Raiders RB Josh Jacobs went off in Week 4, torching the Broncos for 144 yards and 2 scores on 28 attempts. With 5 catches (6 targets), Jacobs actually set a career-high with 34 opportunities. Vegas never trailed after the 1st quarter, so his passing-game usage is encouraging. He’s actually caught 5 balls in back to back games. On the ground, Jacobs continued to make the most of his opportunities behind a surprisingly-effective O-line. He’s now up to 4.8 YPC through 70 carries. The contract-year back will look to keep rolling Monday night at Kansas City.
Bills beat writer Joe Buscaglia writes that the Bills don’t trust RB James Cook, and a game-day deactivation might be upcoming. Devin Singletary played a whopping 88% of the snaps in Week 4 at Baltimore. Cook fumbled in the opener and dropped a pass against the Ravens, so the trust issues make sense. Buscaglia also points out that the Bills’ blocking style doesn’t mesh with Cook’s strengths. For now, it’ll take a Singletary injury for Cook to enter the fantasy radar.
Broncos WR Courtland Sutton scored his first TD of the season in Week 4. He added 5 catches for 52 yards on a team-high 7 targets (28%). Denver ran only 48 plays in a road loss to Vegas, but it was nice to see Sutton convert on his 3rd end zone target of the season. Losing RB Javonte Williams to a knee injury — potentially for an extended absence — might push this offense to more passing in the weeks ahead. Regardless, Sutton is locked in as a weekly starter.
Colts QB Matt Ryan threw for a season-high 356 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's loss to the Titans. He spread the ball around. TE Mo Alie-Cox, WR Alec Pierce and WR Michael Pittman tied for the target lead with 6 apiece. Alie-Cox caught all of his for 85 yards and both TDs. Pierce caught 4 balls for 80 yards. Pittman was limited to 3 catches for 31 yards. TE Kyle Granson and WR Parris Campbell also hauled in 4 receptions apiece. Challenging matchups with Denver and Jacksonville lie ahead the next 2 weeks.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson played just 16 snaps (29%) in the Week 4 win over the Browns. His 9 carries ranked 3rd on the team, behind RBs Tyler Allgeier and Caleb Huntley with 10 apiece. Patterson wasn't targeted in the passing game. He salvaged his fantasy day with a 13-yard TD but finished with just 38 total yards. Patterson entered this game questionable with a knee issue, which might explain why his snaps were scaled back. But it's also possible that the Falcons want to keep him limited going forward after Patterson wore down late last season.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport hears that the "belief" is that Colts RB Jonathan Taylor's ankle injury is "not overly serious, nothing major, nothing that will keep him off the field for a while." Rapoport does insinuate that Taylor might not be available for Thursday night's game vs. the Broncos. But consider it good news if he ends up missing just 1 game. We should learn more later today. Taylor endured a quiet fantasy outing -- 43 total yards on 20 carries and 1 catch -- before Sunday's injury.
Giants QB Daniel Jones is considered "day to day" with the ankle injury he suffered in Sunday's win over the Giants, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Jones was able to return to that game -- after QB Tyrod Taylor left with a concussion -- and Rapoport says there's "optimism" Jones will be available for Week 5.
Titans QB Ryan Tannehill had a modestly efficient game in Sunday's win over the Colts. He completed 17 of 21 passes for 137 yards (6.5 per attempt) and 2 TDs. Tannehill found WR Robert Woods and rookie TE Chig Okonkwo for his 2 scores. Woods and RB Dontrell Hilliard tied for the team lead with 4 catches apiece. Okonkwo's 3 receptions tied RB Derrick Henry for the next spot, even though Okonkwo trailed both Geoff Swaim and Austin Hooper in routes. WR Treylon Burks left early with a left foot injury.
Titans RB Derrick Henry ran for 114 yards and a TD in Sunday's win over the Colts. He also led the team with 5 targets, catching 3 for 33 yards. After totaling just 1 target through the 1st 2 games, Henry has 11 over the past 2. That's an important development for his fantasy football value, which would otherwise be TD-dependent. The rushing yardage marked the 1st time this year that Henry eclipsed 90 on the ground. He'll face Washington in Week 5 and then get another shot at the Colts after a Week 6 bye.
Texans WR Brandin Cooks caught all 7 targets for 57 yards and a score in Sunday's loss to the Chargers. It was nice fantasy efficiency after an erratic start to the season. He'll get a potentially challenging matchup with the Jaguars before a Week 6 bye.
