X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Value Picks
Compare Any Players
News and Alerts

Week 4 Do Not Drop List - Don't Panic Yet

Chris Moore's fantasy football busts to keep or stash for Week 4 of the 2017 season. NFL players to hold despite slow starts that could turn into viable plays.

It would be incorrect to say that fantasy football rewards patience without also noting that fantasy football just as often rewards haste. A successful fantasy owner is always looking for ways to improve his/her roster even while his/her team is winning handily. If you don’t pick up Week 3’s breakout player, your Week 4 opponent is likely to do so.

That said, part of the art of maximizing your roster is understanding when, and just as importantly, when not to cut bait.

In my weekly attempt to help you avoid the heartbreak of dropping this year’s big breakout player who just happened to get off to a slow start, I give you my list of the best players that you might be considering cutting, and I invite you to think twice.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:

 

Do Not Cut - Running Backs

Javorius Allen, Baltimore Ravens

After posting over 100 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown in a home date with the Cleveland Browns in Week 2, Javorius “Buck” Allen was a major disappointment, along with most of his Ravens teammates, in Week 3’s London game humiliation against the Jacksonville Jaguars. It’s easy to look at Allen and craft a narrative that his Week 2 breakout was a product of West being hurt, and that he is a candidate to lose snaps to upstart Alex Collins, who has been the most efficient back running the football in garbage time each of the last two weeks. Don’t out-think yourself. Buck Allen is still likely the most talented all-around back on this roster and is an absolute must hold for the time being.

Bilal Powell, New York Jets

After making this list for each of the season’s first two weeks, Powell didn’t exactly do anything in Week 3 to inspire tremendous confidence, rushing the ball 15 times for just 37 yards, albeit with his first touchdown of the season. Matt Forte was emerging as the more fantasy-trustworthy option in this backfield through two and a half games, but a toe injury sidelined him for the better part of Week 3’s win over the Dolphins. With Forte’s status in question, and with the overall landscape of the 2017 running back position looking as bleak as it does, Bilal Powell still deserves to stick around on your roster, and is the lone player to appear on this list for three consecutive weeks.

Theo Riddick, Detroit Lions

Riddick managed just four catches on nine targets for 38 yards and did not record a single carry this week with the Lions in comeback mode for most of the game. Although he has been a disappointment up to this point, his role is secure and Ameer Abdullah, his primary competition for snaps, still hasn’t definitively experienced a full breakout to feature back status. Theo Riddick’s workload is relatively secure. Against a stout defensive front at Minnesota in Week 4, Riddick might just carve out a bigger share of the workload than he has in the first three weeks.

Rex Burkhead, New England Patriots

After three weeks of play, it would be reasonable to say that Burkhead’s health is a legitimate concern for the Patriots. He was featured heavily, early in the Week 1 game plan against Kansas City, being targeted on a deep ball and a potential touchdown pass before disappearing until late in the fourth quarter. Then in Week 2 he did catch a TD pass from Brady in the first quarter before making his second straight early exit. In Week 3, he missed a win over the Texans with a rib injury. In hindsight, it makes a lot of sense that the Pats have been dressing all three of Burkhead, James White, and Dion Lewis- three seemingly redundant players, in the context of Burkhead’s health situation. So why hold a banged-up RB in a crowded backfield? Burkhead was hand-picked by Bill Belichick and the Patriots paid him 3.1 million dollars, at a position where they rarely spend significant money, to play a role this season. His skill set will keep him in play whenever he’s active. If you can afford the roster space, holding Burkhead makes a lot of sense.

 

Do Not Cut - Wide Receivers

Terrelle Pryor, Washington Redskins

Although Pryor has been a disaster for the first three weeks of the fantasy season, it is encouraging for his future prospects that the Redskins offense has improved with each game. In Week 1, they were manhandled by the Philadelphia defense. In Week 2, Kirk Cousins played mistake free football, but didn’t need to challenge the Rams vertically. In Week 3, Cousins filled up the stat sheet, but the lone deep shot went to Josh Doctson instead of Pryor. We should have expected this offense to take some time to gel and although Pryor has not yet gotten it going, better days are likely ahead. You spent a third or fourth round pick on Pryor based largely on situation and opportunity and those two things have not changed. Pryor is an emphatic hold.

Tyrell Williams, Los Angeles Chargers

After recording exactly 54 yards receiving in consecutive games to start the season, Williams was just one of many Chargers to post an absolutely abysmal fantasy number in Week 3, as he caught just two of seven targets for 15 yards. While he’s hard to trust right now, it’s important to remember that he was the overall WR14 in 2016 and there are significant injury risks associated with every other wide receiver on the Chargers roster. Even taking a clear backseat to Keenan Allen, there is still hope for Williams, but he has demonstrated high-end WR2 upside when relied upon as the main target.

