Fantasy Football Daily - What's the BIGGEST Fantasy Football Question for Each NFC Team? 🧠

Episode Date: July 17, 2025

Use code SCOREMORE10 at checkout for 10% OFF any subscription. Dominate your league. Win more bets. Level up your game Get ready for your fantasy football drafts with a comprehensive breakdown of the biggest fantasy football questions for each NFC team! From quarterback controversies to injury-prone running backs, we're covering it all. Whether you're a seasoned fantasy football veteran or a rookie looking for an edge, this video led by Joe Dolan is for you. We'll dive into the most pressing fantasy football questions for all 16 NFC teams, so you can make informed decisions on draft day and dominate your league. Featuring "The Guru" John Hansen, Brett Whitefield, Theo Gremminger, Scott Barrett and more! Where to find us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://twitter.com/FG_Dolan ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠http://twitter.com/FantasyPts Join the Discord here: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.fantasypoints.com/media/discord#/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to Fantasy Points for FREE: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.fantasypoints.com/plans#/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Fantasy Points Website - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.fantasypoints.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ NEW! Data Suite - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://data.fantasypoints.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/FantasyPts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/FantasyPts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/FantasyPts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@fantasypts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #NewYorkJets #FantasyFootball #DynastyFantasyFootball #FantasyFootballQuestions #FantasyFootballAdvice #FantasyFootballWaiverWire #NFC #FantasyFootballStrategy #FantasyFootballRankings #FantasyFootballSleepers #NFLFantasyAdvice #FantasyFootballLineup #FantasyFootballMockDraft #FantasyFootballInjuries #FantasyFootball2023 #FantasyFootballTrade #FantasyFootballTips #FantasyFootballDraft #NFLPredictions #NFCTeams Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to Franchise Focus, 2025 NFC edition. I'm Theo Greminger, and I'm thrilled to kick off this year's NFC edition of franchise focus by asking one simple question. What is the most important thing for fantasy football for every single team in the NFC? This ambitious project is led by our owner and editor-in-chief, Joe Dolan, and it showcases some of the insights of some of your favorite names and fantasy points, including the guru John Hansen and Scott Barrett, along with top voices around the industry, such as Marcus Mosier of Locked-on Cowboys and Greg Alman of Fox Sports.

Allow me to get us started with our first NFC team, the Atlanta Falcons. What? Why are you shaking your head? You're welcome. When looking at the Atlanta Falcons, we have two players who have steamed up in ADP, big time, big time, ADP. Drake London, we could discuss. Drake London is going inside the mid-second round. He's been a target of mine and a player that I've talked about on a lot of my shows here at fantasy points.

But the big question this year, is it the year of Bejohn Robinson? Can Bejohn Robinson deliver what Sequin Barkley delivered last year, a league winning performance, and is the player you need to win in 2025 at the running back position? With Bejohn, we're checking off so, so many boxes. Just a terrific talent, 23 years old, and looks set to have the best season he's had as a pro. Now, last year, Bejohn hit 20 points per game. 20.1 point per game average in year two, a huge leap forward from the 14 and a half points per game he had as a rookie.

The Zach Robinson offense was very beneficial for Bejohn. Bejon had over 1,400 rushing yards and 61 receptions. This is the back-to-back years for Bejohn where he hit. strong reception totals. Fifty-eight is a rookie, 61 and year two, definitely exceeded expectations as a pass catcher from his profile coming in as a Texas Longhorn. But now with Bijon, you're going to have to really, really pay for it. He has passed Saquan Barkley on Underdog as the RB1 overall going off the board. And it's really easy to see why. The Zach Robbins Robinson offense is set to heavily feature Bejohn Robinson.

And Michael Pennix in year two, the vibes are very, very strong for Pennix. And Bejohn was fantastic in the three games that Pennix started last year. He scored 24 or more fantasy points in every single of those starts. So we're looking at week 16, Bejohn gave you 24.3 points against the New York Giant. including two touchdowns, had another two touchdowns against Washington in week 17 with 24.8 points. And then in week 18, a game where most fantasy managers are taking the week off, Bejohn Robinson had 173 total yards, two more touchdowns, and scored 31.3 points, which was the highest score he had all season long. So the sample size is there with Michael Penix.

We also have Zach Robinson ascending as a year two coordinator. And can Bejan Robinson be this year's league winner at the running back position? Fantasy managers are betting on it. He's my RB1 overall in my rankings. And this could be the year of Bejan Robinson. He might go and put up a legendary 25 point per game average and have one of the best seasons in recent memory at the running back position, but you're going to have to pay for it in ADP. Johnny, whenever anybody talks about the Arizona Cardinals from a fantasy football perspective this year,

the first thing they want to know is what's up with Marvin Harrison, Jr. You look at the base numbers, solid for a rookie. You'd say he's got a bright future. But when you compare that to the hype he came into the league with, the bloodlines he comes into the league with, not so much. But there is some hope. And I think you're aware of this.

He ran so many go routes and posts and corners, these really low probability routes, whereas we charted him at fantasy points data as being maybe the single best crossing route runner in the entire NFL. What have the Cardinals, what have Jonathan Gannon and Drew Pretzing said about Harrison's usage? And would you anticipate that changing at all in 2025? It absolutely is going to change or there's going to be changes from an offensive philosophy standpoint. mainly drew petting. You don't take a guy fourth overall. He had three games last year.

We had double digit targets. And he was their default number one receiver. That's just football malpractice. Whereas Malik neighbors, Brian Thomas Jr. On bad team, spam the football. And I'm not saying that that was a byproduct of their production. They're great players. But like, we're sitting here.

Like Marvin Harrison Jr. with Sean McVeigh. Does he have 1,300 yards last year? I think it's possible. Right. So he was thrust into an offense that is clearly run first, run dominant. they've been top top top five in rushing offense last two years with drew petting and again i think drew pentsing is a good offensive coordinator but i mean the proof is in the pudding we watched last year he

was just not part of the game plan and then you saw those clips where he looked disinterested because he wasn't involved in the game plan because it was like hey i got a target in the first quarter am i going to have to wait two more quarters for another target so everybody has blame he's got blamed khy the murray's got blamed drew petting's got blamed probably the most blame he was a number one receiver with a route tree that was embarrassing for a number one receiver. So to me, it's like, I remember he had interviewed by my co-host, Bull Brock, at his locker like mid-season last year, right before mid-season. And he just looked dejected.

And the Cardinals indirectly had killed his confidence with what they had been asking him to do. There were a couple different riders this offseason that it was just basically like emphasized that he ran a route tree as the number one receiver basically just the default route tree you put into Mad, something like that. And it was really disappointing. There was no creativity. So yeah, it will improve. I've got him this year going for about 1,200 yards and double digit touchdowns. And again, for somebody who I thought would have like a Jamar Chase kind of rookie season,

you're still not hitting that. But I think it's going to be hard with his confidence grown exponentially. His body has taken a complete transformation, the schedule, the continuity with Kyla Murray, by default, he's going to hit 1,200 yards, in my opinion. One player I never have gotten right throughout his career from a fantasy football perspective is James Connor. Every time you expect him to drop off, he ends up playing the most games of his career. And last year, I got got again because Trey Benson was one of my most drafted running backs

in fantasy football. Now, of course, the Cardinals extended James Connor. He was part of that kind of running back renaissance with all these veteran running backs just going nuts last year. And then in turn, getting rewarded. Sequan Barkley, Connor, and of course, Derek Henry. But Trey Benson had a lost rookie season. The Cardinals have been saying this offseason, oh, you know, we have two number ones.

That's the way they think of it. Sounds like a little bit of lip service to me. But what are your expectations for James Connor and Trey Benson in 2025? Real quick, the story on the two number one. So like, Trey Benson said that because he's behind James Connor. And then I was right next to Matthew Berry when he asked John and Gannon about Trey Benson at the combine. And Gannon used that term because they were asked.

about it, right? But like, no, it's James Connor. This is James Connor's backfield. James Connor was extended. James Connor and John Laganon are incredibly close. He sets the tone offensively for what they want to do. And I believe that they like Trey Benson. Trey Benson's not James Connor. I've stood next to him. They're completely different in terms of their physical stature. James Connor is a freak of nature. So until James Connor is not on this team, then you can't expect anybody else to take more than 30, 35 percent of the share of workload. And I told people that last year. I was like, they like James Connor.

They're not phasing him out. He's too well respected. He's too productive. And by the way, I don't think James Connor should ever get like 80 plus percent of the touches. I think like 60 percent is a sweet spot, which is unfortunate for fantasy experts because it's like most of his points and production are going to have to come from rushing touchdowns. And we've seen that the last couple of years. But their quarterback cannot do the quarterback sneak. Kyla Murray needs a big back.

