The Dallas Cowboys may have the week seven off, but for the Fantasy Football world, week seven represents the mid-way point for many fantasy leagues.
Week six of the NFL season left us with some mixed results in the Sauce department. You win some, you lose some. This is a bold space. It’s like the Golden State Warriors. I’m going to shoot a lot of three pointers, because the reward is greater than a two, but I might miss half the time.
With that let’s take a look at how we fared in week six.
Week 6 Hot Sauce
Dak Prescott – 18/27, 247 yards passing, 3 touchdown passes, 1 interception, 6 yards rushing. ON FIRE
Alex Smith – 19/24, 224 yards passing, 0 touchdowns, 0 interceptions. MILD SAUCE
Ryan Mathews – Nine carries for 60 yards. BURNED (by Philadelphia’s play calling).
Jeremy Maclin – Three catches for 39 yards. BURNED
Michael Thomas – Five catches for 78 yards and one touchdown. ON FIRE
Week 6 Weak Sauce
Eli Manning – 32/46 for 403 yards, Three touchdowns and two interceptions. BURNED
Mark Ingram – 16 carries for 51 yards, two catches for nine yards, and zero touchdowns. ON FIRE
DeVonta Freeman – 12 carries for 40 yards, three catches for 10 yards, and zero touchdowns. ON FIRE
Amari Cooper – 10 catches for 129 yards, no touchdowns. BURNED
How We Looking…
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Hot Sauce for Week 7
Jameis Winston, QB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ San Francisco 49ers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been an up and down team in the 2016 season. They hold wins over the Atlanta Falcons in week one and the Carolina Panthers in week five.
Like the team, Jameis Winston has also been up and down.
Winston has thrown for more than 240 yards three times, including a 400-yard day against the Los Angeles Rams in a week three shootout. His biggest struggles came in week two when the Buccaneers played the Arizona Cardinals. On that day, Winston turned the ball over five times.
The San Francisco 49ers are actually pretty good against the pass, having only allowed 215 yards per game through the air, but they’ve allowed two passing touchdowns a game through six weeks.
The 49ers though, haven’t yet played a team that can air it out quite like Tampa Bay can. With their receivers and backs, I look for Winston and the Bucs to have a nice day through the air.
Flavorful Forecast: 250 yards passing, three total touchdowns.
Jeremy Hill, RB, Cincinnati Bengals vs Cleveland Browns
I am one of many owners of Jeremy Hill who believed the preseason hype that he had turned the corner.
Like many, I thought he was poised for a break out. The problem was, the offensive line hasn’t gotten the memo.
Don’t worry, this week the Cincinnati Bengals get the Cleveland Browns at home. Through six games, the Cleveland Browns are allowing 118 rushing yards per game and have allowed five rushing touchdowns. If Jeremy Hill is ever going to have a good game, this is the week.
Flavorful Forecast: 22 touches for 110 total yards and one touchdown.
TJ Yeldon, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars vs Oakland Raiders
The Jacksonville Jaguars just aren’t very good on offense this year. That being said, the Oakland Raiders are pretty awful on defense.
The Oakland Raiders are the only team to rank in the bottom five of the NFL in both rushing defense and passing defense. Through 6 weeks, the Oakland Raiders are allowing 132.17 yards a game.
TJ Yeldon may not get all of the carries in Jacksonville, but he gets enough of them and he’ll get the passing down work to make for a productive fantasy football line.
In week 5, Yeldon managed only seven touches, but he’s averaged 14.6 touches per game in 2016 and Chris Ivory has been equally ineffective.
I see this week having potential for a solid fantasy performance. If you are limited by bye weeks and injuries, Yeldon, though a long-shot, could be a good fill-in for you this week.
Flavorful Forecast: 16 touches for 95 yards, and a touchdown
Rashad Jennings, RB, New York Giants @ Los Angeles Rams
Rashad Jennings returned to the lineup for the New York Giants in week six after being out a couple of weeks with a thumb injury.
His return wasn’t great as he only logged 13 touches for 35 total yards. And the Baltimore Ravens rush defense is one of the five best in the NFL through 6 weeks.
