Fantasy Football Today - Start or Sit (AFC Home Games) (09/15 Fantasy Football Podcast)

Episode Date: September 15, 2022

Get ready for a Rams bounce back and a frustrating Cowboys offense with Cooper Rush at quarterback. We'll kick off our Start or Sit episode with players we love (1:40) and players to avoid (3:25). Start Darrell Henderson and try to avoid the Jaguars running backs if you can. Then we've got your news and notes (9:30) as we hope to welcome J.K. Dobbins back to the field and perhaps Allen Lazard as well ... One Question for Each Game (18:30)! Who is the best Cowboys Fantasy option? Do we like Josh Jacobs? Chase Edmonds? Kareem Hunt? Amari Cooper? Will Brandin Cooks struggle at Denver? ... Start or Sit for Bengals-Cowboys (27:50), Colts-Jaguars (35:55), Cardinals-Raiders (44:15), Dolphins-Ravens (48:30), Jets-Browns (54:45), Texans-Broncos (1:00:10), Patriots-Steelers (1:06:00) and Titans-Bills (1:12:00) ... Your emails at [e-mail] 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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Now, here's some combination of Adam, Dave, Jamie, and Heath. Big, big week. Starter sit for the AFC home games plus Cincinnati and Dallas so we can balance the episodes a little bit more. Welcome to the show, Fantasy Football Today. On Thursday morning, Adam Azer, Jimmy Eisenberg, Heath Cummings.

This is huge. You cannot start 0-2. If you start 0-2, just quit the league, guys. It's over. No, that's not true at all. It's not true? That's not true at all, no. You can start 0-3 and make the playoffs.

If you start 0-4, you should keep playing and listen to us every day. I don't know what you're trying to do here, Adam. First league I ever won, I started 0-3. And that was with a 17-game season, not 18. That was last year, right? No, it was freshman year of college. It was 2002. Clinton Portis, I believe.

Did you draft that as a forerunner? I don't. No, I'm going to guess I did not. It's not over, but let's get a win. Let's go 2-0 or let's get to 1-1. Welcome. These shows are a marathon, so I'm going to get right to it. We're going to talk about players we love, players to avoid.

Let me tell you the games that we are discussing today. Cincinnati-Dallas, Colts-Jaguars, Cardinals-Raiders, Dolphins-Ravens, Jets-Browns, Houston at Denver, New England at Pittsburgh, and the last game we do will be kind of a marquee game, but an easy one in terms of starter sit, more or less, Tennessee and Buffalo. All right, Jamie. Players you love this week. Who's our start of the week.

Matthew Stafford. Speaking of not going on to Sean McVay has never been two games under 500. And so I think Matthew Stafford will bounce back and have a big game against the Falcons. We saw in the fourth quarter, they allowed over 200 passing yards and two touchdowns of James Winston and the saints comeback effort. I don't buy this defense being as good as it was in the first three quarters.

I think we'll see a Stafford with a little extra time since the game was on Thursday. Correct some of his mistakes. Allen Robinson will correct some of his mistakes. I think it's going to be a big Rams victory at home. Who would you start Stafford over? He's a top five quarterback for me, so I'd start him over Brady. I would start him over Kyler. I would start him over Trubisky. I would start him over a lot of would start him over Kyler. I would start him over Trubisky.

I would start him over a lot of quarterbacks. Trubisky. Okay. I'll avoid controversy and just let that one stand. I won't even make you argue that. Heath, who do you love this week? I guess we love the Rams because I was going to say Daryl Henderson. I believe the last I checked, the Rams had the highest implied total on the Sunday slate,

at least. I don't think it's higher than what the Chiefs are tonight, but definitely very close to 30 points. I don't think Cam Akers is getting his job back here. As long as Daryl Henderson stays healthy, I expect him to see 16 plus touches and be a mid-range to high-end number two running back. Okay, you've got him over week one studs like A.J. Dillon, Antonio Gibson, Cordaro Patterson. And you also have him over players like James Conner and Javante Williams. But you can start both of those guys. You can start those guys and Daryl Henderson. But you have Daryl Henderson as a top 12 running back.

So does Dave in PPR. Jamie has him 18th. Okay, how about players we're avoiding, Heath? Who would you sit this week? Well, hopefully not DeAndre Swift, but I do think if you had Clyde Edwards-Alaire as your third running back, you might have to, depending on what practice reported today.

I would say that I am... I don't know why you ever ask me these first. I never have a good answer. Jamie, who are you avoiding? I would say all Cowboys, not named Dalton Schultz. All right. That's the first game we're going to talk about. So up against the Bengals.

Do you think they're going to go more run heavy or do you think they're just going to keep airing it out? Do they run the offense through Zeke now? Is he the man? I would imagine they're going to try. I mean, are you going to rely on Cooper Rush with that offensive line? I just, like, last year, he started one game, he threw 40 passes.

Two years ago, Andy Dalton started nine games. He averaged 36 passes. I don't, I think we're going to see 35 to 40 pass attempts. So where do you have plan? I think by the end of the game, we might, yeah. But I think the game plan is going to be lean on Zeke as much as you can. Yeah, they definitely could be trying to catch up here.

I mean, the Bengals are probably good, even though they lost last week. They lost last week. I mean, they had five turnovers. Joe Burrow was a mess in the beginning of the game. Yeah, he was. So I was just being sarcastic.

They're good. So where do you have CeeDee Lamb this week, guys? Outside my top 24. Still top 30 receiver, but not a must-start receiver in a two-receiver league. Just barely inside my top 20. I've changed on that since the beginning of the week, but I mostly just think he's going to get 10 targets.

I'm going to start a guy with 10 targets, even if it's a bad quarterback. Okay. He did throw for over 300 yards in that game. I watched almost every throw. He was not very good. He had a great throw to Cedric Wilson on a 73 or a 76-yard touchdown catch. It really boosted his numbers. You're talking about the game last year we started for DAC on Monday night against the Vikings?

Yeah. I went back and watched it last night. And yeah, very off target and two terrible interceptions. And he looked inexperienced for sure. watched it last night and yeah very off target and two terrible interceptions and you looked inexperienced for sure uh but one thing he did do cooper rush was he threw the ball downfield a lot his air yards were very very high uh so we can get into that a little bit later he if he got a player to avoid yet uh it's travis etn uh and i was i was leaning this way before the comment yesterday and maybe it didn't mean anything at all. Maybe it was just praise for James Robinson. But after all of the minor and major mistakes ETN made in week one,

they asked Doug Peterson, what did you learn in week one? And he said, how important James Robinson is. I don't think James Robinson is going to play less than 51% of the snaps. I would be surprised if he played fewer than 60% of the snaps. And so I do think we see a small decrease from ETN. Maybe he'll make one big play and score. That's a possibility. If you need him as a flex, I understand that. But I also think there's a possibility that he gets like four carries and three catches in this game.