And so it's the perfect pairing. So I was not surprised when they re-signed him. And then, you know, Trey Benson, to me, I think, has a lot of time to develop, left a little bit to be desired. Like, I did not see the four, three, three, or whatever speed from Florida State that he ran at the combine. It doesn't mean he can't do it. But again, like, let's see what he looks like in preseason. What I will say is if James Connor missed his time, it's Trey Benson's backfield.

But until that point, it's J.C. What's up? I'm John Hansen. Best ball is back. And it's only at Draft Kings. And there's 15 million reasons to be excited. A $15 million guaranteed prize pool with two millionaires being crowned for first and second place. Draft Kings is offering everyone a draft one get one special.

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Kings.com slash NFL dash best dash ball. John, obviously, after the second half of the season and the improvements that Bryce Young made very real improvements, the Panthers object this offseason was to get him some more help, help him grow. Taitairoa McMillan is the top 10 draft pick, obviously drafted higher than Xavier Ligett was. How are the Panthers and Dave Canales, how do they plan on kind of using Legett feeling and Taitairoa McMillan altogether.

What has been kind of their expectations for these guys? Yeah, Joe, I think it's an interesting dynamic when you look at this receiving room. You have guys with certain traits that are going to fit into their positions more naturally this year, in my opinion. So Liget, for instance, think of Devo Samuel. That's a natural comparison when you're talking about Gamecocks. He was asked to be the Boundary X last year in a lot of cases. That's not his game. His game is movement.

get him on the move, get creative with the guy. He's got some post-up work that he needs to get busy on in the off season. But the Rob Running was great with Leggett, looking forward to development there. Thielen's still there at 58 years old. Sorry, Adam, 35, wherever you're at. Thielen's still productive, and he's a plug-and-play type of guy. With McMillan, they have a true boundary X, they believe. And I think in our draft analysis of Billy Marshall and I on the Rour podcast,

we were very high on him in the lead up to the draft, we feel like that frees up Legette in a lot of ways to be the movement player that he was very much at South Carolina and is intended to be, I think, in the pros here. And then keep an eye on Jalen Coker as well. I mean, obviously the Coke heads out there. We're excited. He's a guy that I think can develop and is an undrafted guy from last draft class. I think he's going to be, if he stays healthy, an option for Bryce to hit downfield. He's a good vertical target, got some good size, good blocker. it's an interesting room, Joe. So let's go to the backfield, obviously. I think part of the reason Bryce Young improved last year was he had a reliable run game behind him.

And while Chuba Hubbard ended the season on injured reserve, he had a super productive season was kind of the heartbeat of that offense. I know they drafted Trevor E.T.N. and they brought in Rico Dowdell, but do you anticipate Chuba Hubbard being a true bell cow kind of again in 2025? Yeah, I do. I do think that they've added some pieces and we'll get into that. But Hubbard, last season, as the season wore on and the team continued to try to find their way and had some close losses against great teams and then some key wins late in the season to Bill Bill Minham, Hubbard, to me, was the best player on the team last year. And that's a hard thing to quantify.

I know we make these top 100 lists and mix and match in this big fruit cocktail of positions. But in what they were trying to do last year, slow the game down, protect Bryce Young. Hubbard has shown great contact balance, great consistency. He has picked up in terms of acceleration in the open field. And what I love about Hubbard is he has spent so much time. And I chronicled this at camp a couple years ago, the drops. The hands weren't great. He spent so much time, probably more time than anybody on the team on the Jugs machine.

He's got one of his house, Joe, which I would love to have too in my backyard, but I think they're out of my range. I think Hubbard is a great belkow type of guy. But what you do there is you understand this is a tough. league. It's a league of attrition. You're bringing another 1,000-yard guy in Rico Dado, who's got great acceleration, great vision. Again, not going to be a bell cow in his own right, but he's a guy you can call out of the bullpen, if needed. He's also got great hands, great rod runner. Rehinge-blackshear comes to mind. He's still in the roster. And then with E.T.N., he's a

project. I mean, I was surprised at that pick. Billing and I talked about that. We were a little bit taken aback because they added Dattle in the offseason, but the return game is something they're going to look to enhance. He's got a lot of experience there. So, I'd be feeling good about this backfield if I'm Carolina, if I'm Dave Canales, and especially if I'm Bryce Young. John Hanson here, back talking Chicago Bears and biggest fantasy question. Let's be honest here. I do not have many questions about Ben Johnson, whose offenses rank second best in YPA

and third best in passing yards per game since he took over the Lions offense in 2022. The obvious answer, of course, is Caleb Williams. And let's break it down because, you know, the very accomplished Ben Johnson's taking over here along with Declan Doyle, his office coordinator. We also have a front office that is still focusing on hard on offense. And you got to love it for Caleb Williams. Let's start with the office of line per our O-line guru, Scott de Benedetto. The Bears will be respectable. He's got him in the top 15 at 15. We're looking at a potentially rock solid line

with some veteran additions here. Interior-wise, Joe Tunney, Drew Dalman. That's a throwback to another name. And then Jonah Jackson, the old veteran, along with Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright, not too shabby, as well as going heavy on offense in the draft

with a couple of top 40 picks in Colston Loveland. and Luther Burden, who should be a really good sleeper if he can grab hold of that slot roll in Ben Johnson's slot heavy offense. Keep in mind they did sign Olamedi Zakias, who is also very, very capable. But this gives Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears a very deep and talented group of pass catchers with DJ Moore. And of course, Roma Dunezane. Oh, let's not forget, Cole Comet is still alive and he's still on the roster. He is also a pretty good weapon. They also have Tyler Scott.

So it is all on Caleb Williams. Now, let's give him some credit. On one hand, he had the second best interception percentage in his rookie season with only six picks versus 20 touchdown passes. But, hey, too much of the data was really bad. 0.39 fantasy points per dropback. Sixth worst. 30% pressure to sack ratio. second worst now in his defense uh it was year one and the offense was an abomination with shame waldron

getting fired midseason and also the head coach and all that um but here's the thing about ben johnson that it may help Caleb Williams at least from an NFL perspective uh per hour guy Ryan heath at fantasy points uh from his one of his great articles uh the 32 stats uh for all 32 teams Under Johnson, the Lions ranked outside of the top 20 in pass rate over expectation each of the past two seasons. Of course, that means they've run the ball a lot more than most teams do. So they try to control the game script and the situation, which is highly advisable given the way Caleb Williams well is kind of wired to play hero ball. And given the shaky showing from last year. Now, one other development that we'll be watching out for, it's clear Caleb Williams is the biggest question.

We'll try and get as much information out of the preseason as we can with some vibes. I kind of feel like we may not know until week one. But Ben Johnson and the Bears are looking to move Caleb Williams under center a little more. And I have been very vocal about complaining about other dudes like namely Joe Burrow. I believe he did a little bit more in 2024, but it's like I, I, I, I know you guys love the shotgun here, but you do open up a lot more opportunities when you play under center. And per fantasy points data, the data was actually pretty good with Caleb Williams, you know, under center. 7.53YPA compared to only 6.09 from the shotgun, a plus 1.4% completion percentage over expectation.

And we're in the negative when we're in the gun, a 30.9. percent pressure to sack ratio down to 22.6% when he is under center. So there is hope for Caleb Williams, but I will say this in closing, he is the QB9 on underdog, which I think is a little rich to me. He has a lot to prove as a passer. And I don't think he'll drop back nearly as many times. So therefore, I don't think he'll run as much. But make no mistake, the bears have put it all on Caleb if they crab the bed again this year on offense it really won't be the organization's fault most likely it'll be Caleb Williams's fall so Caleb uh it's your move brac Marcus um obviously the cowboys had well before uh the big trade had kind of another quiet off

season in terms of supporting back Prescott and the offense but the george pickings trade made a lot of noise for a couple of reasons and you know you you get scared when the Steelers give up on a receiver given their history. But let's just talk about skill set. Let's talk about his fit because that's all we can talk about right now. How does he compare and contrast to C.D. Lamb? How does he fit what you think Brian Schottinheimer wants to do offensively? First of all, it's a fantastic fit because there's really not a lot of risk here for Dallas.

If it doesn't work out, they move on. They have no contract in place with him. So he's got to be on his best behavior. But on the field, it's phenomenal because he's going to be the outside receiver, the X receiver going down the field. That's going to allow CD Lamb to operate in the slot. They just haven't had that guy really throughout CED's entire career that can be this bona fide ex receiver that can win one-on-one matchups.

I think for all the players on the offense, I think the one that helps the most is probably C.D. Lamb just because now he's locked into being a full-time slot receiver. And we know what that means whenever Dak Prescott is undersetter. So let's talk about the best receiver, I think, that that the Cowboys have had with, in addition to C.D. Lamb and his time there, probably Michael Gallup back in back in 2019. Michael Gallup goes for 69, 1107, and six touchdowns that year. Is that a reasonable stat line to expect from George Pickens? Yeah, I think so. Maybe that's on the higher end, just because I do think the Cowboys are going to spread the ball out a lot and CED

is going to get so many targets. But I think the Cowboys are hoping that Pickens can just be a guy that gets six or seven targets a game, cash in on a couple of those and make big plays down the field. I think, you know, a thousand yards and potentially eight, nine touchdowns is very, very realistic. And if CD were to miss any time, now all of a sudden, that usage is going way up.

