Week 3 Fantasy Football Hits and Misses

Week 3 of the NFL nearly complete, it’s time to look at the fantasy performances of the week to see who were the hits and misses for week 3.  This segments looks at the players that did better then expected and could make or break a fantasy lineup.  There were some really great games in week 3 and plenty of upsets like the Browns over the Vikings and the Dolphins over the Falcons, but in fantasy it was a week for hits and misses. Some big name studs that should have put up points but didn’t quite make their projected and some new faces that fantasy owners should get used to playing.

One of the biggest hits of the week had to be Josh Gordon.  If you follow this blog you would have known that he was set to return and should have been in the lineup today as a WR2 status. Thankfully I followed that advice and played in the leagues that I had him, and he came up big. He was targeted 19 times and brought in 10 catches for 146 yards and touchdown. This was a great start to the 2013 season after missing the first two games due to suspension. He should continue to see a lot of targets and with his speed and abilities he should be able to make plays. I’d say he would be a solid WR2 play for the rest of the season.

In the same game, QB Brian Hoyer made his Browns debut and put up 321 passing yards with 3 touchdowns. This performance most likely won’t be the norm, but with the Gordon and Cameron to throw the ball to, it will make passing a little easier. I’m not going to recommend jumping on him yet, but these numbers will make people notice.

The following are the week 3 fantasy football running back performances.

Jamaal Charles put in a lot of work in week 3 totaling 172 yards with a touchdown. He got 92 yards on the ground and added another 80 yards in the air on 7 catches. This was a great performance for him and a good win for the Chiefs.

Lesean McCoy did his thing again in week 3. It’s almost expected for him to go off now but it was a great performance with 20 carries on 158 yards on the ground. He also got into the end-zone.

Demarco Murray put up the most rushing yards in week 3 going into the final game. He ran for 175 yards on 26 carries and scored a touchdown.  He also added 3 catches for another 28 yards putting his total for the day at over 200 yards.

Bilal Powel is another running back that we feel should see a lot of work, but 27 carries for 149 yards in week 3 is definitely a breakout performance.  I’m sure there were leagues that started him, but not many so to those owners I applaud the play.

Deangelo Williams put on a show with 23 carries for 120 yards.  Trent Richardson did score on his first carry as a Colt, but didn’t do much as expected.  He did see double digit carries as many expected, but it was still Ahmad Bradshaw seeing the bulk of the work. That should begin to change slowly.

Joique Bell had a nice game and did muster up 132 total yards on a touchdown, but again many would have like to see more given his chances and the bad run defense he was up against.

Bernard Pierce under performed in his chance to see the bulk of the carries. He ran the ball 24 times but only saw 65 yards. He did score, which helped fantasy owners.

Marshawn Lynch didn’t go beastmode like many expected to see. He only carried the ball 17 times for 69 yards and didn’t get into the end-zone. It was not the day many owners had hope to see.

James Starks didn’t even get on the field much. He ran for 55 yards on 14 carries and didn’t get into the end-zone. However, his backup Jonathan Franklin ran for over 100 yards on 13 carries with a touchdown. Franklin came out of nowhere and although many expected the backup to see some carries, the 14/13 split was surprising but given Franklin’s play making ability they decided to stick with him more. He also had 3 catches out of the backfield compare to Starks who didn’t get any.

Arian Foster didn’t have a good game as we expected in our week 3 start list. We mentioned that it would be good to bench Arian this week if you had another option, and he was only able to get 54 yards on 12 carries. He didn’t get into the end-zone so he didn’t hit his projected.

There were some great performances for wide receivers in week 3 fantasy football and these are the game changers.

Jimmy Graham had another huge game. He added another 2 touchdowns to his total and put another 100 yard game. His 9 catches for 134 yards gives 23 catches with 358 yards and 4 touchdowns on the year. This is why owners drafted in the first 3 rounds.

Antonio Brown had a huge game with 196 yards on 9 catches with 2 touchdowns. Many people were thinking the Steelers didn’t have any fantasy value, but Big Ben put up over 400 yards in the air and Brown was the recipient of those passes. He leads the NFL this week in receiving yards and touchdowns and is second in catches. This is a nice breakout game for him and the Steelers.  Miller came back this week and Bell should be back next week, which means the Steeler offense will get going now and Brown is a big part of that.

Cecil Shorts managed to have a nice game despite playing aginst of the top passing defenses. He hauled in 8 catches for 143 yards.  He didn’t get into the end-zone but this was a great performance for him.

Santonio Holmes had a game. He brought in 5 catches for 154 yards and a touchdown. There hasn’t been too many Holmes sightings lately so this was nice to see.

Nate Washington brought in 8 catches for 131 yards on a tough pass defense. It looks like Locker is getting more comfortable passing to these guys. If this is going to be the norm, then it’s time to look at the Titans for fantasy value.

There are some notable QB performances for week 3 fantasy football.

Ben Roethlisberger leads the NFL this week in with 406 passing yards on the day.  The offense is getting more weapons so the ball will be moving. He may be worth a grab in some formats.

Russell Wilson leads the NFL this week in passing touchdowns with 4. He barely threw for 200 yards so it’s amazing that he got so many touchdowns on that few of yards.

Geno Smith continues to make plays and win games. This week he put up 331 passing yards and 2 passing touchdowns. He added another 14 yards on 4 rushes, but it was the big plays that make him so special.

Eli Manning only put up 119 passing yards with no touchdowns. It was by far his worst fantasy performance. He was sacked 7 times and had picked off.

EJ Manuel didn’t have a good day. He was sacked a league leading 8 times this week. He managed to put just under 250 yards and a touchdown, but the sacks got to hurt.

Aaron Rodgers was sacked 4 times and picked off twice in the loss. He put up 244 passing yards and one touchdown, but the sacks and picks cost him the game.

Carson Palmer was also sacked 4 times and picked off twice, but he only managed to get 187 passing yards and no touchdowns.