What We Saw: Week 6 2018

Panthers vs. Redskins

Panthers

Passing Game

Don’t quote me on this, but Sunday’s game may have been QB Cam Newton’s most efficient passing performance of the season. Narrator: “It wasn’t.” He completed 67.5% of his passes, distributed the ball well among his receivers (five finished with at least 4 receptions), and only threw one interception despite the tough matchup. That’s not to say his game was mistake free, that interception was way underthrown into an area where three defenders were, but it was encouraging to see them spread the ball around the way they did. WR D.J. Moore looked relevant for the first time this season, catching 4 of his 5 targets for 59 yards and rushing for an additional 18 (he fumbled twice though). WR Devin Funchess and RB Christian McCaffrey continue to be Newton’s favorite targets in the passing game, receiving 8 targets a piece, but most encouraging for this offense was the return of TE Greg Olsen. My pre-game expectation of him acting more as a decoy was inaccurate, as Olsen saw 7 targets and caught 4 passes for 48 yards; if he at least produces at this level in the upcoming matchup against Philadelphia (#3 defense against tight ends), we’ll be more likely to say to not worry about lingering effects of his now twice broken foot.

Running Game

The Panthers went down 17-0 early in the second quarter, which led them to pass more and thereby explains RB Christian McCaffrey’s 8 and the team’s 18 rushing attempts. Even in this limited rushing workload, the Panthers performed well below their normal efficiency, averaging 3.71 yards per carry when you exclude D.J. Moore’s 18-yard run. Since neither McCaffrey nor Newton had over 10 rushing attempts, they did not register any data on NextGenStats.com, so I can’t quantify exactly how inefficient they were running the ball or how often they saw 8+ in the box compared to other rushers this week. I don’t think this game is any cause for concern moving forward though; sure, if Philadelphia scores at the rate they did in Thursday Night’s game, then the game script will look similar to this past weekend’s, but that’s unpredictable, so we should expect what was the NFL’s #1 rushing attack to continue to play to their strength.

Defense/Special Teams

Nothing could really go right for this unit in the first half. D.J. Moore fumbled on the team’s first punt return, which set Washington up at the 22-yard line. On the next play, TE Vernon Davis slipped by what appeared to be 6 defenders without getting picked up in coverage, which QB Alex Smith noticed immediately and capitalized on for a quick touchdown. On their next drive, the defense allowed Washington to convert twice on 3rd down and once on 4th down, which allowed the Redskins to score once again and take an early 14-0 lead. Other than the two touchdown passes, Smith did not look like his normal self, and that is a testament to the pressure the Panthers defense was putting on him. While they were able to get to the quarterback well, the same can’t be said for getting to the running back, as they allowed Peterson to gain 97 yards on 17 carries and the entire Redskins offense to run for 132 yards on 28 carries.

-Alex Drennan

Redskins

Banged up at WR and RB, the few healthy Washington Redskins managed to hold off a sloppy Cam Newton comeback bid in the 4th quarter to win their 3rd game of the season. Despite the win, however, few of the team’s fantasy contributors cashed in. How will this performance affect their lots moving forward? Let’s find out…

Shooting Blanks

It seems like each week has gotten progressively worse for the fantasy prospects of Alex Smith. A popular preseason sleeper (and one of my favorites), Smith has been a disappointment across all formats with mediocre play, bordering on awful at times, this season. Even on a “good” day such as this one, Smith failed to surpass a measly 200 yards passing and racked up a mere 13 yards on the ground. Though you may have already, it is certainly now safe to drop Alex Smith from your team, outside of 2 QB formats I suppose.

Receiving the Short End of the Stick

And as the quality and quantity of the Redskins QB play has gone, so too have the fantasy prospects of the team’s WRs. Even with Jamison Crowder inactive for this one, Josh Doctson and Paul Richardson turned a mere 11 targets into a putrid 51 total yards, albeit with a TD. As much as I’d love to write at length about one of the trio fo fantasy relevant Redskins WRs, it appears NONE are relevant at this time. Even as spot starts, you can likely do better on your wire.

A Good End for the Tight Ends

On the other hand, the combination of Vernon Davis and Jordan Reed converted a healthy 12 targets into 8 receptions, 94 yards, and a TD. Although it was Davis who produced nearly half of those yards and caught the TD, it was Reed who saw the majority of those targets (9) and who will presumably continue to do so. Vernon Davis hasn’t been involved in the red zone all that often, so I feel we can write this off as an aberration, however frustrating for Reed owners it may be.

Running Back In Time

Boy has it been fun watching the revival of Adrian Peterson. Despite a recent ankle injury, knee hyperextension, and a separated shoulder, AP ran hard and ran well in this one missing 100 yards on the day by three. Due to his spotty involvement in the passing game, Peterson is a bit dependent on game flow to get his regular workload, but in most games AP will be a dependable RB2. In case you weren’t aware, Chris Thompson was inactive in this one due to a rib injury, and his replacement, Kapri Bibbs, was predictably irrelevant.

The Defense

After being thoroughly trounced by the Saints the previous week, the Skins D came up big with a sack, a pick, and 2 forced fumbles as they held the Carolina offense to only 17 points. While they remain a strong streaming option, the formerly deficient, yet somehow now Efficient, Dallas offense is next up on the docket. Start the Skins D at your own risk!

-Alex Silverman