Week 5 Notes
Jets @ Broncos
Zach Wilson played well enough for the Jets to get the W, made a few nice throws, but the offense as a whole was a little conservative and the play calling was keeping him as a game manager mostly. Outside of the decision at the end of the half to throw to Lazard and then not being able to get the snap off before half, Zach played a pretty good game. The late INT by Surtain could have been to the outside shoulder, but it still was a catchable ball, it was a great play by Surtain, who was matched up with Garrett Wilson for most of the day. The Jets are still lacking talent at WR with just Alan Lazard and Randall Cobb, they really could use an upgrade there at the deadline. I do think Lazard will have some good games here and there, but this was a good matchup and he didn’t do much at all. Again, the Jets were playing conservative and flopped in the red zone a few times, due to too many run plays and some penalties.
Breece Hall ran well and the Jets blocked fairly well, but they did lose Tackle Vera Tucker for the year which will hurt them, big injury. Breece not only looked fast but also was making cuts and says he’s not even thinking about his knee anymore, which sounds great. He is still coming off an ACL and there can be risk for aggravating something, but right now it’s all systems go. Dalvin Cook had a few decent runs in this game, but seems like he’s running to protect the football sometimes and not running as hard as he could be. He’s fallen off a lot and is no longer the RB he used to be. Tyler Conklin another decent day, but still not giving you enough to really use him, it’s sad that he probably is the Jets 2nd best option in the pass game. All this talent!!! Thats what I kept hearing in the offseason. I honestly Don’t think Rodgers would be doing all that great in this offense. Between Hackett’s lackluster play calling and offensive design and nobody outside of Garrett to throw to, Zach Wilson isn’t getting much help here. They will need to continue to get good production out of the run game, and Garrett Wilson needs to be heavily featured in every game. Zach Wilson shouldn’t be used outside of two QB leagues. The schedule does get easier after their bye.
Russell Wilson and this offense didn’t look great but it was a tough matchup. Cortland Sutton who has been Russ’ best target this year was basically erased in this game finishing with just one catch. Adam Trautman scored late on a wide open pass, but he gives them nothing, they really could use Greg Dulchich back, who could return in a week or so. Jerry Jeudy hasn’t had a big game yet, he’s just giving you average production like 5 for 50, 60 yards. He is still running some good routes, and should be all the way back from his hamstring injury so be patient and expect some bigger games the rest of the way. Still this Broncos offense isn’t as good as we thought it could be under Sean Payton. Marvin Mims still isn’t being used much and also lost a fumble on a dropped punt. Jaleel Mclaughin had a big 38 yard run and made a nice grab on a pass which he scored on. He’s a good player and the Broncos would be smart to continue to feature him every game. Javonte WIlliams has not looked good coming back from his multi ligament knee injury, but he still will probably remain the short yardage and goal line back. Samaje Perine had a good day in the passing game, but he could be the odd man out here although they will likely continue to work all three guys in. McCalughin is the guy to own. On the game ending Fumble, Cortland Sutton and Juedy basically ran into each other, Russ had nobody open just can’t lose the ball there.
Texans @ Falcons
C.J. Stroud didn’t play badly, they just really couldn’t get anything going on offense until that last drive on a nice play to Dalton Schultz. Schultz gave Jessie Bates a nice inside move and broke back out for the TD. Tank Dell was having a nice game before leaving for a concussion late in the 2nd quarter. His knee bounced on the turf and then hit his head on the ground , but he still made the catch. Nico was being contained by AJ Terrell, so slow for him. Nothin much from Robert Woods, and John Metchie just isn’t getting the playing time yet, although I still believe he can be a big factor down the stretch. Damien Pierce I supported this week, the line was getting healthy and I thought he could have his best game, but honestly when I watch him he looks like a backup RB to me. He will have some good games here and there, but he’s going to be mostly underwhelming. Props to this Falcons offense though they can play and have a lot of talent. They did a good job on this Texans offense that was playing well coming into this game.
