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St. Louis Rams Team Report

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Do the St. Louis Rams know how to draft running backs? Their recent track record says no, but is Todd Gurley a can't miss prospect that is going to buck that trend?

Do the St. Louis Rams know how to draft running backs? Their recent track record says no, but is Todd Gurley a can’t miss prospect that is going to buck that trend?

QB Nick Foles

Coming off a breakout season in 2013 when he threw for 2,891 yards with 27 touchdowns and two interceptions in what amounted to less than 11 full games, Nick Foles was a fantasy darling heading into last season. Although a dropoff was to be expected from his 2013 production, Foles disappointed as he threw for just 2,163 yards with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in eight games as he was unable to remain healthy. The interceptions were clearly a problem for Foles but his completion percentage also dropped from 64.8% to 59.8% and his accuracy on deep balls was noticeably reduced. That was enough for Eagles coach Chip Kelly, who shipped Foles to the Rams as part of a package to acquire Sam Bradford. In St. Louis Foles will lead a Rams offense that has struggled for years and lacks the receiving talent Foles worked with in Philadelphia, and also lacks the talent on the offensive line that the Eagles have. While there is a chance that Foles rediscovers his accuracy and big play ability, the Rams lack of proven weaponry at wide receiver and their poor offensive line limit his fantasy upside making him a low end QB2.

RB Todd Gurley

Desperate for help along the offensive line and lacking a true number one wide receiver as well as a franchise quarterback, the Rams instead selected Todd Gurley with the 10th pick in this year’s draft. This, despite selecting Tre Mason with an early 3rd round pick last year and Zac Stacy in the 5th round the year before. Don’t even get me started about the Rams taking Isiah Pead in the 2nd round of the 2012 draft. Gurley is the first running back selected in the 1st round since the 2012 NFL Draft when Trent Richardson, Doug Martin and David Wilson were rookies. It is highly questionable to believe this Rams administration knows how to draft running backs.

A 6’1”, 222 pound Georgia product, Gurley enjoyed a prolific collegiate career, rushing for over 3,000 yards, showcasing solid receiving skills and finding the end zone over 40 times. One highlight is all it takes to see that Gurley is a special player. However, he is coming off a torn ACL and joins a Rams team with an offensive coordinator with no NFL experience in that role in Frank Cignetti, lacks offensive talent, has major issues along the offensive line (will likely start two rookies and has a trio of unproven players fighting to start at center) and which scored 20 or more points in only half of their games last season. Initial reports are that Gurley will be on the Rams opening day roster. However, we have no idea when or if he will regain full health in 2015 or when or if he will supplant Mason in the starting lineup. While Gurley has the potential to emerge as one of the top running backs in the league playing for a coaching staff that wants to run the ball heavily, he is a risk at his current ADP as the 24th running back taken in fantasy drafts. He does rate as the top dynasty prospect at the position, however.

RB Tre Mason

Supposedly drafted to be the Rams running back of the future after being taken in the 3rd round of last year’s draft, Mason didn’t disappoint as a rookie, gaining 765 rushing yards, 146 receiving yards and scoring five touchdowns while averaging a respectable 4.3 yards per carry behind one of the league’s worst offensive lines. Did we mention that Mason failed to get a single touch during the first four games of the year? As impressive as Mason was, the Rams didn’t view him as a feature back, choosing to select Todd Gurley with the 10th pick in this year’s draft. While that killed Mason’s value in dynasty leagues, he still figures to have value in redraft formats in 2015 since Gurley isn’t likely to be fully healthy early in the season. Look for Mason to start enough games early in the year to approach 800-900 total yards with 4-5 touchdowns. He rates as an upper tier RB4 since he won’t likely have much value during the second half of the season.

RB Benny Cunningham

After emerging as a reasonably productive backup during the 2013 season, Cunningham watched as the Rams drafted Tre Mason in the 3rd round of last year’s draft. In 2014, Cunningham pushed Zac Stacy aside to finish the season as Mason’s main backup. Then St. Louis drafted Todd Gurley in the 1st round of this year’s draft. The Rams don’t believe in Cunningham and, with a pair of highly drafted young players ahead of him on the depth chart, neither should you.

