Milk Duds? Not a bad candy. Fantasy duds? Not a bad candy. Not a candy at all, actually. Nothing but broken dreams and ruined years (What? You don’t take fantasy football that seriously? Oh. My bad).
But really, nothing ruins a Sunday like your dudes laying an egg on you for no apparent reason.
No hamstring pulls, no twisted ankle. Maybe coach decided they were there to be a decoy, maybe no one was blocking for them, maybe they had a huge fight with their girlfriend or bootycall. Whatever reason, they weren’t up to par and you paid for it.
Here’s a list of ten players that are endangered of being busts and disappointments this weekend. It is not a knock against them as players or their skill level, but reasons why I don’t like how they will perform in their upcoming game. Whether you decide to agree with me or not is, frankly, up to you. But here we go:
Top 10 Potential Busts & Disappointments for Week 5
Donald Brown (RB, SD) - vs. NYJ
Brown has spent the last few weeks reminding us why the Colts had no issue letting him walk during the offseason. Over the past two games, he has failed to crack 2.0 YPCand he is going up against a Jets’ front line that is allowing less than 75 YPG on the ground does not bode well for a Donald Brown slump breaker. Avoid him this week and cross your fingers that Ryan Mathews is going to come back healthy.
Terrance Williams (WR, DAL) - vs. HOU
The number 2 receiver in Dallas gave fantasy owners a glimpse of what he is capable of doing last week with his two touchdown receptions. It’s very important that the fluke potential is identified for the performance because nothing that Williams has done during the rest of the season makes me believe he’s going to be pulling it off again. Expect Tony Romo to look to Dez Bryant and Jason Witten as his offense approaches the endzone on Sunday.
Ben Tate (RB, CLE) - @TEN
What was the biggest issue coming into the season with Cleveland's new running back? The dude has a real problem staying on the field. What did we learn Week One? His injury concerns didn't just evaporate and he'll continue to take hard hits on 90% of the plays he's in. You should never expect someone to get hurt and dud it up. But yeah, I expect him to get hurt. And dud it up.
Knile Davis (RB, KC) - @SF
We have to remember that Davis is a back up. He may be a very talented back up but he's stuck behind an extraordinary talent in Jamal Charles (who reminded us on Monday just what he's capable of doing in fantasy football). If he gets any goal line carries, I'd be surprised and if he breaks 50 yards I'd be blown away. San Francisco is only going to allow one 100 yard rusher (if any) and no signs point to Davis being that guy.
A.J. Green (WR, CIN) - @NE
Call me crazy but I don’t imagine that the Patriots enjoyed being thoroughly embarrassed on Monday night, and that was followed up with Tom Brady calling out the team the next day. Something tells me that Darrelle Revis and the rest of the New England secondary is going to go at this game full force. And for a squad who is only giving up 180 yards through the air, that could be catastrophic for Bengals' passing game.
Demaryius Thomas (WR, DEN) - vs. ARI
Personally, I think that the Denver offense is on a new mission this season. Last year they did the record breaking thing and this year I think it’s all about keeping everyone fresh as they approach the playoffs. That’s why I think Peyton Manning has had no problem going away from his number one receiver so long as he can. And with Patrick Peterson lining up across from him, he has a good reason not to throw to Thomas that much this week.
Delanie Walker (TE, TEN) - vs. CLE
I'm not too high on Walker in first place and considering he's facing a defense who has Joe Haden occupying half the field and a linebacker corps that can drop into coverage on tight ends, it's not a pretty matchup. I also envision this game being the one where everyone realizes the Tennessee Titans aren't as good as we had thought they were before Week 1.
Pierre Garcon (RB, WAS), Kirk Cousins (QB, WAS), Alfred Morris (RB, WAS) - vs. SEA
Please refer to my (soon to be published) Week 5 DFS article, under the section entitled "Seattle is going to eat the Redskins alive on Monday night" to understand why I don't like these guys. In short, just avoid anyone wearing burgundy and gold on Monday.
Check out all of RotoBaller's fantasy football rankings. Staff rankings are updated regularly for all positions and include standard formats, PPR scoring, tiered rankings and dynasty leagues.