crystal ball week 6 2016

By Evan Tarracciano
Evan Tarracciano Where has the time gone and how have we already arrived at the beginning of Week 6 in the Fantasy Football season? As owners we are forced to wait for what seems to be an eternity each year for meaningful games to finally begin, but once the season arrives it is gone at the drop of a hat. Enjoy it while it lasts folks, we’re already a third of the way through the season!
If you haven’t already joined me for my video Q&A sessions each Tuesday evening at 8 PM EST, I’d highly encourage you to do so! I’ve received a lot of positive feedback as to my thoughts and the layout – hopefully listeners are enjoying it as much as I am running it! This article serves as a supplementary piece to what I covered in this week’s chat, expanding on some of the more “hot button” topics that I received a lot of traffic on. Check out all of my prior videos and meet me for each new one here:

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Q: How much FAAB should I spend on Sammie Coates, and what sort of upside does he have for the remainder of 2016?
A: Coates broke out in a big way during Week 5 against the New York Jets, posting a 6-139-2 line in a blowout victory. Truth be told his line should have even been bigger, as he dropped two easy touchdown receptions that would have really put his stat line out of control. Coates has really begun to turn things on in the past two weeks, and is now second on the team in total targets this year, only behind Antonio Brown (and in fact, Coates has more targets than Brown the past two weeks, 19 to 16). Coates has taken over the role which Martavis Bryant occupied each of the past few seasons – a vertical threat with a bigger body capable of jump balls. While I don’t expect him to come away with two touchdowns each week, his boom-or-bust nature suggests that he should approach double-digit scores in 2016 if he can remain healthy. Coates came out of Sunday’s game with a lacerated finger on his left hand, and was seen sporting a rather large cast on it. He’s more attractive to me in standard formats than PPR since he won’t eclipse 8 receptions in any given week, but in most leagues he is worth adding.

Q: Last week Kenneth Dixon was the scoop-du-jour waiver selection but he didn’t do much, this week it appears to be Devontae Booker. Which running back has higher upside?
A: Both running backs possess similar value, being upside options for owners to grab, with their value hinging upon both the health and production of the workhorse in front of them. In terms of which one will emerge as a starter first, I still believe that to be Kenneth Dixon. All reports currently have his health, rather than talent or competition, being the main obstacle left to clear. In the case of Booker, he has seen a consistent workload since Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts, touching the ball between 5-10 times per game. The better offense between these two choices is clearly Denver, so if C.J. Anderson should go down with an injury or struggle, Booker would be the choice between these two players for me. He’s more of an inside grinder than Dixon, but can still catch a fair share of passes if required to do so.

Q: Is Colin Kaepernick worth an add in standard size leagues?
A: Not unless it is an San Francisco 49ers only format. Sure, “Kap” will pick up a fair number of yards on the ground and adds a different dimension for defenses to plan form but don’t forget that Blaine Gabbert had nine or more rushing attempts in three of the five games he started. Kaepernick has a uch bigger arm, but it is hard to say that he will kick-start this woeful offense.

Q: Is Carson Palmer safe to start moving forward? He’s been terrible to start the year.
A: After two solid performances to start the season, Palmer went into an absolute tailspin in back-to-back weeks against the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams, throwing five interceptions and also sustaining a concussion. The good news for Cardinals fans is that the team has remained healthy in terms of receiving weapons, and still boasts one of the deepest cores in the league. The bad news? With the exception of Larry Fitzgerald, every other receiver has been inconsistent at best, and has left a void for targets. Michael Floyd was supposed to take a major step forward, but has dropped a multitude of passes and has seen a diminished role the past two weeks in favor of John Brown. J.J. Nelson and Jaron Brown are buried on the depth chart, and really only run one type of route. Should Bruce Arians opt to stop taking as many shots down the field (which currently aren’t being completed) in favor of a more balanced attack, I do believe that Palmer still has QB1 upside. That said, the team can still rely upon their elite run game to play clock management or to get them back into games when necessary. Until I see consecutive solid performances from Palmer, I have him in a similar territory as Blake Bortles.