WR Brian Quick

Taken with the 2nd pick of the 2nd round in the 2012 draft, Quick was a huge disappointment during his first two years in the league but the light seemed to come on early in 2014. During his first four games of the year, Quick hauled in 21 of his 31 targets for 322 yards and three touchdowns. After a pair of middling performances in Weeks 5 and 6, he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury that ended any thoughts of a 3rd year breakout season. However, he was on pace to approach 1,000 receiving yards with eight touchdowns after Week 6 and he is expected to open 2015 in the starting lineup as he enters the final year of his rookie contract. While we aren’t about to predict a breakout campaign given the Rams expected struggles on offense as well as a wide receiver depth chart that runs four deep, Quick is definitely worth taking a flyer on in fantasy drafts this summer provided he is fully recovered from shoulder surgery.

WR Kenny Britt

Coming off the worst season of his five-year career in 2013, having caught just 11 of his 35 targets for 96 yards, Britt was signed to a one-year, prove it contract with the Rams for the 2014 season. Sure enough, he resurrected his career in St. Louis, catching a career-high 48 passes for 748 yards and three touchdowns despite playing in an offense that regularly had difficulty moving the football. Given his level of play, Britt would have enjoyed an even stronger bounce back campaign playing in a stronger offense with better quarterback play. Signed to a two-year contract to remain in St. Louis, Britt will enter training camp as a starter but will have to hold off the likes of Brian Quick, Stedman Bailey and Tavon Austin to remain the Rams leading wide receiver. With the Rams expected to run the ball heavily, look for Britt to stay in the starting lineup given his size. However, we don’t expect his target count from a year ago (just 84) to increase significantly given that Quick missed significant time last season. Just 26 on opening day, Britt rates as a WR4 in 2015, although a bit of an intriguing one who could surprise.

WR Stedman Bailey

When given a chance to produce, Bailey hasn’t disappointed. The 5’10” and 195 pound West Virginia product hauled in 15 of his 22 targets for 195 yards and a pair of touchdowns over the final five games of his rookie season in 2013 when given an expanded role in the Rams offense. Over the final six games of last season, Bailey caught 22 of his 32 targets for 371 yards and one touchdown. Which begs the question – is Bailey worthy of more playng time or do the Rams view him as a capable backup whose playing time is dependent on injuries to those ahead of him on the depth chart? In 2015, Bailey faces an uphill climb to unseat Brian Quick and Kenny Britt in the starting lineup with Tavon Austin likely to work mainly out of the slot. Since Britt has a history of off the field issues and Quick is returning from a major shoulder injury, it wouldn’t exactly rate as a surprise if Bailey winds up in the starting lineup at some point and produces. Nonetheless, right now he is waiver wire material in redraft formats and is a middling dynasty prospect.

WR Tavon Austin

Entering his third year in the league, the fantasy community seems to have given up on Austin. And it’s hard to arrive at any other conclusion based on his production and usage during his first two years in the league. Taken with the 8th overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, Austin has failed to carve out a meaningful role in the Rams offense. Or did former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer fail to devise a playbook that put Austin in a position to succeed? With Frank Cignetti taking over for Schottenheimer, at least there is some faint hope that Austin can emerge as a consistent contributor in a Rams offense desperate for playmaking ability. While he is unlikely to start or play on two wide receiver packages, Austin has the tools to contribute as a slot receiver, occasional threat on deep passes and as a runner out of the backfield. The key for his fantasy prospects is Cignetti’s willingness to get him enough touches. And with Austin having amassed just 660 receiving yards and 375 rushing yards with three touchdowns in two years, we don’t see enough evidence to expect that to happen. That makes Austin waiver wire material in redraft formats and nothing more than a slot pull in dynasty formats.

WR Chris Givens

Givens used his blazing speed to haul in 42 passes for 698 yards and three touchdowns during his rookie season in 2012 but his career has gone downhill since then. The former 3rd round pick barely topped 500 receiving yards in his 2nd season but failed to find the end zone before falling further down the depth chart last season, catching 11 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown. In fact, Givens may not even have a roster spot heading into training camp if not for the Rams having failed to develop any other potential big play threats on their roster. While Givens has a chance of being on the unemployment line on opening day, he also has a chance to emerge as a big play threat for St. Louis although those odds are slim.

