Josh

Downs

Downs’ 48 yards led the Colts on what was a down-passing day, but the rookie slot receiver displayed tremendous upside all season long. Injuries slowed Downs for part of the season, but he still turned in 68 receptions for 771 yards and two touchdowns in 17 games. At just 22 years old, Downs has a chance to be one of the league’s best slot receivers for the next decade if he can simply stay healthy. A slight 175-pound frame could make that challenging for him, but Downs proved to be a problem for opposing for much of the season despite his size. His target volume will likely take a hit next season when Anthony Richardson returns, but he should be on the fantasy radar as a fringe top-36 receiver in PPR leagues.

Downs ended his fantasy season with another forgettable performance. The rookie had a 50-yard grab on the Colts’ first drive and was invisible from that point on. Downs failed to eclipse three catches in seven games this season despite seeing a full complement of snaps and routes as the Colts’ primary slot receiver. He managed two touchdowns and four games with more than 50 receiving yards. Downs will be an interesting PPR option in deeper formats next season.

Downs was targeted often in motion and in short yardage by Gardner Minshew. With Michael Pittman out, Downs led the team in targets, though that converted into just 39 yards and no scores. The Colts offense struggled to move the ball for most of the game, leaving Downs’ ceiling capped. The rookie is a back-end WR4 against the Raiders for Week 17.

Quarterback Gardner Minshew targeted nine pass-catchers on a night he attempted just 28 passes, leading to muted production behind the 78 yards gained by Michael Pittman prior to his departure with a concussion. Downs remains off the fantasy radar moving forward.

Downs last topped 50 yards in Week 8. He injured his knee in the following game and hasn’t looked the same since. His role, in terms of routes, has rebounded now that he is a few weeks removed from the knee issue. His production has not. For now, fantasy managers should keep Downs on the bench until he shows some signs of life. He will rank as a WR5 for his Week 15 matchup with Pittsburgh.

Michael Pittman racked up 16 targets and even Alec Pierce saw more looks than Downs, earning six targets to Downs’s five. Coming off a 13-target game in Week 12, the lack of usage was a surprising turn of events for the rookie wideout. Downs will look to rebound against a spiraling Bengals defense in Week 14, though he will fall to the back of the WR4 ranks after a handful of quiet weeks in a row.

Downs got banged-up in Week 9 and then played through a questionable tag after missing all three practices in Week 10. He totaled three catches for 50 yards on an extremely limited role in the two games. Downs then got a week of rest for Indy’s bye to recover from the knee injury and wasn’t present on the team’s injury report this week. Now fully healthy, he was on the field more often and tied Michael Pittman for a team-high in targets. He may not have done a ton with the looks, but Downs is back in pre-injury form. He will rank as a fringe WR2 for his Week 13 matchup with the Titans.

Typically, a return to practice comes after a player missed a game plus the preceding practices. Downs indeed missed all three of the Colts’ practices the last time they were on the field, but he still managed to play through his questionable tag versus the Patriots. As expected, he played a limited role, seeing just three targets in Week 10. The Colts’ bye week should have helped him get closer to full strength, though the rookie has been dealing with this knee issue since the offseason. It will be slightly harder to trust him as a fantasy WR2 knowing that he may still be limited because of the knee injury.

Credit to Downs for gutting through this injury as long as he has. The rookie slot receiver has impressed to the tune of 43 receptions for 523 yards and two touchdowns through 10 games, but saw light work in Week 10 before the team’s bye. According to Atkins, the Colts held Downs out of voluntary activities but, “the injury never healed” and flare ups have been common throughout the season. In an article published on IndyStar.com, Downs “had no idea if he was going to be able to play” in the Colts’ game against the Patriots, but he ultimately suited up and caught 2-of-3 targets for 40 yards. According to Downs, the injury isn’t “anything alarming” but the rookie has played on 25 percent of snaps or less in each of the last two games. The injury knocked him from Week 9 against the Panthers. Downs said he expects to be “100 percent” after the bye week, but it sounds like this is a nagging issue that could continue throughout the season. This is definitely something to monitor heading into Week 12 against the Buccaneers.

Downs did not practice at all this week but managed to play through his knee injury anyway. His light workload of three targets could have been a product of the knee issue limiting him. Traveling back to the States from Germany, the Colts get their bye in Week 11. That should allow Downs to get back to full strength ahead of his team’s Week 12 game against the Bucs.