Fantasy football seems to be taking place in some sort of parallel universe this season, where formally reliable players are tanking, studs have emerged in unexpected places, conventional wisdom seems like folly and the Seattle Seahawks apparently traded for Jimmy Graham with the intent of transforming one of the most dynamic offensive weapons in football into a disgruntled blocker.
Seriously, what is going on?
Wacky or not, we still have to try to predict what might be coming next. So we’ll take a deep dive into this alternate dimension, projecting the Week 6 fantasy rankings. And if anybody has the fantasy equivalent of a sonic screwdriver or portal gun to traverse the madness, well, please let me know.
Schedule
Quarterbacks
Ladies and gentleman, Andy Dalton and Carson Palmer are matchup-proof QB1 options. You didn’t see that one coming before the season began, right?
Dalton has been fantastic this year and just threw for 331 yards and two touchdowns in a comeback win against the Seattle Seahawks and the Legion Boom. His 26 fantasy points are even more impressive when you consider that the Seahawks came into the game having sacrificed just 29 total fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks not named Aaron Rodgers this season.
Palmer’s major concern coming into the year wasn’t so much his production, rather, it was his health. So far, so good. He now has 16 or more fantasy points in 10 of his last 11 games dating back to last year, and he has a full complement of weapons to work with as well. Keep him in those lineups.
Running Backs
Devonta Freeman is for real. After three weeks of 25 or more fantasy points, it’s pretty hard to make an argument for Freeman’s production taking a dip.
Is Tevin Coleman going to eat into his touches? Probably not, seeing as Freeman out-touched him 34-2 on Sunday. If that isn’t a vote of confidence for a player after his backfield mate returned from injury, I don’t know what is.
Does the Falcons offense appear likely to suddenly feature Coleman less going forward? Not likely, seeing as he’s proved to be a weapon in the run game, pass game and by the goal line.
Are the Falcons going to slow down anytime soon? I don’t think so. Their offense is humming along right now, Matt Ryan is playing well and Julio Jones is a matchup nightmare for teams.
Until he hits a slump, Freeman has to be considered a locked-and-loaded RB1. His recent performances aren’t a fluke, they’re a trend. If you managed to scoop him up at any point, well, good for you. He’s the type of player that fantasy championships are built upon.
Wide Receivers
Is it time for fantasy owners to give up on Calvin Johnson? Well, no, probably not. At least not completely.
But Nerdy Football’s Matt Camp isn’t exactly optimistic about his potential going forward, either.
Megatron has cracked 10 or more fantasy points in standard leagues just once this season and has scored just one touchdown. He has yet to accumulate 100 receiving yards in a game, which is mind-boggling for the player once considered the best receiver in football.
This week will be an interesting litmus test for Johnson. If he produces, it’s safe to keep him in the WR1 or WR2 category. But if he can’t take advantage of a shaky Chicago secondary, it’s time to consider Johnson a shaky flex option at best going forward.
Tight Ends
What a dreadful year for tight ends.
Julius Thomas spent the early part of the season hurt. Jordan Reed, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Eric Ebron started started strong but ended up injured. Antonio Gates was suspended to start the year. Zach Ertz has been a bust. Jordan Cameron has been mediocre in Miami. The Seahawks continue to drastically underutilize Graham.
Ugh.
It’s enough to force a guy to start Gary Barnidge. And you know what? That’s not such a bad idea, given his 20 receptions for 319 yards and three touchdowns in the last three weeks. Numbers that would be solid even without the touchdown production, which likely will tail off a bit.
Folks, in a season full of surprises, I’m about to say the weirdest thing yet: Gary Barnidge is a weekly TE1.
We really are through the looking glass, huh?
Defense/Special Teams
For all we know, Peyton Manning‘s arm may be held together by linguine noodles at this point, but Denver’s defense has been awesome this year. While the Broncos struggle on offense, the defense is averaging 17.6 fantasy points per week and is the primary reason the team has started 5-0 this year.
Don’t expect the good times to come to a halt against Cleveland, even against a Browns team that has actually outscored the Broncos this season (118-113).
Yes, you read that correctly. Yes, we’re definitely trapped in some sort of alternative dimension. Somebody call for help.
Kickers
By this point, you should have identified a reliable kicker and locked him into your starting spot. Don’t rock the boat too much—playing matchups with kickers is futile, as the position’s production is simply too fickle to risk dropping a reliable player at the position.
All fantasy stats and points against numbers via ESPN standard leagues.
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