The New York Jets offense was playing extremely well this week. Their leading receiver Elijah Moore had by far his highest fantasy output of the season, with 27.4 fantasy points, their two quarterbacks, Mike White and Josh Johnson, combined for just over 32 points. In addition, their running back tandem of Michael Carter and Ty Johnson combined for 147 yards and a touchdown on 22 opportunities. This looked like a completely different offense from the immensely under-efficient one we saw earlier in the season. They did get completely blown out because of an explosion by running backs Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines, but maybe Robert Saleh has something brewing in New York.
All players on the New York Jets could have fantasy value and be sleepers week-in and week-out. Here are some more sleepers, along with starts, sits, and busts at every position.
Quarterback:
Start: Dak Prescott DAL vs ATL
Week 9 against Denver marked just the second game of the season where Dak Prescott failed to score 20 fantasy points. The Dallas signal-caller is currently the QB14 despite missing a game due to injury and having his bye. If you go by fantasy points per game, he is the QB8. Even that is a bit underwhelming as it is below his top 5 QB ADP. Last week I picked Lamar Jackson to finish as the QB1, and he finished as the QB2. This week, Dak Prescott is my pick to finish as the QB1 as he faces a very poor Falcons defense. The Cowboys should have no trouble putting points on the board, and Dak Prescott will be a huge benefactor of that.
Sleepers: Ben Roethlisberger vs DET and Kirk Cousins vs LAC
Sit: Jalen Hurts PHI vs DEN
There has been something strange with this Philadelphia passing offense. Jalen Hurts has been way below expectation for his passing yards over the last couple of weeks. In his last 5 games, he has thrown for under 200 yards in 4 of them. Despite all of this, he is somehow the QB2 as he is rushing for around 50 yards per game. Denver is a tough defense that will likely keep Jalen Hurts at a low fantasy value for this week. If you don’t have anyone better than Jalen Hurts, it’s not the end of the world, just lower expectations for his passing output this week.
Busts: Mac Jones NE vs CLE and Baker Mayfield CLE vs NE
Running back:
Start: Melvin Gordon/Javonte Williams DEN vs PHI
A team can rarely have two viable options at running back in fantasy, but Denver is an outlier to that. They are playing the Philadelphia Eagles who have one of the worst rushing defenses in the NFL. They are allowing 120 rushing yards per game and the 4th most fantasy points to running backs. We saw what happened against Dallas where both players had more than 15 carries and produced above-average outputs. I think this can happen again this week as Philadelphia has a worse rushing defense than Dallas. Hopefully, Javonte Williams can completely outshine Gordon and take over, but that likely won’t happen. Both are great flex options this week, and you should be inserting them into your starting lineups.
Sleepers: Zack Moss BUF vs NYJ and Myles Gaskin MIA vs BAL
Sit: Michael Carter NYJ vs BUF
Michael Carter seems to be emerging as the top dog in the crowded New York backfield. In weeks 7 and 8, Carter caught a total of 17 passes, while in week 9, he only caught 1. Michael Carter will need to have another very high receiving volume game as Buffalo is allowing the least amount of fantasy points for running backs. Michael Carter will always have a high upside because of his receiving, so he could be a high-end RB2 this week. His floor, however, is another story as he could put up a real dud this week as Buffalo looks to shut down this Jets run game. I’m not trusting Carter with anything more than flex, and if I have similar options, he will be moved to my bench.
Busts: James Robinson JAX vs IND and Adrian Peterson/Jeremy McNichols TEN vs NO
Wide receiver:
Start: Marquise Brown BAL vs MIA
Marquise Brown is quietly the WR6 this year, which is pretty amazing considering he had a bench player’s ADP. This week he gets to face a horrible Miami pass defense as they are allowing 281 yards per game (3rd worst) and the 3rd most fantasy points to wide receivers. Marquise Brown had a 30 point game against Indiana, and all the cards are in play for him to do it again. Marquise Brown is my play of the week as I am trusting him as a WR1. Start him everywhere you can, and you will reap the benefits of having a receiver in your lineup who should be a lock for 20+ fantasy points.
Sleepers: Marvin Jones JAX vs IND and Rashod Bateman BAL vs MIA
Sit: Amari Cooper DAL vs ATL
Amari Cooper had had an extremely up-and-down season up to this point. He has had 5 or fewer targets in half of his games and has 5 or fewer receptions in 75% of his games. He has eclipsed the 20 fantasy point mark just twice and has failed to reach double digits 3 times. Amari Cooper is playing the Atlanta Falcons this week, who might not have the best passing defense as a team, but they have a corner in AJ Terrell who is playing as well as anyone in the league right now. AJ Terrell will likely shadow the star Cowboys receiver, and he should have another bust game while CeeDee Lamb, Dalton Schultz, and Michael Gallup all have above-average games.
Busts: DeAndre Hopkins ARI vs CAR and Elijah Moore NYJ vs BUF
Tight end:
Start: Mike Gesicki MIA vs BAL
Mike Gesicki has had two “down weeks” after scoring over 15 fantasy points in 4 of his 5 games from weeks 3-7. The Miami pass-catcher is currently the TE3 over players who were drafted ahead of him like TJ Hockenson, Darren Waller, and Kyle Pitts. Mike Gesicki gets to face the Ravens who have been terrible at guarding the tight end position this year. Baltimore is allowing the 2nd most fantasy points to tight ends. They have notably given up 24.1 fantasy points to CJ Uzomah, 23.9 to Travis Kelce, and 26.5 to Darren Waller. With or without Tua, this is an extremely favorable matchup for Miami’s tight end.
Sleepers: Dan Arnold JAX vs IND and Logan Thomas WAS vs TB
Sit: Dallas Goedert PHI vs DEN
As long as the Eagles refuse to pass the ball, all Eagles pass catchers should be on your bench. Dallas Goedert is no exception to this, even though he is averaging 6 targets per game. When the Eagles do pass on Sunday, Jalen Hurts will likely be looking for someone else as Denver has given up the 3rd least amount of fantasy points to tight ends. There are plenty of other, better options than Dallas Goedert this week, and if you have anyone else on your team that you are even remotely considering starting, put him in your lineup as Goedert has very low upside this week.
Busts: Tyler Higbee LAR vs SF and Jared Cook LAC vs MIN
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