Stars of Week 6 

QB: Drew Brees, NO: 34-49, 380 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT

RB: Jay Ajayi, MIA: 25 carries, 204 yards 2 TDs                                                                 

WR: Odell Beckham Jr.: 8 catches, 222 yards, 2 TDs

TE: Rob Gronkowski, NE: 7 catches, 162 yards, 1 TD

We’ve got three fantasy studs and one back RB as our stars of the week. Drew Brees predictably has embarked on yet another prolific season, so enjoy him if he’s your QB. For those who were worried about Odell Beckham, take these last two weeks as yet another reinforcement not to panic too early when stars start the season out slow. Beckham remains a top 3 WR. Speaking of top players, Rob Gronkowski remains the gold standard at tight end with Tom Brady back at the helm. If you claim that you had forecasted Jay Ajayi as this week’s standout performer at RB, I will call you a liar or ask you if you’re a family member of his. What does Ajayi’s performance mean going forward? We’ll take a closer look at him below.

Week 6 Takeaways – A Closer Look 

Each week we take a closer look at a handful of performances and sort out what such performances mean going forward.

- Matt Ryan, QB – ATL: 27-42, 335 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT           

Analysis: Matt Ryan has had a nice rebound season after having fallen off the past few years. The most impressive part of Ryan’s stat line this week is that it came against the league leading Seahawks’ defense. Specifically, two-thirds of Ryan’s passing yards came against the Seahawks in the 3rd quarter of the game, which was especially impressive. The Seahawks defense otherwise held Ryan in check for the first half and fourth quarter, so both strengths held true to form in the end. But I digress. The takeaway here is that Matt Ryan has elevated himself into the top half of the QB1 group, and will be a must start the rest of the way. He’s got some juicy matchups coming up, including several games remaining against his own division. So Ryan should be in all lineups going forward.

- Jay Ajayi, RB – MIA: 25 carries, 204 yards, 2 TDs                                                     

Analysis: The Dolphins’ backfield has been an absolute mess thus far this season, with little semblance of a weekly plan. So what happens in week 6? The Dolphins hand the ball off to Jay Ajayi twenty-five times, and he rewards their faith with a monster day. Ajays’s backfield counterparts carried the ball a combined nine times (Arian Foster with three carries and Damien Williams with six carries). So Ajayi’s carry distribution is significant considering that Foster was available and played as well. Will this game propel Ajayi into the lead tailback role on a permanent basis? It should at least get him the lion’s share of carries for the next game. The reality here is that it’s too difficult to get a great read on this situation, based on how Miami coaches have dealt with the RBs this season and Ajayi’s own lack of consistency. My feeling here is that the Dolphins’ backfield situation will remain murky for the duration of the season, but Ajayi will lead in carries going forward. So for Ajayi, he’s worth picking up if available in your league, but I would advise against blowing out your entire free agent budget for him if your league has such budgets. A healthy bid is fine, as Ajayi has an RB2 ceiling. So I’m buying Ajayi – very cautiously. 

- CJ Anderson, RB – DEN: 10 carries, 37 yards, 0 TDs

- Devontae Booker, RB – DEN: 5 carries, 46 yards, 0 TDs

Analysis: Next we turn to another interesting RB situation. Incumbent starter CJ Anderson has had a disappointing season thus far, and his backup, rookie RB Devontae Booker, has quietly outperformed him thus far. Booker has averaged more than a full yard per carry more (4.7 for Booker vs 3.5 for Anderson). Booker also beats Anderson when you apply the eye test. So we’ve got two takeaways here. First, if you have Anderson, you should absolutely be concerned about his hold on the lead chair. Unless he gets his act together and pronto, this thing will head further into a timeshare, or even further than that. Next, this means that Booker becomes an intriguing add if he’s available in your league. He should get an increase in carries as the season moves forward, with a chance to take over lead duties if he keeps his performance up.

- Golden Tate, WR – DET: 8 catches, 165 yards, 1 TD                                             

Analysis: Golden Tate has been one of the biggest busts so far in 2016. To give you an idea of just how terrible he’s been, his line for the season coming into the game against the Rams was 17 catches, 134 yards and 0 TDs in five games. Tate out-produced his first give games combined against the Rams! Tate also led the team in targets with 10, so he had Stafford’s attention this game. Will Tate rebound to pre-draft expectations going forward? We need to see at least another few games before going there. The Lions have several pass catching options, from Marvin Jones and Anquan Boldin to go along with Tate at WR, with Eric Ebron at TE and Theo Riddick at RB. With several mouths to feed, I’m skeptical that Tate will revert back to his WR2 days. More likely we’ll see a WR4 who slides into WR3/flex status with good matchups. But if he strings together a few more strong starts, we’ll adjust accordingly.

