Fantasy Football News & Advice from Week 3
Each NFL week is a treasure trove of information and as the season progresses trends begin to emerge if you are looking carefully enough. We are here to help you sort through all the fantasy news and notes from around the league each week. Here is a look at all the important developments from Week 3 of the NFL season:
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Dolphins 31, Jaguars 13
Not too much to take away from the Dolphins offense. Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jordan Howard scored on short runs and Preston Williams and Mike Gesicki caught TD passes, but weren't heavily involved in the passing game. DeVante Parker caught all five of his targets for 69 yards. Parker has battled an injury to start the season and fantasy managers should be patient with him. The big games are likely coming for the talented receiver.
Jaguars running back James Robinson is starting to look like he might be one of the best waiver wire pick ups this season. The undrafted rookie rushed for two scores and caught all six of his targets out of the backfield. He looks like the lead back in Jacksonville and if he continues to show his receiving chops, he will maintain steady value all season.
Steelers 28, Texans 21
Steelers receiver Diontae Johnson left the game early with what we now know is a concussion. He will have to go through concussion protocol this week before potentially returning in Week 4. In his absence, tight end Eric Ebron saw seven targets and caught a TD pass and James Washington caught five of his seven targets. Those two stand to benefit the most if Johnson does miss more time.
Randall Cobb caught four passes for 95 yards and a TD for the Texans. The slot receiver saw just four targets but was only out-targeted by Will Fuller and Brandin Cooks. After a quiet first two weeks, Cobb showed what he is capable of. But he will have to prove it for a longer period of time to be fantasy relevant.
Bengals 23, Eagles 23
On the Bengals side, two receivers had standout performances. Tyler Boyd caught 10 passes for 125 yards on 13 targets. Boyd has big-time upside with Joe Burrow's passing volume remaining very high. The other name to watch is Tee Higgins. The rookie was targeted nine times and caught five passes for 40 yards and two TDs. He should continue to develop as the year goes on and is a name to keep on your watch list.
Greg Ward once again is one of the last receivers standing for the Eagles and he saw 11 targets on Sunday. He caught eight of those for 72 yards and a score. Dallas Goedert and DeSean Jackson were each injured, so Ward could be a nice waiver wire addition. He is only 1 percent rostered in Yahoo leagues.
San Francisco 36, Giants 9
Jerick McKinnon and Jeff Wilson each scored but only rushed for 2.7 and 1.3 yards per carry respectively. Wilson added a receiving touchdown and both backs showed some life in the passing game. With Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman banged up, this should be the backfield tandem moving forward. McKinnon has the most upside, but Wilson figures to stay involved.
Running backs Devonta Freeman, Wayne Gallman, and Dion Lewis combined for 10 carries for 17 yards. Life without Saquon Barkley did not get off to a good start on Sunday. It was a tough matchup against a good, albeit beat up, 49ers defense. Freeman is worth monitoring as he gets more time in the offense, but this could just be a backfield to avoid.
Patriots 36, Raiders 20
Sony Michel rushed for 117 yards, but it was Rex Burkhead who had the touchdown glory. Burkhead carried six times for 49 yards and two scores and hauled in seven passes for 49 yards and a TD. It's hard to predict who will have a big day in a given game for the Patriots making it tough to start one of their backs week-to-week.
Hunter Renfrow saw a team-high nine targets and caught six passes for 84 yards and a TD. Without Henry Ruggs, the Raiders need Renfrow to step up in the passing game. Even with Ruggs in the lineup, Renfrow figures to be involved. He is only 10 percent rostered so he is worth a look on the waiver wire.
Titans 31, Vikings 30
Derrick Henry had a bit of a disappointing Week 2, but bounced back in a big way scoring the Titans only two touchdowns and racking up 119 yards on 26 carries. He gets the most consistent workload of almost any running back and is the focal point of the Titans offense. He should have more boom weeks like this moving forward.
Rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson caught seven of his team-high nine targets and turned those into 175 yards and a TD. Jefferson should be a trendy waiver-wire pickup this week and offers a ton of upside as the No. 2 target for Kirk Cousins and the Vikings offense. He is 32 percent rostered right now and that number should continue to rise.
Browns 34, Washington 20
The Browns continue to lean on their backfield duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Chubb has proven to be one of the best backs in the league. He ripped of 19 carries for 108 yards and two TDs. But Hunt is an intriguing player because of his role in the passing game. He caught another TD in this one and has standalone value even with Chubb in the primary role.
Antonio Gibson continues to get more and more work for Washington. The rookie led the team with nine carries for 49 yards and a score and he also caught three passes out of the backfield. Gibson has a very good skill set and is a high-upside player to roster that could pay off late in the season.
Bills 35, Rams 32
Josh Allen continues to impress this season. He had four more TD passes and another rushing TD in the win over the Rams. The addition of Stefon Diggs has done wonders for Allen and he is spreading the ball around and taking more deep shots down field. His rushing ability gives him a nice floor, but his improvement in the passing game has him looking like on of the top quarterbacks in the league.
Darrell Henderson had a big game and is emerging as the back to roster from the Rams. He carried 20 times for 114 yards and a score. If he continues to get 20 carries, he will have more games like this in a good Rams offense. Malcolm Brown is still there and Cam Akers will likely have a role upon his eventual return, but Henderson is looking like a steal right now.
