Fantasy Football Today - 12/21: Start or Sit (NFC); RB Injuries (Fantasy Football Podcast)

Episode Date: December 21, 2018

We've got a "Good Luck Player" for you to put on your squads if you've got the open roster space (2:28), and we've got players we think might win us Week 16 and those who might lose us Week 16 (4:10) ... Plenty of news and notes (8:13) as we check in on some RB situations and key injuries on the defensive side of the ball. Then we've got the Startometer (16:50) for Tevin Coleman, Dante Pettis, Dak Prescott, David Johnson and others ... KC-SEA (26:00), PIT-NO (34:15), HOU-PHI (41:10), MIN-DET (48:00), TB-DAL (52:10), CHI-SF (55:15), ATL-CAR (1:00:00), LAR-ARI (1:03:00) ... Your emails at [e-mail] To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hey everybody, real quick announcement before we start the show today. I made a little bit of a production mistake and did not address the Todd Gurley injury early enough in the podcast. We didn't get to it until the Rams-Cardinals preview, which is the last game we previewed. So if you own Todd Gurley, or if you're looking at John Kelly or C.J. Anderson, and you want to know what to do, please skip ahead to about an hour and three minutes or so into the podcast. The time code will be in the description for the Rams-Cardinals preview. My apologies. Let's get to the show.

This is Fantasy Football Today from CBS Sports. Here we go. Email us at fantasyfootballatcbsi.com. Here we go. We're here to help you win the ultimate bragging rights, a fantasy title. Let's go. Now, here's Adam, win the ultimate bragging rights. A fantasy title. Let's go! Now, here's Adam, Dave, Jamie, and Heath. It is Friday. It is December 21st.

We are talking about eight NFC home games. Welcome to Fantasy Football today. It is Heath's last show of the year. Wrong. What do you mean, wrong? Wrong. Why? Oh, Sunday night! Well, wait, wait, wait.

It's New Year's. What? Moron. Yeah, that's pretty stupid. Idiot moron. Idiot moron of the week. Okay, I hope you hear Sunday night. It is Heath's penultimate show of the year.

We have a good luck player for everybody to pick up that Dave wants to talk about. We have news and notes conclud including some defensive injuries that might be pretty impactful. Damon Harrison is missing practice. What does that mean for the Vikings? What does that mean for Kirk Cousins? We'll talk about the weather, if we have to. And do the Stardome meter and get to the games.

Let's recap. It's Friday. Let's recap last night's game. Guys, do you think James Harden did the right thing? or should he have taken that game-winning shot? You gotta shoot it. Shoot or shoot. Yeah, but he was covered. I think he did the right thing. Big win for the Heat.

101-99. I was a little disappointed in the NBA. You have your first spotlight Thursday night without football, and Rockets Heat and Mavericks Clippers. Oh, yeah. Well, I don't really care. I used to watch the NBA. night without football and Rockets Heat and Mavericks Clippers? Oh, yeah. Well, I don't really care.

I used to watch the NBA. You're a Knicks fan. I watch them. What would the phrase be? Something for Zion? Oh, well, there's a song, I think, called Marching for Zion by Lauryn Hill or something.

So maybe it's that. Dave, who's our good luck player that you're picking up in your league? This used to be Tim Tebow. Right. Once upon a time, it was Tim Tebow. This is a player that you're not going to start, obviously. It's just a good luck charm for your bench. And I've known that this was going to be my good luck player since march when he signed with

his new team and changed his jersey number and did his my cause my cleats campaign to uh honor the victims of the stoneman douglas high school tragedy and that's alan hearns of the dallas cowboys um i i think that he did something really nice, and he's doing things to bring light to a terrible situation, and he's making donations to the Stoneman Douglas Fund. I'm going to make another donation to the Stoneman Douglas Fund with some of my winnings in my fantasy championships this year, and I'm going to win my leagues with Alan Hearns on my bench.

Not the one where we're head-to-head. Not the one where we're head to head not the one where we're head to head do you know why i just looked because oh you were trying to pick him up already i was looking to see if you did it right no so one league yeah that's the one i'm gonna lose is to jamie because we did an auction when was that like early august we did the auction and can i guess? Who? Who picked him? Michael Kaiser. No. Oh. Jeff Tobin put Alan Hearns on his team, and he never took him off.

So I can't get Alan Hearns in that league. But I've already picked him up in the league where I'm playing Heath. So Heath, congratulations on finishing in second. And that's it. So Alan Hearns is my guy. You can pick whoever you want, whoever you think will bring you good luck. But we can ride together with Alan Hearns on the guy. You can pick whoever you want, whoever you think will bring you good luck, but we can ride together with Alan Hearns on the bench. Okay, guys. I won Week 16 because I started blank, and then I lost Week 16 because I started blank. Last week we did this with only I lost Week 15 Week 15 matchups because I started Aaron Jones.

All right, who are you so pumped that you're starting that you are going to win a championship because you started him? Go. Nick Chubb. Oh yeah, he's in my FanDuel.com slash FFT lineup. Nick Chubb. He's going to be in everybody's daily lineup. He should be. Chris Carson for me.

Oh, okay. I think you have him sixth or something like that. Yeah, very excited about him. I have a tough choice if Gurley is out because it's a league where you play one running back and then two flexes. So right now one of my flexes is – I'm sorry, one flex. So my one flex is Nick Chubb. If Gurley is out, my tough choice will be between Carson and Phillip Lindsey, and I like Carson better.

Okay. Wow. They both have great matchups. Heath, who are you pumped that you're starting this week? I'm just looking through my teams. I'm really not fine. I may not win any games because I'm not that excited about any of them. This is a bad thing. Well, you would really benefit from Todd Gurley's absence if that were to happen,

as I recall. That's true. I will say Travis Kelsey. Okay. Because it turns out that he is on four of my five teams in the championship. Did we agree to a bet in our game, Heath? We did not. Would you like to have a wager on our game?

Jamie and I wagered $10 in our game. Okay. Yes. Absolutely. absolutely okay money or something for the podcast or well i i mean if we do something for the podcast we have to put a date time on it to inspire i agree it's got to be like immediately after for uh yeah um yeah we can we can discuss this all right yeah let us know we'll have something we'll discuss something and announce it on the Mailbag Show later today. All right, perfect. And I got a bet with you too, Adam, right?

Didn't we talk about that yesterday? Yeah, what was the bet, though? Because we're not facing each other. I don't remember. Okay. And I am excited. I am going to win Week 16 because I started Marlon Mack in all three of my leagues. I lost Week 16 because I started.

Who are you nervous about starting, but you feel like you just absolutely have to. I was going to say Marlon Mack, who I have on two of my teams and I'm just a little bit nervous. Really? It's either Todd Gurley or Keenan Allen for me. I am nervous about benching David Johnson, which I'm doing in one of my leagues.

I'll tell you what, I'm going to scratch that. Damian Williams, who I'm starting in multiple leagues. I think he's going to be the guy for Kansas City. Why wouldn't he be after his last game? Even if he ends up splitting a little too much or being a dud, my teams are going to go down. That's one I hope we find out Sunday morning.

Oh, about Spencer Ware? Yeah, because I could see a situation where he's a game-time decision. They're going to warm him up, see how he goes. He's been limited in practice for the last two days. And so if he gets another limited practice session in, he'll be listed as questionable. And then a lot of people are going to say, I'll roll the dice on Damian Williams.

