Booms and Busts: Steve Smith leads old-man revival

Steve Smith looked like a logical fade before the season. He was coming off a torn Achilles and entering his age-37 season. Those aren’t the types of players I’m likely to bet on for a big fantasy season.

Let’s go to the scoreboard — Old Man Smith 1, Rules of Thumb 0.

Baltimore didn’t get a victory at Dallas on Sunday, but you could hardly blame Smith. No. 89 reeled in 8-of-9 targets for 99 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown catch. It was a classic Smith showing from start to finish; the non-stop, competitive motor; yards after the catch; some jawing after a play, here and there. No one wants to be great more than this guy.

Smith isn’t tearing up the record books in his 16th season, but he’s posted a 13-149-2 line over his last two games, settling in as Baltimore’s most reliable receiver. He’s getting about eight targets a game. He figures to be on the WR 2/3 seam for the rest of the year, a playable wideout. May we all age so gracefully.

Smith wasn’t the only 30-something skill player to make a mark Sunday. Frank Gore gobbled up 121 total yards as Indianapolis got past Tennessee in a critical AFC South game. Gore wasn’t able to find the end zone and his YPC was a paltry 2.8 on the day, but overall he’s been a remarkably consistent fantasy back, productively meandering through his age-33 season.

Although Gore didn’t spike Sunday, he’s managed to score at least one touchdown in six of his 10 starts. And let’s stand up and applaud his durability — Gore hasn’t missed a game since 2010, an incredible streak for any runner, and especially for someone who had an injury-prone tag earlier in his career. Gore at minimum is a high-end RB2 for the balance of the year, and you could slap a RB1 tag in some deeper formats. The upside isn’t tantalizing, but there’s something to be said for showing up every week.

If you’re looking to go an eyelash younger at the backfield spot, perhaps Rashad Jennings, a spry 31, is more your speed. The surging NYG back ran 21 times for 85 yards and a score in Sunday’s win over Chicago, and he also had five grabs for 44 yards. The crowded Big Blue backfield has turned into the Jennings show over the last couple of weeks; he had 109 total yards on 18 touches in the Monday victory over Cincinnati.

When Jennings is hale enough to be on the field, the Giants like to feed him — he’s had at least 13 touches in all seven of his games this year. He could be a fun start next week against Cleveland’s turnstile defense. If nothing else, he has the trust of head coach Ben McAdoo and quarterback Eli Manning.

— Remember The Titans

For all the Smiths and Gores who are raging against the dying of the light, there are countless old-timers who have to face gravity and reality. Remember when the Titans were wasting snaps on Andre Johnson? Other than for one snap at Detroit, it was a bad idea.

Fresher receivers are taking over in Tennessee these days, and it’s a glorious thing. Rishard Matthews didn’t get another touchdown in Sunday’s loss at Indy, but he was a force throughout, snagging 9-122 on 13 targets. He’s comfortable running most of the route tree, and he’s capable of being a Top 20 wideout the rest of the way, especially with QB Marcus Mariota playing at such a high level.

Rookie Tajae Sharpe landed on waiver wires after a quiet start, but he’s been a factor of late. He posted a solid 4-68-1 line Sunday, on seven targets, and he’s been over 58 yards receiving in four of his last five games. No, those aren’t monster numbers, but they’re playable in some deeper formats. And you might be in the market for a wideout after a bunch of them got hurt in Week 11.

One downer for the Tennessee offense — the schedule is a little tricky moving forward. The Titans have a pesky Week 13 bye to deal with, and then it’s Denver and Kansas City on the schedule. Nothing easy about that. The Titans face Chicago next week, with Jacksonville tucked for Week 16.

— Eric Ebron’s third-year breakout

Detroit’s getting ready for its yearly Thanksgiving Day game, and the city can be grateful for the progress of Ebron. Although Ebron’s brief career has been mired with stops, starts and injuries, he’s starting to get the hang of things in the middle of his third year.

Ebron posted a couple of seven-catch games before Detroit’s bye, and he kept the production rolling in Sunday’s win over Jacksonville (13 fantasy points, 16 in PPR). Ebron’s 61-yard catch and run helped Detroit salt away the game in the fourth period, and he later punctuated the drive with a one-yard touchdown run — a play the Lions apparently copied from New Orleans and Minnesota earlier this season (the Vikings ran it against Detroit). Looks like Ebron should be a Top 12 tight end for the rest of the year.