With Bye Weeks Now Effecting Fantasy Lineups Weekly, Depth Becomes More Important Then Ever To Find Success From Week To Week
Week five of the NFL season marks the beginning of the bye week period. Hurricane Irma provided owners with decision to make in week one when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Miami Dolphins game was cancelled due to Hurricane Irma. Those decision will happen weakly now, and this is where a strong presence on the waiver wire can make the all the difference in taking home fantasy gold.
This is what we learned in week four….
The Injuries Are Starting To Pile Up
Week four was not kind to many owners, as there were numerous injuries to many star players. Ty Montgomery, David Carr, and Marcus Mariota will all miss some times with various injuries. Julio Jones was also hurt, but with the Falcons on their bye week, he may not miss time. Dalvin Cook and Chris Carson were lost for the season. Again after all the week four injuries the waiver wire needs attention. Even if you avoided the injury bug, others didn’t, and if you grab the right player, you could net a handsome reward in a trade for a position of need.
The Miami Dolphins Are Quickly Approaching Avoid At All Cost Status
The Dolphins have scored a total of six points in the last two weeks, against the Jets and the Saints. Up to this point, the Saints defense had been absolutely horrible. Jay Ajayi and Jarvis Landry have been enormous disappointments this season so far. The Pug doesn’t advise dropping these fantasy studs from just a year ago, but as hard as it may be, it may be time to consider alternate options until the Dolphins can get it together.
Now on to Week Five….
Must Starts
Brandin Cooks- WR- New England Patriots- Although he has been a disappointment for three of the first four weeks, The Pug believes Cooks will have an outstanding game against a suspect Tampa defense. Add to it the Bucs will be without Lavonte David, Kwon Alexander, Keith Tandy and T.J. Ward and this game has shootout all over it.
DeSean Jackson- WR- Tampa Bay Buccaneers- There has been tons of talk of Jameis Winston and his burner receiver being on opposite pages. That all stops tonight. Start Jackson today and be rewarded with a payout in a shootout situation.
Carlos Hyde- RB- San Francisco 49ers- Hyde has been very up and down this season. The Colts defense is always suspect, and look for the 49ers to try to control the game by releasing Hyde early and often.
Bilal Powell- RB New York Jets- This guy went off last week against a decent Jaguars defense, and meets with the good ol’ Brownies this week. He will control the game and could even see similar numbers to last week. Deploy with no worries.
Players To Avoid
Todd Gurley- RB- Los Angeles Rams- Gurley has really found his grove as of late. If you have him on your fantasy roster, you are probably calling me crazy, especially since the Seahawks defense hasn’t been as dominant as it has been in years past. However, look for the Seahawks to stack the box and contain Gurley, which could lead to a long day for Gurley. Don’t look for home-field advantage for the Rams either.
Michael Crabtree- WR- Oakland Raiders- Sure this guy has had huge days for your fantasy team, but this is a different ballgame now. Crabtree has great chemistry with Derek Carr, and with him sidelined, The Pug suggest finding an alternative until Carr is back in uniform.
Legarrette Blount- RB- Philadelphia Eagles- Another game where the opposition is going to stack the box. The Pug expects the Eagles to find their success through the air in this one. Arizona ranks just outside the top ten in rushing yards allowed per game, and will game plan around stopping the run this week.
A.J. Green- WR- Cincinatti Bengals- The Bills have allowed the least amount of scoring against them in the league this season. They also rank 11th against the pass, and are well aware of the best weapon on the field for the Bengals. The Pug isn’t saying Green will have an awful game, but don’t expect A.J. Green type numbers out of him this weekend.
Waiver Wire Gems
Latavius Murray- RB- Minnesota Vikings- Murray proves to be the main beneficiary with Dalvin Cook shelved for the season. Don’t be thrown off if he doesn’t score you a ton a points right away, as he is still recovering from off-season ankle surgery. In the long run, Murray will be the top-producer for the Vikings ground game.
Will Fuller- WR- Houston Texans- What a 2017 debut for Fuller. His speed and skills opened up the Texans offense, and if he can even a small amount of the success that he found last week, Fuller could be the next fantasy stud.
Tyler Kroft- TE- Cincinnati Bengals- With Tyler Eifert out for ‘multiple weeks’ Kroft should have already been a guy to keep your eye on. With Andy Dalton’s history of using his tight end in the red zone, and Kroft showing last week he can handle it (6 catches 68 yards 2 TD’s) he is a definite plug and play candidate until Eifert is healthy.
Alex Collins- RB- Baltimore Ravens- Collins has been the most successful back for the Ravens this season, mostly unnoticed. Although he is on this list, use caution. Sure he has picked up 82 yards on the ground each of the last two weeks, but he doesn’t seem to be a touchdown guy and has only had nine carries in each of those contest. He is worth storing away to see if the Ravens give him more oppurtunities going forward.