Do you think... Did we get an update on Shaquille Leonard yet? Practiced in full, but he also did that last week at this time and did not end up playing. Yeah. So that's where we're at. And do you think that, look,

I mean, look, the last three seasons. Now there have been four games that they've played without Shaquille Leonard and their run defense has held up in all four of those games, you know, just in terms of per carry against by running back. So run defense has been good even without Leonard.

Do you think Robinson is a start this week, Heath? If Etienne's a sit, is Robinson a start? I don't love Robinson, but I would definitely prefer to start Robinson over Etienne. This Jacksonville team has given Indianapolis all kinds of troubles over the last couple of years.

I don't really believe that's going to continue. I think maybe when that trend ends, it ends in a painful way for the Jaguars. Okay. So what about the game you love? You gave me players you love. You gave me players to avoid. Which game are you circling this week? And Jamie, you should know me well enough by now to know my answer to this question.

Which game do you think I'm circling this week? You are circling... I would hope it's Giants-Panthers. I mean, whatever. But you are probably circling for the Slates. I would say it's Vikings-Eagles. Should be. Dolphins-Ravens.

Really excited for this game. Want to see if the Dolphins are for real. And they really blitzed the hell out of Lamar Jackson last year. Did a great job against him on that Thursday night game. Can't wait for this game. I don't know if you guys have a game that you're just itching to see. I mean, for me, it's Vikings-Eagles because I think that could be the best team in the NFC.

It would not surprise me if that's the case based on what their off seasons have been and uh certainly for the Vikings the way they looked in week one I hope the Eagles defense not maybe not this week but shows up a little bit better and I say that only because from a fantasy perspective I don't want to see the Vikings struggle but um yeah that that one to me is uh like I wish Keenan Allen was playing tonight because that game would be amazing and still should be amazing. But like those two games to me are going to be just awesome.

And yeah, and the two Monday night games are going on at the same time. 7-15 Titans-Bills, 8-30 Vikings-Eagles. So Monday is going to be a very fun night. We have a live stream today

at 2 p.m. Eastern, youtube.com slash fantasyfootballtoday. Join us. We're answering your start or sit questions. 2 p.m. Eastern, youtube.com slash fantasyfootballtoday. Join us. We're answering your start or sit questions. 2 p.m. Eastern, youtube.com slash fantasyfootballtoday. We'll see you there.

We're also on TikTok. So TikTok it up and follow us. I don't really know what to say. I don't have TikTok, but follow us on TikTok. TikTok it up. Tick us on TikTok. Talk us.

I don't know. Wasn't there a song, TikTok, you don't stop? TikTok on the clock, but the party. That's not the song. That's Kesha. TikTok, you don't stop. Yeah, that's Color Me Bad.

Ooh. Okay. Go get your guitar. You know, I once walked out to that song, I want to sex you up at a date auction, and nobody bid on me. That's my favorite story ever. Yeah, that was a terrible story.

But that is 100% true. But nobody bid on any of us. It was a stupid event. Injuries, news and notes. At quarterback, Joe Flacco will start for the Jets. Nick Sirianni said this about Jalen Hurts. He said he had complete control of what was going on and he saw the field perfectly in week one.

So that is awesome. And Joe Burrow talked about how the Bengals saw a lot of too high safety looks against the Steelers, a lot of cover too, to try to keep Cincinnati from making big plays. He expects to see that a lot. And it led to a lot of checking down. So I won't jump to any conclusions now, but you saw seven catches for Joe Mixon.

You wonder if there's going to be more of that this year. The Steelers did to them what teams did to the Chiefs and Bills last year? Yeah, but yes, exactly. And Burrow said he expects to see that all season, basically. So, let's go to running back news. Big news here. J.K. Dobbins practiced

in full. Jamie, what do you think? I think you should probably be a little bit cautious because it's a good Miami defense, good Miami run defense, so I would probably still use him, but use him as a flex, but I don't think he's a must start in his first game, but it's very encouraging that he's expected to play this week

and hopefully he does great things. Yeah, I don't want to start him. It's just going to be one of those please don't Chris Godwin, please don't Chris Godwin, please don't Chris Godwin, please don't Chris Godwin please don't Chris Godwin please don't Chris Godwin please don't Chris Godwin if he gets through this week healthy then he's a full go moving forward and I'm very excited Najee Harris was limited in practice so Heath you were the low guy I think talking about it yesterday where you have a nice ranked if it wasn't for

the fact that he finished as the number eight running back on a per game basis last year he might have been my player to avoid um i'm just scared of the possibility of him leaving the game early and the possibility of him averaging two yards per carry again and the possibility of him seeing three targets is he top 24 guy for you very very close he might be i think he's 26 or 27. Okay. Jalen Warren is 33% rostered right now. I do think, again, another guy that if he's limited again today, I'm starting to glide over him. Najee?

Okay. Yeah. And let's see. Jeff Wilson is the number one most added player. Jalen Warren is top 10. Man, Taysom Hill is the number three most added player. He is up from 10% to 51%. I think he's also the number three tight end in CBS fantasy scoring.

Probably. This is a mistake, right? I don't want to speak out of turn here, but having Taysom Hill in 51% of leagues, that means people are going to be starting him. Is that crazy? I mean, i guess if you are counting on him rushing for a touchdown every week or doing something every week you know where

he's going to find the end zone because he's not going to get enough touches no presumably but the one thing that's interesting clearly is james has a back injury and what will the saints do if he's out will it be and Andy Dalton, which you would think? Think. Or would it be Taysom Milken? I think there are people who are getting too excited and think he's just going to be a plug-and-play top 10 tight end all year, but I also don't think he's very much different from Dawson Knox

or Cole Komet or the low end start. You're hoping those guys get you 50 yards and a touchdown and Taysom Hill is going to get five or six touches probably. And you hope that he gets into the end zone or gets 50 yards. Yeah. All right. That's a good point. All right.

Damian Williams, miss practice for Atlanta. They're at the Rams this week. Deandre Swift, Heath alluded to this Deandre Swift, miss practice with an ankle injury, but Swift says he's not concerned about it. They have Washington this week.

Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers will go with the hot hand at running back. Heath, do you think we should be... Jeff Wilson is now 85% rostered. Should we be picking up a different 49ers running back? I think all of the 49ers running back

should be rostered. Always. Everyone with an SF and an RB next to their name should be on a roster just in case they turn into a pot of gold. And I'd be pretty concerned about... I'm pretty concerned about starting Jeff Wilson this week.

