Cincinnati Bengals 20 Buffalo Bills 16
In a defense battle, A.J. Green proved to be the difference. Green caught 7 of 13 targets for 189 yards and a touchdown. Green’s 77-yard touchdown catch was his third score in three games.
Extra Points: Joe Mixon continues to be the lead back under new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. Mixon ran the ball 15 times for 51 yards and a touchdown against a tough Bills rush defense. He has 50 rushing attempts for 142 yards and a touchdown in three games since Lazor was named offensive coordinator…Charles Clay left the game with a knee injury. With the Bills already thin at receiver, backup tight end Nick O’Leary led the team with five receptions for 54 yards on six targets. The Bills passing game is a fantasy wasteland right now.
New York Jets 17 Cleveland Browns 14
In a game that looked to be ugly for fantasy owners, it ended up being ugly for fantasy owners. Duke Johnson stayed hot, catching three passes for 63 yards and a touchdown. Johnson has now scored in three straight games.
Extra Points: DeShone Kizer was benched after going just 8 of 17 for 87 yards and an interception in the first half. Kevin Hogan came in and got the Browns offense moving. Hogan completed 16 of 19 passes for 194 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He connected with rookie tight end David Njoku for a 21-yard score. Njoku finished with three receptions, 48 yards and a touchdown…Austin Seferian-Jenkins had a top matchup this week against the Browns defense and he took advantage of it. Seferian-Jenkins caught six balls for 29 yards and a touchdown.
Carolina Panthers 27 Detroit Lions 24
After a controversial week, Cam Newton got back to playing football and he played it well on Sunday. Newton threw for 355 yards and three touchdowns. After a slow start to the year, Newton has thrown six touchdown passes in his last two games.
Extra Points: Newton distributed the ball well on Sunday. Three different players (Devin Funchess, Kelvin Benjamin and Christian McCaffrey) caught a touchdown pass. However, it was tight end Ed Dickson who put up the big numbers. Dickson caught five passes for a career-high 175 yards. He only had six receptions for 96 yards coming into the game…Funchess led the team in targets (8) and receptions (7). Funchess has scored three touchdowns in his last two games…Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes. The problem for fantasy owners is both went to backup tight end Daniel Fells…It was a vulture kind of fantasy day in Detroit. Ameer Abdullah was held in check by the Panthers defense (10 carries, 31 yards) and he had a short touchdown run stolen away by Zach Zenner.
Indianapolis Colts 26 San Francisco 49ers 23 OT
Frank Gore was playing against his old team but it wasn’t Gore who did most of the damage to the 49ers Sunday. Rookie Marlon Mack rushed nine times for 91 yards and a touchdown (10.1 YPC), while Gore added 86 total yards on 17 touches.
Extra Points: Jacoby Brissett (314 yards) rebounded after a tough outing last week in Seattle. Brissett has played well in two of his last three games…T.Y. Hilton has had a fantasy resurgence since Brissett took over. Hilton burnt the 49ers defense for seven receptions and 177 yards…Carlos Hyde had his most disappointing game of the year. Hyde was held to only 11 yards on eight carries (1.4 YPC). Hyde has been dealing with a hip injury and doesn’t look to be fully healthy. He was out-touched by Matt Breida 13 to 9 on Sunday…Marquise Goodwin was questionable after suffering his fourth concussion in 14 months last week. He not only played, Goodwin had his best game of the season catching 5 of 11 targets for 116 yards.
Miami Dolphins 16 Tennessee Titans 10
There were a lot of ugly offensive games on Sunday but this was probably the ugliest. The Dolphins won, despite just 92 yards passing from Jay Cutler. A win is a win but Miami needs to do something about its passing game. Cutler is still a problem going forward.
Extra Points: The Titans came in allowing the most fantasy points to wide receivers but Cutler’s ineffectiveness limited Miami’s pass catchers. DeVante Parker left with an ankle injury but Jarvis Landry did catch a touchdown to save his day. He caught five balls for 44 yards and a touchdown. Landry was the only Dolphins player with more than two catches (Jay Ajayi) and 15 yards receiving…The Titans offense was in a similar situation with Matt Cassel playing for an injured Marcus Mariota. Demarco Murray was held to 58 yards on 14 carries (4.1 YPC). Eric Decker was the Titans leading receiver with four receptions and 34 yards. Mariota could miss more time with a hamstring injury, making it hard for owners to trust the Titans skill position players.
Los Angeles Chargers 27 New York Giants 22
The big story from this game is injuries. The Giants lost their three top receivers, most notably Odell Beckham, Jr. Beckham fractured his ankle and will likely miss the rest of the season. Brandon Marshall (ankle) and Sterling Shepard (ankle) also left the game and didn’t return. The Giants dropped to 0-5 with the loss but it’s a rough day when that’s not the worst news to come from the game.
Extra Points: Melvin Gordon showed why he was a first-round pick fantasy pick in many leagues this year. Gordon ran the ball 20 times for 105 yards. He also caught six passes for 58 yards and two touchdowns…Philip Rivers had an up and down game but he finished with good fantasy numbers. Rivers threw for 258 yards, three touchdowns and one interception…The Giants continue to struggle against tight ends. This week it was Hunter Henry. Henry caught three passes for 42 yards and a score. The Giants have allowed at least one touchdown to a tight end in every game this season…With all the injuries at receiver, Roger Lewis caught a 29-yard touchdown pass. Lewis, tight end Evan Engram and running back Shane Vereen will be more involved in the passing game if Shepard and Marshall are both out for an extended period…The Giants had their best day running the football. Wayne Gallman and Orleans Darkwa combined for 126 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries. They’ll continue to split touches moving forward.
