I don’t know why the Eagles can’t start on time these days. Did they get bad directions from the navigation? Was it an am/pm problem with the alarm clock?
But even if the Eagles are usually late to the party, they generally make up for it. You can’t always get what you want, but you might get what you need.
Primary Eagles were all at the top of the Week 7 fantasy leaderboard, while SNF and MNF were still on the Week 7 docket. Saquon Barkley had a monstrous revenge game against the Giants (187 total yards, two TDs) and moved up to the RB2 spot. Jalen Hurts threw just 14 passes, but fueled by three touchdowns (two rushing) he was the top quarterback at 4:25 PM ET. AJ Brown had to make do with just five targets, but it doesn’t take much to get in. He caught them all for 89 yards, including a 41-yard score. That took him to WR5 by mid-afternoon.
Philadelphia’s 28-3 win over the Giants had the common problem: no points in the first quarter. The Eagles shockingly haven’t had a first-quarter point all season. Does it take a while for Hurts to find a rhythm? Maybe play-caller Kellen Moore needs time to settle down. Of course, this is a little bit of trivia when the fantasy points finally arrive. But sooner or later a team will likely have to pay for these missed opportunities.
Barkley, Hurts and Brown also get a boost from the narrowness of the Philly usage tree. Hurts generally only focuses on three players when he passes – Brown, Barkley and DeVonta Smith – who was Sunday’s only fantasy dud (two targets, one catch for minus yardage). Barkley has ceded some work to Kenneth Gainwell and Will Shipley in this spot, but that won’t happen if games are competitive. Barkley’s fantasy day would have been absurd if the Giants had fought back at all in this game.
Add it all up and this offense has four set-and-forget players. Barkley could go first overall if you rephrase it tomorrow (and yes, there’s still time for that on Yahoo). Brown would probably be a second-round selection, Smith a third-round selection, I think. If you trust Hurts to keep some rush around the goal, he’s also a destination choice.
Just when it looked like we could trust Daniel Jones, the last two weeks happened. The wild trend with the Giants is a separation between home and away. For some reason, Jones plays much better on the road and tends to struggle at home. He finished with 99 passing yards and zero touchdowns before he was mercifully benched — and he recorded seven sacks. To be fair, Drew Lock didn’t move the offense either – somehow he was even worse.
Tyrone Tracy Jr. was held to nine touches, Devin Singletary to just six. They didn’t make any splash plays, but they also need a passing game down the field to keep the offense on track. Malik Nabers scored 4-41-0 out of eight goals. Wan’Dale Robinson had a representative game, nine looks but a 6-23-0 return. Unfortunately, Darius Slayton is probably not relevant here if everyone else is healthy. I wonder if a contending team would inquire about Slayton.
Other week 6 peaks and valleys
Mixed bag for Lions fantasy assets
Not all of the Lions players came home during an entertaining 31-29 escape at Minnesota, but there were three players who made their mark. Jahmyr Gibbs stepped into a bigger line and totaled 160 yards and two scores – good for 30 fantasy points and the RB1 tag as we go to press. Amon-Ra St. Brown also had its best game of the year, picking up all its targets in an 8-112-1 performance. He has quietly scored in four straight games, and he sits at WR1 with three games to go on the Week 7 roster. The perennially underrated Jared Goff completed 22 of 25 passes for 280 yards and two scores. He lost one fumble and picked up four sacks, the price of things against a Brian Flores defense. We still take it.
It wasn’t a clean match for the other primary Detroit guys. David Montgomery lost a fumble and suffered a knee injury, although he returned. His touchdown streak ended and his 12 touches totaled a modest 70 yards. Sam LaPorta had one catch for 25 yards, but was targeted only once additionally. He is not currently part of this offense. Jameson Williams was also held, just one target, a catch for negative yardage.
LaPorta is the toughest breed of fantasy asset, someone who is too good to drop but not consistent enough to trust. I know the tight end position has been a mess all fall, but his managers should at least try to find some sort of upside alternative.
Anthony Richardson struggles in return
Before the season, some experts thought Anthony Richardson could be the QB1 in fantasy. In reality, he’s his own team’s second-best quarterback — behind Joe Flacco, a 39-year-old veteran who recently retired.
The Colts beat the Dolphins 16-10, they’ll take that. But Richardson still looked lost. He completed just 10 of 24 passes for a paltry 129 yards, with no touchdowns. He had one run of 22 yards, but was otherwise on the ground, 14 totes for 56 yards. And because Richardson struggled, the passing game in Indianapolis was a brick as well. Michael Pittman Jr. somehow reached 3-63-0 on five targets, but every other fantasy consideration in the receiving room was at 15 yards or less.
Tyler Goodson needed touchdown deodorant, but 14-51-1 on the ground will play into fantasy. He saw no targets. Trey Sermon was more efficient with his work (nine touches, 49 yards), not that either player will make you forget Marshall Faulk or Edgerrin James. The Colts are desperate to get Jonathan Taylor back, especially as the schedule gets nasty. The next five weeks: Texans, Vikings, Bills, Jets, Lions.
Remark: I have additional analysis from week 7 later today.
