Definitely more injuries than usual this year. I know we probably say that every year, but the sheer volume of wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks unavailable in random weeks is high. So it's extra annoying when the starters you're left with turn out totally unexpected duds, like what we got from say Carolina in Miami yesterday.
Bucs at Colts: Huge game for Leonard Fournette, relatively modest for Jonathan Taylor. Matchups count for a lot. But an entertaining game, with some big plays and a big mistake or two from Carson Wentz, as is his forte. But hey, a tough game against the Super Bowl champs, not an easy spot to get a win. It's not over in the AFC South (how did the Titans beat the Colts twice?), and certainly a wild-card Colts team could make things interesting. Disappointing game for most Bucs receivers, with Fournette and Ronald Jones scoring the touchdowns, but a nice outing from Rob Gronkowski.
Jets at Texans: Answering the question over how good mediocre players against a bad defense could be. None of the four running backs anticipated to be involved produced double-digit fantasy points. The Jets uncovered somebody named Austin Walter, who I can only assume was on the practice squad, and let him run for 38 yards and a touchdown. If you had Walter on your radar, well, congratulations. I guess we're going to have to mention him in the preview this week. Jets win, if anyone outside of their parents cares much. Serviceable PPR games from Brandin Cooks and Elijah Moore, but nothing to write home about in either case.
Eagles at Giants: So, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles getting shutout most of the way through this one was pretty unexpected. Not much offense from either team, and I'm pretty sure Hurts killed my Blackout team this week. Aside from killing other people's fantasy teams by shutting down the Eagles, the Giants didn't do much.
Panthers at Dolphins: I know it's because I have Mike Gesicki, but man it's frustrating watching the Dolphins try to play offense. Most notably, these idiotic little throws to Durham Smythe where he gets dropped in his tracks like he's nailed to the ground. Smythe has caught 20 passes this year and no touchdowns, which is notable to me because it feels like they only throw him the ball inside the 10-yard line. Oh well. Nice games for Jaylen Waddle and Myles Gaskin. Spectacularly bad for Cam Newton, who managed to play a game with Christian McCaffrey (well, half a game; McCaffrey left with an ankle injury) without completing any passes to him, which doesn't seem possible. Oh, but Ameer Abdullah caught 2 balls, so there's that. Tough outing for Newton and company, Ian discusses it elsewhere on this page.
Titans at Patriots: Competitive for a while, with a big-play touchdown from Dontrell Hilliard -- just a straight draw play up the middle -- and Tennessee's defense nearly turning in a Pick Six on an errant throw by Mac Jones (it was dropped). But the Patriots are playing like champs right now, and they simply had too much for Tennessee to handle. Couple of touchdowns to Kendrick Bourne, nifty scoring run by Damien Harris, some good receiving games by basically everyone but Hunter Henry. It happens. Hats off to the Patriots, they're pretty good right now.
Steelers at Bengals: Tough one to watch for Steelers fans. They were beaten from the opening minutes, it appeared, with the Bengals marching up and down the field, Joe Mixon and Tee Higgins putting up huge numbers, Joe Burrow benefiting. The Steelers...any good here? Pretty great late touchdown grab by Pat Freiermuth, typically awesome PPR total for Diontae Johnson. That's about it, with Najee Harris not having a chance and not involved enough as a receiver these days to really up strong numbers. Lousy game, unless you're a Bengals fan. There should be more all the time.
Falcons at Jaguars: So if you ever choose to sit a difference maker who's questionable while coming back from injury, remember this Cordarrelle Patterson game as a reminder that it can sometimes be a costly choice (as can starting them). Patterson certainly could have limped off with in the second quarter, but instead he was the star in scoring 2 TDs, leading Atlanta to the win. Also a decent game from Russell Gage, otherwise not much doing from Atlanta's offense. Or Jacksonville's, which lost Dan Arnold early on. But Tavon Austin caught his first touchdown in several years, so there's that.
Chargers at Broncos: Bye week was good to the Broncos, who came out of it with one of their better games. Defensively, anyway; lousy one for the passing game. But a very good one for Javonte Williams, and the Denver defense (which of course I benched, unfortunate). It's an unpredictable group that Denver D but they were on it today. Rough outing for Justin Herbert, though he finished with decent fantasy production, the Pick Six excepted. Off Austin Ekeler's hands, but a poor throw nonetheless. Broncos suddenly still alive in the playoff chase, though they play Kansas City twice down the stretch. Chargers schedule looks better, with a tap-in against Houston. But Los Angeles needs to be sharper than they were in this one.
Rams at Packers: Prior to the game was a story about Matthew Stafford playing with back pain and some other ailment. He proceeded to throw a Pick Six for the third straight week, and nearly another. A late flurry of production after that had helped the Packers to a big lead, making things interesting after that, but not enough. Rams starting to look like it's going to be the wild-card route that gets them to the playoffs. Aaron Jones got 10 carries, but the minimal production suggests he shouldn't have been active (the flipside of the Cordarrelle Patterson decision above). Good games for Rodgers, Adams, Dillon and Cobb. For the Rams, some fourth-quarter numbers by Cooper Kupp and touchdowns for both Jefferson and Beckham. Nice numbers for Darrell Henderson, Stafford...hard to complain about most of the starters in this one.
Vikings at 49ers: Every time Deebo Samuel goes off, which he's been doing every week, I think about how obscenely high we were on him a year ago, how we got burned when he was hurt most of the season, and how we were a lot lower on him this year, and I kept passing him up in drafts. Painful. But hey, good for Deebo, and good for Mitchell and the 49ers, who are way better than I thought they'd be this year. Dalvin Cook left this one with a shoulder injury, exactly why you hang onto guys like Alexander Mattison, even late in the season. Because you never know. Nice game for Adam Thielen, not so much for other Vikings, with Kirk Cousins a little off in this one.
Browns at Ravens: Defense wins championships? The Ravens were able to win despite their quarterback throwing 4 interceptions, most of the ugly variety, by playing great defense (it sure looks like Baker Mayfield shouldn't be in the lineup, it's painful watching him walk to the huddle after a scramble). Rough week for those counting on anything from Nick Chubb, but how low do you drop dominant star players like Chubb? Last night the answer was not far enough.
Monday, Monday: We've entered that time of year where sometimes Monday games have no significance. Can't flex teams out of this one. I guess Washington is kind of in the hunt in the NFC, though it would be surprising if they made any noise. Seattle, not only are they playing out the string but Russell Wilson wants out and he hasn't really played overly well when healthy. There are some great players in this one, and I assume Terry McLaurin, Antonio Gibson, and either Lockett or Metcalf will swing some outcomes. But difficult to see this as a very compelling game. Washington 23, Seattle 20.