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Fantasy football risers and fallers heading into Week 6 of the NFL season. Jason Katz looks at players whose fantasy value has changed over the past week.
Whether due to their own play, the play of others, or injuries, players' stock increases and decreases on a weekly basis. Perhaps more than any other, the NFL is a league that experiences ups and downs at a rapid pace. With only 16 games, there’s little room for error and seemingly endless opportunities for improvement. The same goes for fantasy football; managing rosters effectively is key to winning that championship.
Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year. In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back.
These are the key risers and fallers heading into Week 6 of the NFL season.
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Week 6 Risers
Gerald Everett (TE, LAR)
His egregious drop derailing the Rams' first attempt at a two minute drill comeback notwithstanding, the arrow has been pointing up for Gerald Everett as of late. An afterthought for the first three weeks, the Rams have increasingly used 12 personnel at the expense of a third receiver, which has been a boon for Everett's productivity. Everett has 19 targets over the past two weeks - and with Brandin Cooks possibly missing time due to his concussion, Everett is firmly third in the passing game hierarchy behind Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods. He will be a popular streaming candidate this week, especially for those looking to replace Darren Waller, and he just may end up sticking on rosters.
Will Fuller (WR, HOU)
Holy breakouts. Will Fuller showed everyone how it's done. Fuller matched his receptions total over his first four games combined with 14 and turned that into 217 yards and three touchdowns. It was a smash spot and Fuller smashed. Fuller is playing nearly every snap and looks fully recovered from his ACL tear. He has another smash spot in a projected shootout at Kansas City this upcoming week.
D.J. Chark (WR, JAX)
It's time to make it official. DJ Chark is a WR1. Chark is averaging 7.4 targets per game and is making spectacular catches weekly. He is Gardner Minshew's favorite target and it's not close. Chark has over a 20% target share and currently sits as as the overall WR5 through about a third of the season. Chark is legit.
Aaron Jones (RB, GB)
The most valuable Aaron on the Packers (from a fantasy perspective) went full Christian McCaffrey against the Cowboys. Aaron Jones touched the ball 26 times for a total of 182 yards and four rushing touchdowns. Jones played 68% of the snaps and one would think he finally put away any concerns coaches may have about his feature back status. When Jamaal Williams returns, it should still be the Aaron Jones show and the schedule is only getting easier over the next month.
Jordan Howard (RB, PHI)
It is time for all the Miles Sanders truthers to concede defeat. Sanders is just not looking like a good running back. He has the athleticism to potentially become good, but he is far from competent at this juncture. That has led to increased usage for Jordan Howard. He led the Eagles' backfield in snaps for a second consecutive week - and while he only carried the ball 13 times for 62 yards without any targets, Doug Pederson came out and said Howard needs more touches. Given the quality of the Eagles' offense, and now with Darren Sproles out of the picture, this looks like a two man committee - Howard dominating early down work and goal line carries, placing him firmly in RB2 territory.
Week 6 Fallers
Aaron Rodgers (QB, GB)
What more is there to say about Aaron Rodgers? He's not an every week QB1. Because he's Aaron Rodgers, you can't drop him and treat him like the fantasy asset he actually is - that being a streaming option. Rodgers failed to reach double digit fantasy points last week and outside of his Week 4 blow up, his best game is 14.36 fantasy points. You would be far better off with Gardner Minshew. Rodgers is going to have his games because he's still talented, but he is not the same guy he was earlier in the decade.
The Entire Pittsburgh Steelers Offense
It was bad enough when the Steelers downgraded from Ben Roethlisberger to Mason Rudolph. Now they are starting UDFA Devlin Hodges, who sounds like one of those made up draft prospects in Madden. It goes without saying, but Hodges was never supposed to see the field in 2019, or ever. While he looked somewhat competent in his limited action against the Ravens, fantasy owners of JuJu Smith-Schuster, James Conner, and Diontae Johnson can't be thrilled about the touchdown upside of a Hodges-led Steelers offense.
Mike Evans (WR, TB)
In a week of historic fantasy scoring, Mike Evans somehow managed to not catch a single pass. Outside of one half of football against the Giants, Evans has been a colossal bust this season. He's now had games of 4.8 and 0 fantasy points as well as a lackluster 10.1. That is nowhere near what you expect from your second-round wide receiver. Chris Godwin appears to have usurped Evans as the best receiver on the Bucs. You're never benching Evans, but he is hard to rely on right now.
LeSean McCoy (RB, KC)
It appears that the question of whether LeSean McCoy has taken over this backfield has been answered. It is definitively no. Damien Williams returned and promptly played the entire first series while outsnapping McCoy 56%-22%. McCoy may have been benched after his patented "carry the ball like a loaf of bread" approach led to a fumble. Either way, it wasn't promising for Shady's future prospects with Williams back healthy.
Joe Mixon (RB, CIN)
There is no way to spin Joe Mixon's season as anything other than a failure. In repeated smash spots, Mixon just can't produce. He ripped off 60 yards on the Bengals' opening drive against the Cardinals, yet failed to reach 100 yards rushing. The Bengals have been at the bottom of the league in red zone conversion rate and Mixon has yet to rush for a touchdown on the season. He's reached double digits in three straight games, but you didn't draft Mixon to be a floor guy. The ceiling just doesn't exist this year.