This was Desmond Ridder’s best game of the season and he threw it 37 times for over 300 yards. He still had some terrible throws but there weren’t as many as in weeks prior and he made some good throws also. Most importantly, he started to find Kyle Pitts mainly on a quick slant route which is something they need to continue to do. He also hit him on a corner route and I believe in route, but it was good to finally see Pitts have a good game. Mack Hollins forget about him, Drake London came on very late and was doing nothing until the end of the third quarter, but finished strong and was key on that winning drive. Their biggest connection was on a back shoulder throw for 32 yards. Jonnu Smith continues to stay relevant with another 60 yard game, but I have my doubts about that continuing as he should start to go to Pitts and London more often. The Falcons also just traded for Van Jefferson who I like, I thought that was a good pickup for them, Mack Hollins should be the odd man out. I thought BIjan Robinson would have a monster game here, but was mostly contained and had his first fumble of the season. Tyler Allegier had just 3 less carries but did nothing with it running for just 2.4 ypc. Bijan saved his day with a one handed catch on a poor shovel pass by Ridder that he took into the endzone. Cordarrelle Patterson is playing on special teams and only had one catch for 7 yards, he just doesn’t look like the guy he was two years ago in this offense. If you are a Bijan owner, not a bad cuff, but can keep on waivers for other talent, especially this week with all the RBs on the wire.
Panthers @ Lions
The Panthers killed themselves in this game with two interceptions and a Miles Sanders fumble. Aidan Hutchinson intercepted a screen pass to Ian Thomas and Jerry Jacobs made a nice play to pick off another. Two mistakes by Breece but not totally egregious, he still made a lot of nice quick reads and throws in this game and despite the two picks had his best statistical game. I will continue to be patient with him and as they have more talent around him I think he will continue to get better and better. Adam Thielen is going to be thing all year, I initially thought DJ Chark would be the #1 here, but it does appear it will be Thielen, although Chark caught another TD this week. This team will likely be playing from behind a lot so it should be fairly nice for Chark and Thielen week to week. Terrance Marshall was erased by the return of Jonathan Mingo. Miles Sanders had that bad fumble like I mentioned and there wasn’t much running room for him or Chuba Hubbard. Their Fantasy values are very blah right now and I don’t feel great starting Sanders going forward. Chuba would need a Sanders injury. Laviska Shenault should be used in the run game more, he had a few nice runs, but I don’t think they will ever fully turn to him especially with how much money they gave Sanders this week. Shenault could be a sneaky stash if there is an injury to Sanders or Chuba and he gets a shot to work. Although we may see Raheem Blackshear!!! Hayden Hurst continued to leave on the wire.
Jared Goff sits back in the pocket with the comfort of sitting on the couch with a beer in your hand. He then throws the ball very accurately. Give him any pressure however and he folds like a cheap dollar general chair that breaks in a month. He is well protected and this offense is well schemed. Josh Reynolds very well may be a thing all season and Jameson Williams might have to wait til next season, but there can still be room for all these guys other than Marvin Jones and Kalif Raymond. Sam LaPorta ran out into the flat wide open on a play action play for a TD and also on a reverse pass on a beautifully designed play where he hesitated and then ran wide open again for a TD. That play came directly after the Sanders fumble. Just a great situation for the rookie. David Montogmery once again looked good and had a good game, Craig Reynolds filled in late and also had a TD. He actually looked pretty good, he probably would be decent if he got some carries, because this Oline is just so damn good. Jahymr Gibbs might have to split time with Reynolds even when he comes back, scary thought, but you just have to be patient.
Titans @ Colts
Titans continued to work their play action passing game with success, with DeAndre Hopkins having his best game of the year. Great chemistry by Ryan Tannehill and Hopkins with some nice balls by Tanny and nice catches by DHop. Chig Okonwko showed a little sign of life in this game, he’s going to be inconsistent and have some duds, but I think he could start to pick up the pace a bit from here on in. I would continue to hold or add if you need help at TE. Derrick Henry didn’t do much in this game, had his best run of the day called back by a hold and was stuffed on a critical 4th and one. Tyjae Spears looked quick, had a nice catch and run and also took a reverse to the house for a TD. Still, both Henry and Spears didn’t have a ton of running room most of the day. The Oline actually passed blocked better than it ran blocked, I thought. Continuing to hold Treylon Burks, this passing game seems to be improving with all their play action passes and Tannehill has been in rhythm after a horrific start in Week 1.
Anthony Richardson was playing well before he got hurt in the 2nd quarter with about 4 minutes left. His best throw was a deep ball to Josh Downs. No doubt that Richardson will only continue to get better and better, he just needs to try and protect himself better, as he’s been getting hit hard and has missed time twice already in this young season. He may be out a few weeks with this shoulder injury where he ran and got slammed to the ground.
Gardner Minshew stepped in and played very solid, threw a lot of nice passes, we have seen this from Minshew before. The question is can he sustain, he has never proved to remain consistent throughout his career, but I still think Michael Pittman and now Josh Downs can be relied upon. Josh Downs had his best game and the coaching staff has to continue to find ways to get him the ball. The TIght end room is still a heavy mix and I don’t expect that to change much even when Jelani Woods returns from injury. It’s going to be a mix of different guys.