So assuming both guys are healthy, yeah, thousand yards and close to double-digit touchdowns, very, very realistic. So now Dallas obviously has gone to a past heavy offense with Dak Prescott, but they still had a usable fantasy running back last year in Rico Dowdell. So the Cowboys letting Rico Dowdle walk and kind of piecemealing this back together,

I think was a big surprise to a lot of people, Giovante Williams, Miles Sanders, and then of course, Jaden Blue. How do you see this backfield shaking out from a fantasy football perspective? Because it is an unanswered question here, and there is going to be somebody usable. We just have to identify that guy. Yeah, first of all, I think they let Rico Dowell leave for a couple different reasons. weren't sure about his fit in Brian Schottenheimer's offense,

which is going to use more gap schemes. There's also some injury stuff that I think they were a little concerned about giving him money. And I know he didn't get a lot from Carolina. But just to start with that. But for the running back situation, I don't think Jaden Blue is a lock to get a lot of touches in this offense. Remember, he is a fifth round pick.

I think Cowboy fans would be happy if he's seeing six or seven touches a game. So it's going to come down to Miles Sanders and Javonte Williams. I think Miles Sanders has had the better offseason. I think he's the guy that has shown more juice. But Joe, I got to be honest with you, I think the Cowboys leading rusher is not currently on their roster. Wow. Who do you think the Cowboys could target in a trade market or on the free agent market

that you think might come available? Well, I think this is one of the easiest positions to upgrade in August and September. If we get to camp and it's just clear that the Cowboys don't have a usable back, maybe they go out and they try to trade for a Damien Pierce, who's kind of blocked in Houston, or maybe they make a bigger move and go out and get a Travis E.TN. But I think they're just hoping that one of the guys, Miles Sanders or Javante Williams,

can be usable as a pass blocker, short yardage back, and then they'll try to find the other guys somewhere else that can maybe create some of the more big plays or can be more of the featured back. So I don't think this running back is running back room is settled at all yet. How will the Detroit Lions respond to all the changes on the offensive side of the ball is one of the biggest questions looming in the NFL

right now it's been a major storyline this entire offseason there's big changes in two major areas in Detroit one the coaching staff and two the offensive line the offensive coaching staff let's start there i really want to talk about this ben jonson departs for indivision rival of chicago bears he's the head coach there he's now tasked with getting the most out of caleb williams the lines bring back john morton for the Denver broncos who is with the team in 2022 it doesn't to stop there, though. Out goes past game coordinator Tanner Eggstrand, who's the new play caller in New York, who left with Aaron Glenn. Out goes wide receiver coach, Antoine Randall L, who's been largely credited with development of guys like Amon Ross St. Brown and this big leap we saw from Jameson Williams last year. Outgo's assistant QB coach, J.T. Barrett, who also followed Ben Johnson to Chicago to be the quarterbacks coach there. It's a lot. It's a lot to take in. I think the, I'm going to give you the silver lining here. I think the kind of continuity, the collaboration, and the new blood here is the strategy for the lines to get through this. This isn't something that they haven't been prepared for, right?

They've known for a while that Ben Johnson was going to be leaving to take a head coaching job, whether it was last season, this season, or even next. They've been preparing for this moment. And I want to remind people that this is Dan Campbell's offense, right? This is his scheme. It's an offshoot of the Sean Payton offense who Dan worked close to under. You guys got to remember, Dan Campbell is an offensive guy at heart. This is what he does. And he's been very responsible for some of the play calling, too.

I think Ben, in a lot of ways, has gotten a ton of credit and deserves all that credit, but Dan probably hasn't gotten enough credit for the success of the offense the last couple years and the juggernaut they've become. So there's the continuity element, right? This is still Dan Campbell's offense. They bring back John Morton from the Denver Broncos, who was with Detroit in a senior coaching role in 2022. He obviously was with Sean Payton last year. I just told you this is an offshoot of the Sean Payton offense, right?

So there's this continuity, the language is staying the same. The playbook is staying the same. There's also this collaborative effort. Something the lines have always done really well is it's a team. There's not one guy that's responsible for everything, right? It's a team effort. And that's true on the coaching staff. Even think about all the trick plays and stuff, the Lions run.

That's not a Ben Johnson thing. That's a Sean Ryan thing. Sean Ryan is the assistant wide receiver coach for the Lions. And he has remained in that position. So I don't think they're. losing that element of the offense. But furthermore, they're bringing in really well-respected coaches like Tarshard Choice who talked to anyone in the league, anyone in the college football circle.

This dude is one of the best coaches, running back coaches in the league. I mean, he's coached Bijon Robinson and Jemir Gibbs, the two last big-time college runners previous to Ashton Genti. They also bring it to David Shaw to be an offensive, a senior offensive coach who has had a ton of success in college football. They bring in Bruce Radkowski to be the new. new assistant QB coach or in a senior coaching role. So this collaboration is also staying the same.

And they also bring in some new blood here with these guys. So I think overall, given that this is something they've prepared for, I think they're going to be just fine. Obviously, it's going to take them a minute to get their groove. But I wouldn't worry too much about this. The second big question, as far as the offensive changes with Detroit, is the retooling of that offensive line? Let's be honest, this offensive line has been the,

engine that powered this machine. It's a unit that ranked top three in pressure rate allowed the last two seasons, top five and adjusted yards before contact per carry. Other than maybe what, the Philadelphia Eagles, they've been the premier group in the NFL, right? So you don't want to hear that that offense is taken a hit, that they have to retool it. But again, this is something that they've been preparing for, right? They let Kevin Zitler walk in free agency willingly. They have plenty of money. They could have paid him. They opted to go with a Christian mahogany who emerged down the stretch last year. He had two fantastic starts, one in the playoff game against the Washington commanders, where he was dominant. He was probably the best offensive linemen on the field in that

game. Graham Glasgow, also in the fold, he has, he played left guard last year, which is probably his weakest position of the three that he plays. He's a much better right guard slash center. So I think by moving him, you might get a little bit more out of him. And then, you know, they drafted Tate Ratledge in the second round. They drafted Miles'clock this year. Brad Holmes has never been a guy to ignore the offensive line. In fact, he's drafted six offensive linemen in five drafts all the way from a top 10 pick to a second round pick to a couple fourth round picks he's traded up for guys that he likes they have a lot of bodies in the fold that's not including guys like yodi awesika who they brought in from philly a couple years ago

who provides really good depth for them there are some parallels here to the offensive line where or i should say to to detroit and how this season could go last year we saw the philadelphia Eagles lose their all pro Hall of Fame caliber center and Jason Kelsey. We saw both coordinators have to get replaced. The Lions going through the same exact thing this year with the retirement of Frank Ragnow and losing both of their coordinators. If you're a fantasy player looking to collect some of these guys, I'm not too worried about it. I think they're going to be just fine. Aaron, for a team that has the pedigree of the Packers, the expectations of the Packers and the talent of the Green Bay Packers. It's kind of wild how hard a fantasy team they are to figure out

with the exception of Josh Jacobs. And I think that's got a chance to become even trickier this year following the drafting of Matthew Golden. So I want to start there. Let's start with Golden, you know, the first round rookie that Aaron Rogers never got at the receiver position. What do you expect his role to be? And how is he going to fit in with this very, very wide group? of weapons. Well, it's interesting to look at his participation with the ones during OTA's mini camp, right? And you can't project too much off of that because clearly they want to get him involved early and often. They want him to be sure that he's on the same page with his teammates and things of that nature, but you don't really know how often they're going to have him out there

from the jump, right? But I will say, you know, with Christian Watson missing at least probably the first half of the season, though it does appear maybe he's a little ahead of schedule, I got to think Golden's speed alone gives him a ticket on the field, right? Just utilizing him in certain situational aspects, being able to kind of maybe have a package or two design just to get his, you know, get the ball to him in space and utilize that speed, utilize that athleticism. I don't think it's something where you can count on him right away in fantasy. There's no way that's going to be the case, but I do think he's a bit of a lottery ticket. You know, Matt LaFleur is one of the best at, you know, digging into and finding ways.

to generate explosive plays. Matthew Golden is a guy you've got to think is going to be, at least have his name underlined on the play sheet once or twice a week. No question. If you had to take a wager right now, who leads the Green Bay Packers in targets, presuming health? Right. That's the key one, right?