Eric Decker, Tennessee Titans

The Tennessee Titans passing game finally produced some fireworks in Week 3, but Decker still didn’t manage to post a fantasy relevant stat line. While he only caught four of five targets for 49 yards, Decker made some impressive athletic plays that demonstrated that he’s healthy enough to contribute if needed. With Corey Davis ruled out so early in Week 3, Decker will probably continue to face little competition for snaps at least in Week 4. A healthy Eric Decker could put up WR2 numbers in Mike Mularkey’s “exotic smashmouth” scheme. It hasn’t happened yet, but we shouldn’t be assuming it won’t, just yet.

Devin Funchess, Carolina Panthers

In a prime matchup at home against what had been a totally inept Saints defense, Funchess posted a pedestrian four catches for 58 yards. With Kelvin Benjamin sustaining an ugly-looking knee injury, Funchess drew ten targets from Cam Newton, but the volume didn’t pay dividends. Although the preliminary indications are that Benjamin’s knee injury isn’t serious, it can’t be taken for granted that he’ll be ready for Week 4’s contest at New England. Even in a slightly less attractive matchup, Funchess has a change to be the Panther’s number one target, and shouldn’t be rage-dropped by owners disappointed in his lackluster Week 3.

 

Do Not Cut - Tight Ends

Evan Engram, New York Giants

This is more of an “understand what you have” alert than most of my other don’t drop candidates above. Tight end is a position that is heavily streamed by fantasy owners of all but the most reliable players. Given his production so far this season, you’re probably holding onto him anyway, but if he is merely a guy you ended up with by spinning the streaming tight end roulette wheel, I feel obliged to tell you that now is the time to hold tight. Evan Engram has a reliable target share and has been reasonably productive in an offense that has been absolutely putrid to this point. If you have him on your roster now, don’t chase last week’s boxscore (I’m looking at you Marcedes Lewis). Stand pat with Engram. As the offense gets better (it can’t get worse), the big games will come. Engram is a potential season-long stud.

 

More Fantasy Football Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Value Picks
Compare Any Players
News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Griffin Conine

To Have Shoulder Surgery On Tuesday
Luke Keaschall

Twins Prospect Luke Keaschall Suffers Broken Forearm
Logan Gilbert

Leaves Friday's Start With Forearm Tightness

Vikings Select Tai Felton To Finish Day 2

Seahawks Select Quarterback Jalen Milroe With The 92nd Pick Overall

Browns Select Dillon Gabriel 94th Overall

Packers Pick Savion Williams At No. 87 overall

Steelers Snag Kaleb Johnson In Round 3

Broncos Select Wide Receiver Pat Bryant With The 74th Overall Pick

Texans Select Jaylin Noel With 79th Pick

Lions Select Wide Receiver Isaac TeSlaa With The 70th Overall Pick
Jack Leiter

To Start On Sunday

Patriots Add Wide Receiver Kyle Williams In Round 3

Browns Draft Harold Fannin Jr. With 67th Pick
Garrett Mitchell

Makes Early Exit
Luke Keaschall

Removed Early On Friday
Blake Snell

Likely Avoids Major Injury
Cole Ragans

Dealing With Mild Groin Strain

Broncos Add RJ Harvey To Backfield With 60th Pick

Raiders Select Jack Bech With 58th Pick

Chargers Add Wide Receiver Tre Harris In Round 2
Detroit Lions

Lions Acquire 57th Pick From Broncos

Seahawks Draft Elijah Arroyo 50th Overall
Carolina Panthers

Panthers Acquire 51st Pick From Broncos
Arizona Cardinals

Cardinals Snag Will Johnson At No. 47

Jets Add A Pass-Catcher With Mason Taylor At No. 42

Rams Select Terrance Ferguson With 46th Pick
Houston Texans

Texans Acquire 48th Pick From Raiders, Draft Aireontae Ersery

Saints Snag Tyler Shough At No. 40
Brenton Doyle

Out For Personal Reasons On Friday
Brandin Podziemski

Not On Injury Report For Game 3
Jimmy Butler III

Warriors Optimistic About Jimmy Butler III Playing Saturday
Jae'Sean Tate

To Remain Out Saturday
Jock Landale

Unavailable For Game 3
Terry Rozier

Out On Saturday
Jrue Holiday

Ruled Out For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Orlando
Kevin Love

To Miss Saturday's Game
Jaylen Brown

Available For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Magic
Gary Payton II

