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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
David Dorey

Tunnel Vision of Week 6

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass-Rush TD
 Joe Burrow 300-25 4
 Josh Allen 329-32 3
 Matt Ryan 389-(-4) 3
 Trevor Lawrence 163-23 3
 Marcus Mariota 129-50 3
Running Backs Yards Rush
Receive
TD
Deon Jackson 12-42
10-79
1
Rhamondre Stevenson 19-76
4-15
2
Christian McCaffrey 13-69
7-89
0
Leonard Fournette 13-69
6-38
1
Breece Hall 20-116
2-5
1
Wide Receivers Yards TD
Ja’Marr Chase 7-132 2
Stefon Diggs 10-148 1
Tyreek Hill 12-177 0
Brandon Aiyuk 8-83 2
Michael Pittman 13-134 0
Tight Ends Yards TD
Mike Gesicki 6-69 2
Mark Andrews 7-106 1
Travis Kelce 8-108 0
Robert Tonyan 10-90 0
George Kittle 8-83 0
Placekickers XP FG
Ryan Succop 0 4
Will Lutz 2 4
Jason Meyers 1 4
Harrison Butker 2 2
Cade York 0 3
Defense Sack – TO TD
Seahawks 6-2 0
Commanders 5-2 0
Jets 4-1 1
Panthers 1-1 1
Cardinals 5-1 1

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

QB Skylar Thompson (MIA) – Hand
QB Kenny Pickett (PIT) – Concussion
QB P.J. Walker (CAR) – Neck
RB J.K. Dobbins (BAL) – Knee
RB Deon Jackson (IND) – Quad
WR Kendrick Bourne (NE) – Toe
WR Randall Cobb (GB) – High Ankle
WR Jamal Agnew (JAC) – Knee
WR Jaylen Waddle (MIA) – shoulder
WR Marquise Brown (ARI) – Foot
WR Robbie Anderson (CAR) – Benched
TE Cameron Brate – Neck

Chasing Ambulances

QB Skylar Thompson (MIA) – Injured his hand when it hit a helmet after he passed. Teddy Bridgewater finished the game. Tua Tagovailoa is expected to return for Week 7, which makes this inconsequential.

QB Kenny Pickett (PIT) – Suffered a concussion after a hard hit in the third quarter and did not return. Mitchell Trubisky finished the winning effort against the Buccaneers and would start again in Miami this week if needed.

QB P.J. Walker (CAR) – Injured his neck and gave way to Jacob Eason. Walker later said he would be fine for Week 7 hosting the Buccaneers, but everything in Carolina is murky right now with running backs, wideouts, and quarterbacks.

RB J.K. Dobbins (BAL) – His knee tightened and was held out from the second half. He seemed to be back to form in Week 4 but now has struggled in the last two weeks. His status for this week will be determined later in the week but he’ll likely play, the question is how much if he is active?

RB Deon Jackson (IND) – The third-string back that turned into a stud against the Jaguars left the game for most of the fourth quarter with a quad injury. Jonathan Taylor went through limited practices last week, so he’s likely to return. Jackson was a great as a replacement and makes a prudent hold for the Taylor owner.

WR Randall Cobb (GB) – Was carted off the field and was reported to have a high-ankle sprain. The early speculation is that he’ll miss  multiple weeks.  Amari Rodgers is the next man up, but the entire receiving corps for the Packers has disappointed and digging through the depth chart will not likely improve anything.

WR Jaylen Waddle (MIA) – Hurt his shoulder late in the game but had 129 yards before he left. Waddle later said that he would be okay for this week’s matchup with the Steelers, plus Tua Tagovailoa should be back as well. Barring negative practice reports, Waddle should be fine.

WR Marquise Brown (ARI) – He was injured near the end of the loss to the Seahawks when a defender fell on his foot. He wore a walking boot after the game and was limping. The Cards host the Saints on Thursday night, so there isn’t much time to heal up.

 WR Robbie Anderson (CAR) – He argued with his position coach on the sideline about never getting a pass thrown to him and he was sent to the locker room in the fourth quarter. Anderson is rumored to be on the trading block and it appears that the Panthers may not want too much just to get rid of an obviously unhappy player.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

TE George Kittle (SF) – The 49ers star tight end still has not scored this season, but he led the team with eight catches for 83 yards when they fell behind and needed to abandon the run. It’s encouraging to see him return to high-volume usage, and hosting the Chiefs this week should spark the need to throw more.

TE Kyle Pitts (ATL) – He finally scored a touchdown this season but still was held to only three catches for 19 yards in the win over the 49ers. It was nice to see but cannot be considered more than just a single-play event and not a growing trend. So long as Marcus Mariota is the quarterback, there is no reason to expect Pitts to be used up to his potential.

