Week 4 was, in my opinion, by far the best week of the year so far, and we got some massive fantasy developments.
Elite players continued to prove why they were drafted where they were, a few players made legitimate cases for rest-of-season ranking jumps, and some early-season disappointments reached the point where fantasy managers need to consider moving on seriously.
Here are my biggest takeaways from Week 4:
ZAY FLOWERS COULD BE A TOP-5 WR ROS
I’m ready to have the conversation. Zay Flowers has been one of the most impressive wide receivers in fantasy through four weeks, and Week 4 was another reminder that his ceiling is much higher than where he was drafted.
Flowers caught 8-of-10 targets for 118 yards and a touchdown against Tennessee, finishing with 25.8 PPR points.
Even more impressive is the season-long efficiency. Through four weeks, Flowers has 12 receptions for 234 yards and a touchdown on 12 targets, averaging 15.7 PPR points per game in the games where he has played.
He’s also seeing elite involvement. Week 4’s 10 targets accounted for 62.5% of Baltimore’s target share.
The biggest question coming into the season was whether Flowers could consistently command enough volume alongside Baltimore’s other weapons.
At this point, I’m not worried. Declan Doyle has lived up to his promise of Zay being a focal point in their offense this year.
I think Zay Flowers has a legitimate argument to be a top-5 WR for the rest of the season.
KYREN WILLIAMS IS STILL A STUD RB1. EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR.
Every year, we seem to find a reason to doubt Kyren Williams.
Every year, he keeps producing. Week 4 was another example.
Williams finished with 16 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns, while adding 10 catches for 67 yards on 13 targets. That’s 36 PPR points.
That’s ridiculous involvement.
He finished the game with 26 total touches, including 13 targets — an elite workload in both phases.
The Rams continue to trust him near the goal line, and he’s clearly one of the foundational pieces of Sean McVay’s offense. Blake Corum is just a hand-cuff if Kyren were to miss time.
The lesson is simple:
Stop overthinking Kyren Williams.
He’s an RB1. He was an RB1 last year. He’s an RB1 this year. And he’s going to continue to be an RB1 as long as this role remains intact.
CEEDEE LAMB IS MATCHUP-PROOF
Remember when there were questions about taking CeeDee Lamb at the end of Round 1?
Yeah… that looks pretty silly now.
Lamb just went nuclear against Houston, catching 17 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown on 21 targets. That’s 41.3 PPR points in one game. And this wasn’t just a random spike game.
Through three games entering Week 4, Lamb already had 20 catches for 309 yards and three touchdowns on 25 targets.
Now he’s sitting at an absurd 37 receptions, 498 yards, and four touchdowns through four games.
The most important part? He is clearly the WR1 in Dallas.
Dak Prescott is willing to feed him regardless of matchup, game script, or coverage.
Lamb was a steal at the end of Round 1. He’s the Cowboys WR1, and George Pickens is the WR2.
He’s matchup-proof; he’s an elite WR1, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s a top-3 fantasy WR when the season is over.
NICO COLLINS IS ALL THE WAY BACK
The hamstring injury clearly wasn’t going to slow Nico Collins for long.
After missing two games, Collins returned in Week 4 and immediately reminded everyone why he was one of the best fantasy receivers in football.
He caught 7-of-8 targets for 118 yards and two touchdowns, finishing with 30.8 PPR points.
And the most encouraging part is the consistency of his role.
In his two healthy games, Collins is averaging 26 PPR points on nine targets per game.
That’s elite WR1 usage.
The Texans don’t need to manufacture targets for Collins. He’s simply their best receiver, and C.J. Stroud is going to continue looking his way. This offense is struggling, but he’s the one bright spot that will remain if he stays healthy.
If you bought the dip while Collins was injured, congratulations.
Nico Collins is officially all the way back.
ROME ODUNZE FINALLY SHOWED US THE CEILING
This is the type of game I wanted to see from Rome Odunze.
Odunze caught 6-of-7 targets for 94 yards against the Jets, nearly cracking 100 yards.
The production is encouraging, but I’m even more interested in what happens when Caleb Williams returns.
Williams missed his second straight game with a hamstring injury, meaning we’ve yet to see this Bears offense operating at full strength with its preferred quarterback.
And here’s where Luther Burden becomes interesting.
Burden has been seeing consistent involvement in this offense, averaging 7+ targets per game entering this week. That kind of volume is exactly what I want to see from a year 2 WR before making a buy-low move.
The Bears clearly want to get their young receivers involved.
I’m buying the Bears pass catchers.
Rome Odunze is the obvious name after today’s performance, but Luther Burden is the guy I’d be aggressively trying to acquire before Caleb Williams returns and this offense potentially takes another step forward.
BROCK PURDY — LET’S START THE TOP-5 QB CONVERSATION
At some point, we have to stop calling Brock Purdy a “good QB in a great system.”
He’s just really freaking good.
Purdy led the 49ers to a 24-14 win over Denver, completing 19-of-30 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns.
And the bigger picture is even more impressive.
Through four games, Purdy has thrown for 789 yards and nine touchdowns with only one interception, while ranking second in fantasy scoring among quarterbacks.
He also entered Week 4 tied for the NFL lead in touchdown passes with nine.
The 49ers are 4-0.
Purdy is playing efficiently.
The offense is loaded with weapons.
And Kyle Shanahan continues to put him in position to succeed.
It’s time to start having the Brock Purdy top-5 QB rest-of-season conversation.
BUCKY IRVING IS LOSING HIS GRIP ON THIS BACKFIELD
This is one of the developments I’m most concerned about.
Bucky Irving was supposed to be one of the league’s emerging workhorse backs, but Tampa Bay is clearly not giving him the same level of control we expected.
Sean Tucker scored a touchdown in Week 4, while Irving’s role continued to be frustratingly inconsistent.
And the larger problem is Tampa Bay itself.
The Bucs are now 0-4, their offense is struggling, and they’re already turning to rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels with Baker’s injury.
That’s a terrible environment for a running back who needs consistent volume.
I’m not necessarily selling Bucky for nothing — the talent is still there — but the situation is trending in the wrong direction.
Bucky’s workload needs to be watched very closely going forward.
DAVID MONTGOMERY IS BORDERLINE DROPPABLE
This one has gotten ugly.
Montgomery has managed just 103 rushing yards on 37 carries — 2.8 yards per carry — through four weeks. He’s also averaging only 54.7% of the Texans’ offensive snaps.
And the biggest issue isn’t just efficiency.
It’s opportunity.
Since Week 2, Montgomery entered Week 4 with only a 57.8% snap rate, 43.6% rushing-attempt share, and 44.1% route share, averaging just 10.5 touches and 36 total yards over those two games.
Woody Marks has also carved out a legitimate role, meaning Montgomery isn’t even guaranteed the valuable touches we expected when he signed with Houston.
His Week 1 three-touchdown explosion is doing a lot of work for his fantasy value right now.
At this point, I wouldn’t be shocked if Montgomery is borderline droppable in shallow leagues.
In 12-team leagues, I’d still prefer to hold if you can afford the roster spot, but the days of treating him like a locked-in RB2 are over.
The workload, efficiency, and role are all trending in the wrong direction.