And Spencer Ware's the guy. Yeah, I think we talked about this team three weeks in a row now. It should not still be alive, but somehow it is. I've got Melvin Gordon I'm starting. I'm probably starting Mark Ingram on Sunday. And then I've got one spot left, and I have Damian Williams, Spencer Ware, Josh Adams. But you're in good shape, though. You have both. Yeah, but if Ware plays, I don't want to play Ware. Well, you play whichever one you like best. Yeah. But at least you waited out. I would like for Ware to not play. Yeah, I think that's the best case

scenario. It could be a mess, I would like for Ware to not play. Yeah, I think that's the best case scenario. It could be a mess, I guess, if both of them play. What was the... Yeah, Heath, why you kill my Marlon Mack buzz? That was one of the last games we previewed on yesterday's show, so some may not have heard it, but I thought we were all pretty on board with Marlon Mack. Oh, I'm on board starting him. He just feels like the type of guy who had a big game last week

and then he's going to let me down in the championship, especially now that I know that you have him on every team. I mean, I guess I see where you're coming from. He just feels like the type of guy who had a big game last week, and then he's going to let me down in the championship. Especially now that I know that you have him on every team. I mean, I guess I see where you're coming from. He's been pretty inconsistent. Just the matchup. All right, news and notes, and there's a lot of them. Cameron Jordan said Big Ben is not a top five quarterback of his era.

As someone who is starting Ben Roethlisberger, I love it. Bring it on. Let's show him. That's probably true, right? He might be fifth. I mean, he's not Breeze, Manning, Brady, or K. Rogers. If we look over the course of his career, he's played since 2004. He's behind Brady. He's behind Peyton.

Brady, Rogers, Peyton, and Breeze, and then who? There have been 40 quarterbacks to throw 2,000 passes in that time span. He's 10th in quarterback rating. Yeah, behind who? There have been 40 quarterbacks to throw 2,000 passes in that time span. He's 10th in quarterback rating. Yeah, behind who? Rogers, Manning, Wilson, Breeze, Brady, Romo, Rivers, Cousins, Ryan. Yeah, he's better than all of them except the four I mentioned. He's fifth. He's better than Phillip Rivers. I know he's

accomplished more in the postseason. He's a better quarterback than Phillip Rivers. If you just look at a resume, Roethlisberger's better than Rivers. If Team QB wins and giving him the super rules, then I think that he's definitely a top five quarterback.

I think probably Cam Jordan was looking at it more from quarterbacks I want to face. Oh yeah, well. I think he'd probably rather face Ben than Rivers. Well, a lot of defensive guys like to face Ben because you can hit Ben. Cam Jordan Cam Jordan also put Eli Manning ahead of Ben Roethlisberger, so I don't know that Cam Jordan is the best

source for ranking. So there's four guys for sure. Eli Manning is 27th on that list. Also, there is a quarterback who played seven years of that stretch. Brett Favre. Yeah, that's an interesting one. All right, more important news and notes. Christian McCaffrey missed practice.

They say just for rest. He's fine. LeSean McCoy and Chris Ivory both practiced. They're at New England. They're going to play, and we're not going to start any bills. Okay. Melvin Gordon expected to play. We know that.

Wide receiver news. Odell Beckham missed practice. Not looking good, right? No. In case this is the last time we get to talk about it, we'll update it on the mailbag. We'll know Beckham's practice schedule on Friday by the time we do the mailbag. Tyler Boyd mispracticed.

Not looking good, right? No. John Ross was limited in practice. My goodness. The Bengals have nothing except for Mixon. Keenan Allen expected to play. Deshaun Jackson returned to practice. What's the impact there?

We'll preview that game, but what's the quick impact of Deshaun Jackson looking like he's going to play this week at Dallas? Looks like he's going to play. Yeah, what's the quick impact of Deshaun Jackson looking like he's going to play this week at Dallas? He's going to play. What's the fantasy impact? I guess for Jameis, for Humphreys, Godwin, whatever it might be. It's a downgrade to Godwin, mostly. Yep. And I guess it helps

Jameis, but not enough to make you consider starting him. Low-end streamer. That's the nicest thing I can say. We know Josh Gordon's not playing. Cordell Patterson mispracticed for the Patriots. Apparently with an illness, so it doesn't seem like it's serious, but something to keep an eye on. That would obviously help

Chris Hogan even more. What do you think he had, the Spilkies? Who knows? Maybe he got nauseous over the Josh Gordon news. Could be. Randall Cobb mispracticed. He's got the concussion that he's dealing with. Jordan Reed's not going to play this week. That's your tight end note. Offensive line, couple items.

Green Bay right tackle Brian Bulaga looks like he will play, which is great news for Aaron Rodgers at the Jets. Did you just say Brett Favre? Well, we were just talking about Brett Favre. Brett Favre. Goodness. My bad. What else we got?

Oh, New Orleans. So hopefully Teron Armstead plays this week, their left tackle. Because if he doesn't play, they might not have their backup left tackle, Jermon Bushrod. And Max Unger was limited on Thursday, which is a good sign. They're a very good center. All right, defensive notes. So Zavian Howard is trending in the right direction. Looks like he has a good chance to play against the Jaguars.

We like that. Philadelphia hoping to get defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan and middle linebacker Jordan Hicks back this week. That could help them against Lamar Miller. Damon Harrison missed practice, and I think this is the most significant defensive injury, guys, unless I'm missing one. But he has missed two practices now.

Detroit's defensive tackle. We know how much of a difference he makes. And does this matter for you when you rank not only Dalvin Cook but Kirk Cousins as well? Dalvin Cook, 100%. Yes. Not Cousins. No. Yeah. previewing the game, is that since Damon Harrison came aboard, teams are throwing a lot more

against the Lions. Let me just, yeah, so just want to confirm that. Yes. So quarterbacks averaged 27.75 pass attempts per game against the Lions before Harrison. 34.2 pass attempts per game since the Lions before Harrison. 34.2 pass attempts per game since Harrison. That makes sense. They were able to run the ball a lot better before that.

We'll talk about that. Alec Ogletree has a concussion for the Giants. He's their best linebacker. Marlon Mack! Kenny Vaccaro and Jarrell Casey appear likely to play this week for the Titans who are a top DST. That's good.

Kansas City cornerback Kendall Fuller could play despite having wrist surgery last weekend. And Seattle linebacker K.J. Wright was limited in practice. He's hoping to play. He has played three games this year. And if you're looking for how K.J. Wright has affected their run defense, they were great against Kerryon Johnson, and then they gave up like seven yards per carry to Melvin Gordon and Todd Gurley the next two games. Probably not much to take away there, but

K.J. Wright could make a difference, I guess, in that game against Kansas City. Any other injuries I'm missing, guys? I think the fact that the Bears are without two important pieces of their secondary, their slot cornerback and their safety, is pretty important.

This is a bad spot for the Bears, too. You think it's a trap game? I think it is. We'll find out a lot about them if they end up whiffing here like they did against the Giants. I don't think it's going to happen. They didn't have their quarterback. Yeah, they didn't have their quarterback.

I think Trubisky will help them out. Any weather updates we need to know about? Sorry, Dave. I apologize. Shut up. Any weather issues we need to know about? Sorry, Dave. I apologize. Shut up. Any weather issues this weekend? Not that I'm aware of. I did have somebody express concern about my homes because it might rain in Seattle.

What? So I typically, I've said this a million times i don't look at weather like until the day before all right i am pulling up uh our good friend uh kevin roth's weather forecast chance of snow in cleveland but no wind oh that would be great for Nick Chubb. Low end chance of rain in San Francisco. No wind. Rain likely in Seattle, but not heavy. Worst weather of the week. Sit your Raiders. Good chance of rain.