WR Tyquan Thornton (NE) – The speedy rookie debuted in Week 5 with just two catches for seven yards. Versus the Browns, he turned in a fantasy breakout with four catches for 37 yards and a touchdown, plus three rushes for 16 yards and a second score. The lower volume of passing in New England will make him a risky start no matter how much confidence he builds, but his addition as a rusher will help him to offer more consistent stats if they continue his dual role.

TE Robert Tonyan (GB) – He’s had minimal use this year, but against the Jets, Tonyan led the Packers with ten catches for 90 yards. That may be more than just a one-week blip. The Packers lost Randall Cobb to a high-ankle sprain, so the tight end may continue to see more targets as Aaron Rodgers contends with a marginal set of receivers.

RB JaMychal Hasty (JAC) – Because two running backs just were not enough, the Jags are now using three. Travis Etienne had 12 touches, James Robinson had 13 touches, and Hasty is getting playing time. His second of three runs went for a 61-yard touchdown in the second quarter. His other two touches lost four yards. But the Jaguars are leaning toward being more of a rushing team than a passing team. Hasty adds to the committee but takes away from the other two backs.

RB Deon Jackson (IND) – The Colts missed Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines, but Jackson stepped in to great effect. He ran twelve times for 42 yards and a touchdown, plus caught ten passes for 79 yards as the top fantasy running back for the week. Taylor is likely back this week for the game in Tennessee, but Jackson could potentially cut into Hines’ role as a receiving back.

WR Rashid Shaheed (NO) – The undrafted free agent wideout was called up from the practice squad to help fill in for the three starting wideouts who were out. The Weber State product failed to catch his one pass but ran for a 44-yard touchdown on his only rush.  He’ll likely head back to the practice squad when the starters return, but the 4.4/40-time speedster looked sharp for his score.

RB Kenyan Drake (BAL) – J.K. Dobbins had his knee “stiffened up” and sat out of the second half of the loss to the Giants. Drake was limited to ten carries but gained 119 yards and a touchdown. And it wasn’t just one long run that spiked the total. He turned in runs of 30, 30, 20, and 15 yards. He stopped running in the fourth quarter when the Ravens went to a pass-heavy script. Depending on Dobbins’ health, Drake could see more use on Sunday when the Browns visit.

WR Wan’Dale Robinson (NYG) – The rookie returned from his four weeks off with a knee injury and  caught three passes for 37 yards and one touchdown. His four targets were second only to Daniel Bellinger (5). The Giants are not a good passing team, but Robinson was a second-round pick that runs a 4.4 40-time and is expected to become a starter. The Giants’ wide receiver depth chart may be the most open one in the league, so Robinson deserves a spot on a roster.

WR Allen Robinson (LAR) – After a three-game stretch that saw Robinson total seven catches for 42 yards combined, it was safe enough to give up on Robinson. Not so fast. Versus the Panthers, Robinson turned in a season-best five catches for 63 yards and one score. His six targets were second only to Cooper Kupp (8). It can’t be considered more than a one-week blip, but it also means that you cannot dump him on the waiver wire.

RB Kenneth Walker (SEA) – The second running back taken in the 2022 NFL draft ran for 97 yards and one score on 21 carries. He added two catches for 13 yards in his debut in the wake of Rashaad Penny’s season-ending leg injury. DeeJay Dallas only ran twice for one net yard, so Walker is likely to maintain his heavy workload if his success continues.

WR DeAndre Hopkins (ARI) – Returns to the Cardinals after a six-week suspension and maybe just in time since Marquise Brown injured his foot and the Cardinals play the Saints on Thursday night.

Huddle player of the week

Joe Burrow  –  The Bengals haven’t seen the same success that they had in 2021 when they went to the Super Bowl, but he just turned in his best effort of the season and the best of anyone in Week 6. Burrow threw for exactly 300 yards and three scores, plus ran for 25 yards and a fourth touchdown. His play lifted the Bengals to a win at the Saints.

Salute!

Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to cry

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Matt Ryan 385 3 QB Tom Brady 244 1
RB Kenyan Drake 127 1 RB Aaron Jones 44 0
RB JaMycal Hasty 57 1 RB JK Dobbins 15 0
WR Chase Claypool 96 1 WR Mike Evans 42 0
WR Tyquan Thornton 53 2 WR DK Metcalf 34 0
WR Dante Pettis 84 1 WR Elijah Moore 0 0
TE Mike Gesicki 69 2 TE Tyler Higbee 7 0
PK Will Lutx   4  FG PK Robbie Gould   2 XP
Huddle Fantasy Points = 144 Huddle Fantasy Points = 32

Now get back to work…

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