NFL Target & Percentage Ownership Report: Week 6

Running Backs (Week 6)

Le'Veon Bell – Death, taxes and Le'Veon Bell leading off this article on a weekly basis when he is active are the three surest things in life. Bell caught a whopping nine passes last week on a whopping 11 targets and played 63 of the team's 76 snaps. Now the Steelers will square off against a Dolphins defense that ranks middle of the pack against opposing backs but it almost does not matter. With Bell's skill set, he can/should get it done against anyone and Ben Roethlisberger is significantly less effective on the road. Therefore, the team will look to ride Bell to victory and he should see enough touches of all varieties to prove cash viable at the very least (as per usual).

Lamar Miller – If there ever was a week when Lamar Miller was going to snap out of his mediocrity, this would be the week in a matchup against the lowly Colts. Jordan Howard just torched the Colts for 100-plus rushing yards and 28 DraftKings/FantasyDraft fantasy points last week and the Colts are now allowing the third most fantasy points to opposing backs per game. Most importantly, the Colts have surrendered the most receiving TDs to the RB position (three) and the fourth most receiving yards. So far, Miller has hauled in 14 passes on 17 targets so this matchup is quite obviously conducive to his all-around skill set. Additionally, only the Cowboys, Raiders, Lions and Redskins have allowed more yards per carry (YPC) than the Colts' 4.6. Although Miller has yet to find the end zone, he has the opportunity to post a respective fantasy score in multiple ways this week (100-plus rushing yard bonus, multiple receptions) even if he fails to score. Assuming he manages to finally find the end zone, which is certainly possible, he could be in for a monster evening.

Jordan Howard – For the second consecutive week, Jordan Howard played exactly 63 snaps. On both occasions, the 63 snaps accounted for more than 88-percent of the offensive plays run. In fact, during that span, other RBs have played a combined eight snaps total. Howard is simply dominating the snaps which has proved to be incredibly valuable in daily fantasy football. He is involved in the passing game, short yardage and even goal line work so his floor is incredibly high on a weekly basis. Also, Howard has averaged at least 4.8 yards per carry (YPC) in every game so far this season including 7.4 last week against the Colts. His price went up and the difficulty of the matchup increased but he's still a very difficult fade at nearly $2,000 less than the elites on DraftKings (DK).

Ryan Mathews – The return of Ryan Mathews in Week 5 led to the total evaporation of Wendell Smallwood's role that he had seemingly earned in Week 4. Coach Doug Pederson eliminated all doubt that the backfield is Mathews' and Darren Sproles' to share when they are both healthy. While Sproles led the team in snaps (34), Mathews wasn't far behind (25) and his role projects more favorably this upcoming week. Only three teams have allowed seven-plus TDs and one of them is the Eagles' Week 6 opponent: the Redskins. Beyond just the scores, the Redskins have also allowed the third most rushing yards to opposing RBs. Clearly, the “pound it on the ground" type backs have fared better in this matchup than the scat backs (like Sproles) and Mathews has very little competition in his current role. Oh by the way Mathews caught five passes for 42 yards last week as well so there is just a ton to like about him in this game.

T.J. Yeldon – In London, T.J. Yeldon vastly outplayed Chris Ivory and seemed to have separated himself as the team's clear number one back moving forward with his performance. For a guy who has averaged 5.75 targets per game, he is vastly underpriced on both DK and FantasyDraft (FDr). If Ivory were to get hot or the offensive line were give out once again, his floor could prove to be uncomfortably low. For that reason, even with the projected work in the passing game, Yeldon is best suited for GPPs. Assuming all goes well, he could compete for the lead in terms of fantasy-points-per-dollar at the position.

Wide Receivers (Week 6)

A.J. Green – Starting this article with Antonio Brown is the normal reflex but Brown is priced $1,100 more than any other receiver on DK. Essentially, rostering him absolutely hampers a lineup everywhere else and he would need to produce as WR1 by a large margin to justify the price. On the other hand, A.J. Green is priced at an affordable $8,600 against a Patriots defense whose statistics are inflated after back-to-back matchups against the Bills (sans Sammy Watkins) and the Browns. None of the Patriots corners have graded inside the top 45 at their position, per Pro Football Focus. Common perception is that the Patriots shut down opposing number one options but that hasn't been the case this year; they rank 17^th in terms of Football Outsiders' defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA) statistic against opposing number one WRs. With the Bengals listed as 8.5 point underdogs, game flow will play perfectly towards earning Green double-digit targets. When he receives that sort of volume, he generally produces.

Larry Fitzgerald – Carson Palmer is expected to suit up in Week 6 which is excellent news for Larry Fitzgerald and the Cardinals passing game. To this point, the Jets have allowed the ninth most fantasy points to opposing WRs and they have struggled mightily against second and third options. This is noteworthy because Fitzgerald has lined up in the slot 71-percent of the time this year. In other words, he will not be the one drawing the difficult matchup even if Darrelle Revis suits up (and he has been horrendous this year so it doesn't matter). Fitzgerald was targeted 10-plus times in each of his first three games and his floor this year has been 11.30 fantasy points. With Palmer active, he should come closer to approaching his 2016 ceiling (28.10 fantasy points) than his floor.