Winds around 15 miles per hour sustained. All right, Broncos DST. That's on Monday against the Broncos. Broncos DST looks better, if that's true, right? But, again, I'm with Dave. I usually look at weather on Sunday morning. Okay, well then just watch Fantasy Football today on CBS Sports HQ on Sunday morning. That's a good idea.

A couple other things you can do. You can listen to our radio show on Saturday night. It'll be Heath and myself tomorrow night, Saturday night. 10 p.m. Eastern on CBS Sports Radio until midnight. Taking your phone calls. I'd love for you to call in for week 16. I have no doubt that we'll get plenty of calls. Week 17, that's a great time to

call in. We're going to have a lot of stuff fun planned for that show. Are we? Oh, yeah. That's the one show we actually have to plan stuff because we don't have a full board of calls the entire time. But we do have a show week 16 and 17. It's on CBS Sports Radio, cbssportsradio.com, and you can listen to it on channel 206 on Sirius.

We'll go over all of our 2019 expectations. Yeah, we'll do a lot of that. Week 17 for this podcast will be business as usual except no mailbag and no Sunday night recap. But we'll have Waver Wire, Fun Wednesday Show, and Starter Sit. And FanDuel.com slash FFT. Join that contest. FanDuel.com slash FFT.

Let's do the Stardometer for Fantasy Week 16. Some of the games that we're going to get to a little bit later in the show. So 0 to 10. 10 is an absolute must start. going to get to a little bit later in the show. So 0-10. 10 is an absolute must start. Can't wait to start them. 0 is no way. Startup meter for Tevin Coleman. Tevin Coleman, guys.

8. 10. 10. Okay. How about Christian McCaffrey in that same game? 12. 42. W.

W. All right. So no concerns without Cam Newton. I moved him down from 2 to 5. I dropped him to like 7. That was the guy that I was going...

If I owned Christian McCaffrey in any of the leagues I'm still in, could have been my answer. I was like afraid he was going to have a bad game. But he's just... To the answer to that question earlier, you know what I'm talking about. But yeah, you got to start him. David Johnson against the Rams.

Ten. Seven. Seven. Who do you like better, Tevin Coleman or David Johnson? Johnson. Johnson. It's funny. Johnson, slightly. Larry Fitzgerald.

Seven and a half in PPR, six and a half in non. I do think we might have to rewind the tape on the stardome meter. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because I think we said a higher number on Tevin Coleman. But isn't that more of like a confidence thing than it is a staff rejection thing? Yeah, I thought that's what happened there. Because I think the floor is lower for Tevin Coleman than it is for David Johnson. I don't know.

David Johnson's been pretty bad in some recent games. He had three straight games. Tevin Coleman could stink. He's just going to get a lot of opportunities, which is good. It's just a matter of whether or not he can cash in like he did last week. Can he break another long run like he did last week? You said Larry Fitzgerald? Well, let's stay on this.

Kevin Coleman. The Panthers have a good run defense, but it's been not great lately. They face some very good running backs. They usually give about 60 rushing yards because they don't get a ton of carries against them. They have a lot of rushing touchdown to a running back in six straight games. Did you mention when you talked about defensive players being out that Shaq Thompson's done? No.

He is on injured reserve. That's one of their starting linebackers. Okay. That should help. All right, yeah. So now we go to Larry Fitzgerald, I guess. Zero to ten for Fitzgerald. Six.

Four. 10 for Fitzgerald? 6. 4. Dave retired him yesterday. What did you say, Dave? I think he might retire. I think there's a very good chance this is his last game in Arizona. Last home game for the Cardinals.

So what does that mean for the start-o-meter? I like him in PPR. I like him in PPR. Retire-o-meter. I like him in PPR. Seven and a half in PPR. Okay. Dak Prescott against the Bucs. Five. No field five. Four.

Six. I gotta get you my Dak Prescott stat. Wait. Five. Okay. Jameis Winston, and then I'll give you the Dak Prescott stat. Wait. Five. Okay. Jameis Winston, and then I'll give you the Dak Prescott stat. Same game. Jameis Winston. 4.9.

Four. Two. So we like Dak better than Jameis? I have him back-to-back, but yes. A lot better. Dak Prescott has averaged 33.7 rushing yards per game in seven games without Amari Cooper. And 9.6 rushing yards per game in seven games with Cooper. He's not running the ball.

I think that makes sense because there's not as many, oh, no, nobody's open. I have to scramble plays because Amari Cooper is generally open. It doesn't mean he's been worse in fantasy. It's just kind of interesting. A couple more. Dante Pettis. Dante Pettis. I'll say seven in non-PPR and six in PPR.

Seven. Seven for both. He's facing the Bears and the Kansas City running backs. This is a real conundrum. It's a Sunday night game. I guess we don't really have to do it, because this is the first game we're previewing. Damian Williams of Spencer Ware is out on the start-o-meter. Nine. Ten. Nine.

Damian Williams of Spencer Ware is in. Four. Seven. Four. Spencer Ware. Two. Three. Spencer where? Two. Three. Spencer where if he doesn't play? Zero. A happy meal. What's he eating in the stands? A happy meal, apparently.

No, he can't bring that in the stadium. If he doesn't play, what does Spencer wear? What? Question. You go to a game. Don't overlook what I just did. That was funny. He wears his warm-ups. The track suit.

You go to a game. What is your go-to concession stand meal? I'm going to a game tomorrow, thanks to SeatGeek. Oh, that's right. Where are you going? I'm going to the Orange Bowl Classic to see the Gators play Florida Gulf Coast. You're going to a basketball game? Yeah. Yeah. Fun. What do you anticipate getting in the concession stands?

Let's see. I'm taking a six-year-old and a four-year-old, so... More beer. Popcorn. Hot dogs. Chicken fingers. That's it, right? Chicken fingers and fries.

It always seems to be the best value and the most delicious. That's my go-to. Oh, pickles. Gotta have pickles. Is it a big hot pickle? Mm-hmm. Yeah. All right, just one last thing.

A lot of people think that we missed Ethan Hunt from Mission Impossible. We did. No, Chris Towers was correct. We missed the right answer, and it wasn't Ethan Hunt. Yeah, what was it? It's Indiana Jones. Yeah. You can't... John McClane versus Indiana Jones is not a competition.

I think the thing with why everybody likes John McClane is there's no tricks involved. People's faces don't melt off. Right, or their hearts don't get pulled out. Also, we were having the debate about superhero movies and whether or not they are action movies. Right, right.

And I think Batman and Iron Man should count as action movies. You know what? I agree. Iron Man especially. Iron Man should be probably in consideration. Because there's nothing mystical. Batman is much cooler than Iron Man. Are you kidding me okay the the christopher nolan batman movies are the greatest superhero movies i agree they

are super but that doesn't mean that christian bale's portrayal of bruce wayne made him cool he's so annoying iron man with all his little snarky comments every five seconds that's what makes him stupid one like up. Snarky. It's just like, shut up already. I'm just tired of it. I don't really like superhero movies all that much. Shocking. Look, these are all great options,

but I would definitely take John McClane over Indiana Jones. You guys want it? Tony Stark is the pee or pants of action. Yeah, I think I'd probably go Indiana Jones, then Tony Stark. Or Tony Stark, then Indiana Jones, then John McClane. They're all pretty cool. The dreadful list. I need your number one.

So it's Tony Stark for Heath. It's John McClane for me. Dave, Jamie? I'll still take John McClane. I'll go Tony Stark. Wow. It's a runoff. I'm going to task you guys to create a Twitter poll and see what the people think.

