Fantasy Football Today - Rankings Updates! Biggest Movers, WR1 Debate and More (03/18 Fantasy Football Podcast)

Episode Date: March 18, 2024

Join our Bracket Challenge and get in the Podcast League! https://picks.cbssports.com/college-basketball/ncaa-tournament/bracket/pools/kbxw63b2he4dknjsgq2a====?pool-join-key=39wkhxdq8h3bdf04t65a3zx1j5...e05zv7&invited-by=ivxhi4tzhiytkmrugmzdgobz&via-medium=copy&ttag=FF24_lk_cbssports_cbb_bpm_copySetupInvite&sender-role=m5aen7afgbe5rh Fantasy Football Today is available for free on the Audacy app as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and wherever else you listen to podcasts Dave and Jamey give us their biggest rankings risers (2:30) and fallers (4:26) with Drake London, Josh Jacobs and Khalil Shakir among the risers and Justin Herbert, Keenan Allen and Justin Jefferson among the fallers. Who should be the #1 wide receiver in drafts at this point (5:30)? Does Jefferson still have a case? Is it CeeDee Lamb? Tyreek Hill? ... Jamey gives his thoughts on the Bears WRs (15:15) and then we go through the news and notes (21:00) with our reaction to the trades of Justin Fields, Kenny Pickett and Sam Howell. Plus, does A.J. Dillon impact Josh Jacobs (28:50)? And which team has made big upgrades on their offensive line? ... A longer look at rankings (37:50) of Herbert, Derrick Henry, Joe Mixon, Zack Moss, the Commanders running backs and WRs (54:10) like George Pickens and Diontae Johnson ... Your emails at fantasyfootball@cbsi.com SUBSCRIBE to FFT Dynasty on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/fantasy-football-today-dynasty/id1696679179 SUBSCRIBE to FFT Dynasty on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2aHlmMJw1m8FareKybdNfG?si=8487e2f9611b4438&nd=1 Follow our FFT team on Twitter: @FFToday, @AdamAizer, @JameyEisenberg, @daverichard, @heathcummingssr, @ctowerscbs Follow the brand new FFT TikTok account: https://www.tiktok.com/@fftoday Watch FFT on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/fantasyfootballtoday Get 20% off Fantasy Football Today merch: https://store.cbssports.com/collections/fantasy-football-today%20?utm_source=podcast-apple-com&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=buy-our-merch&utm_content=fantasy-football-collection Join our Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/FantasyFootballToday/ Sign up for the FFT newsletter https://www.cbssports.com/newsletter You can listen to Fantasy Football Today on your smart speakers! Simply say "Alexa, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Football Today podcast" or "Hey Google, play the latest episode of the Fantasy Football Today podcast." To hear more from the CBS Sports Podcast Network, visit https://www.cbssports.com/podcasts/ 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

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Starting point is 00:01:43 No, I can't. It's time to dominate your fantasy league. Off to the races! And he stays on his feet! He's just going to go the distance! Now, here's some combination of Adam, Dave, Jamie, and Heath. All right, the rankings are out, published, updated, and new names in new places. And we'll see where they are.
Starting point is 00:02:06 I've got it for Herbert, for Levis, for Barkley, for Henry, Mixon, Swift, Pollard, Spears, Moss, Chase Brown, Devin Singletary, DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, DeAndre Hopkins, Calvin Ridley, George Pickens, Deontay Johnson. These are the biggest movers, or among the biggest movers, in the rankings for Dave and Jamie. And Heath as well. Heath is not here today, so it's Dave and Jamie, and I'm Adam.
Starting point is 00:02:24 And hello, guys. Happy St. Patrick's Day so it's Dave and Jamie, and I'm Adam. And hello, guys. Happy St. Patrick's Day. Hope you had a wonderful weekend. I did. Thanks for asking. I cleaned my house. Me too. Oh, it sucks.
Starting point is 00:02:34 What did you do? Because I vacuumed and mopped the entire house. No, no, no. I do my... Well, I don't do that stuff every week. We have a lady that does that. Her name's Karen. She's my wife.
Starting point is 00:02:45 But we had to clean the grill and then the garage and then some shutters. And then there was a kind of like a hole in our foundation that we had to patch up. And then I found a hole in the foundation of our pool. And I have a feeling I'm going to be very broke very soon. I lost interest a little bit. Jamie, welcome. All right, let's get into fantasy football here. I am wearing green for St. Patrick's Day,
Starting point is 00:03:08 even though it's a little late, but I figured let's do it. That's black. You're wearing black. What green are you wearing? That's green. I'm all black. Your pants? It's green.
Starting point is 00:03:16 All I see are your shoulders. It's green. It's green. Or black, black, black. It's green. All right, Jamie, who are... Can you see green? Can I?
Starting point is 00:03:24 Not really, which is why I'm questioning myself right now, but I think it's green. All right, Jamie, who are... Can you see green? Can I? Not really, which is why I'm questioning myself right now, but I think it's green. Do you think your shirt is a different color than Jamie's shirt? No, I think it's pretty much... Maybe a little brighter green. No, it's black. No, your shirt is green, but your camera makes it look a little darker.
Starting point is 00:03:43 Your light makes it look a little darker, but I know you're colorblind, so I don't know. No, that's why I'm struggling right now. Black is the ace of spades. No, you're wrong. What color can't you see? Who are your biggest rankings risers, Jamie? Risers?
Starting point is 00:04:01 Risers. Chase Brown was one. Ty J. Spears was one. No, he dropped. Chase Brown was one. Ty J Spears was not, he dropped. Um, Chase Brown was one. Um, even though Curtis Samuel Stein, still Khalil Shakir was one. Zamir White was one. Um, was Drake London one.
Starting point is 00:04:15 Oh, Drake London was one. Yep. Oh, um, I was thinking more followers as opposed to risers. Like everybody that's either been associated or still on the chargers is falling. Okay. How about you, Dave? Who are some of your biggest risers. Like everybody that's either been associated or still on the chargers is falling. Okay. How about you, Dave?
Starting point is 00:04:26 Who are some of your biggest risers risers? Oh, London's up there. Josh Jacobs. When I didn't know what his situation was going to be when he landed in green Bay, I was very happy. So he's a riser.
Starting point is 00:04:36 Derek Henry was a riser for me. Kind of the same reason as Jacobs, but he's nowhere near as high as Jacobs in the rankings. Mixon was a riser. Zach Moss was like, yeah, he was like a pick after a hundredth overall, I feel like.
Starting point is 00:04:51 And now he's firmly in that round six, seven range, which we need more of those kinds of running backs. And Jamie said, Chase Brown, I'm with them on that one. He was a riser. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:05:03 Moss six, seven. We'll see where he goes tomorrow. I'm very excited to see how the mock draft goes tomorrow. We're mocking at noon. We'll talk about it on Wednesday's show. Jamie Asim is RB20 in PPR. Dave is RB26 in PPR.
Starting point is 00:05:16 And Heath is RB32. That's Zach Moss. So very different there. Heath, really, I wish Heath were on the show today because, as per usual, his rankings are a lot different than Dave and Jamie's, more similarity.
Starting point is 00:05:27 His Calvin Ridley ranking is shocking to me. He's got Calvin Ridley as a top, he's got him as a round three pick. 16, wide receiver 16 on Calvin Ridley. Jamie has him as wide receiver 36. Dave has him as wide receiver 34. And everybody has DeAndre Hopkins at 37 or 38. So Ridley's slightly ahead, but for Dave and Jamie, for Heath, wide receiver 16 on Calvin Ridley.
Starting point is 00:05:52 Who are some of the biggest fallers, Dave? Traylon Burks. They don't get any bigger than Traylon Burks. No, Justin Herbert's a faller just because he's lost everything. So along the same lines is what Jamie was saying. As far as chargers falling, I think DJ Moore fell. He was the clear alpha in Chicago. Now he probably still is, but it's by a slimmer margin with Keenan Allen there.
