You know the drill. Everyone else is sunshine and rainbows, but for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. You can’t add the shiny new hotness without removing someone from your roster. With that in mind, here are some players available in at least 50% of Yahoo! leagues whose rostership could stand to take a haircut.
QUARTERBACKS
Kyler Murray, Arizona (93% rostered)
Something’s rotten in Arizona, and it’s keeping Kyler Murray from connecting with his weapons in any way that creates valuable fantasy points. He hasn’t been dreadful so far this season (between 14 and 18.3 fantasy points in all games this season), but he hasn’t been a difference-maker. He’s finished outside the top fifteen in every game this season, and he has no reason to be on your roster in ten-team leagues. In twelve-team leagues, you may not have a better option on the wire, but Kyler should make his way to the free agency pool to make room for a better quarterback, if you can.
Daniel Jones, Indianapolis (80% rostered)
Daniel Jones is a victim of his own success. His role in Indianapolis is to get the ball to his weapons, including Jonathan Taylor (who leads running backs in touchdowns). After starting the season strong from a fantasy perspective, thanks to 13 carries for 28 yards and three scores, Jones’ fantasy football scoring dropped off a cliff. This isn’t because he’s gotten worse; he’s actually gotten better. After those 13 carries, he has six in the last two games, for 26 yards, and zero touchdowns. If Danny Dimez is going to be a game manager who doesn’t run, he doesn’t have a spot on a lot of fantasy teams.
Joe Burrow, Cincinnati (63% rostered)
I am once again imploring you to realize that Joe Burrow will not play another down of football this season.
WIDE RECEIVERS
NOT A.J. BROWN, PHILADELPHIA (99% rostered)
It’s rare that I use this article to implore people to keep a player on your roster, but here I am with A.J. Brown. I understand that A.J. Brown hasn’t lived up to his draft stock (finished outside the top-60 three times, outside the top-40 four times, and he has just one top-25 finish). I understand that it’s frustrating. I also need you to realize that you won’t find a player on the waiver wire with more talent than Brown. You also won’t find a player getting more opportunities than Brown (8, 10, 9, and 8 targets in the last four games). I know it’s frustrating to roster A.J. Brown, but do not drop him; you will regret it.
Jameson Williams, Detroit (93% rostered)
It’s never been more over for Jameson Williams. On a night where the Lions put up over 30, Williams finished with two touches for ten yards. This is his worst night so far, and he has put up just one game over 6.6 PPR points so far this season. The 108-yard game in week two accounts for over half of his yardage so far this season, and the Lions show no interest or need to get Jameson Williams more involved. This is a shallow league drop only, as he still has big games in him; I’m just not sure when they are coming.
RUNNING BACKS
Trey Benson, Arizona (61% rostered)
We just got him onto our fantasy rosters, and already lost him for at least the next month after he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery.
Emari Demercado, Arizona (60% rostered)
Demercado kept his third-down role for the Cardinals and touched the ball just three times. A huge rush saved your day if you started him… but his fumbling on the goal line also killed you. There’s no reason to have him rostered in any league.
Joe Mixon, Houston (53% rostered)
Again, the Bengal Super Bowl Joes will not return this year. We are just awaiting the official call.
TIGHT ENDS
Zach Ertz, Washington (77% rostered)
Ertz’s usage has quickly fallen off a cliff in Washington, as he’s gone from 13 targets in his first two games to 8 targets in the last two games. Ertz played 31 snaps and ran 22 routes this week, but was completely uninvolved. This marks the third time in three games that he failed to top 22 routes, after getting 28 in week one and 44 in week two. Things are falling apart for Ertz as Deebo Samuel & Jacory Croskey-Merritt emerge in this offense.
Juwan Johnson, New Orleans (64% rostered)
Johnson started hot, finishing with 28 targets in his first three games. Then, the Saints realized that they wanted to scam the ball to Chris Olave as much as humanly possible. Johnson’s targets dropped accordingly, as he notched just seven targets in the last two games combined, after getting at least eight targets in each of the first three games.
