🖥 TAP TO SAVE 50% WITH CODE NEW
X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

Disaster Recovery Week 13 - Studs Turned Duds

Fantasy football busts and disappointments from Week 13 of the 2017 NFL season. Steve Rebeiro reviews which stud players turned duds and how concerned we should be.

Welcome to Disaster Recovery, where each week I'll examine why your studs played like duds. This isn't a place to find out why you should have benched a player for somebody on your bench. Disaster Recovery is to examine the guys who you didn't think twice about benching, and deciding if you should be panicking at all about their value moving forward.

The players covered in this column will usually have to be in the RotoBaller top-10 at their respective positions, but it may vary depending on the status of the players each week.

Like last week, Week 13 saw many players produce close to expectations. I chose not to include either of the notable tight end duds this week: Zach Ertz was left out due to an injury, and Jared Cook was left out because, I'll just be honest, I'm unable to analyze Cook fairly due how often he broke my heart during his time with the Rams.

Featured Promo: New Novig users get a $25 purchase match (50% discount up to $25) on your first Novig deposit, and 3 free months of RotoBaller's "Big-4" Premium Pass (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL) which includes exclusive tools for Betting, Props, DFS and more! CLAIM IT NOW

 

Week 13 Duds

Brandin Cooks (WR, NE) (#7 WR)

What Happened: Cooks caught two of his three targets for 17 yards in a win against the Bills

How Did It Happen: I've mentioned this in the past whenever Cooks or Rob Gronkowski appear in this column, but the Patriots have a ton of mouths to feed on offense, and the occasional dud is bound to happen. This week Dion Lewis and Rex Burkhead dominated on the ground while Gronk had 147 of the teams 258 receiving yards. Cooks got lost in the shuffle in what was his worst fantasy performance of the season.

Panic Meter: Low. Cooks has had at least 65 yards in six of the Patriots last eight games this season and had scored in the previous two games entering Week 13. With Gronk suspended and unlikely to win an appeal, Cooks could be in line for a massive Week 14 performance. He remains a must start.

 

Jordan Howard (RB, CHI) (#8 RB)

What Happened: Howard squandered what should have been a great matchup, rushing 13 times for 38 yards and catching one pass that went for negative yardage in a loss to the 49ers.

How Did It Happen: Time of possession, believe it or not. San Francisco dominated the ball all game. Chicago was only able to run 36 plays. To put that in perspective, the Bears average 57.2 plays per game, which is the second lowest in the league. Even last week when the Eagles dominated TOP and ran 73 plays, the same as San Francisco ran this week, the Bears were able to run 49 plays. This was an abysmal all-around output by the Chicago offense.

Panic Meter: Medium. Two straight weeks of duds for Howard is a concern for owners expecting big things from him in the playoffs. Still, the last time the Bears were able to make TOP an even playing field, Howard ran for 125 yards and a touchdown in Week 11 against the Lions. Howard faces off against a Cincinnati defense that gave up 95 yards to Isaiah Crowell in Week 12. If you've been relying on Howard all season, I wouldn't shy away from him just yet.

 

Julio Jones (WR, ATL) (#2 WR)

What Happened: Julio Jones returns to the duds once again, catching two of his six targets for just 24 yards.

How Did It Happen: Just one week after bullying Tampa Bay for 253 yards and two touchdowns, Jones was unable to find a connection with Matt Ryan this week and was bottled up by a very good Vikings secondary.

Panic Meter: Medium. In a season full of ups and downs for Julio Jones, having his worst game of the year in Week 13 likely ended a lot of fantasy seasons. Jones owners should move forward like they have the entire season up to this point: prepare for the worst, but hope for the best. Jones has too much upside to be removed from any playoff lineups and did have a fairly high floor up until last week. He has to be plugged in.

 

Mike Evans (WR, TB) (#4 WR)

What Happened: Evans was held to just two catches for 33 yards in Jameis Winston's first game back.

How Did It Happen: Just as we all expected, Tampa Bay ran their offense through Peyton Barber, and Cameron Brate caught both of the teams touchdowns. Barber led all receivers with 41 yards while 10 different Buccaneers caught passes against Green Bay. There wasn't room for Evans to dominate.

Panic Meter: High. Similar to Julio, Week 13 was the icing on the cake for a frustrating season from Mike Evans. The only difference is Jones has flashed why he was a consensus top five player entering the season while Evans, who was a first round pick in most leagues, hasn't had over 100 yards in a game this season and hasn't scored since Week 7. Since Week 8, Evans ranks 45th in PPR scoring and is actually worse in standard. Part of this is due to Winston being out, Winston played in his two worst games during this stretch.

Evans owners have a tough choice to make. I understand if you want to stand by Evans. Few players have the week-to-week upside based on talent that he has, and the Winston/Evans connection may find new life against a shaky Detroit defense. In deeper leagues, the waiver wire is likely barren at receiver, and nobody is able to fill his shoes.

But for Evans owners who are skeptical about Evans moving forward, it is completely acceptable to bench the guy. Here are a couple players ranked above Evans over the past six weeks: Jeremy Maclin, Zay Jones, and Brandon LaFell. Evans shouldn't even sniff the top 10 rankings moving forward. It is hard to trust him down the stretch.

