Boom or Bust

Predicting the players who will break out or fail to meet expectations

Denver Broncos Defense-Boom: The Broncos face the Browns this week who have a depleted roster, especially on offense. Expect the Broncos to attack and take advantage of the Browns’ backups.

DJ Moore, WR, Carolina Panthers-Boom: Moore opened the season on fire with multiple 20+ point games to open the season but has struggled to put up double digits over the past two weeks. However, expect Moore to look like he did at the beginning of the year against a weak secondary for the Giants.

Leonard Fournette, RB, Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Bust: The Bucs play a stingy Bears’ defense that has stopped the run all year. Expect Fournette to have a significant drop off from his 30 point performance a week ago. 

Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals-Bust: Burrow will face the Baltimore Ravens this week after a strong showing in which the Ravens held Justin Herbert to his lowest scoring game so far. This could cause Burrow’s Bengals to struggle to find the endzone.

Start or Bench

Deciding the best players to play this week

Hunter Henry, TE, New England Patriots-Start: Henry has scored a touchdown three weeks in a row for the Patriots. It seems that he has found his groove in the Mac Jones-led offense and should continue the production this week against the Jets. 

Darnell Mooney, WR, Chicago Bears-Start: Mooney plays a Tampa Bay defense that has been susceptible to the passing attack this year. He has scored 15+ in two of his last three games making him a viable flex option this week. 

Melvin Gordon, RB, Denver Broncos-Bench: Unlike their offense, the Browns’ defense has not lost all of their top players to injury, which keeps them as a tough defense for any opponent. Look for Gordon to struggle against them. 

Taylor Heinicke, QB, Washington Football Team-Bench: The Heinicke hype has seemed to die down in recent weeks, and after a bad performance against a weak Chiefs’ defense, it’s time to end the experiment of having him as a viable starting QB. 

Best Pickups

Finding players on the waiver wire to best impact your team

D’Ernest Johnson, RB, Cleveland Browns: With Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt both out for at least a week, Johnson will step in as the main guy for the Browns. His ownership percentage has gone up from 0.1% to 48.3% this week in ESPN leagues, so get him while you still can.

A.J. Green, WR, Arizona Cardinals: Coming into the season, many believed Green was washed and no longer the star he used to be. However, Green has found a consistent role in the Cardinals’ offense to make him a worthy bench receiver. 36.6% owned in ESPN leagues.

Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR, Cleveland Browns: Due to the health uncertainty of Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry, Peoples-Jones could become the top wide receiver for the Browns. A 26 point performance last week will certainly help his case. 3.7% owned in ESPN leagues.

Injury News

Staying up to date on the latest injuries in the NFL

Baker Mayfield, QB, Cleveland Browns: Mayfield aggravated a nagging shoulder injury last week that will put him out for Thursday’s game against the Broncos.

Nick Chubb, RB, Cleveland Browns: Chubb did not play against the Cardinals due to a calf injury and will be sidelined again this week.

Kareem Hunt, RB, Cleveland Browns: Hunt joined fellow Brown Nick Chubb with a calf injury, but his injury is more severe. He was placed on IR and is out 3-6 weeks.

Damien Williams, RB, Chicago Bears: Williams missed last week’s game due to a positive COVD-19 test. His status for this week will come down to him testing negative for COVID twice before the game.