Green Bay Packers: Week 16 Fantasy Profile
By Kenn Korb
Oct 4, 2015; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Green Bay Packers tight end Richard Rodgers (82) catches a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers in the first quarter at Levi
TE – Richard Rodgers, Andrew Quarless, Justin Perillo
Last Game:
Rodgers – 4 targets, 1 catch, 7 receiving yards; 0.70 fantasy points
Quarless – Out With Injury
Perillo – 1 target, 1 catch, 5 yards; 0.50 fantasy points
After Richard Rodgers showed off a level of skill I didn’t think he had back in Detroit — putting up by far his best stat-line of his career in the process — Rodgers has beyond fallen back to Earth.
The past two weeks have seen him grab just two passes; one was a TD, but still.
That TD pass showed off what I am hoping he can show again: his ability as a red-zone target. Rodgers has worked really well as a short-yardage option in the red-zone, scoring 7 TDs on the season, all but one of which came near the end-zone.
If the offense manages to finish drives with touchdowns, I feel like it is highly likely that one will be in a short yardage situation; right now, there is no more likely option in those scenarios to be the target than Rodgers.
Due to his massively-fluctuating target and catch numbers (not to mention his meager yardage totals) would suggest other possibilities first. If you feel strongly about him scoring however (or you just have no better options), then he might be worth a low-end play.
The other two are not worth playing in fantasy, but they deserve a mention due to the indirect impact of them on the offense. Quarless gives the team another decent set of experienced hands — and a tight end with actual blocking ability; maybe that helps the running game? This also pushes Perillo down further, which is a good thing — especially since he is hurt at the moment.
Week 16 Predictions:
Rodgers – 2 catches, 15 receiving yards, 1 TD; 7.50 fantasy points
Quarless – 2 catches, 15 yards; 1.50 fantasy points
Perillo – 0 catches, 0 receiving yards; 0.00 fantasy points
Verdicts: In The ‘Zone’ (Rodgers); Improve The Blocking (Quarless); Down The Depth Chart (Perillo)
Next: The kicker