Sunday Morning Huddle: Week Thirteen

Ken Kelly Posted On December 1, 2013

This column is usually reserved for us going game-by-game and quickly highlighting a player we think should be in the spotlight in terms of their dynasty value for each team on the schedule. These players have a lot riding on the games today and merit watching for sure. For the rest of the season, I’m taking a different approach with this column and focusing on some players more in-depth. As I scoured through the games this week, there were again some usual suspects to key in on, but four really stood out to me, so I wanted to spend some more time on each of them because I felt that’s what this community would really value.

So, with that being said, the four players I think have the most riding on today’s performances in terms of their dynasty value (and the impact it would have on some others as well) are Lamar Miller, Geno Smith, Michael Crabtree and Justin Hunter

Justin Hunter, WR TEN

It was a coming out party last week for Hunter as he posted his best game of the season with six catches for 109 yards and a touchdown, despite only playing about half the snaps on the day. The Titans brass has promised to get him more involved in the offense from this point forward, so today should be a good indication if last week’s performance was a fluke or something we can come to expect in the stretch run this year. Hunter was a highly regarded draft prospect coming out of the University of Tennessee, but he’d been quiet for much of the year as Kendall Wright emerged as the WR1 for the Titans. With Kenny Britt all but assured to leave after the season and Hunter making headway on the depth chart, it looks as if he may just be maturing into the player many thought he’d be when he was taken at the back end of the first round in many rookie drafts last Summer. Let’s see what today brings.

Lamar Miller, RB MIA

By all accounts, Miller has been a pretty big disappointment this year. With just 475 yards and two touchdowns on 114 carries (4.2 yards per carry), he’s been a major bust for dynasty owners who invested as high as a second round pick in startup drafts. Miller has shared the load with the equally uninspiring Daniel Thomas for much of the way, but the recent injury to Thomas has opened the door for Miller to once again show the coaching staff he can carry the load. It’s going to be a tough task today against the Jets, but Miller should get his chances. If he continues to look mediocre down the stretch, it’s going to spell trouble for his future in dynasty leagues. He has the Steelers, Patriots, Bills and the Jets again to finish the season. If he continues to tread water, the Dolphins may never give him a second chance to have a bigger role.

Geno Smith, QB NYJ

This could be it for Geno Smith of the Jets to day. He’s been awful of late, throwing for just 504 yards with no touchdowns and seven interceptions over his past four games. In fact, in many leagues, Smith has a total of -1.1 points over his last two contests. He was putting up a decent game every other week for the better part of the season, but the wheels have really fallen off the cart now. If he doesn’t show improvement early this week, he could get benched. Matt Simms isn’t exactly looking like a world beater, but Smith has been dreadful. If he does get benched, there are no guarantees he ever gets that job back. The Jets and Rex Ryan need to win now and they’ll do whatever it takes to do so. If they don’t and Ryan loses his job, all bets are off for Smith. After all, new coaches rarely like to take an old project and instead like to hand pick their signal callers.

Michael Crabtree, WR SF

Crabtree returns to action today in a huge game for the 49ers against the suddenly stout St. Louis Rams. A torn achilles is no injury to mess with and Crabtree has seemingly made a pretty fast recovery. Crabtree was fantastic for the 49ers last year as he finally broke out and posted 85 catches for 1,105 yards and nine touchdowns. San Francisco has struggled in the passing game this year and Colin Kaepernick could really use a healthy Crabtree as they try to secure a wild card berth. We should know pretty early if Crabtree is going to be an effective player, a situational threat or just a decoy. Owners who have him have to just hope to see something positive this year and see if he can take the Summer to get back close to 100%.

Enjoy the games everyone!

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Ken Kelly

Co-Founder at DynastyLeagueFootball

Ken is a corporate trainer by day an a tireless editor of dynasty content by night. His passion for the World Champion Seattle Seahawks is second only to his love of fantasy football and the dynasty format.

Ken is on Twitter at DLF_KenK