Fantasy Football Panic Meter After Week 3: Derrick Henry, Brian Thomas and More

It's time to dive back into the fantasy football panic meter series.

We'll offer up a panic meter ranking from 1-10 to let you know how worried you should be about certain guys - 10 is the highest level of concern.

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Running Backs

Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley are two big-name backs I want to discuss going into week 4.

Henry was stellar in week 1, but has struggled in each of the past two weeks. 

He had 169 rushing yards and two scores on 18 carries in week 1. Henry also caught a 13-yard pass in that game.

Henry rushed for 23 yards on 11 carries and wasn't targeted in the passing game against the Browns in week 2. He was held to 50 rushing yards on 12 carries and caught a seven-yard pass in week 3 against Detroit - he scored to salvage an otherwise bad fantasy showing.

Henry has seen his workload decrease in each of the past two weeks, which is a bit concerning. We are talking about a 31-year-old running back, and on a team with Super Bowl aspirations, these lighter workloads could be a way of keeping him fresh for longer.

Whatever the case, Henry isn't as good a fantasy option if he isn't reaching 15 touches in a game. His fantasy upside can be swung if he reaches the end zone or not, but 15 touches isn't typically enough to fully trust a RB. 

I'm not saying to bench Henry, but I am definitely a little worried about him. I'd put his panic meter at a 3, and if we weren't talking about a stud like Henry, it'd probably be higher.

It's something to watch moving forward. On his big name alone, Henry still should command a big return in a trade if you don't want to wait and see if Henry's usage or production will go up.

Barkley had 60 rushing yards and a score on 18 carries in week 3. He caught four of his five targets for an additional 24 yards. So again, a touchdown saved an otherwise so-so fantasy outing.

Barkley was at 48 rushing yards in week 1, and 88 in week 2, so he's yet to deliver a huge fantasy performance. He's got 10 catches on the year, but under 40 receiving yards.

As a top-end fantasy pick, Barkley's start to the season has been underwhelming so far. Again, if he wasn't such a big name, the concern level would probably be higher. I'd put his panic meter at a 2, because he's gotten more work than Henry.

Wide Receivers

Ladd McConkey and Brian Thomas Jr. are the two wideouts we'll discuss this week.

McConkey has 163 yards, but still no scores, through three games. He has 15 catches across 21 targets. 

After a 74-yard showing in week 1, he has 48 and 41 yards over the past two games. McConkey still has nine catches on 12 targets over those games, but he's yet to really break out yet.

He's played 85% of the team's snaps, so in time, the production should come. But with Quentin Johnston and Keenan Allen both producing alongside him, I'm at least a touch concerned with McConkey.

I'd put McConkey's panic meter at a 3. I'd see what kinds of offers were made before week 4 kicks off. Even if he starts producing a bit more, these down showings could happen. Swapping McConkey for another team's WR1 could be a way to eliminate some of the inconsistent showings, so it's worth pursuing a little bit I think.

Thomas had just two catches in week 3, but they went for 55 yards. He was targeted six times.

He had 49 yards on four receptions and 12 targets in week 2. Thomas finished with an 11-yard catch across seven targets in week 1. So while he's been heavily targeted, the production has not come yet.

He's played 87% of the team's offensive snaps, and has been a bit banged up. I'm a bit more concerned with him, because we only have one year of history to go on. He was stellar as a rookie, but could be taking a step back as a sophomore.

I'd put his panic meter at a 4. I'd like to see him deliver better numbers in week 4, or his fantasy value could really tank before week 5. Now would be a time to buy low on Thomas if you believe in him getting rolling eventually.

Quarterbacks

Dak Prescott and Jordan Love are the quarterbacks we will discuss after week 3.

Prescott had a very favorable matchup against the Bears in week 3, but only threw for 251 yards and a score, while throwing two interceptions. He was sacked twice and didn't add anything as a rusher.

He has 800 passing yards, but three touchdowns and three interceptions so far. Prescott has completed 71.4% of his passes, but has been sacked five times, fumbled once and not added much on the ground.

Now Prescott will be without CeeDee Lamb too, so things aren't looking up for him. I'd put Prescott's panic meter at a 6 as a result.

He's losing streaming confidence among fantasy owners, and is looking more like just a deep-league option. We'll see if he can turn things around soon.

Love struggled on Sunday against the Browns, throwing for just 183 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He completed 72% of his passes, rushed for 18 yards and was sacked five times.

The Browns' defense is proving to be stout in the early going, and has held down three offenses pretty well through three games. Love was much better in tests against the Lions and Commanders to start the season.

I'd only put Love's panic meter at a 2. This showing just means that you should watch his matchups and only start him in standard leagues when it's a favorable test.

Tight Ends

Brock Bowers and Travis Kelce are tight ends we will discuss today.

Bowers was great in week 1, but has struggled over the past two weeks. He had 103 yards on five grabs and eight targets in the opener.

Since, he has 38 yards in each game, catching four of five targets this past week and five of eight targets the week before that.

Bowers has played 71% of the offensive snaps, which is down from 85% a year ago. He's working through an injury, which is at least partly to blame for the past two weeks.

With a new coaching staff and quarterback, it was a mystery as to how the second-year tight end would fare. I think the injury is slowing him down, but who knows how long that will last.

I'd put his panic meter at a 3. Again, we only have one year of history to go on, and if this injury limits him a bit all season, his fantasy numbers could be down. He's still a top-end tight end every week, but the down performances are maybe a bit more likely this year than a year ago.

Kelce really hasn't done a whole lot through three weeks.

He had 47 yards and a score on two grabs and four targets in week 1. Since then, he has 61 yards on four catches and seven targets, and then 26 yards on four receptions and seven targets.

Kelce seems to have fallen off another step this season, and he's definitely not locked into fantasy starting lineups anymore. He'll likely rank closer to No. 10 than he will No. 5 at the position until he proves more.

His panic meter is at a 5 right now. KC will add more pass-catching help later in the season, so his production now might not even be his down games. Now might be the time to sell Kelce, as any more down outings will only hurt his value more.