Fantasy Football Panic Meter After Week 3: Mark Andrews, Brandon Aiyuk, Jalen Hurts, Rachaad White and More

Week 3 of the NFL regular season has come and gone. Fantasy football owners are onto week 4, but as we turn the page, I wanted to go over some players who have stood out or underperformed in week 3 or so far this season and then identify if these players can can either keep things going or turn things around.

We’ll cover the players underperforming in a panic meter story here after already going over breakout players from the week in another article. Here’s the story from this series from last week.

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Tight Ends

Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews were two of the better fantasy tight ends coming into the season, but are the highlight of this week’s story.

Andrews didn’t do much in week 1, bounced back a bit in week 2 and then laid a goose egg in week 3. He has 65 yards and no touchdowns on six catches and eight targets through three games - that was an average game for him a lot of times over the past several seasons.

I’m not sure if last year’s injury is still affecting him, but the panic meter for Andrews is at an 8 for me, and really it’s probably at a 9. He’s gone for a must-start fantasy TE at the start of the season to someone who you’re probably trying to avoid in just week 4.

There’s five players on the team with more receiving yards so far, and he’s now been passed up in offensive snaps played by backup Isaiah Likely. We’re now in the stage where Andrews is going to need to produce a good game before we can confidently put him in our starting lineups again. It’s crazy how quickly he fell off the fantasy radar, but he could also rise right back up, so that’s why his panic meter isn’t at a 9 or 10 to me.

Kelce continues to underwhelm, and it really doesn’t make much sense considering the team is down Marquise Brown and now Isiah Pacheco. Kelce has 69 receiving yards and no scores on eight catches and 12 targets, yet the Chiefs are 3-0.

The 35-year-old tight end is third on the team in receiving yards, but Rashee Rice has clearly established himself as the team’s go-to target for the season. 

Kelce’s panic meter is at a 7 for me, and it’s probably closer to 8. He could turn his season around with one big showing, and the only reason he isn’t at the same panic level as Andrews is because he’s avoided being shutout in a game. 

I still think Kelce gets going at some point, but fantasy owners cannot feel confident in starting him right now.

Wide Receivers

Garrett Wilson, Michael Pittman Jr. and Brandon Aiyuk are the wideouts worth mentioning this week.

Wilson caught a touchdown in week 3 to save an otherwise down fantasy outing. His yardage has dropped from 60 to 57 and then 33 in the three games this season. 

His 26 targets so far aren’t too bad, but the 15 receptions for 150 yards is not what fantasy owners were hoping for through three weeks. I’d put Wilson’s panic meter at a 4.

The Jets’ offense has improved each of the past two weeks, and after playing on Thursday in week 3, I assume the offense spent the additional time off trying to get Wilson more involved moving forward. We’re just one rough showing away from a full-on panic with Wilson though.

Pittman has been a huge disappointment so far. He has just 88 yards on 11 catches and 20 targets through three weeks.

A lot of his down season can be traced back to poor play from quarterback Anthony Richardson. No Colts’ receiver has been consistently good this season, so knowing that, I’m putting Pittman’s panic meter at a 5.

He goes a notch higher than Wilson because Pittman has produced less. I also trust Wilson to get going with Aaron Rodgers more than I believe in Richardson getting rolling. Pittman isn’t a great starting option right now, and another down week or two might lead fantasy owners to drop him, which sounds crazy considering he was picked inside the top 40 picks on average.

Aiyuk had a chance to step up with several teammates out in week 3, but the veteran wideout was outplayed by Jauan Jennings instead. Aiyuk could have been in this article sooner, but I was giving him the benefit of the doubt after a late start to his season.

He’s got just 119 yards and no scores on 11 catches and 20 targets through three games. I’d put Aiyuk’s panic meter at a 5 as well. 

I’m worried about Aiyuk not producing without the likes of Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel Sr. and George Kittle in the lineup, and wondering if he’ll ever get rolling once all those players are back. I saw Aiyuk as a top-10 PPR WR at the beginning of the season, and instead, Aiyuk is looking like one of the biggest fantasy football draft busts.

Quarterbacks

Jalen Hurts and C.J. Stroud are the two quarterbacks I want to discuss this week.

Hurts has 772 passing yards, which is a good mark through three weeks, but his TD/INT ratio of 3/4 is terrible. He isn’t adding much on the ground yet either, with just 143 yards and a score on 34 carries.

I figured with A.J. Brown out that Hurts might use his legs more, which would make him a better fantasy asset. He had some success in week 2, but only had 33 rushing yards this past week. 

It could be worse with Hurts, but after drafting him early, he’s underperformed greatly. His panic meter is at a 4.

He’s still a QB to start every week because of his dual-threat ability, but fantasy owners can’t be very confident in him. If it wasn’t for a favorable matchup against the Buccaneers in week 4, I was going to find a better streaming option in the league I roster Hurts in.

Stroud had a rough go of things in week 3, and also wasn’t that great as a fantasy option in week 2, so that’s why he’s in this week’s story.

His 709 passing yards are solid, but the four touchdowns to two interceptions marks are not. Stroud adds almost nothing as a runner as well, so his fantasy totals so far have been uninspiring.

I’d put Stroud’s panic meter at 3. There’s a mix of favorable and tougher matchups coming up, and Stroud can ease the mind of fantasy owners by delivering some solid results against all these teams.

Running Backs

Rachaad White and Travis Etienne Jr. are the running backs I’m going to highlight this week.

White had just six carries in week 3, but had five catches to avoid a fantasy disaster in PPR leagues. He’s got just 66 rushing yards and no scores on 31 attempts so far, with his 98 receiving yards and no touchdowns on 12 catches and 13 targets masking his slow start a bit.

Meanwhile, Bucky Irving has looked electric on his touches and has nearly 100 more rushing yards despite having six less carries. That puts White’s panic meter at 9.

There’s still a tiny bit of hope for White, but he’s going to need to get going in week 4 to keep the little bit of fantasy value he currently has. He might end up being the biggest non-injury draft bust of the season. His trade value is significantly down, and fantasy owners would probably be best suited to just hold him and hope he gets going.

Etienne had 85 total yards in week 3, which was his best performance yet, but it's his touch totals that have me worried. He had just 15 touches in week 3, and has averaged 15 through three weeks. Those aren’t the marks you want from a top-20 fantasy draft pick.

He’s not losing a ton of work to Tank Bigsby anymore, although Bigsby has been hurt. Etienne is also still producing with his few touches, so his panic meter sits at a 4. It could rise in a hurry though if he can’t continue with his current efficiency. 

The Jaguars’ offense is a mess right now, and that’s really bringing down Etienne’s fantasy value. I think he’s still got enough value to possibly sell high for a reasonable return, because I don’t see many big performances in his future.