Tony Stark versus John McClain. But first, the people need to know about how to save time and money during the holiday season. The busiest time of the year, you're going to be sending packages all over the place. You want to buy and print official U.S. postage for any letter, any package, any class of mail using your own computer and printer. And how do you do that? You do that with Stamps.com. And an awesome offer that we have for you, go to Stamps.com and click the microphone at the top of the homepage, FFT. That's the code you enter when you click that microphone. These offers that we're getting from these companies, these sponsors, they're just getting better and better. Stamps.com is giving you a four-week trial plus postage and a digital scale with no long-term commitments. Go to stamps.com, click on the microphone at the top of the homepage, and type in FFT. What can you do with stamps.com?

Like I said, you can buy and print official US posters for anything, and you don't have to go to the post office. You can do this 24-7, obviously. And then the mail carrier is just going to pick up any package you have. So small business owners, anybody busy right now during the holiday season, if you work from home, stamps.com is great for you. I've used stamps.com. It's really a brilliant service, and I love it, and I think you will too. Go to stamps.com, type in FFT when you click the microphone on the top of the homepage,

and get that four-week trial with postage and a digital scale and no long-term commitments. Stamps.com. Type in FFT. Kansas City. I got McLean, Indiana Jones, Tony Stark. Is there a fourth option or no? Just put other? Ethan Hunt, if you want. That seems like...

We had Rambo yesterday, too. Yeah, I think other. Did you ever play an action character? By definition... Was Now You See play an action character? By definition. Was Now You See Me an action film or more of a? No, Thriller. Yeah. And Zombieland.

That was kind of action-y, but no, not really. All right, I'll put other. I think you should put Jesse in there just for fun. Yeah. I would vote for Jesse. All right, Kansas City at Seattle. Oh, I got to get a Bonanza queued up. This would be the Bonanza,

but I've already used Seattle last week, so we will not use it. Stat of the game number one. How about the two stats of the game for Kansas City-Seattle? They're both about running backs. Stat of the game number one. No running back has scored more than

13 fantasy points in non-PPR or 16 fantasy points in PPR against the Chiefs in their last four games. Good games, not great games against the Chiefs in their last four games. Stat of the game number two, only one running back in Seattle's last five games has more than 61 rushing yards. The asterisk there is that they get destroyed in the passing game by running backs. Anyway,

are you shying away from any running backs in this game? No. I mean, the Chiefs guys that both play. I'm not. I'm going to stick with Damian Williams. I'm going to go with what the track record of Andy Reid has been this year, which is he's given one guy 15 plus carries and he what the track record of Andy Reid has been this year, which is he's given one guy 15-plus carries,

and he was a little more effusive than normal in his praise of Williams in his press conferences this week. And Williams is just a much better pass catcher out of the backfield. That's good for this matchup. We've seen him succeed at the goal line, inside the five, et cetera. I think it's going to be Damian Williams. Ooh, Dave, that just seems like such a risk to take in Week 17. What about Week 16?

There are good running backs available. I don't know. Because it could be Spencer Ware. He didn't do anything to lose that job. He had 15 carries for 75 yards, five catches, 54 yards against the Ravens in Week 14. He was good. Damian Williams was better. Fine,

but was he so much better that Ware is not going to have a role? Oh, Ware's going to have a role. Ware will have a role. We're talking about one guy getting 15, 16 touches, and another guy probably getting 8-10. But it could be flipped, where those 8-10 go to what Williams did in the Baltimore game

where the touchdowns go to him. I'd be fine with that if I'm starting Damian Williams. I just want the money plays. I don't think he likes Damian Williams as a rusher. He did last week. How many carries did he have? What did he have, like 10? He had good.

He was good. He had 10 and six catches. It just feels too messy. And it's a Sunday night game, too, so it's a pain in the butt. All right, and Carson, yeah, Carson we love. Do you get nervous that Carson, just the fact that you guys have him pretty high, especially you, Jamie. That he doesn't typically...

I know he did last week. He doesn't typically catch passes. I do wonder if that was game plan specific. I mean, if there's ever a team to do it against, it's this team. Against Chiefs? Yeah. They have a great pass rush,

so you eliminate that with their guys getting up the field. The dump-off pass is there. The receiving core for Seattle has been, for the most part, inconsistent all season. But it's not like Chris Carson's been all Gus Edwards in the passing game. He's 19 catches this year. Nine of them have come in two games against the 49ers. Yeah, that's true. But they're also over the last three weeks.

They are. And there's no—this is totally contingent on Rashad Penny not playing, too. I'll drop him several spots if Penny plays. All right. Look, the bottom line is Chris Carson runs on everyone. And he has either scored a rushing touchdown at each of the last four games he's finished or each of the last five games he's finished. I wasn't sure if he left one early.

I know he left a Niners game, but there was one before that he may have left early with an injury. And the Seahawks, they run. He didn't score against San Francisco. He didn't, but he left that game with an injury. Yeah, he had to break the dislocated finger. But he had 100 total yards. The last four games that he finished, he scored.

And he gets a total. Oh, I'm sorry, yes. Mike Davis, any interest in him as a flex? Absolutely in PPR. In PPR, yes. Okay. Do we buy him as a pass catcher? Yes.

Sure. He can do it. I don't necessarily think that he is a great pass catching option, but I buy that Seattle thinks that. He's their best. This is going to be one of the toughest teams to figure next year. but I buy that Seattle thinks that. He's their best. This is going to be one of the toughest teams to figure next year. If Spencer Ware is out, would you go with Damian Williams or Chris Carson?

If Spencer Ware is out, I'd go with Chris Carson. Yeah, it's really, really – I have him back-to-back in PPR. It's really, really close, but I think I'd still go... I'd definitely go Carson in non-PPR. Full PPR, I'd still go Carson, but it's really close. I agree. It's really close between them. I'm not going to get too complicated with the quarterbacks here. They are 1 and 2

in the rankings for Dave and Jamie. 1 and 5 for Heath. Mahomes is 1 for everybody. Wilson is an absolute must-start. I would just say one thing. Patrick Mahomes has played five games without Sammy Watkins, including when he played five snaps at the Rams. He had two massive games, 40 or more fantasy points,

and three of his worst games, 25 or fewer fantasy points, against Arizona, Baltimore, or the Chargers. Is that matchup, or is that Watkins? Does it make a difference for Mahomes? I think it's more matchup than Watkins. And, like, the great thing with Patrick Mahomes is when we talk about his worst games, we have to say 25 points or fewer.

Yeah, yeah. Like, we're not saying he scored you 14. Yeah, it's funny. One of my finals, I have Mahomes and Wilson. And those are my top two quarterbacks. You're going Mahomes, right? I'm close. Okay.

Tyree Kill, everybody's going to start. Travis Kelsey, everybody's going to start. You look at those games without Sammy Watkins, and Conley has caught a touchdown when Mahomes has been good. That's basically what it's been. So is Chris Conley a sleeper for you guys? A good sleeper? No.

No, not a good sleeper. We forgot a big-time action star, by the way. Who? Uma Thurman in Kill Bill. That's actually, that's pretty, yeah, that's a great call, actually. I don't like the Kill Bill movies. What? I hate you.

I will not play the Heath is on music. You are off on that one. Chris Conley, not a good sleeper. I'm a little concerned that the super duper sleeper might be Kelvin Benjamin. There's been a lot of talk from the homes about getting him worked in and all the reps he's getting in practice. All right. I think it's a bad idea.

Just a sleeper. Blame the showcase. They don't have a good tight end, so I guess they need Kelvin Benjamin. How about the Seattle wide receivers, Baldwin and Lockett? Who do you like better? Are you starting them? I like them both. I would go Baldwin.