Philadelphia Eagles 34 Arizona Cardinals 7
Carson Wentz has merged into an every-week QB1. He proved that again on Sunday by throwing for 304 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. If you own Wentz, it’s going to be hard to keep him on your bench.
Extra Points: Wentz spread the wealth on Sunday. Nelson Agholor (4/93), Torrey Smith (3/70) and Zach Ertz (6/61) all caught touchdown passes. The only person who wasn’t involved was Alshon Jeffery (3/31). Jeffery has only put up one big fantasy game with the Eagles so far this season…Andre Ellington continues to be a factor out of the backfield. Ellington caught nine passes for 65 yards. He has 23 catches on 31 targets in his last three games…The revolving door of Cardinals receivers continues. This week J.J. Nelson led the team in receiving with four receptions for 80 yards. Nelson should have scored too but he lost the ball out of bounds just before crossing the goal line.
Jacksonville Jaguars 30 Pittsburgh Steelers 9
In the surprise outcome of the day, the Jaguars pasted the Steelers. Leonard Fournette ran over Pittsburgh’s defense for 181 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries (6.5 YPC). Overall, the Jaguars ran for 231 yards on 37 carries (6.2 YPC).
Extra Points: This wasn’t the game to watch for stellar quarterback play. Blake Bortles completed 8 of 14 passed for 95 yards with no touchdowns and an interception…and he won. Ben Roethlisberger completed 33 of 55 passes for 312 yards, no touchdowns and a career-high five interceptions…Antonio Brown caught 10 passes for 157 yards on a whopping 19 targets. Martavis Bryant (5/21) continues to be a ghost. Bryant has 10 receptions for 109 yards and no touchdowns in his last three games.
Baltimore Ravens 30 Oakland Raiders 17
The Raiders were short-handed against the Ravens, playing without starting quarterback Derek Carr. EJ Manuel got the start but completed just 50 percent of his passes for 159 yards with one touchdown. The quarterback change couldn’t get Amari Cooper going. He was held to only one catch for eight yards. Cooper has just four receptions for 23 yards in his last three games.
Extra Points: Michael Crabtree was Manuel’s favorite receiver on Sunday. He scored and led the Raiders in targets (8), receptions (6) and yards (82)…Javorius Allen and Alex Collins both saw touches at running back for the Ravens but it was Allen who had the bigger fantasy day. Allen ran for 73 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries (3.5 YPC). He also caught four passes…Mike Wallace had his best game of the season. Wallace only caught three passes but they went for 133 yards.
Green Bay Packers 35 Dallas Cowboys 31
The Packers and Cowboys played another wild game with Aaron Rodgers once again pulling it out in the end. Rodgers finished with 221 yards passing and three touchdowns. Dak Prescott matched Rodgers with 288 total yards and four touchdowns but it wasn’t enough, as the Cowboys dropped to 2-3.
Extra Points: Aaron Jones filled in for the injured Ty Montgomery and rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries (6.6 YPC). It’s the second strong performance in a row for Jones. He’s earned touches in Green Bay’s backfield even when Montgomery returns…Davante Adams came back from a concussion he suffered last week to put up 66 yards and two scores on seven receptions. Adams was targeted a team-high 11 times…Ezekiel Elliott had his best game of the season in terms of yardage. Elliott ran for 116 yards on 29 carries (4.0 YPC)…Cole Beasley only caught four passes on the day but two of them went for touchdowns.
Seattle Seahawks 16 Los Angeles Rams 10
The Rams high-scoring offense was shut down by the Seahawks defense Sunday. Jared Goff threw for 288 yards but no touchdowns and two interceptions. He hadn’t thrown an interception in his last two games.
Extra Points: Todd Gurley came in on fire but the Seahawks held him to just 43 yards on 14 carries (3.1 YPC). Gurley wasn’t a factor as a receiver either, catching just one pass…Seattle’s secondary erased Sammy Watkins. He was targeted four times but didn’t record a catch in the game…The Seahawks don’t have a running back. If you’re wondering who the Seahawks running back is, it’s no one. Thomas Rawls had eight carries for 20 yards (2.5 YPC), while Eddie Lacy finished with 19 yards on nine carries (2.1 YPC)…Jimmy Graham scored and led the Seahawks in targets (8), receptions (6) and yards (37). That says all you need to know about the Seahawks passing game right now.
Kansas City Chiefs 42 Houston Texans 26
Rookie Deshaun Watson shows no signs of slowing down. The Texans came up short on Sunday night but Watson owners still won big. Watson threw for 261 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. He has nine passing touchdowns in his last two games.
Extra Points: Watson is certainly getting the ball in the hands of his receivers for big plays. DeAndre Hopkins caught four passes and three went for touchdowns. Will Fuller has six receptions in two games since returning from a collarbone injury. Four of those six catches have gone for touchdowns…Kareem Hunt gained 107 yards on 29 carries. However, he lost two short touchdown receptions to Charcandrick West…Alex Smith threw for three scores and 324 yards. Two scores went to West and the other to De’Anthony Thomas making very few fantasy owners happy…Travis Kelce caught 8 of 11 targets for 98 yards but he left with a concussion and didn’t return.