TE Jared Cook

Two years into his career with the Rams, it’s fair to say that Cook hasn’t produced as the team envisioned when they signed him to a five-year, $35.1-million contract prior to the 2013 season. After catching 51 passes for 671 yards and five touchdowns during his first year in St. Louis, Cook wasn’t much better last season, hauling in just 52 of his 98 targets for 634 yards and three touchdowns. While the Rams have replaced the unimaginative Brian Schottenheimer with Frank Cignetti at offensive coordinator, you would be hard pressed to find many who will predict a breakout season for Cook in 2015 in his seventh year in the league. While he has the talent to produce such a season, his inconsistency (just six games with more than 60 yards during his two years in St. Louis) is just too hard to overlook. Cook rates as a lower tier TE2.

MFL10s Draft Recap From 10th Pick—Start With Matt Forte, Julio Jones

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matt_forte

Tony takes his first plunge into an MFL10 draft-only best ball league, and with the 10th overall pick selects Chicago Bears RB Matt Forte.

Having played fantasy football for five years and now in my second season writing about fantasy football, I’ve read and heard considerable excitement for MFL10 fantasy football leagues. I never took part in one however, until now.

MFL10s are leagues hosted by MyFantasyLeague.com. There are a variety of entry fee price points, the lowest and most common being $10 (hence, “MFL10”). The format is a single-season redraft league with performance plus PPR scoring. A valid starting lineup is 1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 TE, 1 Flex (RB/WR/TE) and 1 DEF for 9 total starters, and 20 roster spots.

MFL offers in-season management MFL10 leagues closer to the start of the NFL season, but at this time MFL10s are draft-only leagues. There is no trading, free agency waiver add/drops, and you don’t even set your lineup each week. This is called “best ball” scoring. The website automatically inserts the best scoring, valid starting lineup each week.

I was very excited to get the draft started and kick off the 2015 fantasy football season. Let’s take a look at my draft picks, and from this you can get an early take on some players I like and where others are getting drafted.

1.10 RB Matt Forte, Bears

The draft started out as I expected, five of first six picks were running backs. As I sat waiting at 1.10, I was hoping to have tight end Rob Gronkowski fall to me, but unfortunately he was taken at 1.08. My first debate: Do I draft a proven running back or one of the top tier wide receivers? Remember, this is a PPR scoring league. My options were Matt Forte, DeMarco Murray, LeSean McCoy, Dez Bryant, Julio Jones and Demaryius Thomas. With only four picks between my 1.10 and 2.03, I knew I was going to land two of those six.

I decided to go with Forte. Those three WR are all pretty equal and with Murray and McCoy now on different teams, their respective roles are more uncertain. I know Forte, and the Chicago Bears for that matter, might be in a transition year with new head coach John Fox. However, Forte is in a contract year and it is highly unlikely the Bears resign him, so he might think he has something to prove to other teams. Plus, in 2014, Forte led all running backs in the league with 102 receptions, which is gold in a PPR league.

2.03 WR Julio Jones, Falcons

When I saw Julio Jones available my eyes lit up. As I stated previously, I value Jones, Bryant and Thomas very similar. Jones does have some injury history, mostly a tough 2013 season still fresh in our memories that saw him play only 5 games. When healthy however, Jones is one of the most dominant receivers in the league. I was very pleased with my starting two players.

3.10 RB Alfred Morris, Redskins

I was really hoping quarterback Aaron Rodgers would fall to me as I was ready for an elite quarterback. However, he was taken at 3.08. I took a look at RBs and WRs available and saw a bigger drop off at RB than WR. Alfred Morris has been one of the most consistent running backs since coming into the league in 2012. Over the course of his three seasons, Morris has ranked in the Top 12 every year. Also, amongst only five running backs to finish in the Top 12 running backs each of the past three season, Morris has the third best yards per carry at 4.52, behind only Jamaal Charles’ 5.10 and Marshawn Lynch’s 4.64. Morris is 7th in fantasy points at RB since joining the league (yes, PPR scoring) and is younger than all of these similarly high producing backs taken earlier in the draft. Morris is in the final year of his contract and while some think rookie RB Matt Jones may be Morris’ successor, I see Jones pushing Morris to be even better to prove he is worth a big contract and a starting position for any team next year.

