Week 5 Fantasy Football Dynasty Report
Health check…did you survive Week 5?
There were some dominant performances this week that left some fantasy owners throwing their hands up in the air in disbelief. No matter how good your lineup was this week, you most likely didn’t stand a chance if you went up against guys like Aaron Jones or Christian McCaffrey.
It’s a part of the game. There are some weeks where there’s literally nothing you could’ve done better, but you’re left with another “tick” in the L column. It happens to the best of us.
With all that being said though, it’s time to take a look back at how the past week’s games impact your Dynasty lineups moving forward.
Dynasty Tip Of The Week
Look Ahead. This advice has a couple of layers to it, so let me explain…
Looking ahead for a Dynasty owner is crucial. Dynasty owners need to at least have some knowledge of the incoming draft prospects and the overall strength of the draft class, but it’s also important to look ahead to something not many other owners pay attention to: Free Agency.
Keeping an eye on the players that have expiring contracts is an aspect of Dynasty that doesn’t get much buzz surrounding it. However, I believe that it should. It’s a roll of the dice, but if you can acquire a player before they change teams and go to a much more favorable situation, you’re getting an edge on your league mates.
For example, Mark Ingram last season wasn’t exactly a “Fantasy Football darling”. He was good, but he wasn’t utilized enough to be a confident weekly start in your RB slot. The average Dynasty owner would’ve most likely been content letting him go for very little at the trade deadline.
If you would’ve rolled the dice on Ingram, you would be extremely happy now as he’s currently averaging 5 YPC and has 6 TDs through 5 games.
The obvious disclaimer here is that this doesn’t always work out as planned with some free agents signing in worse spots than what they just came from, but it’s worth the gamble in my opinion. Be willing to forfeit those 3rd or 4th round rookie draft picks and go after a player who could hit gold for you next year.
(Also, stay tuned as I’ll be highlighting a few players like this to target at the trade deadline within the next couple of weeks.)
Dynasty Stock Report
Stock Up: Will Fuller – Houston Texans, WR
Well, up this point Will Fuller had essentially done next to nothing for your fantasy team.
He showed up in a big way on Sunday.
Will Fuller‘s 53.7 PPR points (14/217/3) against Atlanta is the 9th-best fantasy performance for a wide receiver all-time.
— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) October 6, 2019
The Falcons defense was shredded by Fuller and Deshaun Watson all game long and they didn’t seem to necessarily care. They made no adjustments throughout the game to stop Fuller and the Texans went on to put up 53 points against the Falcons.
This was the game we all had been waiting for from Fuller and it most likely won you a week. With that being said, Fuller is a sell-high candidate for me right now if you can get a nice return. Before yesterday, Fuller only had 14 receptions for 183 yards and 0 TDs.
Fuller will not play a defense as bad as the Falcons every single week and I expect him to come back down to earth quickly. Yes, he’ll have games where he breaks away for a long TD, but predicting those is going to be the hard part. If you’re tired of dealing with the headache that Fuller has been so far this season, this is your chance to sell him for a fortune.
Stock Down: Patrick Mahomes – Kansas City Chiefs, QB
I know, I know…this is Fantasy Football blasphemy.
But hear me out.
Over the past two weeks, Mahomes has put up nearly the same fantasy points as Gardner Minshew II and Teddy Bridgewater. While they’re still solid performances, Mahomes hasn’t exactly been lighting the world on fire the past couple of weeks.
Part of this is due to the fact that the Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts played a defense very similar to the one the New England Patriots played in the AFC Championship game last year that frustrated Mahomes and the Chiefs offense. Also, Mahomes is nursing an ankle injury that he re-aggravated in the game against the Colts.
Here’s what happened to Patrick Mahomes’ ankle on that last drive: pic.twitter.com/OaSnu94DLC
— Terez A. Paylor (@TerezPaylor) October 7, 2019
This greatly affected his mobility and his willingness to scramble outside of the pocket. Some of Mahomes’ greatest plays happen when the play breaks down and he’s able to utilize his athleticism to evade defenders and connect with his receivers downfield.
