The blowout didn't happen after all. 16.5-point favorites heading into last night, Minnesota couldn't sustain enough drives to bury Washington. Even their one score required a Dalvin Cook lunge; if he'd been stopped at the 1 with a few seconds left in the first half, the Vikes probably would have settled for a field goal and a 9-6 lead, and we could have seen a rare nationally televised touchdown-less game.
If you started Stefon Diggs, Dalvin Cook, Dan Bailey, or the Vikings DST, you went to sleep happy. My two favorite dart throws, Olabisi Johnson and Wendell Smallwood, were complete busts. Johnson was targeted only twice, and somehow Adrian Peterson kept chugging along with 16 touches, giving him 61 in an 11-day stretch. AP was held largely in check before ripping off two 20+ yard plays when Dwayne Haskins replace the concussed Case Keenum. Alexander Mattison was competent, but a TD on that final drive near Washington's goal line would have been nice. Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith neutralized each other.
And Kirk Cousins actually played very well, despite the fantasy letdown: 23-of-26 for 285. But that's small consolation for those who took my advice and started him. Ironically, it wasn't a blowout that limited his appeal; it was simply an inability to convert multiple red-zone appearances.
As for Redskins receivers, this team now has three offensive touchdowns in their past five games. Talented rookie Terry McLaurin has been stymied in three of his past four contests vs. Minnesota, San Francisco, and New England. See the pattern? Don't overreact when a player--especially a high-usage rookie--regresses against stifling defenses. After Buffalo next week and then a bye, he'll get the Jets and Lions, and then later the Eagles and Giants. More good days are ahead.
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What an absolutely bizarre 13 months it's been for Patriot receivers. They began the 2018 season with Rob Gronkowski, a suspended Julian Edelman, breakout candidate Chris Hogan (remember that?), 2015's #29 overall pick / potential NFL bust Phillip Dorsett, and 2013's #29 overall pick / potential NFL bust Cordarrelle Patterson.
A little over a year later, Gronk's retired (for now), Edelman is a high-end WR2, Hogan did nothing in Carolina before going on Injured Reserve, Dorsett is a WR4, Patterson's doing almost nothing in Chicago, the much-hyped Josh Gordon Era has come and (likely) gone, and Mohammed Sanu has arrived.
There's no room for sentimentality in Bill Belichick's world. If the team can improve, he'll find a way. And that's what I want to talk about for a minute or two. Belichick is objectively brilliant. But he isn't perfect. And trading a second rounder for Sanu can be taken one of two ways, depending on whether you think Belichick can do no wrong.
On the one hand, New England's got a ton of draft picks to play with, so burning one good one for a proven pass-catcher to replace Gordon isn't a bad idea. Sanu's has experience as a #3 or #4 receiving option in Atlanta, and also as a #2 in Cincy in 2014. In three games that season he was the de facto #1 with A.J. Green sidelined. So you get the sense he can slide into whatever role Belichick needs him to play. From a fantasy perspective, that could translate into anything from a WR4/5 to a WR2. Or at least, that's one perspective.
The other perspective has Sanu battling for looks against Edelman, Dorsett, possibly Jakobi Meyers, the soon-to-return N'Keal Harry, and whatever TE eventually grips the #1 job--not to mention the Pats' impressive collection of pass-catching RBs: James White, Rex Burkhead, and even Brandon Bolden. While that doesn't mean Sanu's looking at a steady stream of 3-30 performances, he's shifting from an elite passing attack (16 TDs, 208 receptions, 299 yards per game) to a very good one (11-183-280). He's part of the solution. He's not anywhere close to *the* solution.
Fantasy managers should view him as a WR4 with upside. But anything more than sporadic upside hinges on a greater focus on the passing game, Harry remaining sidelined, and Edelman and/or Dorsett taking a step back. Those are tough odds.
If you started Stefon Diggs, Dalvin Cook, Dan Bailey, or the Vikings DST, you went to sleep happy. My two favorite dart throws, Olabisi Johnson and Wendell Smallwood, were complete busts. Johnson was targeted only twice, and somehow Adrian Peterson kept chugging along with 16 touches, giving him 61 in an 11-day stretch. AP was held largely in check before ripping off two 20+ yard plays when Dwayne Haskins replace the concussed Case Keenum. Alexander Mattison was competent, but a TD on that final drive near Washington's goal line would have been nice. Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith neutralized each other.
And Kirk Cousins actually played very well, despite the fantasy letdown: 23-of-26 for 285. But that's small consolation for those who took my advice and started him. Ironically, it wasn't a blowout that limited his appeal; it was simply an inability to convert multiple red-zone appearances.
As for Redskins receivers, this team now has three offensive touchdowns in their past five games. Talented rookie Terry McLaurin has been stymied in three of his past four contests vs. Minnesota, San Francisco, and New England. See the pattern? Don't overreact when a player--especially a high-usage rookie--regresses against stifling defenses. After Buffalo next week and then a bye, he'll get the Jets and Lions, and then later the Eagles and Giants. More good days are ahead.
---
What an absolutely bizarre 13 months it's been for Patriot receivers. They began the 2018 season with Rob Gronkowski, a suspended Julian Edelman, breakout candidate Chris Hogan (remember that?), 2015's #29 overall pick / potential NFL bust Phillip Dorsett, and 2013's #29 overall pick / potential NFL bust Cordarrelle Patterson.
A little over a year later, Gronk's retired (for now), Edelman is a high-end WR2, Hogan did nothing in Carolina before going on Injured Reserve, Dorsett is a WR4, Patterson's doing almost nothing in Chicago, the much-hyped Josh Gordon Era has come and (likely) gone, and Mohammed Sanu has arrived.
There's no room for sentimentality in Bill Belichick's world. If the team can improve, he'll find a way. And that's what I want to talk about for a minute or two. Belichick is objectively brilliant. But he isn't perfect. And trading a second rounder for Sanu can be taken one of two ways, depending on whether you think Belichick can do no wrong.
On the one hand, New England's got a ton of draft picks to play with, so burning one good one for a proven pass-catcher to replace Gordon isn't a bad idea. Sanu's has experience as a #3 or #4 receiving option in Atlanta, and also as a #2 in Cincy in 2014. In three games that season he was the de facto #1 with A.J. Green sidelined. So you get the sense he can slide into whatever role Belichick needs him to play. From a fantasy perspective, that could translate into anything from a WR4/5 to a WR2. Or at least, that's one perspective.
The other perspective has Sanu battling for looks against Edelman, Dorsett, possibly Jakobi Meyers, the soon-to-return N'Keal Harry, and whatever TE eventually grips the #1 job--not to mention the Pats' impressive collection of pass-catching RBs: James White, Rex Burkhead, and even Brandon Bolden. While that doesn't mean Sanu's looking at a steady stream of 3-30 performances, he's shifting from an elite passing attack (16 TDs, 208 receptions, 299 yards per game) to a very good one (11-183-280). He's part of the solution. He's not anywhere close to *the* solution.
Fantasy managers should view him as a WR4 with upside. But anything more than sporadic upside hinges on a greater focus on the passing game, Harry remaining sidelined, and Edelman and/or Dorsett taking a step back. Those are tough odds.