Taysom Hill May Be A Fantasy Nuclear Warhead - What Fantasy Lessons We Learned After Week 5

Steven Cheah10/11/2022 2:50 PM

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*The following is based off 4-point passing TDs and 0.5 points per reception.

Quarterbacks

I'll get to Taysom Hill later, even though he can technically be played as a QB, the only situation he should ever be played in fantasy as one is if it's a 2 QB or Superflex league and you've got two guys on a bye. We'll lead again with:

Geno Smith is legit. I don't think there is any denying it anymore. After a Week 4 with 26.98 points via 237 passing yards 2 TDs to go with 4 carries for 29 yards and 1 TD, he follows that up with 24.02 points via 268 yards passing and 3 TDs and added 13 yards rushing for good measure. He is playing at a high level right now and dare I say he's a low end QB1 in fantasy?!

Speaking of legit, Jalen Hurts put up 27.66 points, good enough for QB4 and threw 0 TDs. He threw for 239 passing yards with 0 TDs and 0 INTs and ran it 15 times for 61 yards and 2 TDs. But is now a good time to deal him? He's got a stingy Cowboys defense on Sunday night followed by a bye. The Eagles playoff schedule is pretty tough with @CHI, @DAL, vs. NO in Weeks 15-17. I'm not encouraging you dealing QB3 on the season, but if there was ever a time to do it, now may be a good one. So if you started 1-4 or 2-3 and need to upgrade other parts of your lineup, now may be an optimal time. But if you have Hurts as your QB1 then you're likely better than that.

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Justin Fields finally shows up. He didn't blow the doors off with 17.02 points courtesy of 208 passing yards 1 TD and 0 INTs, but he ran it 8 times for 47 yards. He also got a long TD run called back. But being QB14, one spot ahead of Aaron Rodgers is all fantasy managers could've asked going into the year. If that performance could be consistent, he'd be a tremendous 2nd QB in Superflex leagues.

Runningbacks

Josh Jacobs is for real. The Raiders didn't pick up his 5th year option on the former 1st Round pick and he he taking it out on Defensive Backs. On Monday Night Football, he ran HARD carrying it 21 times for 154 yards and 1 TD and chipping in 5 catches for 39 yards to finish with 27.80 points to finish the week as RB3. For the year, he's RB4 overall and has run for 198 yards and 3 TDs in his past two weeks. With the Raiders leaning more on the run, Jacobs is a decent bet to lead the league in rushing if you want a good longshot.

Leonard Fournette has had a weird season. He ran for 127 yards in Week 1, but has been between -3 and 65 rushing yards in each game since them. Yet he's still RB7 overall on the year. It's because of his catches! He's had a staggering 22 catches in his last 3 games on 24 targets that have gone for 175 yards and 2 TDs. Barstool Lenny showing 3-down ability and it's paying off for fantasy managers and contributed to his monster 30.90 point Week 5 courtesy of 14 carries for 56 yards and 10 catches for 83 yards with 2 total TDs.

Adam Hunger. Shutterstock Images.

Breece Hall has taken over the job in New York for the Jets. I know Michael Carter Jr. vultured 2 TDs, but Breece Hall finished the week as RB4 with 26.70 points with 18 carries for 97 yards 1 TD and 2 grabs for 100 yards. If you saw the pass he took 79 yards down to the 1, it was a heroic effort almost carrying a defender a few yards into the end zone. He's RB10 overall and firmly an RB1 the rest of the way for me.

Wide Receivers

Was Gabe Davis' performance a fluke? He finished the week as WR1 with 3-171-2 line. But he only had 5 targets and 1 of his TDs was a 98 yard score and the other was a 62 yarder. I'm a big target over receptions guy because targets are much more consistent and I value consistency and this is Gabe Davis' 2nd game this season with more than 5 targets. In 4 games played (he missed 1 due to injury), he's got 20 targets which has resulted in 11 grabs for 309 yards and 3 TDs. So an average of 2.67 catches for 77.25 yards and 0.75 TDs doesn't feel very steady to me. If you can deal him on a high note, I would endorse that.

Rick Scuteri. Shutterstock Images.

Tyler Lockett continues to be undervalued. I did a study recently looking at WRs and where their ADP is and if they outperform their position. The one guy that continued to show up year after year was Tyler Lockett. And he's doing it again with 24.90 points with 5 grabs on 6 targets and 2 TDs. Everyone worried about his dropoff with Russell Wilson gone, but Geno Smith has been better. It's Lockett's fourth straight game with double digit fantasy points and despite his size, he's got 40 targets in 5 games, so 8 targets/game is very doable. If he's your WR3, you're riding high.

Jakobi Meyers is a target machine. He returned from injury after missing Weeks 3 & 4 and put up a monster 20.60 point day with 7 catches on 8 targets for 111 yards and 1 TD to finish as WR7. He's got 27 targets in 3 games and is by far the Pats most reliable Receiver. No matter who is starting at QB, Meyers is a solid WR3 or FLEX play based on those targets.

Tight Ends

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Taysom Hill is a cheat code. He's listed as a QB/TE and immediately this was fishy. There have been a few examples of this over the years with former Saints WR Marques Colston (from: HOFSTRA!) being categorized as a WR/TE his rookie season and Cordarrelle Patterson being an RB/WR last year. Taysom Hill has that flexibility this year and broke out on Sunday to the tune of 34.08 points despite catching 0 passes. He ran it 9 times for 112 yards for 3 TDs and he also threw for 22 yards and another TD. That type of scoring can't be expected every week so he'll be a really boom or bust guy, but he'll be probably the hottest waiver wire add based on the Saints injuries. His fantasy stock is high with Jarvis Landry, Chris Olave, and Michael Thomas all nursing injuries.

The rest of this position is fairly chalk with Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews continuing to rise above and dominate the position.

If you need more fantasy advice, be sure to check out Dear Mr. Fantasy every Sunday at 11:30am eastern/8:30am pacific so we can help you once the active/inactive lists come out. This past week we were 13-5 in our advice with a 72% correct decision rate, so we can definitely help you get in the winner's circle.