“Garrett Celek did what last week?
Wait, what position does he play?
Is he available in my league?”
That’s something pretty much no one is saying. But more people should. The backup TE leads off this quick rundown of
Thursday Night Football fantasy talk.
The 28-year-old caught all five of his targets last week, en route to 79
yards and virtual hugs from roughly nobody in the fantasy universe. Celek is currently rostered in .03% of ESPN
leagues, up from 0% this past Sunday.
With starting TE Vance McDonald questionable for tonight’s contest,
Celek is a deep, deep flyer in DFS and regular leagues.
A solid red zone target, Celek is on the fantasy radar by virtue of the
49ers’ last-in-the-league passing attack (179 yards per game, 6.1 yards per
attempt). No other Niner receiver is
worth investing in, both tonight and throughout this season (obviously).
Carlos Hyde is making good on my preseason leap of faith, where I
ranked him 8th vs. an RB ADP of 15.
He’s the team’s clear workhorse, but he isn’t getting overworked. Injuries have plagued his young career, and
now he appears to be putting it all together.
With the team likely to keep the game close, Hyde should surpass 20
touches and 100 total yards.
Let the Drew Stanton era (re-)begin!
Closely followed by re-ending. No
knock on Stanton; he seems like a good guy.
But his 4-for-11 fill-in on Sunday (37 yards, two INTs) don’t inspire
confidence. As I wrote two years ago,
Carson Palmer is the guy who makes Arizona’s offense go. Despite an ugly loss in Buffalo, the
Cardinals are seventh in the NFL in passing yards. This is a good team that’s outscored its opponents
by 12 points despite going 1-3. Palmer’s
injury comes at a terrible time, as what would have been a most-likely win will
now be a nail-biter. Arizona is
dangerously close to being a 2-8 team heading into December (look at their
schedule). And Stanton is not the guy
you want at QB in a must-win game.
Every Cardinals receiver takes a hit.
I saw some comments a few days ago about Larry Fitzgerald remaining
startable as a reliable possession receiver.
In PPR, maybe. But I’d play it
safe and bench every Arizona receiver. I
don’t envision anyone clearing 60 yards.
At running back, David Johnson will be leaned on more than any other
time this season. But also consider the
long-forgotten Andre Ellington. With
Chris Johnson now on the shelf for what could be the whole year, Ellington
becomes one of fantasy’s most valuable RB handcuffs. Expect at least a few touches for the former
top 20 fantasy draft pick. He’s a
must-add in deeper leagues.