“Frankel’s Fantasy Files” is a column by Kyle Frankel about fantasy football.
This week had it all. There were statement victories like the Ravens 37-3 trouncing of the Seahawks and barnburners such as the Texans dramatic 39-37 win over the Buccaneers. We even got treated to another primetime snoozefest, as the Jets essentially beat themselves in their 27-6 home defeat at the hands of the Chargers on Monday Night Football.
Above all else, we witnessed one of the most impressive feats I’ve ever seen on a football field. Quarterback Josh Dobbs was traded from the Cardinals to the Vikings last Tuesday, giving him virtually no time to learn the playbook, get integrated with the team or even practice with the offense.
By gametime on Sunday he hadn’t even taken a snap during practices in Minnesota yet. Dobbs hadn’t thrown one pass to his receivers or taken a single snap with his center. This meant that when Dobbs replaced an injured Jaren Hall with the Vikings trailing 3-0 in the first quarter, the prospects of a Minnesota victory seemed grim. They got even more grim after Dobbs proceeded to take a safety and lose a fumble on his first two offensive series.
Then, he completed 20 of 30 pass attempts for 158-yards and two touchdowns. He also was the Vikings top rusher, going for 66-yards and another score. Dobbs literally had to go over the cadences with his linemen for the FIRST time ever on the sideline right before taking the field. He asked his receivers in the huddle what routes they were running because he didn’t know the playbook. All of this and the part-time NASA astronaut found a way to lead his new team to a 31-28 win.
The Josh Dobbs magic is still permeating throughout the Twin Cities, but let’s try to make some magic happen on the waiver wire this week.
Texans Stock is Booming
You can say it’s too early, but I’ve seen all I need. C.J. Stroud is a franchise quarterback. He is elite. Not only does the eye test prove this theory, but numbers don’t lie and Stroud’s are stellar.
He currently ranks seventh among all quarterbacks in 2270 passing yards and sports an immaculate touchdown to interception ratio of 14 to one. In fact, he’s tossed the least INTs among all full-time starters. Just to tack on some more, he broke the rookie single game passing record in Sunday’s win over the Buccaneers with 470-yards through the air.
Now if you’re somehow able to pick Stroud up off the waiver wire, do it immediately. Odds are you can’t though, given that he’s rostered in 77% of ESPN leagues and that number should only rise once waiver claims for the week process.
However, you can snag the playmakers he’s throwing the ball to, and their value has only increased now that Robert Woods is down with an injury.
There are two names I’ll mention and the one you have probably heard of is rookie wide receiver Tank Dell. I actually gave him a shoutout in this column prior to Week Four, but his performance this past week offers further recognition.
Dell was a focal point of the Texans offense on Sunday and it paid dividends. He saw 11 targets, catching six of them for 114-yards and a pair of touchdowns. One of these scores was a clutch reception in the end zone to take the lead in the final moments of play. Not only did this 29.6 PPR outing (the highest of his career) show his explosive ability, but it also displayed the immense trust his signal caller has in him.
In the three games this season where he’s received at least seven targets, he’s produced 20-plus point PPR performances. He appears to firmly be at least Houston’s No. 2 wideout, if not their No. 1, and should continue to see the ball come his way.
He won’t be easy to add, as he’s rostered in 55.8% of ESPN leagues at the time of writing, but if he’s still out there on your waivers you have to find a way to fit him on your team.
Now this next name you probably didn’t know before this week, but you should remember it going forward: Noah Brown.
Brown had a monster day, catching all six of his targets for 153 yards and a touchdown, summing up to 27.3 PPR points.
Hold your horses. Let’s be careful not to overreact. Brown is definitely not going to do this every week. He’s only appeared in four games this year and his six targets were his highest single game total this season.
However, he did showcase how dangerous he is both downfield and with the ball in his hands. He’s probably the No. 4 pass-catcher on the Texans, but with Robert Woods out for Week 10 he’s worth streaming this week in deeper leagues. Plus, he’s only on a roster in 1.0% of ESPN leagues.
Keep Feeding Keaton
This is someone you’re going to hear a lot of chatter about during the week and for good reason – Keaton Mitchell. On the same day the rookie running back received his first carry in the NFL, he also torched the Seahawks defense.
The halfback saw a moderate nine carries, but he definitely made the most of them, rushing for 138 yards and a touchdown.
He adds some blazing speed to this already incredible offense and should continue to be involved. Even though Justice Hill out-touched him and Gus Edwards will probably continue to steal goal line carriers, Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh emphasized that Mitchell will remain in the rotation.
He’s definitely not a sure thing, but similar to Devon Achane, he offers incredible upside if the Ravens already explosive offense continues using him more. He’s only rostered in a mere 1.1% of ESPN leagues prior to waivers processing, a figure that will surely rise.
“Frankel’s Fantasy Files” runs every Wednesday.