After a competitive Week 3, we are going to keep up with this article weekly for the rest of the season, giving you an analysis on the players that are growing in value, and those that are plummeting in my rankings. Here are my Stock Up/Stock Down picks of the week.
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Week 4 Fantasy Football Stock Watch
Stock Up:
Derrick Henry, RB, Tennesse Titans
This one might be hard to believe because you might be wondering how Derrick Henry could possibly have his already top-tier value going up. Well because the knock on Henry going into the season is that he is not utilized enough in the passing game to make him a PPR or Half-PPR monster. But in 2021, even with the addition of Julio Jones into the passing game, Henry is averaging 4.3 targets per game, and if this maintains on top of his rushing work, we could be looking at his best fantasy season yet, as scary as that sounds. For these reasons, Henry is trending up.
Tony Pollard, RB, Dallas Cowboys
Tony Pollard is unbelievably talented, there is just no getting around that. He has forced himself into a solid workload, even after the extremely high-paid Zeke inked his deal. It is clear that these running backs complement each other with a true change of pace. If you take away Week 1 against Tampa, where teams usually do not even attempt to run the ball, Pollard is getting about 12 carries per game. He is averaging 6.8 yards per carry is an incredible pass catcher. To put it simply, Pollard isn’t going anywhere, and at this point he not only has standalone flex value, but he is a top-tier handcuff should Zeke miss time to injury.
Mike Williams, WR, Los Angeles Chargers
Mike Williams is looking like a bonafide stud here in 2021. Through three weeks, he has seen eight, seven, and seven targets respectively. He also has four touchdowns through three games, and while this is an amazing figure, there is almost no way that he keeps up this pace. Mike Williams has been one of those players that analysts have been predicting to break out for a few years now, and it finally looks like it is coming into fruition. The biggest question that I have to raise is: Is now the best time to sell high on Mike William at his peak value? This answer is a firm maybe. But it is contingent upon the rest your roster. Do I think he will continue to produce at a high level? Yes. Do I think he maintains this current pace and ends up as a top-ten wide receiver? Probably not.
Tim Patrick, WR, Denver Broncos
Tim Patrick had a very respectable campaign last season. But coming into this season this was a very crowded receiving room, with a ton of young talent. Turn the page to Week 4, and both Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler are out with injury. This leaves a spot wide open for Tim Patrick to do some serious damage. In Week 3, he led the team with five targets, 98 receiving yards, and a touchdown. While I do not think Patrick is a league winner by any measure, he is a great WR3/WR4 going forward.
Dawson Knox, TE, Buffalo Bills
Dawson Knox is really coming into his own as the primary TE for Buffalo this season. At the end of the day, this is a very talented offense with a ton of weapons, so Knox is likely never going to get an elite target share. However, he is going to be a red zone threat the rest of the way. TE is one of the thinnest positions in fantasy football in terms of finding consistent production. Knox is a good TE2 option because he does carry a rock-solid touchdown potential week to week in this potent Buffalo Bills offense.
Week 4 Rankings: QB | RB | WR | TE | PPR | Flex
Stock Down
Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry, TEs, New Englands Patriots
The usage here simply has not been what we expected through three weeks. Hunter Henry has been solid but has had virtually no ceiling with his highest target total being five. Jonnu Smith saw six targets, but only caught one pass for four yards. The issue is that this offense is arguably the toughest to predict in all of football. There will be weeks where at least one of these two players puts up big numbers, but on a weekly basis, it is going to be very difficult to project the Pats’ TEs and that makes them difficult to plug into a lineup. For now, until we see some consistency, both Henry and Smith are better stashed on a bench for now.
Miles Sanders, RB, Philadelphia Eagles
Miles Sanders is extremely talented, but there is an ongoing battle over the last few seasons with him getting a consistent workload. He only saw two carries in Week 3, and he averaged 13.5 yards per attempt on those two carries. He is still involved in the passing game, but so is Kenneth Gainwell. Talent only gets you so far, as opportunity is the biggest indication of production. This Sanders situation has to be very frustrating for fantasy managers, and it begs the question of if the Eagles are ever going to be capable of fielding a bell-cow running back this season.
Josh Jacobs, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
Josh Jacobs has missed some time due to injury, and in that time it has been Peyton Barber, not Kenyan Drake that has received the bulk load of the carries. Barber just put up 111 yards on 23 carries, and also scored a touchdown. This is only alarming because it shows that the Raiders have three usable running backs, and could use them to supplement one another. Seemingly, with Drake handling a lot of passing work, and Peyton Barber on his tail, there just doesn’t seem to be a route for him to become a bell-cow running back in this offense. While he still may be productive, these factors cap his ceiling, and thus causes his stock to slide a bit.
More fantasy football fun for Week 4: Waiver Wire | FAAB Guide | Buy-Low, Sell-High Trade Targets | Start & Sit | Loves & Hates | Stock Watch | Sleepers & Streamers | QB Streamers | D/ST Streamers |
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