The previous week’s slate of NFL games certainly had its fair share of players who made their fantasy owners immensely happy. Deshaun Watson impressed mightily in the Houston Texans surprise win over the Kansas City Chiefs. Stefon Diggs registered a trio of touchdowns for the Minnesota Vikings. James Conner continued to make Pittsburgh Steelers fans forget about Le’Veon Bell. But, as usual, Week 6 fantasy football saw quite a few names put up monster numbers despite very few people having them on their roster. This column highlights their exploits.
Note: all references to ownership percentages are based on data from Yahoo Sports leagues.
Week 6 Fantasy Football Surprise Sensations
Sam Darnold
The biggest non-football injury early in the 2019 season was arguably Darnold contracting mononucleosis. After receiving a clean bill of health, he proceeded to hand the Dallas Cowboys their third consecutive loss after starting the season 3-0. It was an impressive outing for the second-year signal-caller as he tallied 338 yards, threw two touchdowns, and finished with a respectable 113.8 passer rating. And among quarterbacks who managed at least 20 fantasy points in Week 6, he had the lowest ownership rate in Yahoo leagues at 16 percent.
You probably want to avoid considering him as a waiver wire addition in Week 7, though. The New England Patriots are tops in the NFL in terms of fewest fantasy points given up to quarterbacks. But, hey, at least it appears that Darnold is making progress towards becoming a legitimate franchise quarterback for the New York Jets.
Jaron Brown
This week, we’re leaving out running backs and featuring two wide receivers since there really weren’t any surprise standouts at the former position. It certainly makes sense since both of these pass-catchers had a zero percent ownership rate in Yahoo leagues. First up is Brown. He caught both of Russell Wilson‘s touchdown passes in the Seattle Seahawks 32-28 win over the Cleveland Browns. Though Tyler Lockett and D.K. Metcalf accounted for double-digit PPR fantasy points, it had to have been maddening for fantasy owners to have Brown siphon away their potential targets in scoring situations.
Allen Lazard
Obviously, the biggest takeaway from the Green Bay Packers‘ last-second win over their NFC North rival Detroit Lions was the shambolic officiating. But it’s a bit lazy to blame it on the Lions losing as Packers kicker Mason Crosby is pretty reliable even on long-distance kicks. And if Lazard was the only Packers receiver to put up double-digit fantasy points, it just adds to the legend of Aaron Rodgers. Despite nobody owning him in Yahoo leagues, Lazard tallied 16.5 fantasy points. It probably elicited quite a bit of indignation from anyone who started Marquez Valdes-Scantling or Jimmy Graham. But it did play its own unique part in Green Bay erasing a 13-0 deficit.
Cameron Brate
There was a time when Brate was a sexy streaming consideration. But the fantasy world has kind of abandoned the Harvard product. He garnered a minuscule one percent ownership rate in Yahoo leagues heading into Week 6. That probably didn’t come as much of a surprise heading into last week. Brate totaled just 13.2 points through the first five games of the season. But he caught Jameis Winston‘s lone touchdown pass in London on Sunday.
That certainly qualifies as an accomplishment considering the embattled Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback also threw five interceptions in the game. Of the tight ends who accumulated at least 10 non-PPR fantasy points in Week 6, Brate had the lowest ownership percentage in Yahoo leagues. The Bucs are on a bye heading into this coming weekend of NFL action. So, it’s probably a good idea to steer clear from a waiver wire add standpoint.
Brandon McManus
Last week, the Denver Broncos avoided an 0-5 start for the first time in franchise history with an impressive road win over the Los Angeles Chargers. On Sunday, their defense further added to the momentum by pitching a 16-0 shutout. It prompted the Tennessee Titans to bench Marcus Mariota in favor of Ryan Tannehill after he threw an interception in the third quarter that promptly resulted in a Broncos touchdown. Titans head coach Mike Vrabel appears to be staying with Tannehill for the foreseeable future.
But McManus deserves some credit as well. That’s especially true given only five percent of Yahoo fantasy owners rostered him. He made all three of his field goals in the game, including a 53-yarder. If you add bonus points for 40+ and 50+ yard kicks, his 13 fantasy points were tied for fourth-best among NFL kickers in Week 6. Two things might make him worthy of consideration in Week 7. Firstly, he’s managed double-digit points three times this season. And the Kansas City Chiefs are currently giving up the 12th-most fantasy points to kickers.
New York Giants Defense
This might come as a surprise considering the New England Patriots dominated the Giants last Thursday. But don’t forget that the game was tied 14-14 in the second quarter after Markus Golden recovered a fumble and took it the distance. The Giants defense also intercepted Tom Brady once and sacked him three times. Not surprisingly, though, very few fantasy owners in Yahoo leagues had them on their roster. Their ownership rate was a meager one percent. Hey, it’s the Patriots and the game was in Foxborough. That said, only four other units managed more than their 12 fantasy points. Big Blue hosts the Arizona Cardinals in Week 7. With a rookie quarterback in Kyler Murray, you have to think the Giants defense/special teams might be an intriguing streaming option.
