As the Titans team bus cruised from the Indy airport to the team hotel, Afroman’s Greatest Hits blared through the vehicle’s sound system. Derrick Henry was tucked in the back row nodding along, “Colt 45 and two Zig Zags, baby that’s all we need.” It was then that Henry set his goal of scoring 45 PPR fantasy points against the Indianapolis Colts in his week 12 matchup. The big man was well on his way in 2nd quarter when he punched in his third touchdown of the first half. But the Colt 45 wasn’t meant to be as Henry finished the day with only 27 carries for 178 yards, 2 catches for 7 yards and his 10th, 11th and 12 touchdowns. If only Ryan Tannehill (13/22 for 221 yards, 2 carries for 3 yards, 1 passing touchdown and 1 rushing touchdown) hadn’t vultured that 4th touchdown, oh what might have been. Henry would be at the park after dark, smoking that tumbleweed. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday for fantasy football:
LV at ATL
Josh Jacobs – 7 carries for 27 yards, 3 catches for 17 yards. Whenever we go out, the people always shout, there goes Josh Jacobs Jinglehammer Shit! This was a big time letdown spot for the Raiders after last week’s tough loss to the Chiefs. Expect everyone to bounce back in a big way next week against the Jets.
Nelson Agholor – 5 catches for 54 yards. Is there a more 2020 player than Agholor? Even in the Raiders worst game of the year he puts a respectable game together. I have him as a back end WR3 rest of season.
Henry Ruggs – 3 catches for 56 yards. I had some interactions on the interwebs this week that make be think the 21 year old is being undervalued in dynasty leagues. Let’s give the kid a full, non-pandemic off season (fingers crossed for 2021) before we write Henry the Third off.
Darren Waller – 4 catches for 23 yards. When I was peeping through Waller’s bathroom window Sunday morning I noticed he looked a little sluggish.
Brian Hill – 13 carries for 55 yards. Hill was expected to fill in for Todd Gurley (knee) and was a hot add this week, but it was actually Ito Smith (12 carries for 65 yards, 4 catches for 10 yards and his 1st touchdown) who was the bigger factor. We wondered if the Toddfather’s knees could hold up for an entire season. They can’t. And there’s a chance he misses more than just the one game, so both Hill and Smith are worth owning.
Calvin Ridley – 6 catches for 50 yards and his 7th touchdown. Ridley excels when Julio Jones (hamstring) plays hooky nowhere near the schoolyard. He’s not too shabby when Julio’s down by the school yard either.
LAC at BUF
Justin Herbert – 31/52 for 316 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception–he now has 23 passing touchdowns on the season. Herbert rhymes with sherbert and I love rainbow sherbert. Wait, autocorrect tells me it’s actually sherbet and I’ve been pronouncing it wrong my whole life like an idiot! I hope Herbert isn’t a lie too!Â
Austin Ekeler – 14 carries for 44 yards, 11 catches for 85 yards. You read that correct: 11 receptions. He’s back! I know July feels like decades ago, but if you recall, I liked Ekeler more than his own mother and now I’m doubling down, Mrs.Ekeler. Kalen Ballage (ankle, calf) can officially be dropped.
Keenan Allen – 4 catches for 40 yards and his 7th touchdown. Allen faced off against lockdown corner Tre’Davious White and still found the end zone for the 5th straight game. Don’t get too cute with your elite WR1s.Â
Mike Williams – 3 catches for 26 yards. Big Mike with the little fantasy line.Â
Stefon Diggs – 7 catches for 39 yards. That’s 5.6 yards per catch. Did Diggs switch to running back for this game? There’s been a lot of positional swaps going aroundÂ
Zack Moss – 9 carries for 59 yards, 2 catches for 9 yards. Both Moss and Devin Singletary (11 carries for 82 yards, 3 carries for 20 yards) averaged over 6.5 yards per carry against the Chargers, but Josh Allen (18/24 for 157 yards, 9 carries for 32 yards, 1 passing touchdown, 1 rushing touchdown and 1 interception–he now has 22 passing touchdowns and 6 rushing touchdowns on the year) was the Bills running back you wanted to own. We knew Allen vulturing was a risk coming into the year, the big man did have 17 rushing touchdowns in his first two seasons.Â
Gabriel Davis – Gabriel is a Sledgehammer, why don’t you call his name! The rookie caught a 20 yard TD pass from Cole Beasley (2 catches for 25 yards, 1/1 for 20 yards and his 1st passing touchdown). It’s nice to see Josh Allen get vultured through the air, serves him right!
