Studs and Duds: Week 4

Mon Oct 3 10:17am ET
By JEFF PAUR
Sr Fantasy Writer

Related photo caption below

Ekeler has huge Week 4 game


It was good to see the running back position have a bit of a resurgence, having several players post some huge games. This hasn’t been the case many weeks for the position, but Week 4 had some big performance. The quarterback spot continues to be a bit of a strange one, though, with Jared Goff and Geno Smith leading all fantasy quarterbacks in scoring this week. Who would have thought? This has been the theme of the season for nearly all the positions out side of receiver, though, seeing players that weren’t drafted very high leading the way. Will this continue all season? That is the big question. 

Bengals 27, Dolphins 15

Fantasy Stud: Tyreek Hill. Hill had a great rebound game after a down showing, carrying the passing game much of the night. He had 10 receptions for 160 yards. He scored 26 fantasy points, giving him 18-plus fantasy points three of four games. Hill is on his way to another huge season, posting just as good of numbers with his new team.

Fantasy Dud: Jaylen Waddle. Waddle lost out on targets with Hill getting so much attention in the passing game. Waddle had just two receptions for 39 yards on five targets. It was his first game all season without at least 15 fantasy points. Waddle will be just fine. He had a down game. It happens.

Game Notes: Tua Tagolvailoa took a scary hit in the game and had to be taken off the field on a stretcher. He was 8-of-14 for 110 yards with an interception before the injury. This one could knock him out for some games, so stay tuned

Tee Higgins had his first 100-yard game of the season, catching seven passes for 124 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. Higgins has at least 70 yards three straight games. 

Vikings 28, Saints 25

Fantasy Stud: Justin Jefferson. Jefferson did a great job of rebounding from two poor performances for his standards. He had 10 receptions for 147 yards and ran once for a 13-yard touchdown. Jefferson showed why many consider him the best fantasy receiver in the game right now. 

Fantasy Dud: Dalvin Cook. The good news is the shoulder didn't seem to be an issue for Cook. The bad news is he didn’t do much with all his work. He ran 20 times for just 76 yards and caught two passes for 10 yards. Cook scored just 10.6 fantasy points. He has been a bit of a bust to date, having failed to stop 15 fantasy points in any game. Cook still has time to get it going but things haven’t been as expected to date. 

Game Notes: Alvin Kamara was a late scratch, missing the game because of his rib injury. Latavius Murray and Mark Ingram pretty much split the work for the Saints. Ingram had 10 carries for 30 yards while Murray ran 11 times for 57 yards and a touchdown. 

Chris Olave scored his first NFL touchdown. He had four receptions for 67 yards and a touchdown. Olave has at least 12 fantasy points three straight games. 

Falcons 23, Browns 20

Fantasy Stud: Nick Chubb. Chubb just keeps getting it done on a weekly basis. He hit the 100-yard mark, rushing 19 times for 118 yards and a touchdown. He also caught two passes for nine yards. Chubb has hit the 100-yard mark three of four games. He is producing as well as any fantasy back in the game through four games.

Fantasy Dud: Kyle Pitts. Pitts was back to his ways from earlier in the season. He had just a catch for 25 yards, really disappointing his fantasy owners once again. He has fewer than 30 yards three of four games and fewer than four fantasy points those three games. Just when you think he can get it going, he reverts back to his bad ways. 

Game Notes: Tyler Allgeier had his best game as a pro, rushing 10 times for 84 yards. Caleb Huntley also got work and played well, coming out of nowhere. Huntley ran 10 times for 56 yards and a touchdown. 

David Njoku had five receptions for 73 yards. He has 14 receptions his last two games and 70-plus yards each of those games. 

Cowboys 25, Commanders 10

Fantasy Stud: CeeDee Lamb. Lamb had six receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown. Lamb has really started to heat up, having 15-plus fantasy points three straight. He has 20-plus points his last two games. Lamb is having a fine season despite being without Dak Prescott for most of it. He just keeps getting it done for fantasy teams. 

