Week 3 fantasy wrap: Carson Wentz tops Mostly NFL Notes
After throwing for more than 300 yards and two scores against a Steelers defense that entered having allowed just one passing TD over two games, the legend of Carson Wentz continues to grow. He now sports a 5:0 TD:INT ratio on the season, and it’s clear his early success wasn’t just a product of an easy schedule. Wentz has lit the league on fire despite coming from an FCS school and missing most of the preseason with a rib injury. He’s gotten 7.5 YPA and became the first rookie in NFL history to throw more than 100 passes without an interception. He’s also capable of running even more than he’s shown (although it would help if he learned to avoid contact better). Wentz sure looks like a future star, and he’s fully capable of being a major fantasy asset right now as well. Just check out this play Sunday in which he improvised and found Darren Sproles for a 73-yard TD. He’s the real deal.
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Ryan Mathews owners who saw the Eagles won 34-3 had to be excited to check the box score, only to see the back scored negative points, as he was put on ice after losing five yards on two early carries. He’ll get a bye week to heal up, but Philly’s backfield has the makings of a committee moving forward…There’s no reason to panic for Ben Roethlisberger owners, and at least Antonio Brown still got his.
The Bills were without Sammy Watkins and Ronald Darby and Tyrod Taylor got 4.8 YPA with no touchdown passes, yet they beat the Cardinals 33-18. The game totaled 51 points despite the quarterbacks combining for a 0:5 TD:INT ratio…Nice to see John Brown back on the scene, but it was an all around ugly day for Arizona’s passing attack…This Patrick Peterson one-handed interception was a rare highlight for the Cardinals.
Trevor Siemian entered his first career road start with a 1:3 TD:INT ratio (with a few other would-be picks dropped), so naturally he throws four scores with no interceptions against a solid Bengals defense. Siemian never got 8.0 YPA during any game during his senior year in college. He got 8.9 on Sunday…Jeremy Hill has seen his carries increase every game so far, and he has three rushing touchdowns despite a brutal early schedule (@NYJ, @Pit, Den).
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Aaron Rodgers had more touchdown passes (four) in the first half than he had passes completed (three) in the second half Sunday. The Packers sure looked like a different team back at home, although Randall Cobb is now a borderline low-end WR3. What happened to him?…Similarly, Golden Tate can no longer be trusted in fantasy lineups. He’s currently the fourth option in Detroit’s passing attack…Theo Riddick will maintain plenty of PPR value, but he’s not fit to see anything more than a handful of carries. Dwayne Washington should be owned in all leagues right now…Marvin Jones got 205 receiving yards and two scores on just eight targets. He’s a beast and should easily be considered a top-15 WR moving forward.
It was a favorable matchup, but DeMarco Murray continues to impress, as he became the first Titans back to rush for 100 yards in a game since 2013. I was big on Derrick Henry entering the year, but it’s going to take an injury for him to make a major fantasy impact. It also doesn’t help Marcus Mariota has played so poorly…Amari Cooper continues to look more like a solid WR2 than he does a superstar, while Latavius Murray remains locked in a full-blown committee…Andre Johnson nearly had his second last minute touchdown of the season (this time to tie), but an OPI call negated it. Soon thereafter a possible DPI was not called on a fourth down throw that effectively ended the game.
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The Dolphins entered coming off two competitive losses in Seattle and in New England facing a winless Browns team starting a rookie third-string QB while also without Joe Haden and their center. But it took three missed field goals (by a kicker who joined Cleveland on Friday) and overtime for Miami to win. My “safe” survivor pick was anything but…Terrelle Pryor looked like a real weapon, turning 14 targets into 144 receiving yards while rushing for a score and even adding 35 passing yards. Especially if he continues to see snaps at QB (and there’s every reason to believe he will), he’s going to have real fantasy upside and is suddenly a WR2 with potential for even more…Interesting to see the Browns elect to kick after winning the coin toss to start overtime…The Browns have started a different quarterback in each of their past five games.
Kirk Cousins took a horrible sack to end the first half, as the team continues to struggle mightily in the red zone (Cousins entered Week 3 responsible for half of the league’s RZ interceptions this year, although Ryan Fitzpatrick made sure that stat was short lived)…Washington may have saved its season staving off an 0-3 start, thanks in no small part to this fake punt…Jamison Crowder is fantasy relevant despite a deep receiving crew in Washington that’s remained healthy…I still expect Jordan Reed to explode at some point…Odell Beckham’s frustrating day on the field was even worse off it…Josh Brown is going to lap the field in field goals 30 yards or less. He has four of them already, and he was suspended Week 1. You’ve got to love Ben McAdoo’s aggressiveness.
