Bilal Powell looked fantastic on Sunday against the Jaguars as he ran for 163 yards.
Credit: @YahooSports
There were a lot of exciting games in Week Four of the NFL season, and that usually translates into some really nice fantasy performances. This week we saw Deshaun Watson tie the rookie quarterback record with five touchdowns against the Tennessee Titans, and Cam Newton looked like his old-self when he took down Tom Brady and the Patriots on the road. Plenty of running backs put up big numbers while some star wide receivers were barely thrown to. These are some of their best performances from Week Four.
Deshaun Watson, QB Houston Texans:
The star rookie lit up the Tennessee defense on Sunday and was able to tie the rookie record for quarterback touchdowns with five. Watson threw for a season high four touchdowns and also added one on the ground to help the Houston Texans get to a franchise record 57 points scored in the victory. It was truly a remarkable game and will end up being one of his best games in what looks to be a long career. Watson’s 33.7 fantasy points makes him the highest scoring player at the time of this writing and now becomes a realistic starting option for any team. He is available in almost 80 percent of leagues on ESPN.com and will probably be a popular waiver wire add this week. The young quarterback looks to have the same value that Dak Prescott had last season and could be a solid play most weeks while playing in arguably the NFL’s weakest division.
Le’Veon Bell, RB Pittsburgh Steelers:
For the first three weeks of the season, Bell ranked as the 15th best running back in standard scoring and did not look like the elite runner who was drafted within the first two picks in most leagues. Owners were greatly rewarded for their patience with an incredible 39 touches totaling 186 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns. This was truly the Le’Veon Bell show as fellow superstar Antonio Brown disapointed with only four catches. The veteran running back wasn’t extremely efficient (4.1 yards per carry), but owners drafted Bell knowing that he’ll receive a ton of touches each week and when you receive 39 touches, efficiency doesn’t matter all that much. The Steelers don’t have the easiest schedule down the stretch but with Bell’s prowess in the passing game, he is matchup proof. Look for the elite running back to put up huge numbers the rest of the year and reward owners for drafting him so high.
Bilal Powell, RB New York Jets:
With veteran running back Matt Forte out for this contest, Powell got a season high 21 carries and turned it into a solid 25 fantasy points in standard scoring. The highlight of his day was Powell’s 75-yard touchdown run in the first quarter and then finished the game with 163 yards on the ground. Powell was drafted around the sixth round in most leagues and so far has not had a lot of value when Matt Forte is in the lineup. The 28-year old running back has been a great fill in when given the starting job over the last two seasons so it would be in the Jets best interest to give him the majority of the carries for the rest of the season. For now, if the injury to Forte keeps him out any longer, the speedy Powell is a fringe RB1 going into a nice matchup against the Cleveland Browns.
Devin Funchess, WR Carolina Panthers:
Week Four was most certainly not great for wide receivers, especially for some of the more elite names. At the time of this writing, no wide receiver has topped 19.5 standard scoring points and there were no eye popping performances to speak of. One of the best showings on Sunday was the play of the Carolina Panthers offense, and yes, most of the highlights were from Cam Newton, but Devin Funchess was on the receiving end of the quarterbacks great game and looked fantastic. Hopeful owners have been waiting quite some time for the big wide receiver to have a breakout game, and they got just that against the Patriots when Funchess hauled in two touchdowns and had a team high seven receptions. With tight end Greg Olsen out, it seems that Funchess will be looked upon to use his size to fill that role, and in the red zone Cam looked for the third year receiver often. Funchess is available in almost 90 percent of leagues on ESPN.com and will possibly be the top waiver wire add this week.
Cam Newton, QB Carolina Panthers:
Now it’s time to talk about the man throwing Devin Funchess the ball. Opposing quarterbacks have feasted upon the Patriots defense this year, and Cam Newton took full advantage of the matchup. After having a horrible game against a mediocre Saints defense in Week Three, Cam made sure he didn’t disappoint a second time. Super Cam was out in full force on Sunday as the veteran quarterback threw for 316 yards and three touchdowns, and also added a rushing touchdown for the second time in two weeks. This was the first 300 yard passing game for Cam since Week 15 of 2016. It may be best to leave him on the bench next week against a tough Lions defense, but Newton has one of the easiest schedules in the league and some owners will be hoping for a return of the 2015 MVP version of the quarterback, because he certainly looked like it this week.
Todd Gurley, RB Los Angeles:
It seems like Todd Gurley has always been a hot topic in fantasy football, whether that be for great performances, or when he looked absolutely terrible for all of last season. Anyone who drafted Gurley hoping for a rebound year is looking like a genius right about now. After Sundays win against the Cowboys, Gurley is up to seven touchdowns through four games and already has two 100-yard rushing performances. The Rams have looked absolutely fantastic under new head coach Sean McVay and have one of the best offenses in the league with the run game and pass game both clicking. The emergence of young quarterback Jared Goff has taken a lot of defensive pressure off of Gurley, making the third year runner look like he did when he burst onto the scene in his rookie season. The Rams didn’t expect to do much this year, but after a victory against Dallas this week, Gurley could be called upon to carry his team the rest of the year and possibly into the playoffs. Todd Gurley is an elite RB1 and is heavily rewarding owners who believed in him.