Fantasy Dud: Curtis Samuel. Samuel had his first poor showing of the season. He caught just four passes for 38 yards and didn’t have a rush attempt. Samuel had at least seven receptions three straight games before this showing. He still was targeted seven times in the game, which was encouraging for Samuel. He will be just fine. 

Game Notes: Michael Gallup played his first game since tearing his ACL and found the end zone. He had two receptions for 24 yards and a touchdown. 

Cooper Rush keeps playing well in a starting role for the Cowboys. He led the team to another win and was 15-of-27 for 223 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover. Rush is yet to throw an interceptions in four games. 

Seahawks 48, Lions 45

Fantasy Stud: T.J. Hockenson. Hockenson took advantage of injures at receiver and led the way in the passing game for the Lions. He had eight receptions for 179 yards and two touchdowns. This was his first game all season with more than 40 yards. He had been a non-factor most weeks for the Lions. Hockenson does have touchdowns two straight games, though. 

Fantasy Dud: Craig Reynolds. Reynolds did not get much work despite serving as the top backup for the Lions this week. He ran two times for 30 yards and caught a pass for 12 yards. He did produce good numbers with his chances but had  just three chances. Reynolds is not a player fantasy teams can trust - even if he keeps serving as the No. 2 back the next few weeks. 

Game Notes: Rashaad Penny finally got it going and in a big way, rushing 17 times for 151 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 8.9 yards per carry. 

Jared Goff produced a great game despite being down his top two receivers and starting running back. Goff was 26-of-39 for 378 yards and four touchdowns with an interception. 

Titans 24, Colts 17

Fantasy Stud: Mo Alie-Cox. Alie-Cox came out of nowhere to lead the Colts in receiving. He had just a catch each of the last two games and failed to top 30 yards all season, but had a monster showing in this one. He had six receptions for 85 yards and two touchdowns. He should remain up and down going forward, but this game showed his potential if getting the chances. 

Fantasy Dud: Jonathan Taylor. Taylor got 20 carries but left the game before it was over because of an ankle sprain. He ran 20 times for just 42 yards. He also caught just a pass for a yard. Just when you thought things couldn’t get worse for Taylor, they might be now with the injury. He has been a real disappointment for fantasy owners. 

Game Notes: Derrick Henry had his first 100-yard game of the season. He ran 22 times for 114 yards and a touchdown. He also had three receptions for 33 yards, giving him eight catches his last two games. 

Giants 20, Bears 12

Fantasy Stud: Saquon Barkley. Barkley keeps churning out the big fantasy numbers. He had 31 rushes for 146 yards. He also caught two passes for 16 yards, giving him 162 total yards. Barkley has 100-yard rushing games two of three and is just 37 yards shy of 500-rushing yards. 

Fantasy Dud: Richie James. James got some play because many thought he would lead the way in targets for the Giants with all the injuries at receiver. That didn’t happen with James getting just a catch for nine yards. He had at least four receptions his first three games, so this game was a surprise, especially with the Giants down so many options in the passing game. 

Game Notes: Daniel Jones was banged up in the game, hurting his ankle, but was able to return. He was 8-of-13 for 71 yards. He scored two rushing touchdowns, running six times for 68 yards and two scores. 

Darnell Mooney had four receptions for 94 yards. This was his first game all season with more than 25 yards. Mooney finally got some chances to make some big plays and produced well. 

Eagles 29, Jaguars 21

Fantasy Stud: Miles Sanders. Sanders had his best game of the season, getting 27 carries for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He also had two receptions for 22 yards, giving him 156 total yards. This was his first 100-yard rushing game, but Sanders has at least 80-rushing yards three of four games. Sanders is off to the best season of his career. 