I'm going to go with Jaden Reed. I know that the stock and or kind of the vibes around Reed are a bit down after last year, especially considering I had him on my fantasy team. And you certainly saw that production wane in the second half of the season. Some of it due to his play on the field, but I think a lot of it just due to lost opportunity. It's fascinating to see how the Packers somewhat changed last year when Josh Jacobs got in the door, right? The way they were so run-centric, they were so focused on running the football, that took away some opportunities for Jane Reed.

But I do think because Golden is here and probably going to be, you know, utilizing some of that stuff on the perimeter that, you know, Reed was mixed in with at times. I do think they're going to get back to a lot of what they were doing with Reed in his rookie season when he broke Sterling Sharp's reception record for a rookie. You know, I don't doubt for a moment that it is going to continue to be a case where they spread the ball around a lot, right? There are going to be a lot of guys week to week. It's going to be tough to know, right? But with Reed overall end of the season, I think he's a guy who's going to see the football a whole bunch. So I want to talk about Matt LaFleurr's just kind of philosophy in general. You mentioned them getting really run heavy with Josh Jacobs at the end of last season.

And Jacobs obviously was part of that running back renaissance that we saw last year. Like these big paid running backs producing big time numbers. The Packers spent an early pick on Marshawn Lloyd last year. Obviously, he had a lost rookie season for multiple reasons. But you mentioned that run-heavy nature. Is that something we can kind of expect the Packers to continue into 2025 with Jacobs and hopefully Marshawn Lloyd as well? To me, it's one of the most fascinating questions facing the Packers this season.

Because clearly, I mean, Jacobs answered the bell, right? It didn't matter how many times you gave him the football. He produced, scored 15 touchdowns. He entered an area rarefied air with the Amman Greens and Jim Taylor's of the world as far as production at the running back spot. But you do notice, yes, they used a third round pick on Marshaun Lloyd, and you don't think he's going to be sitting the bench for the majority of the season. All of that said, though, a lot of that, I would suspect, was leaned into because of the injuries to Jordan Love. Some of the stuff they certainly wanted to do in the passing game, especially in the play. action game. He just kind of shied away from last season. I think a big part of that was because

Jordan was just never right after week one. You know, he between the knee, the groin down in Jacksonville, and he admitted at the Super Bowl. He was never 100% throughout the entirety of the season. I do think we'll see a bit more balance as far as, especially on first down, where they ran the ball, I think 75, 80% of a clip, right? That's, I would be shocked in today's NFL, that continued. But I do think Jacobs is still going to be a workhorse. And he's still going to be a guy that fantasy players can absolutely count on week to week. And he's going to put up big numbers, no matter how much they spell him with Floyd, no matter how much they maybe lean into the play action game a little bit more.

I still think Jacobs, especially down near the goal line, you saw how successful he was inside the five. I think that's definitely going to continue. The Rams added future Hall of Famer Devonte Adams this offseason. And they did it quickly. They felt like Cooper Cup was no longer a player who could create separation, and they wanted an upgrade at X receiver. Sean McVeigh, this was his first order of business this spring,

is to add Adams. He was quoted as saying, yeah, we still feel like he's a great ex-receiver. He can win vertically. And this passing offense is one of the best buying opportunities in fantasy football right now. since McVeigh became the head coach of the Rams as a team, their receiver group has finished top four in fantasy points per game in six out of eight years, six out of eight. And one of those years, I can't even really count because Stafford broke his back in the middle of the year. So really, this team has just been a dominant force for fantasy points, fantasy production, no matter who is

under center, no matter who the receivers are. And I would argue that Nakuwa and Adams are the most talented receiver group that the Rams have had in McVeigh's tenure. Last season, Puka Nakuwa, would have broke fantasy football had he stayed healthy. In the 10 games that weren't cut short by injury or ejection, remember he got ejected in that Seattle game, Nakua would have averaged 16.6 half PPR points per game. That would have made him the wide receiver two behind only Jamar Chase. Chase obviously put up the ridiculous 20 points per game last year. But Nakua was absolutely shredding defenses.

Average 3.8 yards per route run in those 10 games. That would have easily made him the wide receiver won over Rishi Rice, who averaged 3.5 yards per route run. And this season just sets up incredibly well for Nakuwa. He's got a legitimate running mate on the boundary in Adams who can obviously still create separation, get vertical at X receiver. And it's going to allow Nakuwa to operate even more in open space over the middle of the field. So we're all in on Puka Nakuwa. He's going at, you know, anywhere from 7, 8, 9 overall.

I think he should be going a little closer to 5 or 6 after the. top running backs go, and I would argue he is a better bet than Justin Jefferson to finish as the wide receiver won this season. The player, though, that is an incredible value is Adams. He is going at 41 overall in early ADP over on Yahoo. He's going at 37 overall on ESPN. And this setup is just like perfect. If you take a running back in the first and or second, round and then take Adams in the third. I think you're set up beautifully with a player who, okay, maybe he doesn't have the same ceiling as he used to when he was with Green Bay.

But Adams, y'all, he's still got it. He has plenty of good football left in the tank. In their 11 games last season after he got traded to the Jets, Devonce Adams beat teammate Garrett Wilson by separation score, route win rate. yards per route run and targets per route run. And you can say, oh, yeah, sure, it was the Aaron Rodgers buddy ball effect. Like, no. Our separation metrics by ass have Adams as the better receiver right now than Garrett Wilson, who by all means is a great player, a great receiver. Adams in Nakua form an awesome duo. And we're obviously taking all the puka that we can get. But I don't think

We should be selling ourselves short here that both of these players can finish as top 12 receivers in fantasy football this year. We live in a current NFL meta where there's a lot more running in the NFL and the Rams are one of the few teams that have a dynamic duo. They should lean pass heavy in general. They're always going to be pretty balanced under McVeigh. Nakua, I think he's a top three fantasy receiver. I think Adams is at worst, a top 12, top 14, top 15 receiver this season. And you can draft him, like I said, in the back half of the third round, early fourth round. And to cap it all off, Los Angeles has an incredibly easy schedule.

They have the fourth easiest slate by fantasy points allowed above. their opponents average this season. Stafford, to me, is an incredible best ball value, but for season-long fantasy, I want all of the puka and all of the atoms. Hey, what's going on? It's John Hanson, and I'm here to talk about the Minnesota Vikings, my favorite team since I was a little kid. In fact, I will age myself.

This year marks my 50th anniversary struggling and suffering with the, Minnesota Vikings. And we all know what the biggest question is. It's J.J. McCarthy. So I'm going to go a little more big picture and macro. And I will ask the question, is it too good to be true? Let's get right into it because these Minnesota Vikings were 14 in three last year with Sam Darnold, who was probably going to be the backup for most of the season, which was a testament to the offense and the system with Kevin O'Connell and Wes Phillips son of Wade and grandson of Bum. Third year now, three years in the books here.

Ninth best in terms of points four in 2024, 22nd best in 2023. That year kind of got away from them a couple of years ago, but they did start off good as well. Eighth best in points per game in 2022. Some of the other data, all this basically fantasy points data. I mean, it's an unbelievable situation here. Fifth best in yards in YPA and touchdowns. 12th best in completion percentage.

Second best in completion percentage over expectation. Ninth best in adjusted completion percentage, which includes sacks and throwaways and spikes and all that. Eighth best in drop percentage. We'll get to the receiving core in a moment. Eighth best in pressure rate, despite losing stud left. Christian Darisaw, fifth most air yards.

I mean, it was a potent offense. Obviously, Darnold was the QB-9 with 35 touchdown passes. And, you know, that does beg the question, how the hell do you do it? Well, we just said a lot of it right there with all the data and all that. But here's a data point that isn't very good on Sammy Darnold. Ninth worst in-sack percentage per fantasy points data were the Vikings, with Darnold last year. And that, I believe, is where J.J. McCarthy steps in.

Sam Darnold always had the talent, but he is a little bit of a panic attack dude in the pocket. It does not handle pressure all that well. No one handles pressure particularly well, except for maybe Tom Brady and a couple of others, but he is particularly in meltdown mode when he doesn't get a clear picture and or the pressure comes quickly. Another way of saying it is the later in the down, it gets the worst. Sam Darnold is and I believe that the later in the down it gets the better

J.J. McCarthy is, plays a lot better on the run, throws a very good ball on the run, a lot of zip on it. And he's more, well, let's say he's as athletic, I believe, as Sam Donald. So I do think J.J. will be a threat with his legs. But more so to me, it's about actually potentially improving upon the great season that Donald had last year. If things click quickly for McCarthy because of this great offense and because of his superior second reaction plays. Now, they overall had a pretty decent O line all things considered, but let's take a look at what we're looking at when all things, if all things are, you know, looking good here. And it really is, comes down to Christian Darisaw is coming off that knee injury.

