Week 9 at Green Bay Packers
Even with Golden Tate in the lineup last Sunday versus the Steelers, Marvin Jones had his best game of the season. On a team-high 11 targets, he grabbed 6 passes for 128 yards. While the Lions couldn’t put the ball in the end zone, it was an encouraging outing for Jones’ owners, as he’s been thrown to 25 times the past two games. He has caught exactly 6 balls in each of the past three games. Despite the big game last week, Jones should be used as a WR3/flex play.
Week 8 vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
In the loss to the Saints two weeks ago, Marvin Jones posted a season-high 96 yards. He caught 6 passes and scored his third TD of the season. After registering only 8 receptions the first four weeks, Jones caught 12 passes in the two weeks heading into the bye. Pittsburgh is allowing only 147 yards through the air, so Jones should be used as a flex option this week.
Week 6 at New Orleans Saints
In the loss to the Panthers last Sunday, Marvin Jones was targeted a season-high 8 times, resulting in team-highs of 6 receptions and 54 yards. Jones had only 8 catches coming into the game, so the outburst was a bit of a surprise. The Saints are giving up 265 passing yards per game, so Jones could be a sneaky start if you’re running low on WRs.
Week 5 vs. Carolina Panthers
Marvin Jones caught 2 passes for a team-high 42 yards last Sunday in the win over the Vikings. One of Jones’ receptions went for 38 yards, which was by far Matthew Stafford’s longest completion of the afternoon. Through four games, Jones has only 8 grabs for 130 yards. Sure, he scored in each of the first two weeks of the season, but he has little fantasy value now. There is no reason for him to be in your starting lineup.
Week 4 at Minnesota Vikings
In the loss to the Falcons last Sunday, Marvin Jones caught a season-high 3 passes for 24 yards. While 2 of his 3 three grabs heading into Week 3 went for scores, he was held out of the end zone for the first time in 2017 last week. It was encouraging to see Matthew Stafford target Jones 6 times versus Atlanta, but 39 passes went in the direction of other pass-catchers. Jones should only be started if you’re thin at wide receiver.
Week 3 vs. Atlanta Falcons
Marvin Jones has only 3 catches this season, but 2 of have been touchdowns. His only reception last Monday against the Giants (on 5 targets) was a 27-yard score. Aaron Rodgers was able to throw for over 330 yards against the Falcons last Sunday, but a lot of that came with Atlanta way ahead. While this game could be high-scoring, Jones doesn’t make for a good fantasy start, despite his early end zone success.
Week 2 at New York Giants
While he only caught 2 passes for 37 yards last week in the Lions' win over the Cardinals last week, Marvin Jones scored on a six-yard reception. Matthew Stafford threw the ball 41 times, but Jones was targeted only twice. Fantasy owners should be concerned that Golden Tate, rookie Kenny Golladay, and running back Theo Riddick combined to receive 26 looks from Stafford. Even though the Giants yielded 268 passing yards by Dak Prescott in Week 1, leaving Jones on your bench for the Monday nighter is advised.
Week 1 vs. Arizona Cardinals
With help from a great first month in his first season with the Lions, Marvin Jones finished with a career-high 930 yards in 2016. Matthew Stafford threw his way over 100 times last season, but Jones went over 60 yards just three times in his final 11 games. The Cardinals had a strong pass defense last year and should be near the top of the league again. Be cautious about starting Jones Week 1.
Fantasy Upside
Marvin Jones got off to a great start with his new team last season, collecting 23 receptions for 482 yards and a couple TDs in the first four weeks. His best game with the Lions came in Week 3 at Green Bay, where he caught eight passes for 205 yards and two scores. In order to be more consistently explosive during the entire 2017 campaign, Jones made improvements to his route-running and strengthened his lower body over the offseason.
Fantasy Downside
After the initial breakout, Jones' season dwindled. On over 100 targets, he finished with only 55 grabs for 930 yards and scored just two more times in the final 11 games he played. After the huge game against the Packers, he totaled more than 80 yards in a game just once and was limited to three or fewer receptions six times. As teams focused more on stopping him over the final seven games he played in, Jones posted only 19 grabs for 274 yards and no touchdowns.
2017 Bottom Line
Even with Golden Tate receiving a larger percentage of the targets from Matthew Stafford as the season wore on, Jones still holds decent fantasy value. He scored four times and, without Anquan Boldin on the roster, he should receive more looks both overall and in the red zone. Stafford still has plenty of options to throw to, including rookie Kenny Golladay, TE Eric Ebron and RB Theo Riddick, so we have Jones listed between the No. 40-50 WR.
Wild Card Round at Seattle
For the second time this season, Marvin Jones had a good game against the Packers. Last Sunday night he finished with five grabs for 76 yards, but failed to reach the end zone during the final nine regular season contests. The Seahawks were eighth at stopping the pass during the regular season and will be tough to knock off in Seattle, even without Earl Thomas quarterbacking the defense. Look elsewhere for a playoff WR.