4.03 WR Kelvin Benjamin, Panthers

With my starting running backs set, my focus now shifts to wide receiver and quarterback. Since quarterback is deep, I was looking at Sammy Watkins, Kelvin Benjamin or rookie Amari Cooper. With Watkins going at 4.01, I decided on Benjamin due to his one year experience in the league. I do believe Cooper will find instant success in Oakland, however, that is clearly a more risky proposition since we’ve witnessed Benjamin perform in the pros last season. Also, with Carolina’s addition of Devin Funchess, Benjamin might see some lighter coverage allowing for more scoring opportunities.

5.10 QB Peyton Manning, Broncos

Peyton Manning is one of the best in the game. Yes, his stats fell off half way through the 2014 season as many said he had a dead arm. I feel it was more the quadriceps injury that plagued him and only became known after the Broncos earlier than expected exit from the playoffs. However, besides an overhaul of the coaching staff, not much has changed for Manning on the field. All his weapons remain except tight end Julius Thomas, who went to the Jacksonville Jaguars. If this is Manning’s last year in the league (we’ve heard that before), I’d like to think he will do everything he can to go out on top. I’m more than willing to accept the risk of a “dead arm” with Manning’s statistical history on my side.

6.03 TE Greg Olsen, Panthers

Yes, I know I have a Panthers wide receiver on my team already. However, Greg Olsen is one of Cam Newton’s favorite targets, especially in the red zone. Olsen has consistently put up fantasy stats and ended as a top three tight end in 2014 in PPR formats. I’m willing to assume the risk of teammates on the same fantasy team, especially if the offense is moving in a positive direction, which the Panthers are.

7.10 WR Steve Smith, Ravens

Former Panther! Despite being 36 years old, Steve Smith proved his doubters wrong in 2014 with a Top 24 fantasy performance at wide receiver. He played all 16 games, did not show signs of injury, and can still burn defenders as evidenced by his 15 receptions over 20 yards and five over 40 yards. With Torrey Smith’s departure, Smith is line to lead the receiving corps again for the Ravens.

8.03 RB Joseph Randle, Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys bid farewell to DeMarco Murray in the offseason, the league’s leading rusher in 2014. With the addition of aged running back Darren McFadden, Joseph Randle, at worst, may see a time share of carries behind the amazing Cowboys offensive line. Randle is worth the risk even at this moderate draft cost, as he has a good chance to earn the starting gig at some point for the Cowboys, even if not out of training camp. Note his Week 17 performance last season as the starter scoring three touchdowns.

9.10 RB Doug Martin, Buccaneers

Behind a new franchise quarterback in Jameis Winston, running back Doug Martin, as of right now, is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers leading running back, with Charles Sims maybe getting a bigger role. At this point in the draft, taking a running back that might be a starter Week 1 is worth the risk as Martin may have a breakout game or two still left in him.

10.03 WR Dorial Green-Beckham, Titans

If you read my Top 10 Rookie Wide Receivers, you know that Dorial Green-Beckham has been compared to Brandon Marshall, who has had a pretty good career if you ask me. With the young Tennessee Titans in a transition period, no one really knows what to expect from this offense. Green-Beckham could be an integral part of this offense in September.

11.10 QB Teddy Bridgewater, Vikings

Teddy Bridgewater was the best rookie quarterback in 2014. He definitely progressed in his development to become the Minnesota Vikings franchise quarterback. With the Vikings addition of wide receiver Mike Wallace and running back Adrian Peterson returning, Bridgewater has all the weapons set up for success.

12.03 Roy Helu, RB – Raiders

Roy Helu ended his rookie contract after the 2014 season and once it ended, Oakland rushed to sign him. Helu has been a receiving back during his career. With the departure of Darren McFadden and retirement of Maurice Jones-Drew, next starter up is sophomore Latavius Murray. Murray played well his rookie season, but isn’t much of a pass catcher. Helu will definitely factor into the Raiders offense, especially on third downs, which translates into a worthy late add for a PPR league.

13.10 WR Doug Baldwin, Seahawks
14.03 TE Larry Donnell, Giants
15.10 WR Eddie Royal, Bears

I’m hoping the addition of elite tight end Jimmy Graham and Marshawn Lynch continuing his dominance will force defenses to load up the box, allowing Doug Baldwin to basically run free to make big plays. Larry Donnell is still young and does not have much competition behind him to challenge his starting job, which makes for a great bye week replacement for Olsen. There is a chance rookie wide receiver Kevin White does not make an immediate impact with the Chicago Bears. In such a case, the Bears will have to rely on Eddie Royal to produce, which makes for a good late round flier.