- Kenny Britt, WR – LA: 7 catches, 136 yards, 2 TDs

Analysis: Kenny Britt has long been a tease – he’s got oodles of talent, but has never put things together. In this his eighth season, Britt has quietly strung together a nice start to the season. Britt’s already at 492 yards receiving after six games, and he had no less than 67 yards in all but one game. With the Rams’ passing game playing at a functional role, there are passing yards to be had. Britt and teammate Brian Quick have made themselves useful fantasy pieces. Britt has developed nice chemistry with Case Keenum, and he should be rostered in leagues. View Britt as a WR3/flex option in good matchups, and he will certainly help as a bye week fill-in. His weekly consistency has been a nice surprise, and the signs look promising that he’ll keep it up.

- Hunter Henry, TE – SD: 6 catches, 83 yards, 1 TD

Analysis: The San Diego Chargers selected Arkansas tight end Hunter Henry in the 2016 draft, with an eye towards Henry taking over tight end duties from Antonio Gates over the next few years. Well, we may need to fast forward the timeline to…let’s go with now. Henry has scored a TD in each of the last three games, and what’s most significant about his performance this week is that he excelled despite Antonio Gates’ return to the lineup. Hunter runs good routes and has great hands – little wonder why Philip Rivers trusts him so early on. Hunter has low end TE1 potential for the rest of the season, and is a top add for anyone looking for a tight end. 

Rapid Fire Pickups 

Each week we’ll throw out potential free agent pickups from each position for deeper leagues, in each case 1) someone who has NOT been referenced above, and 2) a player available in most leagues.

QB:                  Brian Hoyer, CHI

RB:                  Kenneth Dixon, BAL

RB:                  Bilal Powell, NYJ

WR:                 Cole Beasley, DAL

WR:                 Torrey Smith, SF

TE:                  Jacob Tamme, ATL

Week 7 Rankings 

Quarterbacks:

1. Tom Brady, NE (at PIT)
2. Matt Ryan, ATL (vs SD)
3. Philip Rivers, SD (at ATL)
4. Drew Brees, NO (at KC)
5. Matthew Stafford, DET (vs WAS)
6. Andrew Luck, IND (at TEN)
7. Andy Dalton, CIN (vs CLE)
8. Kirk Cousins, WAS (at DET)
9. Derek Carr, OAK (at JAX)
10. Blake Bortles, JAX (vs OAK)
11. Marcus Mariota, TEN (vs IND)
12. Eli Manning, NYG (at LA)
13. Alex Smith, KC (vs NO)
14. Russell Wilson, SEA (at ARZ)
15. Carson Palmer, ARZ (vs SEA)
16. Jameis Winston, TB (at SF)
17. Tyrod Taylor, BUF (at MIA)
18. Joe Flacco, BAL (at NYJ)
19. Colin Kaepernick, SF (vs TB)
20. Sam Bradford, MIN (at PHI)

Running Backs:

1. DeMarco Murray, TEN (vs IND)
2. Le’Veon Bell, PIT (vs NE)
3. David Johnson, ARZ (vs SEA)
4. Spencer Ware, KC (vs NO)
5. Devonta Freeman, ATL (vs SD)
6. Todd Gurley, LA (vs NYG)
7. Melvin Gordon, SD (at ATL)
8. Christine Michael, SEA (at ARZ)
9. Lamar Miller, HOU (at DEN)
10. Mark Ingram, NO (at KC)
11. Mike Gillislee, BUF (at MIA)* (LeSean McCoy is a game time decision, so this assumes McCoy's out)
12. CJ Anderson, DEN (vs HOU)
13. LaGarrette Blount, NE (at PIT)
14. Frank Gore, IND (at TEN)
15. Matt Jones, WAS (at DET)
16. Jeremy Hill, CIN (vs CLE)
17. Terrance West, BAL (at NYJ)
18. Jacquizz Rodgers, TB (at SF)
19. Jay Ajayi, MIA (vs BUF)
20. James White, NE (at PIT)
21. Tevin Coleman, ATL (vs SD)
22. Jamaal Charles, KC (vs NO)
23. Giovani Bernard, CIN (vs CLE)
24. Isaiah Crowell, CLE (at CIN)
25. Jerick McKinnon, MIN (at PHI)
26. Matt Forte, NYJ (vs BAL)
27. Theo Riddick, DET (vs WAS)
28. Rashad Jennings, NYG (at LA)
29. TJ Yeldon, JAX (vs OAK)
30. Ryan Mathews, PHI (vs MIN)
31. Duke Johnson, CLE (at CIN)
32. Chris Ivory, JAX (vs OAK)
33. Latavius Murray, OAK (at JAX)
34. Darren Sproles, PHI (vs MIN)
35. Matt Asiata, MIN (at PHI)
36. Bilal Powell, NYJ (vs BAL)
37. Devontae Booker, DEN (vs HOU)
38. Derrick Henry, TEN (vs IND)
39. DeAndre Washington, OAK (at JAX)
40. Zach Zenner, DET (vs WAS)

