As we wrap up the first window of action, it’s time to look at who improved their stock for fantasy football in Week 3 and whose stock is turning down. With a blockbuster set of action to begin our Sunday, what have we learned from the first slate of action?
Fantasy football Week 3 stock report
Stock up | Khalil Herbert
The Chicago Bears suffered a huge blow early in their Week 3 game against the Houston Texans when David Montgomery went down with a lower leg injury. As Montgomery left the field, Khalil Herbert found the end zone for the first time. That would be the start of a huge day for the Bears’ backup RB.
Herbert carried the ball 20 times for 157 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 12 yards on two receptions for a total of 169 yards on 22 touches. With uncertainty over how serious Montgomery’s injury is, Herbert will be one of the hottest names on the waiver wire in Week 4.
Stock up | Alexander Mattison
We also saw another NFC North RB leave their game, as Dalvin Cook was ruled out with a shoulder injury. That injury happened in the second half, so we didn’t see as much of Alexander Mattison as we did Herbert. However, he did manage to find the end zone as well as reel in a 16-yard reception.
In the post-game press conference, head coach Kevin O’Connell said that Cook had told him he would be fine to play next week. Still, we’ll have to see what we learn about the injury in the next few days as Cook is assessed further by the Vikings’ medical staff. O’Connell called Cook “day-to-day.”
If Cook is set to miss time, then Mattison is the clear handcuff. He should handle the vast majority of the Vikings’ backfield work in the event of any absence for Cook. He will be another hot name on the waiver wire this week.
Stock up | Breece Hall
While Breece Hall still trailed Michael Carter in rushing attempts, he dominated the pass-catching opportunities out of the backfield. Hall was targeted 11 times, catching six of them for 53 yards. He finished with 92 yards on 18 opportunities, while Carter could only manage 46 yards on his 13 opportunities.
This backfield is still far from clear, but this is the second time in three weeks that Hall has been targeted 10 times in a game. He hasn’t taken complete control of the RB situation in New York, but Hall continues to prove he very much deserves to be part of the picture both in terms of the run game and in the passing game.
Stock up | Chris Olave
Last week’s numbers for Chris Olave really stood out. He was targeted 13 times with an enormous 23.6 air yards per target. He finished with just five receptions but had 80 yards to go with 41 on three targets from Week 1. The usage patterns in the two games varied so it was hard to work out what it all meant.
Well, in Week 3, we got some clarity, as Olave was targeted another 13 times, this time pulling in nine of them for 147 yards. His air yards per target dropped a little but was still up at 14 yards per target. His usage, combined with Michael Thomas heading to the locker room early, makes him a very intriguing waiver wire addition as the Saints head to London to take on the Vikings next week.
Stock up | Mack Hollins
With Hunter Renfrow out this week and Mack Hollins seeing eight targets last week, I went back to look at his play in Week 1 when he was targeted once. What was evident on tape was that Hollins has huge potential in this offense. They have him run a ton of targets, and he was getting open a reasonable amount. Had Derek Carr not been hyper-focused on Davante Adams that first week, then Hollins could have been a much bigger conversation after two weeks.
Hollins certainly will be a much bigger part of the conversation now after catching eight of his 10 targets for 158 yards and a touchdown. Hollins is a player that Josh McDaniels was familiar with, having seen him in Miami. In free agency this year, he went and took him away from the Dolphins, and from what we’ve seen through the first three weeks, he wants to use Hollins a lot this season.
Stock up | Robert Woods
We have seen Robert Woods’ usage slowly ramp up over the first two weeks. He saw just two targets in Week 1, which grew to five in Week 2. Week 3 may have seen him step out from the crowd in Tennessee with a 33% target share (nine targets). No other receiver saw more than three targets, with Derrick Henry second on the team at six.
That growth in targets is extremely promising. It would be surprising to see it go much higher than nine, with the Titans having a run-centric offense. However, Woods could easily sit in the 7-9 target range, which will give him solid fantasy value the rest of the way. Today could have been much better than just 85 yards if he had pulled in a couple more than the four receptions he finished with.
Stock up | Darnell Mooney
Nothing in the Chicago passing game is pretty right now. However, there was a small ray of sunshine for fantasy managers who drafted Darnell Mooney. Having seen just five targets through the first two weeks, Mooney saw six in Week 3.
