On this week’s episode of “As the Fantasy World Turns,” we saw yet another top-round caliber talent in Aaron Rodgers go down with an injury. His broken collarbone is reportedly going to keep him out for a minimum of eight weeks, with the effects being felt not only by Rodgers’ owners, but by those who lean on Jordy Nelson, Davante Adams, Randall Cobb, Aaron Jones, and Ty Montgomery. Detroit and Houston are on a bye for Week 7, so plan accordingly for this week and the next. Weeks 8 and 9 will each have six teams on bye, so don’t underestimate making a depth move even if these names don’t spark a huge flame within. Still, one week at a time! Who knows what we’ll be discussing here next week.
For what it’s worth, my lean on the Dallas situation is Darren McFadden over Alfred Morris due to his pass protection skills and non-fantasy offerings that make him a more complete back. If it were raw running talent then I’d want Alf, but this is the way things tend to go. But both are way above our threshold here! As usual, ownership levels discussed here are taken from Yahoo leagues.
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Priority Pickups – <30% Owned
Orleans Darkwa (NYG – RB) – 10% owned (15% FAAB)
Darkwa ended up taking a firm grasp on this Giants backfield by not only becoming the first running back to tally 57 yards against Denver’s defense all season, but by blowing that mark out of the water with 117 yards on 21 carries. Big Blue wasn’t shy about riding their running game given the state of their receiving corps, and Darkwa’s strong start helped him take the lion’s share of the work compared to Wayne Gallman.
The biggest knock on picking up any Giant was their short-term schedule, but conquering Denver was a huge win. His prospects heading into a home date with Seattle in Week 7 still aren’t great and the Giants have a bye after that, but this performance cannot be ignored for when the schedule opens up in the second half.
Corey Davis (TEN – WR) – 23% owned (13% FAAB)
Davis hasn’t played since Week 2 thanks to a hamstring injury, but looks like he could return for a lovely Week 7 date with the Browns. It would’ve been nice if he returned for Monday night’s game against the Colts, but we can’t have everything we want. It’s possible that Davis remains out through Tennessee’s Week 8 bye, but head coach Mike Mularkey said there’s no concrete plan to hold him out. This is a guy who the Titans selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2017 Draft and immediately peppered with 10 targets in Week 1. They will use him when healthy.
Bennie Fowler (DEN – WR) – 2% owned (5% FAAB)
Fowler, who caught three-of-eight targets for just 21 yards in a Week 6 loss to the Giants, should be the beneficiary of Emmanuel Sanders‘ ankle injury. You might remember Fowler for his two-touchdown opening to the season (3-21-2) against the Chargers, but he hasn’t made much noise since then with just 10 catches for a combined 119 yards over his last four games. He should step in opposite Demaryius Thomas and see around eight targets yet again in a Week 7 matchup with the Chargers. Perhaps he can replicate the two-TD effort?
Dion Lewis (NE – RB) – 10% owned (5% FAAB)
After turning in a healthy 53 yards on seven carries (and catching two balls for 10 more yards) in Week 5 against the Bucs, Lewis once again topped 50 yards by toting the rock 11 times for 52 yards and a touchdown against the Jets in Week 6. Lewis saw most of his work after Mike Gillislee was temporarily benched for fumbling. While Lewis isn’t suddenly the back to own in New England, it’s clear that Bill Belichick has confidence in him — and he has confidence in his own body — to be the primary ball-carrier. Those in deeper formats who want to “handcuff” Gillislee should definitely have Lewis. Then again, there’s this other guy…
Rex Burkhead (NE – RB) – 9% owned (5% FAAB)
Burkhead has been out with a rib injury since Week 3 and nearly returned for the game against the Jets, but was left on the inactive list. He returns to a backfield that has the aforementioned Dion Lewis emerging with roughly 10-12 touches per week alongside Mike Gillislee‘s one-dimensional carries and James White‘s receiving prowess. That may leave you wondering where Burkhead could possibly fit in, and the answer is everywhere!
He can bang between the tackles and run wheel routes on the outside, which could leave him playing an intriguing role as a hybrid back with New England not exactly deep at receiver right now. The Pats are going to have to generate lots of offense to win the Super Bowl LI rematch with Atlanta given how their defense has “played” so we should see how Burkhead fits in early. The best case scenario is that he supplants Gillislee for the early-down work, but don’t peg your expectations there.
