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Should I start Rico Dowdle, Jameson Williams, or Darnell Mooney for Week 6? Fantasy football start em, sit em picks and recommendations for the 2024 NFL season.
Unless your entire starting lineup has played or you already have a victory 100% secured, it's never too late to make the right start 'em, sit 'em decisions in fantasy football. If you're down big, you may want to pivot to an option with a higher ceiling, whereas if you're in the lead it probably makes the most sense to deploy the player with the safest floor.
Either way, you could be staring down one or more of Rico Dowdle, Jameson Williams, and Darnell Mooney. All three found the end zone in Week 5, but can they replicate that success this week? These weren't highly touted fantasy assets coming into the season, so it's fair to question how reliable each of them can be moving forward.
Should you start Dowdle, Williams, or Mooney in Week 6? Let's take a closer look.
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Should I Start Rico Dowdle for Fantasy Football?
Ezekiel Elliott began the season splitting touches out of Dallas' backfield pretty evenly with Rico Dowdle. Things changed relatively quickly.
Rico Dowdle's weekly snap share + touch count
Wk 1: 44% / 9
Wk 2: 43% / 11
Wk 3: 46% / 11
Wk 4: 45% / 12
Wk 5: 50% / 22 👀— Matthew Betz (@TheFantasyPT) October 7, 2024
It's no surprise that Dowdle appears to have earned the RB1 role as he looks like the more explosive back right now. Dowdle is gaining 4.1 yards per tote while Elliott is averaging just 3.3. The 26-year-old Dowdle has also emerged as a pass-catching threat for quarterback Dak Prescott with a receiving touchdown in back-to-back games.
He managed to shine last week despite a difficult matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but Dowdle faces a different beast on Sunday. The Detroit Lions are limiting opposing offenses to 90.8 rushing yards per contest, the third-fewest in the NFL.
Although Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III had a great showing against the Lions in Week 4, Detroit is surrendering the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to running backs. This doesn't mean that Dowdle must be avoided, however.
This bout between the Cowboys and Lions is projected to be a high-scoring affair and, as previously mentioned, Dowdle can contribute as a receiver. He'll be hoping to become the first Cowboys running back in team history to score through the air in three straight games.
Expectations should be tempered against this stout Detroit run defense, but Dowdle should see close to 15 opportunities as a starter in a prolific offense. He can be started as an RB2 and comes in as the RB20 in our half-PPR consensus staff rankings.
Should I Start Jameson Williams for Fantasy Football?
On the other side of the ball, we have a high-powered Lions offense fresh off a bye week. Detroit averages 26 points and the third-most offensive yards per game. Former first-round pick Jameson Williams, in his third professional campaign, is finally coming into his own as a premier talent.
Williams came out of the gates hot, surprisingly out-targeting first-team All-Pro Amon-Ra St. Brown in Week 1. He then earned 11 targets in Week 2 before almost completely disappearing in Week 3. He only saw two targets in Week 4's win but made the most of them, racking up 80 yards and a touchdown.
In an offense loaded with weapons, Williams is unlikely to garner consistent looks. This has been the case throughout his career, and underlying metrics this season continue to highlight this point.
First downs per route run vs. receiving YPG, through Week 5 @FantasyPtsData
- Replacing Nico Collins will be...challenging
- DK Metcalf, Jameson Williams, D.J. Moore have been big-play types
- Ladd McConkey would be the consensus rookie WR4 (or dare I say, 3) on another team pic.twitter.com/Zl96xyIcIy
— Ryan Heath (@RyanJ_Heath) October 10, 2024
He's a boom-or-bust fantasy player, but at least this year he is booming more often than he busts. He has scored as a top-24 wideout in three of four appearances thus far. The matchup against Dallas isn't a great one on paper, but again, this game could be a shootout in which you'll want to start all of your fantasy options.
We like Williams to come through with some big plays on Sunday, which is why he is the WR22 in our half-PPR consensus staff rankings.
Should I Start Darnell Mooney for Fantasy Football?
Through five weeks, Darnell Mooney has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the season for fantasy football. He has surpassed 50 receiving yards in all but one outing and has scored three times.
The Falcons' offense led by Kirk Cousins really hit its stride last week, and Mooney enjoyed one of the best performances of his career. The numbers say there is still some potential yet to be realized.
Darnell Mooney had 105 yards on 9 receptions and 16 targets in week 5!
he is 9th in unrealized air yards (272) showing there's room for more! 🚀
Is a big game coming again vs. the Panthers?
What’s your take? ⤵️pic.twitter.com/iZUK5BL5MM
— PlayerProfiler NFL (@Profiler_NFL) October 13, 2024
With Atlanta now seemingly firing on all cylinders, Mooney could become a weekly fantasy starter with huge upside. This upside is certainly there on Sunday in a juicy matchup against the Panthers. Carolina allows the 10th-most fantasy points per game to receivers and the most points to opposing teams in the NFL.
Panthers quarterback Andy Dalton has shown that he can keep Carolina's offense in ballgames. The Falcons are favored, but this is expected to be a high-scoring divisional showdown. Mooney should be called upon throughout the contest, assuming it remains competitive.
There is definitely a chance Atlanta gets out to an early lead and leans on Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier against a vulnerable Carolina run defense. Because of this, we can't call Mooney a must-start, but he still projects to be a high-end flex play as the WR26 in our half-PPR consensus staff rankings.
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