RADIO
Whether due to their own play, the play of others, or injuries, players' stock increases and decreases on a weekly basis. Perhaps more than any other, the NFL is a league that experiences ups and downs at a rapid pace. With only 16 games, there’s little room for error and seemingly endless opportunities for improvement. The same goes for fantasy football, and managing rosters effectively is key to winning that championship.
Throughout the season, players get hot and see an increased role while others struggle and fight to stay relevant. Experienced fantasy players know this happens every year. In this weekly column, we’ll showcase those who have taken important steps forward and those who have taken steps back.
These are the key fantasy risers and fallers heading into Week 5 of the NFL season. Dynasty owners, check out our separate Dynasty Risers/Fallers segment each week as well.
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Week 5 Risers
Eli Manning (QB - NYG)
I can't believe I've spent the better part of the season defending my arch nemesis Eli Manning. I hate the Giants and love watching them fail, but the calamity that is their 2017 season is not Manning's fault. He is just fine and has shown it the past two weeks. It's almost like not having a healthy Odell Beckham was a problem. Manning's pass attempts have gone way up the past two weeks, which obviously helps explain the spike in production. This past week, he didn't throw an interception either, to go along with his two touchdown passes and rushing score. Manning is on the come up for a home date with the Chargers, but then won't be usable against Denver and Seattle heading into the bye.
Devin Funchess (WR - CAR)
I've spent the last couple years making fun of of the "fun cheese" for being terrible at football. I'm not entirely sure if anything has changed. What I do know is that facing the 2017 Patriots defense is a surefire slump-breaker. Funchess caught seven of nine targets for 70 yard and two touchdowns. He was Cam Newton's primary option - not Kelvin Benjamin. This certainly could be a fluke, but with a bunch of favorable matchups on the horizon, Funchess might actually not be awful this year, which is the best endorsement he will get from me.
Tyrell Williams (WR - LAC)
While it largely came on one play, Tyrell Williams finally showcased the talent that led him to a WR2 finish in 2016. Williams took a perfectly lobbed 75-yard bomb from Philip Rivers to the house en route to a 5-115-1 day. He is still not seeing the volume I'd like him to see as Rivers has tunnel vision for Keenan Allen, but Williams' talent is undeniable. He has two more weeks of usability until he faces a brutal stretch of Denver, New England, Bye, Jacksonville, and Buffalo, where he will only be a strong start against New England.
Bilal Powell (RB - NYJ)
All he needed was for Matt Forte to go away. Finally seeing heavy usage, Bilal Powell took his 21 carries and turned them into 163 yards and added four receptions for 27 yards. Even if you take away the majority of his nonsense "oops I fell, but nobody touched me" 75-yard touchdown run, it was still an excellent game for Powell. He was about to appear on the Cut List last week, but I nixed that idea once Forte was ruled out. Powell rewarded my faith in him by reminding everyone why he was a league winner in 2016. As long as Forte is out, the Bilallipop should be in your lineups.
Week 5 Fallers
Ben Roethlisberger (QB - PIT)
This is very likely Big Ben's final season. He looks older than his age. He hasn't thrown for more than 263 yards yet. He's thrown just one touchdown in his last two games. The thing with Roethlisberger is you used to take these suspect performances because you knew there would be enough blowups to offset them. Roethlisberger is usually good for couple of 400-yard, three-TD games. I don't see that in him this year. His pass attempts are down. His yardage is down. His next two games are against Jacksonville and Kansas City, two of the better defenses in the league. Roethlisberger is trending in the wrong direction, even if he does get home cooking this week.
Julio Jones (WR - ATL)
With the bye coming up, fantasy owners of Julio Jones will enter week 6 without a single touchdown from their first-round pick. Jones has just one 100-yard game and catch totals of four, five, seven, and three. Last week, he added injury to insult as he left the game early and did not return with a hip flexor strain. While he should be good to go following the bye, Jones will have already spent nearly 40% of the fantasy season as a WR3.
Theo Riddick (RB - DET)
Not that Riddick was ever that high to begin with, but it bears mentioning because he used to come with a safe floor. That floor has dropped out completely. Riddick is unstartable and ownership is not required. Riddick saw a season low in snaps last week and caught just a single pass to add to his whopping four yards rushing. With the Lions electing to add third back to the regular rotation Dwayne Washington or Zach Zenner to go along with starter Ameer Abdullah, Riddick is not only seeing fewer snaps, he's seeing fewer passing down snaps. That's his bread and butter. Without the exclusive role, Riddick is nothing more than a backup that occasionally sees the field. It appears his usage was out of necessity after all. That necessity is gone as is Riddick's fantasy value.
Tight Ends (All of them)
Here are some of the names you can find in your top-12 tight ends from Week 4: Tyler Kroft, Cameron Brate, AJ Derby, OJ Howard, James Hanna, and Rhett Ellison. Three of this guys are literally 0% owned! This is where we are in tight end land in 2017. Rob Gronkowski and Zach Ertz have been reliable. That's about it. Well outside the top 12 you can find plenty of guys that were regularly drafted as starters, such as Martellus Bennett, Delanie Walker, Jack Doyle, Kyle Rudolph, and Eric Ebron. If you have a tight end problem, and chances are you do, just realize that you're not alone - we all have tight end problems. Stream. Play matchups. Just don't go out of your way to trade for a tight end that is no more reliable than the one you're about to pick up.