NYG at CIN
Wayne Gallman – 24 carries for 94 yards, 3 catches for -3 yards and his 6th touchdown. Who needs Devonta Freeman (ankle, hamstring) when you have business booming at Wayne Enterprises.
Evan Engram – 6 catches for 129 yards and a fumble lost. Double E Cup caught a 50 yard pass on the first drive which got me aroused. That arousal kept building into the 2nd half where I’d hoped to climax with a touchdown. It wasn’t meant to be, but 129 yards still leaves me very satisfied.Â
Tee Higgins – 5 catches for 44 yards and his 5th touchdown. Another nice fantasy line for the stud rookie but with Joe Burrow (ACL) out, I have little excitement for Higgins, Tyler Boyd (3 catches for 15 yards), Gio Bernard (8 carries for 32 yards, 2 catches for 17 yards), Joe Mixon (IR, foot), Benny the Bengal (made up mascot) or anyone in this Cincy offense. I am interested in streaming defenses against Brandon Allen (17/29 for 136 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception) however. If you’re in one of those leagues that still uses team defenses (I am).
TEN at IND
A.J. Brown – 4 catches for 98 yards and his 8th touchdown. Brown also returned an onside kick for a touchdown at the end of the game. How would you like to lose your fantasy matchup on that play? That’s nine TDs in the last nine weeks for Brownie. I call him Special Brownie.
Corey Davis – 3 catches for 70 yards. Davis has developed into a legit big play threat, catching a 20+ yard reception in six of his nine games. Nice.Â
Nyheim Hines – 10 carries for 29 yards, 8 catches for 66 yards. Just as Jonathan Taylor (COVID-19) was kicking it into gear he came down with the sickness, kicking us in the balls. Hines and Jordan Wilkins (6 carries for 22 yards, 3 catches for 35 yards) were left to fill the void and soften the nut blow. Wilkins can be left on the wire, Hines continues to provide PPR value and 57 sauce.Â
T.Y. Hilton – 4 catches for 81 yards and his 1st touchdown. Bout time! I’ve said for the last couple weeks that I thought Hilton was ready to breakout. You know what they say about broken clocks.
Michael Pittman – 2 catches for 28 yards. Not what we hoped for, but on the plus side Pittman did lead all Colt receivers with 9 targets. Don’t drop the talented rookie just yet.
Trey Burton – 3 catches for 42 yards and his 5th touchdown. Burton brought the The Nightmare Before Christmas to Tennessee.Â
CAR at MIN
Mike Davis – 15 carries for 55 yards, 3 catches for 24 yards. We expect Christian McCaffrey (shoulder) will return following the Panthers week 13 bye. This wasn’t exactly the parting gift Davis’s owners were hoping for but hey, it was a good run.
D.J. Moore – 4 catches for 61 yards before leaving late in the game with a non-contact injury. It’s feared that Moore may have suffered a torn Achilles which can be catastrophic for receivers’ careers. Of course the game Teddy Bridgewater (19/36 for 267 yards, 2 carries for 12 yards, 1 passing touchdown and 1 interception) finally decides to send 9 targets D.J.’s way something like this has to happen. Get well soon, Mr. Moore.
Robby Anderson – 4 catches for 94 yards and his 2nd touchdown. That’s Anderson’s first TD since week 1. With D.J.’s music silenced, it’s all systems go for Anderson and Curtis Samuel (5 catches for 72 yards, 1 carry for 5 yards) in your fantasy playoffs.
Dalvin Cook – 18 carries for 61 yards, 4 catches for 21 yards. The Chef got injured in the kitchen, but was able to return and finish the turkey. The meat was a little on the dry side but at least he got the meal on the table, just pour some more gravy on top.
Justin Jefferson – 7 catches for 70 yards and his 5th and 6th touchdowns. Can we just put this guy in the Hall of Fame already? He’ll look great in that gold jacket.
