/2 on 3 targets
- LAR, SEA, BYE, @NO
- Ezekiel Elliott @NYJ — 28/105/1 — 5/47/0 on 6 targets
- PHI, BYE, @NYG, MIN
- Chris Carson @CLE — 24/124/1 — 4/35/0 on 4 targets
- BAL, @ATL, TB
- Christian McCaffrey @TB — 22/31/1 — 4/26/1 on 5 targets
- BYE, @SF, TEN, @GB
WR
- Terry McLaurin @MIA — 4/100/2 on 7 targets
- SF, @MIN, @BUF, BYE
- Chris Godwin vs CAR — 10/151/0 on 12 targets
- BYE, @TEN, @SEA, ARI
- Tyreek Hill vs HOU — 5/80/2 on 10 targets
- @DEN (Thurs), GB, MIN
- Curtis Samuel vs TB — 4/70/1 on 6 targets — 1/8/1 rushing
- BYE, @SF, TEN, @GB
- Alshon Jeffery @MIN — 10/76/1 on 12 targets
- @DAL, @BUF, CHI, BYE
- Robby Anderson vs DAL — 5/125/1 on 8 targets
- NE, @JAX, @MIA
- Golden Tate @NE — 6/102/1 on 9 targets
- ARI, @DET, DAL
TE
- Hunter Henry vs PIT — 8/100/2 on 9 targets
- @TEN, @CHI, GB
- Austin Hooper @ARI — 8/117/1 on 8 targets
- LAR, SEA, BYE, @NO
- George Kittle @LAR — 8/103/0 on 8 targets
- @WAS, CAR, @ARI,
- Mark Andrews vs CIN — 6/99/0 on 8 targets
- @SEA, BYE, NE, @CIN
Other Week 6 Stinkers
QB
- Jared GARF vs SF — 13/24 for 78/0/0 — 1 fumble
- @ATL, CIN, BYE, @PIT
RB
- Joe Mixon @BAL — 8/10/0 — 2/29/0 on 3 targets
- JAX, @LAR, BYE, BAL
- Entering Week 6, Joe Mixon had been STUFFED on 28.8% (of rushing attempts this season (highest in NFL) League Avg: 18.6%
- Derrick Henry @DEN — 15/28/0 — 1/5/0 on 3 targets
- LAC, TB, @CAR
- Malcolm Brown vs SF — 11/40/0 — zero targets
- @ATL, CIN, BYE, @PIT
- (No Gurley)
- Darrell Henderson – 6/39/0 — 1/9/0 on 2 targets
- Jordan Howard @MIN — 13/49/0
- @DAL, @BUF, CHI, BYE
WR
- Keenan Allen — 2/33/0 on 6 target
- @TEN, @CHI, GB
- JuJu Smith-Schuster @LAC — 1/7/0 on 4 targets
- BYE, MIA, IND, LAR
- Tyler Boyd @BAL — 3/10/0 on 7 targets
- JAX, @LAR, BYE, BAL
- D.J. Chark vs NO — 3/43/0 on 7 targets
- @CIN, NYJ, HOU, BYE
- Michael Gallup @NYJ — 4/48/0 on 7 targets
- PHI, BYE, @NYG
- Jarvis Landry vs SEA — 3/36/0 on 5 targets
- BYE, @NE, @DEN, BUF
TE
- Gerald Everett vs SF — 2/9/0 on 5 targets
- @ATL, CIN, BYE, @PIT
- *Cooks was active
- O.J. Howard vs CAR — 2/35/0 on 4 targets
- BYE, @TEN, @SEA, ARI
- *Brate TD
- Delanie Walker @DEN — 3/43/0 on 6 targets
- LAC, TB, @CAR