But you say that, though. We don't have unlimited bench spots. It's not like everybody can just go pick up as many people as they want to. Unless you say that, though, we don't have unlimited bench spots. It's not like everybody just go pick up as many people as they want to, unless you're Dave. You know, so it's just a matter of like, you know, how many leagues can you roster Davis Price and Jordan Mason? And

you know, it's tough. Yeah. But if you missed out on Jeff Wilson, you have an empty roster spot. Would you spend it on Mason or TDP? I would probably go Davis Price, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's Mason. I would be surprised if it's Marlon Mack in three weeks. I mean, you know, that's what San Francisco is.

They signed Marlon Mack off someone else's practice squad, right? No, he was released off the Texas squad. He was not on the practice squad. Right. First, the Texans brought him back on their practice squad, and then prior to week one, they got him. Okay. Okay. Oh, you good, Heath?

No, I'm good with that. I just wanted to make sure that Marlon Mack didn't have to be on the active roster. Okay, wide receiver news. Keenan Allen is out tonight. T. Higgins was limited in practice. He's making good progress here. What do you do if you have Josh Palmer, if you have MVS, if you have, I guess, Juju is a higher-end player. But any Thursday night guy, what do you do if you have Josh Palmer, if you have MVS, if you have, I guess, Juju

is a higher-end player. But any Thursday night guy, what do you do compared to T. Higgins? I think you'll find out again what he does. Usually when a guy's in the concussion protocol and they end up practicing on Wednesday, whatever capacity, I think they have to list them as limited if they're still in the protocol. So he's

trending in the right direction. So if you have a fallback option, I would prefer T. Higgins over Palmer. I'd prefer T. Higgins over MVS. I would probably just start Juju because I think there's not that far of a difference between the two of them right now. But I think if you can wait it out, you know, like if there's a Jarvis Landry, if there's a Sterling Shepard, if there's a Curtis Samuel, you know, like if there's a Jarvis Landry, if there's a Sterling Shepard, if there's a Curtis Samuel,

you know, you want to just pivot to one of those guys. I think there's probably a similar, you know, range of outcomes for all those second-tier wide receivers. Okay.

More wide receiver news. Michael Gallup unlikely to play this week. Alan Lazard was limited in practice Sunday night against the Bears. Let's hope we see Lazard out there. Sean McVay says he needs

to get Alan Robinson more involved. And when Sean McVay says he needs to get Allen Robinson more involved. And when Sean McVay says something like that, you should listen. Did you hear that sound? Oh, yeah. What's that sound? It's squeaky crickets. Oh, that's right. Yeah.

Squeaky wheel. Allen Robinson or Juju Smith-Schuster? Robinson for me. but it's close. Yeah, I think I have Robinson ones, but it's very, very close. They're both in the mid-20s. Yes, Robinson. So you'd start Robinson over Josh Palmer? Yes.

Okay. Rondell Moore mispracticed. The Bucs are beat up. Russell Gage and Julio Jones mispracticed. Mike Evans was limited with a seemingly minor calf injury, and obviously Chris Godwin is out. We expect Julio Jones to play, right, as of now? I would think so.

This was something that you got a lot of in Tennessee, him not practicing, and I think it became a problem for him. I hope it's not going to be the case with the bucks. Yeah. He may be legitimately hurt, but he did practice. You know,

everybody was raving about his practice reports during training camp. So hopefully that's a, it's just something minor that he's doing. Colts wide receiver, Alec Pierce is in the concussion protocol and giants wide receiver. Wandale Robinson is day to day, but he, according to one report I read does not appear appear likely to play Wondale Robinson.

Tight end, George Kittle, mispractice. So, you know, we've got to plan to be without George Kittle this week, and hopefully he gets back out there today. Offensive line news, both Dolphins' offensive tackles mispractice on Wednesday, and both Packers' offensive tackles are going to be questionable for Sunday. So that stinks. The Packers really missed their tackles in week one. The Dolphins, yeah, they didn't run the ball well

last week, and hopefully they will have Teron Armstead and Austin Jackson, I believe, their right tackle for week two. Detroit put guard Hala Vaitai on IR. He's out indefinitely after back surgery. And Dallas left guard Connor McGovern is out two to four weeks. Told you about Shaq Leonard, star linebacker

for the Colts. He practiced in full, but he did that last week and didn't play. We're hoping he's back soon. JC Jackson, star cornerback for the Chargers. He'll be a game-time decision tonight. Harrison Buckers out. Get a replacement. game-time decision tonight. Harrison Bucker's out. Get a replacement. J. Ron Curse.

This is a pretty big news, I think. J. Ron Curse, safety for the Cowboys. Pretty good player for them. He's out two to four weeks. And Justin Simmons. This is big. One of the best safeties in the game for the Broncos. He is on IR.

He's out at least four weeks. They have Houston this week. Time for one question for each game. The eight games we're going to be covering today. Cincinnati at Dallas. Who is the best Cowboys player in this game? Best or safest?

Best. Best is CeeDee Lamb. Safest is Dalton Schultz. Best is CeeDee Lamb. Best. Safest is Dalton Schultz. Yeah, best is CeeDee Lamb. Best relative to position is Dalton Schultz. Colts, Jaguars. I kind of already asked this. I'll ask it again.

Are you starting a Jaguars running back in this game? I would lean ETN and PPR. I would lean Robinson in the other formats. And I would think I have them both ranked in those respective formats as low end starters slash flex. I'd prefer not to, but Robinson in both Arizona at Las Vegas starter,

sit Josh Jacobs. I think you could start him. This Arizona defense is not very good right now. And so, you know, he's not going to help you very much in the passing game, I don't think, based on what we saw last week. But maybe Brandon Bolden being out changes that a little bit.

Or if he's out, Bolden's banged up. So I don't think it's like a slam dunk. You have to start Josh Jacobs, but he's ranked for me as a starter. Love the fact that Zemir White wasn't really a thing. So yeah, I'll start him one more week. You start Josh Jacobs over James Robinson? I would. Yes, over both Jagu one more week. You start Josh Jacobs over James Robinson?

I would. Yes, over both Jaguars running backs. And over Zeke, obviously, for you guys. Yes, and I would start him over David Montgomery, too. Yeah, Arizona, it's so early, and they play the Chiefs. But they weren't a very good defense last year. Their personnel isn't that great. I mean, they might be the matchup this year. They could be bottom 10 for sure.

Yeah, they could really stink. They are a little beat up in the secondary, and J.J. Watt could play this week. I would not be surprised if Cliff Kingsbury's fired during the season. Yeah. Miami at Baltimore. Who do you like better? Chase Edmonds or Rashad Bateman?

