Divisional Debriefing: Week Thirteen
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
A.J. Jenkins and Junior Hemingway, WRs KC
Hemingway had a productive afternoon for the Kansas City Chiefs, posting three receptions for 42 yards and touchdown on just three targets. He got a step on Denver Broncos safety Duke Ihenacho, and made a nice over-the-shoulder grab on a 17 yard touchdown in the first quarter. He has decent size at 6’1’’, 225 lb and was a three-year starter at Michigan. He also has good speed, clocking a 4.48 40 yard dash at the NFL Combine in 2012. There isn’t much competition for Hemingway in Kansas City, aside from inconsistent WR1 Dwayne Bowe. Then again, Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith may limit upside for receivers in this offense. Still, Hemingway is likely available on most waiver wires, and is worth a look, especially for deep dynasty leagues.
There was an A.J. Jenkins sighting in the game against the Broncos. Jenkins had three receptions for 35 yards on four targets. While not overflowing with excitement, Jenkins could warrant a look for deep dynasty leaguers with open roster spots.
IDP- Nick Roach, LB OAK
Roach has put together back to back great games the last two weeks after a string of decent, but not great, performances. His 21 total tackles and 3.5 sacks over the last two games make him the linebacker to own in Oakland for now while Sio Moore remains a dynasty stash for the long term.
AFC East
Julian Edelman, WR NE
After almost completely disappearing between Week Five and Week 12, Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman has re-emerged as one of Tom Brady’s favorite targets. Edelman has accumulated 18 receptions on 23 targets for 211 yards and two touchdowns in his last two games. In his previous six games combined, he had 18 receptions on 35 targets for 181 yards and zero touchdowns. Go figure. With Brady’s affection and a fairly pass-friendly schedule the rest of the way, feel confident plugging Edelman back into your lineup as a low-end WR3 or solid WR4 option during fantasy playoffs.
IDP- Olivier Vernon, DE MIA
There might not be a hotter defensive player over the last three weeks than Vernon. Over this span he has totaled 20 tackles and 5.5 sacks while keeping the highly touted Dion Jordan off the field. If Vernon and Cameron Wake can keep this up, the rumors of moving Jordan to strong side linebacker could come to fruition sooner than later and killing his IDP value.
AFC North
Josh Gordon, WR CLE
It would be a disservice to give this to anyone but Gordon. After all, he’s the first player in NFL history to have back-to-back regular season games with 200+ receiving yards. On one hand, it was the Jaguars. On the other hand, he plays for the Browns. This matchup was like watching YouTube videos of “bum fights.” Gordon is a stud and should be treated as such. If they can pair him with an elite young quarterback, either in the draft or free agency (Ryan Mallett maybe), the sky is literally the limit for him.
IDP- Rey Maualuga, LB CIN
This makes me sick. Maualuga is like a bad rash you just can’t get rid of. I’m not a fan of his at all. I think he’s an average at best linebacker who is a liability in coverage and lacks difference making ability. I didn’t understand why the Bengals re-signed him and I don’t understand why they’re giving him playing time over the more impressive Vincent Rey.
AFC South
Ben Tate, RB HOU
It was a relatively tepid weekend in the AFC South for your usual fantasy suspects, but Ben Tate put on a show. While ranked by most sites as a flex play, Tate put up nearly 30 points in standard scoring leagues. Many have speculated that he will be gone from Houston in 2014, I’d suggest being cautious with that assumption. We don’t know the extent of Foster’s injuries nor what will come with a new regime for the Texans. If you own Tate, he’s great for your playoff run but I’m not buying him right now in hopes of a highly productive 2014.
IDP- Jurrell Casey, DT TEN
As is the case with most defensive tackles, Casey is boom or bust week to week, but when he’s on he’s one of the truly elite defensive tackles in IDP leagues. Through his first two seasons he had a total of 5.5 sacks but this year he already has eight sacks through 12 games. In leagues requiring defensive tackles, he is fighting Jason Hatcher of the Cowboys for most valuable player at the position with Geno Atkins out of commission.