Iffy For Saturday's Action
Jayson Tatum

Officially Available On Friday For Game 3 Against Magic
Will Smith

Back From Injury On Friday
Luke Kennard

Questionable For Game 4 On Saturday
Darius Garland

Listed As Questionable For Game 3
Ja Morant

To Miss Game 4 On Saturday
Rui Hachimura

Available For Game 3 In Minnesota
Aaron Ekblad

Available To Return Saturday
Erik Swanson

Ryan Burr Progressing
Daulton Varsho

To Return On Tuesday At The Latest
Max Scherzer

Takes Positive Step On Friday
Aleksander Barkov

Questionable For Saturday
Gabriel Landeskog

Set For Larger Role In Game 4
Calvin Pickard

To Start Game 3 For Oilers
Randy Arozarena

Resting For First Time This Year
Jonas Siegenthaler

To Play Limited Minutes In Game 3
MLB

Red Sox-Guardians Game Postponed On Friday
Luke Hughes

Remains Out On Friday
MLB

Tigers-Orioles Postponed On Friday
Patrik Laine

A Game-Time Decision Friday
Yainer Diaz

Out On Friday Against Royals
Iván Herrera

Ivan Herrera Hopes To Start Rehab Assignment Next Week
Salvador Perez

Sitting Out For First Time This Season
Jaylen Brown

Questionable For Game 3 On Friday
Brendan Donovan

Back In Action On Friday
Jimmy Butler III

Could Miss Game 3 On Saturday
Coby Mayo

Getting On A Roll At Triple-A
Carlos Prates

Looks To Remain Undefeated In The UFC
Ian Machado Garry

Set For UFC Kansas City Main Event
Cade Cunningham

Collects Double-Double In Loss
Jalen Brunson

Drops 30 Points In Game 3
Karl-Anthony Towns

Leads All Scorers In Game 3 Victory
Zhang Mingyang

Scheduled For Co-Main Event
Anthony Smith

Set For His Final UFC Bout
David Onama

Set For Featherweight Bout
Giga Chikadze

Looks To Bounce Back
Abus Magomedov

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
Michel Pereira

Returns To Action At UFC Kansas City
Nicolas Dalby

An Underdog At UFC Kansas City
Randy Brown

A Favorite At UFC Kansas City
Andre Muniz

Set To Open Up UFC Kansas City Main Card
Ikram Aliskerov

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Sergei Bobrovsky

Shuts Out Lightning In Game 2
Cam Fowler

Finishes Thursday's Win With Five Points
Robert Thomas

Posts Four Assists In Game 3 Win
Pavel Buchnevich

Celebrates Hat Trick During Four-Point Performance
Dylan DeMelo

Battling An Illness
Marcus Johansson

Exits Early Thursday
Aleksander Barkov

Hurt In Game 2
Jrue Holiday

Tagged As Questionable For Friday
Jayson Tatum

Likely Out Again On Friday
Anthony Cirelli

Good To Go Thursday
Andrei Vasilevskiy

Looks To Bounce Back In Game 2
Rasmus Ristolainen

To Miss Training Camp
Jonas Siegenthaler

Returns To Practice
Aliaksei Protas

Traveling With Capitals
Gabriel Vilardi

Still Out On Thursday
Max Pacioretty

Set To Join Maple Leafs Lineup For Game 3
Cam Davis

Looking For Better Fortunes At TPC Louisiana
Adam Svensson

Making Third Apperence At Zurich Classic
Max Greyserman

Aiming For Similar Success At TPC Louisiana
Lee Hodges

A High-Upside Player In New Orleans
PGA

Nico Echavarria Looks To Ride Off Of Elite Putting In New Orleans
Gary Woodland

A Player Worth Watching In New Orleans
Max McGreevy

Returns To The Zurich Classic Of New Orleans
Rasmus Hojgaard

In Search Of Consistency Ahead Of Zurich Classic
Sam Stevens

A Boom-Or-Bust Candidate In New Orleans
Nicolai Hojgaard

Looking To Turn Season Around At Zurich Classic
Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Looks To Sway A Hot Putter In Teams Favor At Zurich Classic
Akshay Bhatia

Looking To Bounce Back At TPC Louisiana
Carson Young

Looks To Turn Things Around At TPC Louisiana
Erik Van Rooyen

Looking For Momentum In Louisiana
Andrew Novak

Making Start At TPC Louisiana After Near Miss At Harbour Town
Ben Griffin

Making Third Career Start At Zurich Classic
Taylor Moore

Competing With A New Teammate In New Orleans
Wyndham Clark

Making Return To New Orleans
Kurt Kitayama

Teeing It Up Again In New Orleans
Collin Morikawa

Back At Zurich Classic For Fifth Time
Thomas Detry

Making Third Appearance At New Orleans Team Event
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF