Bears RB Khalil Herbert had easily his best outing of the season in the Week 4 loss to the Broncos. He led Chicago with 18 carries and 103 yards, a strong 5.7 yards per carry. Herbert also caught four of five targets for 19 yards and a TD. Herbert played well -- and played well ahead of RB Roschon Johnson, who finished with five carries and one target. But this game was more about Denver's pathetic defense than anything in Chicago's offense. Herbert is a potential sell-high this week if you can find a competitor that views him as a top-25 RB. He gets a tougher draw against the Commanders in Week 5, although that's followed by plus matchups vs. the Vikings, Raiders, and Chargers.
Bears QB Justin Fields turned in an elite passing line vs. the Broncos in Week 4: 28-of-35 (80%) for 335 yards (9.6 YPA), four TDs, and one INT. The passing yards and TDs were career bests. Fields ran just four times for 25 yards ... because he didn't need to run. There were Bears pass catchers running wide open all day. Credit to Fields for hitting the open guys. But this game was more about Denver's defense than Fields' performance. We'll see if this outing kick starts his season, but Fields unfortunately won't get to play the Broncos again this year. He gets a middling Commanders defense in Week 5 before three straight plus matchups against the Vikings, Raiders, and Chargers.
Bills RB James Cook scored his first TD of the season in Sunday’s win over Miami. He saw three goal line opportunities and covered one from one yard out. It’s a positive development for Cook, who entered with only three goal line carries on the season. He’ll remain a near must-start for Sunday’s home matchup with Jacksonville.
Bills WR Stefon Diggs tallied 3 TDs in a Week 4 win over Miami. Diggs' highlights included one scramble drill score; another on a downfield ball that turned up some horrible tackle attempts by Miami DBs. The veteran has now hit 6+ catches in four straight. Next up is a home matchup with Jacksonville.
Broncos WR Marvin Mims played 17 of 48 offensive snaps in Sunday's win over the Bears, according to Pro Football Focus. That's 35.4% -- not great, but a new season high for the rookie. Mims' 12 pass routes tied for third among Denver WRs with Brandon Johnson, behind Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy. That's not nearly enough playing time to make Mims a reliable fantasy play, but he's at least trending in the right direction. He remains worth stashing in fantasy leagues of 12+ teams. Mims was efficient again vs. Chicago, catching both of his targets for 47 yards.
Commanders WR Terry McLaurin led the team in targets (10), receptions (8), and receiving yards (86) in Sunday's OT loss at Philadelphia. Those marked season highs in each category. WR Jahan Dotson followed with 9 targets, catching four for just 27 yards. But he nabbed QB Sam Howell's lone TD pass at the end of regulation to push the game to OT. McLaurin remains the only Washington WR in serious lineup consideration and gets an upside matchup with the Bears in Week 5.
Commanders QB Sam Howell threw for 290 yards and a TD -- with 0 INTs -- in Sunday's OT loss at Philadelphia. He found WR Jahan Dotson for the game-tying score at the end of the fourth quarter but watched the team's other two TDs get scored on the ground. Howell added 40 rushing yards on 6 carries. That more than doubled his rushing-yardage total from any of the first three games. It was an encouraging outing for the second-year QB, especially after his brutal 4-INT performance in Week 3. Howell carries some superflex and deep-league appeal into a Week 5 home date with Chicago.
Dolphins RB De'Von Achane scored twice in a Week 4 loss to Buffalo. In fact, Achane scored on his first two carries. He added 5 targets, tied for second-most and a 14.2% team share. On the ground, he led the way with 7 attempts – one more than Raheem Mostert. The takeaway here is that Achane continues to be used creatively, and it’s clear his speed will be a weekly part of the game plan. Fire him up as an RB2 for Sunday’s matchup vs. the Giants.
RB Jaleel McLaughlin led the Broncos with seven carries and 72 rushing yards in Sunday's win over the Bears. RB Javonte Williams was knocked out early in the second quarter with a hip injury. McLaughlin tallied six carries and two targets the rest of the way to RB Samaje Perine’s five carries and two targets. McLaughlin was clearly the more explosive back, ripping off a 31-yard run and an 18-yard TD catch. Don't expect McLaughlin to dominate backfield work if Williams misses time. But based on what we saw today, it looks like he'd be the better fantasy play than Perine.
Commanders RB Brian Robinson Jr. gained just 45 yards on 14 carries (4.2 per rush) in Sunday's OT loss to the Eagles. But he scored one of Washington's two rushing TDs. (WR Curtis Samuel delivered the other from 1 yard out.) Robinson added 2 receptions for 6 yards on 2 targets. Robinson nearly had another TD as well, but he fumbled near the goal line and watched teammate Terry McLaurin recover it for the score. Antonio Gibson remained behind him in both phases, going just 6-19 rushing with one catch for 7 yards. Robinson gets a much more favorable matchup with Chicago in Week 5, then a tougher spot at Atlanta but another upside matchup at the Giants in Week 7.