Yeah, I really hope Kendall Fuller gets that wrist right for the playoffs and sits. Yeah, me too. As Baldwin owner, I'm going to start him in two leagues. It's format dependent for me. I like Lockett better in non-PPR. I like Baldwin better in PPR. But they are more high-end number threes for me. So where does Seattle get its points from the running game? Well, they can be a high-end number three and Russell Wilson can still be good.

Yeah. Okay, does anybody love Baldwin or Lockett? No, just like... Good number two wide receivers, especially Baldwin. Sit the Seattle tight ends and sit the DSTs. And we go to Pittsburgh at New Orleans. Wait. Baldwin, Lockett, Galladay.

Who's your favorite? Baldwin. Galladay. Lockett, Galladay. Who's your favorite? Baldwin. Galladay. Lockett. Okay, forget I asked. I don't want to play Galladay this week. Pittsburgh at New Orleans. Stat of the game.

New Orleans claims to have invented, the city of New Orleans, claims to have invented both craps and poker. How about that? What do you play if you can only choose one of craps and poker? You about that? What do you play if you can only choose one of craps and poker? You're at the casino in New Orleans. How much time do I have at the casino?

You have unlimited. Poker. The only real game I'm interested in playing at a casino is Texas Hold'em. That's poker. Do I have unlimited money too, or just unlimited time? You have a few hundred bucks'em. That's poker. Do I have unlimited money, too, or just unlimited time? You have a few hundred bucks.

Yeah, it's poker. Yeah, craps, you'll lose a few hundred bucks in five minutes. New Orleans has not allowed more than 17 points in six straight games, during which they are 5-1. The Steelers have been a little off offensively in their last four games. 17, 30, 21,

and 17 points. Is this a shootout? Are there any doubts in your mind that this is a high-scoring back-and-forth game? My only concern now would be, did you do some issues to yourself? I have some doubt about it being a high-scoring game. If everybody's healthy, it's going to be,

this is your bonanza. I can't use it. I used Pittsburgh recently. Well, you're screwed. I think it's 28-24 New Orleans. I'll go over. I think that's like the ceiling for this game. Which quarterback? Wow. But not by a lot.

Which quarterback do you like better? Roethlisberger. If Juju plays. Okay. Heath, how about you? I said Breeze. I thought it about you? I said Breeze. I thought it was funny because I said Breeze at the same time Dave said Roethlisberger and then Jamie said if Juju plays.

I said Ben if Juju plays. Alright, there we go. I think nobody knows what's going on right now. And Roethlisberger usually throws about 45 passes on the road, which is great. Let's talk about Jalen Samuels.

James Conner expected to miss this game. Jalen Samuels, how confident are you in him? The Saints allow the third fewest fantasy points to running backs. 3.2 yards per carry to running backs. Yeah, what do you think about Samuels? 10. I'll say he's in that six and three quarters range for me. Ten.

Talk it out. Discuss. He's going to get a ton of work and he's going to be involved in the passing game and he's going to score a touchdown. I don't think it's a lock that he scores a touchdown. I agree that he's going to get a touchdown. I agree. I don't think it's a lock that he scores a touchdown. I agree that he's going to get a lot of work in the passing game.

I am not convinced that he will get a lot of work in the rushing game, nor will he do well with it. I have him projected for 19 touches, 105 yards, and a touchdown. Yeah, doing well with the rushing is key because he had 11 carries for 28 yards against the Raiders and then 19 carries for 142 yards against the Patriots.

So who knows? They made it pretty clear that he's getting more comfortable as a running back. And I think that's important for him because reps are big. And even in that bad game against the Raiders, he had seven catches for 64 yards. I'm wondering if he's going to have a game similar

to that Raiders game. Which is going to be awesome for PPR. Yes, I'm in for that all day. Well, you'd rather have the other game. Not great in standard. I'll take both. Just combine them two together. Give him 190 total yards and a touchdown.

That'd be 30 carries. 11 catches. Okay, and what else we got? The Pittsburgh wide receivers. So, yeah, if Juju plays, you start him, right? Mm-hmm. Yeah. James Washington will be a sleeper if Juju's out.

Yeah, the Saints have only allowed two touchdowns to wide receivers in their last six games, but 76 or more yards. Play crappy quarterbacks. They've placed... Wentz, Ryan, Dak, Jameis. Not a good one there. Dalton.

Vance McDonald. Start or sit? Sit if you can. Get him the hell away from your lineup. How much do you like Drew Brees this week? Coming off three bad games in a row on the road before that four great games in a row? He's at home.

He is at home. I think this is going to be a tricky matchup for him, but I still have him top ten. I'm going to still start him. I've got him number seven and six point per pass touchdown league. That might be just a little bit more concerned about him in four point per pass touchdown leagues. I'm not sure he has an enormous yardage day.

Okay. Breeze or Deshaun Watson? Watson. Deshaun. Yep. Breeze or Baker Mayfield? Breeze. Drewie. My quarterbacks, seven, eight, nine, go Breeze,

Baker, Ben. I would start Baker go Breeze, Baker, Ben. I would start Baker over Breeze in a four-point touchdown league. Okie dokie. Anything else for Pittsburgh? No, not for Pittsburgh, obviously. Okay, Mark Ingram. Mark Ingram or Jalen Samuels? Samuels.

Samuels, okay. Mark Ingram or Damian Williams if we know Spencer Ware is playing? I'm going Williams. If Ware is playing? Yep. Ingram. Ingram. How much do you like Ingram this week? More than the combination of the Chiefs guys.

Low end number two. So basically what he always is. Yes. Marlon Mack or Mark Ingram? Mack. Dante Pett Mack or Mark Ingram? Mack. Dante Pettis or Mark Ingram? Pettis and PPR. Pettis and non-PPR as well.

One for Pettis, one for Ingram. I'm going to have to... They are so, so close. I'll take Ingram and non-Pettis and PPR. Lockett or Ingram? Lockett. Lockett up. Ingram and both.

The old man laugh. And are we starting any Saints wide receivers other than Michael Thomas? Traequan, if you're desperate. I am not. Okay. No Ben Watson No although he made a couple nice plays last week Yeah Pittsburgh stinks against tight ends He's not that far from Vance McDonald

I've got him back to back Alright set the DSTs in this game We'll go out on a limb and say that Our next game is Houston to Philadelphia We'll tell you about the Texans and the Eagles Right after this Kick off an exciting football season with BetMGM, an official sportsbook partner of the National Football League. Yard after yard, down after down, the sportsbook born in Vegas gives you the chance

to take action to the end zone and celebrate every highlight reel play. And as an official sportsbook partner of the NFL, BetMGM is the best place to fuel your football fandom on every game day. With a variety of exciting features, BetMGM offers you plenty of seamless ways to jump straight onto the gridiron and to embrace peak sports action. Ready for another season of gridiron glory? What are you waiting for? Get off the bench, into the huddle and head for the

end zone all season long visit betmgm.com for terms and conditions must be 19 years of age or older ontario only please gamble responsibly gambling problem for free assistance call the connex ontario helpline at 1-866-531-2600 betmMGM operates pursuant to an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario. All right, Houston, at Philadelphia, stat of the game? Only Kansas City allows more passing yards than Philadelphia. That's number one. And stat of the game number two, the Eagles have allowed 15 or more fantasy points in non-PPR.

That's a lot. To a running back in six straight games. 15 or more in non-PPR in six straight games to a running back in six straight games 15 or more in non-PPR in six straight games to a running back four running backs have scored 30 or more fantasy points in those six games in in PPR um but like I said could get a big time defensive tackle and a middle linebacker back this week so yeah how do you feel about the Texans offense you guys have Deshaun Watson pretty pretty high he is like a top six quarterback, I believe. Yeah, fifth, fifth, and sixth for Jamie Dave Heath.