 

More Week 14 Lineup Prep




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Import Your Leagues
Weekly Rankings
Compare Any Players
Projections
Articles & Tools
Weekly Planner
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Matthew Stafford

Strengthens MVP Candidacy in Win Over Cardinals
Mitchell Trubisky

Comes Off Bench, Throws for Four Touchdowns
Rhamondre Stevenson

Explodes for Three Touchdowns in Huge Week 18
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Good to Go Against Sacramento
Trae Young

Won't Play on Monday Night
Grayson Allen

Still Out on Sunday Night
Indianapolis Colts

Colts to Bring Back Shane Steichen and Chris Ballard for 2026
Kansas City Royals

Matt Quatraro Signs Three-Year Extension With Royals
Tyrone Tracy Jr.

Catches Eight Passes in Dominant Outing Sunday
Logan Stanley

to Sit Out One Game With Suspension
TOR

Chris Tanev Could Be Done for Rest of Regular Season
Sean Monahan

Expected to Return Tuesday
Alexander Wennberg

Lands Three-Year Extension
Alec Pierce

Makes Several Big Catches Before Ejection
John Beecher

Handed One-Game Suspension
Devon Toews

Unavailable Sunday
Seth Jones

Out Against Avalanche
Josh Allen

Plays One Snap in Week 18
Myles Garrett

Breaks All-Time Single-Season Sack Record
Jaylen Waddle

Officially Sidelined for Season Finale
De'Von Achane

Officially Inactive Against Patriots in Week 18
Dalton Kincaid

Suiting Up Against Jets in Week 18
Kyren Williams

Suiting Up Against Cardinals on Sunday
Davante Adams

Won't Play Against Cardinals in Week 18
J.J. McCarthy

Questionable to Return in Week 18
Jamal Murray

Will Play on Sunday
Amon-Ra St. Brown

Suiting Up for Regular-Season Finale
Christian Braun

Will Play on Sunday
Aaron Gordon

Will Play on Sunday
Ja Morant

Questionable Against the Lakers
Michael Porter Jr.

Off Injury Report, Set to Face Nuggets
Brian Thomas Jr.

Being Evaluated for Concussion in Week 18
Jalen Suggs

Ruled Out for Sunday, No Timetable for Return
Cameron Ward

Done for the Day in Week 18
Caris LeVert

Ruled Out Against Cavaliers
Jarrett Allen

Ruled Out on Sunday Afternoon
Cameron Ward

Questionable To Return With Shoulder Injury
Las Vegas Raiders

Pete Carroll Unlikely to Return as Raiders Head Coach
New York Jets

Jets Not Expected to Fire Aaron Glenn
Kyle Pitts Sr.

Suiting Up Against Saints in Week 18
CFB

Transfer QB Billy Edwards Commits to North Carolina
CFB

Sam Leavitt Visiting Texas Tech on Saturday
Jamal Murray

Expected to Play Against Nets
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Listed as Probable for Sunday
Tobias Harris

Out at Least Two Weeks with Hip Sprain
Jalen Duren

to Miss at Least One Week with Ankle Injury
Vince Williams Jr.

Misses Eighth Straight Game
Maxime Raynaud

Cleared to Play Sunday After Knee Scare
Isaiah Hartenstein

Remains Out Versus Suns
Nathan MacKinnon

Takes Over Scoring Lead With Four-Point Effort
Herbert Jones

Misses Seventh Straight Game
Nikita Kucherov

Bags Five Points Against Sharks
Saddiq Bey

Ruled Out Versus Heat
Darren Raddysh

Celebrates Hat Trick in Big Win
Jordan Binnington

Logs First Shutout of Season
Nicolas Claxton

Sidelined Versus Nuggets
Auston Matthews

Becomes Maple Leafs' All-Time Goals Leader
Jake McCabe

Exits Loss Early
Tom Wilson

Escapes Serious Injury
Joel Kiviranta

Misses Road Trip
Gavin Brindley

Out Saturday
Casey DeSmith

Granted Leave of Absence
Tanner Jeannot

Remains Absent Saturday
Trevor Moore

Won't Play Saturday Night
Shayne Gostisbehere

Set to Return Saturday
William Nylander

Misses Fourth Straight Game
CFB

DJ Lagway Expected To Visit Florida State
Kyle Tucker

Blue Jays "Remain the Favorite" to Sign Kyle Tucker
CFB

Joey Aguilar Undergoes Surgery to Remove Tumor on Friday
CFB

Texas the "Team to Beat" for Transfer Running Back Isaac Brown
CFB

Rocco Becht to Follow Matt Campbell to Penn State?
CFB

Texas Targeting Cam Coleman in Transfer Portal
CFB

Former Texas Running Back CJ Baxter Visiting Kentucky
CFB

Beau Pribula Visiting Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech
Bo Bichette

Yankees Showing Interest in Bo Bichette
Houston Astros

Astros Sign Tatsuya Imai to Three-Year Deal
CFB

Lane Kiffin Interested in Sam Leavitt, Brendan Sorsby at LSU
CFB

Deuce Knight Officially Entering Transfer Portal
CFB

Kewan Lacy Expected to Be Full-Go Against Georgia
CFB

Chip Kelly Named Northwestern Offensive Coordinator

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP