Some fantasy football coaches just don’t have the patience. They are 2-2 after four weeks, but they wanna move their underperforming guys. Or, they’re 0-4 and simply cleaning house.
This is our opportunity.
Let’s swoop in on some of these players who aren’t doing what they are “supposed” to do thus far this season…
Antonio Gibson, RB
Looking at one of my actual Yahoo leagues (full-point PPR), Gibson was projected to be No. 19 on the season, but he currently sits at No. 86. In some leagues, with “the run” of running backs early, Gibson ended up being a first rounder. I know, in my deep 14-team league, I took him 11th overall.
So, what’s the deal, here? Why has the 23-year-old promising talent been relatively quiet on the stat sheet?
Well, for one thing, the supposedly vaunted Washington D can’t make a freakin’ stop this season. They are giving up an astounding 417.5 yards of total offense per game, which makes them 29th-ranked overall. Only Jacksonville, KC and Seattle are worse. Who knew Detroit and the Jets would be better?
So, what happens in these situations is obvious – you either fall behind in the score and start throwing it every time or you end up in a back-and-forth shootout that also results in an abnormal amount of passes thrown.
Taylor Heinicke’s pass attempts thus far as a starter? 46, 24, and 33 (averaging 34 a game). Not ideal because we wanna slow the game down and get the ball into Gibson’s hands inside the 5 or 10-yard line.
But… never fear! Things will even out. Gibson had 11 rushing touchdowns as a rookie last year, and his craftiness inside the redzone is well beyond his years. He’s far more physical and downhill than you’d expect from a converted receiver, essentially.
On the obvious bright side, Washington has put up 30, 21 and 34 points in its past three games, averaging 28 with Heinicke as the lead signal caller. Go ahead and steal Gibson from some impatient coach in your league.
Calvin Ridley, WR
Come on… you think Cordarrelle Patterson’s gonna be the best player in the league forever?
This one’s a no-brainer, with Julio Jones gone for good and Kyle Pitts struggling to find firm footing in the pros.
Ridley is THE weapon on this team, though in all honesty Patterson and Mike Davis will – at least for now - continue to reap the benefits of his double teams. “Matty Ice” is in checkdown mode, especially with everyone draped all over Ridley in the short-term.
But, things change when a guy catches three touchdowns and continues to pick up steam on a weekly basis (Patterson); opposing defensive coordinators absolutely take notice. Defensive gameplans must and will be adjusted. You can’t just double team Ridley and let Patterson have a field day each and every week.
So, as the adjustments are made leaguewide, things will open back up for Ridley. Go ahead and grab him with an enticing two-for-one deal.
Mark Andrews, TE
George Kittle is a fantasy bust. Logan Thomas just went down. The aforementioned Pitts hasn’t developed, and Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry eat into one another’s work.
Tight end is just an absolute disaster right now.
That being said, Andrews’ targets are staying steady or increasing each week: 5, 5, 7 then 8. He ain’t goin’ anywhere. I like what I am seeing from Marquise “Hollywood” Brown in terms of separation right now, but Andrews remains the steady redzone guy.
Only 31 fantasy points in 4 games? Yum yum, that’s a scrumptious buy low spot. He’s still my No. 5 overall fantasy tight end, behind Travis Kelce, Darren Waller, T.J. Hockenson and (maybe) Kittle.
Fly Ravens Fly. Take a flier on Andrews.
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