He may not be ready for week one, but I think the expectation is we're going to get the bulk of this season with Dar esau who I think is an absolute stud left guard Donovan Jackson by the way can be a swing guy if need be I love that pick the interior of the offensive line has been bad for Minnesota for almost 20 years they had Ryan Kelly and Will Fries over from Indy you know a couple of injuries related there last year but if these guys are healthy it's an upgrade and you had Brian O'Neill and right tackle who's excellent you have a very very good offense in Minnesota and all kinds of players at the skill positions. Let's look at Aaron Jones, who is back, and he certainly

still looked fresh last year. I love the addition to Jordan Mason. I think there will be a role for Jordan Mason, a little bit of a thumper, a little bit of a change of pace, could get some goal line work as well. And of course, he's in Aaron Jones injury away, by the way, of being extremely fantasy relevant. Justin Jefferson is the best receiver in Minnesota Vikings history. No offense, Randy Moss. And Jordan Addison is a badass. Is a badass. Is a baller and he's looking really good. I like Ty Felton and oh by the way we get a full year of t.J. Hawkinson another year removed from that knee injury that he suffered a couple of years ago so again I asked the question is it too good to be true and I'm going to answer the question this is why

for the first time in my 50 year history as a Vikings fan I'm going to do the unthinkable I do not think it's too good to be true. And for the first time ever, I am predicting a Minnesota Viking Super Bowl victory this season. If I'm wrong, it'll probably be by that much. Get you and your crew to the big shows with Go Transit. Go connects to all the main concert venues like TD Coliseum in Hamilton and Scotia Bank Arena in Toronto. And Go makes it affordable with special e-ticket fairs. A one-day weekend pass offers unlimited travel across the network on any weekend day or holiday for just $10. And a weekday group pass offers the same weekday travel flexibility from $30 for two people and up to $60 for five.

Buy yours at go transit.com slash tickets. Drake, congratulations. You win the booby prize. You get to come on franchise focus and talk about the New Orleans Saints, a team that is despicable right now. I guess all those years of kicking the can down the road for Mickey Loomis has come due. and I don't think they're planning on being very good this year by design. They get bailed out of the Derek car contract because he retires, which opens up an opportunity for them. Nonetheless, they're probably going into the year with Tyler Shuck as their starting quarterback.

What kind of interest have you had in early drafts in this team, if any? I appreciate getting that prize. It's sort of like Kellan Moore begrudgingly taking this job because there's only 32 of them out there. So he gets stuck with the Saints as do I. But listen, is this a good team? No. Is their offensive line going to be great? Absolutely not.

Is their defense terrible? Yes. But at ADP, there's some value here. And I think some of our listeners out here can appreciate that. When you look at Elvin Kamara, who let's say what you will, Elvin Kamara a year ago was still a top 10. Unbelievable. Running back in fantasy football.

His underdog ADP right now, Joe is 56. So I mean, he's RB 18 off the board. I'll take that all day. Just stay on the field. Chris Oliva, same story. Now, I a year ago was preaching to people, don't trade for Chris Alave. Don't make a move for him. You know, if he got dropped, don't pick him up. He literally is one hit away from being done with all those concussions. But at wide receiver 35, 63 overall on underdog, why not take a shot on him? You know, I've drafted him a couple of times myself going forward and and Rashid Shaheed who had an unbelievable run last year. You can get him in the triple digits right now, Joe. Yeah, he's actually, believe it or not, been one of my most drafted

wide receivers so far. You know, he was, he was great last year before the injury that the concern I have, of course, with Shaheed is say what you want about Derrick Carr and many vats of ink have been spilled writing and saying things about Derek Carr. He could throw a deep ball. Sure. Now, he was some games, he was impossibly aggressive. In other games, he wouldn't, he wouldn't throw the ball more than three yards down the field. That's what was frustrating about him, but he can throw the deep ball. I don't know if we're going to get that from Tyler Shuck or Spencer Rattler, which is a concern for me. Is there any hope for Kendra Miller? Like, no. I mean, he's going into his third year. I just, I don't know, man. They drafted Devin Neal this year on day three, but behind Camara, there's not a whole lot there, man. Devin Neal is. very productive at Kansas, really good player can play in all three downs. He's the chip I'd want to, you know, put down on this offense. If you take on the really long shot view, because it all comes back again, Tyler Shuck. I got a feeling on the radio show on Sirius XM, it's just going to become Tyler suck.

Because he's not good. He wasn't good in college. You can look up all the stats you want on this guy. He was not good. Why he was drafted where he was is a complete mystery to me. If you look up when he was pressured, he was abysmal among all power five quarterbacks. So you look at 42% completion percentage when pressured, okay? 58% when blitzed.

What do you think these guys are going to do with that Swiss cheese Saints offensive line? They're going to throw to kitchen sink at this guy. They're going to make him get the ball out of his hands early. Who's that going to help? Our guy, Elvin Kamara. So really, I think if we could put a bow on all of the Saints, it's if you can get Kamara at a great value as your RB2, hell, at that point, RB3. I'd love to have him as my RB3 flex in a PPR league. Oh my God, that'd be unbelievable.

I can tell you what the Saints are hoping. Believe it or not, Drake, that offensive line, significant draft capital spent in that. And it's pretty young. The latest guy to get drafted on that offensive line was Eric McCoy, the center was his second round pick. So they have four first round picks projected to start. So Trevor Panning, who's been a bus, but they're hoping kicking him inside to guard is going to help things. If the Saints have a good season, I think it's going to be because that offensive line with that young talent finally starts to gel, even as skeptic as skeptical as I am of this team. Yeah.

And again, you have a professional play caller right now in Kellyn Moore. And all the stops along the way for Kellyn Moore say what you want about him. His offenses have put up points. I mean, we all know what he did in Dallas and then going to Philadelphia winning a championship last year. I have no doubt he's going to scheme things up the right way. and he's got talent here. I mean, yeah, we laugh at the quarterback, but Kamara, Alave Shaheed,

even if you want to throw Joanne Johnson in there, who they gave a little money to in the offseason, there's talent on this New Orleans Saints offense. Will it be a plus talent that's going to bring you to a fantasy championship? Maybe not, but it's all about getting them at the right cost. So at the end of the day with the New Orleans Saints, it's all about value in the Big Easy. What is the biggest question for the New York Giants in 2025?

To me, it's how much do they like Cam Scataboo? You know, a day three pick, technically, very early, round four. Do they like him? Does Brian Dable like him as much as I do or did? He's my pre-draft RB3 from a fantasy perspective. Last year, he had the most total mistackles forced of any power conference running back in PFF college history. That's since 2007.

You always hear me talk about past catching upside. and how important that is for a fantasy running back. He ranked sixth among all receivers in Yak last year, most among all running backs. He joined Christian McCaffrey as the only FBS running backs in college football history to have 1,600 rushing yards and 600 receiving yards in a single season. The one knock on him was that he's supposedly unethletic.

I didn't really see that based on the numbers I was looking at. But I mean, even if it was true, he's still less unathletic. He's still more athletic than Kieran Williams, Bucky Irving, who fell in the draft and have been very successful for fantasy. So I really like Kim Skataboo. And I kind of think this is a pretty good offensive environment. Like I know the offensive lines bad. I know the quarterbacks are bad and all that. But I think Brian Daibol wants a bell cow running back in 2022, Saquan Barkley. led all running backs in snaps per game. In 2023, he ranked second.

And then last year, New York's RB1 ranked seventh in snaps per game. And that doesn't even count the games Tyrone Tracy got benched for fumbles. You factored that in and would have been top five in snaps per game. And yeah, that's a big question. Is Tyrone Tracy in the doghouse? He had five fumbles plus five drops, one of which was deflected. into an interception which lost the Giants that game. He was a wide receiver in college, but wasn't very good as a pass catcher last year.

Bottom 10 of 133 receivers and yards per target wasn't great as a pass catching running back in college either. And so does he want to, does Brian Dable want a bell cow? I feel like Cam Scataboo is the perfect guy for that. We should also factor in my personal distaste, borderline hatred of Wondale Robinson. I don't know what the Giants are doing with Wondell Robinson. It's just such a waste, a net negative for this offense. He ranked 10th among all wide receivers and targets last year. And yet he ranked dead last of 84 qualifying wide receivers in EPA per catch. He led all

wide receivers and targets on third down by a landslide. He converted just 31% of those into a first down. The next two names on that list, we're at 57%, 61%. So can we just take up these 140 targets and divvy them up between the elite tackle-breaking yak gods that are Malik neighbors and Cam Scataboo? Let's just give 70 to neighbors, 70 to Cam Scataboo, and just be done with Wondale Robinson. So how much do the Giants like Cam Scataboo? How much is Brian Daibble like Cam Scataboo? I think a lot. You watch the press conferences. They are really high on Cam Scataboo. Certainly, I think they like him more than Tyrone Tracy, who was a round five pick,

was, is, it ended the season in the doghouse. You watch those pressers. Brian Daibald despise the guy. I think they like Cam Scatabu more than Devin Singletary, who was benched for Tyrone Tracy. And yet on underdog, Scataboo is the RB 35. He goes one pick behind Tyrone Tracy, the RB 34. I think he likes Scataboo significantly more.

