Divisional Debriefing: Week Nine
Each week we are going to give a player from each division a “Player of the Week” honor. In an attempt to not cram the same info down your throat that you might find elsewhere, we are going to try to focus on players that weren’t draft day all-stars. In some cases they won’t even be rostered in redraft leagues, but guys that are worth stashing in dynasty leagues. We are going to focus on guys that have yielded the greatest return on your investment. You don’t need to be told Peyton Manning had a great day. He was drafted in such a spot that it was expected. Same with LeSean McCoy and Calvin Johnson. That’s not to say that we won’t honor a truly elite performance, especially from rookies.
As part of a group collaboration, members of the DLF Staff have chosen to represent a division and will be selecting which players will be getting the “gold star” for the week. As an added bonus, I will also include the most impressive IDP performances of the week for each division, because defensive players need love too!
Here is who is will be nominating players for each division:
- AFC West- Scott Peak @Scott_Peak
- AFC East- Jeff Beran @JefeBeran
- AFC North- Eric Olinger @OlingerIDP
- AFC South- Tim Stafford @DynastyTim
- NFC West- The FF Ghost @TheFFGhost
- NFC East- Karl Safchick @KarlSafchick
- NFC North- Dan Meylor @DMeylor22
- NFC South- Eric Hardter @EDH_27
AFC West
Rashad Jennings, RB, OAK
Jennings looks to have a nice opportunity given yet another Darren McFadden injury. McFadden aggravated the hamstring he injured a month ago, and might be out a few games. Jennings looked good in relief of McFadden, rushing for 102 yards on 15 attempts, for a healthy 6.8 yards per carry. He scored one rushing touchdown, and then had seven receptions on 10 targets for 74 yards. Jennings took advantage of a juicy match-up against the Eagles defense, and tallied a very nice 30+ points in PPR leagues. Jennings did benefit from several check-downs, as Terrelle Pryor spent most of his afternoon running away from Eagles defenders. The Raiders offense seemed out-of-sorts, and Jennings benefited as an outlet for Pryor. Oakland has a decent schedule for running backs, facing teams like San Diego, Tennessee, Kansas City and Houston, all of whom are giving up 115 yards rushing per game or more. McFadden is a free agent in 2014, and if he signs with another team, his replacement in Oakland could be a decent dynasty asset. Will that be Jennings? Hard to be sure, given Jennings has his own history of injuries derailing a promising career. Still, Jennings could be a solid buy for contenders looking for that added push for a title, or for McFadden owners who need a replacement for the oft-injured Raiders running back. Don’t forget about Latavius Murray, either. Given McFadden is likely gone from Oakland next year, acquiring Murray, Jennings or even Marcel Reece on the cheap right now could pay dividends in 2014.
IDP- Manti Te’o, LB SD
Manti Te’o is starting to play much better for the Chargers. He played 77% of defensive snaps this week and collected nine total tackles. Thanks to the Redskins’ home scorekeeper, only four were solo and five were assisted. Te’o looked good though and has LB3/LB4 value rest of the season.
AFC East
Aaron Dobson, WR NE
Dynasty owners had been waiting all season for rookie wide receiver Aaron Dobson to step up and post a performance like the five receptions for 130 yards and two touchdowns he had on Sunday against the Steelers. Ironically, it came in the week that the Patriots finally had Tom Brady’s full array of targets available for the first time all season. It’s safe to say that Dobson has fully surpassed fellow rookie and former fantasy darling Kenbrell Thompkins for playing time so owners should ride the wave while it lasts. Dobson is still the third or fourth option when Brady drops back but when the Patriots offense is clicking as well as it was on Sunday, any option is viable for fantasy purposes. Don’t overinflate your expectations too much but Dobson will be a very solid WR3/WR4 option from this point going forward.
IDP- Jairus Byrd, S BUF
Byrd is finally seeing his snap count climb back to seasons past and his production is starting to reflect it. The problem is Kiko Alonso is the second coming of Bobby Boucher and destroys anything crossing the line of scrimmage. Byrd is still one of the league’s most elite safeties and is worth acquiring while his value is low. He played 93% of the defensive snaps this week and it’s just a matter of time until he puts up a bug statistical game.
AFC North
Jason Campbell, QB CLE
The Browns are set on moving on from Brandon Weeden, Brian Hoyer would still be starting for this team barring injury, but now Jason Campbell is the man under center. Against the legitimate defense of the Baltimore Ravens, he finished with 262 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. This team has real offensive weapons in Josh Gordon, Jordan Cameron, and to a lesser extent Greg Little and Davone Bess. Campbell isn’t a weekly starter but he is an option if you’re stuck streaming quarterbacks this season.
IDP- Domata Peko, DT CIN
Unfortunately, this is addition by subtraction. With super stud Geno Atkins on season ending injured reserve, Peko is going to be the big man in the middle. While he should see a slight uptick in production, he’s not Atkins.