The Los Angeles Rams, on the other hand, are not.
They allow 115.67 rushing yards per game, 4.2 yards per carry, and have allowed five rushing touchdowns. Rashad Jennings is the lead-back in New York, and I expect the Giants to get him going to keep the defense from teeing off on Eli Manning.
Flavorful Forecast: 18 touches 80 total yards and a touchdown.
Torrey Smith, WR, San Francisco 49ers vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With the return of Colin Kaepernick to the 49ers’ starting lineup, Torrey Smith arose from the ashes of weak and unproductive play.
Smith tied for the team lead in targets with seven, and was able to catch a long touchdown and lead all players in receiving yards in their game against the Buffalo Bills.
He is the definition of a boom or bust player who relies on the long ball, but I believe that the 49ers are going to have to throw this week against Tampa Bay. Volume will be his friend, and Torrey Smith always has a chance to break one deep.
Flavorful Forecast: Four catches for 90 yards, zero touchdowns.
Weak Sauce for Week 7
Aaron Rodgers, QB, Green Bay Packers vs Chicago Bears
It may not be much of a stretch to consider sitting Aaron Rodgers with the way the season has gone to this point.
Is it that Aaron Rodgers is having an off year, or is it that defenses are figuring out how to play and beat the Super Bowl winning quarterback?
The Chicago Bears are going to get Rodgers on a short week and they have been pretty good against the pass. They’ve only allowed seven passing touchdowns on the season and 233.5 yards passing per game. That would amount to 13 fantasy points per game through the air in standard leagues.
Aaron Rodgers is struggling with accuracy and decision making. Feel free to sit him, especially if you have a quarterback on your roster or waiver wire with a better matchup.
Flavorless Forecast: 210 yards passing, two touchdowns, one interception.
Todd Gurley, RB, Los Angeles Rams vs New York Giants
Todd Gurley has not been the same running back in 2016 that he was during his rookie campaign, in which he ran for over 1,100 yards.
Gurley is only averaging 2.9 yards per carry and will face a New York Giants defense that is holding runners to 3.5 yards per carry. On the season, the Giants have held teams to 97 rushing yards a game and only five touchdowns.
Gurley has certainly been a disappointment for many fantasy owners who drafted him in the first round of their drafts. Even though you paid a high price for him, feel free to sit him this week.
Flavorless Forecast: 16 touches, 45 yards, zero touchdowns.
Melvin Gordon, RB, San Diego Chargers @ Atlanta Falcons
Yes, Melvin Gordon currently ranks as the fourth running back in standard fantasy football leagues. But it is completely based on volume because his 3.4 yards per carry leaves a lot to be desired.
In week seven, the San Diego Chargers travel to Georgia to face the Atlanta Falcons, who have been one of the most explosive and consistent offenses in 2016.
While Atlanta has given up some big games offensively, they have been pretty good against the run. They have only allowed five rushing touchdowns all season and allow 94 yards per game on the ground. Their 4.0 yards per carry against isn’t great, but they seem to be able to make teams become one-dimensional through their high scoring affairs.
Melvin Gordon may continue to see a lot of touches, but his inefficiency will leave fantasy owners hoping for more this week.
Flavorless Forecast: 17 touches, 65 yards, and zero touchdowns.
Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals vs Seattle Seahawks
Larry Fitzgerald was my favorite of the Arizona Cardinals hotly debated wide receiver trio in the 2016 fantasy football draft season, and he has yet to disappoint. Coming off a 100-catch 2015 campaign, Fitz has yet to show the decline many predicted.
Fitzgerald’s per-game averages have been steady and consistent, and you would take his line every week for your fantasy lineup. Through six games, he’s averaging six catches, just under 70 yards, and a touchdown per game. That’s pretty good.
This week, he faces a tough test in the division-rival Seattle Seahawks.
In five games this season, the Seattle Seahawks have allowed 205 yards per game through the air and less than one touchdown per game passing. They’ve been pretty good. Combine that with Carson Palmer’s inconsistent start to the 2016 season and expect Larry Fitzgerald to bring the weak sauce.
Flavorless Forecast: Four catches for 40 yards, and zero touchdowns.
