The Detroit Lions earned a critical 22-16 NFC North victory against the Minnesota Vikings in overtime Sunday, and some of their playmakers rewarded fantasy owners in the process.
Wide receiver Golden Tate found the end zone, tight end Eric Ebron led the team in receiving yards and running back Theo Riddick was solid in the rushing attack.
Here is a look at their final tallies and a fantasy breakdown for each.
Golden Tate
The most encouraging thing from Sunday’s performance for those relying on Tate was the 12 targets. No other Detroit wide receiver had more than five, and it was clear quarterback Matthew Stafford trusts Tate when dropping back.
Tate has also benefitted from the additional attention Marvin Jones has drawn since his hot start. Tate posted just 134 receiving yards and zero touchdown catches through his first five games, but he has 379 receiving yards and two touchdowns in his last four. He has also been targeted at least nine times in every contest during that span.
Fantasy owners should ride Tate’s hot streak and insert him in their starting lineups moving forward.
Eric Ebron
Ebron may not be the automatic fantasy start that Tate is, but he is playing a position that isn’t loaded with elite options.
Like Tate, the tight end has benefitted from open looks over the last two weeks. His 92 receiving yards Sunday were a season high, beating out the 79 he tallied in his previous contest. He has 18 combined targets in his last two games after missing time with injuries.
Those injuries appear to be behind him, and Ebron is seeing plenty of throws from the tight end spot. Unless fantasy owners have one of the rare superstars at the position, such as Rob Gronkowski, they should utilize Ebron.
Theo Riddick
Detroit ranked 27th in the league in rushing yards per game coming into Sunday’s contest.
It has plenty of weapons in the aerial attack, and Stafford threw 600 or more passing attempts in four of the last five seasons. The Lions offense is not well-designed for fantasy domination from the running backs, which limits Riddick’s upside.
His 70 rushing yards Sunday marked a season high, and he hasn’t scored a rushing touchdown since the season opener.
However, Riddick is a threat in the passing game, which makes him worthy of a fantasy roster spot and occasional starts when the Lions play vulnerable defenses. He had only six receiving yards Sunday, but he has 273 on the year as well as four touchdown catches.
He also posted 697 receiving yards last year, making him worthy of flex consideration, especially in points-per-reception leagues.
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