Fantasy Stock Report, Week 6: Travis Etienne Keeps Hot Streak Going

Which NFL stars are showing out in fantasy and which players should you avoid?

All rankings and scores based on .5 PPR scoring

Stock Up

Travis Etienne: Another monster fantasy day for Travis Etienne as he now finds himself as the RB3 on the season. He’s been on my list before but he belongs here again. Etienne is paying massive dividends to teams as the Tank Bigsby hype drove his price tag down to the third round. 

He has failed to reach double-digit fantasy points in only two games and both were against good run defenses (Chiefs and Falcons). In his other four games, his lowest scoring game is 15.8. He continues to see volume in the run game, makes plays in the passing game, and has started to find the end zone. The Jaguars offense is scoring points even though the machine has yet to be well-oiled, so there’s still room to rise for Etienne. You love to see it.

Garrett Wilson: I think we may have found ourselves another quarterback-proof wide receiver. Coming off an eight-catch, 90-yard performance against the Eagles, he once again proved that sometimes all Zach Wilson has to do is chuck it to Garrett. He has received 7+ targets in four of his games so you are seeing the volume of a top receiver. 

His round-two price tag isn’t salvageable without Aaron Rodgers. No doubt about it. However he’s healthy, is getting great volume, and his talent pops weekly. Unfortunately for him his overall yardage and touchdown upside is severely limited as the Jets won’t exactly be piling on the points. With all that said, you should feel way better about Wilson now than you did post-week one.

Michael Mayer: After a great career at Notre Dame, Mayer found himself drafted in the second round to the Raiders. It was a quiet start to his career as he only caught two balls in his first four games but things are on the upswing. He caught two passes on three targets in week five and just caught five balls on six targets this past weekend. He’s totaled 111 yards over those games, which isn’t blowing anyone out of the water but I’m extremely encouraged by the increase in snap share and usage. 

After hovering around 50% weeks 1-4 he hit 66% in week five and 81% last week. On top of that, he looks the part as he made a couple of really impressive plays against the Patriots. It’s likely Mayer wasn’t even drafted and even possible that he’s still on your waivers. Tight end is a wasteland, especially during bye season, and Mayer is definitely worth a spot on your bench at this point.

Stock Down

Kirk Cousins: Cousins had a prime week lined up in fantasy vs. the Bears (even without Justin Jefferson) but failed to capitalize as he only threw for 181 yards and a touchdown against a bad Bears pass defense. Without Jefferson, I obviously wasn’t expecting the same firepower they normally have but the Vikings offense slugged along all day and overall just looked bad. He was drafted as a tail-end QB1/high-end QB2 so he may not even be a starter in your league if you play 1QB. However, in 2QB or superflex leagues he’s a weekly starter so this is a huge hit to your fantasy team. Even if you play 1QB and roster Cousins as a backup, he’s a great bye week fill in and it looks like struggles are ahead as we enter bye season.

DK Metcalf: As a late 3rd round pick this year people were looking for a big 2023 campaign for Metcalf. He’s currently the WR37 and while yes, he’s had a bye week already, he hasn’t lived up to his hype. Metcalf’s best game this year is 14.2 fantasy points and his best positional finish for a week is WR22. The Seahawks have really spread the ball around well so far and that has really capped DK’s ability to have those explosion games. It is encouraging to know that he has still played like himself so this isn’t a case of a player underperforming it’s just that I have a hard time seeing a path to where he ends up paying off his price as a strong WR2. It's not you, it’s me.

Brian Robinson Jr.: After a hot start that included 20+ touches in each of his first two games, Robinson Jr. has cooled off in usage and production. He’s currently sitting at RB12 despite averaging less than 4 yards per carry thanks to five touchdowns on the season already. I’m certain that touchdown luck will find some regression. The Commanders likely won’t win a ton of games the rest of the way and it seems like they are moving towards more of a timeshare at running back. Robinson Jr. just isn’t an impressive back and talent always wins out. If you are holding him it’s not too late to capitalize on his trade value. It’s unlikely his trade value gets any higher at this point and injuries have been piling up at running back.