Starting point is 00:06:16 I moved Rashid Rice down a little bit. He's not a big time faller. Uh, Zay Flowers was a faller. Aaron Jones was a faller. Ridley ended up being a faller for me. And then one who was a faller, but not like, Oh man, he tumbled three rounds, but he did tumble outside of being a top three or four overall pick is Justin Jefferson. And I think he's still a first round pick, but now I kind of feel like I want to take them. If I can get them, I'll settle for them toward the back part of round one
Starting point is 00:06:45 as long as Darnold or a non-top three rookie quarterback is throwing to him. Wow. I mean, I think he could go as early as number one overall tomorrow. Justin Jefferson? Yeah, I do. And as late as six. Would you take him number one overall, Adam Azer? I was trying to go through that this morning.
Starting point is 00:07:09 I did a couple of things this morning. I looked at veteran-wide receivers with rookie quarterbacks over the last nine years. And who should be the number one receiver taken? Not running back, just receiver taken. And I think I'm down to Jefferson and Tyreek Hill and tyreek hill and i'm probably just gonna go with tyreek hill that's where i'm at right now how about you guys number one receiver you'll have lamb i see yeah i got lamb ahead of him i've got hill ahead of him and saint brown and jamar are ahead of him too yeah jefferson right now is third for me, and he'll move up to two if I like the rookie that they draft.
Starting point is 00:07:47 Right. So they have now picks, well, 12 and 23, 11 and 23. 11 and 23. 11 and 23. They acquired the Texans' first-round pick. Yeah, so to sum up how veteran-wide receivers have done with rookie quarterbacks, it's not that bad. You do get, I would say the three best, not I would say,
Starting point is 00:08:12 the three best have been DeAndre Hopkins with Deshaun Watson. Watson only played, I think, six games, eight games that year, something like that, maybe six starts. But he was great with and without Deshaun Watson that year. DeAndre Hopkins, he was a star. Keenan Allen with Justin Herbert. Didn't have 1,000 yards, but he only played 14 games without Deshaun Watson that year. Deandre Hopkins. He was a star Keenan Allen with Justin Herbert. Didn't have a thousand yards, but he's only played 14 games. He's just under a thousand yards.
Starting point is 00:08:30 He's basically Keenan Allen and Nico Collins. Nico Collins was the third. The bad examples would be guys like Jarvis Landry. Not great with Baker Mayfield. Larry Fitzgerald had rookie quarterbacks, two straight seasons. He had Rosen and Kyler, and he was awful both of those years. He was 35 and 36,
Starting point is 00:08:50 though, in age. Apples and oranges for that one. He was coming off three straight thousand-yard seasons. Mike Williams was not very good with Justin Herbert. Deontay Johnson, I think, is the big, is the scariest story. He was horrible, but Kenny Pickett was obviously horrible.
Starting point is 00:09:06 It's so obviously tied to how well the rookie quarterbacks play. Yes. Well, I mean, also, you haven't really set a receiver, maybe Hopkins at the time, on the level of Justin Jefferson. Fair.
Starting point is 00:09:19 Absolutely true. Okay, so would you love it if Jefferson were catching passes from Caleb Williams? Of course. I think we'd be big fans of that. true okay so would you love it if if jefferson were catching passes from caleb williams of course i think we'd be big fans of that i just stop me at any point in my rambling right now if you disagree jayden daniels throwing to justin jefferson no i'd feel pretty good about that no drake may wait no because no no he's he's gonna run so much you think he's gonna be good look well are we talking about him as a first round picker as a number two or three No, he's going to run so much. You think he's going to be good?
Starting point is 00:09:47 Look, well, are we talking about him as a first round picker, as a number two or three overall pick? No, I don't want Jaden Daniels to be his quarterback for that purpose. Okay, so would you take him as a top three wide receiver? Let me rephrase the question to make it shorter, and both of you should answer this. Which rookie quarterbacks would you be happy to take with Justin Jeffery? I'm botching.
Starting point is 00:10:09 I'm taking him third overall third, third receiver right now with Sam Darnold. So I'm fine with any of the rookie quarter. Okay. So you're fine with Williams, Daniels may or other. I think I'd be okay with Williams, maybe may and maybe Daniels.
Starting point is 00:10:24 Probably Daniels. I think, let's put McCarthy in the mix here, because that might be the most realistic. No. I'd take him as a top three receiver with him or Penix. Penix is a little closer to me than McCarthy.
Starting point is 00:10:40 I'd prefer them to Jade and Daniels. If they trade up to draft McCarthy, I think that's a mistake, because there's a chance they could get McCarthy at 11. Because I think a lot of the hype around him is a little smokescreen. Yeah, I just don't know that, I don't know that they're going to be able to trade up to 1, 2, or 3. You know, because those teams need quarterbacks. Yep. But unless it's, let's say, New England is sold on Bo Nix,
Starting point is 00:11:05 you know what I mean? Or they think they get McCarthy at 11 and they want the extra pick. Let's just talk about this with Jefferson. The last two years. Here's what he did in 2022. 128 catches, 1,809 yards, and eight touchdowns. Touchdowns are a bit of a concern. I don't know if it's a concern, but they've been low on 184 targets in 17 games.
Starting point is 00:11:28 What did he do in 2023? All right. If you, his best sample size, you take his 20, his 17 game pace. He was on pace for 200 targets, right? No, I have him at 183 targets. This is if you remove week 14, he played 18% of the snaps.
Starting point is 00:11:43 Take that game out. His pace was once again, 128 catches, 1,978 yards, just under 2K and nine touchdowns on 183 targets. Let's compare that to Lamb.
Starting point is 00:11:58 Lamb at 135 catches, which is better. 1,749 yards, not even close. And 12 touchdowns, which is better. 1,749 yards, not even close, and 12 touchdowns, which is better than Jefferson on 181 targets. I don't know about you guys. With Lamb, I guess you don't care. You have him as your number one wide receiver right now. You don't need to see it twice from him because everyone else, I mean, Hill's done it twice. When you just look at healthy Tua in 2022 and 2023, Tyreek Hill's done it twice. Justin Jefferson's done it twice. When you just look at like healthy Tua in 2022 and 2023, Tyreek Hill's done it twice.
Starting point is 00:12:27 Justin Jefferson's done it twice in a row. Now lamb has not, that doesn't matter. No, because of, of, of the three, you have the age concern with Tyreek.
Starting point is 00:12:39 I have the age concern with Tyreek and for Jefferson, you have the quarterback slight downgrade by comparison. And why would Dallas change anything that they did last year? If it ain't broke, don't fix it. After the bye last year, I hate saying this because I traded away Lamb and Dynasty, but he averaged 28 and a half PPR points per game. He was getting 12.6 targets per game. It was madness. I don't know if we should really expect that to be the case again this year, but even if he's getting 10, 10.5 targets per game, I think he still warrants consideration at one.
Starting point is 00:13:16 You think anyone's taking chase at one? Was getting traded. I'd be surprised just because of the last year and how that unfolded and the concerns over borough getting hurt for basically three years in a row in some capacity. Okay. It, it,
Starting point is 00:13:36 okay. I was going to say, could you have similar concerns with Tyreek with Tua, but Tua played all year last year. So maybe you can't say that. I think if Higgins is no longer on the team, concerns with Tyreek with Tua, but Tua played all year last year. So maybe he can't say that. I think if Higgins is no longer on the team, it's an open question for Chase to be wide receiver one. All right, let's take a break. Quick break here on Fantasy Football today. When we come back,
Starting point is 00:13:57 I'll tell you about a way to get in the podcast league and to have a lot of fun in the process. We'll be right back on FFT. I am so dreading groceries this week. Why? You can skip it. Oh, what? Just like that? Just like that. How about dinner with my third cousin? Skip it. Prince Fluffy's favorite treats? Skippable. Midnight snacks?
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Starting point is 00:15:10 So yeah, it's typical. It's our bracket challenge. The games start on Tuesday, but it really starts on Thursday. You can get your picks in by tip-off on Thursday or whatever. I think it should be Thursday or it's always Thursday, right? First day of the NCAA tournament. And just fill out a bracket online. Go to cbssports.com slash FFT.
Starting point is 00:15:28 You do need a CBS Sports account. It's pretty easy to make. cbssports.com slash FFT. I'll put a link in the episode description. I'm tweeting links about it all week. And yeah, it's super fun. It's free. And you'll see the scoring.
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Starting point is 00:15:56 and we're all going to be in it, and good luck to you. If you win it, you're in the podcast league. There's a tiebreaker as well. I think it's a total point. Well, that was one of us wins it. No, I did say that. I said I this on friday when you weren't there uh maybe you're playing racquetball or something if we win it whoever's in second place gets in but we're not
Starting point is 00:16:13 gonna win it i might win it you guys won't did you play racquetball i didn't and it wasn't even it wasn't even keenan allen's fault it just got canceled. That's okay, though. All right. Jamie, you were not on our show on Friday. I wanted to get your thoughts on the Bears' wide receivers. We've talked about who should be the wide receiver one. I think that's a very relevant conversation now. We talked about the biggest
Starting point is 00:16:40 risers and followers. We'll go through a lot more. We have more news and notes as well. Let's get your thoughts on the Chicago wide receivers. No, I, you know, Dave hinted at it before. I agree that DJ Moore is the better of the two for me. Just, you know, again, um, age is a factor here. Keenan Allen's going to be 32. I think more is, uh, in the prime of his career and, you know, still going to be the, he may not lead the team in targets, but I think he still will lead them in yards and touchdowns and you know we'll see what caleb williams now that the trade has happened the ridiculous trade
Starting point is 00:17:11 has happened for the bears of justin fields going to pittsburgh um who he tends to lean on but i would i would i feel more comfortable drafting dj more. So Moore is still a top 24 receiver. Keenan Allen is more of a top 30 receiver. I just feel like this is going to be the cliff for Keenan Allen where he falls off. Ooh. So, okay, you obviously said your piece. I just want to give this stat. DJ Moore has been in the league six seasons.
Starting point is 00:17:41 In those six seasons, Keenan Allen, I knew this would be the case in full PPR, but in half PPR, he has had a better per game average than DJ Moore every single year, Dave Richard. He's been better. I mean, there's no doubt about it. But we don't project backwards. We project forwards. Of course. It's true. And Keenan Allen's going to be the elder statesman of this receiving core. We talked about on Friday, how he does seem to fit being that scramble option in the short and mid range for Caleb Williams. We know that Williams is good at being a good scramble quarterback, but when plays stay on schedule, I would expect DJ Moore to be the primary target. And I still think Moore will be the primary target. The majority of
Starting point is 00:18:21 the time might be a slim majority, but the majority of the time when they're in the red zone you can get away with saying something like keenan allen is the better value pick between the two of them because you're going to be able to take them around to two rounds later but he's also older we know that he's coming off of an injury from last year and there's also and this is me kind of being influenced a little bit by Heath, huge question about the rookie quarterback and whether or not Caleb Williams can make it the jump in his rookie year, potentially right away from USC into the NFL with the bears, a franchise that has never seemed to develop a franchise quarterback as long as they've been in existence. So there's a lot of question marks still there for both of these receivers, but that's why i'm not taking either of these guys with a first or second round pick even in full ppr yeah more more was a second
Starting point is 00:19:09 round pick for me part of this and now he's what right fourth agree yeah okay all right here's my case for keenan allen he is arguably the best wide receiver in the nfl at getting open i believe he was number one on espPN's open metric. He didn't just have his best year. He had, let's see, he was on pace for 141 catches, 1,625 yards, nine touchdowns on nearly 200 targets last year. It wasn't just 2023, though. He did this in 2022, the last eight games of 2022. Because remember, the first half of the season,
Starting point is 00:19:47 he played two games and he left both of them with an injury. The last eight games of 2022, he was on pace for 128 catches, 1,434 yards, eight touchdowns on 176 targets. Not quite as good as 2023, but still unbelievable. So it's a year and a half now of him being elite. He is going to be 32 years old next month. That is a big deal. But the two guys I compare him to very often, Julian Edelman and Larry Fitzgerald. Edelman had one of his best seasons of his career at age 32. Larry Fitzgerald
Starting point is 00:20:17 made the Pro Bowl at age 32. After some down years, he bounced back at age 32 with 1,215 yards. He averaged 76 yards per game. So I think his profile ages better than outside guys that are more physical and whatever. So he's already done something at age 31 that most receivers don't do. So that's my case for Keenan Allen. I still agree with you. I would take DJ Moore. But that's touchdowns. I mean, look, it's a very strong argument,
Starting point is 00:20:48 especially when you factor in Edelman and Fitzgerald. I wonder, I mean, I know for Edelman, he really didn't have a lot of competition for targets on the end of his run with Brady because it was, you know, just, they're kind of like throwing Band-Aids at the receiving core, if I'm not mistaken. I'm trying to remember who Fitzgerald was playing with at the time but i don't think anybody in terms of
Starting point is 00:21:11 dj morris caliber if i'm not mistaken you know guy entering his prime in his prime coming off the year he just had the other part of this is i think keenan allen's never played his never played football outside the the state of California. Right. Well, I mean, road games.
Starting point is 00:21:28 Well, you know what I mean? Like as, as this, you know, his, his home team. So we'll see how he handles the elements, how he handles,
Starting point is 00:21:36 you know, playing in a different scenario. You know, his mindset, he said he wanted to be a charger for life, you know, so how happy is he? All those things kind of factor in
Starting point is 00:21:45 when you talk about a guy that was his age, is his age. If you want answers to your questions, Larry Fitzgerald in 2015, he was the leading receiver. Second leading receiver was John Brown, who did have 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games.
Starting point is 00:21:59 Carson Palmer was good that year, really good that year. Edelman, though, yeah, it was ugly. The second best receiver on that team was James White. Gronkowski played 13 games, had only six. What happened to Gronk? 682 yards and three touchdowns in 13 games. He probably was hurt in and out.
Starting point is 00:22:17 So, yeah, it was just Edelman that year. And Edelman only played 12 games that year. He had the suspension at the beginning of the season, I believe. Okay. All right, moving on. Take a look at the news and notes here. I guess it's worth mentioning. I hate to hate to even talk about this stuff. Police are investigating sexual assault allegations against Dak Prescott. So it's something we'll have to keep an eye on. Other quarterback news. I'll put this under the quarterback category. The Vikings did acquire the number 23 pick and a seventh round pick from Houston for this year's second round
Starting point is 00:22:50 pick, next year's second round pick, and a sixth round pick in this upcoming draft. So that gives the Vikings picks 11 and 23. And then we've got Justin Fields going to the Steelers for a sixth round pick that could become a fourth round pick and reportedly he is going there to be Russell Wilson's backup the Seahawks getting Sam Howell for a fourth and no the Seahawks getting Sam Howell a fourth and a sixth from Washington for a third and a fifth the Eagles getting Kenny Pickett and a fourth round pick for a third round pick and two seventh round picks um the rams getting garoppolo as a backup on a one-year deal and then seattle gm john schneider said that that drew lock was basically being promised a chance to start for the giants when lock signed
Starting point is 00:23:41 with the giants two beat reporters that that I read said that's not true. Giants beat reporters said that Daniel Jones is the starter. But holy cow, this Fields trade, I mean, it has people scratching their heads, Jamie. And I don't know, what do you think? Like in a 2QB league, does this make you less likely to draft Wilson? Because he's got a pretty established backup behind him.
Starting point is 00:24:06 I don't know if that's the reason I'd be less likely to draft Wilson because he's got a pretty established backup behind him? I don't know if that's the reason I'd be less likely to draft Wilson, but I guess if you are committing to it and you have deep enough rosters, you could take both of them to see how it all plays out depending on when your draft is. But it's so disappointing. I mean, you know, here we had first the idea of maybe him staying and, you know, would the Bears actually keep him? I don't know how many people believe that, but there was still that possibility. And then it was, OK, if they're going to trade him, following the Cousins news, because we knew Atlanta was out, is it the Raiders? Is it the Broncos? Is it the Giants?
Starting point is 00:24:42 You know, is it maybe Minnesota, you know, with, with the idea of him, okay, still going to be forget about how you feel about him as an NFL quarterback. He was a great fantasy quarterback. I mean, he's had some amazing games over the last two seasons that you could say top five upside. And now for him to go to the Steelers to be the backup and the compensation that was required. Now there was the NFL network report that this is where Fields wanted to go and they were trying to do right by him. It just, it just really sucks.
Starting point is 00:25:12 It sucks for redraft. It sucks for dynasty because you're losing a year. You know, he may be the Steelers starter in 2025. If he doesn't get the job at some point this season, because we know Russ is, you know, kind of worn out his welcome on two franchises in the last three years, but it just is, uh,
Starting point is 00:25:28 it's just kind of crazy. Like, you know, here we are. I wrote the story. Uh, what was it? Friday night,
Starting point is 00:25:33 Saturday. I remember, I don't remember what it was Saturday, kind of blurred together, um, Saturday night. And it was just like, it was like depressing.
Starting point is 00:25:41 You know, like, uh, I, I led the story with, we've been waiting all week to, to, you know, just get excited about where he was going. And now we get this, you know, that he's going to be,
Starting point is 00:25:51 he's going to be a backup. So I hope Tomlin sees, you know, him in, in camp and says, it's an open competition. You know, maybe the younger player with upside can win the job. But it feels as if it feels as if fields is going to be redsharded for a year, which is really, really sucks. Great move by the Steelers. Yeah. One other thing, though, about this is we got a report, if not two, that the Steelers were not in the market for veteran quarterbacks. And now they have two of them. So take all these reports with a grain of salt. I mean,
Starting point is 00:26:23 there's no way that you can feel like Fields doesn't have any chance to be the starter. And the same with Drew Locke, despite what two beat reporters said. I mean, how could the Giants feel like Daniel Jones is locked in as their starter when he's coming off a torn ACL and a terrible season? But I can't I'm just imagining this scenario. I can't think of a backup quarterback that would go for more fab in a one QB league if the starter got hurt or got benched than Justin Fields. And you're talking about a guy, I think of a backup quarterback that could come in and instantly be a top five quarterback.
Starting point is 00:26:56 You just don't really... I didn't see that one coming. But just for a guy with this much fantasy success to be a backup quarterback is kind of wild. Yeah, do you think Sam Howell has a legit chance, Dave, to be the starter in Seattle? Not unless he has a sensational camp. I think Geno's pretty much locked in.
Starting point is 00:27:22 I think we should talk about two other things here. One, let's go back to Fields and his dynasty value. Oh, man. Is he a top 12 quarterback? Is he a top 15 quarterback in dynasty right now? Top 20? I don't even know. Dave, you're shaking your head.
Starting point is 00:27:40 I mean, there's a very realistic path to him being on the Steelers for one year and then not being re-signed by the Steelers. He's in a contract year. The team option is available for Pittsburgh. I don't think they're picking that up before the season starts. And he's going to be a free agent next year, and he's signed somewhere else to be a backup. I think that's probably the most likely scenario, not the scenario where he beats out Russell Wilson and then leads the Steelers to an 11-6 record or something like that.
Starting point is 00:28:12 I don't see that happening. The guy's won eight games, ten games in his career, eight games in the last two seasons as a starter for Chicago. So I would be very worried, and if someone offered me a third-round pick in Dynasty for Justin Fields right now, I would take very worried and if someone offered me a third round pick in Dynasty for Justin Fields right now I would take it okay
Starting point is 00:28:29 if you're in a super flex Dynasty league would you take a second round pick for Justin Fields? I would wait I'm sorry I'm getting confused myself would you rather have Justin Fields
Starting point is 00:28:40 or a second round pick? in a super flex I'd rather have the second round pick especially if it's this year you'd rather have a second round pick? In a super flex, I'd rather have the second round pick, especially if it's this year. You'd rather have a third round pick? I don't know what I would do for a third. That would feel like the NFL team taking a conditional sixth round pick for Justin Fields.
Starting point is 00:28:57 What would you say, Jamie? In super flex, he's not going for a third round pick. He'll go for a second round pick. In a one QB league, he might go for a third round pick just because of how, and depending on the size of your league but i mean look his dynasty value is is you know cratering too it's it you can't expect him to to just get the job at some point you have to go with the assumption that you know wilson if he stays healthy and doesn't screw up you know up, we've seen how these Steelers
Starting point is 00:29:26 have won the last couple of seasons since Roethlisberger has been gone. It hasn't been because of elite quarterback play. So if Russell Wilson is managing the game the way they're hoping he's going to manage the game and not have to put everything on him, if they stay a winning franchise, they'll probably stick with Wilson.
Starting point is 00:29:42 The other thing I wanted to discuss was Garoppolo. I know he had a really bad year, but does the Garoppolo signing make you feel more comfortable with Nakua and Cooper Cup, given the injury history of Matthew Stafford? Yeah, I
Starting point is 00:29:58 haven't thought about that, but sure. It's a lot better than if it's Brett Rippon. Right. Right, or I would guess, depending on if he's still out there, they could always bring Carson Wentz back to if they feel Garoppolo can't get it done. But yeah, I mean, look, we've seen it with McVay. He took Baker Mayfield and made him right again. He had a good game from Carson Wentz after being through the system. He could do the same thing with Garoppolo.
Starting point is 00:30:20 It's just he's fantastic. Running back news. Green Bay is keeping A.J. Dillon. I think some of this we talked about on Friday's show, but we didn't really get into it. I wonder, does this affect Josh Jacobs at all?
Starting point is 00:30:32 And I think if it did, it would only be from a short yardage or a goal line situation. Did that enter into your Josh Jacobs rankings at all, the A.J. Dillon re-signing? I dropped him one spot behind Barkley. So those two were close for me with the signings.
Starting point is 00:30:47 So originally I had Jacobs over Barkley. I put Barkley over Jacobs. Do we know the history of A.J. Dillon in short yardage? Oh, yes. I feel like it's not good. Read the notes, my friend. So we got this past – oh, I didn't put in the notes. That's my bad.
Starting point is 00:31:03 Read my notes. He was terrible this past year. Now he has been, there are two different metrics you could look at. One of them is first, third and one and fourth and one conversion rate. Dylan has mostly been better than Josh Jacobs there. Third down and one and fourth down and one. Running the ball from the one to the three-yard line and scoring. Dylan was horrible last year. He scored on one of seven attempts, but better in the previous seasons. Overall, in the last three years, Jacobs has been better than Dylan there.
Starting point is 00:31:38 So Dylan better than Jacobs on third and fourth and one, and that's about 35, 36 carries for both of them over the last three seasons. But Jacobs has converted more touchdowns from the three-yard line or closer. I don't have a breakdown of what was from the one, the two, and the three. That could make all the difference. But Dylan is coming off a season where he was just bad all around,
Starting point is 00:31:54 but he was terrible from inside the three-yard line. So that shouldn't affect Jacobs' chances of being at least to start the season as the goal line guy for Green Bay. I think he's certainly going to play more than Dylanylan i think he's gonna see more targets and catches than dylan and so i i don't know what's really changed just because dylan's back in green bay so jacob's a little bit younger than barkley should catch more passes than barkley maybe barkley outscores i don't know if i agree with that by a a couple of touchdowns. Well, I mean, just the track record of Philadelphia
Starting point is 00:32:26 and Hurts specifically throwing to running backs, that would be a considerable change for them. Yeah, but new coordinator coming in and hopefully Hurts can evolve. Maybe. Sure. I get it. Also, they haven't had a pass catcher like this, I don't think. No, they haven't had a pass catcher like Barkley,
Starting point is 00:32:42 but they did have a pass catcher like DeAndre Swift. And he had 40 catches last year? I think he had 39. Okay, close enough. Yeah, I think there's a little bit more upside with Jacobs and 10 more catches than Swift, at least. I would hope so. So you think, all right, that's interesting. Barkley versus Jacobs catches.
Starting point is 00:33:01 And they're back-to-back on your rankings, the two of you. Yeah, they were close for me before this. So it was just a slight knock to put Barkley ahead. I trust the offensive line of Philadelphia a little bit more. I trust Barkley's talent a little bit more. I think he's more talented than Jacobs still at this point. So it's not a question of Jacobs is bad.
Starting point is 00:33:18 It's just a matter of Barkley. I think he's a little bit better. We haven't really gotten into the rankings, so let me go through the wide receiver notes real quick. And again, some of this mentioned on Friday. Buffalo signing Curtis Samuel to a three-year deal. That did not affect your Khalil Shakur ranking, Jamie? Not really. I mean, it's probably a mistake.
Starting point is 00:33:35 And I know being the GM there and Samuel have a history together from Carolina, so that kind of factors into why I think he went there. But, I mean, Curtis Samuel has a hard time staying healthy. And I do think that into it why I think he went there. But I mean, Curtis Samuel has a hard time staying healthy. And I do think that Khalil Shakir is going to be on the field more and is a guy that Josh Allen started to trust. So I still believe in Khalil Shakir. Joe Brady is now the full-time OC in Buffalo and he used Samuel nicely
Starting point is 00:33:57 when they were together in Carolina. That's a good point. Last year, Samuel had two more receiving yards than Khalil Shakir on 46 more targets and 23 more catches. Vikings are signing Trent Shurfield to a one-year deal. Dallas released Michael Gallup. The Patriots signed KJ Osborne.
Starting point is 00:34:13 Does this matter? They're just stockpiling players who I think have played in the league before. I feel so bad for the Patriots. I mean, they can't get anybody. You know, they were trying to get Ridley. Who knows what's left? There was the rumor this morning from somebody that maybe Beckham I feel so bad for the Patriots. I mean, they can't get anybody. They were trying to get Ridley. Who knows what's left? There was the rumor this morning from somebody that maybe Beckham could be a target for them. 31-year-old Odell Beckham going there would not exactly move the needle.
Starting point is 00:34:36 Would you like to hear the Patriots' wide receiver depth chart? No. Calvin Ridley said he wants to run all the routes in Tennessee. Patriots fans definitely want to hear it. Calvin Ridley, I guess it was implying that he didn't really run the routes, all the routes in Jacksonville. He was kind of an open book in his press conference with Tennessee. He made it clear that money was a factor.
Starting point is 00:34:59 It's kind of refreshing. It always is, but the players don't always say that. And he kind of let on that there were some issues in Jacksonville that he didn't necessarily like. And Mike Williams is going to meet with the Jets, Steelers, and Panthers this week. Tight end news, not much. Giants signed a couple of tight ends that won't really matter. Jack Stahl and Chris Manhurts. And I think people will be asking about Daniel Bellinger. Don't know that they're ever going to use him in the role that we want him to be used in, but he has caught 87.3 of his targets in two seasons. That's crazy. Low ADOT guy, though, Daniel Bellinger. So this is big news, Jamie. The Jets, what they have done in the offensive line, they've traded for, I don't really, I can't tell you how good Morgan Moses is at this point, but it's upgrades, right? Morgan
Starting point is 00:35:45 Moses and guard John Simpson from Baltimore, and then they signed Tyron Smith, who gets hurt all the time, but still played at a very high level last year. So that's awesome, I think, you know, to have a team that's been so bad on the line. I hope this helps with Moses, Smith,
Starting point is 00:36:01 and Simpson. I mean, it can't be worse than what they had last year, but it's a very old group when you factor in Rogers too, you know, so we'll see if everybody can stay healthy, then they have a chance to, you know, be a decent offense. Um, given Garrett Wilson and Brees Hall's trajectory and how good they can potentially be with a healthy Aaron Rogers. So we'll see. They're not done at their receiving core, I don't think. But yeah, it's got a lot of potential.
Starting point is 00:36:34 Yeah, I just don't think Aaron Rodgers is going to be practicing on the first Tuesday of November. Just, you know. And then other news, Aaron Donald retired. It's kind of big. Yeah, that is big. I'd say the best defensive player I've ever seen. But I was a little after the Lawrence Taylor era.
Starting point is 00:36:55 Lawrence Taylor was a nightmare. I think J.J. Watt in his prime was impossible to beat, but Donald was also one of those guys that just... You could come up with three different plans to try and slow him down, and eventually he'd break through. Your football viewing, let's say, you had Ray Lewis, right? You watched him?
Starting point is 00:37:14 Yeah, early 90s, I think, would be the start. Ed Reed? Yeah, Lewis and Reed. Yeah, it's hard to compare Reed to the big guys. He would be up there, though. No, just in terms of difference makers. Junior Seau was one of the first that I remember just being... And Deion Sanders.
Starting point is 00:37:29 Junior Seau, talk about a difference maker, man. That guy was incredible. All over the place, man. There's so many names. I think you mentioned the three... You said Lawrence Taylor, J.J. Watt, and Donald. I think are the three.
Starting point is 00:37:48 I don't know. They have something in common, either multiple Defensive Player of the Year awards or first-team All-Pros or whatever. They're the only three to have done something, so they might be the three best. Okay. Anyway, they're not the three. Forget what I said. Jacksonville signed Eric Armstead to a three-year $51 million deal,
Starting point is 00:38:06 and I'm not going to go through the rest because we have a lot more important stuff to talk about here, including rankings differences among the players affected by last week's action. We're going to take a break and get into that when we come back on Fantasy Football today. Metrolinks and Crosslinks are reminding everyone to be careful as Eglinton Crosstown LRT train testing is in progress.
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Starting point is 00:39:06 Visit OntarioOneCall.ca and avoid unnecessary damages to get the job done right. Data sourced from the ORCGA 2023 Dirt Report. Welcome back, everybody. All right. So I guess I didn't get every name in here in terms of who was affected by free agency. But Justin Herbert is 14th for Jamie, 11th for Dave, and 18th for Heath. Will Levis is 21st or 22nd for everybody.
Starting point is 00:39:34 Those are the only two quarterbacks I really looked at here. Is there anyone else that we needed to discuss in terms of big movers? I guess we could get Russell Wilson. Impacted by free agency or guys who have moved? Moved because of last week. So like Russell Wilson you Impacted by free agency or guys who have moved? Moved because of last week. So like
Starting point is 00:39:48 Russell Wilson you don't care about? No, I mean he's 22 for Jamie, 24 for Dave, and 15th for Heath. But Heath has Justin Fields 16th, so I think he's out of town. I saw him on Friday, so I think
Starting point is 00:40:03 he did his rankings and then left. Yeah, all right. So just real quick thoughts on Herbert. We'll spend most of our time on the running backs and receivers. But, Jamie, your thoughts on Herbert? He has nothing. I mean, Josh Palmer, Quentin Johnston, what are they going to do? The tight ends aren't going to save him,
Starting point is 00:40:20 especially if, you know, was it Will Disley and Donald Parham? Or was it Disley with the Rams? I forget. Where did Parkinson go? Parkinson's with the Rams. Yeah, Disley's on the Chargers. Yeah, so it's not a very inspiring tight end group. It's not a very inspiring wide
Starting point is 00:40:39 receiving group. They have a plodding running back right now as their lead guy. It's just hard to trust. I go back to the Big Burger burger dynasty league i was so excited to get herbert in the first round i think i picked him right in front of you adam and you were pissed and you ended up i think with trevor lawrence i don't know which one of us got the worst one um in a super flex dynasty league startup but um yeah it's you know this has been a terrible off season for herbert from a fantasy perspective. I think he'll win more games with Harbaugh and Roman there, but the system won't help him.
