Houston's offense is a problem for other teams

We saw what Deshaun Watson and this Texans' offense could do against lesser competition, but some doubts remained about how the rookie would handle himself in Seattle against one of the best passing defenses in the NFL. 402 passing yards, 67 rushing yards and four touchdowns later,  it's time to recognize Watson as a premium fantasy quarterback and the man responsible for turning this dormant crew of weapons into one of the NFL's best units.

Let's briefly go over Watson's numbers. First, he became the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to throw three-plus touchdown passes in four consecutive games. Second, he became the first QB in NFL history to pass for 400-plus yards, throw four-plus touchdowns and rush for 50-plus yards in a single game. Lastly, he set the NFL record for most touchdown passes (19) through his first seven games. While Watson is learning on the job and ran his interceptions up to eight after Sunday, Watson's talent has opened up this offense.

As a result, we're now seeing the full scope of DeAndre Hopkins talents. Whether it's catching passes deep, turning a screen pass into a 72-yard touchdown or moving the chains, Hopkins is now locked in as a top-three fantasy receiver going forward. Meanwhile, Will Fuller continues his unbelievable stretch of turning receptions into touchdowns. Fuller is now tied for the most receiving touchdowns this season (seven) and he only needed 13 receptions to pull it off. While that ratio won't last, Fuller is establishing himself as a top-20 fantasy wide receiver.

Old Zeke is back but for how long?

Through his first five games this season, fantasy owners felt satisfied with Elliott's production but wondered when they would again see the matchup-winning back who could swing momentum in an instant and carry fantasy teams to wins each week. The cloud of a suspension and a district court's ruling added further concern before Week 8, but a judge's vacation allowed Bell to keep playing for the next two weeks.

Thanks to that vacation, fantasy owners have been rewarded with 297 rushing yards, 76 receiving yards and five total touchdowns combined in the last two weeks. For those bold enough to draft Elliott, these two games were a beautiful present and likely helped provide wins over the past two weeks for many owners who have Elliott. Dallas' offensive line is starting to find its groove and Elliott is showing more of the big-play ability he showed last year, but the critical question remains.

When does Elliott's suspension really begin? Another court hearing will take place on Monday. The district judge could then determine if Elliott's suspension can receive another temporary stay. It's a murky situation and one that fantasy owners would love to receive a resolution on soon. 

Carr problems in Oakland

Just a few months after he became one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in football, Carr is posting some of the worst numbers in his career. Against the Bills on Sunday, Carr couldn't find any success with the deep ball and could only muster yards on short routes within 10 yards. While he finished with 313 passing yards, it required 49 pass attempts and he also threw two interceptions.

Outside of a big game against the Kansas City Chiefs last Thursday, Carr is a disappointment for fantasy owners and Oakland fans. Through seven games, Carr's thrown for fewer than 200 yards three times and finished with fewer than 265 passing yards on two other occasions. His TD/INT ratio now sits at 12/6 and for an offensive that many expected to light up scoreboards, the 3-5 Raiders are now in serious trouble.

At this point, fantasy owners can't even put Carr on the top-15 quarterback radar. Even with some quality matchups in the near future, Carr's poor play might push him on to the bench in many leagues and his issues hurt the fantasy stock of Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper. Until Oakland's Carr issues are fixed, fantasy owners must seriously temper their expectations for Oakland's fantasy starters.

Ignore the Trade Rumors

Two days before the NFL Trade Deadline, several big names were mentioned as potential trade candidates. Seattle Seahawks tight end Jimmy Graham and Indianapolis Colts wide receiver T.Y. Hilton are the big names, but retired wide receiver Calvin Johnson's name also received mention as a potential trade candidate. It generated substantial buzz as people immediately started imagining different trade fits and what all could happen.

It's fun to talk about, it makes for great speculative videos and articles, but ultimately these are just rumors coming before a period that is almost always quiet. There is almost no movement at NFL Trade Deadline, yet it gets hyped up every year at this time. NFL teams only have limited practice time on any given week and adding pieces to an offense where they'll have to teach the newly acquired player the entire playbook and timing will still need to be established with the quarterback.

So don't get your hopes up for the NFL Trade Deadline on Tuesday. Time and time again we've seen big deals rarely go down. Teams hold onto their draft capital and stick with the options they have rather than bring a new player into the locker room. Graham will stay w Seattle, Hilton will remain in Indianapolis and Johnson will continue to enjoy his retirement.

The 20-year-old phenomenon

With Martavis Bryant serving a one-game suspension, Pittsburgh unleashed whatever restraints it had left on JuJu Smith-Schuster this weekend. On Sunday Night Football, Smith-Schuster saw a career-high 10 targets and he took advantage of them in a significant way. On six of his seven receptions, Smith-Schuster collected 96 receiving yards and proved to be a critical member of this passing attack.

Naturally, it's the big play that drew everyone's attention. Smith-Schuster took a medium distance pass and used his speed to do the rest of the work and find the end zone for a 97-yard score. Six of his receptions showed Smith-Schuster's growing role in this passing attack, the other reception displayed his big-play ability. Bryant's days as Pittsburgh's second receiver are long over, this is now JuJu's gig. He'll be on the WR2 radar going forward in standard-scoring leagues.