I think he has significantly more upside. But yeah, this is the big question is how much did he like him? Did he like him as much as I do? I hope so. Fran, the Eagles are such a simple team from a fantasy football perspective that I got to be honest, I think you're the only guy in this entire project that I'm going to ask you about the backup running back first. But that's kind of what we have to do.

Because for everything Saquan Barkley did last year, he had arguably the the greatest running back season of all time. The receiving upside, we know in an Eagles offense with Jalen Hertz at quarterback, is simply not going to be there. But also, the Eagles did a lot last year with Kenny Gainwell on third downs as their hurry up back to give Sequin a breather. The funny part is about Kenny Gainwell is I think I remember texting you literally from the stands when I was sitting at Clemson Memorial Stadium a couple years ago for Clemson against Florida State. I was watching Will Shipley. And of course, course, at that time, everybody was comparing him to Christian McCaffrey for reasons.

But I was like, dude, to me, this guy looks like Kenny Gainwell, that kind of back. Lo and behold, the Eagles draft them. They let Kenny Gainwell go this offseason. What kind of role do you foresee Will Shipley having in this offense? Could he play just one-to-one the Kenny Gainwell role? Or will maybe A.J. Dillon mix in here a little bit as well. Yeah, I mean, that would be my guess is that he steps in to be the one-for-one for Kenny Gainwell. but honestly, this is one of the more interesting questions that we would want answered out of training camp. Is it all right? Well, what is the running back two, running back three situation look like for the Eagles when Seekwan Barkley is healthy? And then if there is a doomsday scenario, Sequan Barkley gets hurt. He twists an ankle. He's out for a week. He's out for two weeks.

What does that backfield rotation look like? Does that still becomes, you know, somebody having the lion share or is it going to be a true committee approach? My gut tells me that would be the latter. But I think when you look at the way that they try and utilize that backup running back, because at the end of the day, too, really the backup running back in terms of like from a fantasy standpoint is Jalen Hertz. Right. We know that he's going to be the guy that's going to get so much of that. We know he's going to get those high leverage looks, you know, whether it's by design or, you know, in the QB option run game or with the tush push, right?

But I think when you look at it last year early on, Kenny Gainwell was the third down back, passing down back. But then they got it until like week two, week three. And they're like, honestly, like in these high leverage moments, like we don't want. want to get Seekwan off the field. We want Seekoine Barkley to be on the field in those moments. I'm sorry, he's going to be on third down. So now we just got to find time to kind of spell him. And so I think when you're looking at the way Shippley will be used, my guess is that's how they will start is like, all right, maybe a series here, a series there. Now you're going to see Will Shipley

between the 20s. But when they get down into the red zone, if it's third and eight, if it's third and five, if it's third and three, I think you're going to see Seekwan Barclay out there. And they're just going to try and sprinkle Shipley in. But we know the history of running backs coming off the workload that Sequan Barkley had in 2024. So certainly bears monitoring. In terms of the Eagles offense, new offensive coordinator, Kevin Petulow, but obviously he's been with Nick Siriani for a while. I mean, I doubt there's going to be anybody else who becomes fantasy relevant outside

of Devonte Smith, AJ, A.J. Brown, Dallas Goddard, and the passing game. But is there ways this passing game can evolve or maybe include a Jahan Dotson or, heck, maybe even an Anaya Smith or Terrace Marshall as the number three receiver, or is that just going to be the once again the forgotten about player in the Eagle offense? Yeah, I think at the end of the day, just because of the volume from the run game standpoint, like I don't expect the Eagles to be as run heavy in 2025 as they were in 2024. I think if they had their druthers, they're going to throw the ball more often in 2025. But I think when you look at it, look, AJ Brown, Devante Smith, and when Dallas got her is

healthy. Like that's going to be the focal point of this past game. And so when you're looking at then, all right, well, you're going to get the run game. You're going to get the QB run game like we mentioned. All of a sudden, like wide receiver three, it's like six or seventh on the pecking order. And so when I look at Jahan Dotson, I think it will be beneficial for him that now he's already had this full offseason. He didn't join the team until the week before the season last year with that late trade just before the deadline. And so, or just before the start of the season, rather. So I think when you're looking at it, my guess is that he's going to be more productive this

from a volume standpoint, from a number standpoint, but I still don't anticipate that it'll be fantasy relevant unless there's an injury to Devante or to AJ. So let's just say Devante or AJ gets hurt. Those guys are so good that they can probably each play each other's roles. But what does Jehan Dodson fit best as as a backup to one of those guys? It would probably be more akin to Devante. I think that he's a guy that can be used at all three levels.

We did see him catch some vertical routes last year. there was the throw, certainly against the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, but then there was the first, like, big play he made was that it was week six, week seven against Jacksonville in the Kelly Greens, you know, at Lincoln Financial Field, he was down the left sideline. So he's got the ability to make some of those vertical throws. He can work from the slot. So I think when you're looking at, you know, who could he be a better one for one

replacement for? It would be Devante. But at the end of the day, like if A.J. Brown gets hurt, like, all right, Devante probably slides over to do more of the AJ things. And then Jahan Dotson. steps into Devante's role. What's going on guys? Ryan Heath here to talk about the most important fantasy football question for the San

Francisco 49ers this year. And this one's pretty obvious to me. The important question is how long is Brandon Iyuk going to remain out? And when will he be back to full effectiveness this year, if at all? So just to recap, Iyuk tore his ACL and his MCL on October 20th of 2024. We had initial reports that he's likely to start the season on the Pup list, which would mean he would miss at least the first four games. Today we did get Matt Mayako reporting that his knee is quote unquote ahead of schedule.

I don't know exactly what that means. We hear this about seemingly every injured player, every offseason. So I am kind of more in the camp that Iyuk is unlikely to be back to his full effectiveness, at least through the first half of the season and possibly even longer. these knee tears where there's multiple ligaments involved are always a little bit uglier just from what I've picked up following all the medical experts in the fantasy community. So I am kind of looking at this 49ers roster as if Brandon Ayuk is not going to be a major factor, especially for the first part of the season.

And what that means is insane things for George Kettle. That's kind of the biggest thing here. over the past three years, George Kittle has averaged 19.6 fantasy points per game and 16.3 fantasy points per game in his games without Debo Samuel and without Brandon Ayuk, respectively. Now, obviously, Debo Samuel, not on the team this year after being traded. Iyuk not going to be on the field or effective for a good chunk of the year.

That makes Kittle very, very enticing at his. his ADP right now. Notably, also, he's by far the most efficient tight end by yards per outrun of the fantasy points data era. He has led all tight ends in explosive reception rate in each of his past three seasons. There's kind of just no one else like George Kittle right now that is playing tight end at such a high level in the NFL. So he's a huge target for me, just given how we expect this offense to condense without Debo, without Iyuk. The other obvious beneficiary here is going to be Joanne Jennings. So across nine games that either Brandon Ayuk or Debo Samuel missed last year,

Jennings ranked top eight among wide receivers in fantasy points per game, nearly 18 fantasy points per game in that split. He was also up at a 33.7% first read target share in those games, also ranking top eight at the position. Even over the full season, so including when Iyuk and Debo were playing, Jennings ranked top 10 in yards per outrun and first downs per outrun. Just amazing skill-based stats for wide receivers.

Shosey's really good. He looked amazing in our average separation score data as well, the charted stuff. So, yeah, Jennings was awesome last year. I see no reason to think it won't be the same or similar. similar this year. It's true that only about 9% of wide receivers will break out as late as year five, which is what he did last year. But we're not trying to predict a Joanne Jennings breakout last year. We already saw it happen. This doesn't mean that we should hold the rarity of late

breakouts against him. We saw him maintain this production for almost a full season. And also, in fairness, it's pretty hard to break out in such a crowded 49ers. offense with superstars like Debo, like Ayuk, like Kiddle there for Jennings's entire career. So I love Joanne Jennings as kind of a later pick in fantasy drafts this year. I think he can really provide you a lot of value. And the last guy I just have to make sure I talk about with the 49ers is, of course, Brock Purdy. So even without all of his weapons last year, there were five games.

where at least two of George Kittle, Christian McCaffrey, Debo Samuel, and Brandon Ayyuk were out last year, right? And also Trent Williams missed nearly half the year as well. This offense fell apart. Purdy didn't have his weapons. Everybody thought he was going to get exposed. The day that Brock Purdy doesn't have all the best weapons in the league, that didn't happen at all. In that five game split, he finished top five at the position in basically every quarterback stat that matters. in passing yards per game, in yards per attempt, in passer rating, in fantasy points per dropback.