AFC South
TY Hilton, WR IND
It’s hard to argue with this guy as AFC South player of the week. Seven catches for 132 yards and three touchdowns on 12 targets will win some fantasy games for owners. His production is a bit up and down overall, but the targets are there. With Reggie Wayne done for the year he is the Colts primary wide receiver. He’s a weekly start going forward without hesitation.
IDP- Colin McCarthy, LB TEN
Buyer beware but McCarthy has now put together two impressive outings filling in for Moise Fokou. The problem with McCarthy isn’t talent, it’s always been his inability to stay healthy. The Titans coaching staff is a fan of Fokou so McCarthy is going to have to continue putting up big numbers if he wants to keep this gig. Based solely on potential I would add McCarthy if you have the space. He could return to IDP relevance.
NFC West
Zac Stacy, RB STL
Welcome to the big show Zac Stacy! He has been on the brink of a truly breakout performance the past three weeks and he finally got it against the Titans. He finished the game with 127 yards rushing and the team’s first rushing touchdowns by running backs when he punched it in twice. He also added six catches for 51 yards, making him an elite option in PPR leagues.
IDP- Bobby Wagner, LB SEA
After sitting out two games with a high ankle sprain, Wagner came back with a vengeance against the Buccaneers. He easily had his best game of this somewhat disappointing IDP season with six solo tackles, five assists, and an unexpected 1.5 sacks. If he truly is back to being 100% healthy look for Wagner get back to weekly LB1 status.
NFC East
Cole Beasley, WR DAL
The Dallas Cowboys called eight designed runs in Sunday’s matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. That means, on average, they called a designed run every seven and a half minutes of game time. The result of calling eight designed runs is 52 called pass plays, and 51 attempts. To say the Cowboys like to throw the ball, would be like saying Richie Incognito likes stupid tattoos. A lesser known benefactor of the Cowboys passing game is Cole Beasley. Beasley was targeted nine times, hauling in six catches for 68 yards. If you’re in a deep bench league and need a guy who will put up solid numbers as a bye week fill in, Beasley could be a great waiver wire pickup.
IDP- Mychal Kendricks, LB PHI
Mychal Kendricks has had a roller coaster type season. He fired out of the gates with 27 total tackles through the first three weeks but registered only 17 through the next four. Now he has put together back to back great games, including this week’s game when he notched six solo tackles, four assists, and his first sack of the season. Expectations were high for Kendricks coming into the season. If he can maintain some consistency he has a chance to fulfill them.
NFC North
James Starks, RB GB
Since returning from a knee injury in week eight against the Vikings, Starks has proven to be a solid change-of-pace back for the Packers. He’s rushed for 97 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns over the last two weeks and looked impressive in the process. With the injury to Aaron Rodgers, the Packers will be forced to rely on the running game even more than they have over the past month. Not only does Starks have fantasy value as the obvious handcuff to Eddie Lacy, but he is a legitimate flex play going forward. Expect Mike McCarthy to continue to give Starks seven to ten carries each week as the season progresses.
IDP- Shea McClellin, DE CHI
As bad as I want this to be the breakout game leading to IDP relevancy for McClellin, it’s probably just a fluke game against an overwhelmed backup quarterback. He easily had the best game of his young career producing three sacks and five total tackles. If the Bears and Julius Peppers part ways this offseason as expected, McClellin has a chance but he’ll be far too unpredictable to count on this season.
NFC South
Jonathan Stewart, RB CAR
He’s baaack! Following twin off-season ankle surgeries and a stay on the NFL’s Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, the Panthers’ Jonathan Stewart finally returned in a week nine victory over the hapless Atlanta Falcons. In doing so he led Carolina in rushing with 43 yards on just nine carries (4.8 YPC), and also caught all three of his targets for an additional 22 yards. More importantly, he looked significantly more explosive than he did at any point during an injury-marred 2012 campaign.
That last point is key, as aging backfield mate DeAngelo Williams has been on a steady decline, failing to top 4.0 yards-per-carry in four out of the last five games. Once Stewart returns to game-shape, it’s reasonable to expect him to take over as the lead back in the committee and push for 15+ weekly touches. After all, the Panthers are at their best when they keep the ball on the ground, and pounding the rock on 52.2% of their offensive plays has led to a 5-3 record thus far. As the most efficient ball carrier on a run-heavy team, as well as a threat in the passing game, this affords Stewart RB2-level upside the rest of the way.
IDP- Paul Worrilow, LB ATL
I admittedly don’t know much about Paul Worrilow but 19 total tackles, nine solo and 10 assists, make me want to get to know him. Both he and Joplo Bartu played 100% of the Falcons’ defensive snaps. Bottom line, neither Akeem Dent nor Omar Gaither are the answer in the middle so getting Worrilow playing time makes plenty of sense. You can’t accidentally get 19 tackles in a game without a little talent. At the very least he merits monitoring.
- Dynasty IDP Waiver Wire: Week Seven - October 24, 2018
- Dynasty IDP Waiver Wire: Week Six - October 16, 2018
- Dynasty IDP Waiver Wire: Week Five - October 10, 2018
