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Fantasy Football Week 6 Sleeper: Antone Smith

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By @SicEm18

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Atlanta Falcons have found their secret weapon this season through backup running back Antone Smith. He’s been a valuable asset for GMs savvy (and desperate) enough to start him. But the problem is he’s no longer a secret. His stats have been booming on teams’ front doors for the past five weeks. The Chicago Bears have quite the challenge trying to stop the enigmatic force of Smith this week.

Smith has only failed to find the end zone one game this season — Week 2 against the Cincinatti Bengals. But that week he saw the least amount of touches (two receptions) of any week this year. Since then, he’s gained the trust of the Falcons and has touched the ball four times in each of the last three contests. Four times? That doesn’t seem like much, but just one more attempt can push a player off the edge. In Smith’s case, he needs limited action to make it work.

His success has come off four plays. All of his touchdowns — two receiving and two rushing — have been over 30 yards. To put that into perspective, in four of five weeks, Smith has had a minimum of a nine point play. There’s not much better than that. Of course, owners would like for him to have multiple scores in a game, but that’s asking a little too much. So the question remains: will the trend continue this week?

If you look at the Bears’ defensive game log this season, they have not allowed an offensive touchdown over 22 yards this season. So logic would say that they won’t allow a big play, once again. But Smith seemed to throw logic out the window a long time ago. There’s really no way to tell which side will win — it’s a toss up. But when push comes to shove, Smith seems to have the upper hand.

I’m expecting Smith to take control of the game once again with at least a 50-yard score. He’ll likely tack on another 10 yards are so. But if he can’t bust a move this week, his performance will be minimal. I’d only start him if you’re already projected to lose or have no choice in the matter with your starters injured or on a bye.

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