He was still elite, even without all of his guys. So, Purdy, just going into a new season where they will have a full offseason to install an offense with Jennings in this bigger role, with Kiddle, with Christian McCaffrey back even. I'm really, really excited. Just over the past two seasons, Purdy's been the QB2 and the QB9 by fantasy points per dropback. That's one of the most predictive stats at the position. He's also really underratedly mobile. He averaged more fantasy points per game on scrambles than Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hertz did last year, which is a crazy, crazy stat. And most of all, we still just can't underestimate the power of

Kyle Shanahan. Basically, every single later round quarterback that vastly exceeded their average strap position over the last several years was playing in a Kyle Shanahan style or Sean McVeigh style system, the McShanahan system, if you will. This has been one of the best ways to spot these late round pocket passers that overperform ADP expectation. I've written about it in multiple articles and anatomy of a league winner this year. Party obviously fits this perfect with Kyle Shanahan. So I'm very excited, particularly about this 49ers passing game.

It is priced way down from previous seasons because of the absence of Samuel and Iyuk. But those two guys being gone is exactly what is going to give us the concentrated version of this offense that we have always wanted. So I'm all in on the 49ers. Good luck in fantasy this year. Our next team we're going to talk about with the biggest fantasy football questions of the year is the Seattle. Seattle Seahawks. Now, there's a number of fantasy-related questions we could talk about in Seattle. New quarterback Sam Darnold with the potential of Jalen Milro later on in the year if Donald struggles. There's new offensive coordinator Clint Kubiak and the use of the fullback in the offense.

There's, of course, the quality at the running back position with Kenneth Walker at a really nice price tag in the fourth round and Zach Charbonnet as one of the best handcuffs in football right behind him. But it all comes down to Jackson Smith and Jigba. And JASN last year tied for the Seattle Seahawks franchise record with 100 receptions in a season, which was really no small feat for JSN considering he was only 22 years old and had a disappointing rookie year where he was drafted inside of the sixth round but failed to deliver at that. strong price tag. Last year, drafters had a big win where they drafted JSN, gave you 100 receptions, had 1130 receiving yards, average nearly 15 points per game. But this year with the signing of Cooper Cup, all indications are JSN is not going to be predominantly inside the slot, but instead

is going to be a vertical weapon. He's going to be a featured weapon. He's going to be a featured weapon. He's going to be a wide receiver who's going to be able to play inside and outside. And saying JSN is going to move out of the slot is very significant. When looking at fantasy points data, no player with 50 or more targets last year had a higher slot rate than JSN. JSN had an 83.9 slot rate. This was higher than anyone in football last year, including Josh Downs, including Jaden Reed, including Wondell Robinson, including Ladd McConkey, including anyone that we are projecting the play predominantly inside the slot. So JSN basically lived in the slot. Now we have to imagine that Cooper Cup is going to take a good amount of that slot usage. JSN is going to potentially still have about a 50% slot rate.

it's still a significant slot rate, but you're going to see JSN a lot more on the outside. And there's a chance for him to have a much higher a dot than he had last year. This is a chance for JSN to take a big step forward in his production. And the fantasy marketplace is not buying it. JSN is going inside of the middle of round three, which a lot of times we see the second year leap in production for a player like JSN, we'd expect him to sneak into round two. But that's not the case. JSN is often available to you in the middle to late third round.

So he can end up being one of the better fantasy values at the wide receiver position if he's able to thrive in this brand new role. JSN we had last year in games where D.K. Metcalf missed. JSN had one of the best games he had all year fantasy-wise. In a, the game where he had one of the higher A-DOT looks for him was week nine, where he had to play all over the place and was the featured wide receiver, had 37 fantasy points scored, including 227 air yards. That was a air yards high for him by a wide margin last year.

He had that, I mean, that was the only game where they really used him in this sort of role. And JSN thrived with it. He had 13 targets, finished with 180 receiving yards, and had 37 points scored with also two touchdown grabs. So JSN showed a glimpse of what he could do in a more versatile higher ADOT role last year in week nine. you're going to see more of those opportunities this year. Now, Sam Darnold is not the biggest arm quarterback and certainly not somebody who's going to open you up over the top. But there is going to be a chance for JSN to see a lot more looks inside the red zone, a chance for JSN to see a lot more downfield looks,

and to go along with he's going to be the primary target in the offense. So for me, JSN could end up being a skeleton key. type player for fantasy football. He could deliver wide receiver one numbers at a affordable wide receiver two price tag late in round three. And this versatile role, which a lot of fantasy managers are worried about for him, could end up unlocking a much higher scoring season for him. Still only 23 years old.

The best football could yet to be played by JSN, and he could end up being a big time fantasy value this season. Keep an eye on him at the end of round three. And let's remember, less time in the slot could end up being a chance for him to have more spike weeks. Greg, the Buccaneers have kind of learned the hard way that when you resurrect the career of a quarterback like Baker Mayfield, that teams won a piece of that. They want to be able to sit that down and say, hey, we need that kind of influence in our building. We saw it with Dave Canales and now we've seen it with Liam Cohen. Now the Buccaneers, I think smartly promoted from within to try to keep the train going with Josh Grizzard. What have you heard from Josh Grizzard? And what have you

heard from Todd Bowles as to how you expect this offense to look under Josh Grizzard in 2025? Yeah, I think continuity was the whole goal in promoting Josh Grizzard. I think they like what he has. I mean, he was involved in everything Liam Cohen did last year was a big part of the third down offense, which was best in the NFL. So, I mean, I think I don't expect a whole. lot of changes. He's got a couple influences that that Liam Cohen didn't have did some time in Miami with Mike McDaniels. I'm sure we'll see a little bit more in terms of creative motion pre-snap, even more than they had last year. I think downfield passing will be a bigger part of things. They really weren't a very good deep ball team last year. They had amazing stats overall,

but didn't really use the deep ball that well. So to have four receivers like they have when everyone's healthy, I think you'll see that more. I think that'll help things. But no, I think for the most part, This should be an offense that looks a lot like last years. All the personnel is there. I think they return more than 100% of their passing and rushing yards from last year, which is crazy. But all the people are back, and I think most of this game will be back as well. All right. So as a professional broadcaster, I'm very glad that you subtly suggested to me that the accent goes on the second syllable of Grisard.

So that is something that I'm glad to have learned as well. So you talked about the receivers, and I think the Buccaneers made, I don't. know if it was surprising to you and those close to the team, selecting a mech, Ekbuka in the first round of the draft after giving Chris Godwin a big extension. And as I'm sure you're well aware, people might have been scratching their heads a little bit. Egbuka, big slot, power slot, very much similar in profile to Chris Godwin. How did you take that pick? And what have you learned about Egbuka and his role compared to that of Godwin for 2025? Yeah, I definitely was surprised. I think most people saw positional needs on defense.

There were a lot more glaring than receiver. But I think the Bucks just saw somebody that didn't want to pass up. To add to what is probably your best position is odd, but you think about Mike Evans being 31, you think about Chris Godwin coming off a major injury. There's a lot about Amika Abuka they really like. He is a lot like Chris Godwin. Mike Evans was saying how much he reminds him of Chris when he came into the league.

Same body type. A lot of maturity doesn't sound like somebody who's 22. He sounds like somebody who's been in the league five years. You know, really very similar body type to Jalen McMillan. I mean, Jalen McMillan led the NFL in touchdowns over the last five weeks of the season. So they had even a solid kind of number three up and coming type, but they're really excited about Abuka. I think he does a little bit of everything. I think like Godwin, he helps you in the run game as a willing and solid blocker.

And maybe it helps them not have to worry about rushing Chris Godwin back. We don't really know where he is coming back from that ankle injury. but I think having three ready to go without him takes away some of the pressure. I don't think they would have rushed him. They made a three-year investment in him, but I think it definitely lets them relax a little bit, not sweat week one as much as just getting him healthy and making sure he's ready to go. I'm going to put you on the spot here. You know the buck's inside and out, but we're a fantasy football show.

If you had to guess right now, more targets this year, Jalen McMillan or a Meccag-Buka? I think I'd say a Bucca. I think that's one of those where, I mean, he's the first round. I mean, McMillan did a really good job of stepping in when Godwin was out. But that was kind of the context of his impact. I mean, when Godwin was there, he wasn't as big a deal. You know, you have a fifth round pick versus a first, first round pick. I think I think Abuka will be the one that maybe not initially,

but by the end of the year, more targets, more catches, more touchdowns, I would think. For the first time in I don't even know how long, the first Buccaneer getting drafted is not Mike Evans or one of their wide receivers for fantasy. It's Bucky Irving. And Bucky Irving was among the league's premier bell cow backs over the second half of last season. Do you expect more of the same from Bucky Irving in 2025? I do. I think they're aware of trying not to overwork him in terms of injuries. I think he pushed through a couple significant injuries in the second half of last season.