It took a while for QB Russell Wilson and the Broncos offense to get rolling in Chicago. He hit halftime with just 88 passing yards and one TD. But, down 21 to 7, Denver went pass-heavy in the second half. Wilson delivered another 135 yards and two scores, leading the Broncos to a 31 to 28 comeback win. It hasn't always been pretty, but Wilson has averaged 254 yards and 2.3 TDs per game through the first four weeks. He's playing reasonably well -- and Denver's awful defense is creating shootout environments. Wilson won't be a recommended QB1 vs. the Jets in Week 5. But the next three weeks bring doable matchup vs. the Chiefs, Packers, and Chiefs again.
Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill managed only 3 grabs for 58 yards in Sunday's loss to Buffalo. Credit a tough Bills defense for dialing up pressure on Tua Tagovailoa, limiting Hill's opportunities. His 5 targets marked his fewest since Week 3 of last season (vs. Buffalo). Look for a rebound next week at home vs. the Giants, who will play on short rest.
Panthers TE Hayden Hurst played a season-low 51.4% of snaps in Sunday's loss to the Vikings. It was his third game of 55% or less through four weeks, marking a downturn vs. his season high 61% in Week 4. Hurst did run a route on 65% of QB Bryce Young's dropbacks, in line with his passing-game involvement the previous three games. But fellow TE Tommy Tremble played a season-high 43.1% of snaps, including a season-high route rate. TE Ian Thomas also set season highs in playing time and pass routes. Hurst remained the lead receiving option among Carolina TEs, but he's not getting used at a high enough level to start in fantasy outside of deep leagues. He's even droppable in many spots.
Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins snagged 4 of 6 targets for 63 yards in Sunday’s win vs. the Bengals. Teammate Nick Westbrook-Ikhine hauled in a TD in the contest to go along with 5 catches and 51 yards of his own. Despite WR Treylon Burks missing Week 4, TE Chigoziem Okonkwo didn’t factor into the passing game very much. He only saw 3 targets turn into 5.9 PPR points. Next up for the Titans is a Week 5 matchup vs. the Colts.
Titans RB Derrick Henry dominated the RB workshare in Week 4 vs. the Bengals. The veteran back recorded 22 carries for 122 yards and 1 rushing TD in a game where his rookie teammate Tyjae Spears saw just 6 attempts. To make matters even better, fantasy managers got a bonus passing TD from Henry off of a trick play at the end of the second quarter. Spears had recently been eating into Henry’s workload and playing a considerable number of snaps, so we’ll see if this is more of a fluke or a trend next week vs. the Colts.
Titans QB Ryan Tannehill completed 18 of 25 passes for 240 yards with 1 TD and INT apiece in Week 4 vs. the Bengals. He also added 11 rushing yards in the victory. While this performance was good enough for an actual NFL win, Tannehill remains off of the fantasy radar in 1QB formats. Managers may consider him in superflex leagues next week vs. the Colts.
Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase roped in 7 of 9 targets for 73 yards vs. the Titans in Week 4. His teammate Tyler Boyd (4 receptions, 26 yards) is the only other player to record more than 2 catches in the loss. That group unfortunately includes Tee Higgins, who saw just 2 catches for 19 yards before leaving with a rib injury. This offense has been off to a slow start in 2023 due in large part to QB Joe Burrow’s calf injury. They’ll have a chance to improve in Week 5 vs. the Cardinals.
Bengals RB Joe Mixon totaled 14 carries for 67 yards in Week 4’s loss vs. the Titans. He also had one catch for 9 yards in the game. Given the challenging nature of the matchup, we weren’t expecting much from Mixon this week. He’ll have a much softer opponent in Week 5 as the team prepares to face the Cardinals.
Bengals QB Joe Burrow struggled again in Week 4, completing 20 of 30 attempts for only 165 passing yards with no TDs or INTs. This offense struggled to get much of anything going in their loss vs. the Titans. Thus far into the season, the Bengals are one of two remaining teams who have yet to score a TD in the first half of a game. It’s fair to wonder at this point if fantasy managers can even trust Burrow in 1QB leagues until he’s deemed fully healthy and his calf injury is behind him. Next week, they’ll have a chance to turn things around against the Cardinals.
Panthers WR Adam Thielen snagged 7 receptions for 76 yards in Sunday's loss to the Vikings. He trailed Terrace Marshall in targets (10-8) and catches but led the team in receiving yards. It was Thielen's third straight game with at least 7 receptions, despite two straight QB switches thanks to Bryce Young's ankle injury (and return). Thielen should remain a WR3 option for visits to Detroit and Miami the next two weeks. We'll see whether the team adds anyone significant at the position. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that Carolina is shopping for WR help. D.J. Chark managed just 2 receptions for 28 yards on 3 targets against the Vikings.
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