NFC West
Russell Wilson, QB SEA
In Monday night’s advertised heavy weight fight of pint sized quarterbacks it was Russell Wilson who answered the bell. He absolutely dominated a New Orleans defense that seemed ill-prepared to combat nearly anything the Seahawks threw at them. He walked away with 22 completions for 310 yards and three touchdowns. Additionally, he contributed another 47 rushing yards on eight carries to lead the Seahawks in rushing as well as passing. Wilson’s heroics allowed Seattle to clinch a playoff berth and has the fans of Seattle dreaming of home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. If he continues to perform as he did on Monday night Wilson just might make those dreams a reality.
IDP- Karlos Dansby, LB ARI
After the season put together by Dansby in Miami last season, I was pretty shocked he was replaced. I was even more shocked there wasn’t a line of suitors vying for his services. When he finally landed a gig, reuniting with his original team, the Cardinals, it was to fill the shoes of Daryl Washington whose life was spiraling out of control. Now Washington is back and Dansby hasn’t backed off a bit and while keeping intriguing rookie Kevin Minter off the field. Dansby will maintain dynasty value throughout the off-season.
NFC East
Zach Ertz, TE PHI
Ertz has been a favorite of mine all season. Outside of Jordan Reed, I think he has the greatest potential of all rookie tight ends this season. His Sunday stat line of six targets, five catches, 68 yards, and two touchdowns will open some eyes. The raw ability has been there all along, but he is competing for playing time with two veteran tight ends. While your trading deadline is likely past, he is a great target for off-season trading. For more on Ertz, click here.
IDP- Justin Tuck, DE NYG
I’m not sure if anyone reads these articles but last week I mentioned Justin Tuck was on the verge of a breakout game and right on queue he delivered with five tackles and four sacks. The Redskins are having serious issues protecting Robert Griffin III lately so this was encouraging to see him be able to exploit solid matchups. He’s no longer a must start player but is a strong DL3 capable of putting up big games, especially with the defensive backs performing better as of late.
NFC North
Alshon Jeffery, WR CHI
Choosing this week’s NFC North MVP was quite simple. I surely wasn’t going to select anybody from the dreadful Packers offense that all of us watched on Thanksgiving, the Lions were led by the usual suspects, Matthew Stafford, Reggie Bush and Calvin Johnson and the Vikings offense is no better than Green Bay’s. The problem with selecting Jeffery is that he was my choice after catching ten passes for 218 yards and a touchdown in week five. He bested that effort in week 13 by racking up 249 receiving yards on 12 receptions and scoring twice. In this same space eight weeks ago I said Jeffery, “should be considered no less than a solid WR3 and has the upside to be a top ten fantasy wide out.” It’s safe to say he’s blown right passed WR3 and WR2 status and put himself directly in the WR1 conversation. Good luck trying to acquire him if you don’t have him, you’ll need it.
IDP- Jon Bostic, LB CHI
The NFC North is littered with intriguing young defensive players and I’ve gone on record multiple times saying how much I like Bostic. Against the Vikings he was able to put his full repertoire on display good and bad. The good, nine total tackles and a sack. The bad, a complete bonehead taunting penalty for standing over a player after making a great play on third down. Bostic is most definitely the future in Chicago and has long term LB2 value.
NFC South
Roddy White, WR ATL
After 12 frustrating weeks, beleaguered owners of the Falcons’ Roddy White were finally rewarded when the venerable receiver exploded for 10 catches and 143 yards. To put those numbers in perspective, they equate to 33.3% and 40.6% of his respective yearly totals in the nine games he’s played thus far in 2013. But can it continue? Personally, I think it can. Atlanta’s schedule softens considerably over the next two weeks, with Green Bay and Washington on tap before a week 16 collision with the 49ers. Patient owners who didn’t sell for quarters on the dollar should now be receiving starter-worthy production in their lineups for the duration of the fantasy playoffs, and hopefully WR2 output for the next few years.
IDP- Paul Worrilow, LB ATL
This was an overwhelmingly mundane week for IDP in the NFC South. Worrilow gets the nod because his production hasn’t dipped the way many thought it would when Sean Weatherspoon returned from injury. He has put up a very respectable nine tackles per game over the last two weeks after he popped off for 54 tackles over the previous three game stretch. He’s not Luke Kuechley or Kiko Alonso but he’s turned into a solid LB2/LB3 down the stretch.
[ad1]
- 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
