Fantasy Football Week 4 Red Zone Report: Amon-Ra St Brown, Christian McCaffrey Thrive
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Money is made in the red zone. Will you score 7 or 3 points? It is the most important aspect of an NFL game. A four point swing in massive a in league that averages just over 20 Points per Game. The best teams such as the Bills, Chiefs, and Lions are automatic in the red zone. The worst teams tend to also be the worst in the red zone, such as the Giants, Browns and Raiders. It is perhaps the greatest tell tale of a good or bad team. These players are leading in the red zone this season.
RED ZONE REPORT - TARGET LEADERS
This list continues to have expected, and unexpected names. Amon-Ra St Brown is no surprise at all with 8 Targets in the red zone for four touchdowns. The same goes for Davante Adams and Mike Evans. These guys will remain highly-targeted options all season long. With Evans out 2-4 weeks, expect this to shift towards Emeka Egbuka.
George Pickens and Keenan Allen are among the best ball-trackers in the NFL. It is no surprise either to see them at the top of this list. Any coordinator with the right mind will get them involved.
Hunter Renfrow? Yes, I guess so. The Panthers love Renfrow, and it shows. His fast-twitch route running has been exposing cornerbacks in the money zone.
I cannot expect Chimere Deke to stay here, especially now that the Titans are changing play-calling duties. This is an outlier, despite 5 Targets. It's important to note that he also has less than 3 yards per reception .
RED ZONE REPORT - TOUCHDOWN LEADERS
There is no need for an image in this section. There are only two receivers with more than two red zone touchdowns this season. As for those names, they are Amon-Ra St Brown and Keenan Allen. These guys are godly when it comes to finding the football when it matters. I would not put much stock into anyone else until our sample size increases.
RED ZONE REPORT - TARGET SHARE LEADERS
Sometimes we can overvalue targets when target share is even more important. St. Brown and Adams don't just own in total targets, but they own 80% of team target share in the red zone. The ball goes to them when it matters. This is somewhat surprising given Puka Nacua's presence in Los Angeles but Adams has always been a focal point in the red zone no matter what uniform he is wearing.
Harrison Jr. is a notable name to see in this report. He has been receiving criticism for lack of success, but he is 2-for-3 in the red zone with 75% of those targets. The Cardinals are trying to get him as involved as possible, as they should.
Cedric Tillman, by no surprise, also commands a high red zone target share.
RED ONE REPORT - RUNNING BACK TARGETS
How about running backs? McCaffrey and Gibbs are heavily-targeted in the red zone, to no surprise. They are probably the two best pass-catching running backs and it is very valuable to see that they receive notable targets in the red zone.
Dylan Sampson should see this number come down with Quinshon Judkins back. Take that with a grain of salt.
Chuba Hubbard and Bijan Robinson have 3 targets a piece. Hubbard may drop off a little bit as the Panthers love multiple options, but Bijan will not. Robinson is perhaps the best pass-catching running back in the NFL. The Falcons need to get better on offense and this number may increase.
RED ZONE REPORT - RUNNING BACK RUSHES
This is perhaps the most important red zone metric that we have in this report. These running backs own touches both in quantity, and percentage when in the red zone. They are going to be your highest probability touchdown scorers week in and week out. This makes these players must-start in fantasy football.
Three players I will take note of are: Jahmyr Gibbs, Kyren Williams, and Travis Etienne Jr. Of course, Gibbs splits carries with David Montgomery, so he is no surprise. Given the Lions level of offense that they play, Gibbs is just fine and as expected here.
As for Williams, the remainder of carries have gone to Blake Corum (4 Rushes). I take note with this as I had anticipated Corum to work himself into a role. I would truly take notice to this as Corum should continue to get work with the Rams, and it may only increase.
The Jaguars have given the ball to Bhayshel Tuten four times in the red zone. With Etienne in a contract year, I would wonder if the Jaguars continue to work in Tuten if they do not view Etienne as a resignee.
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Thomas Carelli is a sportswriter based on Northern New Jersey. He is a massive New York Jets and Mets fan, but that is not where is sports fandom stops. He loves to watch and play golf, all things football, baseball, and much more. If he can watch it, he will. Thomas graduated from William Paterson University in 2018 with a Bachelor's Degree in Sport Management. He spent 4 years working at a local golf course, volunteered past PGA events, and spent some part-time experience with the New York Jets events team. His passions for sport runs deep and his articles show for it.