Fantasy Dud: James Robinson. Robinson had his first dud game of the season, which wasn’t a huge surprise against a good Eagles defense. Robinson ran eight times of 29 yards and didn’t catch a pass. This was his first game all season being held out of the end zone. This also was his first game without a reception. 

Game Notes: Trevor Lawrence had a game to forget, struggling to hold onto the ball in wet conditions. He lost four fumbles in the game. Lawrence also threw an intesrcpeoitn, giving him five total turnovers. Lawrence was 11-of-23 for 174 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. 

A.J. Brown had five receptions for 95 yards. Brown has at least five receptions all four gams and 85 or more yards three of those games. 

Jets 24, Steelers 20

Fantasy Stud: Corey Davis. Davis led the way at receiver for the Jets this week, catching five passes for 74 yards and a touchdown. Davis has 70-plus yards three of four games. He also has touchdowns two of his last three. Davis has been a very pleasant surprise for fantasy owners, having at least 13 fantasy points three of four games. 

Fantasy Dud: Diontae Johnson. Johnson had a rare down showing, having just two receptions for 11 yards. Johnson had least six receptions every game before this game. Johnson remains a steady presence in this offense, so don't get too down on him over a game. He’ll get it going. 

Game Notes: Zach Wilson played pretty well in his first start of the season. He led his team to a win, going 18-of-36 for 252 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions. He ran twice for 15 yards and caught a touchdown pass. 

Mitchell Trubisky was benched for rookie Kenny Pickett. Trubisky was 7-of-13 for 84 yards with an interception. Pickett moved the offense but turned the ball over three times. He was 10-of-13 for 120 yards with three interceptions. He ran six times for 15 yards and two touchdowns. 

Bills 23, Ravens 20

Fantasy Stud: J.K. Dobbins. Dobbins had a multiple touchdown showing. He ran 13 times for 41 yards and a touchdown. He also caught four passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. He had 63 total yards and two scores. Dobbins looks to be rounding into form, leading the Ravens backfield in carries. 

Fantasy Dud: Gabriel Davis. This looked like a good matchup for Davis against a bad Ravens secondary, but that didn’t turn out to be the case. He had just a catch for 13 yards, continuing to be a boom or bust play for fantasy owners. Davis has fewer than seven fantasy points two straight games. 

Game Notes: Lamar Jackson was held in check, going 20-of-29 for 144 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions. His biggest positive was his rushing totals, running 11 times for 73 yards. 

Josh Allen had a similar showing to Jackson, but a rushing touchdown helped push his fantasy totals to a much better place. Allen was 19-of-36 for 213 yards and a touchdown with an interception. He ran 11 times for 70 yards and a touchdown, finishing with 26.6 fantasy points in a down game for his standards. 

Chargers 34, Texans 24

Fantasy Stud: Austin Ekeler. Ekeler carried many fantasy teams to victory this week with a three-touchdown performance. He had 13 carries for 60 yards and two touchdowns. He also had six receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown. Ekeler has at least 11 fantasy points all four games. Ekeler continues to get a bunch of work in the passing game, having at least six receptions three straight. 

Fantasy Dud: Josh Palmer. Palmer caught just a pass for 25 yards. He was coming off a game with six receptions for 99 yards, so you were hoping for better with Keenan Allen still out of the lineup. He had just a target, though. He had 17 targets his previous two games, so this was an outlier of a performance for Palmer. 

Game Notes: Mike Williams had seven receptions 120 yards. He has 100-yard games two of three. Williams has been up and down but a huge ceiling every week. 

Cardinals 26, Panthers 16

Fantasy Stud: Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey looked like the McCaffrey of old in this one, getting a ton of work in the passing game for the first time this season. He was held in cheek on the ground, rushing eight times for just 27 yards. But he had nine receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown. It was great to see McCaffrey so involved in the passing game once again. And he looked healthy in the game despite being questionable because of a quad injury.