Texans rookie RB Dameon Pierce used a 75-yard TD run in Sunday's loss to the Chargers to rack up 131 yards on 14 attempts. Pierce added 6 receptions (for just 8 yards) among 6 targets. Only WR Brandin Cooks drew more looks in the passing game. No other Texan logged a rushing attempt. Rex Burkhead trailed Pierce by 1 target and ran 6 fewer routes.
Chargers WR Mike Williams caught 7 balls for 120 yards amid 11 targets in Sunday's win over the Texans. He drew 28.2% target share, with WR Keenan Allen still out. RB Austin Ekeler checked in 2nd with 7 targets. TE Gerald Everett was the only other Charger to see more than 3 looks. He finished with a 5-61-1 line on 6 targets.
Chargers RB Austin Ekeler scored twice on the ground in Sunday's win over the Texans, amid 13 carries for 60 yards. He added a 14-yard receiving TD in the 4th quarter, among 6 catches for 49 yards. It marked the 3rd time in 4 games that Ekeler got at least 18 touches. Joshua Kelley and Sony Michel combined to play 10 fewer snaps combined.
Chargers QB Justin Herbert threw for 340 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's win over the Texans. He hit Austin Ekeler and Gerald Everett for scores. Herbert's practice participation leading up to the game told us his ribs were in better shape than the week before. WR Keenan Allen is also nearing his return. Week 5 presents another fine matchup at Cleveland.
Lions TE T.J. Hockenson delivered a huge receiving line in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks: 8 catches, 179 yards, 2 TDs. His 12 targets constituted 30% of Detroit's total pass attempts. The yardage checked in 48 higher than the previous top mark of his career. With WRs Amon-Ra St. Brown and D.J. Chark out, as well as RB D'Andre Swift, WR Josh Reynolds served as the #2 target. He drew 8 looks and caught 7 balls for 81 yards and a TD. No other Lion caught more than 3 passes in the game.
Lions QB Jared Goff tallied 378 yards and 4 TD passes in Sunday's shootout loss to the Seahawks. Detroit trailed by 15+ at 3 different points but rebounded to make it a 48-45 final. Goff found TE T.J. Hockenson for a pair of scores and hit WR Josh Reynolds and RB Justin Jackson with the 2 others. Goff'ffs Week 5 meeting with the Patriots figures to be less favorable. Then comes a Week 6 bye.
With D'Andre Swift out, Lions RB Jamaal Williams took over the backfield and racked up a 19-108-2 rushing line in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks. Williams added 1 catch for just 1 yard among 3 targets. Craig Reynolds and Justin Jackson handled just 2 carries apiece. Jackson caught 2 passes -- including a 2-yard TD -- among 2 targets. Reynolds added 1 catch as well. Detroit hasn't confirmed that Swift will miss further game time, but he seems likely to remain out through Week 5.
Seahawks QB Geno Smith threw for 320 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's win at Detroit, his 2nd straight game of 320+ yards. Smith again favored D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, targeting them with a combined 60% of his pass attempts. Metcalf caught 7 of 10 looks for 149 yards. Lockett posted a 6-91 receiving line on 8 targets. TEs Will Dissly and Noah Fant caught the TD passes. Smith gets a tougher matchup in Week 5 (Saints). After that comes a favorable home date with Arizona.
Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny racked up 151 yards and 2 TDs on 17 carries in Sunday's victory over the Lions. Penny scored from 36 and 41 yards out in the 2nd half of a game that saw him run for just 8 yards on 5 carries in the 1st half. Rookie RB Kenneth Walker saw about half the playing time and garnered exactly half as many opportunities (18-9). Penny gets what should be a tougher draw in the New Orleans defense in Week 5.
Cowboys WR Ceedee Lamb led the team in targets (8), receptions (6) and yards (97) and caught 1 of Cooper Rush's 2 TD passes in Sunday's win over the Commanders. That marked a 29.6% share of Rush's total pass attempts. WR Noah Brown (6) was the only other Cowboy to see more than 3 targets. He caught 3 balls for 61 yards before leaving with a neck injury. WR Michael Gallup made his season debut -- coming off the ACL tear at the end of last year -- and posted a 2-24-1 line on 3 targets. TE Dalton Schultz played through the knee issue that cost him Week 3 and caught none of his 3 targets.
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