Player News – Page 51 – FantasySP Blog

Streaming Defenses- Week 17

We should expect Atlanta and possibly a few other playoff bound teams to be resting their starters come week seventeen. This will clearly impact which defenses can be relied upon in the last week of the regular season.

Analysis: An interesting defense to take a look at is the Chargers defensive unit. They have played well this year and have Oakland in week seventeen. We don’t know what the status of Carson Palmer will be but we do know that the Raiders haven’t scored over 20 points in a game since week nine. San Diego’s defense is in the top five of the NFL in sacks and ranks in the top half of the league in takeaways, interceptions, yards allowed and points against.

The Bills are another team to take a look at this week. They are at home against the Jets in week seventeen and that is always good news. The Jets rank in the bottom five of the NFL in points per game, yards per game and giveaways. It is a risk starting the Buffalo D especially when considering they turn the ball over a ton and struggle to put up points and dictate games but they are worth a look.

Mike Williams Strikes Again

Tampa Bay may not be playing well but Mike Williams is still putting up numbers.

Analysis: Mike Williams caught 7 balls on 17 targets for 132 yards and a score Sunday afternoon against the Rams. This now leaves Williams with 8 touchdowns and over 900 receiving yards this year. His targets have been inconsistent this season but he is averaging nearly 11 targets per game over his last four games. Keep in mind that Tampa is one of the more pass heavy teams in the NFL as evidenced by Josh Freeman’s 43.5 passing attempts per game over his last four games. Up next for Tampa Bay is Atlanta which should be resting plenty of starters in week seventeen.

The biggest surprise in all this seems to be that Williams is only being started in less than half of fantasy leagues. He may not be a consistent WR2 but he is an elite WR3/FLEX option that is not being utilized nearly enough in fantasy leagues. Williams is a top twenty fantasy wide out this year yet we see guys like Jeremy Maclin and Brandon Lloyd get more attention even though they have a combined 9 touchdowns in 29 games this year. It doesn’t make sense.

Stock Rising- Shawn Marion

Shawn Marion is three games into his return from a groin injury and he has already tallied three double-doubles.

Analysis: Shawn Marion may be thirty-four years old but he is getting tons of minutes(30/game) and making a big impact in the fantasy world this season. Since Marion has returned from a groin injury he’s averaging 14.0 PPG, 11.3 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.0 SPG and 1.0 BPG. Marion really is contributing in just about every fantasy category. He doesn’t shoot as many threes these days and his assists will go back down to 2-3 per game but he continues to stuff stat sheets night in and night out.

Marion’s field goal percentage is nearly 50% this year which pretty much coincides with his career average. His free throw shooting is at 88% but he isn’t getting to the line quite enough to make a significant impact there. Marion will continue to receive thirty minutes per game and with it will come the 7-8 rebounds and the steals and blocks which are always so useful. The former UNLV product is available in over half of fantasy leagues and he does offer small forward and power forward position eligibility.

Blackmon In Week 16?

Justin Blackmon has been playing significantly better in the second half of the season and makes an intriguing WR3/FLEX start in week 16.

Analysis: Justin Blackmon recorded 6 receptions for 93 yards Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. This was Blackmon’s second consecutive 6 reception game and second consecutive game with 11 or more targets. Blackmon is becoming a focal point in the Jacksonville offense and week 16 should be more of the same with a match-up at home against New England. We all know New England should score tons of points against the Jags next week and that means a lot of second half “junk” fantasy points for Blackmon.

At the moment Justin Blackmon is owned in seventy percent of fantasy leagues and is being started in thirty percent of them. It is a bit of a gamble to start Blackmon but his consistency is improving. He’s caught at least five balls in four of his last five games and tight end Marcedes Lewis seems to be phased out of the Jacksonville offense. It’s risky but week 16 against New England does figure to be a high target, six plus reception game from Blackmon.

Last Call On Jason Thompson

Jason Thompson is one of the hottest power forwards in the NBA and the fantasy world is taking notice.

Analysis: Jason Thompson has outperformed Kenneth Faried, DeMarcus Cousins and Carlos Boozer thus far this year. Faried, Cousins and Boozer are all owned in 100% of fantasy leagues while Thompson is not. Faried doesn’t hit free throws, Cousins’ field goal percentage is a joke(42%) and Boozer is simply overrated. Yet Thompson remains available in half of leagues and continues to be an under the radar fantasy performer at this point in the season. He’s averaging 7.8 RPG, 1.0 BPG, 11.1 PPG and he’s shooting 51% from the field this year. His free throw shooting is respectable(73%) and he has been getting to the line more as of late.

Thompson is getting about thirty minutes of floor time over the past few weeks and he’s taking advantage of it. Thompson is averaging 9.9 boards per game in the month of December, that is impressive. He isn’t a flashy player on a big market team which is why he isn’t universally owned but he does produce when given the minutes.