Week 8 showed us once again how an injury to a quarterback can have a ripple effect. The Minnesota Vikings lost Kirk Cousins for the season with a torn Achilles. With a lot of uncertainty about his replacement, even after Minnesota acquired Joshua Dobbs, the value of all Vikings fantasy players take a huge hit – from Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson on down.
The same was true with the New York Jets in Week 1. For the first time in years, a slew of Jets players ended up on fantasy rosters on draft day – only to see their weekly value bottom out when Aaron Rodgers went down.
Quarterbacks last longer in fantasy drafts than their value indicates, because so many of them are equally productive from week-to-week. But when you lose one, the ripple effect on the rest of the offense can be devastating.
Fantasy football risers
Buffalo Bills TE Dalton Kincaid – Kincaid was one of the fashionable risers on fantasy draft day, because the Bills drafted him to be their version of Travis Kelce. In his first five games, Kincaid caught just 17 passes for 118 yards and no touchdowns, but he was targeted only 19 times. He made the most of his opportunities, even though they were limited. In the rookie’s last two games, he has been targeted 15 times, catching 13 of them for 140 yards and a touchdown. His role is expanding quickly. Find a way to get him.
Indianapolis Colts WR Josh Downs – The Colts rookie spent more time in training camp and in practice working with Gardner Minshew than Anthony Richardson. With Minshew now starting, Downs has become a consistent threat. In the last four games (with Minshew), he has been targeted 29 times, catching 23 passes for 315 yards and two touchdowns. Minshew helped develop Downs, and that familiarity will pay dividends.
Los Angeles Rams RB Royce Freeman – Freeman never received the chance to be the full-time starter in Denver and has bounced around the league since. Through two games with Kyren Williams down, Darrell Henderson has more carries than Freeman (30 to 21), but Freeman has generated 5.2 yards a carry while Henderson has averaged 3.1. That disparity will flip the carry percentage if it continues.
Dallas Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks – A “journeyman” who has six 1,000-yard seasons in nine years, the Cowboys are his sixth team. He’s a role player – he’s been targeted four times in five of six games in which he’s played. It’s a part-time role. In his last two games, he has caught seven passes for 85 yards and two touchdowns. That’s nothing to rejoice, but he is in a position to surpass Michael Gallup and be a bigger piece in the Cowboys offense.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Mike Evans – Evans has never garnered the respect he deserves. His Hall of Fame resume is set. Nine seasons. Nine 1,000-yard campaigns. He’s averaged nine touchdowns a year. Yet, because he isn’t flashy, he is undervalued for some reason. This year, he has just one game with more than 82 yards and hasn’t caught more than six passes in any game, but he has scored a touchdown in five of seven games. That’s what Evans does … and has done for the last decade.
Fantasy football fallers
Atlanta Falcons RB Bijan Robinson – A lot of people invested heavily in Robinson on fantasy draft day. He was a mid-to-late first-round pick in every league. You don’t bench those guys. Early on, it seemed as though the Falcons were easing him into an established offensive nucleus. But recent returns have been troubling. In his last four games, albeit including a headache-shortened, one-touch Week 7, he has 39 carries for 148 yards and a touchdown and didn’t catch any of his five Week 8 targets. Robinson is hard to sit, but he has consistently posted borderline bench-worthy numbers since Week 2 with the exception of one contest.
New Orleans Saints WR Chris Olave – During Alvin Kamara‘s three-game suspension, Olave caught 22 passes for 302 yards. In the five games Kamara has been back, Olave has caught 22 passes for 215 yards and one TD. Him being the focus of the offense has been usurped by Kamara and Michael Thomas, which doesn’t make Olave a must-start anymore.
Houston Texans RB Dameon Pierce – Pierce was a consensus RB2 on draft day and often considered a “value pick.” He’s been no value this season. Pierce is not being used as a receiver (nine catches for 84 yards and no TDs in seven games) and has averaged 16 carries a game for just 47 yards (2.9 YPC) and has one touchdown. He’s been a weakly drain on a roster. Worse for those with Pierce on their roster is that in the last two games, Devin Singletary has 22 carries for 88 yards while Pierce has 25 carries for 80 yards. That’s not ideal.
New York Giants TE Darren Waller – Waller was billed as being the Waller of Raiders vintage when he came to New York. In eight games, he’s had two big showings (15 catches for 184 yards and a touchdown). In the other six games combined, he has 21 catches for 200 yards and no TDs. In other words, he’s the same old Waller of recent vintage – enough big games sprinkled in that compel you to start him and endure numerous low-production weeks.
Green Bay Packers RB Aaron Jones – Despite losing Aaron Rodgers, Jones’ role in the offense was expected to be similar or even expand. In Week 1, it was all systems go. Since then, it’s been a different story. In the last six games, Jones has missed three of them. In the three he has played, Jones has rushed 20 times for 82 yards, caught eight passes for 35 and has no touchdowns. Those numbers send you to the fantasy bench.
