Sunday Morning Huddle: Week Five

Ken Kelly Posted On October 6, 2013

thompkins Let’s face it, there’s an enormous amount of information out there this morning. We’re not going to waste your time by repeating the news and notes about who’s in or out this week, since that’s really not what you visit us for. We’re also not going to do another article on starts or sits this week – we already have the personalized lineup advice for you on the premium content. Again, there are 100 places you can go for that, so we do something different on Sundays for our Premium Content subscribers every year.

The Sunday Morning Huddle goes through each game and states what we’re looking to see from a dynasty perspective. We’ll pick one player from each team who we have our eye on and describe why their weekend performance is a key one for them in relation to their dynasty value.

Early Games

New England at Cincinnati

For the Patriots, let’s see if young Kenbrell Thompkins can continue his maturation. With Rob Gronkowski out again this week, Thompkins should see plenty of targets come his way. He’s been steadily improving, but has yet to put together a complete error-free game – maybe today is the day.

The seat is starting to get just a little warm for Andy Dalton. While he’s never going to be an elite quarterback in fantasy or reality, he’s always been at least good enough to avoid much criticism. However, this year hasn’t gone to plan and he simply doesn’t look like he’s progressing much. A good effort against an underrated defense could be just what the doctor ordered for “The Red Rifle.”

Detroit at Green Bay

We though Ryan Broyles was going to get his shot at significant production last week, but he was an afterthought and was even replaced in the starting lineup by Kris Durham. It’s possible that game was just another warmup for Broyles, but a few more clunkers are going to force some dynasty league owners to start looking elsewhere for young projects.

For the Packers, it’s time for Eddie Lacy to step up. Green Bay has had two 100 yard rushing days from their backs this year and neither has come from Lacy. After just one carry and a wicked concussion his last time out, let’s see if Lacy is up to the task of being a workhorse. If he fails, we could be looking at a future time share in the Green Bay backfield.

Seattle at Indianapolis

This could be the game of the day and it’s a big one for Russell Wilson. Pegged by many as the next bona fide QB1 star, Wilson has yet to put up the gaudy numbers many expected to see this season. It’s early and the Seahawks haven’t exactly needed Wilson to be John Elway on the field, but his dynasty value is currently resting as much more than as a game manager – we need to see some production.

Is Trent Richardson truly an elite back or just a pretty talented guy who churns out a decent number of yards and has his dynasty value inflated by touchdown dependency? The fact we have to ask that question is a problem altogether. Richardson needs a big day to start easing the minds of his owners, especially those who paid dearly for him on draft day.

Baltimore at Miami

Paging Ray Rice. Ray Rice? It’s truly amazing the Ravens could be in a competitive game where they give Rice five carries and have Joe Flacco passing the ball fifty times, but that’s exactly what happened last week. Who’s calling the plays in Baltimore now, Mike Martz? Dynasty owners have to hope all the talk this week of the Ravens committing back to Rice is more than just hyperbole.

It;s been nothing short of a disaster in Miami for Mike Wallace. On the year, he has 15 catches for 176 yards and one touchdown. If you take out his week two performance (which looks like a fluke at this point), Wallace has six catches and 61 yards in the other three games combined. One more clunker of a game and Wallace will need to be on benches until further notice.

New Orleans at Chicago

Lost in the Drew Brees / Jimmy Graham / Darren Sproles offensive juggernaut has been the surprising play of young Khiry Robinson. The running back has the looks of a Sproles-like player and looks better on film than Pierre Thomas or the nearly invisible Mark Ingram. Keep your eye on Robinson as his sleeper status continues to grow. If Sproles was to get hurt, this would get interesting in a hurry.

For the Bears, Brandon Marshall is due for a big game after being held to a combined 12 catches and 131 yards over the past two weeks. Just sayin’.

Philadelphia at NY Giants

For the Eagles, DeSean Jackson already has 21 catches on the season. The problem is, all but five of those came in the first two weeks of the season. Defenses are quickly learning that double teaming Jackson and challenging any other wideout on the Eagles’ roster to make a play is pretty successful. If Jackson can’t get back on track against a team playing as poorly as the Giants, we could have some trouble here.

Take your pick for the Giants. This team is a disaster right now and the only player not to worry about at the moment seems to be Victor Cruz. Eli Manning, Hakeem Nicks, David Wilson and every other offensive player for the G-men could use a big day to calm down their dynasty owners.