Starting point is 00:41:12 The receiving corps is certainly not going to help him. So they have a lot of work to do to improve the skilled players on offense. He went 80th overall in each of our first two mocks. That's before his wide receiver group changed. That was knowing, obviously, that Jim Harbaugh was going to be his coach. I kind of can't help myself here. We're getting a really good bargain on Herbert, figuring we're going to get him right around 100th overall.
Starting point is 00:41:37 This is a guy who started last year averaging 25 fantasy points per game. 2021, he averaged 25.9, 25.5 in 2020. Are we really assuming that the Chargers aren't going to add anybody else to this receiving core or to their run game? And are you really believing that the Chargers are going to turn Justin Herbert into a handoff machine? I don't know if I can buy into all those things. And if the cost is going to be a pick around a hundredth overall, and I can get another quarterback later on, I'm kind of in on that. I like that type of value. This is a dip I'm buying. Okay.
Starting point is 00:42:09 Let's go to... I kept thinking about one thing. Do you remember Dan was offered Joe Burrow for Justin Herbert and he said no? I don't remember that, but I will definitely make fun of him for that the next time I see him. Put a stick in it.
Starting point is 00:42:28 So, Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs are 7th and 8th for Dave and Jamie. They're back-to-back. Jamie has Barkley 7 and Jacobs 8, and Dave has Jacobs 7 and Barkley 8. And I'll just tell you who is ahead of them real quick here. It is McCaffrey, Reese Hall, Bijan, Jameer Gibbs.
Starting point is 00:42:53 And then for Jamie, it's Jonathan Taylor and Kyron Williams for David's Kyron Williams and Jonathan Taylor. All right. We, I think we talked a lot about them last week. So let's go to Derek Henry, Henry and Mixon.
Starting point is 00:43:03 You both have them somewhere between 14 and 17. So Jamie has Henry 16 and Mixon 17. Dave has Henry 14 and Mixon 16. Heath has Henry 22 and Mixon 13. Heath, come on the show. But guys like Ken Walker. So like, okay, Jamie, for example, has Ken Walker and Alvin Kamara ahead of Derrick Henry.
Starting point is 00:43:29 Dave does not. That's a big difference there. So Jamie, you got Walker. I'm sorry, you go Walker, Kamara, Henry. And Dave has Henry ahead of both of them. I'm saying a lot of names here, so I just want to repeat myself. Okay, why do you have Walker and Kamara ahead of Derrick Henry right now? I think Walker will be a better runner than Henry this
Starting point is 00:43:49 year. I feel more comfortable with his age and Camara still roll in the passing game, two older running backs, but I think Camara's role in the passing game will certainly help from a PPR standpoint, non PPR, half PPR. I would take Henry over both. Um, cause I think touchdowns will matter. Um, but I Walker, But Walker, I might need to revisit. But Kamara, for sure, over Henry. I get it with Kamara, and I think I'd like Kamara. If he stays with New Orleans and the Saints don't add another running back, yeah, maybe full PPR.
Starting point is 00:44:17 I can't see either of those things changing, though. Yeah, right. And that's not a far-fetched thing at all. So I get what you're saying. But the very first thing that we talked about Derek Henry last year in season was game script dependent. When he's in a game that the Titans can win, we know he's going to get a lot of work. When he had at least 14 touches in a game last year, he averaged almost 18 PPR points per game. He didn't do that by getting five or six targets per game. He scored a bunch of touchdowns. I think
Starting point is 00:44:43 he's going to continue to do that in Baltimore. I hate being Derek Henry, and I'm not going to get any more excited about Henry than I am right now. I would consider him in round three in full PPR. I do think he's got that potential staying healthy in this offense. They're going to win a lot. They're going to run a lot and he's going to dominate at the goal line and get a bunch of touchdowns. I'm okay with Henry. Looking at him differently than your typical 30-year-old running back because the dude's just an absolute beast, and he's in a great situation. For one more year, I'll take a chance in round three on Derrick Henry.
Starting point is 00:45:17 Looking at the last nine games of the regular season when he returned from injury and then three postseason games, David Montgomery, I've now pivoted to him, averaged about 13.7, 13.8. Let's say he was on pace for about 235-ish carries. What do you think Derek Henry will average in terms of carries? Because you could see them scoring similar touchdowns,
Starting point is 00:45:48 Montgomery and Henry, but you guys have Henry considerably ahead of David Montgomery. Do you think Henry is a lot more than 14 carries per game? In November and December, yes. September and October, probably right around that number. I would hope he is, otherwise he's not going to be that good. I have to look at it. I don't know.
Starting point is 00:46:10 When is a Baltimore running back average more than 14 carries per game? They never had a guy like this, though. But do they have a guy like that? That's the other thing. He's 30. How old is he going to be? He's 30. Oh, no, he just turned 30.
Starting point is 00:46:23 I'm sorry. I would think that they made this move to have that guy. Now that you have to ask yourself, and clearly I think Dave and I come out on this a little differently, is can he be that guy for 17 games still? And so that's what you're hoping for if you're drafting him. I wouldn't be surprised if his was ADP in round two, but I think his ADP will settle in round three, probably early round three.
Starting point is 00:46:52 He's just different. And so if he can stay healthy, which he's proven to do more times than not, he had the one injury, which I don't think is something you can say he's injury prone, then he's going to have a chance for 10- touchdowns, maybe 15 plus touchdowns and, you know, probably 13 to 1400 rushing yards. The question is, is will he catch more than 25 passes? As Dave told you, it doesn't really matter. You know, he's that good, you know, so he could still, I don't know in Baltimore, if he'll lead the NFL in rushing, but he'll probably have a shot to if they feed him to that level. It's just now you have to then play the game of what does that mean
Starting point is 00:47:30 for Lamar Jackson coming off an MVP season. I think Jackson's at the point where he'll do whatever he can to have playoff success and win a Super Bowl because he's had enough personal accolades and has his contract. So now he's looking to hang some banners and rings, collect some rings. So I would guess that he's okay sacrificing some of his numbers, but it's just a matter of can Henry still do it? And hopefully that's the case.
Starting point is 00:47:53 The things working against him are age and the history of running backs who change teams, especially veteran guys. They just don't tend to perform very well. Can I name a running back who changed teams once? 2019, Mark Ingram changed teams, and he went to Baltimore. He was 28 though at the time. Was he? He wasn't quite 30?
Starting point is 00:48:14 No. Still had, and this isn't a number that you might like with Derek Henry. He averaged 16.1 PPR points per game in 15 games with Lamar. He had 1,256 total yards. He caught five touchdowns. I'll take 16 points
Starting point is 00:48:30 per game. I think that number is within the range. Let me just say, everything you guys have just said terrifies me for Zay Flowers. Me too. But again, I was probably the most optimistic on Flowers. Me too. But again, you have to, I mean, look,
Starting point is 00:48:46 I was probably the most optimistic on Flowers. I downgraded him. You have to. I mean, you have to assume that they're not going to, you know, enhance their passing game to the level that it may have, you know, building off of what they did last year and getting better. At the same time, you're going to see a lot of eight men in the box against Baltimore.
Starting point is 00:49:05 And so a lot of single coverage for these guys for andrews for flowers you know and so play action is going to be big you know rpo game is going to be big you know for for lamar you know there's going to be a lot of opportunities still here for flowers so he's still a very good high-end number three fantasy receiver but the position also got a little bit i bit saturated with some of the moves that we've seen. Plus the rookies that are coming. Meaning that a lot of running backs went to destinations that you don't love, and that pushed up Derrick Henry.
Starting point is 00:49:33 No, I'm talking about the receivers. The moves that have happened for some of the receivers have changed some things. I think Flowers is still... He's still somebody I want to draft. I'm just not drafting him as aggressively. So you guys are taking George Pickens ahead of Zay Flowers now?
Starting point is 00:49:48 Yes. Yeah, I'm there. And Keenan Allen ahead of Zay Flowers? I'm taking Allen ahead of Pickens. No, I would take Pickens and Flowers ahead of Allen. What about Chris Godwin or Flowers? PPR? Mm-hmm. Godwin or Flowers? PPR?