16.03 Arizona Cardinals Defense
17.10 Pittsburgh Steelers Defense

With all the quarterback troubles the Arizona Cardinals had in 2014, they finished 11-5 because of their dominant defense. Arizona did not lose many players in the offseason, so their defense should still be in the top seven in 2015. Pittsburgh Steelers defense was bad in 2014, but that may be mainly attributable to injuries. In 2015, besides an edge rusher, Pittsburgh has a well-rounded defense which should be drastically better.

18.03 RB Benny Cunningham, Rams
19.10 WR Aaron Dobson, Patriots
20.03 RB Matt Jones, Redskins

Benny Cunningham should serve as the third down, receiving back for the St. Louis Rams, so he has the chance to gobble up receptions from quarterback Nick Foles. Aaron Dobson was overhyped going into the 2014 season and was a major disappointment. Let’s see how his 2015 goes. Rookie Matt Jones is the backup to my starting running back Alfred Morris, so he is an insurance policy in case of injury.

Overall, I think my first MFL10 was a success. My team has some young talent, but is mainly comprised of proven veterans. A few things I noticed, which are on par with what the fantasy football draft trends have been the past few years: quality running backs are limited and go quickly, wide receivers are ridiculously deep, and outside of tight end Rob Gronkowski, wait on tight ends. I highly recommend MFL10s, so go sign up and get your draft on!

Moving Up, Moving Down: Week 8 – Peyton Manning Up-per Echelon Quarterback

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Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning throws a 15-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Caldwell during the first quarter against the San Diego Chargers on Thursday, December 12, 2013, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver; Photographer: Christian Murdock/Zuma Press/Icon Sportswire

While Denver Broncos QB Peyton Manning can’t technically move higher than the consensus number one rank he already holds, out of respect for his latest milestone, he gets the Moving Up treatment. Photo: Icon Sportswire

QUARTERBACKS

MOVING UP

Peyton Manning, Broncos
When you break the NFL record for most passing touchdowns in a career, you get the Moving Up treatment. After six games, Manning is on pace to throw for 4,928 yards with 51 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Experts claimed he couldn’t possibly repeat last season. Well…

Ryan Tannehill, Dolphins
While I’m not ready to anoint Tannehill as a fantasy starter at this point, he does have three straight multiple touchdown games and has 799 passing yards to go along with 132 yards on the ground in those games. Not bad if you’re looking for a bye week fill in. The Dolphins had theirs in Week 5.

MOVING DOWN

Kirk Cousins, Redskins
Officially not the Redskins starting quarterback of the future. With nine interceptions in 204 passing attempts to go along with a pair of lost fumbles, Cousins’ ball protection issues may cause him to lose his starting gig to Colt McCoy in Week 8.

Matt Ryan, Falcons
After throwing for 1,263 yards and ten touchdowns in his first four games, Ryan has just three touchdowns and 815 passing yards in his last three managing just 40 points in those games. While Ryan’s fantasy owners were hoping for top five production this season, the Atlanta offense is clearly trending downward.

RUNNING BACKS

MOVING UP

Bryce Brown, Bills
Although Brown has yet to garner a single carry in 2014, he figures to get plenty of them soon with both C.J. Spiller (broken collarbone) and Fred Jackson (groin) suffering injuries that will keep them out of the lineup in Week 8 and beyond. Brown put together some big games during his first two years in the league and rates as a RB2 until Jackson returns. With Spiller out for an extended period, Brown should emerge as a solid flex option even after Jackson is back.

Denard Robinson, Jaguars
In what was easily the best performance by a Jaguars running back this season, Robinson totalled 127 yards and a score on 22 carries in Jacksonville’s home win over the Browns. Let’s go ahead and make the assumption the Toby Gerhart era is over in Jacksonville.

Tre Mason, Rams
Tre Mason has big play ability. Zac Stacy and Benny Cunningham do not. Mason owners who held tight figure to be rewarded in future weeks. While the Rams schedule isn’t pretty, Mason is looking like a solid flex play or RB3 the rest of the way.

