BENGULPS !
Injury to Cincy WR ’Marr’s fantasy rosters
THERE are very few topics absolutely everyone can agree on. These issues are unicorns — more a figment of imagination than scenarios that exist in our waking reality. But every once in a while ... Sadly, when these anomalies arise, it isn’t necessarily rainbows and unicorns that has everyone smiling in agreement. It can just as easily be universal grief.
Such is the case with, say, a flat tire. If you’re cruising down the interstate at 70 mph then blow a tire, once you put on the spare, chances are you won’t resume the same cruising speed using the less-reliable spare.
Now imagine that original tire is Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, and the spare is whatever you can possibly find to replace him. That’s right, you’re no longer in cruise control with your fantasy roster.
Just as he really began to get rolling
— with consecutive 100-plus-yard, two-TD games — it was reported he has a hip injury and could miss 4-6 weeks. That is not a small amount of time — roughly a fourth of the season or more. So fantasy managers will be looking to find a long-term replace.
That is not going to be an easy task — since it is not often you can drive the same speed using spare tires as you can with the original. When looking for this immediate spare, we’re going to give preference to those who could stick on our rosters beyond this week. That starts with a couple of names who could be of help in the weeks beyond. Our first two favorites in this regard come from the same game this week — Giants at Seahawks. We like Wan’Dale Robinson’s big-play potential and lack of WR competition for the rest of the season.
In Seattle, DK Metcalf suffered a knee injury last week. Though he does not need surgery, he could miss more than just Sunday. We saw how high Marquise Goodwin’s ceiling can be when Metcalf left last week — 4-for-67 with two TDs. Goodwin is capable of more yards most weeks (while Metcalf is out) even if multiple TDs are not a sustainable standard. Can’t get one of those options and need a more temporary fix while you bide time for a
better solution?
Mike Thomas (not to be confused with the Saints’ Michael Thomas) is the is the next best thing on the Bengals’ roster. Expect him to get added reps and targets, but think of him as more of a longshot dart throw from game to game than anything approaching a reliable weekly starter.
As for others on the Cincinnati roster, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd get significant boosts. Joe Mixon gets less of a bump, but a bump nonetheless. And tight end Hayden Hurst gains some juice.
Looking for help further down the line? With the Chargers’ Mike Williams expected to miss a month, Joshua Palmer or DeAndre Carter could be worth a shot.
You have to change the Ja’Marr tire, just don’t expect to keep driving at the same fantasy speed.