Q: Is T.J. Yeldon good or bad? I’m having a hard time deciding upon his upside.
A: If the Jacksonville Jaguars were to ever stick with Yeldon as their primary back, he would fall in the mid to upper RB2 area for me. While his YPC will never be elite, his ability to catch the ball more than makes up for his poor inside the tackle running and vision. Chris Ivory was brought in to be the team’s goal-line and short-yardage back, and if those two areas were the only ones which Yeldon was off the field, than I’d be fine endorsing him as an upside play for an offense that will need to play catchup every week. It seems that the coaching staff remembered in Week 4 that he was alive, after he only touched the ball a total of eight times in Week 3 against the Baltimore Ravens. Simply put, when this team is able to get a consistent run game going, it would really help out Blake Bortles and the passing attack. The biggest problem really isn’t Yeldon, it is the woefully inept offensive line. Since they aren’t going anywhere in the short-term, expect more of what you’ve seen so far – inconsistent outings, but enough upside to make him intriguing, especially in PPR formats.

Q: Could you name me a few buy-low, sell-high players?
A: Right now I’d be buying low on Doug Martin if I’m able to do so. He’s been off the field since the middle of Week 2, and with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a bye this week, his owner may be frustrated waiting for him to return. Charles Sims presented a real threat to cut into Martin’s workload, but was recently placed on IR, meaning he’ll be out until at least Week 12. While I don’t think that Martin comes close to repeating 2015’s final numbers, the upside for 1150 yards and 7-8 touchdowns still remains.

I’d also look to acquire Eddie Lacy. He’s traditionally been a slow starter, and showed signs of life this past week against the New York Giants. Lacy is currently the 38th ranked RB in PPR formats, and hasn’t even scored a TD yet this season. Coming into the season his owners were likely expecting a bounce-back from his horrible 2015 campaign, but have yet to see that. I’d play on their feelings.

Sell high? Man, so many players immediately come to mind. Running through a few – LeSean McCoy (injury concerns, team using him too much right now with Sammy Watkins out), Melvin Gordon (WAY too TD dependent), LeGarrette Blount (Tom Brady’s return means that the running game is secondary now) and Spencer Ware (welcome back, Jamaal Charles) at RB. Michael Crabtree (he isn’t going to score 20 touchdowns folks, sorry), Jarvis Landry (the Miami Dolphins are a mess), and Jeremy Kerley (think he experiences a large downgrade behind Kaepernick) would be my top choices at WR.

Waiver-Wire choices


Quarterback:


Brian Hoyer (Chicago Bears) – Since taking over for Jay Cutler he’s had three games in a row of 300 or more passing yards and multiple touchdowns. I’m fully expecting to have him to continue throwing the ball a minimum of 40 times per game. Think Blake Bortles garbage-time numbers from 2015.
Trevor Siemian (Denver Broncos) – Now fully healthy, he’s going to take back the reigns from Paxton Lynch, who struggled against the Atlanta Falcons. He isn’t terribly flashy with barely over 200 yards passing per game, but his return means a step forward for Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas.

Running Back:


Devontae Booker (Denver Broncos) – See comments above about my thoughts on his upside.
James White (New England Patriots) – We’ve received no kind of indications as to when Dion Lewis is getting back, and with the return of Tom Brady, White immediately is vaulted into every week FLEX discussions in PPR leagues.
Jalen Richard (Oakland Raiders) – Richard outplayed DeAndre Washington last week, and if Latavius Murray continues to be sidelined I’d expect Richard to see an increase rise in production. His receiving skills alone make him FLEX worthy.

Wide Receiver:


Cameron Meredith (Chicago Bears) – Kevin White who? Meredith was the big story this past week, hauling in nine receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. I don’t expect him to continue production remotely close to this, but he does have a nice floor for a team that will need to play catchup in the second half of games.
Brice Butler (Dallas Cowboys) – We are hearing reports that Dez Bryant will try and come back this week, but it makes much more sense for the team to hold him out with their bye next week. Assuming Dez sits, Butler will square off against a weaker Green Bay secondary that has allowed plenty of big plays downfield this year. His size/speed combination is enough for him to break one, or be a threat in the red zone.

T

ight End:


Jesse James (Pittsburgh Steelers) – At this point, who knows when (or if) Ladarius Green will see the field in 2016, as he is still recovering from ankle surgery. While Green has been sidelined, James is a fringe-starter in 12 team formats, and has scored in three of the past four weeks. The volume isn’t terribly high, but predicting similar numbers to Heath Miller in year’s past isn’t crazy.