Matthew Stafford, Golden Tate, Eric Ebron's Post-Week 6 Fantasy Reaction

No Reggie Bush? No Calvin Johnson? No problem for the Detroit Lions in Week 6 against the Minnesota Vikings and the obvious growing pains of rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

Wide receiver Golden Tate didn't score much for fantasy owners, despite putting in a solid day of work, while the normally prolific Matthew Stafford and struggling rookie tight end Eric Ebron did little to distinguish themselves, despite ample opportunities to do so.

Jim Mone/Associated Press

Stafford threw for just 185 yards and one touchdown. Ebron reeled in two of those passes for 23 yards. With just seven touchdowns through six games this season, Stafford's been quite disappointing for fantasy owners expecting the type of signal-caller that threw for 29 touchdowns in 2013.

CMP/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT
19/33	185	5.6	1	0

Tate was Stafford's main option and reeled in seven catches, but they amounted to a measly 44 yards. Still, he received a healthy amount of targets and already has two 100-yard receiving performances on the season, making him a viable starter despite the down week.  

Player	REC	TGTS	YDS	AVG	TD
Ebron	2	4	23	11.5	0
Tate	7	12	44	6.3	0

Kyle Meinke of MLive.com notes that Stafford is working with a suspect offensive line this season and can't be completely faulted for the diminished output:

Ebron has just one touchdown on the year and still isn't garnering a healthy amount of targets as he adjusts to the pro game.

Tate is a solid WR1 option for fantasy purposes while Johnson is out, despite the middling performance against the Vikings. He drops to no less than a WR2 when Megatron comes back, as he's been extremely reliable this season.

Ebron is taking his time to acclimate to the NFL, and at this early point, his vast potential remains unfulfilled. He's worth a bench option with a solid tight end option in front of him to see if he continues to develop, but the Lions offense isn't consistent enough for him to crack the starting lineup right now.

Ann Heisenfelt/Associated Press

Stafford's arm strength and ability to make every NFL throw is certainly tantalizing, but he's hardly been effective with some of his best skill players injured.

Normally a lock as a QB1, Stafford is still worth keeping, but it may be time for him to ride the pine for a couple weeks if there is a more consistent quarterback option available on your fantasy team. Once Johnson and Bush are healthy again, Stafford becomes a must-start in the majority of fantasy football leagues based on his sterling pedigree.