RADIO
A game worth remembering, bringing a head coach back to his former stomping ground, is now a game the New York Jets wish to forget. Rex Ryan returned to the Meadowlands, in a matchup of divisional rivals that had nothing to do with him, as he so adamantly announced during the pregame, and beat a Jets team filled with players he used to coach. Rex was right though, at least in the fantasy football world. The game had nothing to do with him. Coaches can't directly produce points for teams, but their running backs certainly can.
Buffalo Bills starting running back, LeSean McCoy, led a trio of running backs who took the field Thursday night and put an early dent in fantasy lineups. McCoy finished the night with 112 yards on 19 carries, and five catches for 47 yards. McCoy failed to reach the end zone but his production was enough to bolster his line, especially in PPR leagues. It's been an up and down year for the former Eagle, but Shady looked like Shady last night, cutting and breaking tackles against a stingy Jets defense. He is a RB1 for the rest of the season.
McCoy's backup, Karlos Williams, did not put up as many fantasy points but did, however, show the fantasy world a lot more. After inflating the scoresheet last week with his 110 rushing yards and two touchdowns, Williams followed with another touchdown, this time in the air, making him the first player in NFL history to reach the end zone in his first six games.
Williams is here to stay and has certainly solidified his spot on fantasy rosters. No matter how much he is out-carried by Shady, Williams is worth a start, specifically in PPR leagues. In each of his six games, Williams posted a score of over 10 points, especially valuable in deep leagues of 12 teams and over. It isn't likely that he'll appear on any waiver wire again. He is versatile and should be considered in the Flex every week.
On the losing end, a positive reemerged for the Jets. Chris Ivory returned to early-season form and finished the game with 99 yards on 18 carries, including two catches for 36 yards. Ivory could have easily finished with over 100 yards if it wasn't for the questionable (to put it nicely) play calling of the Jets offense.
Ivory was clearly the highlight of the night for the Jets and definitely silenced some of the worries fantasy owners have been expressing in part to his lack of production. Ivory is the kind of running back that runs hard and harder each carry, which can easily lead to his slowing down in the latter part of the season. Although Thursday night, Ivory appeared stronger and willing, an attitude and performance fantasy owners can expect from him in weeks to come. Ivory remains an RB1 the rest of the way.