What impressed me most in this game was the Colts run game and the way their offensive line dominated what was probably the best run D in the league coming in. Zach Moss also looked great, bouncing off tackles, finding holes and showing good burst. I came away very impressed. I don’t know how the Colts just move away from him right now. Jonathan Taylor looked just Ok in his first game back, he didn’t get nearly the usage that Moss got but Moss was clearly better on this day. His best play was on a screen pass where he picked up a decent chunk. The Colts said they would slowly increase him over the next month, and that is smart. You would think that Taylor will eventually earn the bulk over Moss, but this could remain a 50/50 or maybe 60/40 in Taylor’s favor at most the rest of the way. At the same time if Taylor is back in full swing and getting 15-20 carries with the way this line is blocking he could retake this job and earn the vast majority like we all expected. It’s just that Zack Moss is playing some good damn football right now. The good news is that the Colts offensive line looks to be back to what we are used to.
Saints @ Patriots
Derek Carr threw some nice balls in this game, but this Saints offense just lacks real rhythm and consistency. Chris Olave just missed a TD late, but now with Kamara back getting so many carries and touches it’s hurting Olave’s production. This was a game script that the Saints could run a ton though and he will fare better in games where they will be playing from behind. The problem is Derek Carr just isn’t that good, but he does have his moments and that’s where Olave can contribute. Michael Thomas probably will never go for more than 12 fantasy points, that seems like that is his ceiling, although it’s a safe floor. Rashid Shaheed should be used a lot more in this offense, but Michael Thomas is in his way. Kendre Miller looked good at times, what really sucked was at the end when the game was over they were just running him into a brick wall. This is how he got hurt in the preseason, yet Pete Carmichael and Dennis Allen appear clueless. Put your third string guy in, or FB, instead of running your talented rookie who is still sporting a knee brace!!! Miller seemed over it, it sucks when the defense knows you are going to run and you are just taking punishment. His role should increase a bit as the season goes on, but Kamara is the workhorse and Kamara has looked the part so far.
Mac Jones threw one horrific pass in this game in the face of pressure and also missed Rhamondre Stevenson on a toss by throwing it behind him which caused a fumble. The play looked like it was going for a big gain too. The protection was poor and Mac Jones needs time, he folds under pressure. He did make some nice throws, but this offense is just horrendous right now. He made a throw to Ty Montogmery that Montgomery dropped and was picked off. They need to get this offensive line straightened out so they can start to pass the ball effectively and run the ball as well. Rhamondre doesn’t look bad out there, the run blocking just sucks and he hasn’t been getting his usual targets in the pass game. This entire Patriots offense is hard to trust right now. The line is not blocking, you can only trust them against cake defenses. The only guys I want to use our Rhamondre and Hunter Henry.
Ravens @ Steelers
Lamar had a lot of nice throws, some bad drops and another where Zay Flowers was open deep but just fell down. He made two critical mistakes late with the interception in the endzone and the fumble, but TJ Watt is different. Him and Alex Highsmith have basically won two games for the Steelers this season. Should be some better games ahead for Zay Flowers, but still this Monken offense doesn’t look great or as advertised. Justice Hill was having a pretty good game and just caught a pass and made a couple moves, but was hit from behind and fumbled. After that he didn’t do much, still he gives Baltimore the most versatility, will see if Keaton Mitchell gets any work. Gus Edwards got the other work, nothing to be seen from Melvin Gordon here. This Ravens run game still is just lackluster.
Kenny Pickett once again gets it done late with a late TD pass on a go route to George Pickens. Pickens clearly needs way more targets. Seemed like they went almost 3 or 4 drives without targeting him. A lot of run, run ,pass drives for the Steelers, just stale and predictable. Najee Harris didn’t have much room to operate once again and only got one target. Jaylen Warren didn’t do much either, he came in for a drive and gave them a spark with a nice catch and run to get them by the goaline. He should probably be used more in the passing game, but so should Najee. Maybe they should stop running and throw these guys passes. Allen Robinson, Calvin Austin just seem irrelevant for the most part. Robinson contributed a bit, but there’s not much room here in this passing game. George Pickens needs to be more involved, but after this week Diontate Johnson will be back. Kenny Pickett is starting to look better however and maybe this passing game starts to take off a little bit more. Matt Canada needs to do better though.
Fantasy Savvy 