You know what? I'll throw Dobbins in there since he practiced in full. Edmonds, Dobbins, Bateman. Who's the best start? Edmonds for me. And if you're looking at it, obviously volume had a lot to do with it. But my goodness, the Jets running backs were just catching passes all over the place last week. Yeah, Edmonds. Yeah, I think that was something the Ravens struggled with last year, too.

I think they gave up something like the eighth most receiving yards per game to running backs, and it showed up in week one. It's funny. I'm really excited about that game. We got a ton of talent, but just kind of nervous

about so many of the players in that game. How many confidence starts are there? There's three. Jackson, Hill, and Andrews. Is it Waddle a confident start? I think you're starting both Dolphins receivers and Andrews, and that's probably it from a must-start standpoint. Jackson, Lamar.

Well, I'm saying the skill players. Yes, Lamar's the most important. All right, Jets at Cleveland. Who's the best flex option? Michael Carter, Kareem Hunt, Amari Cooper, or Elijah Moore? I'm sorry, repeat the question? Yeah, who's the best flex option? I gave you a lot of names.

Michael Carter, Kareem Hunt, Amari Cooper, or Elijah Moore? Carter. Oh, Kareem Hunt. Carter for Heath, Kareem Hunt for Jamie. Okay. Do you have the other running back second? He's well on his way to making you shave your eyebrows. What did he have? Four catches?

That's right. 11 carries? Yeah, I was going to bring this up later, but he had 14, 15 touches, and they had the ball for almost 39 minutes. So, I didn't know if that was encouraging. He's not again this week. Probably, yeah. Alright,

Houston at Denver. Are you concerned about Brandon Cooks? No. A little bit, but not to bench him, though. Yeah, I don't think he's going to... Do you think he's going to get shadowed? He played in the slot a pretty decent amount,

unlike DK Metcalf. So DK Metcalf got shadowed by Pat Sertan. Sertan's the man. Sir man. And Cook's a different receiver than Metcalf, but he played in the slot more than Metcalf did, so that's usually a good thing. You don't really get shadowed when you move into

the slot. But if you told me he was going to get shadowed by Patrick Sertan, I'd say sit Brandon Cook a hundred percent. But maybe you guys wouldn't. But do you think that's going to happen? No. I don't think it's going to be like what happened last week. You know, most of the time

when you ask guys that shadow players in today's game what kind of receivers they like to play they love the physical bigger physical guys because they're just easier to deal with and i know it sounds funny but you know you know where they are you know like they're they're they're easier targets and so cooks is not that type of guy but it wouldn't surprise me if if certain's on him more times than not so take that into account but I mean you see where we have him ranked uh if you're watching on YouTube uh it was top 15 for all three of us so you you got to have really just a stacked receiving court of bench brand cooks

I think that one thing I noticed just looking at cooks targets from last week is they were really creative with like designing ways to get the ball into his hands on wide receiver screens and stuff like that. So I don't think... They know who their best offensive player is. Yeah, he had, what, 12 targets or 13 or something, and Burkhead had, I don't know, eight or something, and nobody else had more than three or four.

It was just basically all Brandon Cooks and a little bit of Burkhead. Plus, Justin Simmons being out certainly makes this an easier matchup. New England and Pittsburgh, is there anyone that you love in this game? Anyone you love in the Patriots-Steelers game?

I love Matt Patricia for the Steelers-DST. Nobody that I love. I mean, I'm starting Deontay Johnson and Najee Harris, but you know what? I love Pat Farmer. I hope what we saw last week signed things come. Tough matchup. That's the thing.

The Patriots are always so good against tight ends. Yeah, but you know what, though? I mean, when you look at the tight ends this week, if you want to get creative and start Gerald Everett or Tyler Higby over Frymouth, I certainly understand. That's fine. But it's just, I think this is going to end up being a really go-to option

for Trubisky. We may have, I don't want to say overlooked it, because we all had Fryermuth ranked relatively as a starter, whether it was somewhere between 10 and 13, 14, 15. But, oh my gosh, look at George Pickens and Chase Claypool in the slot, and obviously Deontay. It might just be Deontay and Fryermuth, you know, based on what we saw last week and how things go.

I think I love Deontay the most. And Tennessee Buffalo, do you like Devin Singletary this week? No. No. Okay. No. Any bonus question, any hesitation with Derrick Henry, who has not run very well against the Bills except for a 76-yard touchdown run.

But he's had four games against the Bills, and he's rushed for 56, 78, 57, and 143 yards. And he basically had one huge run. And the Bills have done a great job against

Derrick Henry. He's got to score. He's got to score because he's not catching four or five passes in this game. You know, he might get two or three.

But this game feels like it could get ugly. I think we were talking off the air about the spread for the Bills and being a 10-point favorite. The Titans are another team that makes me a little nervous. Not to the Cardinals' level, but they may not be close

to what they were a year ago. Losing land on defense, offensive lines are a concern, the receiving corps are a concern. It's not going to be easy for Derek Henry and some of these tougher matchups. This is kind of a similar one to the Colts and Jags too, right? The Titans have kind of whooped the Bills the last couple times they've faced each other. Yeah, they've won two straight.

I think one of them was very close. Remember that game that was like a Wednesday night game or something or Tuesday night game? I think it was a very close game if I recall. But they've won two straight. They lost the two previous. The two and two last four meetings in recent years. Look, let's give the Titans a little bit of credit.

They only lost by one of the Giants. It's a tough matchup. So let's see if they can get back on track. All right, we're going to take a break here. And when we come back, we'll get into Cincinnati at Dallas. We'll talk about these eight games. Cincinnati, a seven-point favorite on the road. And we'll take a break-point favorite on the road. And here we...

We'll take a break and get going right after this. Okay, now here we go. Cincinnati, here we go! For those of you who remember the old intro. Cincinnati at Dallas. Bengals minus seven. Over-unders 41.5. Joe Burrow, remember I told you about the cover, too. His intended air yards

per pass attempt was 6.7. 6.7 yards per pass attempt. That's how far he was throwing the ball. In 2021, it was 8.1. So, he definitely checked down a lot. Okay, Joe Burrow. You guys don't like him quite as much as Dave.

You have him more as a low-end starter. Is that right, Heath? Yeah. Okay, why is that? I mean, he was ranked as a low-end starter in draft season. I don't think this is a better spot for him

than average. Okay, all right. So you guys, Derek Carr or Joe Burrow this week? Carr. Burrow, but I like both. Okay, Stafford over Burrow.

