Sunday Six Pack: Week Six

It’s the sixth six-pack of the season and fantasy owners are feeling the effects of so many packs. This season has been taxing and challenging for owners and especially commissioners. Replacement player threads and starting third-string running backs praying for vultured touchdowns is the new norm. But at least we have football!

Here are a few of the storylines I am watching as a dynasty owner this week.

How will Andy Dalton affect the Cowboys’ offense?

Entering the game after the horrible Dak Prescott injury, Dalton completed 9 of 11 attempts for 111 yards and led the Cowboys to a late victory. He had a fumble deep in Giants territory which led to a quick score for the Giants. Dalton looked fairly comfortable in the offense and made some good throws. Michael Gallup, Amari Cooper, and CeeDee Lamb all received three targets while he was at the helm.

Using the QB History App, we can see the history of Dalton supporting three wide receivers.

Dalton has a solid history of supporting wide receivers from a fantasy standpoint and those years were without three wide receivers as talented as Dallas has – without a running back as good as Ezekiel Elliott. Also, the offensive line wasn’t as good as the current Cowboys one. Plus the stadium wasn’t as state of the art. I could go on and on about how much better this situation is for Dalton!

I would start Dalton Schultz in the upcoming weeks as well. The three wide receivers will command targets but Dalton has a history of using TEs. While in Cincinnati and when Tyler Eifert was healthy, Eifert was among the league’s most reliable tight ends. In 2015, Eifert was the TE4 and scored 13 touchdowns. Dalton looked his way often and especially in the red zone. Schultz should remain a solid starting option in the current tight end landscape.

For the rest of this season, Dalton is a high-end QB2 with potential for weeks where he could flirt with top-seven production. The Cowboys have the Cardinals and Redskins the next two weeks and I wouldn’t hesitate to start the Red Rifle in those matchups. There are upcoming games on the schedule against Pittsburgh and Baltimore – I am not sure he starts those games but has several advantageous matchups.

Chase is on the case!

The Browns and Steelers clash this week with first-place in the AFC North on the line. The key to this game will be the rejuvenated offense of the Browns – the number one rushing offense – versus the Steelers defense – allowing the second-fewest fantasy points per game to the running back position per the Fantasy Points Allowed DLF App. Immovable forces collide in the first matchup this season between the two rivals. I will not be starting any Browns in this game. The Steelers offense – fire them up – Big Ben, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Chase Claypool are potentially strong starts.

Speaking of Claypool, the rookie wide receiver likely helped you win your week five matchup if you had the cojones or simply had to start him due to the M*A*S*H unit ransacking some fantasy teams. With Diontae Johnson out, Claypool stepped up in a huge way. He gathered in seven passes for 110 yards and three touchdowns. And he also rushed for a touchdown for good measure.

At this point, I believe we have all heard about the freakish athletic numbers he posted at the combine but if you need a reminder, here they are:

Add in the second-round draft capital and the history of the Steelers drafting successful wide receivers, Claypool has all the ingredients to contribute in the NFL and fantasy. We had him pegged as a player to target and draft in your rookie drafts.

After a game like last week, the temptation to sell is high and I found 15 trades involving Claypool since Tuesday on the DLF Trade Finder. Below are a few of the more interesting ones I could find.

I am not shopping him aggressively and would trade him only for the right offer. His value is still suppressed, it’s only one big game and most aren’t offering an insane amount for him. Now, if I could trade him for DJ Moore – I would in a heartbeat. I am thinking the trade above may involve some dirt or something, I would not trade Moore for Claypool!

“Mapletron” (one of the best nicknames ever) is a rising star and as long as the Steelers have a good quarterback in place, I want to have him on my fantasy teams. The meager statistics he put up at Notre Dame aren’t as big of a worry for me. The Irish didn’t have the most prolific passing offense. If he were at a school like Alabama or Oklahoma, the discussion would have been much different when he entered the draft.

Claypool is a hold and I believe his snaps will increase, even when Johnson returns. Everything is in line for him to take a huge step forward. Selling now will get you a good return on your investment but you may be able to get twice as much in six months.

What will it take to fire Adam Gase? The future of fantasy in NY

Every week it seems the Jets franchise gets sadder and every week we do this dance – when do the Jets finally can Gase? Through five games, the Jets have a -86 point differential, by far the worst in the league. The offense ranks dead last in passing yards and points for, only scoring 15.0 a game. The defense isn’t any better. The defense has allowed the second-most points against average at 32.2 a game.

On top of all the doom and misery, the team just released their best offensive weapon, Le’Veon Bell. They will also be paying him the rest of his $13 million dollar contract while he plays for another team. The offense is killing the worth of former first-round quarterback Sam Darnold and his ADP is in free-fall.

Darnold’s career is in jeopardy and the team needs to act now to stop the freefall. Watching closer, you can see the tools are there but the mental makeup has taken a hit. The confidence is waning and he may never be a franchise quarterback.

The team’s lone bright spot and only player worth starting in fantasy is veteran wideout Jamison Crowder. He is having a solid season with 335 yards and two touchdowns on 22 receptions. The Jets are in full tank mode and doing almost nothing right at this point. Well, if you count losing to get a better draft pick a strategy to improve, then yes – they are doing something well.

What do we do with the Kansas City backfield?

Speaking of Bell, he now joins the most potent offense on the planet and should provide a jolt the team was expecting when they drafted Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The rookie should still see most of the touches in week six but what do we do with this duo going forward?