What an impressive defensive performance by Minnesota, who held the Panthers scoreless over the final three quarters in Carolina. They even almost held the Panthers to fewer than 100 yards rushing for the first time in 30 games (only five other teams have recorded such a streak, and they all played in the 1970s)…Jerick McKinnon dominated the Vikings’ backfield snaps, but he has a tough upcoming schedule, so fantasy owners will have to remain patient…Kyle Rudolph looks like a TE1, and the biggest head-scratcher of the day might be Kelvin Benjamin seeing just one target (and held catchless).
Blake Bortles was awful, and Jacksonville still looks like a doormat, although that doesn’t mean the team can’t help fantasy owners the same way it did last year. A matchup versus the Colts in Week 4 is a good place to start…Chris Ivory and T.J. Yeldon combined for 18 carries for 31 yards…The Ravens are 3-0, although the wins have come against teams with a composite 1-8 record…I’m glad sanity prevailed, and this Allen Robinson catch was overturned and ruled a touchdown.
The Rams didn’t score their first TD of the season until Week 3, yet the team is in first place in the NFC West…Roberto Aguayo missed another field goal and an extra point. The Bucs might be regretting trading up for him in the second round of the draft…After looking good during a road win in Week 1, Tampa Bay has allowed 77 points over the past two games (including Sunday’s home tilt with the Rams). They get the undefeated Broncos in Week 4 and then travel to Carolina to play Monday night the following week…Jeff Fisher inexplicably (and hilariously) had the Rams go for two up 11 points with 4:49 left in the fourth quarter. Wow.
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In a game that totaled 48 points, Andrew Luck and Philip Rivers somehow combined for just one touchdown, although they did each throw for at least 330 yards…Travis Benjamin had a bad drop, and Rivers missed Melvin Gordon on what would’ve been an easy touchdown on a screen, as the Chargers left a ton of fantasy points on the field. Expect them to make it up to owners in Week 4 when they face the Saints (who will be traveling across the country on a short week) at home…San Diego entered as the only team in the NFL with more runs than passes…The Colts had a 2nd-and-40 situation during the fourth quarter…Here’s T.Y. Hilton’s game-winning TD catch…Kevin Harlan kept harping on how big San Diego’s earlier missed extra point was because “it would be a three point game” instead of four just a few seconds after Indy failed a two-point attempt in which they obviously wouldn’t have tried had the aforementioned missed EP not occurred.
Song of the Week: Judah & The Lion – Take It All Back
Ryan Fitzpatrick had six interceptions with zero TDs, as the Jets committed eight turnovers in an atrocious performance. Kansas City scored two defensive touchdowns in a day filled with them throughout the league, as fantasy owners will have to give the Chiefs D a pass for not having the decency to record a single sack…Spencer Ware had a touchdown overturned after it was ruled he started to lose the football right before he touched the pylon with it, resulting in a touchback instead of a score.
Longread of the Week: Dee Dee Wanted Her Daughter To Be Sick, Gypsy Wanted Her Mom To Be Murdered
Jimmy Graham looks fully back and is going to be a big part of Seattle’s offense, while Doug Baldwin just keeps on producing. Of course, all bets are off if Russell Wilson gets bad news on his MRI…Christine Michael looked terrific and has the upside of a top-five fantasy back, but Thomas Rawls still lurks…Carlos Hyde became the first back to rush for 100 yards against the Seahawks in the last 25 games, although almost all of it (including two touchdowns) came in garbage time in the fourth quarter of a blowout. Of course, it all counts the same to Hyde’s fantasy owners…The 49ers have allowed two 100-yard receivers and a 100-yard rusher in each of their last two games. They hadn’t done so in any of their previous 971 games.
Ezekiel Elliott looked great, but fantasy owners have to be extremely frustrated three different Cowboys rushed for scores Sunday night, and none were by the rookie back…The Bears offense limits his upside, but it’s soon going to be Jordan Howard time in Chicago. Make sure he’s not unowned in your league.