Jerick McKinnon, Vikings
While he has yet to find the end zone this season, McKinnon is emerging as a solid duel threat out of the Vikings backfield with 309 yards on 60 carries and 93 yards on 16 receptions. Over the last two weeks, he has out touched Matt Asiata 38 to 10, solidifying his role as Minnesota’s starter over the balance of the season. He rates as a high-end RB3 with upside and a player with solid appeal in dynasty formats.

MOVING DOWN

Zac Stacy, Rams
We told you last week that everything that Stacy accomplished as a rookie when he ran for nearly 1,000 yards was based on volume. The Rams apparently agreed with Stacy not seeing a single touch this week. He appears to be stuck behind rookie Tre Mason and Benny Cunningham on the depth chart.

Khiry Robinson, Saints
Although Robinson played well when Mark Ingram was out of the lineup, he was out touched by Ingram 12 to three this week. Not helping matters was that he also lost a fumble.

WIDE RECEIVERS

MOVING UP

Percy Harvin, Jets
Moving Down last week as a Seahawk. Moving Up this week as a Jet. Hey, it was clear the Seahawks either didn’t know how to properly employ Harvin or they weren’t willing to make him a major component of their offense. That shouldn’t be a problem in New York where the Jets lack explosiveness at the skill positions. He rates as an intriguing upper tier WR3 with upside in 12 team leagues.

Golden Tate, Lions
Full disclosure. I am not a Golden Tate fan but I am warming up to him lately. With Calvin Johnson struggling with injuries, Tate has filled in nicely in the Detroit offense, topping 100 receiving yards in three of his last four games and scoring twice in those games. He is earning quarterback Mathew Stafford’s trust (completion to target percentage of 73.9%) and is now on pace to finish the season with 110 receptions for 1,483 yards and five touchdowns.

Doug Baldwin, Seahawks
Hey, it’s always a lukewarm endorsement when a Seahawks wide receiver gets the Moving Up treatment but with Harvin having left town, Baldwin is the team’s new number one wide receiver. While he just might be the worst top wide receiver on any team in the league, he should see plenty of targets the rest of the way as evidence by the 11 he received this week (catching seven for 123 yards and a score against the Rams).

Allen Robinson, Jaguars
The rookie 2nd round pick has been an absolute target machine over the past five weeks. With an assortment of injuries at wide receiver, Robinson has been targeted 50 times since Week 2. The Jaguars aren’t going to worry about high pass attempts for their rookie QB Blake Bortles while he learns on the job with a low emphasis on wins and losses this season, so expect the rookie-to-rookie connection to continue.

MOVING DOWN

Michael Crabtree, 49ers
While San Francisco is making use of all of their wide receivers, Crabtree is still seeing a fair share of targets (7.3 per game) but just isn’t making many plays with 13 receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown in his last four games. I am undecided if this is a buy low opportunity or whether Crabtree should be downgraded to a low end WR3 over the balance of the season. Tough call.

Brian Quick, Rams
After a hot start to the season (21 receptions for 322 yards and three touchdowns in four games), Quick has been targeted just six times in the Rams last two games, hauling in three passes for 43 yards. While this week’s dud can be explained away because he played the Seahawks, Quick owners shouldn’t be afraid to sit him when he is facing a team with a solid secondary. He just isn’t a true number one wide receiver.

TIGHT ENDS

MOVING UP

Dwayne Allen, Colts
With his three reception, 52 yard, one touchdown performance this week, Allen now has 167 receiving yards in his last three games to go along with touchdowns in four of his last five games (five in total on the season). While he is clearly touchdown dependent, the Colts seem to be scoring quite a few of them this season and Allen is clearly an in vogue red zone target for quarterback Andrew Luck.

MOVING DOWN

Jason Witten, Cowboys
Sure, it was a fluke that Gavin Escobar was the leading point getter at tight end this week after he scored touchdowns on two of his three targets but Witten has become a bit player in the Cowboys offense in 2014. After being targeted just twice this week, Witten is now averaging five targets a game and has just 23 receptions for 266 yards and a touchdown.

Delanie Walker, Titans
After a hot start to the season with 317 receiving yards and three touchdowns in four games, Walker has cooled considerably with just nine receptions for 121 yards and no trips to the end zone in the last three weeks.

In the NOT CONVINCED JUST YET category, we present:

Kenny Stills, Saints – it helps that Jimmy Graham is playing hurt but Stills’ inconsistency makes it easy to discount his 100 yard, one touchdown performance this week.