But it won't be a job share. I mean, it won't be an even split or anything like that. I think you're going to have a primary running back in Bucky Irving. I think they like Rashad White. I think they like him in pass protection. I think he could be a third down back. He's a good pass catching back. would compliment him, but Bucky's a really good pass catching back too. So I think of Bucky is having

a bigger share, a two-third share, which is great for fantasy. I mean, I think you look at what he did in the second half of last year. If you just double that, that's a monster year with catches to boot. So no, I think as long as he's healthy, Bucky Irving is their primary guy. I mean, they have a three they like and Sean Tucker. So I think it's one of those where if they want fresh legs, they can rotate two and three in. But I think as a general rule, when the game's on the line, they're going to trust Bucky Irving in the game. Ben, obviously the story for the commanders, the biggest story for the team, I mean, since the sale, even beyond that in some regards is Jaden Daniels, who had a phenomenal rookie season, rookie of the year. And now everybody just anticipates J. and Daniels taking the next step.

Now, we did see somebody like C.J. Stroud, who had a really great rookie season, fall into a rut in his second season. What does Jaden Daniels need to do to kind of avoid that? Are there things he needs to improve upon and are there things that the coaching staff is working with him specifically to prevent that from happening? Yeah, you know, obviously, this is the important question for everybody. And, you know, I usually, my basic answer has been I'm somebody who is a bit of a pessimist in general. Like, I need to see more, you know, even if somebody has a great rookie season, like, okay, well, what's the next step, you know, what does it even mean? You know, because it's not this he was good in the regular season. He was really good in the playoffs as well. So I say that

to say that I would, I don't understand a world outside of injury how he doesn't have as good a year as he did. And if not, improved just based on the fact that, you know, second year in the league, they obviously attempted to make some offensive line upgrades with primarily the Laramie Tunsel trade. They bring in Debo Samuel. We'll see, you know, he's a perfect fit for the Cliff Kingsbury offense, but we'll see he obviously was. coming off a down year. We'll see where that goes. It's been a really interesting question. What does he need to work on? Honestly, like, sure, there's always little things, right? I mean, Tom Brady was trying to improve himself throughout his entire career. But, you know,

from the physical perspective, Jane Daniels we saw can run, you know, as well as almost, you know, any quarterback in the league. The accuracy on his downfield throws is pretty, pretty dynamic. And, you know, the leadership maturity aspect, you know, the stories are true that he's getting into the building at like, you know, whatever, but some ungodly hour that I would never want to be up by and get and going to the building and putting in the work. And, you know, he's using the virtual reality technology. And even just this off season, I mean, look, let's be realistic. If you or I had had the success that he had and all the attention that he had, I'm guessing that would have gone to our head a little bit. Yeah, I'm just going to say that. It doesn't seem like it had affected him much at all. He really is basically a homebody. He's an introvert by nature, and he's just focused on football. And so when you factor in all those things, I just don't see where the slippage is coming.

Sure, you can always be a little bit better about recognizing where the pass, where the pressure is coming from and, you know, reading the defense and seeing what you're what you're given. And look, the commanders had so much go right for them last year. It's likely that's not going to happen again. You know, they won so many games in a row late in the season on the last play from scrimmage and etc. But that said, I just, even if this team has a worst record, I just don't see Jaden Daniels being worse. So whatever that means from a fantasy perspective, I'll leave that up to you. But I just don't see him. I feel very unlikely he's going to have a downturn.

Yeah, we have him projected as the number one quarterback in fantasy football. That's where we have that projected. So I want to talk about some of the offseason moves before. we briefly touch on the backfield, you know, with some of these offseason moves, the major ones, at least, you're talking Laramie Tunzel Debo Samuel, you're counting on guys to bounce back from down seasons. The Houston offensive line was a disaster. We know that last year. But from a fantasy perspective, let's focus on Debo Samuel. What is Cliff Kingsbury and what of Dan Quinn kind of said about Debo and his fit and his ability to bounce back? I know there's

images of him going around being overweight or whatnot. What is what is your confidence level in him bouncing back and being the Debo we saw maybe not two, three years ago, but closer to that version than we did last year. Yeah, all the, the video that was going around were he was like running in slow motion essentially during a play and people were like saying, oh, look how slow he is and that he looks heavy. I mean, for one, he wasn't running, it wasn't running slow. They don't go all out in every single play in a minicamp. That just, you know, that, that wasn't the point of that play. Anyway, and then the, the heft, I mean, you tell me, like, he's, he's always been to me built more like a running back to a degree than a sleek receiver. And that's why he's able to

play in the backfield. I mean, he's not a traditional receiver. So he's got that sort of builds to take on those types of hits. So all that said, look, I mean, the 49ers were willing to take a massive cap hit to move on from him. That has to say something. He didn't have a particularly good year last year. You know, the weight, his style, I think there is a concern that the end might come quick in terms of his being as productive as he could be. Now, all that said, Adam Peters, of course, the GM had him in San Francisco. They brought in Wes Welker as a, to be part of the overall staff, Welker was his, was Debo's receiver coach in San Francisco. And he was the guy that really sort of stayed on Debo in terms of the weight fluctuation. I think that at least suggests some

me that they haven't said that he's definitely going to be part of that welkers really going to be a debo uh you know yota type figure but you know you have to figure there's some concern but in terms of the style like last year they had guys like alameda is achias and diami brown you know those guys were pretty successful last year relatively speaking neither of those guys were being viewed as much of anything diami brand hadn't done much in a few in his career in Washington, Lombid Zekees, was coming off a pretty minimal season, and they both were productive. Now you've got like Debo Samuel, who on paper is a much more talented player. So I think there's a lot of optimism there.

That said, you know, let me see how he looks all the way through camp. If he gets through training camp and we don't see him missing days for whatever the reason, or he looks, you know, up the snuff. And then, you know, I think that will give me a lot more optimism. At the moment, you know, I'm a little jury is out, but that's, That says maybe more me. He looked fine to me in OTAs in minicamp, but we can't pretend he hasn't been down. So that's why I want to see more in training camp.

I think fantasy football sickos view Brian Robinson as boring and Austin Echler as old. So those are two things driving, you know, their draft costs down a little bit. And some real sickos, especially those in Dynasty, are taking flyers on Jacori Kroski Merritt, the rookie running back at Arizona, who was the seventh round pick. what can you tell me about him? Yeah, I might be a sick of myself because that's what I've been saying. Like, you know, again, if you're doing a draft on July 9th, you know, God bless you. But like, you know, we'll have a chance to see him more.

I think what's interesting about him, it was pretty clear after the season ended that, you know, their run game really faded late in the regular season. And it became a point where Jaden Daniels was really the only consistent part of the run game. And, you know, that's good, but you can't have that all the time if you're, if you're the commander's. You don't want to have that. Brian Robinson, to some degree, is a little boring from a fantasy perspective. He's very good on short yardage. He's the guy at the goal line outside of, you know, a Jaden Daniels run or something.

But he's not a factor in the passing game. He's not much of a pass blocker. And there's no wiggle there. They just didn't have explosive plays out of the backfield. I think they'll get maybe a smidge more, depending on it with Debo, depending on how often they use him. But this is why Kroski Merritt to me is pretty fascinating. because here's a guy that he basically only played one game last year because some bizarre eligibility issues that are just really it's a really weird dynamic anyway he only played the one game i think that dropped his stock because i talked to a lot of people around the league after they made the pick we're all telling me yeah we really like the guy but you know whatever so he's got the one cut burst that this offense does not have and i've been people have been asking me last year they traded jehan dotson that was a surprise move what would be the surprise move what would be the surprise move this year. And I'm kind of like, look, I don't know if it's a trade, but Brian Robinson's

role possibly being limited isn't insane if Kroski Merritt can show he's ready to go. And we know that running back, you know, is one of those positions where guys come in the league and are ready to go. Austin Echler and Jeremy McNichols, fine in their roles, but less is more for those kinds of guys. So it really comes down to his Brian Robinson going to get, you know, 15 plus touches a game or does Kroski Merrick come in? I think he's worth a flyer again. It's a seventh round pick. He was the last running back of the draft. The history of that does not say go nuts on this. But, you know, like I said, if you're in the last round or so and you're looking for a flyer here, I don't think that's a bad one because I don't think that Brian Robinson is, he's fine,

but I don't think he's like a definitive lock or perfect fit for this offense. You know, I would be remiss to not to mention late round running backs coming and having success. Now, obviously, it's a different coaching staff and a different. era, but I certainly remember a sixth round pick a number of years ago coming on to the then Redskins and leading the NFL and rushing as a rookie, that being Alfred Morris. So Ben, obviously, Kroski Merritt certainly, there's precedence in the DMV of that happening. Well, I have to look not to mention, I think Timmy Smith still holds the record for the most yards in the Super Bowl. He was a complete unknown at the time. So yeah, if we're going to,

for talking history with this franchise, just some good ones. Yeah.