The NFL finally looked normal this week, with scoring and exciting games actually happening, all over the place! As the offenses round into shape, we have some serious questions for every team, but let’s highlight some questions that popped up thanks to the action on the field this weekend!
Is Evan Engram Finally a Thing?
The sun had not yet risen on the west coast when Evan Engram scored his touchdown in the UK, but the Evan Engram Era in Jacksonville started its day in the sun. The score almost immediately put him into double-digit fantasy points for the week, which is what you’re looking for out of a tight end. Really, you’re looking for 8 PPR points on a weekly basis (you want 4 catches for 40 yards, to prevent the goose egg, and you get the touchdown to be a difference maker), because firing for a touchdown is a great way to get lost in the sauce chasing bad tight ends. Engram has hit this mark in four-straight weeks, including this one, and he is suddenly becoming one of the better tight ends in fantasy football, a half-decade after breaking onto the scene with one of the greatest rookie tight end seasons of all time.
This marked the fourth consecutive game wherein Evan Engram had at least 6 targets, after getting a 6 target, 5 catches, 55 yards, and one touchdown game. Previously, he finished inside the top ten in two-of-three games, while scoring at least 9 PPR points in three straight games, on the back of 10, 6, and 7 targets in the last three. We tagged Evan Engram as a potential breakout thanks to Doug Pederson joining the Jags as head coach. He is finally fulfilling the promise that we had in draft season, as he’s become an integral part of the Jaguars’ offense, and he’s become a set-and-forget tight end for those of us who punted the position, either intentionally or via drafting Kyle Pitts. He’s producing on a consistent basis over the last four weeks, and even though he’s beaten up on two bad defenses in his hot streak (the Giants and Colts are in the top ten in fantasy points allowed to tight ends), he’s also done it against strong defenses (the Texans and Broncos are in the bottom half of fantasy points allowed to tight ends).
Just like with all tight ends, you shouldn’t narrow in on Evan Engram and ignore what’s going on with him and the players around him at his position, but he has an incredible upcoming stretch where it’ll be hard to find a streamer to outdo him. His schedule coming up redefines plush. He has a bye in there, but his next four games come against teams that are in the top 11 in fantasy points allowed to tight end, taking on the Raiders (#8), Kansas City (#6), Baltimore (#1) and Detroit (#11). Despite the fact that he might be Mr. Right, he’ll do right now.
Just How Good is Travis Etienne?
I mean seriously, folks! Look at him! This is rhetorical! He’s really good!
Did Justin Fields Level Up?
We all advocated benching Justin Fields this week in a bad matchup against the Cowboys’ defense. We didn’t consider that Justin Fields could overcome the matchup because of his running and passing abilities. He did a good impression of Dak Prescott (though Dak went up against a Robert Quinn-less Bears’ defense so he had a bit of an upper hand) and finished the game with a lot of good runs, including a broken play just before the two-minute warning to end the first half, as well as a nifty designed touchdown run earlier in the half. The Bears, who intentionally don’t throw the ball, obviously struggled through the air, but one of Fields’ eleven first-half passes turned into a touchdown, giving him 16.04 points at the half. He finished the game with 26.04 fantasy points (top-five outside of Monday Night Football) on a 17/23, 151-yard, two-touchdown passing line, and an 8-attempt, 60-yard, one-touchdown rushing line. Keep in mind that this came against a Cowboys team that has allowed the fourth-fewest fantasy points per game to quarterbacks on the season, and their two previous highs were 16.9 points from Jalen Hurts and 16.6 from Tom Brady. So, this is some good air to be in.
So, what happened? Well, Luke Getsy finally went into his bag of tricks and… let Justin Fields run. This marked the third-straight game with Justin Fields getting at least 8 carries, which is fantasy football gold. This is what we hoped the Bears would do with Justin Fields, and if Luke Getsy lets him become a Baby Dak, then that only means good things for Fields and the Bears going forward.
And, things are going to get better for Fields’ fantasy managers. Fields gets Miami, Detroit, and the Falcons in their next three games. They rank fifth, twelfth, and second in fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks. Like Evan Engram above, he is a great guy to stick onto your roster for the next few weeks.
Is Mike Gesicki BACK!?
This one is a big shout-out to Walker Kelly who, on the Football Absurdity Podcast, posed this very question this week. While Gesicki had just four targets for 3 catches and 38 yards in this one, he ranked third on the team in targets, catches, and receiving yards. This comes after back-to-back weeks wherein Gesicki had seven targets in each game, and while Gesicki only turned in 3 catches for 27 yards last week, he finished as the TE1 on the week in week six, finishing with 6 catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.
Gesicki gets the Bears and the Browns in the next two weeks (and then their bye), and he’s going to be coming off of two double-digit PPR days in three weeks. Unfortunately, thanks to those matchups, I doubt that Gesicki continues to score as he has, as these two matchups rank in the bottom six against opposing tight ends. Cleveland has played a lot of useful tight ends like Pat Freiermuth, Kyle Pitts, and Gerald Everett, yet only one tight end (Hunter Henry) had more than 10 PPR points against them. The Bears haven’t really played any stud tight ends except Dalton Schultz in week eight, and they held him to 6 catches for 74 yards… the only tight end to top 45 yards against them.
Mike Gesicki seems to be a thing for the Dolphins, but there are just two mouths who devour everything, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. When things go as planned, there should be some extra targets for Mike Gesicki, but in this case, I’m not entirely sure there will be anything left to go around for Gesicki in the next couple of weeks. Gesicki should stay on your waiver wires, at least for right now.
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six, finishing with 6 catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.
Gesicki gets the Bears and the Browns in the next two weeks (and then their bye), and he’s going to be coming off of two double-digit PPR days in three weeks. Unfortunately, thanks to those matchups, I doubt that Gesicki continues to score as he has, as these two matchups rank in the bottom six against opposing tight ends. Cleveland has played a lot of useful tight ends like Pat Freiermuth, Kyle Pitts, and Gerald Everett, yet only one tight end (Hunter Henry) had more than 10 PPR points against them. The Bears haven’t really played any stud tight ends except Dalton Schultz in week eight, and they held him to 6 catches for 74 yards… the only tight end to top 45 yards against them.
Mike Gesicki seems to be a thing for the Dolphins, but there are just two mouths who devour everything, Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. When things go as planned, there should be some extra targets for Mike Gesicki, but in this case, I’m not entirely sure there will be anything left to go around for Gesicki in the next couple of weeks. Gesicki should stay on your waiver wires, at least for right now.
