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Analyzing the trends every week will keep fantasy managers up to date on which players are on the rise or which ones are falling off. The clues can be subtle, but all it takes is a few good games before a player becomes one of the hottest commodities in fantasy.
The same could be said with players who are getting ready to bust on our rosters. They generally cast a few warning signals before they completely drop in value. There are times where these players can circle the wagons and start producing again. There are other times where we see players run into some bad luck or play poorly for a few games and it ends up becoming a trickle-down effect, causing the player to continue to bust in fantasy lineups for the remainder of the year.
Not all warning signals mean the player will soon be obsolete. However, it’s an indicator that fantasy gamers need to pay attention to. If gone unnoticed, you could have a player busting on your roster who should have been dropped to the waiver wire weeks ago.
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Quarterback Warnings - Sit 'Em for Week 6
Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders
Carr started the season off hot with three straight QB1 weeks. He was second in the league with 826 completed air yards going into Week 5. It looked like Carr was transitioning to be one of the best quarterbacks in fantasy. Things didn’t go so well against the Chicago Bears, though. In that game, he completed just 22 of his 35 pass attempts for 206 yards and one interception. He provided only 10 rushing yards on the day.
His performance on Sunday was a letdown to many fantasy gamers as he finished the week as the QB31 with just 7.24 fantasy points. To put things into perspective, he got outscored by Geno Smith.
If anything, this game was a reminder that Carr is not as consistent of a fantasy asset as we hoped. He is improved compared to prior seasons, but he still shouldn’t be ranked close to some of the top quarterbacks in the league.
He’s still worth rostering in fantasy as there are plenty of matchups on the schedule that has the potential to boost his numbers. This is just a reminder that he’s not a bulletproof player. Fantasy managers will need to pay attention to the matchups before they put him in their lineups.
Running Back Warnings - Sit 'Em for Week 6
Miles Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles
Sanders is developing into one of the biggest busts of the 2021 season. He is currently the RB30 on the season and hasn’t been fantasy relevant since Week 1 when he scored 17.30 fantasy points against the Atlanta Falcons, making him an RB1 for the week. Since then, he has consistently scored outside of the top-30 at his position every week.
The emergence of Kenneth Gainwell has made a major impact on Sanders’ production. Gainwell has been used heavily in the passing game and has stolen some red-zone touches.
We are also seeing the Eagles’ offense lean more on the pass. In Sunday's game against the Panthers, with a favorable game script for the rushing attack, we saw Philadelphia hit a 50% rush rate. Quarterback Jalen Hurts saw 40.90 percent of the rushing attempts. The playcalling is decreasing Sanders' workload and making it hard for him to get enough carries to be a top deliver on return on managers' fantasy investment.
Fantasy managers should be very concerned. Volume is the main driver for production in fantasy and Sanders is not getting a large enough workload to be a consistent fantasy asset. He’s too good to drop on waivers, but he’s not putting up enough points to put in your fantasy lineups. It’s best to remain patient to see if he can turn things around. It might be a good idea to think about trading him away if he has a good game in the near future.
Wide Receiver Warnings - Sit 'Em for Week 6
Allen Robinson, Chicago Bears
Throughout his career, Robinson has been thought of as QB-proof. His 2021 season has turned into a polar opposite. He’s the WR61 on the season and has scored outside the top-30 in every game.
The Bears ran the football 37 times on Sunday. One of the reasons why they are leaning on the run game is to smooth out the transition for Justin Fields. The passing game hasn't been very explosive with the rookie quarterback under center. Robinson’s ability to churn out production has been heavily impacted by the team’s offensive game plan and inability to keep the chains moving.
Many fantasy gamers are thinking about sending him to the waiver wire. It's a possibility if other options are sitting on waivers. However, it’s important to note the Bears will need to open the passing game sometime this season which will present more opportunities for Robinson to turn things around. We might not be able to pinpoint the correct time to start him, but there's a good chance that there are better days on the horizon.
Tight End Warnings - Sit 'Em for Week 6
Jonnu Smith, New England Patriots
Smith ran just six routes, catching two passes for 27 yards in Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans. The other tight end, Hunter Henry, led the team with eight targets. To add insult to injury, he hasn’t been usable in fantasy this entire season. His best performance came in Week 4 where he hit 10.4 PPR fantasy points. This was the only week of the season where he was able to provide double-digit fantasy points.
The competition for targets is stiff. Jakobi Meyers is owning a 27 percent share of the team’s pass attempts. When you also have Nelson Agholor siphoning a 16 percent share, it’s going to be hard for Smith to earn enough targets to be a dependable option in fantasy.
He should be on waivers in most leagues. Fantasy gamers shouldn’t be starting him unless they are in a super deep league or they completely punted the position in their draft.
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