Cousins or Burrow? Cousins. Cousins or Burrow? Cousins. Burrow or Lance? Burrow. Burrow or Daniel Jones? Burrow. Okay. Start Joe Mixon.

Start Jamar Chase. Let's talk about the Cincinnati wide receivers, Jamie. With and without T. Higgins. T. Higgins is a must-start if he plays. I'm not going to get cute and bench him. As long as he clears the protocol and he's out there, just assume that he's going to be a number two receiver

until proven otherwise. If he's out, Boyd is a borderline starter in two receiver leagues, definite starter in three receiver leagues. I think he'll benefit, honestly, maybe more than anybody, him and Hayden Hurst, from this new defense that they're going to face because checking the ball down, that's kind of where those guys are going to live,

and it worked for them last week. Boyd scored a touchdown. This is now four straight regular season games where he scored, and I believe two of those were without Higgins last year. So he's got plenty of potential, even as a third receiver, you know, with Higgins playing. But I don't know how many people are going to start him. So he was like 55 percent rostered. You should absolutely check your waiver wire. You know, it's not looking as encouraging as it would be if Higgins was out or trending out. And then Hayden Hurst, I think, is somebody you want to take a look at as a streaming tight end, you know, a notch below the Everett's and the Higby's, but I think in the same sort of range,

at least for me, Logan Thomas, Dawson Knox, you know, those type of guys. But I think Hayden Hurst, you know, showed enough last week with his targets that if they're going to throw that

much, he's got a chance to be successful. Yeah. Boyd, people didn't really go all in on him. He's only up 3% from 54% to 57%. And I think people probably just are leaning towards T. Higgins is going to play. I think that's part of it.

And part of it is they threw 53 times last week and they ran 94 plays. Assuming they're going to run 65 plays this week and throw 30 times, how many of those are going to Hurston Boyd? Yeah. But Boyd, now that's three games without Higgins over the last two seasons with a touchdown or 100 yards. So it's something to keep in mind. And the Cowboys were a good matchup last year.

Did a decent job in week one, but Tom Brady only threw 27 passes. And Hayden Hurst, you know, not terrible. He's about 15th to 17th for you guys. I think Jamie has him 13th in PPR. Not much to say there about Hayden Hurst. Yeah, I will lower him if Higgins is active. I haven't ranked as if Higgins is not playing right now.

Okay, Sit Cooper Rush. He threw 13 passes last week. And Fajoko had three of the targets, and he led them all. But he spread the ball out very evenly. But shouldn't take too much from that, because just look at what Joe Flacco did in one start last year and one start this year. It was completely different.

Anyway, yeah, I'm not going to say much. I was just going to say that Cooper Rush threw the ball downfield a lot last year. I alluded to that earlier. So Dallas running backs. Zeke is what, a number three guy, Heath? Yeah, mid-range flex option. Hopefully he gets – I mean, he didn't look bad at all in week one. It's just how bad is this offensive line and how much do the Bengals stack the box

with Cooper Rush playing quarterback? It could be pretty ugly. But he's he's in the flex range i would start him over breese hall i would start him over the jags but i would rather not start him you'd start him over james robinson okay he's got cincinnati this week the giants then washington then the rams i mean when are you going to feel comfortable starting him? Like at the Giants next week? I think it's the Giants, then it's Washington. So what is it about this matchup that,

is it the run defense, is it the score? Potentially? What is it that you don't like about Zeke this week? Those things, yes. Okay. What's different, if you look at this Cowboys team compared to the Steelers team from last week

kind of similarities right yeah the Steelers team from last year last week in terms of Bengals how they played the Steelers you know I mean quarterback concerns offensive line concerns you know and so

it's their defense played really well you know and it's the score is not indicative of what the bangles you know did defensively they only gave up i think six points you know so um they gave the one touchdown to naji harris so i i think this defense is gonna end up being a little bit underrated and so we start to realize that they're better than they you know probably deserve to be credited for i don't know if that makes sense um but they're better defense than we give to be credited for. I don't know if that makes sense. But they're a better defense than we give them credit for.

They've been one of my favorite DSTs to pick up this week. I just think you look at how this Cowboys offense operated last week, and granted, they lose Dak and the Bucs are fantastic. But I think this Bengals defense is going to contain this Cowboys offense, given the quarterback, given the offensive line woes. And this, you know, I mean, go back to 2019 when Dak broke his ankle. I mean, how bad was Zeke?

No Tyron Smith that season either. You know, so Zeke was bad and he's two years older now. And obviously going to sit Tony Pollard. By the way, the Bengals only scored one fantasy point last week. They only had one sack, but their run defense could be

a sneaky one that we're not talking about because they weren't great against the run last year, but they had some moments last year where they held Dalvin Cook, David Montgomery, Najee Harris, DeAndre Swift, Najee Harris again, Derrick Henry, and of course Cam Akers in the Super Bowl to 3.1 yards per carry or less. Last week, Najee Harris,

10 carries for 23 yards. So I've got my eye on the Bengals' run defense as an underrated unit, see if they can end up being really good in a tough matchup. CeeDee Lamb, okay, CeeDee Lamb or Allen Robinson? Lamb. Robinson for me.

CeeDee Lamb or Najee Harris? Harris gets through a full week of practice. I'll take Harris. I go Lamb. CeeDee Lamb or Adam Thielen? Lamb.

Lamb. Really? Okay. And Dalton Schultz is a top seven tight end. So over Friar Muth? Yes. Yes. For me. Okay. and Dalton Schultz is a top seven tight end so over Friar Muth yes yes for me okay Cincinnati DST

I asked Heath this question yesterday if you're in a 10 team league right now and Jeff Wilson was on waivers would you drop Tony Pollard for Jeff Wilson

I would not no not in a 10 team league is is he without an injury ever going to be started? I'm with you. I just think it's interesting because, like, the appeal is not as appealing. He is not as appealing right now as he was preseason.

