Paying attention to who is getting targeted and/or getting carries in the red zone and down near the goal line are both very important in all fantasy formats. Touchdowns are major point boosters in PPR leagues and even more so in standard. The weekly report will be a one-stop shop where you can find all the information you could possibly need when it comes to the red zone. Each week I will point out some notable performances for that week and then include season totals. Let’s dive in!

Red Zone Targets

Odell Beckham  – Beckham, surprisingly, makes his debut to the red zone report this week. He was targeted five times in the red zone and hauled in two of them. One of those two receptions resulted in a touchdown (his first red zone touchdown of the season). Beckham had been abysmal in the red zone prior to this game and still only has a 25% catch rate when targeted in the red zone. He is simply too talented to not improve on this number – even with Eli as his QB – and more games like this one should be ahead.

Trey Burton – Burton hauled in both of his red zone targets this week and one of them was a touchdown, his third red zone touchdown of the year. Burton hasn’t been a volume monster in the red zone this year, but he has performed very well when used. He has caught five-of-six targets (83% catch rate). Burton has a real knack for the end zone, with nine touchdowns on 47 receptions since the start of last season. There is a reason that a lot of us here at Fantasy Alarm were high on this guy and he is showing why.

T.Y. Hilton – Hilton was only targeted twice in the red zone this week, but he did catch both balls for a pair of touchdowns. Hilton now has four receptions on eight targets in the red zone this year and all four of his receptions went for touchdowns. His red zone target percentage of 15% is the lowest of any player with at least four red zone touchdowns. Look for Luck to start targeting Hilton in the red zone more often going forward.

*The below tables are the top-10 in targets for the season in the red zone and inside the 10 yard line. Take note that targets inside the 10 are also included in inside the 20.

 Inside the 20  Inside the 10
 TargetsReceptionsCatch %Touchdowns  TargetsReceptionsCatch %Touchdowns
Alvin Kamara 161169%1 DeAndre Hopkins 10440%2
JuJu Smith-Schuster 16956%2 Michael Thomas 9889%4
Davante Adams 15747%6 Jared Cook 9778%2
Eric Ebron 14643%5 Melvin Gordon 8675%3
Michael Thomas 141286%4 Chris Godwin 8450%4
Zach Ertz 13646%2 Cooper Kupp 7457%2
A.J. Green 13539%3 A.J. Green 6233%2
Todd Gurley 13754%3 Corey Davis 6233%1
Jarvis Landry 13538%2 Marvin Jones 6233%2
      T.Y. Hilton 6467%4

 

Red Zone Carries

Kareem Hunt – Hunt had a monster game in the red zone this week which was a key cog in his big day. He finished with three carries and a touchdown on the ground in the red zone. He also caught three passes in the red zone which resulted in two more touchdowns. Hunt now has eight total red zone touchdowns (five on the ground, three through the air) and is making good on his early draft selection in fantasy this season after somewhat of a sluggish start.  

Marlon Mack – Mack had six rushing attempts in the red zone and pounded one of them into the end zone in the Colts 37-5 Week 7 win over the Bills. Mack had a fantastic game and was the only Colts running back used in the red zone, which is a great sign for him going forward. He has one of the better red zone YPC in football at 4.0 with 44 yards on 11 carries. He is trending up and based on what he has done over the last couple weeks he is worth plugging into your lineup.

Ronald Jones – Jones was handed the pigskin four times in the red zone this week and delivered one touchdown. Jones was the only Bucs running back to touch the ball in the red zone and it appears he is slowly gaining steam. He is worth stashing, but it is still too soon to trust him in any of your lineups. He has been pretty dreadful this year, but the touchdown and red zone usage give us at least a slight reason for optimism.

Todd Gurley – I am sure you guys don’t want to see me talk about Gurley every week, so I just added him in as a bonus this week (as he deserved to crack this section again). He finished with six red zone carries and two touchdowns while also adding in a receiving touchdown.

*The below tables are the top-10 in carries for the season in the red zone and inside the five yard line. Take note that carries inside the five are also included in inside the 20.