Don’t hear what I’m not saying. Mahomes is incredible and he’s still my Dynasty QB1. However, this might be the point where the team that has Mahomes may be struggling. They may be tilting a bit and would begin listening to trade offers…
If you’ve ever wanted to acquire Mahomes, now is the time to attempt it. You’re still going to have to overpay, but with Mahomes having back to back “rough” weeks, the window is open. (Yes, that is a How I Met Your Mother reference for you on this fine Wednesday.)
Stock Up: Teddy Bridgewater – New Orleans Saints, QB
Teddy Bridgewater absolutely deserves the nod here in the Dynasty Stock Up section.
After the horrific knee injury he suffered as the QB of the Minnesota Vikings, it’s amazing to see him playing in the NFL at all, let alone putting together solid performances.
Teddy Bridgewater keeps the @Saints ROLLING! ⚜ #HaveADay @teddyb_h2o | #Saints pic.twitter.com/kENaVVmlYC
— NFL (@NFL) October 6, 2019
He’s stepped in in the absence of Drew Brees and has played extremely well. Well enough that some NFL team (Saints or someone else) is going to make him an offer to be a starting QB next season after his contract expires.
If you’re in a 2QB league, hold onto Teddy Bridgewater. If you’re in a 1QB league, Bridgewater better not be sitting out there on your Dynasty waiver wire. Pick him up! You’ll have a weekly starting QB on your hands soon enough.
Stock Down: Mike Evans – Tampa Bay Buccaneers, WR
If you had to define Mike Evans’ season in one word up to this point what would it be?
I’ll go first: volatile.
There has been no pattern as to when you can roll out Mike Evans in your lineups this season. The talent has always been there, but right now Chris Godwin is dominating the target share and is stealing production away from Evans.
Right now, Evans is a huge Stock Down candidate from a Dynasty perspective after putting up 0 points for you on Sunday. You went into the season needing Evans to be a WR1 for your team and he’s not delivering consistently enough.
Evans needs to put together a few solid weeks of consistent production before I start to feel good again putting him in my starting lineup. That’s where we’re at with him, unfortunately.
Stock Up: Will Dissly – Seattle Seahawks, TE
Over the course of the offseason, I was extremely hesitant to anoint Will Dissly as a start-able fantasy asset.
He’s proven me wrong.
Seahawks found a gem in Will Dissly 😮
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/GAZVNoW6K4
— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) October 4, 2019
Dissly has defied the odds coming back from his injury and he’s proving to be a trustworthy start week after week. He’s a focal point of this offense and he’s going to receive consistent targets from here on out.
While I don’t believe he’s an other-worldly type talent at the tight end position, he’s getting open and Russell Wilson is finding him downfield and (most importantly) in the end zone.
Congratulations to the owners who held onto him and/or acquired him cheap…you can trust Dissly moving forward as long as Wilson is his QB.
BONUS: Draft Prospect To Watch
This player was not on my list of tape to watch over the summer, but he’s experiencing a meteoric rise in draft circles. That man would be LSU QB, Joe Burrow.
Burrow and the LSU Tigers take on the Florida Gators on Saturday night and this is a game I’ll be watching closely.
Burrow’s been putting up great numbers in this revamped LSU offense and has gone from a potential UDFA to a possible first-round NFL Draft pick next April.
Joe Burrow put up video game numbers against Utah State:
🕹 27/38 for 344 yards
🕹 5 TDs
🕹 Led LSU to 42-6 win pic.twitter.com/3j5ka2FkYV— Bleacher Report CFB (@BR_CFB) October 5, 2019
He’ll get a tough test against a Florida defense that has its own fair share of NFL talent, but I expect Burrow to rise to the challenge. He’s tough, gritty, competitive and is displaying the tools and traits to make him a coveted commodity in April. We’ll see how he does on Saturday night.