We’re officially past the halfway point in the NFL season and some names are emerging that may actually save some fantasy seasons on the brink of irrelevance. Dez Bryant is finally 100%, J.J. Nelson was a big pick up this week and Corey Coleman is on the brink of a return to action. There are also two new offensive coordinators in Minnesota and Jacksonville which may potentially save investments in Allen Robinson, Blake Bortles and Stefon Diggs. There’s still a lot of football to be played, so all is not lost.

Here’s the Red Zone recap:

TARGET MONSTERS:

Last week, five players reached four red zone targets and there’s no doubt the biggest surprise was Andrew Hawkins of the Cleveland Browns. Hawkins caught 3 of the 4 for 2 TD’s and raised a few eyebrows. To chase this very likely one off performance on the waiver wire would be a huge mistake, especially with Corey Coleman looking like a full go on Sunday. Some performances just aren’t meant for fantasy owners to enjoy and this was one of them.

The other four on this list were Jordy Nelson, Michael Crabtree, Jeremy Maclin and Nelson Agholor. Agholor caught half of his red zone targets, but was unable to reach the end zone. The other three all caught 1 TD a piece. Nelson has been one of the leaders in red zone targets all year, so it’s no surprise that he bounces back after a lame Week 7 in Atlanta. Maclin will now have Nick Foles under center which may actually be a slight uptick for his value this week against the Jags. Crabtree has been arguably the most consistent fantasy receiver all year and at this stage he’s a must start even against the heralded Broncos’ defense. In DFS, he’s been a phenomenal weekly return on investment guy and brings and his ownership will no doubt be stymied by the match up.

MOST EFFICIENCT:

This weekend was the coming out party for Cardinals’ wide out J.J. Nelson. He went 3 for 3 in the red zone with 2 TD’s and is now the locked in as the starter across from Larry Fitzgerald. With the inconsistency of John Brown and Michael Floyd and the aggressiveness s of the Bruce Arians’ philosophy, Nelson may actually find himself as a potential difference maker down the stretch for Arizona and his new owners. Bryan Walters, Danny Amendola, Julian Edelman and Trevor Davis were all 2 for 2 with a TD in the red zone last week. Edelman needed to give his owners something to believe in after battling a foot issue all year. You can potentially link the continual relevance of LeGarrette Blount to Edelman’s lack of productivity. Fantasy owners can hope that Edelman regains his health as he season goes on, but there’s no way to tell for sure until he has a breakout game if he’ll ever be 100% all year. You have to just keep running him out there in season long and hope for the best. The other three are more “Hawkins-esque” one off’s. Even with a new OC in Jacksonville, who knows if Walters will have value moving forward? The chances are quit slim, so dismiss him Davis and Amendola.

ONES TO WATCH:

 

In Eric Decker’s absence, Quincy Enunwa has shown many of the attributes one looks for in a fantasy wide receiver. He caught one of his two red zone targets this past weekend and there will be more opportunities for him for TD’s down the stretch. C.J. Federowicz also caught one of his two red zone targets Sunday, but he did reach the end zone. In what’s shaping up as a lost season for the Texans, at least Brock Osweiler seems able to check down to Federowicz who may catch more TD’s the rest of the year than DeAndre Hopkins. I know, how depressing that sounds, but it’s very feasible. Now that Jay Cutler is back under center for the Bears, Alshon Jeffrey once again become automatically relevant in all formats. Jeffrey caught one of his three red zone looks for a TD Monday night. If Jeffrey can stay healthy, he’s back in #1 wide receiver territory in deep leagues.

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Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17) is the eight-time best-selling author of the Fantasy Black Book Series for baseball and football. He hosts The Fantasy Black Book Tues and Thurs 8-10pm est and Sunday Game Day 8-11am on FNTSY Network Radio.