Adam Thielen – Missed the game with COVID which was reported to be a false positive but then it turned out to be a true positive. Remember, I recommended you to sell him around midseason because he would catch coronavirus.Â
ARI at NE
Kyler Murray – 23/34 for 170 yards, 5 carries for 31 yards, 0 touchdowns and 1 interception. Kyler got Belichick’d. Happens to the best of em. Also, Christian Kirk (3 catches fro 19 yards) dropped a touchdown and has been demoted from captain to private part.
Kenyan Drake – 22 carries for 78 yards, 3 catches for 15 yards and his 6th and 7th touchdowns. The Drake is good! The Cardinals like The Drake a lot more than they like Chase Edmonds (6 carries for 29 yards, 4 catches for 14 yards). Always start The Drake!
DeAndre Hopkins – 5 catches for 55 yards. DHop got Belichick’d too. He had to face off against Stephon Gilmore so I bumped him down my week 12 rankings a little but as I mentioned with Keenan Allen, you can’t get too cute with your studs.
Damien Harris – 14 carries for 47 yards. Just when we think Bill is ready to commit to Harris as a feature back, he reverses course and hands James White (5 carries for 18 yards, 1 catch for -1 yards and his 1st and 2nd touchdowns) two rushing TDs. Never a dull moment owning Patriot running backs. Also very few happy moments.
N’Keal Harry – 0 catches for 0 yards on 3 targets. The Big Harry did not overshadow Jakobi Meyers (5 catches for 52 yards) and Damiere Byrd (3 catches for 33 yards), but Cam Newton (9/18 for 84 yards, 9 carries for 46 yards and 0 touchdowns) did underwhelm them.
MIA at NYJ
DeAndre Washington – 13 carries for 49 yards, 2 catches for 11 yards. Is there a backfield with more turnover than the Dolphins this year? We’ve got Salvon Ahmed (shoulder), Myles Gaskin (knee), Jordan Howard (stinks), Patrick Laird (1 carry for 9 yards), Matt Breida (8 carries for 36 yards, 2 catches for 17 yards) and Malcolm Perry (1 catch for 8 yards before leaving with a chest injury) all getting work in Miami this year. I’m not even sure if all of those are real people.
DeVante Parker – 8 catches for 119 yards. Ryan Fitzpatrick (24/39 for 257 yards, 3 carries for 10 yards and 2 touchdowns) and Parker have a bond beyond words. Kind of like myself and Darren Waller. Parker saw 14 targets in this game which was 11 more than the next closest Dolphin receiver.
Mike Gesicki – 2 catches for 35 yards and his 3rd touchdown. PIGSKINONATORRRR!!! Guess how high the pig-bot ranked Gesicki among tight ends this week. Higher. HIGHER. Gesicki was the robot’s #3 TE this week! If Fitzpatrick continues to run the show then Gesicki could be useful down the stretch. By the way, the pig-bot loved Fitzmagic and Parker too this week.
Frank Gore – 18 carries for 74 yards, 3 catches for 12 yards. My grandfather used to tell us grandkids about how he would take my grandma to watch Gore play ball back in the 1940’s. Turns out my father was conceived under the bleachers during Frank’s rookie season.
Jamison Crowder – 3 catches for 31 yards. Crowder owners are really gonna need the Jameson tonight. There was an expectation that Sam Darnold‘s (16/27 for 197 yards, 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions) return would boost Crowder back above Breshad Perriman (4 catches for 79 yards) and Denzel Mims (4 catches for 67 yards) in the pecking order, but no such luck. Feel free to cut bait and Crowder and take a flier on either of Perriman or Mims, if you’re desperate.
CLE at JAC
Nick Chubb – 19 carries for 144 yards, 3 catches for 32 yards and his 6th touchdown. What I’m experiencing right now is more than just chub.Â
Kareem Hunt – 10 carries for 62 yards. I’m not reading too much into one game, but Hunt only receiving two targets versus Chubb’s three targets in the passing game is slightly concerning for Hunt owners. I still think there’s enough work for both these guys to be every week starters.
Jarvis Landry – 8 catches for 143 yards and his 1st touchdown. The Landryman finally took care of the dirty clothes. This is the type of performance I expected to see when OBJ went down. Better late than never . . .Â
James Robinson – 22 carries for 128 yards, 5 catches for 31 yards and his 8th touchdown. Jim Rob keeps plowing along, carrying my RazzBowl team into contention. Sign up for the 2021 RazzBowl now!
