The Cincinnati Bengals offense went cold at home in Week 10 against the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football. The previously unbeaten Bengals managed just two field goals in a 10-6 loss.
Fantasy owners who trailed heading in to Monday, but hoped for a win with what they thought was a good matchup with a 3-5 Texans team, were sorely disappointed.
It must have felt like the playoffs again for quarterback Andy Dalton.
It was obviously a poor performance by Dalton, but consider it an anomaly. The Texans are allowing nearly 25 points per game, but they have not allowed a touchdown in 10 quarters and have held three opponents under 10 points this season.
Dalton has 18 touchdowns to just five interceptions, and he could have had a bigger day had tight end Tyler Eifert not dropped three downfield passes.
His next two opponents, the Arizona Cardinals and St. Louis Rams, are ranked sixth and fifth in passing yards allowed this season. That does drop his stock some, but he is a must-start in Week 13 against the Cleveland Browns, which is the final week of the regular season for most fantasy leagues.
Start him against the Cardinals unless you have a top-five quarterback already on your roster.
Green, who was considered a high-end WR1 entering the season, has now been held without a score in five of the past six games.
The former Georgia Bulldog, who caught 28 touchdowns from 2012-14, is too good to move to the bench despite his struggles.
He went for 10/227/2 against a shaky Baltimore Ravens defense in Week 3, so think about that if you are considering benching him.
His 55 receptions bump up his value in points-per-reception leagues, but don’t give up on him in non-PPR leagues either. He’s always capable of a huge game, and consider him a low-end WR1.
Eifert fantasy owners have reason to be upset with his Week 10 performance, but don’t let those feelings linger.
He still has nine touchdowns, and is second on the team with 59 targets. Like Dalton and Green, chalk it up to a bad game. He didn’t have a catch in Week 3 during Green’s big day, then just two weeks later caught two touchdowns against the Seattle Seahawks.
In other words, don’t pay attention to the matchups because Eifert has only been outscored by Rob Gronkowski in ESPN fantasy leagues at the tight end position.
This was a bad game, but unless you were lucky enough to nab both Eifert and Gronkowski in your draft, the Bengals tight end is a must-start.
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