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Just two and a half seasons ago, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe finished as the second-highest fantasy football points scorer in his position.
At the culmination of the NFL 2010 season, Bowe finished up with 1,162 receiving yards, which was 17th highest in the league. More importantly for the fantasy stakes, Bowe led all wide receivers with 15 touchdowns on the season, accounting for 90 points.
Fast forward to the present day, and Bowe has almost been rendered obsolete in the world of fantasy football. His production has diminished significantly since his stellar season in 2010; he slipped from second place to 19th in the matter of one season in 2011, and by the end of the 2012 season, Bowe narrowly made the top 50 wide receivers. The fact that he wasn’t even the Chiefs’ top fantasy wide receiver last season tells its own story.
We saw fresh optimism for the Chiefs and their No. 1 reciever in 2013 — at least one of them has prospered! Free from quarterback issues and with a new direction under Andy Reid and Alex Smith, Bowe was picked up in many and most drafts as we continued to give him the benefit of the doubt.
At the half way point in the season, and with the former fantasy superstar yet to serve any significance, the inevitable has occurred and Bowe is beginning to see drops. Currently ranked 60th among all wide receivers this season, Bowe’s ownership is 81.5 percent and falling in standard NFL leagues.
The man in question has just two touchdown receptions this season, and these were also the only occasions in which he has registered double-digit fantasy figures. His biggest yardage outing of the campaign (66) came in Week 7 against the Houston Texans; it was followed up with a miserable seven-yard outing a week later that appears to be the straw that broke the camels back.
The Chiefs travel to the Buffalo Bills in Week 9 for their final game before a bye in what really is a now-or-never situation for Bowe. I happen to be one of Bowe’s disillusioned fantasy owners this season, being tempted every week by generous matchups, only to regret my instincts. This is another of those situations in which it could be argued that Bowe is set to breakout. No team in the league has allowed more fantasy points to wide receivers this season than the Buffalo Bills. They’ve given up 1,746 yards and a league-high 15 touchdowns at an average of 34.5 points per game.
If Bowe can’t get it done this week, he’s effectively heading for the fantasy scrap heap never to be seen again. For the 81.5 percent of owners still clinging to the Chiefs’ second-leading receiver this season like a well-worn dishcloth, you might get one more use out of him before he is expelled to the fantasy wilderness.
Chris Machin is a New York Giants correspondent at Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter, add him to your circles on Google or as a friend on Facebook
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The Buffalo Perspective: Buffalo Bills vs. Kansas City Chiefs
