NFL Fantasy Heroes and Villains: Thank Evans for Mike in Week 3

Every week is a new adventure in fantasy, a chance for redemption and a fresh shot at glory. You’ve done your research, examined the matchups and found the perfect lineup to win on Sunday. The new week, however, brings a fresh chance to examine your choices and reflect on what you’ve done.

Let’s have a look at the selections that potentially won your matchup for you this week, as well as those who you can blame for a miserable Monday if they let you down.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA – SEPTEMBER 12: Mike Evans #13 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers walks off the field after warm ups before their game against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium on September 12, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)

Hero: Mike Evans

It’s been a tough offseason and a rough start to the year for the Mike Evans faithful. The Buccaneers standout wide receiver has been living in the shade of teammate Chris Godwin’s offseason hype, which was only made worse as Godwin prospered in Weeks 1 and 2 of the season. By his standards, the combined 89 yards on 6 catches across the first two weeks of the year made him practically anonymous.

Thank heavens then for the Giants secondary. Evans repeatedly roasted Janoris Jenkins like Christmas ham in Sunday’s matchup, with the Bucs star going off for 190yds and three TDs on eight catches.

Crisis over, faith restored.

Hero: Phillip Lindsay

Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram are the primary backs in high-scoring offences, and you’ve paid for each of them accordingly so you expect them to be weekly heroes.

The real redemption tale this week is the Broncos’ Phillip Lindsay, who had a wildly surprising rookie season but was expected to regress in 2019.

After splitting carries pretty evenly with running back mate Royce Freeman so far this season, Lindsay proved in Week 3 that he’s the superior talent in the Broncos backfield, as he tore through a stout Green Bay defence for 81 yards and 2 Rushing TDs, along with 4 catches for 49 yards through the air. If you had him as your second or third RB, Lindsay was probably helping you win matches this weekend.

OAKLAND, CA – AUGUST 15: A general view as the Oakland Raiders warm up against the Detroit Lions during their preseason game at O.co Coliseum on August 15, 2014 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Noah Graham/Getty Images)

Hero: Darren Waller

The Raiders are maddeningly inconsistent on offence through three weeks and the Silver-and-Black faced their toughest test of the season against the Minnesota Vikings this week. One bright spot among the confusion has been the emergence of TE Darren Waller as a bona fide star.

At a position that’s perennially thin and difficult to predict, Waller has yet to log less than 10.00 fantasy points this year and led all TE’s in fantasy scoring in Week 3 without even getting in the end zone. This is production you can believe in, and it wasn’t costing the earth to get him in your lineup either.

Villain: Todd Gurley

Here’s a selection of names who outscored Todd Gurley in Fantasy this week: J.D. McKissic; Dare Ogunbowale; Troy Blunkingdale.

OK, so we made that last one up, but the disappointment with Gurley was palpable as he contrived to turn 14 carries into just 46 yards against the Cleveland Browns.

For a player who has 123 catches across 168 targets since Sean McVay took over in LA, he was only targeted once in the passing game on Sunday night and couldn’t make the catch. This is the sort of production that kills your fantasy week from a star you’ve had to invest capital in.

Fade Gurley until he starts demonstrating improvement.

SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 22: Jimmy Garoppolo #10 of the San Francisco 49ers runs out on the field during warm ups prior to the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Levi’s Stadium on September 22, 2019 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/Getty Images)

Villain: Jimmy Garoppolo

The 49ers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers struggling secondary on home turf, scoring three TDs, so their QB must’ve been pretty solid, right?

Wrong.

The 49ers won in spite of themselves, giving up five turnovers to the Pittsburgh D. Garoppolo was responsible for three of these, throwing two interceptions and losing a fumble while only throwing one TD pass to compensate. Sure, you may not expect the Tom Brady 2.0 that the 49ers hoped they were trading for a couple of seasons ago, but getting a single-digit return from a QB in a win is fantasy kryptonite.

Villain: Emmanuel Sanders

Chancers are, you took Sanders as a reasonably priced WR2, or a flex guy with some upside. Following back-to-back games with at least 85yards and a TD, that’s a solid, reliable no.1 receiver on a team that’s likely going to need to chase points against Green Bay on the road: your logic is flawless and I commend your selection. Denver, however, had other ideas.

Sanders was targeted just four times in the game, and only hauled in two of those passes for a paltry 10 yards. After the game he told reporters that the Broncos as ‘living in a world of suck’.

So are your fantasy owners this week, Manny, so are your fantasy owners.