Burning Questions: Week 7
It’s hard to believe we enter the midway point of the fantasy season. And yet here we are tackling another week of “Burning Questions” following up recent news, fantasy performances, and implications for owners moving forward. Follow our contributors for this week’s Burning Questions: Keaton Denlay (@keatondenlay), Eric Ludwig (@FF_Gouge), Brooks Carmean (@brookscarmean) and Kyle Borgognoni (@kyle_borg)
1. Whose performance should owners be capitalizing and selling high on after Week 6?
“Golden Tate. Tate has been a major disappointment this season but in Week 6 Tate more than doubled his season fantasy point output. He needed a bizarre shootout in which Detroit was without Theo Riddick and Eric Ebron to do it. Sell him to your league mates as having turned his season around (he hasn’t).” -Keaton Denlay
“Jordan Howard has made the most of his opportunities against poor run defenses, but a TD was the only thing that saved him yesterday and Jeremy Langford is getting close to coming back. I think Howard is the better RB, but we’re talking about John Fox so we’ll probably see more of a RBBC going forward.” -Eric Ludwig
“Maybe not a popular opinion but I would see what I could get for Jonathan Stewart. The Panthers are not the high-powered machine we saw last season, so he might struggle to find the end zone when they aren’t playing teams like the Saints. I hate to predict injury but we all know Jonathan Stewart’s history; he’s missed 40% of games since 2012, and already 50% of the games this season. Carolina has a much needed Bye in Week 7- Go for the double bonus by selling him NOW for someone who has already had their Bye.” -Brooks Carmean
“I would be taking Terrance West’s 123 total yards and 2 TDs against the Giants and trying to sell someone that this guy is a high-end RB2 for the ROS. He has exceeded expectations so far but I feel like Kenneth Dixon is still the most talented player in that backfield. With an upcoming schedule of the Jets and a bye week, I think this is as high as West can fly. If he’s a luxury on your team, consider trading West for a WR2.” -Kyle Borgognoni
2. Can Cody Kessler or Case Keenum be legitimate streaming candidates ROS?
“Kessler and Keenum have performed well in recent weeks, but the depth at the QB position likely means they will not receive a ranking in the top 20 on a weekly basis. You could use them in a pinch but I guarantee you’ll have better options available to you.” -Keaton Denlay
“You’d have to be pretty desperate to look to either of these QBs, but Kessler has played well and he’s a rookie so improvement is probable. I don’t see where I ever trust Keenum even in a plus matchup.” -Eric Ludwig
“Simply put- can’t do it. Unless it’s a 2QB league or other teams are hoarding quarterbacks on their roster, I’m certainly still not ready to throw either of these guys into my lineup.” -Brooks Carmean
“This is a QB apocalypse when Kessler and Keenum end up as QB1s the same week. According to FantasyPros, no expert ranked these guys higher than 23rd and 16th respectively. So I’m not expecting more monster performances from these two. They are GPP plays at best in DFS and I can’t recommend them as viable streaming options week to week unless you play in a 2QB format.” -Kyle Borgognoni
3. Which team’s RB production was most surprising in Week 6?
“The Cincinnati Bengals. Giovani Bernard out-carried Jeremy Hill once again (15-13). But the most surprising development was that Bernard out-touched Hill 5 to 1 inside the opponent’s 10-yard line. If this continues it will be a nightmare scenario for Hill owners.” -Keaton Denlay
“I’ll skip the more obvious answers and go Demarco Murray. He’s been tearing it up and then Cleveland comes to town and Murray only manages 65 yards on 21 carries with no receptions? I’ll need to see the tape, but that’s a disappointing performance.” -Eric Ludwig
“I was away from home this weekend, so a big part of Sunday was spent driving back home while listening to NFL Redzone through the phone. However, in no way did that stop me from sit-dancing when Jay Ajayi, MY GUY, blew up against the Steelers for 204 yards and 2TDs. He’s the first to reach 200+ yards in a game this year. Arian who?” -Brooks Carmean
“Jay Ajayi’s 204 yards and 2 TDs was simply mind-boggling when you consider the time share we all thought was there in Miami. Aside for him, I also want to point out Spencer Ware’s 131 yards on the ground for the Chiefs. It was clear that the Chiefs were comfortable riding out their victory with Ware carrying the ball 15 more times than Jamaal Charles. He was impressive as a clock killer and chain mover. This platoon will be one to watch.” -Kyle Borgognoni
4. Who had one of your favorite stat lines of the weekend and why?
“The Buffalo Bills rushing attack impressed me the most in Week 6. As a team, Buffalo had 312 rushing yards on 44 carries with 4 TDs (7.1 YPC). They absolutely stampeded through a suspect Niners defense that had to make the dreaded coast to coast trip. Their 312 yards was the most this season by any team (the next closest was Tennessee with 235 yards last week).
Honorable mention: Dontari Poe- 1 carry, 1 yard, 1 TD.” -Keaton Denlay
“Sometimes you see teams manufacture touches for playmaker WRs with rushes or gadget plays, but I don’t recall teams doing it for a TE. Not only was Coby Fleener targeted 7 times, he had a goal line rush for a TD. 2 rushing yards and 1TD to go with a 6/74/1 receiving line is a pretty sweet stat line for fantasy owners and a positive sign for Fleener’s outlook.” -Eric Ludwig
“I’ll go with Cole Beasley, or as Mike ‘The Hitman’ Wright has been calling him for a few weeks now, ‘Dallas’ #1 WR.’ He finished Week 6 with 6 catches for 58 yards and 2 scores on 6 targets. So far on the season, in half point per reception leagues, he’s one spot and roughly one point behind Odell Beckham Jr. in total fantasy points among WRs.” -Brooks Carmean
“Case Keenum went a perfect 18-for-18 in the third quarter as he shredded the Lions and tied up the ball game. He was hyper-efficient for the game going 27-of-32 for 321 yards, 3 passing TDs, and a rushing TD although he finished in typical Rams fashion with an interception to close it out. It goes to show that any QB playing against a bottom 5 defense in a dome environment can put up a top 5 performance. Case Keenum people!” -Kyle Borgognoni