Of course not. No, none of them are. It sucks. This was the highest-scoring team in football last year. I don't know if they were the highest scoring offense because that factors in the pick sixes, so they probably weren't, but they were obviously a terrific fantasy team, and it just sucks

right now. All right, Colts at Jacksonville. Colts are four-point favorites over under 45.5. Stat of the game number one, look at the Jaguars against quarterbacks. If you're looking for Matt Ryan, we're going to start Matt Ryan. Last year, the Jaguars,

they had some good performances, including that game against the Bills, but Tyrod Taylor, Teddy Bridgewater, Tua, Geno Smith, Mac Jones, Zach Wilson, all of them scored 25 or more fantasy points in six points for passing touchdown leagues. That's Tyrod Taylor, Teddy Bridgewater, Tua Tungavailoa, Geno Smith, Mac Jones, and Zach Wilson. Last week, Carson Wentz scored 35 fantasy points in six points for passing touchdown leagues. That's Terod Taylor, Teddy Bridgewater, Tuatunga Vailoa, Geno Smith, Mac Jones,

and Zach Wilson. Last week, Carson Wentz scored 35 fantasy points against the Jaguars. Heath, how much do you like Matt Ryan? And then second question related is stat of the game number two. There were only two quarterbacks last week who had a higher off-target percentage than

Trevor Lawrence, and they were Justin Fields and Trey Lance in the terrible conditions. So, how how much do you like Ryan and do you like him better than Trevor Lawrence I do not want to start a quarterback in this game if I can afford it um I don't know which one I have ranked higher right now because they're both outside my top 20 I was not encouraged by the fact like we heard the talk from Frank Reich about how they're both outside my top 20. I was not encouraged by the fact, like we heard the talk from Frank Reich about how they're going to be more pass heavy, and that's what teams do. And then the first three quarters of the game,

he had 24 pass attempts, Matt Ryan did. Can I just push back on that just a little bit? Because in the first half of the game, he had 19 pass attempts. In the third quarter, they ran 10 plays, and he threw five times. So yes, it looks much worse through the first three quarters but he did have 19 pass attempts to the first half wow he did his azerstead in that one there's there's lots of azersteading going on i'm not

sure which azerstead matters more um no one ever is but like i did not see enough from Matt Ryan or from this offense to think that he's definitely good again or that he's definitely going to throw a lot when they are winning games. Okay. Jamie, you're a little higher on Ryan. You have him 16th. Anyone you'd start him over this week, like Lance or Fields? I would start him over Fields.

I think the troubling thing for Matt Ryan, which is why I love Michael Pittman and why I still love Naeem Hines, is their weapons are just not there. And, you know, Alec Pierce is now in the concussion protocol. You know, they were using both tight ends. Grayson was playing a little bit more in passing down situations or was being used more in passing down situations than Mo'Ali Cox. But I don't, I don't understand sort of what they're doing when you can take a flyer,

maybe on Will Fuller or take a flyer, maybe on bringing back T.Y. Hilton. Like is, is Alec Pearson, Paris Campbell going to get the job done for you the entire year? I don't think that's going to be the case. Now,

again, for Michael Pittman, that's fantastic. You saw that in week one. And, you know, evenem Hines wasn't great, he still had six for 50 in the passing game. So those two guys, I think, are going to really benefit. And even Jonathan Taylor, I think, will start to catch more passes. So just in terms of Ryan, though, I think he's not the worst fallback option if you lost Dak Prescott and he was available on waivers. Yeah, I just wonder if Matt Ryan, if Alec Pierce hangs on to that ball, catches the touchdown.

And Ryan scores 23 fantasy points last week if people are more excited about him. And he got 12 rushing yards. That's amazing. Wow, I didn't even notice that. I don't know if you guys want to get into this. Mark H. on YouTube right now asks, when do we start to worry about Trevor Lawrence? I just do think it's worth noting. I know it's not Ty Law. About Ty Law?

Yeah, he wrote T-Law. Yeah, Ty Law, is he an all-famer? Ty Law? I believe he is. Terrific player. Trevor Lawrence, it's worth noting. He missed throws in the preseason. He missed easy throws last week.

Like I said, third highest off-target percentage in football last week. On one said, third highest off-target percentage in football last week. So, you know, on one hand, Heath, I'm encouraged because they seem to be pretty aggressive, and if he can play well, I feel like Lawrence could have a good season. But on the other hand, he needs to start playing well. What do you mean about when do we start

to worry about him? As a fantasy football manager, you should never have been drafting him as anything more than a number two quarterback, and I wouldn't... Well, a lot of people play super flex. Yeah, he's my super flex. Yeah, as a super flex quarterback, I think he's probably going to be a number two quarterback. I don't know that he's going to be a particularly good one,

but I'm not worried about him falling outside of the top 24 this season. As a Jacksonville fan, we're rapidly approaching the point where I would start worrying about him. All right, let's go through the rest of this game real quick here. Start Taylor. What about Naeem Hines, Jamie starter said he had six catches last week. I mean, until he does something terrible, these are the type of stat lines you should expect three to five carries. You know,

you'll have to see him do more than just four rushing yards, but as long as Taylor's healthy and this receiving core is what it is, he's probably going to be in the neighborhood of five to eight catches on a week-to-week basis. You know, I mean, they just don't have many other choices. And so if they're winning easily, are you going to see him do that consistently? No, probably not. But I think, you know, from, you know,

what Heath has been talking about, you know, with Frank Reich's comments about throwing the ball more, a lot of that stemmed off questions about night lines. You know, so it's, uh, I've said this going into the season. He's going to be their number two receiver that played itself out in week one. I think it'll be the case more times than not. So he's a flex. I, I, I, I drafted a lot of nine minds and the teams where I went here, RB, he is starting for me as my second running. Like I'm starting him over Brees hall. Um, I'm starting him over in PPR over David Montgomery.

I just think that there's a four to six catch window that helps him based... I don't know if I have him over Montgomery. Let me rephrase that. I'll take that one back. But they're close. They're very close. I'm starting over both Patriots running backs. What about the Jaguars running backs?

No, I'd still start the Jaguars guys over him. But you see, I mean, we're all kind of in a similar range. I love that Dave's the high guy and Naheem Hines is the seed. He's in that. He's the seed. No, I would start him over the Jags guys. And I wish that I could communicate this in a better way. But 11.4 PPR fantasy points without a touchdown is a pretty decent day.

Yeah. Like, if you're going to do that every week and you're going to score five or six touchdowns a year, six or seven touchdowns a year, then you're going to be a good flex. But they did run 90 plays and they played a full overtime.

Right. So how do you factor that in? It might be 8.5 ppr fantasy points it could be next week yeah um well hold on though do quarter by quarter breakdown in nine times i'm serious how many do you have in the first half i don't know uh it's actually it's actually a pretty good question i'm not very smart what's what's 18 times 5? Oh, 90? There you go. It's on pace for 90 catches. There you go.

Okay. No, Jamie, no. He only plays 17 games in 18 weeks. Okay, I want to finish up. Start Michael Pittman. He's a slam dunk. Christian Kirk. Is Christian Kirk a slam dunk at this point?