I think it's going to be a game where he has to throw. I don't see Lamar Miller having a great game. I think the Eagles will actually score on the Texans. And so I think this is going to be a situation where they may be chasing points. I think there's an outside shot that he finishes as the number one quarterback this week. He's got that kind of upside because this isn't a 25-pass attempt type game. Okay, I'm not disagreeing, but I think it's interesting that you say that considering Nick Foles is playing quarterback and they're not going to be able to run the ball, you'd think. Did you see Nick Foles last week?

I did see Nick Foles last week. He played great. And you know the Texans don't have a good pass defense. I am aware of that. Like I said, I'm not disagreeing, but to hear you guys say that might take some people by surprise. They're not going to be able to run the ball. I don't want to start Nick Foles at all, but in FanDuel or DraftKings, he is one of my top value plays at the quarterback position. I think he's going to have a pretty good day.

Yeah. I see that. And to have a pretty good day. Yeah. I see that. And they're going to score points, and so Watson's going to throw more, and the Eagles have a terrible, terrible pass defense. That is true. Okay, why not feeling it for Lamar Miller? Splitting carries. Could be a tougher matchup.

Not at 100%. And I still feel like he's got a low ceiling. Okay. Miller or Mark Ingram? I think I have Miller right now, and I might change it. I have Ingram and PPR. I have them, I think, actually literally projected for the same exact number of points in non-PPR. Okay.

Starter CityAndre Hopkins. Hmm. I did a poll for 2019. Who do you think the number one wide receiver will be? Hopkins, Adams, Julio Jones, or Other? Who do you think is winning that? Other. I would assume Hopkins.

Other. I don't know who's running away. Nah, it's Hopkins. No, it's Adams. It's Hopkins. Hopkins. Yep. Would you like to know the results of our poll so far? Yeah. It is. Let's do it after this game. After this game, Jamie. Let's continue here. Demarius Thomas. So if you'd like to show Watson a lot. What do you think about Demarius Thomas? He had six catches for 59 yards on eight targets at

the Jets last week. Low end number three. I think he could be right in that same exact range this week. Not a bad number three or flex. Who are the waiver-wide receivers that you might be comparing Demarius Thomas to this week? Like Pettis? Foster. Foster.

Foster's a good one. I think Chris Hogan now. Yep. So where's Demarius with them? Behind them for me. Yeah, he's behind Deshaun. He's behind Foster. Foster's a good one. I think Chris Hogan now. Yep. So where's Demarius with them? Behind them for me. Yeah, he's behind Deshaun. He's behind Foster. I think he's very similar to Laferty Sherald personally.

All right, so Nick Foles is about 20th in the rankings, as Heath said. He said it well. You don't want to start him, but he's got a lot of upside. Are you looking at any Philadelphia running backs in this game? The Texans have allowed seven rushing touchdowns to running backs in their last seven games, but not a lot of yards. It just feels messy. You got lucky with the Adams touchdown last week.

He was battling a back injury. You wonder if he's just not used to this workload and maybe just wearing down a little bit over the last few weeks. He doesn't do anything in the passing game. Sproles will be a problem. Smallwood looks like he's going to be a problem. If you can avoid it, avoid it. Yeah, I would start Josh Adams over any Dolphin.

I would start Josh Adams over any Lion. With you there. I would start him over James White and non-PPR. I'd start him over any Bill. Not with either. Alshon Jeffrey, like or love? Love. Gotta love. How do you compare Alshon Jeffrey to

Jalen Samuels, Damian Williams? Those behind them. Behind them. I don't know if it's terribly far behind them. I would... Like, Damian Williams with Spencer Ware is very close to Alshon Jeffrey. I would take Jeffrey.

Jeffrey or Robbie Anderson? Robbie. I'll take Alshon. Any interest in Golden Tate? No. Not really. He's basically Demaryius Thomas. Starter Sid Zekerts.

Start him. Start him. He had end zone targets last week. I know the numbers weren't great, but he's still a big part of what they do. Great. Another good matchup. Oh, yeah, this is the stat I had on Earth. He has seven or more targets in 12 of 14 games this season.

There have been five tight ends with seven or more targets against the Texans, and all five of them have scored a touchdown. So that bodes well. Texans DST. Very different rankings here. 14th for Jamie, 13th for Dave, 6th for Heath. Heath Island. What are you thinking, Heath?

Texans DST. Yeah? Texans, DST. Yeah, the Texans, DST. I didn't hear what you were talking about. I wasn't paying attention. Heath's last show. At all. It's not my last show. I know.

I still think the Texans defense is going to get some sacks. I still think the Texans defense has a chance to get a turnover against Nick Foles. But I think they're going to give up some points. So it probably depends on your scoring format. But I still like him okay. Jamie, how are we doing with the Twitter poll? Sure. We are over 1,000 votes already.

And getting a lot of, why is Tony Stark and Indiana Jones in the same category with John McClane for action movie character? Okay, good, valid question. The vote-ins have been for, as expected, John Wick, Ethan Hunt. That was the one somebody suggested. I wish I remember when with the first character from Kill Bill. Somebody suggested Mr. Bean.

Mr. Bean. Mr. Bean. Snake Plissken. What are their Twitter results? How much for McLean? How much for other? Indiana Jones is winning with 42%. No! No!

Ridiculous. John McLean's at 31% and Tony Stark is at 21%. What's wrong with you people? Okay, Minnesota at Detroit. That's at 13,000 votes. 1,300 votes, excuse me. In their last four games, the Lions have allowed only two touchdowns to wide receivers, and both of those wide receivers were named Robert.

Minnesota does not have a wide receiver named Robert. Yeah, that's just out of the game. So I guess you have to sit Diggs and Thielen. LOL. Okay, let's talk about the Vikings and Cousins. You guys have him pretty low. 15th for Jamie, 19th for Dave, 18th for Heath. I know he's not playing well, but this is a great matchup.

No faith in Cousins here? Just for reference, Sportsline has him at 5. Ah. Yeah, I think the Harrison injury matters here because I think he'll throw enough. The last time he faced them, he scored like eight fantasy points, but he completed 18 of 22 passes. And last week, he completed, what, 17 of 21?

14 of 21, but averaged over 10 yards. He played well last week. Yeah. The problem is, I think what happened last week is what we were afraid was going to happen last week. Mike Zimmer won the power struggle. They are going to run the ball and play defense. And I don't ever want to start a quarterback that I think is going to throw it 25 times or fewer. Yeah, he even said as much on the conference call with the media in Detroit.

He said, listen, we were throwing the ball 66% of the time. It was too much. We're going to keep doing what we're doing. And you also have an offense that's probably not going to score very much on the other side of the field. So how do you feel about Dalvin Cook this week? He's a must-start guy. Not to the same heights like we saw last week, unless Harrison

is out. If Harrison is out, then he could do what he did last week. If Harrison's out, Cook is absolute stud. But Samuels or Cook, if Harrison plays? Cook in non-PPR, Samuels in PPR. Samuels or Cook if Harrison plays? Cook. Cook in non-PPR, Samuels in PPR.

Samuels for me in both. Well, I mean, Cook's pretty good in the... He only had one catch last week. But I think that's the change in the offense. And also how the game will go. Obviously at this point I don't think a lot of people are benching Dalvin Cook. Right. My goodness.

If Harrison doesn't play... Remember, this was the best matchup in fantasy, I think, before that trade. Sure. So it could be a big deal. If Harrison doesn't play, Dalvin Cook's a top ten running back. He might be top five. I mean, that's how good we saw him look last week. All right. Are you going to start both Minnesota wide receivers?

