Tyler

Lockett

Lockett logged a pass route on 28 of Geno Smith’s 31 drop backs but couldn’t manage more than one look against Arizona. Lockett, who has two touchdowns on the season, now has a grand total of 55 receiving yards over his past four games. He can be safely left on the waiver wire ahead of the Seahawks’ Week 15 matchup against Green Bay.

Lockett has now been held to 20-or-fewer yards in four of his past five appearances. Long one of the league’s ageless wonders, Lockett has now fallen miles behind DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba for targets relevance. Lockett is waiver wire fodder for the season’s stretch run.

Lockett is now firmly operating as the Seahawks’ No. 3 WR and offers fantasy managers very little week-to-week reliability. He is WR5/6 for the occasion, though an explosive gain or two is within his range of outcomes given the Jets’ defensive struggles.

Lockett and DK Metcalf (shoulder) both didn’t practice for the second straight day. This could just be maintenance for the veteran wideout, but it does appear that this could be a limited group of targets for Geno Smith against the Jets in Week 13. It also could mean a heaping bowl full of targets for Jaxon Smith-Njigba. That might be the case, anyway.

Lockett has been managing various injuries throughout the season and is listed with a knee injury for his non-participation to begin the week. He is the clear No. 3 wide receiver behind DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba now and fantasy managers in shallower leagues can cut Lockett at this point of the season. If he cannot practice later in the week, Lockett is likely to miss Week 13 against the Jets, propping Smith-Njigba up further as a borderline WR1 fantasy play.

Lockett’s role has shrunk throughout the season as Jaxon Smith-Njigba has earned more targets. He was targeted three times, good for fifth-highest on the team, turning that into two catches for 20 yards. The 32-year-old veteran is the clear No. 3 wide receiver on the team and his fantasy value is minimized as a result. Lockett will be a WR5 for Week 13 against the Jets.

This may be a non-issue. Lockett was not listed on the Seahawks’ official game status report, released early on Friday afternoon. The injury report was later updated, showing Lockett as having been a limited participant due to a new foot issue. Fantasy managers should currently expect Lockett to play this week, given his absence on the expected game status report, but this is a situation worth monitoring because it appears as though Lockett may have picked up the foot injury during Friday’s practice.

Lockett earned two of his three targets on the Seahawks’ opening drive and was essentially a non-factor after that. Lockett is extremely difficult to trust as a flex option, with Jaxon Smith-Njigba not only seizing the No. 2 role but making a strong case for the team’s No. 1 wide receiver spot. Deploying Lockett in re-draft will require fantasy managers to either study matchups closely or simply take the good with the bad. He is a WR5 with decent scoring potential against the Cardinals in Week 12.

It’s back-to-back full practices for Metcalf, and it’s obviously a great sign that he’ll be back in action for Week 11 against the 49ers. It may even be a foregone conclusion this point barring a setback. He should see plenty of targets for Sunday’s divisional tilt, and the player who gets “hurt” the most by his return is likely Tyler Lockett.

Lockett reeled in a 30-yard touchdown just before halftime but was used as an ancillary weapon in this game. With DK Metcalf out for a second game because of a knee injury, Jaxon Smith-Njigba stepped up in a major way, corralling seven passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns on 13 targets. This was Lockett’s fifth game over 60 yards but his ninth under 80. With no ceiling games in sight and Metcalf likely to return after Seattle’s Week 10 bye, Lockett will be relegated to the WR4/5 ranks when he returns in Week 11.