If the calendar hasn’t made it clear enough, the foliage around campus certainly has: Fall is here. The changing season brings cooler weather, pumpkin-flavored goods and an abundance of runny noses. What remains constant throughout this nature-driven transformation, however, is the excitement surrounding football.
Today marks the start of Week 6 of the NFL season. With almost a third of the season behind us, the door to fantasy football playoffs is starting to close. This means the upcoming weeks are critical if you want to secure a spot in the postseason.
Luckily, this week’s Fantasy Forecast is centered on which matchups require the most attention. While some teams can expect high performances, others are in for a bit of a drag. If you have players suiting up for any of the teams featured below, you’ll want to read closely.
The difference between starting and benching a key player is like choosing whether to wear a sweater on a crisp fall day: One wrong decision and regret floods your afternoon.
Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers
Without a doubt, one of the most anticipated matchups this week is the Sunday night showdown between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers. Coming off a sloppy Thursday night loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas will look to climb back to .500 against its NFC rival. Meanwhile, the Packers aim to continue their surge at home after trampling the Chicago Bears last week 31-7.
Leading the Cowboys in his 11th season is quarterback Dak Prescott. The veteran star has had a rather average start to the year. Outside of his Week 2 performance, Prescott has failed to deliver a 20-point-plus performance for fantasy managers.
While he has thrown for almost 1,400 passing yards this season, nearly half of Dallas’ touchdowns belong to running back Javonte Williams. The Cowboys will likely continue to lean heavily on the 26-year-old running back this week, especially with the Packers boasting one of the league’s worst red-zone run defenses.
Rivaling Prescott this week is quarterback Jordan Love. In his seventh season, Love has yet to throw for less than two touchdowns in a game. His primary target, wide receiver Christian Watson, has been every fantasy manager’s dream. Aside from a Week 4 blunder, Watson has averaged more than 25 points per game.
On the other hand, fantasy managers should be cautious about Green Bay running back MarShawn Lloyd. While Lloyd found the end zone twice for the Packers last week, he averaged just 3.1 yards per carry in their blowout win against the Bears.
Fantasy managers may want to hold off on starting him until they can determine whether his breakout performance was anything more than smoke and mirrors.
As the Cowboys look to pick up the pieces after a puzzling loss, the Packers are chasing their third straight win. The Sunday night showdown is set to kick off at 8:20 p.m.
Los Angeles Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Perhaps the biggest shock of this season so far is that the Los Angeles Chargers remain winless through the first five weeks. Whether that’s due to new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniels failing to gel with quarterback Justin Herbert or head coach Jim Harbaugh’s honeymoon phase in L.A. beginning to wane is up for debate. Regardless of who’s to blame, the Chargers are seriously struggling on both sides of the ball.
Unfortunately, the Chargers’ road to recovery leads straight to an away game against the Kansas City Chiefs, one of the league’s only three remaining undefeated teams. Under the reign of quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs are poised for another successful season. The three-time Super Bowl MVP appears fresh, as his consistent displays of strong performances have kept fantasy users well-fed.
Fresh off a bye, Mahomes will look to ease back into his 10th season with what should be a relatively comfortable home matchup. He will certainly rely on tight end Travis Kelce, the team’s receiving yards leader and running back Kenneth Walker III, one of the league’s top rushers, to get the job done.
Although the Chiefs’ defense has allowed nearly 60 points over its last three games, Kansas City enters this week’s matchup against a team that has yet to score more than two touchdowns in a game all season.
A dominant performance from the home team is expected this Sunday, while a meager showing will likely befall the visitors. Fantasy managers should keep this in mind ahead of the 4:25 p.m. kickoff.
Notable Bye-Weeks
One of the most basic, albeit crucial, aspects of effective fantasy management is knowing when certain players are on a bye week. This week is littered with stars who won’t be suiting up, so make sure their absence doesn’t sink your lineups.
For Week 6, the Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins and Minnesota Vikings all catch a break with a bye week. Among the most notable players sitting out are Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Lions quarterback Jared Goff, Cincinnati wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, Detroit wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams and Minnesota wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
On the ground, fantasy managers will be without the Bengals’ running back Chase Brown, Detroit’s Jahmyr Gibbs and Minnesota’s Aaron Jones Sr. Perhaps the trickiest position to fill during a bye week is tight end. Users should be aware that Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson and Cincinnati’s Mike Gesicki will also be unavailable.
Plan ahead and check the waiver wire for notable replacements to get through the week. Best of luck, Huskies.