Determining what is real, sustainable production instead of unreliable production is critical for your fantasy team. Players that have sustainable production should be anchors to your team and the type of players you seek to acquire in the trade market. Players that have unsustainable production are the types of players that you should not depend on in your lineup and sell trades.
Is Travis Etienne Jr. a Top 6 Running Back?
Travis Etienne Jr. entered the season with a lot of questions. A limited receiving profile, red zone struggles, and the team drafting Tank Bigsby in the third round of the draft created a lot of concern about Etienne. Bigsby then became a preseason darling who was thought to take a healthy part of Etienne's job.
Etienne's production through six weeks was far superior to expectations. Etienne has been one of the highest-workload players in the league. Through six weeks, Etienne is second in snapshare (79%), sixth in rushing attempt share (63%), and fifth in route participation (62%). Etienne leads the league in rushing attempts (113), something that few expected was possible two months ago.
Overall, Etienne has turned this role into a top-six performance on a per-game basis (18.9 PPG), and he has produced without a receiving touchdown. He is locked into a big-time role and performing well with it, a role he should maintain or grow on into the second half of the season.
Verdict: Travis Etienne's performance is a great sign for his profile, and his top-six production can be maintained as long as he stays healthy.
Is Geno Smith struggling?