Collin Johnson – 4 catches for 96 yards and his 2nd touchdown. With D.J. Chark (ribs) out, Big Collin whipped out his huge Johnson. Seriously, the 5th round rookie out of Texas is 6’6″ and 220 lbs. I’m not 100% about the size of his johnson, I have staked out his bathroom yet, but there might be something here.
NO at DEN
Taysom Hill – 9/16 for 78 yards, 10 carries for 44 yards, 0 passing touchdowns, 2 rushing touchdowns and 1 interception–he now has 0 passing touchdowns and 5 rushing touchdowns on the year. All the haters will have to climb Taysom’s Hill eventually. Sure, Drew Brees and his 74 broken ribs will be back at some point this year, but Taysom is the future in NOLA and his legs make him a major fantasy asset.
Alvin Kamara – 11 carries for 54 yards, 1 catch for -2 yards. As December draws nearer, Alvin and the Chipmunks will need to start warming up their vocal cords. I sounded the alarm last week after the first Taysom start and Sean Peyton didn’t hit snooze this week, handing Latavius Murray (19 carries for 124 yards, 1 catch for 2 yards and his 3rd and 4th touchdowns) the bulk of the work. I’ll guess that they’re just keep Kamara fresh in a game that was never really a game, but it’s worth monitoring nonetheless.
Michael Thomas – 4 catches for 50 yards. Again, this wasn’t much of a game since the Bronco’s were forced to start their assistant equipment manager at QB. Needless to say, the Saints didn’t need to throw much.Â
Melvin Gordon – 12 carries for 31 yards. Have you ever drank Gordon’s Vodka? It comes in a plastic bottle and it’s one step up from Skoal. It’s the stuff you get when you’re drinking to blackout. It’s the stuff you needed if you were watching this game with the Broncos’ practice squad WR Kendall Hinton (1/9 for 13 yards, 2 carries for 7 yards, 0 touchdowns and 2 interceptions) starting at quarterback due to COVID contact tracing forcing all their real QBs into quarantine. The only other news worth mentioning for Denver is the Phillip Lindsay (9 carries for 20 yards) knee injury which could open the door for Melvin to produce solid RB2 numbers if Lindsay misses extended time.
SF at LAR
Raheem Mostert -16 carries for 43 yards and his 3rd touchdown and a fumble lost. I had a Raheem that one day Mostert would rise up and carry my fantasy team to glory. The 2.7 yards per carry in his first game back from an ankle injury didn’t quite fulfill the dream, but he’s still a high end RB2 rest of season.
Deebo Samuel – 11 catches for 133 yards. There’s still time for Deebo to make up for the seven games he missed with a Jones Fracture and hamstring injury, but he’s now joined by a supporting cast that makes Jersey Shore look good. Regardless, this was a very encouraging performance and you should make sure he isn’t available in your league.Â
Cam Akers – 9 carries for 84 yards and his 2nd touchdown. Looks like it might finally be happening! Darrell Henderson (10 carries for 19 yards) posted a pathetic 1.9 yards per carry and Malcom Brown (3 carries for 4 yards, 2 catches for 15 yards) was a non-factor. Akers is available in a ton of leagues, add him up.
Cooper Kupp – 2 catches for 41 yards. Kupp’s targets are less consistent than my pandemic shower schedule and it’s maddening. One week he’s getting 20, the next week he’s getting five (this week). Robert Woods‘ (7 catches for 80 yards) targets have been slightly more consistent and even more maddening to me as a Kupp owner. Consider Woods a solid WR2 and Kupp more of a low end WR2 as we move into the fantasy playoffs.