Kansas City at Tennessee

The unbeaten (that’s strange to type) Chiefs have been quietly aided by tight end Sean McGrath who put up a 5/64/1 line just last week. With the other tight ends banged up, McGrath has taken the opportunity and run with it. Can he continue his hot streak today?

For the Titans, Chris Johnson just hasn’t looked good again this year. It’s possible he may have just hit his ceiling and come right back down a few years ago because he looks slow and indecisive at the moment. One big run could change a lot of things, but right now he’s looking like a complementary piece on a dynasty team and not a pillar to build around any longer.

Jacksonville at St. Louis

The Jaguars finally get Justin Blackmon back today, so it will be great to see him back on the field again. The problem is his quarterback just played yesterday for Louisville and won’t be on the field with him for another eight months or so.

In St. Louis, all eyes are on the running back position. It sounds like Daryl Richardson may not get the start after an awful beginning to the year, opening the door for Zac Stacy, Isaiah Pead or Benny Cunningham. Which back (if any) finally takes a hold of this job and runs with it. If somebody was going to do it, it should be today against the Jaguars. If they all struggle, this looks like a situation to avoid for the rest of the season.

Late Games

Carolina at Arizona

He’s a total boom or bust player, but this is the best Ted Ginn Jr. has looked in years. With back-to-back weeks with a score, he’s right back on the dynasty league radar. Will he be just another blip or become roster worthy?

It’s pretty easy to focus on the running game for the Cardinals, but let’s zero in on Larry Fitzgerald, who has yet to post a game with more than 80 receiving yards this season. He’s scoring well in fantasy leagues because of his three touchdowns on the year, but we all know those are tough to rely on. The addition of Carson Palmer has yet to really jumpstart his season, but perhaps today will be the day.

Denver at Dallas

Pick any Bronco because they’ll probably score.

For the Cowboys, this is a big game for Tony Romo. It’s almost unfair to ask him to go head-to-head and try to match Peyton Manning, but that’s exactly what he’ll be asked to do today. These are the types of games (in the regular season, of course), where Romo tends to step up and post some big numbers. Let’s see if he can keep the Cowboys within shouting distance of Denver.

Sunday Night Football

Houston at San Francisco

Arian Foster finally broke out against Seattle last week. After posting 171 total yards in their loss to the Seahawks, he’s off the hot seat for the moment. Guess who isn’t off it? Yep, Matt Schaub. This is a big game for Schaub who has really done nothing this season to quiet the whispers about him not being capable of taking the Texans to the next level. A win at San Francisco would be huge for him as he’s looking like a quarterback who’s actually regressing.

All eyes are on Colin Kaepernick when it comes to the 49ers. After posting 412 passing yards in the season opener, Kaep has failed to surpass 167 in any of the other three games this season. He also has an uninspiring two touchdowns and seven turnovers over that span. Add the fact he’s yet to rush for a score and you have a first quarter of the season to forget. It’s time for Kaepernick to get back on the horse.

Ridiculously Late Sunday Night Football

San Diego at Oakland

While most of the world will be asleep, Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates may be tearing apart the Raiders. It’s unfair to pick just one of those two to focus on because they’ve both looked totally rejuvenated.

For the Raiders, it’s time for Rashad Jennings to get another chance. With injuries mounting at running back, it looks like Jennings will get his shot to be the bell cow this week. He’s looked both terrible and awesome at times in his career. You’ll have to wake up tomorrow morning to find out which it was this week.

Monday Night Football

NY Jets at Atlanta

We keep saying it, but Bilal Powell is looking like a decent bye week option out there. He isn’t the flashiest pick at the running back position, but he’s been pretty effective all season for a Jets team that has somehow found a way to be at .500. Let’s see if Powell can keep it going against the Falcons.

Atlanta is a surprising 1-3 this season as they begin to endure the playoff curse of Steven Jackson’s existence on a roster. It’s amazing, but Jackson has somehow been the kryptonite to a team making it to the postseason even with as good as he’s been. The player to keep an eye on this week for dynasty owners is Levine Toilolo. We already know what the rest of Atlanta’s playmakers can do, but the maturation of Toilolo is interesting. Can he be the long term answer to replacing Tony Gonzalez?

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