Much was said about Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker and his first game against his old team, the New England Patriots. In the end, the Broncos fell to the Patriots, and Welker had a relatively quiet game so the media circus was all for naught (shocker).
Wes Welker, Eric Decker lead disappointing fantasy performance for Broncos receivers
All of Wes Welker, Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas struggled on Sunday. We break down the fantasy implications.
Jim Rogash
Welker caught four passes for 31 yards and didn't have a touchdown, but he was hardly the only Broncos receiver to under-perform. Demaryius Thomas, the team's top wideout, caught just four passes of his own for 41 yards, though he had a touchdown. Eric Decker, who has also been incredibly effective this season, had just one reception for five yards.
Jacob Tamme ended up leading the Broncos with five receptions for 47 yards. Quarterback Peyton Manning struggled with just 150 yards passing, his lowest total of the season by far. In the end, the Patriots won the game, 34-31, in overtime.
Fantasy Impact: It wasn’t just that Welker, Thomas and Decker all had low yardage totals and thus poor fantasy performances, it’s that they were shut down. Thomas saw nine targets (four receptions), Welker saw eight targets (four receptions) and Decker saw four targets (one reception). The Patriots played them incredibly well, and forced all three into poor fantasy outings. There’s some upset fantasy owners Monday morning, that’s for sure.
