This article is part of our NFL Barometer series.
An eventful Week 6 helped confirm some encouraging trends we began seeing in prior weeks, while also solidifying the downturn of several other players. The news is mostly good this week, however, as offenses continue to pile up yards around the league, affording plenty of players with rising fantasy stock. Without further ado, let's see who's heading in what direction ahead of Week 7.
Trending Up
Quarterback
Mitchell Trubisky, Bears: I preached a wait-and-see approach on Trubisky in last week's column, but I saw enough against the Dolphins to start believing that he may have turned a corner in coach Matt Nagy's offense. The second-year signal caller posted his second consecutive 300-yard effort while throwing another three touchdowns against Miami, bringing his TD:INT to a sparkling 11:4 for the season. Trubisky has double-digit YPAs over his last pair of contests as well, and given his impressive rapport downfield with Taylor Gabriel, an ample supply of chunk plays appears likely moving forward.
Case Keenum, Broncos: Keenum may be encountering a fair amount of criticism for his play from a general football perspective, but that hardly matters to us in the fantasy realm. He's doing just fine there over the last two weeks, racking up 699 passing yards and a 4:2 TD:INT over the last two games. The surprisingly porous nature of his defense is forcing him into plenty of pass attempts, as he's now put up the ball 92 times over the last two games. While
An eventful Week 6 helped confirm some encouraging trends we began seeing in prior weeks, while also solidifying the downturn of several other players. The news is mostly good this week, however, as offenses continue to pile up yards around the league, affording plenty of players with rising fantasy stock. Without further ado, let's see who's heading in what direction ahead of Week 7.
Trending Up
Quarterback
Mitchell Trubisky, Bears: I preached a wait-and-see approach on Trubisky in last week's column, but I saw enough against the Dolphins to start believing that he may have turned a corner in coach Matt Nagy's offense. The second-year signal caller posted his second consecutive 300-yard effort while throwing another three touchdowns against Miami, bringing his TD:INT to a sparkling 11:4 for the season. Trubisky has double-digit YPAs over his last pair of contests as well, and given his impressive rapport downfield with Taylor Gabriel, an ample supply of chunk plays appears likely moving forward.
Case Keenum, Broncos: Keenum may be encountering a fair amount of criticism for his play from a general football perspective, but that hardly matters to us in the fantasy realm. He's doing just fine there over the last two weeks, racking up 699 passing yards and a 4:2 TD:INT over the last two games. The surprisingly porous nature of his defense is forcing him into plenty of pass attempts, as he's now put up the ball 92 times over the last two games. While interceptions continue to be an issue (at least one in each game thus far), Keenum's passing yardage ceiling is encouragingly high at present.
Running Back
Tarik Cohen, Bears: Speaking of Bears trending in the right direction, Cohen has started to blossom in Nagy's offense over the last two games as well. The speedy change-of-pace back was seemingly underutilized over the first three games of the season, but he's now compiled 14 receptions (on 17 targets) for 211 yards over the subsequent pair of contests. Cohen also saw a rather atypical 13 carries in Week 4, and although that's not going to be the norm as long as Jordan Howard is healthy, he's still a likely bet for 5-7 totes on most weeks in addition to his work in the passing game.
LeSean McCoy, Bills: Don't look now, but the usually lethargic Bills offense has had the benefit of one dependable piece over the last two games, and unsurprisingly, it's its most talented player. McCoy has sprung back to life amid some trade rumblings, carrying 40 times for 158 yards and adding five catches for another 44 yards on eight targets over the last two games. They may not be earth-shattering numbers, but after he'd gained no more than 39 rushing yards in any of his first three games, it constitutes significant improvement.
Kareem Hunt, Chiefs: Hunt wasn't necessarily bad over the first three games of the season, but he was clearly underutilized, especially in the passing game. That's changed over the subsequent trio of contests, as he's rushed for between 80 and 121 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while also posting nine receptions (on 12 targets) for 166 yards and another score. The numbers through the air are especially noteworthy, considering Hunt tallied just one catch for five yards on a scant three targets over the first three games of 2018.
Frank Gore, Dolphins: Gore simply keeps on ticking, and he's worked his way into this designation with three consecutive games in which he's been able to boost his production over that of the previous week. The ageless veteran topped out with a 15-carry, 101-yard day in the overtime win over the Bears in Week 6, following a combined 13 carries for 104 yards over the prior pair of contests. Given Kenyan Drake's combination of an uncertain workload and untimely overtime fumble versus Chicago, Gore should continue to see plenty of volume, and he's notably logged five red-zone rushes over the last three games.
Sony Michel, Patriots: Michel has put a so-so start to his pro career behind him in decisive fashion, as he's now posted a pair of 100-yard games and scored four rushing touchdowns over the last three games. While he's been a complete non-factor in the passing game (one catch on two targets over that span), Michel has proven capable of both the occasional big play (two rushes of over 20 yards) and of consistently keeping the chains moving while serving in a true lead-back role. The often confounding (for fantasy purposes) Pats backfield suddenly seems very straightforward – Michel is the unquestioned lead back, with James White as his pass-catching complement.
Wide Receiver
Marquise Goodwin, 49ers: Goodwin has had a couple of obstacles to overcome early this season – a hamstring injury of his own, and a season-ending ACL tear to top quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. However, if Monday night was any indication, both issues are behind him. Goodwin flashed plenty of speed while getting loose for a 67-yard touchdown versus the Packers, and he added a 30-yard score later in the game on his way to a 126-yard night. Given the rapport he demonstrated with C.J. Beathard against the Packers and his apparent return to full health, Goodwin's prospects look bright moving forward.
