The fantasy football landscape shifts each week, bringing fresh opportunities and unexpected challenges that separate the prepared from the pretenders. Savvy managers know that last week’s performance tells only part of the story, and diving deeper into the underlying metrics reveals the accurate picture.
This week presents some intriguing decisions. Here’s insight about key Cincinnati Bengals players heading into their matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers to help you craft a winning lineup.
Joe Flacco, QB
Joe Flacco was traded five days before taking on Micah Parsons and a rested Pacers team in Lambeau.
I’m not exactly sure who he made angry to deserve that set of circumstances, but he did throw for 219 yards and two touchdowns without an interception — a stat line I think we have to label a success.
There’s no fantasy appeal here. At best, he can keep Ja’Marr Chase as a WR1 and Tee Higgins as viable weekly, but he struggled earlier this season with the Browns and doesn’t come with a fantasy-friendly skill set at this point in his career.
Chase Brown, RB
Chase Brown’s fantasy stock gained steam as the draft process drew to a close this summer, and if you were able to avoid this landmine, more power to you … the best pick you made might be the one you didn’t make.
Brown is averaging 2.7 yards per carry, and you know it’s bad when he picks up 13 yards on a single play and you hold onto it for dear hope.
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The origin of these struggles isn’t rocket science. Brown is running into a loaded box on 32% more of his carries than he did last season, and his yards per catch are down 23.9%.
Awful defenses always put their offense at risk of inefficiency because they can become so predictable. Joe Burrow, at the peak of his powers, kept opponents honest, allowing Brown to thrive.
Remove the wrong Jenga piece (Burrow), and a beautiful structure crumbles.
This offense is rubble, and Joe Flacco isn’t the way to rebuild it. He has just three red zone touches during this four-game losing streak, and the lack of per-opportunity has a player once viewed as a top 24 player in all of fantasy sitting outside of my top 24 at the position in Week 7.
Ja’Marr Chase, WR
As expected, the Bengals didn’t hesitate to cut Flacco loose in his team debut. The defense is always going to be a liability, and given the money they spent on their playmakers, why not at least try to compete that way?
The veteran QB chucked the ball 45 times as part of a game plan he hardly knew, making it very understandable as to why 50% of his throws would be directed towards either Chase or Tee Higgins.
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It was far from an efficient afternoon in Lambeau (4.9 yards per pass), but if Chase and Higgins are going to combine for 20 targets, all should be OK in our fantasy world.
There wasn’t a 20-yard play to be had in this offense on Sunday, and that makes the volume a requirement more than a nice-to-have. But I think it sticks. Chase isn’t likely to have a week where he finishes as the top scorer at the position, but the floor is higher now than it was two weeks ago, and that’s comforting enough to trust arguably the best in the game.
Tee Higgins, WR
The Joe Flacco experience allowed Tee Higgins to set or match season highs in catches, targets, and yards.
That’s the good.
The bad? This offense is still broken. It’s just going to be a little less so with the veteran QB calling the shots. They turned 16 carries into 55 yards against the Packers, and without much depth to their production, defenses aren’t going to hesitate to speed up Flacco, forcing him to make quick decisions.
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I don’t think this is the last time we see Ja’Marr Chase and Higgins post a combined 50% target share, only for both to fail to record a 20-yard catch.
Higgins is a WR3 and carries just as much downside weekly as upside (in this crazy 2022 season, that’s a step forward from what I said in this article two weeks ago).