I don't think he's a slam dunk in non-PPR, and I don't think he's necessarily a slam dunk in this point? I don't think he's a slam dunk in non PPR. And I don't think he's necessarily a slam dunk in two receiver leagues because Kenny Moore is a great slot corner. And that's probably who he's going to see a lot of. So I initially, when I, when I did my first runner rankings, he was like, like top 15, but I pulled back a little bit. Like he's, he's still a low end starter in two receiver leagues in PPR, but I don't think it's a slam dunk in non-PPR because I think you could get a four or five for 80, which in PPR, as Heath alluded to, is not bad. But not necessarily, I think, non-PPR.

You're going to be a little frustrated with that. He's my favorite Jag in full PPR for sure. I agree. In non-PPR, I would start Robinson over him. Any interest in Zay Jones? Nine targets last week. He's worth adding. Okay.

Yeah, it's week two, no buys, but yeah, all right. And the Colts start Sid Evan Ingram, right? Yes, but his route participation was good, so I'm still not necessarily wanting to drop him if i drafted two tight ends and he's my second okay colts ds and for what it's worth they did give up two touchdowns tied in last week they sure did oj howard uh colts dsc is top 10 arizona's at las vegas the raiders are five and a half point favorites the total is 51 and a half stat of the game the cardinals picked up where they left off in 2021.

They allowed 26 or more fantasy points to quarterbacks and six points for passing touchdown leagues. That's a pretty good game. Five of their last six games, 21 or more in six straight games to end the season. That included Goff, Wentz, and Russell Wilson. Patrick Mahomes, of course, scored 44 fantasy points. So this looks like a great matchup for Derek Carr.

And I think he said he was a little amped up last week. The turnovers were uncharacteristic. Okay, so are we starting? I have Carr and Rodgers in the podcast league, Jamie. I'm 0-1. I need a win. Who should I start? Carr. I agree.

Heath, what do you think about Carr this week? I would start him over Aaronaron rogers but they're within a half a fantasy point so i'm not it's not a strong feeling but he's a yeah he's a top 10 quarterback for me i think this is like we talked about earlier this is one of the best matchups any hesitation on kyler murray this week you have a little heath has him fifth jamie a little low on kyler at nine i mean no hesitation if i drafted him as my starter i'm not benching him for anybody that's out there uh carson wentz probably being the most likely but uh like i said i like stafford better this week um okay i don't know anybody else that that's all right you know what i shouldn't have

even asked start kyler murray start james connor and josh jaco Jacobs against this Cardinals run defense, which wasn't really tested in week one, but it's probably not very good. So do you like Josh Jacobs or Christian Kirk? Let's say half PPR. Jacobs. Full PPR, I take Kirk. I'll agree with that. How do you feel about Marquise Brown?

Garbage. First of all, I just want to say, Kyler Murray in the first three quarters last week threw for 137 yards and no touchdowns. In the fourth quarter, he threw for 56 yards and two touchdowns.

So let's get a little bit better performance from this offense. Marquise Brown, I guess I'll just keep going back to Christian Kirk. Marquise Brown or Christian Kirk?

I'll take Brown. I'll take Kirk and full PPR Brown and everything else. Would you rather roster Zay Jones for the Jaguars or Greg Dortch for the Cardinals? Jones, because Rondell Moore can return at any point, and then DeAndre Hopkins is back in Week 7. If I need a desperation start this week,

I'd rather start Dortch than Jones. Okay. Assuming Rondell Moore's out. Yeah, right. How do you feel about Zach Ertz, who had two catches, 14 yards, and a touchdown in week one? The Raiders are a... They were a great matchup last year.

Third most fantasy points to tight ends, and in week one, they gave up 54 yards and a touchdown on four targets to Gerald Everett. How do you feel about Zach Ertz? Heath? He's a low-end starter. I would prefer Gerald Everett over him, but that's the only guy who was drafted after him

who I would start over him. I would still start Ertz over all the streamers this week. Cole Komet or Ertz? Assuming he practices, because he did not practice on Wednesday. Ertz over Komet. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I feel like if a guy was kind of hurt in week one,

and I'm not surprised that he didn't practice on Wednesday, especially a veteran guy. Komet, by the way, 71% rostered. I don't remember what it was, but I've seen him dropped in two of my leagues. So Komet, yeah, he's down from 84% to 71%. Might be a little premature. All right, Derek Carr, top 12.

We like him this week. Josh Jacobs, we like him. Devontae Adams, we like him. Although, we'll see if the Cardinals can do their magic against number one wide receivers, as they did all of last year. Hunter Renfro, start or sit or drop? Sit. Don't drop? Sit.

Don't drop him yet. No. Okay. Who would you start over Hunter Renfro? Josh Palmer? Drake London. Drake London. Drake London.

Josh Palmer, Drake London. Two very good ones. Claypool. Ooh. I would start Zay Jones over him too. Ooh. All right. And start Darren Waller. Sit the DSDs. Tyler him, too. Ooh, all right. And start Darren Waller.

Sit the DSDs. Tyler Boyd, if Higgins is out. Miami at Baltimore. The game of the week, says I. Last year, the Dolphins won 22-10. Is this your new version of the Bonanza? Yeah. That's funny.

Let's see if this game totally sucks. I'm really interested in the Dolphins. I wonder if the Dolphins are better than every NFC team. I was just thinking about how much better the AFC is than the NFC. Every NFC team? Who's the best NFC team and where would they rank in the AFC? I think I could name 10 NFC teams that are better than the Dolphins. I think you might be sleeping on the Dolphins.

That's what I want to find out. I want to see how they do against this Ravens team. Because their defense is really good. Is this Ravens team as great as you're giving them credit for? Well, they're a legit playoff team. I mean, they're a contender, sure. They were in first place

before Lamar Jackson got hurt last year, and that was with a completely banged-up secondary. They've already lost one member of their secondary for the year, but their defense should be much better. And now they get Dobbins back. So I think so. I'm fine with that take.

No, I don't think it's a bad take. I just don't know if the Ravens are like this mountain that the Dolphins have to climb to be considered. No. No, but if they can't compete with the Ravens, then I'm going to be a little disappointed. So who's the best team? Real quick, who's the best team real quick?

Who's the best team in the NFC and where were they ranking the AFC? After week one. Well, Eagles or bike Rams, Eagles, Vikings. Let's just say Rams, right?

They deserve it. I, yeah, I don't want to take away from the bucks too. Their defense was awesome. Oh, it could be a bucks. These there's four teams that are definitely better than the dolphins. Giants. I don't want to take away from the Bucs, too. Their defense was awesome. Oh, it could be, yeah. Bucs. There's four teams that are definitely better than the Dolphins. Giants?