It’s been a few years since we have seen what Bell can do but the Chiefs offense could unlock what made him so good. Bell will not be the focal point of defenses and Patrick Mahomes has used his running backs as receivers effectively. Bell excels as one of the best receiving backs in the NFL and he will make the Chiefs even more dangerous. As a fantasy producer, he typically gets almost half of his fantasy production from receiving as he did in 2019.

It will take a few weeks to get Bell integrated and Edwards-Helaire should still get the most touches this week and possibly next. The Chiefs drafted him to pair him with Damien Williams and have had to make Edwards-Helaire the feature back much sooner than planned. Bell will give the Chiefs a versatile 1-2 punch and allow them to use Edwards-Helaire more sparingly, hopefully increasing his effectiveness as well.

From a long-term outlook, Edwards-Helaire is still the back to own but it’s hard to be happy due to the draft capital you spent to acquire him. He has not produced quite as you would hope from a player who was often drafted first in rookie leagues. He has only scored once and has 17 receptions but on 27 targets. As an inside runner, he has struggled at times and the goal-line production has been an issue.

Bell gives the team a great option to handle the things Edwards-Helaire needs work on and will let the rookie grow into the role he was drafted for. It will likely be a situation where each back can be started but neither may be an RB1 due to the timeshare. Each will make the Chiefs offense more dangerous, exactly what the NFL needs right?

Is Todd Gurley back? And how will this Atlanta offense look now without head coach Dan Quinn?

The Falcons have stumbled to an 0-5 start while blowing leads in several games. Ownership responded by parting ways with Quinn and GM Thomas Dimitroff. The team’s historic collapses coupled with higher expectations ultimately caused the breakup.

One of the few surprises has been Gurley. With 375 yards, he is fourth in the NFL and just had his best game of the season. Versus Carolina, he rushed for 121 yards on only 14 carries and also caught four passes, doubling his receiving production for the season. Gurley has scored five times and it has been his saving grace as far as fantasy is concerned.

The number of three-down backs in the NFL seems to be declining but Gurley is still one of them. If the Falcons continue to get him 20 touches, Gurley has the potential to have RB1 weeks. It feels as if he is almost a must-start every week but I am still cautious to rely on him if I have better options and depending on the matchup. The next three weeks the Falcons face rushing defenses ranked 24th, 32nd, and 25th versus the run so he is a strong start.

The offense is still under the direction of Dirk Koetter and will be a high-scoring unit. Julio Jones has been out and the offense isn’t as dangerous when he is out. Interim head coach Raheem Morris is a defensive-minded head coach and will likely not tinker with the offense. The Falcons’ issues centered on defense and inability to close out games. It’s well documented and mocked at this point, often opposing teams clawed back into games the Falcons seemed to have well in hand.

Should the team keep losing, a total shakeup could be in the cards. Gurley is only under contract this season and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2021. He is 26 years old and if he proves to be effective this season, he will have suitors on the free-agent market.

Gurley is a value and I would be trying to acquire cheaply if possible. On a win-now team, he would be one of my top targets for help down the stretch. The 2021 Draft hype is building and you may be able to acquire him with a late first-round pick or possibly a second along with a promising young player like Claypool.

What do we do with 49ers quarterbacks?

After a Super Bowl appearance last season, the 49ers are at the bottom of the NFC West with a 2-3 record. The defense isn’t playing as well but has suffered from the loss of superstar Nick Bosa as well as the departure of DeForest Buckner. The offense was without Raheem Mostert for several games and the wide receivers have been inconsistent. Every other team in the division has made strides to improve and the 49ers could fall behind even more.

Some of these factors have led to the quarterback inefficiencies but starter Jimmy Garoppolo has not looked good when he has played. Last week, he was pulled at halftime and coach Kyle Shanahan stated it was to protect his starting quarterback. It couldn’t have had anything to do with the stat line of seven completions on 17 attempts for 77 yards and two interceptions, right? At home against the Dolphins defense – it wasn’t in the roughest conditions by any means.

Garoppolo is the franchise quarterback but hasn’t been the most overwhelming even when he is leading the team to victories. Last season was his first as a starter and while he did throw for nearly 4,000 yards, he did throw 13 interceptions. The defense and rushing attack carried the team. He was more than a game manager however, I don’t like that term a lot especially in this situation.

Taking all this into consideration, it’s a critical year for Garoppolo. He is under contract through 2022 but can be moved on from after this season with little salary-cap hit. We have an influx of young quarterbacks coming into the draft in April but the best options will be gone before the 49ers draft – unless they lose every game the rest of this season. Dak Prescott and Cam Newton are free agents and there has been a bit of buzz lately about Matt Ryan heading to reunite with Shanahan if things don’t work out with Garoppolo.

It would be tough to move him with the contract. It would be more likely to see the 49ers releasing him if they can get another veteran quarterback. The team is still in win-now mode and has a solid nucleus. The return of Nick Bosa will jolt the defense and George Kittle is an elite tight end to lead the offensive attack. There are a lot of good pieces and a solid quarterback is critical.

Garoppolo has to show he can maintain what he did last season and lead, improvement would be a huge plus. At 29 years old and seven years in the league, he has the knowledge and tools needed to succeed. The team has a powerful running attack and good weapons, it’s time for Garoppolo to show the team what his ceiling can be.