Week 6 of the NFL and fantasy football seasons are nearly in the books! Time to check in with the ever-fluctuating values of players and determine how you should view them moving forward, whether it’s for a trade or a potential waiver claim.

Rising Stock

Jerick McKinnon RB, MIN – In the two games since Dalvin Cook went down with a knee injury McKinnon has 32 carries for 164 yards and 2 scores setting his “floor” in the RB2 area. The part about the Georgia Southern product which should intrigue you most is his involvement in the passing game. He’s now caught 11-of-12 targets for 81 yards and a touchdown over the same two-game span which puts him in RB1 range in PPR leagues with that usage. Minnesota matches up with the Ravens next week and Jordan Howard had quite a day against them in week 6 with 167 yards on 36 carries. With so many injuries to the offense and opportunity to be the lead guy in this backfield, McKinnon’s stock is certainly on the rise.

Austin Seferian-Jenkins TE, NYJ – Here we have a bright spot in a bad offense at a very thin position. ASJ has only played in four games due to injury but he’s been the most consistent pass-catcher over that time. In those four games he’s received 29 targets, the most on the team, catching 23 of them for 152 yards and two touchdowns. The big tight end has the tools to be great and is the key guy in this offense, especially in the red zone. ASJ and Josh McCown clearly have a connection and at the tight end position, you could do worse than this type of consistency. The Jets now head to Miami to face the fifth-worst defense against the tight end position, so look for more of the same next week.

Adrian Peterson RB, ARI – All Day is back! Okay, settle down, party poopers. We’ll talk this one out. Arizona jumped out to a huge lead early, allowing them to run more. Peterson has only been there a week, not even a full week. This has to be a fluky performance right? Well maybe not. If you watched a majority of this game, Peterson did look like the AP of old, stopping on a dime and making cuts decisively and exploding through the holes. The Cardinals really want to take some of the load off of veteran QB Carson Palmer this season and 26 carries for 134 yards and two touchdowns certainly shows that effort. Of course, we’re using the eye test here, and based on what we saw, he’s not done yet!

Cameron Brate TE, TB – Lets play a game called “Did You Know?”. Did you know that Cameron Brate graduated from Harvard? Did you know that since the start of the 2016 season, Brate has a position-high 12, yes 12 touchdowns? Did you know that he has received 23 targets over the last three weeks? These are all incredible NFL facts for a player who is relatively unknown outside of competitive fantasy circles and is incredibly underrated. Brate has now scored in four consecutive games and is the third-ranked TE in standard fantasy leagues. The sample size here is big enough to conclude that Cameron Brate is and should be considered a member of the elite tier of tight ends in fantasy football in 2017.

Falling Stock

Tarik Cohen RB, CHI – The speedy back has all the talent and elusiveness you could want. He can return kicks, catch passes out of the backfield and even threw a touchdown pass in week 6. He can do it all. The problem is Jordan Howard. Howard is getting the majority of carries, especially the meaningful ones, out-carrying Cohen 55-20 over the last two weeks. Cohen made his impact early in the season in the passing game with 24 catches over the first four games with Glennon under center. However, in the two games since Trubisky took over he’s only caught two balls in total. Whatever the reason for the lack of usage, it is indeed a lack of usage, and that’s never a good thing in fantasy football.

Matt Ryan QB, ATL – Super Bowl hangover? Maybe. Although, Matt Ryan was never an elite fantasy option outside of their 2016 Super Bowl season. This seems to be more along the lines of what to expect from Matty Ice from here on out, but with fewer interceptions. He’ll certainly improve upon his QB28 ranking heading into week 6 but don’t expect see top ten numbers coming from Ryan, something his ADP in 2017 would certainly call for. Atlanta has struggled offensively the last two games and ended up losing both of them because of a lack of efficiency from the quarterback position. In 2015, Ryan threw one or fewer touchdowns in 8 games and is on that same trajectory in 2017. Atlanta now has three consecutive road games on their schedule against the Patriots, Jets and Panthers, setting up a make-or-break stretch for Ryan here in 2017.

Terrelle Pryor WR, WAS – When the Redskins went out and signed the playmaker away from the Browns, they expected to get a red zone target and a guy who could create separation and win one-on-one match-ups. Through week 6, there’s hasn’t been any consistency or signs of being on the same page as Kirk Cousins. So far, in Washington’s five games, Pryor has 16 catches for 209 yards and a touchdown; a far cry from what they were looking to get from him. The output hasn’t hurt the team’s success with a 3-2 record, good for second in the NFC East, though it has and will affect their upside if they can’t get him more involved. Looking ahead to their second meeting with the Eagles in Week 7 (six catches for 66 yards in week 1), Pryor needs to make an impact against the second-worst defense to opposing WR to get his stock trending in the other direction.

Stock to Watch

Mark Ingram RB, NO- The Adrian Peterson experiment is finally over in New Orleans and the main beneficiary is Mark Ingram. Trading AP to Arizona clears the way for Ingram to take back the lead role and run with it (pun intended). At first glance of the Week 6 box score, Ingram’s 25 carries for 114 yards and two touchdowns looks great. It’s tough not to be a fan of the Alabama standout, however, not with the way the Saints use him. New Orleans isn’t the type of team to let a guy consistently get 20-25 carries and if they didn’t jump out to a 45-10 lead early on, they’re not going to give him that kind of volume. Many are still on the fence with Ingram because of how bad the Saints defense can be, as well as their propensity to throw the ball. However, his fantasy prospects could take a huge leap if they decide to take some pressure off of an aging Drew Brees and run the ball more consistently. His opportunity is here with an upcoming schedule of Green Bay, Chicago and Tampa Bay, three games where New Orleans will have every opportunity to take a lead and run the ball.

Jordy Nelson, Davante Adams & Randall Cobb WR, GB- By now, we’ve all heard the devastating news out of Green Bay that superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers has a broken collarbone and could miss the entire season. There is absolutely no doubt that this is also a huge hit to all of the Packer weapons. Nelson, Adams and Cobb are all very good players who can and will produce no matter the QB. The concern is how big will the drop-off be? Back-up quarterback Brett Hundley, now in his third season out of UCLA, will take the reins of the offense. He has the size, 6’3” 226 lbs, and athleticism (ran a 4.63 at UCLA pro day) to run this offense. Time will tell if he has the ability and while being thrown in against Minnesota for your first game-action outside of preseason, three interceptions isn’t ideal. Hundley now has a full week to prepare for next week’s matchup with the Saints, who have given up 300 yards to opposing QB’s in three out of their last five games. It’s a situation to watch, as the fantasy seasons of these three important fantasy components now depend on it.