Greg Olsen was blanketed by the Seattle safeties in Week 8. We break down the fantasy implications.
Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen has had a great season thus far, but he had his worst game of the season against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. That's because the Seahawks put cornerback Richard Sherman on Kelvin Benjamin, allowing Seattle's stellar safeties to cover Olsen, as noted by Joe Person of The Charlotte Observer.
Olsen caught just a single pass for 16 yards in the game, and was targeted only three times. He's had 11 targets in two different games, nine targets in two others and eight targets in two others. In other words, this game was an anomaly for him. He's got 42 receptions for 509 yards and five touchdowns on the season.
Fantasy Impact: There was some thought that Olsen could have a big game given that Seattle's pass defense has under-performed significantly given they were the best in the league a season ago. That said, the Seahawks can shut down anybody on the right day, and Olsen is a dangerous target. Sherman couldn't always handle Benjamin, but fantasy owners should not worry about teams blanketing Olsen going forward. Not every team has the personnel that the Seahawks have.