Starting point is 00:50:06 Godwin. Okay. All right. Interesting. A little disagreement there. So we get to the next three. How do you guys rank Swift, Pollard, Moss? Right now it's Moss, Pollard, Swift, but I think I i have moss too high i've got moss at the end of
Starting point is 00:50:27 it and pollard and swift back to back right around 21 pollard swift then moss and they're all kind of in the 20 to 24 20 to 26 range but okay well then we'll focus on moss here is jamie you have him 20th dave has him 26 heath has moss 32nd. But you just said, Jamie, you think you have him too high. Yeah. When you said 20, I was like, that doesn't feel right because I'm very excited about Chase Brown. So if I can't be excited about both of them, I don't think they're both going to coexist and be successful. So
Starting point is 00:50:55 I feel like Moss is going to lead them in carries if he stays healthy, but that's kind of been a knock on him going back to his days at Utah. And I hope it just wasn't, you know, a, such a small sample size that is going to lead to success. However, this is the type of system that he thrived in last year, which was running a lot of shotgun and that's what the Bengals do. And so we'll see if, you know, just carrying over to what
Starting point is 00:51:20 he accomplished last year, staying healthy. It's not like he got a huge contract and he's going to rest on his laurels. It's a one-year deal. So he still has to go out and try and establish himself as a guy. And he's young enough. He's, I think, only 25 or 26. So I was surprised when it's only his fourth year in the league. But yeah, I do think that Moss, very similar type of fantasy production situation to the two guys you mentioned.
Starting point is 00:51:47 So Pollard in a shared situation with Spears and Swift maybe sharing with three guys, with two other guys in a committee. Not exactly the most ideal situation for any of them. Dave, we look at the commanders. Jamie and Heath have Eckler 30th and Robinson 33rd to 35th. You have Robinson 25th and Eckler 33rd in PPR. You going to stick with that? I'm just not believing in Eckler. I just think that he's slowing down.
Starting point is 00:52:17 I know that everybody's excited that he's back with Anthony Lynn and they're in Washington. He's going to share. I don't think he's going to work at the goal line. You better hope that he gets a ton of catches and you better hope that he stays healthy and that he stays on the field a lot. To me, ranking Eckler where I am right, it's just kind of a way of me saying that I'm out on him.
Starting point is 00:52:37 And I don't even want to be like forced with the decision of considering Eckler, especially in like non-PPR leagues. No way. Full PPR, I'll admit that I think he's got a chance to get 50 catches. I don't know if he's going to get 100 carries. We'll see how he looks come July and August. Maybe I'm in my mind if he looks good and he's better off than he looked last year. We know that he played through an injury last year.
Starting point is 00:53:02 But this is nowhere near the type of situation that he's had basically since Melvin Gordon was good and they were sharing a backfield with the chargers. Uh, would you guys take Eckler or Devin Singletary of the New York giants? This is like, this is how bad I'm downgrading Eckler. I'll take Singletary and I don't really want to take Singletary. I don't want to take either of these guys.
Starting point is 00:53:27 Eckler and PPR, Singletary and half and none. I feel like I hate running back. I love Lamp. I just, you know, when James Cook is RB13 and Derek Henry, a 30-year-old Derek Henry, or Ken Walker, who's in a timeshare and doesn't catch any passes, RB14 in full PPR, it's frustrating.
Starting point is 00:53:56 Tony Pollard, RB21. I don't know. I have no idea how that one's going to go. I think the thing that is going to be fun this year is, you know, depending on your strategy, hopefully it's not committing to, you know, RB RB or two running backs. And,
Starting point is 00:54:11 you know, maybe let's say the first four rounds, if, if you go hero RB or zero RB, there's going to be so many guys that pop up throughout the course of the season that if you play the waiver wire correctly or trades, however it unfolds for you, or if you draft these guys,
Starting point is 00:54:25 you know, appropriately as handcuffs or lottery tickets, you're going to end up with a very successful fantasy team. If your receivers quarterback and tight end hits. Yeah. And I think that that's kind of the decision that managers have to think about before they draft and lucky for us, we've got months to do that.
Starting point is 00:54:42 Yeah. But you're, you're a, if you hate this glut of running backs from 13 all the way down to call it 28, then you're either going to go heavy on running backs with your first two picks, which could absolutely backfire, or you can go hero, take one of them. That's not as bad. And then there's zero, where you're just waiting until round six plus,
Starting point is 00:55:03 and you just start loading up. And I think I'm going to land in the zero RB camp. I think this is the year with all the running backs that are splitting, you just bulk up on your bench, put two of them in your lap. You're going to find two running backs each week. You're going to have to do work during the season. But I think that's the way to go about it on draft day.
Starting point is 00:55:21 If you don't get your hands on one of the elite running backs early on. It also depends on where you're picking. You know, that's a big... Oh, of course. Like, you're not going to commit to zero RB
Starting point is 00:55:29 and then you're going to get the number one pick. Yeah, I mean, maybe. Oh, I don't think that's... No, I wouldn't rule it out because, you know, whether it's Lamb or Hill or Jefferson
Starting point is 00:55:38 or one of those guys, you know, people still love them. Sure. And like Adam said, it wouldn't be surprising if Jefferson still goes one overall. I mean, Schaefer would do it. Schaefer, who's your number one
Starting point is 00:55:46 overall pick? You can come on the show. Where is he? It would be McCaffrey still. But I mean, Jefferson's still number one receiver. It's not even a question. Oh, not even a question.
Starting point is 00:56:00 Why not? I mean, look at what he did with Nick Mullins. Like, that's literally all you have to look at. And then you could say, oh, look at what he did with Nick Mullins. That's literally all you have to look at. And then you could say, oh, look at what he did with Dobbs. He played like a half, not even. He got injured because Dobbs is an inaccurate passer. As opposed to Nick Mullins, who's just dead on.
Starting point is 00:56:21 Dave, just look at the stats that he did. I am. I'm going right now. It was insane. You know, one thing I noticed when I was looking at veteran receivers with rookie quarterbacks, the targets per game went way up for both Devontae Adams and DeAndre Hopkins last year when Aiden O'Connell and Will Levis were playing. So you do wonder if a rookie quarterback would actually target Jefferson even more
Starting point is 00:56:51 because maybe that's just a tendency that rookie quarterbacks would have, is just to focus on that guy. So yeah, there's a lot to consider there. I don't think it's just as simple, though, as look at what he did with Nick Mullins. Because Nick Mullins was actually, like, on, he was averaging over nine yards per target, or yards per attempt. Because he was targeting Justin Jefferson. I guess so.
Starting point is 00:57:16 But you just can't expect any quarterback to do that. The only thing that I would say is, you guys mentioned that he doesn't really, he's not much of a red zone target that's his problem like yeah I can't speak on like why that is it might just be a system thing where maybe he's doubled or whatever but there is an issue with touchdowns for sure because a lot of his touchdowns come on like 30 or touchdowns or you know ripping it off but yeah that's the one thing I would think about.
Starting point is 00:57:47 In those last four games that Thomas mentioned, and I think Thomas has a point, he averaged 11 targets per game with Nick Mullins. Two games with 15.4 or fewer PPR points. Two games with 26.1 or more PPR points, including week 18, 36 fantasy points at Detroit, 12 catches, 192 yards, one touchdown. Yeah, it was great.
Starting point is 00:58:11 But look how good Mullins was. It just was crazy. And Mullins only played half of those games. Now the question is, is Sam Darnold as good as Nick Mullins? I mean, it's not a stretch. Nick Mullins is awful. Nick Mullins is not good. In reality, he's not a good quarterback. No, he was Jameis Winston over that stretch.
Starting point is 00:58:29 Yeah. Exactly. Yes. All right. And if Darnold is Jameis Winston over that stretch, then he'll eventually get benched. We're just going to assume the Vikings do a quarterback. The more we like it, the more we'll love Jefferson.