Fantasy Dud: Greg Dortch. Dortch caught just a pass for six yards. The rookie had at least 13 fantasy points three straight games before this dud of a game. He had 20 receptions in three games but was an afterthought in Week 4. Dortch had just a target. This was a worrisome performance from the rookie, especially with the Cardinals starting to get healthy at receiver. 

Game Notes: Marquise Brown found the end zone for the second time this season. He had six receptions for 88 yards and a score. Brown has at least six receptions three straight.

D.J. Moore finally got some work in the passing game, catching six passes for 50 yards. Moore did not have more than three receptions in a game before this one.

Packers 27, Patriots 24

Fantasy Stud: Romeo Doubs. Doubs continues to emerge in the Packers offense. He had five receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown. Doubs had scores two straight games. He also has at least 14 fantasy points each of those games. He should continue to produce as a featured receiver in the Pacers passing game. 

Fantasy Dud: Hunter Henry. Henry continues to do next to nothing in the Patriots offense after having a big first season with the Patriots. He caught just two passes for 13 yards. Henry is not a usable fantasy option and could even be dropped in standard leagues. Henry has just five receptions for 41 yards on the season and has failed to score a touchdown. 

Game Notes: Brian Hoyer left the game early because of a head injury. He was just 5-of-6 for 37 yards before the injury. Third stringer Bailey Zappe actually played well in relief, finishing 10-of-15 for 99 yards and a touchdown. 

Allen Lazard had his first 100-yard game, catching six passes for 116 yards. Lazard has 14-plus fantasy points two straight games. 

Raiders 32, Broncos 23

Fantasy Stud: Josh Jacobs. Jacobs got a ton of work and produced great with all his chances. He rushed 28 times for 144 yards and two touchdowns. He also had five receptions for 31 yards. So Jacobs had 175 total yards and two scores. Hopefully, this game gets Jacobs going as a feature piece of this Raiders offense. 

Fantasy Dud: Derek Carr. Carr was held out of the end zone and failed to hit 200-passing yards. He was 21-of-34 for 188 yards without a touchdown or interception. Carr had two touchdowns each of his first three games, so this game was a big disappointment for his fantasy owners. You expected better from the consistent fantasy quarterback. 

Game Notes: Javonte Williams suffered a possible major knee injury. He had 10 carries for 28 yards before the injury. Melvin Gordon should get first crack to start if Williams misses any time. Gordon had three carries for eight yards with a lost fumble in this game. 

Russell Wilson had his best game as a Bronco. He was 17-of-25 for 237 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover. He also led the team in rushing, running four times for 29 yards and a touchdown. He had three total scores without a turnover.  

Chiefs 41, Bucs 31

Fantasy Stud: Mike Evans. Evans had a great return to the lineup after his one-game suspension. He had eight receptions for 103 yards and two touchdowns. Evans has touchdowns two of three games. This was his first 100-yard game of the season. He has topped 60 yards in every game, though, so he has been pretty consistent in the Bucs top passing attack. 

Fantasy Dud: Russell Gage. The return of both Evans and Chris Godwin to the lineup made Gage almost invisible after his monster performance the previous week. He had just two receptions for 24 yards. Gage showed he could be very erratic going forward as long as Godwin and Evans are playing. 

Game Notes: Clyde Edwards-Helaire just keep producing. He ran 19 times for 92 yards and a touchdown against a very good Bucs rush defense. He also caught a pass for a two-yard score. He has five touchdowns on the season and scores three of four games. 

Chris Godwin looked healthy in his return from a hamstring injury. Godwin had seven receptions for 59 yards on 10 targets. 

Jeff Paur is a two-time finalist for FSWA Fantasy Football Writer of the Year and won the FSWA award for Best Fantasy Football Article on the Web in 2011. He also was the most accurate expert in 2012, winning the FSTA Fantasy Football Accuracy Award. If you have any questions for Jeff, email him at [email protected]. Follow Jeff on Twitter @jeffpaur.

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