Studs & Duds Week 9
Welcome back to my weekly Studs & Duds column. I apologize for not having a week 8 article last week. Towards the end of last week I flew to Las Vegas as my grandfather was having surgery. It was successful and he was able to come home. I had spent the majority of the past week helping my grandmother take care of him. Unfortunately he has left us as of November 1st. May he rest in peace.
I will begin to pick up my fantasy content once again. It will start with my Studs and Duds for week 9. Note, we are entering Bye-Mania with 6 teams on a bye. There are still various matchups to go over and they will be listed below. From pasts weeks, I continue to have 7 out of 12 correct picks each week. I am hoping to at least hit the over on that. Lets get started.
Studs:
QB: Ryan Fitzpatrick- The magic has returned in Tampa. Fitz has been given the start this week against the Carolina Panthers. I believe this is going to be one of the higher scoring games of the week. Though the first 3 weeks of the season, Fitzmagic threw for 11 touchdowns and had over 400 yards in each game. He still remains one of the top QB scores in a points per game basis. The Panthers have allowed multiple passing touchdowns in every game except for week 1. Fitz should have a decent game.
RB: Adrian Peterson- He is definitely proving his doubters wrong. The 33 year old running back has had four 100 yard games and is 5th on the leading rushers list this season. He has played back to back games getting a total of 50 carries. Chris Thompson is once again out for this game, so they will likely feature Peterson. The Falcons give up the most PPR points per game this season. Going against a bottom rush defense, Peterson should continue to run wild.
RB: Lamar Miller- He is finally performing as he did with Watson last season. He has had back to back 100 yard games, along with 40 total carries. He is now getting a ton of work in a offense that is finally clicking. He also has an impressive 26 evaded tackles over the last 3 weeks. The Denver defense has given up 1000 yards on the ground through 8 weeks. They are also allowing a little over 5 yards per carry. Miller should have another solid game.
WR: Robert Woods- I was going back and forth between Woods or Cooks but ultimately choose Woods. This is going to be another high scoring game for the Rams. The Saints have given up the most PPR points per game to WR this season. They have also allowed the 2nd most touchdowns and the 4th most yards to the WR position. Woods has had 7 straight games with at least 70 yards and is averaging 8 targets a game. I'm expecting a huge week from Woods.
WR: Devin Funchess- I am playing a lot of Funchess in Fanduel this week. He has yet to top 80 yards in any game this season, but I think this is the week. The Buccaneers have given up the most touchdowns and the 2nd most ppr fantasy points per game to opposing WR. He may matchup with Brent Grimes who has been burned in multiple weeks this season. I like Funchess to have possibly his best game so far this season.
TE: O.J. Howard- It is great news for Howard that Ryan Fitzpatrick is returning under center. Fitz seems to prefer Howard over Brate in this offense. Howard has had at least 50 receiving yards in 6 of his 7 games this season. He is also averaging about 5 targets a game. The Panthers are actually forth worst against the TE in a points per game basis. They have also given up the 3rd most touchdowns to the position. Look for Howard to have a top 10 week.
Duds:
QB: Ben Roethlisberger- He will be playing on the road against a top Ravens secondary, for me that has all of the signs of a down game. Big Ben usually has trouble scoring on the road, with only 1 road game this season where he threw for multiple touchdowns. In his home game against the Ravens, he only threw for 274 yards and one touchdown. That down game was sandwiched between 3 great games. I think he is going to have some trouble in Baltimore.
RB: Tevin Coleman- He has not looked great filling in for Devonta Freeman. Over the past 3 weeks, he has only averaged 9 carries a game. If you take out his 30 yard touchdown in week 7, he is averaging just 41 rushing yards a game. He also is not getting enough work in the passing game, averaging 2.5 targets per game this season. The Redskins have a tough defense and Coleman will have little room to work. They are giving up the 7th fewest ppr points per game this season. They have also allowed the 3rd fewest rushing yards in the league. It's going to be a rough game for Coleman.
RB: LeSean McCoy- It's been tough sledding for McCoy the past two weeks and it continues against the Bears. I do think McCoy will begin to have better games after this week. In his last 2 games, he has 14 carries for 14 yards. He is being saved by his receptions. The Bears have one of the best rush defenses in the league. They have given up the 5th fewest rushing yards, 6th fewest catches, and 6th fewest PPR points per game to the RB. McCoy should continue to struggle.
WR: Michael Crabtree- His stat line has been fairly strange this season. He has been getting a ton of targets but is not able to do much with them. He has topped 70 yards in a game just once this season. He is averaging just 55 yards per game. He should see a lot of Joe Haden in this matchup. Haden has been shutting down opposing #1 WR most of the season. He is only allowing 47 yards per game and its not like teams aren't throwing his way. Over the last 4 games he is averaging 10 passes thrown to him. It should be the John Brown show.
WR: Demaryius Thomas- If you missed the news some how, Thomas had been traded to the Houston Texans. Weirdly enough they play the Broncos this week. He hasn't been great in Denver and I do think this change of offenses will benefit him, but I don't think that starts this week. I'm expecting him to be fairly limited in this game until he gets a grasp of the playbook. The Broncos have also been fairly decent against the pass. Lower expectations with Thomas this week.
TE: Trey Burton- He has had a up and down last 3 games. In two of these games he failed to gain over 30 yards and in the other, he exploded for 126 yards. I think he adds another down game in this one. I don't think they will need him to have a good game to win against the Bills. I just think they will attack that team in another way. The Bills are actually in the top 10 in points allowed to the TE this year. He had been a slight disappointment this season after the hype around fantasy drafts.