Golden Tate's Updated 2014 Fantasy Outlook Heading into Week 6

With Calvin Johnson's status for Sunday in serious doubt, Golden Tate is becoming a more and more valuable fantasy football commodity.

Johnson's dealt with a sprained ankle for the better part of the 2014 season, and it's seriously limited his performance. Since exploding for seven receptions, 164 yards and two touchdowns in Week 2, the Detroit Lions star has collected a combined 15 receptions for 184 yards.

Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reported that the Lions listed Johnson as doubtful for Week 6. Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com also reported that Johnson didn't practice on Friday, which is more evidence indicating he'll be absent when the Lions take on the Minnesota Vikings:

All of this is to say that the stage is there for Tate to position himself as a bona fide fantasy stud. His production has already seen a nice uptick as Johnson's ankle has become a larger and larger problem.

Week	Rec.	Targets	Yards	Avg.	TDs
1	6	6	93	15.5	0
2	5	8	57	11.4	0
3	5	7	51	10.2	0
4	8	11	116	14.5	0
5	7	9	134	19.1	1

Lions head coach Jim Caldwell picked out Tate's agility and acceleration as setting him apart from many receivers in the league, per ESPN.com's Michael Rothstein:

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He's probably one of the quickest guys that you will see from a start-and-stop standpoint. He does that so quickly that it's difficult to tackle him, to get a bead on him. You think he's going in one direction and all of a sudden he puts the brakes on and he's headed (in another direction) or he spins out of it. He has an uncanny knack for that. Pretty special quality and trait. You don't see it much.

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At this point, it should be obvious that Tate is a must-start in almost all formats. That statement rings even truer for as long as Johnson is out/hobbled. Tate owners are well aware of this fact.

The more intriguing question is whether or not those without Tate should try to make a trade to pick up the Lions' emerging wideout.

NFL.com's Marcas Grant believes that those owners should strike while the iron is hot:

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With Calvin Johnson hobbled and possibly sitting out Detroit's Week 6 contest, more targets will come Tate's way. Tate proved he could be a reliable pass-catcher during his time in Seattle and is showing it in a bigger way in the Motor City. The former Golden Domer is earning the trust of Matthew Stafford each and every week—something that isn't likely to fade once Megatron is back in action. The time to make a move for Tate is now, before another big game forces his value to go up.

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Be careful, however. Whatever secret still surrounded Tate is quickly disappearing. Don't overpay for him off the back of two games. He didn't exactly set the world ablaze with the Seattle Seahawks. By all means, pull the trigger on a deal if you believe you're getting fair value.

As Grant points out, this is likely the last week when you could acquire Tate for a reasonable amount. With another big game, the former Notre Dame star will likely be too costly.

The only potential snag for Tate looking ahead is whether or not he'll thrive as the Lions' top option. Through the first five weeks, he's had Johnson there deflecting the secondary's attention.

While Megatron's been limited over the last two weeks, his mere presence on the field helped make Tate's job a little easier. It's not like the defense can completely ignore the best wide receiver in the league, even if he's not 100 percent.

Sport's On Earth's Ross Tucker thinks Tate should be fine at least in Week 6 because of the problems Vikings cornerbacks Xavier Rhodes and Captain Munnerlyn are experiencing in 2014:

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Meanwhile, on the Vikings side, Rhodes has been inconsistent this year, while Munnerlyn has been consistently awful (last week, Aaron Rodgers posted a 158.3 QB rating on him when he covered the slot). These two are being taxed in man-to-man coverage (maybe they're still getting used to Mike Zimmer's defense) and will have to learn to communicate better with the rest of the Minnesota secondary. Otherwise, Tate's going to have another huge week.

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Much of Tate's value in Week 7 and beyond is tied to the health of Johnson. There's no reason to expect Tate's numbers to drop precipitously in the event Megatron returns to 100 percent and assumes his role as the top fantasy wideout again.

Tate and Stafford are building a strong relationship, and that will go a long way toward getting him the number of targets to ensure he remains a steady WR1 or high-end WR2. Johnson's presence will determine whether it's the former or the latter.