I know it's a silly question, but look, Thielen's been disappointing lately. You have to. It's one of those things where he's one of the guys that we could have talked about being concerned with. But yeah, if you're getting 20, like he suggested, 25

or fewer pass attempts, they're both going to have to score with minimal catches. If Thielen had the Aldrick Robinson touchdown last week, it feels a lot better, even though the catches are down. So you wouldn't start Alshon Jeffrey over one of them? I would start Alshon over Adam Thielen. Yeah, I would be tempted to. The only way I would do it is if you feel like you need to have the highest ceiling play.

Because I still feel like Thielen has a higher floor. Kyle Rudolph starts it? No. And are you starting any Lions? I'm not. I'm starting Galladay. I'm starting Galladay too. Galladay or Thielen?

Thielen. I go Diggs, Galladay, Thielen. Yeah, Thielen easily for me. Galladay was bad against them the first time that they played each other. He was bad two games prior to last week, and he's probably going to see three guys covered. They did have Marvin Jones the first time they faced him. They did.

But we know how good Xavier Rhodes is. I think what I was talking about on Wednesday with Heath in this matchup, the good wide receivers, they don't have huge games. But Adams and Michael Thomas, they both scored. Well, Thomas had five for 81. Adams had like 65 yards and a touchdown in both games. Those guys have healthy quarterbacks. I mean, Stafford's playing with a back injury.

A bad offensive line. You saw what the Vikings did to the Dolphins' offensive line last week. They ragdolled them. Yeah, at least eight or nine sacks. Yeah, it's going to be brutal for this team. Start the Vikings DST.

Tampa Bay is at Dallas. I already gave you the stat of the game. It's about Dak Prescott and how he's not running at all. So I know you guys like Dak better than Winston. Winston, we're going to call a sit,

although Heath has him 13th. What about Dak? Who would you start Prescott over other than Winston? Baker. Darnold. Rivers. Not in that order. I would not start him over Baker.

He said, who would you start Dak over? Oh, I'm sorry. I'm listening to the guys that I would take over Dak. I would start Dak over Tom Brady. I would start him over Kirk Cousins. I would start him over Phillip Rivers. I would start him over Cousins as well. I would start him over Tom Brady. I would start him over Kirk Cousins. I would start him over Phillip Rivers. I would start him over Cousins as well. I would start him over Jameis, Josh Allen,

Foles, and Cody Kessler. Yeah, I like Dak. I don't love Dak. Okay, fair. Peyton Barber, start or sit? Sit if you can. Yeah. Too many good running back options out there.

You should be able to pick up somebody better than Peyton Barber. And look, he scores a lot. He's an okay non-PPR flex. Right. Yeah. The Cowboys are very good against running backs, despite what we saw last week. Your thoughts on the Tampa Bay wide receivers? Well, let me ask a general question.

Other than Evans and Cooper, are you starting any wide receivers in this game? Humphreys is the only one I would consider. And he's a high-end number three. Agreed. And, and Brait. Cameron Brait? Mm-hmm.

You like him this week? Like, don't love. I think he scores. I think that's Jameis' only touchdown. Would you go with Cameron Braate or Chris Herndon? Brate. Brate.

Herndon and PPR. I'll go with Brate and non-Herndon and PPR. How about Cameron Brate or Blake Jarwin? I'll go Brate over Jarwin and PPR but it's very close there. Non-PPR, it's not as close. It's Braid.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I mean... Dallas hasn't been great against tight ends. But Braid is a touchdown or bust guy, because he doesn't get a lot of volume. He doesn't get a lot of yards. Yeah. He's a risk, but most of the tight ends that you're going to consider this week are going to be risky.

Yeah, Dave and Jamie have Jarwin as a top 14 tight end. Heath does not have him in the top 24. He's had seven targets, two straight games. He's clearly involved. He's involved, but he's had seven targets in two straight games when Dak has had to throw a lot. And that's the only thing that makes me nervous about Jarwin is that this could be an Ezekiel Elliott game.

Dak throws 20 times. Jarwin gets four targets. Could you see yourself being loaded at receiver and getting away from Evans or Cooper? Or are they basically must-starts? You'd have to be super loaded to get away from Evans. I don't think there's any getting away from Coop. Yeah, I'd rather start Kooper than Evans. But I guess I could start Alshon over Evans.

Okay. Dallas DST is 9th for Jamie, 10th for Dave, 16th for Heath. So, again, I think there are better options that you can probably find out there on the waiver wire. Chicago's at San Francisco, and your stat of the game. Oh, here's a fun one. No tight end has had 50 receiving yards against the Bears this year.

Dun, dun, dun. Okay. Start, Kittle. Rank the running backs in the Chicago-San Francisco battle. Tyreek Cohen, Jordan Howard, Matt Breida. Cohen, Jordan Howard, Matt Breida.

Cohen, Breida, Howard. Cohen, Howard, Breida, Wilson. In PPR, I'll take Breida over Howard. So, how many of them are starts? Cohen. The Bears. Yeah, I'm probably starting Breida as well. So how many of them are starts? Colin. The Bears.

Yeah, I'm probably starting Brita as well. I just fear Brita getting hurt again mid-game. He probably will. And then he'll come back. I'm trying to find the stat. There have been nine running backs with 15 or more carries against the Niners. Only two of them rushed for more than 70 yards. That's amazing.

How many? They've allowed a lot of touchdowns lately, right? Five of those, yes. In their last five games, the 49ers have allowed seven running backs to score 12 or more fantasy points in PPR. I don't know if they've allowed a lot of touchdowns lately. O'Hara scored against them. Carson scored against them.

Penny scored against them. They've allowed a touchdown in four straight games, three of them inside the three. lately. O'Hara scored against them, Carson scored against them, Penny scored against them. They have a lot of touchdown in four straight games. Three of them inside the three. Right. So you're hoping for that for Howard. He's getting a lot of work lately. He has 16 to 19 carries in four of his last five games. That's why I had that stat about

the nine running backs with 15 or more carries against the Niners. But this is a good run defense. Unless they play Seattle. Again, though, since they've lost Foster, it hasn't been the same. They were great before when Foster was playing. I mean, honestly, it's been a little up and down.

They were great against Saquon Barkley and Phillip Lindsay without Reuben Foster, but we don't have to debate that. No, they're still very good. They were better. Tariq Cohen, he always scares me because he doesn't get that many touches. How confident are you in starting Tariq Cohen? Fairly confident. Eight out of ten?

Six. I'll say seven. Cohen or Jalen Samuels? Samuels. Samuels and Pippen. Oh, sorry. Cohen or Jalen Samuels? Samuels. Cohen or Samuels in PPR? Sorry. Cohen or Coleman? You like Cohen better in non-PPR than Jalen Samuels?

Yes. Tevin Coleman in both. Coleman in both. Okay. Cohen or Marlon Mack? Mack. Mack. I'll go Cohen in PPRlon Mack? Mack. I'll go Cohen and PPR, Mack and none. All right. Makes sense.

Do you like Mitchell Trubisky? I've got him as a top 12 quarterback this week. We all do. I think he can do what he did last week. You think he's a good player to compare to Prescott? Who do you like better? I think they're probably close, right? Trubisky.

But they're back-to-back, so yes, they're close. Okay, yeah, we know San Francisco not so good against running backs. And then just to talk a little bit more about Brita, Heath, you seem to be the most excited about starting Matt Brita. Yeah, there is risk that he has, like what happened in Seattle the first time, and he plays 10 snaps and gets hurt again.

