This is what kills your team; that top-ranked consensus player that has a fantasy faceplant. A fantasy faceplant is a player who finishes at least 15 spots lower than expected on a given week. Everyone knows Fantasy Football has so much variance week-to-week, so the faceplants might be just a blip. But as we go through the season we can see if the players show a trend. I will use FantasyPros each week to get the initial rankings. The players highlighted are from the TNF game and the Sunday day games. These do not include the SNF or MNF games. You can view last week’s faceplants here.
Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints
Started – RB2
Sunday Finish – RB35
The whole Saints offense struggled against the Carolina Panthers,totalling128 yards on the day. Jameis Winston played poorly, but Alvin Kamara did receive 6 targets on the days. This was a very disappointing day for Kamara but since everyone had an off day, you just have to chalk it up to one of those games.
Moving Forward: This is not going to make you start questioning playing Kamara. The Saints only had 43 total plays so there wasn’t much consistency from any player. You should pay attention to the struggles of Winston going forward though, because it could effect Kamara going forward.
Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts
Started – RB14
Sunday Finish – RB38
The Colts ran the ball 26 times against the tough Rams defense. That is below the 30 from last week and the average of 28 rushes per game from last year. Jonathan Taylor got a healthy 15 carries this week, two less than last game. He did not receive as many targets this week though.
Moving Forward: From where you drafted Taylor, you most likely have to start him weekly. It is a welcome sight that he is getting the majority of the carries for the Colts, but somewhat alarming about his lack of TDs and is averaging under 3.5 yards per carry.
DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks
Started – WR6
Sunday Finish – WR42
Russell Wilson was cooking in this matchup, throwing for over 300 yards and two TDs. Tyler Lockett was the big recipient with 178 receiving yards and a TD. The bright spot for DK Metcalf is that he and Lockett had the same amount of targets in this game, with 11. Lockett has been the bigger producer in fantasy football so far, but this should even out for Metcalf. This offense has room for two top fantasy receivers.
Moving Forward: This has happened before. Lockett starts off hot and then normalizes the rest of the season. I would not worry about Metcalf as the targets are there. I would keep any eye out if this season will be different and Lockett keeps up these big numbers throughout the whole season.
AJ Brown, Tennessee Titans
Started – WR10
Sunday Finish – WR54
Ryan Tannehill had a big game, throwing for over 300 yards. He not have a TD though, as Derrick Henry scored all three TDs for the Titans. Julio Jones led the team in receiving with 128 yards, but AJ Brown did have one more target than Jones. There should be better days for Brown ahead; there’s no need to panic.
Moving Forward: You still want to start AJ Brown in your fantasy football lineups. He has 17 targets through two games; the catches should come. There may be worry that both Brown and Jones can’t have big games together, but Brown received 9 targets while Jones had 8. It is more likely that these two receivers are the only ones that you want on the Titans.
Make sure to check in on the Fantasy Faceplant each week on Monday. You can find me on Twitter @hayeb3 and all my work done on TheLeagueWinners here.
Brandon Haye
Brandon grew up in Jacksonville, Florida and works as a health insurance data analyst. He has no children, but two fur babies - Squirt and Brownie. He and his wife, Katie, spend their time playing poker and enjoying time with their pups. Brandon is a huge Michigan Wolverine and Jacksonville Jaguars fan. He at one time was in 77 fantasy leagues and loves the game of football. Brandon started writing for The Leauge Winners in 2021.