 Inside the 20  Inside the 5
 AttemptsYardsTouchdowns  AttemptsYardsTouchdowns
Todd Gurley 4312411 Todd Gurley 1277
Alvin Kamara 25704 James Conner 1086
Sony Michel 21493 Carlos Hyde 1065
Adrian Peterson 19333 Kareem Hunt 8155
Kareem Hunt 18465 Sony Michel 772
James Conner 17366 Adrian Peterson 663
Carlos Hyde 17335 David Johnson664
David Johnson16365 Saquon Barkley 612
Saquon Barkley 15293 Alfred Morris 631
Melvin Gordon 15926 Javorius Allen 643
Marshawn Lynch 15293     
Lamar Miller 15291     

 

Red Zone Passing

Patrick Mahomes – Mahomes has taken the league by storm this season and this week was no different. He had 10 pass attempts and four touchdowns in the red zone this week, giving him 16 red zone touchdowns for the season (one behind Luck for the NFL lead). No matter what criteria or stat you use/look at, Mahomes has been one of the best quarterbacks in football this year and should be the MVP at this point in the season (sorry Gurley).

Mitchell Trubisky – Trubisky had seven pass attempts in the red zone this week and two of them went for touchdowns. He also scrambled once in the red zone and it resulted in possibly the longest eight yard touchdown in NFL history (he ran about 70 yards). Trubisky is completing 57% of his passes in the red zone this season and had eleven touchdowns to just one interception. He is one of the hottest quarterbacks in football right now, ride the hot streak.

Tom Brady – Brady, like Beckham, surprisingly makes his debut to the red zone report this week. He had seven pass attempts and three touchdowns in the red zone this week as he led the Patriots to a victory over the Bears. Brady is now third in the NFL with 12 red zone passing touchdowns and he has thrown zero interceptions. Tom Terrific isn’t having his best season, but he is still getting the job done at age 41 and his red zone stats are some of the best in football.

*The below tables are the top-10 in pass attempts for the season in the red zone and inside the 10 yard line. Take note that pass attempts inside the 10 are also included in inside the 20.

 Inside the 20  Inside the 10
 AttemptsCompletetionsComp%TDINT  AttemptsCompletetionsComp%TDINT
Andrew Luck 523260%171 Deshaun Watson 271034%70
Patrick Mahomes 503056%161 Derek Carr 241458%41
Drew Brees 503465%100 Patrick Mahomes 221146%90
Jared Goff 473060%102 Drew Brees 221777%90
Eli Manning 431839%60 Jared Goff 221150%62
Deshaun Watson 411735%80 Andrew Luck 201571%110
Andy Dalton 382359%111 Mitchell Trubisky 201155%70
Joe Flacco 382361%91 Philip Rivers 201155%61
Tom Brady 372255%120 Joe Flacco 191053%51
Derek Carr 372566%72 Tom Brady 181155%90

 

Team Defense Red Zone Stats

New England Patriots – The Patriots walked away winners in Week 7, but in no part because of their defense. They gave up 31 points and failed to stop the Bears from finding the end zone on any of their four attempts.  Despite this rough game, the Patriots are still in the middle-of-the-pack with their 58% touchdown rate against in the red zone and have a great matchup on tap this week as they head to Buffalo to take on the Bills.

Cleveland Browns – The Browns fell to the Bucs in overtime 26-23 and had their defense stopped the Bucs from converting all three of their red zone drives into touchdowns, it likely would have been a different result. The Browns defense has been very average both overall and in the red zone and are the not a useable option this week in a matchup with the Steelers. The Steelers bolster one of the best red zone offenses in the NFL, meaning it could be another rough week for the Browns red zone defense.

*The below table shows the red zone stats for all 32 teams. How many attempts have been made against each team, how many touchdowns were converted, and the percentage of how often those red zone drives result in touchdowns.

TeamRZAttRZTDRZTD% TeamRZAttRZTDRZTD%
Bucs211886% Bears14857%
Saints191474% Broncos211257%
Texans191474% Rams181056%
Panthers151173% Raiders231252%
Falcons322372% Ravens16850%
Bills231670% Jaguars201050%
Redskins161169% Chargers241250%
Bengals251768% Lions19947%
Cadinals231565% Colts241146%
Packers171165% Dolphins271244%
Chiefs251664% Giants251144%
49ers321959% Jets231044%
Browns271659% Eagles261142%
Steelers221359% Vikings271141%
Seahawks171059% Cowboys19737%
Patriots261558% Titans18633%