Starting point is 00:58:41 There's no doubt. By the way, who's ahead now? Zay Flowers or Jordan Addison? Flowers. Flowers. Who's ahead now? Drake London or DJ Moore? London. I have Moore higher.
Starting point is 00:58:58 I guess I should have asked you where Kirk Cousins is. Kirk Cousins or Trevor Lawrence? Cousins. It's Cousins. Wow. Let'sousins. It's Cousins. Oh, wow. Let's go back. You remember when we did that 2QB draft and I was drafting for someone who didn't show up? I was listening.
Starting point is 00:59:13 Remember what happened? I took Cousins over Lawrence and you yelled at me. You humiliated me in front of everyone. Now what? You were right. Adam so you were right adam you were right let's see if that was a good impression or not uh george pickens or keenan allen i think we've done yeah we did that one george pickens or Justin Jefferson?
Starting point is 00:59:46 What? Deontay Johnson or Jordan Addison? Johnson. I believe I have Addison higher than Johnson. All right, Dave, give us your Adam, you were right. Adam, you were right. Adam, you were right. That was pretty good.
Starting point is 01:00:07 You got to get a little bit of Bill Walton. I've been telling Heath this ever since he started working here. There's a little bit of Bill Walton in Heath's voice. Oh, for sure. Yeah. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:00:17 Any other wide receivers? Any other wide receivers you want to talk about? McLaurin. You know what? Jahan Dotson was so much better when Curtis Samuel was not doing anything last year.
Starting point is 01:00:29 Did anyone move Dotson up after Samuel moved to the Patriots? Oh, that's an interesting point. He was up not necessarily because of Samuel, but just because of a hopeful quarterback and system change.
Starting point is 01:00:41 But he's not in the top 40. Not even in the top 44. I won't mind spending a late pick on dots and i know he sucked last year but i'll still take the bet on talent i have him just out i have him like around round 10 if i can get him then i'm thrilled ingram versus pitts Ingram. What's the format? Full. Rer. I think I probably have... Do I have Pitts ranked higher than Ingram?
Starting point is 01:01:11 You do. One spot. I think I do. Like, back-to-back. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Seven. Kyle Pitts is seven for everyone.
Starting point is 01:01:19 It's like a slot machine. And Ingram is eighth for Dave and sixth for Jamie and fifth for Heath. He's a slot machine that no Ingram is eighth for Dave and sixth for Jamie and fifth for Heath. He's a slot machine that no one wins on. Maybe. He's Orb of Atlantis. Okay. I'm good here. So
Starting point is 01:01:35 let's read some emails to finish the show. He is not Huff and Morpuff. FantasyFootball at CBSi.com. Shout out Vegas Matt. This is from Jim Hamer. I'll just address this real quick. I thought it was a good question on Twitter. JSN fell below your 900-yard threshold, right?
Starting point is 01:01:54 Is he a dynasty sell and unlikely to ever break out? And I said, no. A rookie getting to 900 yards receiving, a rookie wide receiver getting to 900 yards is a great indicator of future success. A rookie not getting to 900 yards does not mean that wide receiver, getting 900 yards is a great indicator of future success. A rookie not getting to 900 yards does not mean that it's, there's not going to be future success. So no,
Starting point is 01:02:10 I don't want to represent it that way. Thank you for the question. Yeah. But if you can get him for a first round pick, I might consider that now. JSN for a first round pick. All right. So how many of you do it for a late one?
Starting point is 01:02:23 Not an early one. How many of the receivers in this draft would you rank ahead of JSN right now? Not knowing what team they're on. At least three for sure. Yeah. The tops are easy. I haven't watched enough of Mitchell
Starting point is 01:02:34 and a couple of the other guys. I've seen enough of McConkie. I'm not sure if I, if you're talking about where McConkie goes, if you're talking about a super flex league right now, there's going to be at least three quarterbacks that would go ahead of him. Yep. There's going to be at least three receivers that would go ahead of him.
Starting point is 01:02:51 Yep. And there's going to be one tight end that would go ahead of him. Yep. So if you're talking about anything in the first eight picks, that's easy. You would take, you would take one of the eight picks. Him and Brian Thomas. I would say it's a close call between those two.
Starting point is 01:03:05 Hmm. Yeah. So if you're talking pick 10, 11, 12 in the first round for JSN, you'd rather have JSN? Yes. I think that's fair to say, but that could change draft night dramatically. This is from Thomas, and where is he from? Orlando, Florida. As a lifelong Pats fan, different,
Starting point is 01:03:25 different Thomas. Uh, if it's Jaden Daniels or Marvin Harrison, they have to go get fields for a third round pick. It's a little late now. Maybe not. Maybe you can call the Steelers. How big of an upgrade is Jaden Daniels as a rookie over Justin Fields?
Starting point is 01:03:41 It would be hilarious if the Steelers traded fields for a third round pick after they just gave up a conditional. What do they have on the bears? I mean, between the clay pool trade and the field straight, it's just, they're just stealing from them. Think about that.
Starting point is 01:03:54 The Cardinals got a second round pick for Josh Rosen, by the way, how big of an, the question is how big of an upgrade is Jaden Daniels as a rookie over Justin Fields? A lot. He can throw, he can read defenses and he's not as fast as he is. How big of an upgrade is Jaden Daniels as a rookie over Justin Fields? A lot. He can throw.
Starting point is 01:04:07 He can read defenses. And he's not as fast as Fields, nor is he as big as Fields, but he can move very well. I'm a big Daniels fan, if you couldn't tell. Apparently. This is from Dave S. from ATX. What is that? Austin, Texas?
Starting point is 01:04:24 That's what I thought. Hey, Heath, Jamie, Dave, and Adam. Those are 85 bears. What pick would you aim to get for Jordan Addison? I was offered 2.3. And then update, I countered with 1.10, and he accepted. So he got 1.10 for Jordan Addison. Would you do that? And would you have done 2.3? Obviously So he got 1.10 for Jordan Addison. Would you do that?
Starting point is 01:04:45 And would you have done 2.3? Obviously, he did better. But is 2.3 good for Jordan Addison? I wouldn't have done 2.03 for Addison. 1.10 is fine. There is a world where the Vikings don't have Justin Jefferson forever, and they solve their quarterback issue, and Jordan Addison is their number one receiver long-term.
Starting point is 01:05:06 So you kind of hate to sell them for a second round pick in that scenario, but getting a late first round pick for Addison, given this draft and who's available in it, I don't, I don't hate that that much. You know, Jamie, another thing I thought was fascinating coming out of this past week,
Starting point is 01:05:25 Keenan Allen mentioning that the jets and the Texans were interested in him. So I think we should not be the least bit surprised if those teams draft the wide receiver just to get, Oh, the jets for sure. The, the Texans, I guess if you're looking at it as see that one,
Starting point is 01:05:41 I think is, is more not an indication of their receiving core. I think that's more just putting another weapon around CJ Stroud. He can get it cheaply. The jets desperately need help at receiver. Man, things could, this could be wrong,
Starting point is 01:05:54 but this NFL draft could just be amazing. You've got this great quarterback class, great receiver class. You've got, it's not a great quarterback class. It's a, it's a, it's top heavy and it's pretty, it's good. All right. But've got, it's not a great quarterback class. It's a, it's a, it's top heavy and it's pretty,
Starting point is 01:06:07 it's good. All right. But obviously most, you know, you don't get a lot of impact quarterbacks. You're going to be six guys drafted in the first round. Six quarterbacks drafted in the first round. Yeah.
Starting point is 01:06:17 That would be crazy. We thought there would be five last year and there were three in the first four picks. And the previous two times that there were five quarterbacks taken in the first round, most of them were not good. So I have to keep that in mind. But offensive tackle, it's also deep at offensive tackle.
Starting point is 01:06:35 So this could be just a great... Those guys indirectly contribute to fantasy points. This could be a great, great draft for the future of fantasy football. And with that, I am Optimistic Adam Azer signing off here with Dave Richard and Jamie Eisenberg, and we will talk to you on Wednesday with a review of our mock draft. See you then.

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