It is somewhat depressing to see this as a positive, given that Mooney’s Week 3 fantasy football performance was two receptions for 23 yards. But right now, it’s all about more usage initially. This usage potentially delays your decision to cut Mooney if you drafted him, as he led the offense in terms of targets this week.
Stock up | Mac Jones and DeVante Parker
This pair of fantasy football Week 3 stock-up selections took a hit as Mac Jones ended the game with a leg injury that required treatment, throwing everything in New England into uncertainty. Before the injury, it had been an intriguing day for the Patriots’ passing game. Now, Jones finished with three interceptions, but the intent in the passing game is what this is about.
Jones threw for 321 yards on 32 attempts, for an average of over 10 yards per pass attempt. He also demonstrated a willingness to use his legs, carrying the ball five times for 31 yards and a touchdown. This more aggressive QB play definitely increases Jones’ ceiling, although just two passing touchdowns through three weeks does hurt that ceiling somewhat. It wasn’t perfect, but it was interesting for what it could mean for Jones’ value going forward.
The biggest benefactor of the Patriots’ more aggressive offense appeared to be DeVante Parker, who had 156 yards and 10 targets. Coming into the game, Parker had played more than 50 snaps in each of the first two weeks but had just four targets across those 109 snaps. This additional usage may be in part due to the absence of Jakobi Meyers, but the more open nature of this passing offense is certainly intriguing.
We will have to see what Jones’ status is over the next 24 hours to see what this means for the Patriots’ passing game. These stocks could take a massive downturn in the next few days after creeping up this week.
Stock down | Clyde Edwards-Helaire
This was a tough week for Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who was coming off two very strong performances in the first two weeks. He entered Week 3 with 116 rushing yards, 76 receiving yards, and two touchdowns. However, his efficiency was somewhat eye-watering. He had those 192 total yards on just 22 opportunities — 15 rushing attempts and seven targets.
Edwards-Helaire was averaging 10.9 yards per touch, compared to a previous career-high of 5.6. His previous high in rushing yards per attempt was 4.4, and he was sitting at 7.7 entering the game, while his receiving efficiency at 10.9 was more than two yards above his career average. The numbers just screamed regression, especially when you look at the fact he was playing less than 45% of the offensive snaps through the first two weeks.
It all came to somewhat of a head in Week 3. While CEH managed to find the end zone, he finished with more rushing touchdowns than he did rushing yards (zero). He had just seven rushing attempts, with Jerick McKinnon also having seven and Isiah Pacheco having three.
The positive was that Edwards-Helaire finished the game with 12 opportunities, as he was also targeted five times. He wound up with 39 total yards and a touchdown for a 9.9-point performance in non-PPR and a 14.9-point performance in PPR. If those numbers are enough to convince someone in your league to part with RB2-level value for Edwards-Helaire, then you should jump at the opportunity.
Stock down | Carson Wentz
It turns out that Carson Wentz being sacked five times by the Detroit Lions in Week 2 should have been a warning sign for what to expect this week. In his first five dropbacks in Week 3, Wentz was sacked three times. He wound up being sacked nine times for a loss of 58 yards. That means he has now been sacked on 14 occasions in the past two weeks and 15 total on the season.
This is a major concern for Wentz as this team is expected to be chasing a lot of games this year. If he continues to be hit at the current rate, it’s tough to see how he makes it through the year without getting injured. There is a lot of potential in the Washington offense with all their weapons, but the offensive line is a major concern.
Stock down | Justin Fields
The concerns just continue to come for Justin Fields and his fantasy football managers after Week 3. Fields threw the ball 17 times, with eight completions and two interceptions this week. That leaves his current passing line for the season at 45 attempts, 23 completions, 297 yards, two touchdowns, and four interceptions. Nope, that’s not his line from one game — it’s for the entire season.
Fields rushed for 47 yards to ensure this was not a complete disaster for fantasy managers, but there is so much he can do with his legs. At this point, it’s becoming virtually impossible to start Fields, even in Superflex leagues. In 1QB leagues, he’s pretty much unrosterable if you have just five or six-man benches.