Hope you started Taysom Hill last week! With the trade deadline mostly behind us, waivers and lineup decisions are the most important factors going forward. In this week's article, we'll focus mostly on players near the starting lineup bubble, forcing some managers into difficult decisions down the stretch.
And check out today's episode of The Footballguys Fantasy Football Show where Alfredo Brown and I discuss Anthony Richardson, Taysom Hill, and so much more!
Three Up
QB Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts
Bryce Young benefited from his mid-season timeout with the Panthers, and the same appears to be true with Anthony Richardson. Many people will quickly point out the improvements to Richardson's accuracy and fantasy production from Week 11, but Shane Steichen deserves much credit here. Week 11's game plan relied on a heavy dose of lay-up passes early (screens, slants, and curls) to get him going. Once Richardson found his rhythm, the rest of the game slowed down. Designed runs off play-action kept defenses honest, which opened up deep shots. This is precisely what most of Richardson's supporters dreamed of, as it's very similar to Steichen's usage of Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia. In the small doses we saw last year, Richardson displayed a very high potential fantasy ceiling. But his early-year usage was perplexing. Fewer designed runs, more intermediate throws, and less play action made for a bumpy start. However, Steichen tailoring a game plan to Richardson's strengths and weaknesses could lead to him hitting his high-end range of outcomes. Richardson has a handful of tough matchups down the stretch, but his playstyle could make him near matchup-proof if he continues getting designed runs and goal-line touches like last week.
WR Quentin Johnston, Los Angeles Chargers
Maybe Quentin Johnston is a flawed player. He may have benefited from a handful of broken-coverage touchdowns this year. But he's averaging 11.3 half-PPR points per game over the seven full games he's played. To put that into perspective, that's more than Ladd McConkey and nearly as many as Darnell Mooney and Brian Thomas Jr. Many pundits had Johnston ranked as the 2023 Draft class's WR1. And the Chargers saw enough promise to draft him in Round 1. But Johnston had a brutal rookie season. It was especially disappointing because every veteran weapon was injured, and he couldn't grasp the available opportunity. He consistently struggled to get open and dropped passes. In Year 2, however, he's become much more productive. There are traits in Johnston's game that can be nitpicked, but he's a fast and athletic receiver who has scored on multiple big plays this year. Week 11's touchdown showed why some of his perceived deficiencies don't matter. Johnston lulled the defense to sleep with an underneath drag route before turning it upfield and finding a crease in the zone defense. He was only open for the blink of an eye and deep downfield. But luckily for Johnston, his quarterback is one of the few on the planet who could make the throw. Herbert zipped a laser between three defenders to Johnston in the end zone. So, while Johnston may lack some nuance as a route runner and doesn't have the best ball skills, he's operating as the big-play option with a quarterback who can make big plays happen.
TE Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints
That stat line generated by Taysom Hill in Week 11 was hilariously unique. He played quarterback, tight end, wide receiver, running back, and special teams. He led the team with ten targets. He threw an interception and fumbled. He had 138 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Hill's unique role makes him one of the strangest players in fantasy football history. He plays nearly every skill position. But the results from Week 11's barrage of touches were impossible to ignore. On a team with no Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Kendre Miller, or Jamaal Williams, someone needed to step up. Alvin Kamara handled his typical responsibilities, but Hill saw a considerable uptick. We've seen blow-up games from Hill in the past, but nothing like this. And his uptick in touches has come since the firing of Dennis Allen. The cat is out of the bag. Hill has proven his value as a versatile weapon, and the staff would be foolish to put him back on the shelf. Going forward, expect Hill to maintain a significant role in the offense, especially as his teammates are on the mend.
Three Down
QB Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
After looking like he'd break fantasy football to start the season, Daniel has cooled off a bit. Over his first four games, Daniels logged three top-five finishes. Over his last seven, he hasn't finished inside the top ten once. He averaged 51 rushing yards per game over his first nine games. Over his previous two, that has fallen to 13. Defenses are not allowing Daniels to get out of the pocket, where he can do the most damage. They are keeping a spy, forcing him to throw from the pocket. And it's not entirely his fault. Kliff Kingsbury has been in a similar situation throughout his career, starting the season with explosive plays and sputtering through the second half. Daniels still has alluring weekly upside. But he must be relegated from the elite must-start tier of quarterbacks into the weekly streaming discussion for now.
RB Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings
Never a true workhorse, Aaron Jones was afforded that load to start the season with the Vikings. Turning 30 in just a couple of weeks, it was surprising to see him handling nearly 20 touches per game. But a handful of minor injuries may have the coaching staff rethinking their early-season deployment of Jones. The team traded for Cam Akers last month, and he has steadily seen his role grow. In Week 11, Jones was off the injury report and seemingly healthy, but Akers snatched 40 percent of the backfield touches. Leading into Week 9, Jones averaged a respectable 15.8 PPR points per game, 15th among running backs. Akers got his first touch in Week 9. And since then, Jones' 9.9 points per game ranks 34th. Jones' weekly rankings were starting to flirt with the top ten. But the recent change in usage pushes him deep into the weekly RB2 rankings.
WR DeAndre Hopkins, Kansas City Chiefs
In JuJu Smith-Schuster's first game back from injury, DeAndre Hopkins saw his lowest snap count since his Chiefs' debut. He caught just three of his four targets for 29 scoreless yards. The Hopkins experience has been up and down since the Chiefs traded for him. A quiet ramp-up game was followed by an eight-catch, two-touchdown game. Hopkins saw creative usage throughout the formation and pulled the easy-button short targets along with the contested deep shots. It seemed like Hopkins had found the Fountain of Youth in Kansas City. But after mediocre performances in Weeks 10 and 11, that primetime explosion stands out as flukey. Smith-Schuster and Hopkins are rotating similarly to how we saw Smith-Schuster and rookie Rashee Rice used early last year. Assuming that trend continues for both players, they become touchdown-dependant WR3s.