KC at TB
Patrick Mahomes – 37/49 for 462 yards, 4 carries for 28 yards, and 3 touchdowns–he now has 30 passing touchdowns on the year. Mahomie faced off against the GOAT, Tom Brady (27/41 for 345 yards, 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions–he now has 28 passing touchdowns on the year), and he kicked the GOAT in the face.Â
Tyreek Hill – 13 catches for 269 yards and his 12th, 13th and 14th touchdowns. I’ll fess up, Tyreek deserved the lede in this article, but I had already starting writing about Henry by the time Hill had racked up over 200 yards and 2 touchdowns midway through the 1st quarter. It was fun watching him make Carlton Davis look like Carlton from The Fresh Prince of Belaire.Â
Clyde Edwards-Helaire – 11 carries for 37 yards, 1 catch for 2 yards. The Clydesdale got halfway around the track and decided to take a nap. Which was better than Le’Veon Bell (5 carries for 22 yards, 2 catches for 10 yards) who never got out of the starting gates. I still trust CEH as a high end RB2/low end RB1 and I’m still not touching Bell with a ten foot pole, unless that pole is made of Italian sausage. Then I’d consider it but only it it comes with grilled onions and peppers.
Travis Kelce – 8 catches for 82 yards. I mentioned it in my preseason rankings: Kelce is the Cal Ripkin on the NFL, he simply doesn’t miss games. He’ll be my undisputed #1 fantasy tight end once again in 2021.
Ronald Jones – 9 carries for 66 yards, 1 catch for 37 yards and his 6th touchdown. Ronald McDonald is clowning us Leonard Fournette (3 carries for 10 yards, 3 catches for 10 yards) owners. He’s more like the Hamburgler!
Mike Evans – 3 catches for 50 yards and his 10th and 11th touchdowns. I’ve been one of the bigger Evans skeptics all year, just waiting for the touchdown regression to set in. Well, that doesn’t seem to be happening. Maybe I’m just a big dummy.
Chris Godwin – 8 catches for 97 yards. He whipped out his Godwiener on the Chiefs and it was all over.Â
Antonio Brown – 2 catches for 11 yards. But I was told he would be a WR1! The upside is undeniable, but he’s pretty far down Brady’s pecking order as he finished #5 in targets this week behind all of Godwin, Evans, Gronk and even Brate. No bueno, Antonio.
Rob Gronkowski – 6 catches for 106 yards. Tommy and Gronky didn’t release a new episode this week. Coincidence?
CHI at GB
David Montgomery – 11 carries for 103 yards, 5 catches for 40 yards and his 3rd touchdown. The Full Monty showed it all in his return from the concussion. He’s a solid RB2 for your playoff run, even though the Bears stink.
Allen Robinson – 8 catches for 74 yards and his 4th and 5th touchdowns. Da Mitch returned this week for Da Bears in lieu of the injured (and incompetent) Nick Foles (hip). ARob approves of Mitch Trubisky (26/46 for 242 yards, 3 carries for 11 yards, 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions) movement and so do all of his fantasy owners.
Aaron Rodgers – 21/29 for 211 yards, 2 carries for 12 yards and 4 touchdowns–he now has 33 passing touchdowns on the season. What happened to Rodgers agent Gabe? Strange that Gabe vanishes and suddenly Rodgers is an elite QB1 again, huh?
Aaron Jones – 17 carries for 90 yards. Da Bears still have a decent run defense even without Akiem Hicks clogging the middle, but what I really wanted to keep an eye on was how many touches Jones ceded to Jamaal Williams (17 carries for 73 yards and his 3rd touchdown). Answer: too many. Although after watching Williams’ awesome pregame dance routine, I kind of want to see more Williams.
Davante Adams – 6 catches for 61 yards and his 11th touchdown. Over the weekend I ran into a guy on Reddit who was questioning whether Adams really deserves his own tier in Al_FF_red’s rest of season WR rankings. I think he does deserve his own tier based on the combo of consistency and upside he brings to the table, but Tyreek Hill is making it tough to keep him boxed out of that tier.
Allen Lazard – 4 catches for 23 yards and his 3rd touchdown. The Lizard King left in the 2nd half after taking a big hit to the chest. He just returned from core surgery last week so no surprise a vicious hit to the chest might be very painful. Hopefully that’s all it was and he’s back out there next week.
Robert Tonyan – 5 catches for 67 yards and his 7th touchdown. With A-A-Ron playing like he’s in this 20s again, Tonyan looks like a legit TE1. I mean the TE1 bar is pretty low, but he’s producing. BDon did point out in his rest of season tight end rankings that Tonyan has a difficult schedule ahead of him, so take that into consideration.
