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Unless you’ve accidentally been watching English football for the past few weeks, you should know that A.J. Green has been on an absolute tear lately. The Cincinnati Bengals‘ wideout has had over 100 receiving yards in each of his last five games (going for over 150 in two of those) and he’s scored three touchdowns in that span. It actually shouldn’t be all that surprising, considering the fact that Andy Dalton has yet to target him less than seven times in a game this season.
Green is the first receiver to cross the 1,000-yard threshold this season, but to be fair, the Bengals haven’t had their bye week yet. Still, he has 1,013 yards — over 100 more than the next guy, Calvin Johnson, who you might have heard of — on 65 catches. Owners who bought low on him after his four-straight mediocre games earlier in the season are living the good life these days. I’m afraid the Green party might have to be put on hold for a week, however.
The Bengals take on the Cleveland Browns this week, which means Green is going to spend the afternoon being harassed by Joe Haden. The two went at it earlier in the season and Haden came out on top, holding Green to just 51 yards and no score. Any change in the Bengals’ game plan this time around isn’t likely to affect Haden’s coverage much. The guy lives for the challenge and with the way he’s been playing, a restraining order might be the only thing that could keep him from staying well within 10 feet of his target at all times.
Obviously, I’m not suggesting you should sit Green this week. He’s not the type of player who should ever see a fantasy bench when he’s not injured or on a bye. I’m just saying you should temper your expectations for him and shouldn’t be discouraged if he doesn’t turn in another monster line in this one. If he does, consider yourself extremely lucky!
Dan Freeman is a Fantasy football writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanFreeman88.