Alshon Jeffery – On consecutive weeks, Eddie Royal and Cameron Meredith have gone off in the Bears passing game so fantasy owners are likely sick of rostering Alshon Jeffery. Overlooking him this week would be a mistake against a Jaguars team lacking a true number one corner. In his last two games, people forget Jeffery has squared off against Darius Slay and Vontae Davis so a downtick in production was to be expected. The Jaguars' top corner, Prince Amukamara, is a formidable opponent but he hasn't graded inside the top 30 at his position this season. Consequently, the Jaguars rank 20^th in Football Outsiders' DVOA versus opposing team's number one WR. In home games where the Bears have been listed as one point underdogs or better, Jeffery has averaged 16.15 fantasy points and 5.41 RECs. Outside the split, Jeffery has only averaged 14.65 fantasy points and 4.66 RECs. Rostering him feels like a risky proposition due to his struggles but he is actually a solid contrarian investment in large field GPPs in Week 6.

Jarvis Landry – Coach Adam Gase made a gigantic mistake last week in only targeting Jarvis Landry three times. When Landry is firing on all cylinders, the offense usually does as well. Overall, last week should be considered as nothing more than an anomaly. Hell, Landry has caught 194 passes over the last two seasons and had been targeted in the double-digits in every game this season prior to Week 5's dud. His opponent, the Steelers, have allowed above-average outputs in terms of DVOA to both number one and two receivers this year. Yet again, the Dolphins are listed as substantial underdogs (7.5 points) and the Dolphins are actually in a sneaky spot to cover the spread (Steelers do not fare nearly as well on the road). If the odds-makers are proved to be right, the Dolphins will have to continue to throw to remain in the game. If they are wrong, the Dolphins running game has only attempted the third fewest attempts so they will probably rely on the passing attack anyways. All-in-all, this sets up as a perfect situation for Landry to haul in seven-plus passes for the fifth time in six games.

Marquise Goodwin – Listed at minimum price on both DK and FDr, Marquise Goodwin needs to catch just one long pass to absolutely crush value. Goodwin's skill set resembles a poor man's DeSean Jackson as he is relied upon as a deep threat. He has been targeted at least five times in each game this season but those have only led to six total receptions (RECs) and two TDs. Meanwhile, the 49ers defense has already allowed seven receiving TDs to opposing WRs. Although Goodwin's skill set is volatile in nature, he is worth a shot at this nearly free price tag.

Tight Ends (Week 6)

Greg Olsen – Right now, Greg Olsen simply cannot be faded as he is emerging as this year's Rob Gronkowski and/or Jordan Reed. Olsen already led the position in fantasy points per game heading into Week 5 and he put up 30.10 fantasy points with Derek Anderson under center. At this point, the QB is irrelevant to Olsen's success as he has managed at least 12.40 fantasy points in each week so far. New Orleans has shown improvement against opposing TEs this year but it should be noted they allowed the absolute most fantasy points to the position in 2015. Most are going to spend up on Gronkowski so Olsen could even prove to be a contrarian option which would be absurd. If multi-lineuping, make sure to include Olsen in at least one.

Rob Gronkowski – In Tom Brady's first game back, Rob Gronkowski eclipsed 100 yards receiving and looked like his normal, dominant self. For the season, the Bengals rank as one of the toughest opponents for opposing TEs but Gronkowski is not your “Average Joe." Without scoring, Gronkowski managed 18.90 fantasy points last week and he averages the most TDs per game of any player in history so a score is likely on the horizon. What else is there really to say about the guy? He's a stud even in a less-than-ideal matchup.

Delanie Walker – Speaking of ideal matchups, Delanie Walker will draw the same Browns who were torched last week by the duo of Gronkowski and Martellus Bennett. While Marcus Mariota only averages barely over 30 passing attempts per game, Walker is clearly the top pass-catching option the team has to offer. He has been banged up this year but is only a year removed from the league lead in RECs at the position. The Browns are a mess, and DeMarco Murray is going to get his on the ground, but Walker should give the defense fits as well. Since the beginning of last year, the Titans have been favored exactly two times in games Walker has played and he has averaged 20.45 fantasy points during those contests. Note: the Titans are listed as 7.5 point favorites at home in this one.

Jimmy Graham – The concern with Jimmy Graham heading into the year was he may never be the same against following patellar tendon surgery…because not all guys fully recover. Since he has now posted 100-plus yard outings in back-to-back games, consider me a believer. The Falcons have allowed both the fourth most receiving yards and sixth most receiving TDs (nine) to opposing TEs so Graham should have a feast once again.

Jacob Tamme – One area of susceptibility in the Seahawks defense is against TEs and the trend dates back to last season. Jacob Tamme is both incredibly cheap ($2,800 on DK, $5,600 on FDr) and playing on one of the best passing offenses in the league to this point. Even against arguably the NFL's toughest passing defense, Matt Ryan managed 271 yards passing in Week 5. Tamme's targets have dropped over the past two weeks but those were due to two difficult matchups. Against the Seahawks, he should positively regress back around the 6.0 targets he was receiving over the first two weeks. At his basement price tag, what is there to lose?