In case you tuned it out or didn’t hear it the 999,999 times it was mentioned, I’ll remind you for the one-millionth time: Sunday was National Tight Ends Day. Although many in the dynasty fantasy football world do not celebrate the day, we must acknowledge some of the big performances we saw, while being careful to not overreact. After all, it’s not National Tight Ends Day every Sunday.
Let’s look at the dynasty risers and fallers from Week 8, both at tight end and other positions.
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Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers & Fallers
Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers
Yes, the big performance this week came against the lowly Panthers defense, but it was evident Sean Payton wanted to see Bo Nix attack the defense downfield earlier than we’ve seen in previous weeks. Nix came out slinging it from the first snap, finishing the day with 284 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown with zero turnovers. He completed 75% of his passes and tallied 29.76 fantasy points, good for QB2 on the week and the best score of his young career.
Nix has thrown just one interception in his last six games but was doing much of his damage on the ground. On Sunday, he rushed for just four yards, taking command through the air instead. Although this type of game should be expected against Carolina, it’s encouraging to see Payton take the training wheels off.
It would be unfair to call Ladd McConkey a disappointment, but he had been mostly quiet through his first six games, averaging 44 yards per game with a couple of touchdowns on the season. That changed on Sunday when McConkey erupted for 111 yards and two scores, catching all six of his targets for 29.1 fantasy points and leading the wide receiver scoring for the week.
The rookie second-round pick came into the week with just an 8.1 average depth of target (aDOT), but his first touchdown came on a contested catch downfield, making defenders miss and showing his speed on the way to the end zone. Perhaps this game will unlock his game downfield a bit more.
Did you know it was National Tight Ends Day on Sunday? Kyle Pitts celebrated the day with four catches for 91 yards and two scores, en route to 25.1 fantasy points. The concern with Pitts lies in what happened during the second half when he played just 33% of the snaps in a run-heavy game script. While that is concerning, Pitts showed his upside and has quietly been very effective the last few weeks. He’s averaging over five receptions and 78.5 receiving yards per game across his last four contests and is the TE2 in PPR and the TE1 in half-PPR during that period.
The injuries to Chris Godwin and Mike Evans have produced many questions about who will step up in their absence going forward. We heard a lot of talk about it being Jalen McMillan, Sterling Shepard and Trey Palmer, but perhaps the answer is Cade Otton, who claimed the TE1 spot this week with 29.1 fantasy points.
He snared nine of his 10 targets, tallying 81 yards and two touchdowns. It’s the second week in a row in which Otton has registered 10 targets, after catching eight last week for 100 yards. Despite going for -0.4 points in Week 2, Otton is now the TE6 on the season and things are looking up for the third-year pro out of Washington.
Cedric Tillman was previously featured on the risers list but I’m double dipping because he had another monster day, outdoing last week’s performance. Tillman caught seven out of nine targets for 99 yards and two touchdowns, totaling 28.9 fantasy points and finishing as the week’s WR2.
Things have broken perfectly for Tillman with the departure of Amari Cooper and Jameis Winston stepping into the starting quarterback role, and he’s certainly making the most of his opportunity. Don’t forget, Tillman was a third-round pick and a strong prospect. This breakout is for real.
Although Khalil Shakir led the Bills receiving effort with 105 yards, Keon Coleman’s game has taken a turn for the better in the last few weeks. He recorded 70 yards and a touchdown on five grabs on Sunday, following up a 125-yard effort in Week 7. Coleman climbed the latter on a Josh Allen jump ball for his touchdown catch, showing his contested catch ability.
The acquisition of Amari Cooper was thought to stagnate Coleman’s growth, but after two weeks that doesn’t seem to be the case. In fairness, Cooper hasn’t ramped up to a full-time role, but Coleman isn’t ready to be a No. 1 WR regardless. If he can continue playing like this, he can emerge as the No. 2A or No. 2B WR in this offense, before eventually taking over the top spot.
In the process of taking Jonathan Mingo‘s job, Jalen Coker has proven he belongs. With Diontae Johnson and Adam Thielen missing in action, Coker played the second-most snaps at wide receiver for the Panthers, ahead of both Xavier Legette and Mingo. He also led the team in receiving yards with 78 to go with a touchdown grab.
It’s difficult to imagine Coker consistently playing ahead of Legette, but with Johnson seemingly on the trade block, he may maintain a large role in the offense as a rookie.
All Kyren Williams does is score touchdowns. That and average 86 all-purpose yards per game, but he’s found the end zone in every game this season, either on the ground or through the air, bringing his total to 10 scores in seven games.
Much was made of the Blake Corum addition to the backfield and what that would mean for Williams. Through seven games, it doesn’t mean much as Williams is the RB4 on the season and has owned the backfield throughout.
Dynasty Fantasy Football Fallers
I, like many in the fantasy football industry, was optimistic about Anthony Richardson’s fantasy potential this season. His rushing is an obvious boost, but he has failed to make any strides as a passer. On Sunday, he completed just 31.3% of his passes (10-of-32), while tallying one interception and a fumble. Shockingly, his 11.1 fantasy points represent his highest total since week 1. Not seen in the box score is Richardson tapping out of a third-down play due to being “tired,” in his own words.
There were many jokes this offseason about Keenan Allen’s weight and his inability to win in various clips on Hard Knocks, but all jokes aside, it feels like the beginning of the end for Allen. He caught two passes for 39 yards on Sunday. If it wasn’t for two touchdowns in Week 6, it would be a truly dismal start to the season for Allen. He’s now averaging just 3.4 receptions per game and 32.2 receiving yards.
It feels like three or four years ago Jordan Addison posted over 900 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns as a rookie. Perhaps that’s because his only headlines since then have come from off-the-field news, but either way, Addison has been a disappointment this season and that continued Sunday when he caught two passes for 22 yards.
Outside of Week 4, which included a rushing touchdown, Addison has failed to top 10 points in a game. Even with Week 4, he’s averaging only 2.8 catches and 46 receiving yards per game.
The narrative all offseason was how Blake Corum would force a committee in the Rams’ backfield, but that has not come to fruition. Not even close. Corum rushed four times for nine yards on Sunday and has garnered nothing more than a backup running back workload.
A few weeks after making an appearance on the risers list, Dontayvion Wicks’ stock has taken a hit. Not only did he fail to step up when the Packers’ wide receiver room was full of injuries and absences, but his role seems to have diminished.
Previously, Wicks and Christian Watson had been splitting an outside role evenly with Romeo Doubs on the other side and Jayden Reed working out of the slot. On Sunday, however, Wicks played just 21 snaps and ran nine routes compared to Watson’s 52 snaps and 23 routes. I’m still a believer in the talent, and the pecking order in Green Bay changes often, but there’s no denying Wicks’ struggles.
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