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Week 3 Fantasy Takeaways: Hill, Sanders, DeMarco well on way to repairing reputations

Jeremy Hill may have turned a corner after a big Week 3. (Getty)
Jeremy Hill may have turned a corner after a big Week 3. (Getty)

1. Welcome back to fantasy relevance, Jeremy Hill. After an unmemorable start to his season (20-53-1), Cincy’s caged kitty broke loose Sunday against, of all opponents, Von Miller and the Denver Broncos. Exhibiting a fiery hand out of the gate, he galloped his way to 97 rushing yards and two touchdowns, undeniably his finest performance of the season.

Hill, despite scoring double-digit touchdowns, was a massive disappointment last season. He was largely ineffective, unassertive and generally vanilla, a rusher completely outplayed by teammate Gio Bernard. Fantasy investors were bitter to say the least.

The third-year back entered the season determined to right last year’s wrongs. Throughout training camp and the preseason he resembled the intimidating, between-the-tackles battering ram of 2014. His admirable 2.4 YAC Weeks 1-2 offered additional encouragement. Sunday’s effort versus Denver confirmed the resurgence.

If you bought low on Hill, kudos. The environment and setup are nourishing. Cincy’s run-blocking line is elite and A.J. Green’s presence offers much balance. The Bengals’ upcoming schedule is also spectacular, with matchups slated against Miami (Week 4), at Dallas (5), Cleveland (7) and Washington (8).

Bernard will obviously remain highly involved and game flow is critical, but cracking the RB top-15 regularly could be a common occurrence for Hill near-term.

2. Squeaky wheel gets the grease. That popular narrative was once again proven true as Emmanuel Sanders, openly critical of his diminished role entering the week, ignited in an extremely difficult paper matchup against Cincinnati. Working in perfect synergy with Trevor Siemian, the wideout caught 9-of-13 targets for 117 yards and two touchdowns. It was the first time this season, Sanders 1) Eclipsed the 50-yard mark and 2) Found the end zone.

Most were off the Sanders bandwagon before the season even began. Siemian’s greenness and the presumed conservative nature of Gary Kubiak’s offense implied the receiver was more WR3 than WR2 in 12-team formats. However, after Sunday’s splashy effort, thanks in large part to a number of solidly thrown balls by Siemian, optimism is in the air.

Denver’s upcoming slate is conducive for favorable vertical results. Over the next seven weeks, the Broncos battle with the likes of Tampa, Atlanta, San Diego (twice), Oakland and New Orleans. If Siemian continues to deal and his confidence grows, Sanders should flourish, even sharing targets with Demaryius Thomas. As we enter the heart of the fantasy schedule, he could amass a top-24 line over the foreseeable future.

3. In a similar vein as Hill and Sanders, DeMarco Murray’s image was certainly tarnished entering September. A walking, talking catastrophe in Chip Kelly’s zone scheme, he was a fantasy abomination, a shell of the dominant rusher with Dallas the previous year. As a result, his price tag was greatly reduced in fantasy drafts, evidenced in his Round 4 ADP in 12-team leagues.

However, those who bought on the bear are already cashing serious coin. Despite working in tandem with rookie Derrick Henry in Mike Mularkey’s ‘exotic smashmouth,’ Murray is on pace for a monstrous bounce back season. Including his dynamite 155 combined yards and a score versus Oakland, he’s trending toward a 1306-90-704-16 final outcome. That’s obscene. If he stays upright, he’s practically a lock for top-10, or possibly top-5, production.

Bank on it.

Tennessee’s October/November schedule is arguably the most fantasy-RB accommodating. Excluding a difficult Week 10 test versus Green Bay, the Titans are set to clash against Houston, Miami, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Indy (twice) and Chicago. In other words, Murray is a must-play during that stretch, a rusher who should routinely log 13-plus fantasy points in standard or PPR leagues.

Murray’s mashing side is back. It’s time to believe in him as an every-week starter.