NFL Fantasy Football: Panic or Patience?
3 weeks into the season and you either have a juggernaut of a NFL fantasy football team or a struggling rosters full of holes. I have a bit of both but one of my teams is struggling to get points. I have players that I drafted high that have not performed well to start. But what do I do now? Do I exercise patience and hope they will bounce back, or hit the panic button and start selling off my rotten apples? Here are some players that have struggled and I'll give my opinion on whether you should buy or sell.
Derrick Henry, RB, Tennessee Titans
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Derrick Henry is one of the better running backs in the league, but he is experiencing the worst start to his NFL career. He is averaging only 3.2 yards per carry and scored only one touchdown in the first three games for the Tennessee Titans. He's averaging 54 yards per game, easily. His lowest total of the year. Against the Los Angeles Chargers when he carried the ball 25 times for 80 yards and a touchdown. But he followed that up with 11 carry, 20-yard performance against a stout Cleveland Browns defense. Backup Tyjae Spears played more snaps compared to Henry against the Browns. The snap share is starting to increase week to week and he's getting more touches. While he's too high of a draft pick to exercise panic, you might want to sell him low and get out of this nightmare.
Verdict: Panic
Najee Harris, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Matt Canada has been the focus of Steeler offensive woes, and rightfully so. The stat of him not having a 400 yd offensive game is staggering. Enter Najee Harris, The running back drafted to be the savior but has struggled to get going the last few years. He is only rushed for 139 yd so far this season, but the Sunday night game against the Raiders saw him with his highest game rushing attempts this season at 19 as he gained 65 yards. Early in the season it looked like he was splitting carries with Jaylen Warren. But the Raider game saw Harris outrush Warren 19 to 8. While his numbers aren't staggering, they are starting to climb, I would stick a little bit longer.
Verdict: Patience
Alexander Mattison, RB, Minnesota Vikings
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Mattison looks like he got back on track in Week 3 after a rough first two games. After averaging 31 yards a game, the first two games, Mattison rushed 20 times for 93 yards. With the trade for Cam Akers, it was almost assured Akers was taking his job. But the problem still remains, Mattison is just not a lead back. Mattison had a drop pass in the end zone and followed that up with a fumble that almost sealed the victory for the Chargers. Mattison gets the lion's share of snaps at 70% but can't take advantage of it. Akers is coming and I would suggest getting out from this player as quickly as you can.
Verdict: Panic
Tee Higgins, WR, Cincinnati Bengals
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Higgins had a bad game Monday night, as he dropping multiple passes for the struggling Bengals offense. Higgins finished the game with 2 catches for 21 yards. Joe Burrow's calf injury may be a factor as the offense is a 2-3 step read now, but WR Ja'Marr Chase had his biggest game of the season with a 12 catch, 141 yard game against the Rams. This offense could struggle to get on track as Burrow is still not healthy and could go down any minute. I wouldn't suggest selling Higgins right now unless you really need production right away. You could sell him as a draft high-end top 15 receiver to try to get a return. Or you can wait until the offense gets going in a month and then have a productive player into the playoffs.
Verdict: Patience
DJ Moore, WR, Chicago Bears
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
This is more of an indictment on the Bears as a whole than DJ Moore as a player. DJ Moore was brought into Chicago to be a WR1 but has yet to get on track so far this season. DJ Moore has 11 catches for 170 yards in one touchdown. While his week two performance led you to believe that he was on the right track, it was downhill in week 3. Against the Buccaneers, Moore saw seven targets, six receptions for 104 yards. But against the Chiefs, Moore saw six targets but only three receptions for 41 yards and a touchdown. He is the focal point of this offense but I can't trust this offense to get going at any point this season. I would sell and try to salvage something for him.
Verdict: Panic
Tyler Lockett, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Everyone thought that Tyler Lockett was headed for a rough season with the draft pick of Jaxon Smith-Njigba. But Lockett is too good to pass on as he is just so reliable. Lockett's target share is down to 20.3%, but he is still a valuable number 2 option for the Seahawks. The problem is that his yards per catch is down 40% vs his career average (7.9 vs 13.2). His yards per target are way down from his career average also. I don't think it's a trend but it is something to notice. But this offense can put up points and he'll get touchdowns for you.
Verdict: Patience
AJ Brown, WR, Philadelphia Eagles
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
AJ Brown is still one of the elite receivers in the league, but after his week two performance in Minnesota, there were questions about his effectiveness. While the team is winning, he only got six targets, four receptions for 29 yards. His frustration boiled over on the sideline as he was seen arguing with QB Jalen Hurts. The fact was that the run game was so effective that day, that the passing game took a back seat. The eagles offense is multi-dimensional where they can beat you in a lot of different ways. However, Brown was able to bounce back Monday night against the Buccaneers, as he had a season high 14 targets, 9 receptions for 131 yards. Clearly the idea was to get him the football and the Eagles responded. He's too good to ever worry about, he will get his numbers.
Verdict: Patience
Geno Smith, QB, Seattle Seahawks
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Last year, Geno Smith had a breakout performance as he cemented himself as a starting quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks. He went to be one of the top scorers last season, but so far his fantasy points per game is down around 10%. Smith had a solid game on Sunday as he completed 23 of 36 passes for 296 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception against the Panthers. He has yet to to 21 fantasy points a game so far, but had favorable matchups on the horizon. I wouldn't give up hope yet as this offense has been getting better and better by the week.
Verdict: Patience
Dak Prescott, QB, Dallas Cowboys
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
Dak Prescott has had mostly a down season so far while the Cowboys have had a strong start to the season. Last year that averaged just under 22 fantasy points per game. But so far this year he's averaging only 15 points per game. The first game against the Giants deck only managed six fantasy points as the defense controlled the game. Against the Jets bounced back to 23 fantasy points, but last week again the Cardinals he managed only 17 points. Throwing the fact that he threw his first interception of the year and you have a really inconsistent quarterback. I don't know what you would get for Dak Prescott, but I'm sure you can look in the waiver wire and find better options right now.
Verdict: Panic
Justin Fields, QB, Chicago Bears
Photo Credit: GettyImages/AP
The Chicago Bears are in a world of trouble in the 2023 season on the field and off the field. One player that is suffered the most out of this is Justin Fields. Feels was coming into this season with a lot of promise and upside. After a strong finish to the 2022 season. He averaged just under 23 fantasy points per game for the season, including averaging 27 fantasy points per game in his last eight starts. So far this season fields is averaging just over 16 fantasy points per game. Looks completely lost in the pocket, a victim of paralysis by analysis. They've only had a handful of design runs through the first three games and it doesn't look like it's getting any better for him. I would look in the waiver wire to upgrade the quarterback position until Fields can get it together.
Verdict: Panic
