As fantasy managers, we often face difficult decisions. To sit, or not to sit? In an age where data is coming at us more frequently than ever, it’s easy for information to become over-saturated or lost in translation. This article series will be here each week to help you filter through the jungle of statistics so you can make more educated lineup decisions. Welcome to the “Panic Meter.”
Each week, we’ll feature several underperforming players with an assigned grade that corresponds to the appropriate level of panic to the respective player/performance. Below is a scale with grades between 0 and 4, as well as a strategy that correlates to the specific grade.
| PANIC METER GRADE | STRATEGY/PLAN OF ACTION |
| 0 | This past week was not ideal, but it can be chalked up as an anamoly. Don’t even think about benching them. |
| 1 | Panic is setting in. The leash becomes shorter, but said player is still in consideration as a starter. Make sure a plan-B is in place. |
| 2 | Offically panicked, exploring trade options, and possibly benching for a more proven/reliable option. |
| 3 | Fire sale. Get rid of them for whatever you can before it’s too late. They can no longer be trusted as a starter. A borderline drop-candidate. |
| 4 | Sever all ties. Smash the drop button so hard that man ends up in the shadow realm. |
Dalvin Cook (RB – MIN) | Panic Meter: 1
Dalvin Cook has delivered nothing but less-than-ideal performances so far. However, you must hold the line. Cook’s usage and snap share has been exactly what you’d want from your RB1 (17+ touches in three of four games). Unfortunately, he has been the victim of a few vultured TDs from Alexander Mattison, a negative game script against Philly (just 10 touches) and a costly fumble in Week 3. You can’t trade him for what he’s truly worth at the moment, and you certainly can’t bench him. You’ll have to weather the storm until he breaks out of this funk, and if he doesn’t, the panic meter will adjust accordingly. Stay tuned.
Najee Harris (RB – PIT) | Panic Meter: 2
The Steelers offense is looking severely lackluster. Given the QBs on the current roster, there’s not much hope of that improving. More often than not, watching the Steelers move the ball has been like watching paint dry. From a fantasy perspective, Najee Harris is suffering the most. He has weekly finishes of RB29, RB12, RB21 and RB40 through four weeks. He has no games above 14.0 points and an average of just 11.2 PPG. Panic is creeping up. Harris’s upcoming schedule will not be friendly. Benching him is not an option, but swallowing your pride and trading him for less than you invested in him is very much on the table.
James Conner (RB – ARI) | Panic Meter: 2
James Conner has one finish higher than RB26 so far. He isn’t at a three on the panic meter because he has seen steady passing game work, keeping him afloat. He has also been the victim of a negative game script in every game so far. Not that most fantasy managers will accept it as an excuse, but the Cardinals have scored zero points in the first quarter this season. So, they’ve been playing from behind, not running the ball a whole lot. Still, Conner isn’t making the most of his opportunities (averaging 3.2 YPC), and he’s not scoring TDs. He is currently the RB29 after four games. It may not be a bad idea to try and swap Conner for an RB like Breece Hall while his name still holds value.
Terry McLaurin (WR – WAS) | Panic Meter: 2
Sadly enough, it may be time to give up on Terry McLaurin. Until this week, things were not so bad on the surface. Weeks 1-3 McLaurin scored no less than 12.2 PPR points in any game. But a closer look reveals a more concerning story. McLaurin has caught more than four passes just once so far (averaging 3.5 receptions per game) and has fewer targets than Curtis Samuel in every game. It won’t be easy to trust him as a weekly WR2 with the kind of usage we have seen so far. After a flop in Week 4, he has less fantasy points this season than Mack Hollins, Noah Brown, Devin Duvernay and Greg Dortch. Scary Terry is no longer a lineup-lock.
DJ Moore (WR – CAR) | Panic Meter: 3
After delivering a WR27 finish against Arizona’s 32nd-ranked secondary, the panic meter is reaching a peak. If DJ Moore couldn’t manage a WR1 week in a cake matchup, it makes you question if there’s any room for optimism moving forward. So far, Moore has yet to top 51 receiving yards or 13.5 PPR points in any game. On the one hand, he is seeing a decent amount of targets (averaging 7.25 per game) which is the sole reason the panic meter isn’t through the roof yet. But as long as Baker Mayfield plays QB for the Panthers, Moore is far from a set-it-and-forget-it WR.
Kyle Pitts (TE – ATL) | Panic Meter: 3
We have a one-game sample of Pitts being just alright (five catches, 87 yards) and a three-game sample of him being the biggest fantasy bust in recent memory. Here’s a list of tight ends currently more trustworthy than Pitts: Pat Freiermuth, Gerald Everett, Tyler Higbee, David Njoku, Will Dissly and Tyler Conklin. He has just 0.2 more points than Taysom Hill, who did not play in Week 3. The panic meter doesn’t get much higher. If you hadn’t invested such high draft capital in Pitts, the suggestion would be to drop him. Since pride won’t allow that, your best bet is to attempt to move him to a manager who hopefully hasn’t been paying close attention and is still excited by the name. Another sub-four-point performance and he makes the cut list.
Cut list | Panic Meter: 4
Allen Robinson, Chase Claypool, Jarvis Landry, Robbie Anderson, Dawson Knox, Kirk Cousins
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