I may rank him a little too high based on that risk, but man, he's just been awesome. This is a great run defense, though. My goodness. This is arguably the best. Well, it's a banged up best. I mean, I think the same. Well, it's a banged up defense.

In the secondary. I think a trap game, and it's in San Francisco. Yeah. The run defense isn't banged up, though, right? No, it's just the secondary is banged up. Yeah. There's a lot of factors in play that you should avoid. How about the wide receivers?

Who's the best wide receiver in this game? Pettis. Yeah, I'm not like. He's the one that you'll be the most confident in. I'm not sitting Pettis. Yeah, I'm not like... He's the one that you'll be the most confident in. I'm not sitting Pettis. I mean, I don't have a choice. You know, he's one of my better guys in the league that I'm in. He's kind of a deeper league, but I think he could be solid. I don't expect

a huge game. Yeah, Pettis is a start. Allen Robinson's a borderline number two. How about Trey Burton? Obviously, Kittle's a start. Trey Burton? Low end starting tight end. Yeah, I don't want to, but I understand why you might. I'd rather start

Najoku or Herndon. Okay, and then who's a better desperation play? Nick Mullins or Nick Foles? Foles. I've got them back-to-back. I think I kind of like Mullins better. I like Foles a I've got them back-to-back. I think I kind of like Mullens better. I like Foles a lot better.

Atlanta's at Carolina. Okay. Let's start with the Panthers and knock them out. Just Christian McCaffrey? There it is. Just McCaffrey. Yep. Matt Ryan is what this week?

Top five quarterback. Stored him. Ryan or Roethlisberger? Well, I guess that depends if Julio's in or out. Oh, yeah, yeah. But he'll play. Ryan, he always plays. Ryan or Roethlisberger?

Ryan. Roethlisberger slightly. Roethlisberger. Now, I know Heath knows this from Fantasy Jeopardy, but Dave and Jamie, are you aware that Matt Ryan is the number two quarterback in Fantasy this year? Yes. Oh, you are now, obviously, since I told you. Now, that shocked me when I saw that.

You know what would have been a better way to find out if they were aware is ask them a question without saying, are you aware, and then giving the answer. I mean, it would have been pretty obvious. What do you mean? Like a Jeopardy-style question? Yes. What was it like?

This pigskin passer. All right. We talked about Tevin Coleman earlier. They're pretty excited about Tevin Coleman. Any other wide receiver other than Julio Jones? I mean, Ridley's the number three receiver. I don't even think he's that. I don't want to trust him away from the dome.

How about... Pretty good secondary. I think I asked you guys this yesterday, but I had forgotten your answer. Would you start a running back in the Jets-Packers game or Tevin Coleman? Coleman. Coleman.

I'll take... I think I'm a wire ahead of Coleman Hey speaking of Jets Packers game One question I forgot to ask Was Hey what's going on here Hold on So guys the Jets and the Packers

Play tomorrow or Sunday It's games on Sunday And what I was going to ask about that game is Bonanza! Who could have seen that coming? Well, you, because you were watching him struggle to find the sound. I don't know why the app didn't work. I had to shut it down and then restart the app.

I have no idea why I'm picking this game. Yeah, I think that that's a ballsy call. The running backs are going to be good. Robbie Anderson and Devontae Adams are going to be good. Rogers is going to be great. So I think what we need then is at least one, maybe two, out of Sam Darnold and the tight ends. No, if you get Rogers, Williams, Adams, McGuire,

and Anderson, you've nailed it. What if I get four of those five? No. Okay, fine. I accept the challenge. Rams are at the Cardinals. This is our last game. Oh, and Falcons DST is eighth or ninth for everybody. It might be the best DFS play at that position.

I think, yeah. Who did I go with? I think I went with the Dolphins. They're extremely cheap. They are priced like camps play. Oh, I did play the Falcons. Yeah, absolutely. Okay, Rams and Cardinals, stat of the game. Arizona has allowed double-digit fantasy points in non-PPR to multiple wide receivers in the same game only

once this season. They are pretty bad against number one receivers just as they were against Brandon Cooks. They are pretty great against number one receivers just as they were against Brandon Cooks. They are pretty great against everyone else. The tough calls in this game will be the wide receivers.

I guess. The tough call in this game will be if we find out Sunday morning that Todd Gurley is going to be a game time decision. I swear I cannot believe... It is week 16. I think the worst thing I've done all year is not talk about the Todd Gurley situation earlier.

It's inexcusable. So what do you do if Todd Gurley doesn't play? I mean, it obviously depends on who's on your roster. If you were able to pick up Elijah McGuire, Jamal Williams, that's an easy replacement because those guys should be good. The bigger issue is who's the better backup Rams running back.

That, I think, is the tougher call for people that have picked up John Kelly or potentially C.J. Anderson. I'm going with C.J. Anderson. Are you really? I might have to start him in my Todd Gurley league. That's your only choice? No, I could probably start Calvin Ridley or something like that.

Oh, I'd play Ridley. Over C.J. Anderson? I don't know if it makes sense for C.J. Anderson to be the main guy for the Rams. Put it this way. If Todd Gurley doesn't play, I actually don't really want a running back. That's how I feel. And I fully expect one to score. I don't know if I can.

The matchup is so great. There are people that may not have a choice. And that's why I'd go with Kelly. If that's your choice, is just the backup Rams guys, I'd go Kelly also, but it's going to be a mess. One of them is going to score. You. One of them is going to score.

You know one of them is going to score. Yeah, it could be that Kelly is the guy between the 20s and then Anderson is the one at the goal line just based on size. It could be Kelly's passing game. It would be messy, but I would prefer Kelly over Anderson. I'm sure most people would.

It sort of got the indication that they didn't love John Kelly, that he just wasn't ready. I think a lot of what the C.J. Anderson signing, though, is about is Justin Davis. Yeah, right. But now Gurley didn't practice yesterday, and here we are. He says he's going to play. He also says he hasn't run this week, but he says he's going to play.

How about Goff and the wide receivers? I think Goff is a low-end starter. The receivers you should be starting. Reynolds is the number three guy best. Goff or Trubisky? I have Goff a spot higher. And Trubisky a spot higher. I have Goff a spot higher. Would you start

Brandon Cooks or... Give me one second here. I've got to find a good one. Tariq Cohen or Brandon Cooks? Cohen. Yeah, I think I feel a little bit better about Cohen. Cohen. Okay. Here's the thing. If Jared Goff is good, Josh Reynolds

has a good chance to be good. I mean, like last week. So he's not a bad sleeper. I will like Reynolds better if Gurley is out. Yeah, I could see that. And then for Arizona, we already talked about David Johnson. We did the start-up meter. David Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald.

David Johnson or Brandon Cooks? Johnson. Johnson. Johnson. David Johnson or Joe Mixon? I still have Mixon higher. Mixon. Yeah, I've got Mixon one spot higher.

They're both in tough spots. They're in very similar spots now. Yeah, Mixon's a better player. Arizona does have a—the Rams have a terrible run defense. They don't give up a ton of fantasy points, but they're like 4.8 yards per carry. But, of course, you worry about the score. And then Larry Fitzgerald we talked about earlier. Decent start. I think we're kind And then Larry Fitzgerald we talked about earlier. Decent start.

I think we're kind of split on Fitzgerald, right? Yeah, I don't really want to. He's a low-end starter. Guys, that is it for Week 16, start or sit. He's special, right? Yeah, Heath, thanks for participating all year. Heath, you know what you should say to Adam? Wait, before you do that.

We'll talk about the Rams running back situation on the mailbag, so please tune into the mailbag show. Bye, Dave.