Week 4 Fantasy Football Dynasty Report
While Fantasy Football can be extremely frustrating at times due to its volatility, it’s important to take a step back from time to time and remember how much fun it can be.
The sense of camaraderie you have with your league mates, the sense of accomplishment you have when you chose the right players to start, etc. all go together to make up this game that we all (I’m assuming you do) love so much.
Yes, Week 4 produced some weird fantasy point leaders. Yes, you most likely got frustrated with the lack of production your “stars” put up for you. However, remember why Fantasy Football is fun and how we all have room to grow.
With that in mind, it’s time to recap Week 4 from a Dynasty perspective and take a look at how we can make improvements going into Week 5. It’s not always going to be huge point totals for your team, but the important thing is to stay the course, make subtle tweaks and come back prepared to make the best-educated decisions for next week.
Let’s dive in.
Dynasty Tip Of The Week
Take Advantage of Fandom. The odds are that every person in your Dynasty leagues is an avid fan of an NFL team. Whether it’s the Atlanta Falcons or the Washington Redskins, avid fandom is alive and well in your league mates. Sometimes this fandom can play into your favor…
Most people are aware that fandom can be a tiebreaker in redraft league trades. A diehard Philadelphia Eagles fan may be willing to overspend a little bit to ensure that he gets Zach Ertz, Carson Wentz, etc. on his roster. This translates to Dynasty leagues as well, but not only in the way you might think.
Don’t forget to take College Football allegiances into account when discussing trades. Odds are that there are diehard Ohio State, Wisconsin, Alabama, Georgia, etc. College Football fans in your leagues. This can come into play when discussing incoming rookies and the weight of a certain draft pick that’s being tossed around as a possibility. If an owner in your league is a diehard Wisconsin Badgers fan, they may be willing to overspend a bit on your projected 2020 1st round pick to ensure that they have a shot at getting Jonathan Taylor.
Don’t be afraid to lean into this a bit as you understand your league mates more and more. Being able to leverage their fandom when engaged in trade discussions is an underrated “card” to play. Keep up with the projected incoming rookies next season and don’t be afraid to play that card when the time is right. It may wind up with you getting the player you wanted.
Dynasty Stock Report
Stock Up: Jordan Howard – Philadelphia Eagles, RB
As a Bears fan, I was so happy to see Jordan Howard go off for a huge game on Thursday Night Football.
Fly, Jordan Fly! 👟💨
Jordan Howard's 3 TDs + 115 yards led the @Eagles to a HUGE win at Lambeau last night. #FlyEaglesFly @JHowardx24 pic.twitter.com/LamS8YrgCf
— NFL (@NFL) September 27, 2019
Howard showed great balance, power, vision and burst on Thursday against a highly touted Packers defense. He shredded them for big gains repeatedly and was clearly the better back between himself and Miles Sanders.
Howard’s been a hold for me all offseason in Dynasty leagues due to the expectation that he’ll hit the open market next season and be a bell-cow back again. We can’t neglect the production Howard put up his first two seasons as a first and second down bruiser. He’s putting together some nice tape in Philadelphia that will compel an RB-needy team (Buffalo or LA Chargers, perhaps?) to bring him in next offseason and give him the rock.
After a performance like the one Howard had on Thursday, he deserves a nod in the Dynasty Stock Report section.
Stock Down: Sammy Watkins – Kansas City Chiefs, WR
Well, it’s been a roller coaster of a ride so far owning Sammy Watkins. Week 1, he exploded and you felt like you had the WR1 for the rest of the season on your hands.
However, if you remove Week 1 from Watkins’ stats, he’s been an average Fantasy Football contributor. While he hasn’t necessarily hurt your team, you haven’t experienced top-end production after rolling him out week after week.
Watkins’ chances of a huge “blow up” game are only going to diminish the closer Tyreek Hill gets to return to the field. If you sold him after Week 1 for a pot of gold, congratulations! The sell-high window on Watkins seems to be closing quickly though.
Stock Up: Leonard Fournette – Jacksonville Jaguars, RB
225. That’s the amount of rushing yards Leonard Fournette put up against the Denver Broncos defense on Sunday.
Leonard Fournette trying to put the Jaguars on his back 😡
(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/P9inyLVllx
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 29, 2019
This was the Fournette performance we’ve been waiting forever since he came out of LSU. While he didn’t deliver a touchdown, Fournette was a beast and showed the traits that had people drooling over his potential coming out of college.
While the Jags offense is unlikely to put up the number of rushing yards it did this past Sunday consistently moving forward, it’s a great sign for Fournette and his Dynasty outlook. If you’ve held onto him ever since his rookie season, you should be celebrating this performance in a big way.
There’s a reason to be hesitant about this type of production week after week, but it’s a step in the right direction. Let’s see if he can deliver again next week against the Carolina Panthers.
Stock Down: Adam Thielen – Minnesota Vikings, WR
Right now, the Vikings passing attack can’t get anything going.
While Thielen is a phenomenal talent, and we saw what he can do for fantasy last season, Kirk Cousins is struggling mightily. Of course, this affects his wide receivers and Thielen is not returning the value that you were ultimately hoping for this season.
Thielen most likely cost you a win on Sunday when he put up a 2/6/0 stat line. Dynasty owners are becoming more and more frustrated and they’re beginning to question whether or not they can trust him in their starting lineups.
With the Vikings committed to running the ball, plus the combination of Cousins struggling, Thielen’s Dynasty stock is plummeting. While it’s not because of his own deficiencies, Thielen is not returning the value you need in 2019. His stock is down until Cousins can prove he can step up.
Stock Up: A.J. Brown – Tennessee Titans, WR
I loved AJ Brown’s talent and tape coming out of college. I hated his landing spot.
However, on Sunday, AJ Brown displayed the run after the catch ability that made me fall in love with his talent at Ole Miss.
AJ Brown hit the Falcons with the hesi, changed direction and took it for 6️⃣
(via @Titans)pic.twitter.com/C2jgL4Chf3
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) September 29, 2019
Brown finished the game with a 3/94/2 stat line and looked dominant in a game where the Titans steamrolled the Falcons.
While I do not believe that you can put Brown in your starting lineups week after week due to the inconsistencies of Marcus Mariota, the arrow is certainly pointing up for the rookie. He remains one of my targets at the trade deadline to go acquire. If the Titans move on from Mariota in the offseason, which I expect them to do, Brown could jump into fantasy stardom with a QB that can make the offense move consistently.
The talent is there.
BONUS: Draft Prospect To Watch
He’s my draft crush already and I haven’t written about him yet in this section, so here we go!
Saturday night, the Georgia Bulldogs take on the Tennessee Volunteers. To sum it up nicely, Tennessee is not having a good year so far…
D’Andre Swift (RB) is going to put on a show Saturday night against this defense and I can’t wait.
Today's Lesson:
D'Andre Swift messes with your mind on the field 🤯 pic.twitter.com/BJBEmneMLs
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 21, 2019
Swift’s special. If you haven’t had a chance to watch him yet, make sure you tune on Saturday night. He’s currently my projected 2020 1.01 and he’ll probably stay that way through the NFL Draft.