Cleveland for the third time this season went into overtime and won their second game of the season. I’ll start recapping how my calls went the week prior and last week was a pretty good week for our Cleveland Browns fantasy players. I told you to start Baker Mayfield, David Njoku, Rashard Higgins, and Jarvis Landry all which came through last week. I also told you to sit Antonio Callaway and Nick Chubb which was a good call. Where I messed up telling you to start Carlos Hyde who didn’t even break double digits and my worse call, sit the Cleveland Browns defense. Never again are we sitting the Browns defense. So now let’s get into week 6 where the Cleveland Browns are playing another good team in the Los Angeles Chargers.
Quarterback: Baker Mayfield – Start
Baker came through against a tough Baltimore defense last week, the Chargers defense is not quite that good. Joey Bosa and Jason Verrett being out really help him. Rashard Higgins being out as well will likely hurt him even though he had guys step up last week. Regardless Baker’s ability to hit the open man and extend plays, I think he has a chance to finish as a top 12 option this week.
Running backs: Carlos Hyde – Start, Nick Chubb – Sit, Duke Johnson Jr. – Sit
Hyde disappointed last week against a good Baltimore defense, but he didn’t have a horrible game. At this point for Hyde to really come through each week he is going to have to score it looks like. I think he has a good chance to do that this week.
Chubb is still a sit for me. Could he go off on a couple carries again absolutely he is a dynamic talent. However, I just don’t trust that he will get enough carries to do significant fantasy work. Until the coaches show us they want to give him the ball I don’t think you can start him with any confidence.
Duke Johnson Jr. is still a sit for me as well. He came out and admitted he was frustrated with his workload so far this season. I think his fantasy owners would agree after watching him ball out more often than not last year. He does have the upside and someone you could start in the flex spot if your feeling lucky, as he does have the ability to take any catch to the house.
Wide receivers: Jarvis Landry – Start, Antonio Callaway – Start, Rod Streater – Sit, Derrick Willies – Sit
Landry has a tough matchup here against a good Chargers secondary. Yet he has come through every week and he should do so again this week. No matter the team Landry is likely going to be Baker’s number read more often than not, as long as he creates a little bit of space he’ll get the ball.
Callaway is a start for me this week as I expect him to come through big this week. So far Baker and him, have just missed on making some big plays every week. Callaway has great speed and runs good routes, I think especially against this secondary missing their top corner in Verrett.
Rod Streater is a sit for me he is coming into the vacated role by Higgins but I don’t feel has the same skill set that Higgins does. For me, I need to see if Baker can form a decent connection with Streater before I can trust using him.
Derrick Willies showed up big for the Browns last week but is now coming into this game with an injured shoulder. He will also likely be the fourth option on most passing plays. I love what he did last week but don’t expect him to be a fantasy contributor.
Update: Willies suffered a broken collarbone Friday in practice. He’s out for Sunday.
Tight ends: David Njoku – Start, Seth DeValve – Sit
Njoku finally came through for fantasy owners last week putting up double digits. I expect his to continue throughout the season. Njoku is a top tight end talent and has a decent matchup this week.
Seth DeValve finally showed up last week as he got some playing time after being injured to start the season. It will be interesting to see DeValve’s usage going forward as he out-snapped Njoku by a wide margin last season. For now, though he is a sit as Njoku is just a more talented player.
Cleveland Browns Defense – Start
Never again do we sit the Browns defense. They have been a top defense every week except for the Raiders game. Cleveland’s defense has been creating turnovers at an amazing rate. That should continue. They need to be started every week going forward.
Continue to follow Full Press Coverage for all of your Cleveland Browns news and fantasy analysis. If you have any other fantasy or Browns questions feel free to hit me up on twitter @SportsfanaticMB