Fantasy Football's Real and Surreal of Week Six

I don’t want to brag, but…

Isn’t that Dallas Cowboys article looking good? If the playoffs ended today, the Cowboys, with their 4-3 record, would be the third team looking out of the last wild card slot. (Chicago and Green Bay are ahead of them in the conference rankings, but neither of them would make the playoffs.) With safety Roy Williams now out for the year, it’s looking more and more likely that the ‘Boys will miss the playoffs.

Here’s week six’s real and surreal, starting with the Cowboys game.

Dallas-St. Louis

Steven Jackson: After his three-touchdown performance this past week, SJax now has four scores to go along with an average of 150 total yards in his past four games. He’s had over 25 touches in each of those games, so you know he’ll get the load of the carries. SJax started off the year with a disappointing first two games, but he’s been one of the best backs since then. He gets the Patriots, Jets and 49ers in three of the next four weeks (with Arizona, a quietly underrated defense, being the fourth team), so he’s definitely real and a top-five back going forward.

Donnie Avery: Sure, he had 60 yards and a touchdown. But he also had a 21-yard touchdown catch nullified due to a penalty. Add in that catch, and Avery has averaged 75 total yards and a score in his past three games. His receptions have gone up each of the past two weeks, and he has an easy schedule (see above) in the next couple of games. If he’s available on your waiver wire, snatch him up right now.

Jason Witten, Terrell Owens, Roy Williams: Don’t worry. Brad Johnson was the quarterback. Tony Romo should return this week, and he’ll get the ball to them. Witten and Williams both had their worst game of the year last week (it was TO’s second-worst), but Johnson was targeting Martellus Bennett and Miles Austin instead of them.

Tennessee-Kansas City

Chris Johnson: Take away his 66-yard carry, and he still gained six yards per attempt. That’s how good Johnson was against the lowly Chiefs. His rushing yards had gone down each week from week two through week five, until his bust-out game this week. His week-to-week carry totals are outstandingly consistent, so at least you can count on him to get 15-20 carries any one week. It’s tough to classify Johnson as either real or surreal, so I’ll just say that his game wasn’t a fluke, but don’t expect any other 160-yard games from here on out.

LenDale White: Wow. How was White untouched on his 80-yard touchdown run? According to SI, LenDale ran a 4.65 40 time at the Combine. LenDale didn’t have a rush for more than 10 yards besides his 80-yard run, so his yardage total was definitely surreal. But what I’m paying more attention to are his three touchdowns. White has eight touchdowns in six games (only five games if you exclude week five, when he only had three carries). The TDs are real. Expect him to get at least one a game. Seriously.

Dwayne Bowe/Tony Gonzalez: Brodie Croyle is out for the year, and Damon Huard was just placed on the IR. Yes, Tyler Thigpen is the Chiefs QB. Downgrade both Bowe and Gonzalez, but not by much: Gonzo had an average of about 40 yards and had a touchdown in the two games Thigpen had much playing time (weeks two and three), and Bowe had an average of 65 yards and had a score in those two weeks.

Kolby Smith/Jamaal Charles : You want neither this week, even though Larry Johnson is suspended. Simple.

Indianapolis-Green Bay

Peyton Manning: Paging Peyton Manning, paging Peyton Manning….Currently the No. 13 quarterback on the year, and behind players such as brother Eli, Matt Schaub (who has played one less game than Peyton), Kyle Orton, and Jason Campbell, Peyton seemed to get his groove back, a la Stella, last week against the Ravens—but I guess he lost it against the Packers, throwing for only 230 yards with no scores and two picks. Green Bay is currently No. 10 against opposing passers in terms of fantasy points per game, but still, that shouldn’t matter when you’re Peyton Manning. Let’s hope this week was surreal for Peyton.

Ryan Grant: You see 100 yards and a touchdown. I see a 3.4 YPC-performance against the seventh-worst defense against running backs. Since week two, Grant has a 2.98 YPC, dreadful for a top pick in preseason drafts. Yes, he’s had 83 yards or more in each of the past three weeks, but he’s needed 82 carries, good for only 3.3 YPC. If I owned him, I would try and trade him high and sell his “83 yards or more in each of the past three weeks” stat.