Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Week 6 Fantasy Football Winners and Losers: 2021 Edition

 Quarterback

MVP: Josh Allen (Bills) 

Things might not have ended well for Allen last night as he failed to convert a 4th down QB sneak in the redzone that caused the Bills fall to the Titans in a surprising shootout, but the rest of the game for him was pretty special as he had no trouble shedding a Titans D (353 YDS/3 TD/1 INT, 26 Rushing YDS, 1 2-PT CNV) that was very shaky outside of the redzone. Allen goes into the Bills bye week as a top 5 fantasy QB and could rise even higher in the ranks with the tantalizing 4-game stretch (Dolphins, Jaguars, Jets, Colts) he has on the other side of it.  

Honorable Mentions: Kirk Cousins (Vikings), Kyler Murray (Cardinals), Matthew Stafford (Rams)

LVP: Justin Herbert (Chargers)

Herbert's prospective MVP campaign took a big hit this week in a brutal road loss against the Ravens. The reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year just wasn't particularly sharp against a Ravens D that played their most aggressive, stout game of the season-finishing the contest with just 195 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT and 12 Rushing YDS. Herbert will have a week off to get right before the Patriots roll into SoFi Stadium on Halloween. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Lamar Jackson (Ravens), Ryan Tannehill (Titans), Taylor Heniecke (Football Team)

Running Back

MVP: Derrick Henry (Titans)

There's really no stopping Henry right now. The Bills D had been a brick wall against the run prior to this game-allowing 0 rushing TD's and the 3rd least rushing YDS in the league-and Henry treated them like they were an aloof Big 12 defense by lighting them up for 143 YDS and 3 TD's on 20 carries. Given the current roll he's on, he might go off for 300 YDS against the anemic Chiefs defense this week.  

Honorable Mentions: Jonathan Taylor (Colts), Leonard Fournette (Buccaneers), Darrell Henderson Jr. (Rams)

LVP: Austin Ekeler (Chargers)

Game script that forced them to abandon the run early and poor play from Herbert made Ekeler pretty much useless this week-as he posted 55 scrimmage YDS (7 rushing, 48 receiving) on only 10 touches. Ekeler has been up and down through 6 games and will likely continue on this sink-or-swim path the rest of the way as he maintains a kind of unpredictable role on a pass-first offense that has a lot of viable targets.

Dishonorable Mentions: Antonio Gibson (Football Team), Myles Gaskin (Dolphins), Zack Moss (Bills)

Wide Receiver

MVP: CeeDee Lamb (Cowboys)

Tightly covering Amari Cooper was about the only thing the Patriots defense did well on Sunday. Unfortunately, Lamb's outright domination canceled out whatever good they did by slowing down Cooper. The 2nd year stud reeled in 9 catches for 149 YDS and 2 TD's including the game winner in a thrilling OT victory at Gillette Stadium. If this is a harbinger of what Lamb is going to do the rest of the way, he just may end up living up to or even exceeding his top 40 ADP after all.

Honorable Mentions: Cooper Kupp (Rams), Jaylen Waddle (Dolphins), Adam Thielen (Vikings)

LVP: Chase Claypool (Steelers)

Claypool had been reeling in at least a couple of deep shots per game all season long... until he ran into the worst pass defense in the league on Sunday night. Despite being targeted 7 times (many of which were of the downfield variety), Claypool only managed 2 catches for 17 YDS against the Seahawks. While his specific role in an unpredictable passing offense will make him susceptible to duds like this, Claypool's splash play ability and encouraging increase in targets since JuJu Smith-Schuster got hurt will keep him firmly in the high-end tier of WR3's.

Dishonorable Mentions: Terry McLaurin (Football Team), Mike Williams (Chargers), Tyler Lockett (Seahawks)

Tight End

MVP: Noah Fant (Broncos)

Garbage time was mighty kind to Fant this week as he posted 9 receptions for 97 YDS and a TD in the Broncos latest disheartening loss to the Raiders. Fant will look to find the endzone for a 3rd straight game on Thursday night when he squares off against a banged-up Browns defense that has been torched by the pass in back-to-back weeks.

Honorable Mentions: Mark Andrews (Ravens), Ricky Seals-Jones (Football Team), Mike Gesicki (Dolphins)

LVP: Jonnu Smith (Patriots) 

Not even a soft matchup against the Cowboys could get the brutally struggling Smith back on track. The Patriots big free agent pickup managed just 1 catch for 9 YDS in his latest wretched performance for an offense that remains in pretty dire need of a reliable receiving option outside of Jakobi Meyers. Now that Hunter Henry appears to be developing a solid rapport with Mac Jones, Smith has less value than ever and shouldn't be rostered in fantasy until he shows some consistent signs of life.

Dishonorable Mentions: Robert Tonyan (Packers), Austin Hooper (Browns), Evan Engram (Giants)

Defense/Special Teams

MVP: Rams

For the first time since Week 1, the 2021 Rams D looked like the 2020 group as they cut off the heads of the injury-depleted Giants offense by piling up 4 sacks, 3 INT and a FUM REC in a lopsided 38-11 victory. The Rams will look to foil Jared Goff's big revenge game in Week 7 when the wineless Lions head into LA.

Honorable Mentions: Colts, Cowboys, Cardinals

LVP: Bills 

Well the Bills D's stranglehold on the MVP honor came to a close in thoroughly unexpected fashion as they got gashed by a middling Titans offense for 34 points and made nearly no plays all game long (a 1st quarter INT was the only W for them). Like their quarterback, the Bills D will greatly benefit from the creampuff 4 game run-which kicks off against a Dolphins team that they shut out back in Week 2-they have lined up after their Week 7 bye

Dishonorable Mentions: Broncos, Browns, Buccaneers 

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