Taylor Gabriel, Bears: As alluded to in Trubisky's entry, Gabriel has been an integral part of the Bears' offensive renaissance over the last two games. The speedster has finally gotten downfield after managing no better than 7.5 yards per grab in any of his first three games. The five-year veteran now has consecutive 100-yard efforts, along with a pair of touchdowns in those games as well. With coach Matt Nagy apparently willing to open up the playbook as the season unfolds, Gabriel could be in for a lot more successful outings in coming weeks.
Mohamed Sanu, Falcons: Seemingly on his way down the depth chart just a few weeks ago, Sanu has pumped the brakes on any demotion with his play over the last three games. The veteran kickstarted his revival with a six-catch, 111-yard explosion versus his old Bengals teammates in Week 4. He's followed that up by finding the end zone in each of the last two games while hauling in six of nine targets for 119 yards in those contests. While he's now currently dealing with a hip injury, Sanu appears set to hold off the talented Calvin Ridley (ankle) for the No. 2 spot in Atlanta for the time being.
David Moore, Seahawks: He's flown under a lot of radars, but Moore is making inroads as the Seahawks' No. 3 receiver. The 2017 seventh-round pick has three touchdowns on just seven targets over the last pair of games, and a total of 124 yards on seven catches over the last three games overall. Moore's flashed an ability to get downfield, too, as he's recorded one catch of over 20 yards in each of those contests. Moore has out-snapped Brandon Marshall for all three of those games as well, and given his production, that's a trend that should continue.
Tight End
C.J. Uzomah, Bengals: Uzomah looks set for an expanded role for the foreseeable future given the decimated nature of the Cincinnati tight ends corps. Tyler Eifert is of course out for the season with a gruesome ankle injury, while Tyler Kroft is slated to miss multiple weeks with his foot injury. Uzomah logged 56 snaps versus the Steelers in Week 6 (after also eclipsing 50 in each of the prior two games), and his 6-54 line on seven targets could well be the norm for him moving forward, given that he's essentially the sole option at the position.
Vance McDonald, Steelers: McDonald has finally shaken the injury bug and began churning out the production he's teased at times over his career. The veteran has between four and seven catches and 62 to 112 receiving yards in three of the past four games, seeing 5-8 targets in each of them. He's taken a clear lead over Jesse James for the top tight end role, he encouragingly logged a season-high 51 snaps against the Bengals in Week 6.
Trending Down
Quarterback
Marcus Mariota, Titans: Mariota offered some reason for optimism with a 344-yard, two-touchdown performance versus the Eagles in Week 4, but that's proven to be a complete outlier. The 2015 first-round pick hasn't eclipsed 129 passing yards in any of his other four games, a jaw-dropping stat in the age of explosive passing offenses. Mariota is offering his usual solid production on the ground, but it isn't anywhere near enough to make up for his anemic 793 yards and 2:4 TD:INT through five games.
Running Back
Jordan Wilkins, Colts: Wilkins appears to be the odd man out of the Colts backfield now that Marlon Mack has finally returned from his hamstring troubles. The rookie was left out of the offensive game plan altogether versus the Jets in Week 6, an ominous sign for his prospects moving forward. It didn't help Wilkins that his production on the ground was spotty over the first few weeks while he helped fill in for Mack, and that fellow first-year back Nyheim Hines brings pass-catching acumen and blinding speed to the table as a complement to Mack.
Wide Receiver
Mike Williams, Chargers: Things were looking up for Williams just a few short weeks ago, but the talented second-year receiver has been a forgotten man over the last three games. Williams has seen a modest 11 targets over that stretch, leading to five catches for 64 yards. Those numbers are a disappointment in the wake of the 189 yards and three touchdowns that Williams had generated on 11 catches over the first trio of contests of the season. While the possibility of a bounce-back in the Chargers' prolific passing game is always there, Williams is heading in the wrong direction at the moment.
Amari Cooper, Raiders: It isn't that Cooper hasn't shown signs of his old self this season – he looked spectacular while posting a combined 18 receptions for 244 yards and a touchdown in Weeks 2 and 4. However, the most recent pair of contests have brought a world of hurt for Cooper – both on the stat sheet and the injury report. Cooper improbably saw only one target over 50 snaps against the Chargers in Week 5, and he was knocked out of the game in London against the Seahawks with a concussion after logging only 12 snaps (and zero catches) in Week 6. Coupled with recent trade rumors, Cooper's fantasy outlook is about as stormy as it can be at present.
Phillip Dorsett, Patriots: Dorsett had carved out a solid role in the Patriots passing game earlier in the season while Julian Edelman served his four-game suspension. However, he's seen his involvement take a hit since Edelman's return, seeing his snaps drop to a season-low 42 in Week 5 against the Colts before they dwindled all the way down to three versus the Chiefs in Sunday night's shootout. The recent arrival of Josh Gordon is also playing a part, as the mercurial former Brown has pushed Dorsett down to No. 4 on the depth chart while playing 63 snaps against Kansas City.
Tight End
Tyler Higbee, Rams: It's not necessarily surprising, but Higbee is nevertheless worthy of this designation given his nearly invisible role in the Rams' high-powered passing attack, as well as the steady development of fellow tight end Gerald Everett. Higbee has just nine targets all season and zero catches in three games -- including two of the last three. Meanwhile, Everett seems to be soaking up anything that's left over for the position after the team's trio of star receivers and Todd Gurley eat, as he's seen eight looks from Jared Goff over the last three contests.
