October 6, 2016

Demetri Raftopoulos examines which NFL wide receivers and tight ends saw a surprisingly high number of targets in Week 4 of the fantasy football season and could become a desirable waiver target and add for Week 5.

Sammy Watkins has been placed on injured reserve with a foot injury and will likely miss the remainder of the 2016 season. This opens up plenty of opportunities for Bills receivers and tight ends to get more involved in the offense. Injuries throw that preverbal wrench into our fantasy plans quite often. A week-to-week, matchup-based option could always help answer that. Paying attention to targets is always important, regardless of how many lead to actual receptions.

Here is a look at the surprise target grabbers from Week 4, and a look at possible breakout options for Week 5 based on the usage they are seeing in the passing game. You can ask me more waiver wire and game day questions on Twitter @DemetriRafto.

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Surprise Week 4 Target Grabbers

Eddie Royal - Chicago Bears 

Brian Hoyer could very well be the answer for the Chicago Bears, and their young, growing, improving offense. With Jay Cutler sidelined because of a thumb injury, Hoyer capitalized on his spot-start opportunity. Eddie Royal, amidst a Bears offense that totaled 302 receiving yards, capitalized as well.

Royal caught seven passes on seven targets versus the Detroit Lions on Sunday. He led the charge, and team, with 111 receiving yards and a touchdown. His longest reception of the day came on a 64-yard bomb from Hoyer. The two unlikely heroes meshed well on Sunday and head to Indianapolis in Week 5 to face a Colts team that owns the 25th ranked secondary in the league. Royal is a solid WR3 in deep PPR leagues.

John Brown - Arizona Cardinals  

The first two weeks of the season did not treat John Brown well, as he only posted two catches, seven targets, and 22 yards against the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He received some much-needed love Week 3 with his six catches on 11 targets facing the Buffalo Bills.

It wasn't until this past week against the Los Angeles Rams that Brown finally felt some much-deserved appreciation from fantasy owners. Brown reeled in 10 passes on an insane 16 targets, the most of any receiver in Week 4, for 144 yards. While the targets are encouraging, Brown has failed to find the end zone yet this season and could continue to struggle to do so with Drew Stanton likely starting for the Arizona Cardinals in Week 5.

Dontrelle Inman  - San Diego Chargers 

Dontrelle Inman led a Chargers receiving unit that received a ton of attention from Philip Rivers in Week 4. Rivers completed 28 passes to six different receivers for 321 yards. Inman was targeted the most out of the group, turning his 11 into seven receptions for 120 yards and a score.

It's difficult to predict the consistency of any Chargers receiver with the absence of Keenan Allen and Antonio Gates, considering a new receiver seemingly breaks out each week. His Week 4 performance wasn't only Inman's best game of the season, but also of his career. Inman will likely come back down to earth this week, but he does have an extremely favorable matchup against an Oakland Raiders team that has surrendered the most fantasy points to wideouts thus far. He's owned in only 2% of Yahoo! Leagues, but that number is likely to go up this week.

Possible Week 5 Breakout Options

Hunter Henry - (TE, SD)

With Antonio Gates inactive for the second straight game in Week 4, Hunter Henry stepped in as the Chargers' starting tight end. Henry, like the aforementioned Inman, impressed in an increased role with his four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown. Henry was targeted seven times, and he could be in line for a heavy workload again against the Oakland Raiders in Week 5, if Gates misses his third consecutive contest.

Henry has proved more than capable of excelling in a starting role and has exceeded fantasy projections in back-to-back weeks. The Raiders have only allowed one touchdown to tight ends so far this season, but that might be the only thing they've limited on the defensive side of the ball in 2016. Henry is a solid, no-brainer TE1, just as long as Gates misses action Week 5.

Robert Woods - (WR, BUF)

Robert Woods has also taken advantage of an injury, one that was supposed to plague Buffalo's offense. With Sammy Watkins out for two straight weeks, and now likely for the entire season, the Bills offense exploded for 33 points against the Arizona Cardinals, and put up a solid 16 against the previously undefeated New England Patriots. In the center of that offensive production was Robert Woods.

Woods has assumed the team's role of lead receiver and has been targeted 18 times over the two-game span without Watkins. He has yet to reel in a touchdown, but is coming off his best performance of the season (seven catches, 89 yards) against the Pats. He has a favorable matchup against a Rams squad that has relinquished the fifth-most fantasy points to receivers this season, and should again see the bulk of Tyrod Taylor's passes come his way. He's a WR3, specifically in PPR formats.

Terrelle Pryor Sr. - (WR, CLE) 

This one is not really much of a surprise considering his recent production, but the Cleveland Browns have a tough matchup against the New England Patriots. It's hard to believe that the Patriots could lose two in a row and that their second would come against the winless Browns. That's not being questioned here. What is being questioned is the capability of New England's defense to stop opposing passing games, specifically in garbage time. We saw Ryan Tannehill look like a beast while his team was down big to the Pats in Week 2. That will likely be the case in Week 5 as well.

We have, surprisingly, seen the Browns play opponents pretty tough this season. They have stayed relevant and hungry in each game, so don't be surprised when Pryor and Cody Kessler hook up for a touchdown and a bunch of completions this Sunday. Pryor is the number one weapon on a Browns team without Corey Coleman. He can catch, run, and pass, providing a ton of versatility to fantasy lineups. Pryor is a WR2.

Other Options: Kyle Rudolph (TE, MIN) vs HOU, Sammie Coates (WR, PIT) vs NYJ, Zach Miller (TE, CHI) @ IND