The sixth Sunday of the NFL season is history. Outside of the Las Vegas Raiders springing a road upset win over the Denver Broncos, the vast majority of games went as expected. That said, there were still a number of fantasy football stars who let down their managers in Week 6. It just goes to show that even when game results are chalk, there can still be unexpected fantasy football disappointments.
The following article looks at some of the biggest fantasy football disappointments from Week 6 of the NFL season across each position. This week’s notable fantasy busts include Myles Gaskin, Antonio Gibson, Michael Pittman and Chase Claypool.
Week 6 Fantasy Football Disappointments | RB
Myles Gaskin | Miami Dolphins
Stat Line: 5 carries, 9 yards; 2 receptions, 5 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 3.4 (RB45)
This isn’t the first time that Myles Gaskin has appeared in the fantasy football disappointments column. Over the last few weeks, Gaskin owners have been on a roller coaster ride like no other. He had all of 0.3 fantasy points in Week 4 before exploding for over 30 PPR points in Week 5 against a stout Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense. Surely, he could find success against a bad Jacksonville Jaguars team, right? The answer to that question proved to be a resounding “No”. Gaskin was back to working out of a three-man committee backfield with Malcolm Brown and Salvon Ahmed. He mustered all of 14 yards on seven total touches, finishing with an abysmal 3.4 fantasy points. Gaskin is impossible to start with confidence going forward.
Antonio Gibson | Washington Football Team
Stat Line: 10 carries, 44 yards; 2 receptions, 0 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 4.4 (RB40)
A disappointing season for Antonio Gibson continued on Sunday in what appeared to be a great matchup. Unfortunately, Gibson failed to take advantage before exiting Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Cheifs early with an injury. He only accounted for 44 rushing yards on the afternoon. His two receptions were completely negated in PPR formats as he fumbled twice, losing one of them. Gibson is now the RB16 in fantasy football on the season overall. While that isn’t terrible, many owners drafted him to be much more. The fact that fellow Washington RB J.D. McKissic is also a top-25 PPR back proves that this is a much more evenly split backfield than many anticipated.
Austin Ekeler | Los Angeles Chargers
Stat Line: 6 carries, 7 yards; 4 receptions, 48 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 9.5 (RB29)
While Austin Ekeler’s 9.5 fantasy points saw him finish just five spots outside of top-two status at the running back position on the week, it was a major disappointment for the overall fantasy RB2 on the season. Of course, Ekeler was joined by virtually the entire Chargers’ offense in being a bust this week. He failed to get anything going on the ground against the tough Baltimore Ravens’ run defense. When L.A. fell behind big early, it became a game script that clearly had them in passing mode. Ekeler saved his day from being a complete wash with four catches for 48 yards. This might very well be one of the worst lines that the versatile back posts all season.
Week 6 Fantasy Football Disappointments | WR
Michael Pittman Jr. | Indianapolis Colts
Stat Line: 2 receptions, 35 yards; 1 carry, 3 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 5.8 (WR61)
The Colts may have blown out the Houston Texans on Sunday, but Michael Pittman Jr. certainly didn’t help any of his fantasy football owners in the process. The return of T.Y. Hilton figured to cut into the fantasy value of all Colts pass-catchers. Still, many were optimistic that Pittman could put together a nice game against the horrendous Texans defense. Such was not the case, as he caught just two balls for 35 yards. After failing to take advantage of Hilton’s absence on a consistent basis early in the season, Pittman might be a receiver to explore selling in trades moving forward.
Mike Williams | Los Angeles Chargers
Stat Line: 2 receptions, 27 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 4.7 (WR68)
So much for that unstoppable Chargers offense, huh? Mike Williams is the WR4 in PPR leagues on the season, but his Week 6 effort certainly did nothing to improve his standing. Williams caught just two passes for 27 yards and finished as the WR68 on the week. The Chargers’ passing attack was completely stymied by the Baltimore Ravens. A week after throwing for a whopping 394 yards, Justin Herbert didn’t even reach the 200-yard threshold on Sunday. If that inconsistent quarterback play continues going forward, Williams’ fantasy value will have a hard cap to it.
Chase Claypool | Pittsburgh Steelers
Stat Line: 2 receptions, 17 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 3.7 (WR74)
It wasn’t a great look for the Steelers on Sunday Night Football as they could barely beat the Russell Wilson-less Seattle Seahawks. While Ben Roethlisberger still had 229 yards through the air, one receiver who was hardly a factor was Chase Claypool. The second-year pro has worlds of talent, but his fantasy football production has been very inconsistent thus far in 2021. Just one week ago, he finished with 130 yards and a touchdown, good for the WR12 on the week in PPR leagues. Week 6 was a different story, as Claypool caught only two passes and finished as the WR74 with less than four points. Even with JuJu Smith-Schuster likely done for the year, Sunday was proof that it’s hard to trust Claypool to deliver on a weekly basis.
Week 6 Fantasy Football Disappointments | TE
Jonnu Smith | New England Patriots
Stat Line: 1 reception, 9 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 1.9 (TE41)
Many expected the Patriots’ passing attack to flow through both of their free-agent TE signings. While Jonnu Smith was the more hyped player, he has taken a back seat to Hunter Henry in each of the last two weeks. While Henry went out and found the end zone for the second straight game on Sunday, Smith had just one catch for nine yards to finish as the TE41 in fantasy football. Despite the presence of two talented tight ends, it is clear that New England isn’t afraid to spread the ball around offensively. The run game remains the main focus, thus hampering the volume and fantasy value of Smith (and Henry too) going forward.
Darren Waller | Las Vegas Raiders
Stat Line: 5 receptions, 59 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 10.9 (TE13)
The fact that the Raiders scored 34 points and sprung a road upset despite a very average game from star tight end Darren Waller is pretty insane. In all honesty, very few fantasy football managers are likely going to be upset with double-digit points from their starting tight end. Yet, Waller was drafted to be a lot more than the TE13 on the week. Waller has failed to replicate his 10-catch outburst from the season-opener back in Week 1. He has also only found the end zone one other time since. While he is perhaps the most consistent player at the TE position outside of Kansas City’s Travis Kelce, it’s safe to say that Waller hasn’t quite lived up to expectations thus far.
Week 6 Fantasy Football Disappointments | QB
Lamar Jackson | Baltimore Ravens
Stat Line: 19/27 passing, 167 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions; 8 carries, 51 yards
PPR Fantasy Points: 11.78 (QB19)
After literally appearing to be straight out of a video game in a dramatic comeback win last Monday night, Lamar Jackson proved to be a bust for fantasy football managers in Week 6. Despite the Ravens cruising to a blowout win over the Chargers, Jackson barely eclipsed 200 total yards on the day. He failed to score a rushing touchdown and also threw a pair of interceptions. The end result was a disappointing 11.78 fantasy points and a ranking of just QB19 on the week. Maybe we had better put the MVP talk on hold for just a bit.