Wide Receivers:

1. Julio Jones, ATL (vs SD)
2. AJ Green, CIN (vs CLE)
3. Odell Beckham, NYG (at LA)
4. Mike Evans, TB (at SF)
5. Allen Robinson, JAX (vs OAK)
6. Amari Cooper, OAK (at JAX)
7. Antonio Brown, PIT (vs NE)
8. Brandon Marshall, NYJ (vs BAL)
9. TY Hilton, IND (at TEN)
10. Jarvis Landry, MIA (vs BUF)
11. Brandin Cooks, NO (at KC)
12. Marvin Jones, DET (vs WAS)
13. Jeremy Maclin, KC (vs NO)
14. Michael Crabtree, OAK (at JAX)
15. Demaryius Thomas, DEN (vs HOU)
16. Larry Fitzgerald, ARZ (vs SEA)
17. DeAndre Hopkins, HOU (at DEN)
18. Doug Baldwin, SEA (at ARZ)
19. Terrelle Pryor, CLE (at CIN)
20. Emmanuel Sanders, DEN (vs HOU)
21. Julian Edelman, NE (at PIT)
22. Stefon Diggs, MIN (at PHI)
23. Tyrell Williams, SD (at ATL)
24. Kenny Britt, LA (vs NYG)
25. Jordan Matthews, PHI (vs MIN)
26. Allen Hurns, JAX (vs OAK)
27. Mike Wallace, BAL (at NYJ)
28. Travis Benjamin, SD (at ATL)
29. Golden Tate, DET (vs WAS)
30. Willie Snead, NO (at KC)
31. Sterling Shepard, NYG (at LA)
32. Jeremy Kerley, SF (vs TB)
33. Robert Woods, BUF (at MIA)
34. Michael Thomas, NO (at KC)
35. DeVante Parker, MIA (vs BUF)
36. Pierre Garcon, WAS (at DET)
37. Will Fuller, HOU (at DEN)
38. Quincy Enunwa, NYJ (vs BAL)
39. Mohammed Sanu, ATL (vs SD)
40. Torrey Smith, SF (vs TB)

Tight End:

1. Rob Gronkowski, NE (at PIT)
2. Travis Kelce, KC (vs NO)
3. Delanie Walker, TEN (vs IND)
4. Martellus Bennett, NE (at PIT)
5. Jimmy Graham, SEA (at ARZ)
6. Hunter Henry, SD (at ATL)
7. Coby Fleener, NO (at KC)
8. Kyle Rudolph, MIN (at PHI)
9. Julius Thomas, JAX (vs OAK)
10. Antonio Gates, SD (at ATL)
11. Cameron Brate, TB (at SF)
12. Dennis Pitta, BAL (at NYJ)
13. Zach Ertz, PHI (vs MIN)
14. Gary Barnidge, CLE (at CIN)
15. Charles Clay, BUF (at MIA)
16. Jack Doyle, IND (at TEN)
17. Eric Ebron, DET (vs WAS)
18. Jacob Tamme, ATL (vs SD)
19. Clive Walford, OAK (at JAX)
20. Jesse James, PIT (vs NE)

Defense/Special Teams:

1. Denver Broncos (vs HOU)
2. Minnesota Vikings (at PHI)
3. New England Patriots (at PIT)
4. Buffalo Bills (at MIA)
5. Cincinnati Bengals (vs CLE)
6. Seattle Seahawks (at ARZ)
7. Arizona Cardinals (vs SEA)
8. Philadelphia Eagles (vs MIN)
9. Baltimore Ravens (at NYJ)
10. Houston Texans (at DEN)
11. Los Angeles Rams (vs NYG)
12. Kansas City Chiefs (vs NO)
13. New York Giants (at LA)
14. Tennessee Titans (vs IND)
15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (at SF)