Sneaky plays, sometimes, are all we have.
Especially during this horrid Week 7 bye week, when so many fantasy fiends can’t just plug in their elite runners and catchers and throwers, having to actually apply higher brain functions to construct a full lineup this week.
Unless you’re in one of those ultra-competitive four-team leagues in which playing Ray Rice or LeSean McCoy is a weekly dilemma, you are scouring every inch of the waiver wire right now, looking for the obscure guy who will carry your makeshift squad to victory in Week 7.
And if you’re in a four-team league, find another hobby. Model trains, maybe.
Here are the sneakiest plays at every position this week, meaning, of course, they’re as likely to net you three points as they are to pile up 25 points.
Quarterback
Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, Bills – It’s not unreasonable, during this horrid bye week, to peg Buffalo’s bearded wonder as a top-10 quarterback play against a Titans’ secondary that has been mutilated by just about everyone they’ve played this season. Tennessee is 29th in pass defense, allowing 292 yards a game and 13 touchdowns through the air. Signal callers have averaged 20 points per contest against the Titans through six weeks. Fitzpatrick has proven disastrous against legit secondaries – laying fantasy eggs against the Niners and Cardinals in Weeks 5 and 6 – but don’t forget he torched the Patriots’ lackluster secondary for 350 yards and four scores in Week 4. I see this Bills-Titans game as a high scoring affair. Plug and play Fitzpatrick and reap the fantasy goodness.
Running back
Jonathon Dwyer, RB, Steelers – Guessing what Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Todd Haley is going to do with Steelers’ running backs is like playing a slightly less consequential game of Russian roulette, but we’re desperate this week, so we’re snatching Dwyer from the waiver wire and playing him as a flex. Rashard Mendenhall and Isaac Redman are both out for this week’s game against the Bengals, leaving Dwyer to carry the load, along with Baron Batch and Chris Rainey, both of whom looked downright awful in Week 6. Dwyer runs with hate in his heart – churning his legs, mowing down defenders – and has proven he should be the primary back in Pittsburgh this week. Cincinnati is giving up 117 rushing yards per game, along with 19 fantasy points per game to running backs. Trust Haley not to ruin your fake football life. Plug in Dwyer.
Wide Receiver
Josh Gordon, WR, Browns – I know the argument against playing the rookie pass catcher – he’s raw, he doesn’t run anything close to a full route tree, and his snaps have been limited in the early going. I get it – he’s a boom or bust. This week though, with Mohammed Massaquoi very iffy for Sunday’s game at Indianapolis, and quarterback Brandon Weeden heaping praise on Gordon during practice, I think Gordon has a chance to establish himself as the unquestioned No. 1 receiver on a team that throws quite a bit. Justin Higdon, writer for afc2nfc.com and Cleveland Browns expert, pointed out that the Brownies have four healthy receivers this week: One came off the team’s practice squad a week ago, one is the team’s return man, and the third is Greg Little, whose unsure hands have cost the team dearly this year. The fourth receiver, of course, is Gordon, who has three touchdowns in the past two weeks. You could do a whole lot worse this week.
Tight end
Scott Chandler, TE, Bills – I’m going back to the well here, begging you once more to take advantage of a terrible Tennessee defense. The Titans struggles against tight ends are well documented: They’ve allowed eight touchdowns to tight ends this year, along with a league-worst 15.5 fantasy points per game to tight ends. The Titans’ linebackers and safeties look confused and overmatched at times – good news for Chandler this week. Chandler leads the Bills in receiving touchdowns and is second on the team in targets, behind only Stevie Johnson, and against the Titans in what will probably be a high-scoring match up, I like Chandler to post a nice line – maybe even an elite line.