Bears 30, Falcons 26
Nick Foles took over for a struggling Mitchell Trubisky and led the Bears to a huge comeback win. He threw for three touchdowns in relief. Foles has proven to be a very competent quarterback and while he may not have a ton of standalone value in fantasy leagues, he should help the value of guys like Allen Robinson (10 catches, 123 yards and a TD), Anthony Miller (2 catches, 41 yards, and a TD), and Jimmy Graham (6 catches, 60 yards, and 2 TDs). Tarik Cohen tore his ACL in this one, so that will hurt the passing game, but gives a more defined role to David Montgomery.
Todd Gurley had a solid game with 14 carries for 80 yards and a TD. He gets lost a little bit with the high-octane passing offense of the Falcons, but he is a solid option at running back. Atlanta blew another lead in this one and may have to start leaning more on Gurley to milk the clock with the lead.
Panthers 21, Chargers 16
Mike Davis rushed for just 3.5 yards per carry in this one, but racked up eight catches for 45 yards and a receiving TD. with Christian McCaffrey sidelined, Davis will continue to be fed the ball. If he continues to show this receiving ability, he should be a nice fill-in at running back for the Panthers. He was a popular pick up last week, so he is likely already rostered, but he is a good option moving forward.
Keenan Allen saw a ridiculous 19 targets and caught 13 passes for 132 yards and a touchdown. Allen is one of the best receivers in the league and if he continues to see this volume with Justin Herbert at QB, he will be in line for more of these huge performances. The rookie was clearly locked in on Allen and should be moving forward.
Colts 36, Jets 7
The Colts defense was the story of this game, but on the offensive front, Mo Alie-Cox continued to be a redzone threat and hauled in three passes for 50 yards and a TD. Philip Rivers really spread the ball around in this game, but he continues to look for Cox near the goal line. Cox is a cheap option at tight end that could continue to pay off.
Braxton Berrios cashed in on his four targets with four catches for 64 yards and a TD. Berrios is one of the only pass-catching options that is healthy right now, but he is still probably not worth rostering in the low-volume Jets offense. He may be worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses though.
Seahawks 38, Cowboys 31
Tyler Lockett is about as reliable as it gets at the receiver position. He was targeted 13 times and caught nine passes from Russell Wilson for 100 yards and three TDs. The Seahawks are finally letting Russ cook and the biggest beneficiary looks to be Lockett. He should be treated as one of the top fantasy receivers moving forward.
Michael Gallup had a big game with six catches for 138 yards and a TD. Amari Cooper was the most targeted Cowboys wideout with 12 targets, but Gallup was close behind at nine. Gallup had gotten off to a slow start but his talent came through in this game. Dallas has a lot of options with Cooper, Gallup, and rookie CeeDee Lamb. Gallup could be a bit up and down, but should remain a fantasy starter because of potential games like this one.
Buccaneers 28, Broncos 10
After a big game in Week 2, Leonard Fournette saw just seven carries for 15 yards compared to 13 carries for Ronald Jones for 53 yards. This could be a bit of a frustrating backfield timeshare moving forward. Fournette and Jones have each proven capable of producing solid games. But as long as the two are sharing carries, it limits their overall upside.
The Broncos offense struggled with Jeff Driskel under center. Rookie Jerry Jeudy saw nine targets and caught five passes for 55 yards. With Courtland Sutton out for the year, Jeudy should continue to be the main receiving threat for Denver (along with tight end Noah Fant). Jeudy should continue to improve but will need Drew Lock to return before reaching his full fantasy potential.
Lions 26, Cardinals 23
T.J. Hockenson saw seven targets for the Lions, tied with Kenny Golladay for the team-high. He only hauled in four of those targets for 53 yards, but if he is that involved with Matthew Stafford at QB, he should have some big games in store. He will have to contend with Golladay and Marvin Jones for looks, but offers some upside at the tight end position.
Andy Isabella broke out for four catches for 47 yards and two TDs. With Christin Kirk off to a slow start, Isabella could be the secondary receiving threat to DeAndre Hopkins. With Kyle Murray at quarterback in a fast-paced Cardinals offense, Isabella is an intriguing player to watch. He is only rostered in 2 percent of leagues.
Packers 37, Saints 30
Allen Lazard had a big game with Davante Adams sidelined. Lazard caught six passes for 146 yards and a TD. Once Adams comes back, Lazard likely won't see as much volume, but the Packers have been looking for a No. 2 receiving threat. As long as Aaron Rodgers is at QB, Lazard has high upside in this Packers offense.
Without Michael Thomas, Drew Brees targeted Alvin Kamara 14 times out of the backfield. Tre'Quan Smith commanded six targets and Emmanual Sanders was targeted five times. In the absence of Thomas, Sanders could emerge as the primary receiving threat, but he may need some more time to fully click with Brees. Outside of Kamara right now, the Saints options are not overwhelming.
Chiefs 34, Ravens 20
Patrick Mahomes was the story in this game, but I don't have to tell you how good he is. Clyde Edwards-Helaire saw 25 touches. While he averaged only 3.2 yards per carry, he was heavily involved in the passing game with five catches for 70 yards. In this offense, Edwards-Helaire will have some massive games if he continues to be this involved. Stay patient with the rookie.
It wasn't a good night for the Ravens offense. Lamar Jackson was the leading rusher for Baltimore and the reigning MVP passed for just 97 yards. Mark Andrews caught just three of his eight targets and Marquise Brown caught just two of his six targets. Better days are ahead for this Ravens offense.
Brian Buckey
Brian Buckey is an avid fantasy sports player dating back to his first fantasy baseball league in junior high school, with fantasy experience in all four of the major sports. Brian currently is a sports writer for The Toledo Blade newspaper in Toledo, Ohio where he grew up. Brian is a proud Indiana University graduate, with a degree in journalism and is excited to provide fantasy analysis for FantasyData.