Kenny Golladay (DET – WR) – 16% owned (3% FAAB)
It feels like a lifetime ago that Golladay burst onto the scene with a 4-69-2 line in Week 1 against the Cardinals, but a hamstring injury has kept him out for three games now. Despite missing Week 6, he was trending in the right direction with three limited practices last week and should be ready to rock in Week 8 against the Steelers at home. The big news here is Golden Tate‘s multi-week shoulder injury, which could very well keep him out for that Sunday night matchup with Pittsburgh. Golladay could return to fantasy lineups with a bang if that’s the case.
Roger Lewis (WR – NYG) – 21% owned (3% FAAB)
As expected, Lewis was a non-factor in Week 6 against Aqib Talib and the Broncos perimeter defensive backs with just one catch on two targets for 15 yards. He may end up facing Richard Sherman more often than not in Week 7 before Big Blue’s Week 8 bye. The big idea here is that after the bye he should not only face easier defenses, but should draw some easier assignments with Sterling Shepard‘s return to the fold. He won’t ever be a set-it-and-forget-it flex play, but should offer some deep value in softer matchups down the road.
JuJu Smith-Schuster (PIT – WR) – 14% owned (1% FAAB)
Smith-Schuster got some waiver-wire attention when he became the No. 3 receiver for the Steelers, though the Ben Roethlisberger-led offense hasn’t represented nearly as much in the fantasy world as we’re used to seeing. There are Big Worries about Big Ben, but he’s still got plenty of potential and Smith-Schuster’s role could blast off if the trade rumors swirling around Martavis Bryant were to materialize.
Deep League Targets – <10% owned
George Kittle (SF – TE) – 8% owned (2% FAAB)
Kittle’s 17 targets over the last two weeks trail only Pierre Garcon (23) on the team, with an additional boost to his stock coming from the narrative of ex-Iowa teammate C.J. Beathard taking over as the starting quarterback. Beathard was responsible for seven of Kittle’s eight Week 6 targets and the new QB could lean on him in a plus Week 7 matchup with the Cowboys, who hit their bye with the sixth-worst team defense against the tight end position per FootballOutsiders’ Defense-adjusted Value Over Average metric.
Brandon Tate (BUF – WR) – 0% owned (2% FAAB)
While Zay Jones paced all Buffalo receivers in snaps (66) with Jordan Matthews out, he has simply done nothing with his opportunities thus far. Jones has turned 23 targets into just five catches, so we’re ignoring him for now. Even though Tate’s 34 snaps trailed Kaelin Clay‘s 41, Tate’s four targets outshined Clay’s one (which he didn’t catch), as he caught two of them for 25 yards and a score. It’s not much to go off of, but he looked to be the most effective wideout that Tyrod Taylor is going to have for this upcoming game against the Bucs. Nick O’Leary remains another sneaky pickup, as he fills in for Clay at tight end.
Teddy Bridgewater (MIN – QB) – 1% owned (1% FAAB)
The reports of Bridgewater returning to practice on Wednesday have hit the news stream and now we’ll all start to wonder whether he can return (effectively) before Sam Bradford gets back to 100%. Case Keenum is doing his job but is very unlikely to stave off Bridgewater or Bradford if they’re available. With Jerick McKinnon giving Minnesota a reputable rushing game in Dalvin Cook‘s absence and Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, and Kyle Rudolph offering a solid trio of receivers, Bridgewater could return to some happy surroundings for a second-half run that could provide a jump in 2QB leagues.
Chris Ivory (JAC – RB) – 4% owned (1% FAAB)
Ivory hadn’t done anything special over Jacksonville’s first five games, collecting 159 rushing yards on 38 carries alongside seven catches for 69 yards and zero touchdowns. He then came to life with nine catches for 74 yards and a touchdown (on 10 targets) with three rushing yards on two carries. For as much love as Leonard Fournette rightfully gets, Ivory would immediately enter RB2 territory if something were to happen to the rookie stud. Corey Grant might even become relevant in 14-team circles if that were to go down, but Fournette’s little injury scare should highlight Ivory’s potential value.
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Nick Mariano is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Nick, check out his archive and follow him @NMariano53.