Giants or Dolphins? Yeah, probably the Giants. All right, anyway, looks like we're sitting to a... How do we feel about... I asked you this earlier. Let's do it again. How do we feel about the running backs in this game? Chase Edmonds, I don't think anyone's going to have confidence

in starting Raheem Mostert. And yes, the Ravens allowed the eighth most receiving yards per game to running backs last year. They got torched by torches relative, but in terms of just catches. Well, 13 catches is a lot. Yeah, it's not like they were all over the field. It's not like they had 100 yards. The Dolphins did score one offensive touchdown last week, right?

Yes. Yeah. No, but their defense is really good. Their defense is secondary. They played the Patriots, though, defense is really good. Like their defense is, they're secondary. They played the Patriots though, dude. They're secondary. They have two great cornerbacks and they have Javon Holland at safety. They have two?

Well, they have two very good, maybe one great. Oh, the Byron Jones is out. But they will have Byron Jones at some point. Don't love the linebackers, but they could have a great defense. They really could. You're sleeping on the Dolphins. I don't disagree with that take that the Dolphins have a potentially very good defense, but again, I'm not

judging what they did in week one against that offense as the barometer. I'm not either. I'm just... I also don't think if they lose 20-17 to the Ravens, that doesn't mean that they're not a potential playoff team. No. No, of course not.

Like I said, I just want to see if they... I hope they can hang with... You know what? This is the game of the week. I don't care what you... This is the game of the week. They're three-and-a-half-point underdogs. This is the game of the week. Yeah.

There's two true Super Bowl contenders. All right, Chase Edmonds, J.K. Dobbins. How do you like them? Grateful. Are the Dolphins better than every NFC team? Yes or no chance? No chance is 78% of the vote. Okay, thank you, Schaefer, for embarrassing me.

Dolphins, running backs here, guys, running backs. Edmonds is a borderline flex in PPR, somebody I would probably bench in non-PPR. Borderline starter in PPR. He should be a flexible character. Jeff Wilson or Chase Edmonds? I would go Edmonds and non... I'm sorry.

I would go Wilson and non-PPR. I'd go Edmonds and half and full. Yep. Okay. How about Dobbins or those guys? No. Can't trust Dobbins yet unless he's full all week

and we just get some report that he looks amazing. Not against this defense am i right so jaylen waddle only had five targets last week he had a 42 yard touchdown catch and run is he in your top 20 this week jaylen waddle no oh he's right there okay would you start him over jaylen waddle in the third or fourth round to bench him would you start him over c? He didn't draft Jalen Waddell in the third or fourth round to bench him. Would you start him over CD Lamb? Yes. I would not.

Oh, wow. So you're not really... I would start him over DK and Juju. I'm just higher on Lamb. Okay. But obviously you'd start Waddell over Bateman, right? Yes. Yes.

Bateman, to me, I hope it's not fool's gold, because last week was frustrating. He doesn't catch the touchdown. You're in trouble. Bateman or, to me, I hope it's not fool's gold because last week was frustrating. He doesn't catch the touchdown. You're in trouble. Bateman or Dobbins? Dobbins and non-PPR. Just to get this out of the way, if Dobbins doesn't play,

Kenny and Drake would be pretty low end for you guys, right? Against that defense. Against that. Non-existent. It's a revenge game, though. Oh, that's right. Yeah, but Drake has like five revenge game options.

Lamar Jackson is a start. And Mark Andrews is a start. Let me just do a few more Batemans. I know we're going to get a lot of Bateman questions. If this game was in Miami, they should build a statue for Drake for just the Patriots, the victory against the Patriots. Oh, right. Yes.

What did they call that play again? That was... The The miracle in Miami? I don't know. That is probably what it was called. Okay, how about... Would you start like Jahan Dotson over Rashad Bateman or any of the waiver wire wide receivers? I would. You'd start Dotson? I would start Dotson over him. Ieman or any of the waiver wire wide receivers? I would.

You'd start Dotson? I'd start Dotson over him. I'd start Landry over him. How about... Obviously, you'd start Tyler Boyd if Higgins were out, right? I'd start Boyd if Higgins were out. I'd start Palmer tonight. Oh, Palmer is the one. Nope. I've got Bateman one spot

ahead of Palmer, so no. Really? Wow. And which DST do you prefer in this game? One. Nope. I've got Bateman one spot ahead of Palmer, so no. Really? Wow. All righty. And which DST do you prefer in this game? Good question. Right now, the Dolphins. But if the Dolphins don't have Armstead and Little, then I would go Raven.

Okay. Jets and Cleveland. Game of the week. No, sorry. That's Dolphins and Ravens. Jets at Cleveland. Game of the week. No, sorry. That's Dolphins and Ravens. Jets at Cleveland. Stat of the game. I mean, you like field goals. You are a backup goalie. I did pick up Cade York and I was a backup goalie. That's right. Cleveland was great against

running pass catching running backs in 2021. They held Clyde, Montgomery, Dalvin Cook, Chase Edmonds, Najeeee Harris twice DeAndre Swift and Aaron Jones to fewer than 30 yards I just don't really even know what to make of the Jets receiving totals last week on 59 pass attempts and I don't know I guess what I'm saying is Heath I am not thrilled to start Michael Carter even coming off a great game last week. How do you feel about Michael Carter? Borderline number two in full PPR, but I don't feel great about it. I don't have a good understanding of how many passes they're

going to throw this week, but the thing that we know is that when Zach Wilson didn't play, they just slung the ball all over the the yard last year as well so I think they might throw 40 passes and it's Joe Flacco so a fourth of them are probably going to Michael Carter and and Breece Hall um so yeah he's like we've all got him in the same range he's that stardom and PPR if you don't have a better option I'd start him over Zeke I'd start him over um I'd start him over Zeke. I'd start him over David Montgomery this week. I would start him over Jeff Wilson, Rashad Penny. Now, is Carter over Wilson only in full PPR? It is.

All of those were only in full PPR. Okay. Half PPR, would you start Carter or Zeke? Carter. Carter. Carter. I have no Carter or Zeke? Carter. Carter. I have no faith in Zeke, so yeah, I'd take my chances with his role in the passing game. Carter's role in the passing game.

And Dave mentioned that a lot of the pass attempts to the running backs look like design plays. And I noticed that too. I couldn't put a number on it, but they were intentional about it. It wasn't just checkdowns. I just, man, it does not make me feel very good

about the Jets' future if they've got Elijah Moore and they've got Garrett Wilson and their offensive plan is for Corey Davis to lead the team in targets along with the running backs. He barely led the team in targets. I mean, it was what?

Seven, eight, nine targets for Moore, Wilson, and 10 for Hall and nine for Carter nine targets for Moore, Wilson, and Davis. And 10 for Hall and nine for Carter. Yeah. Look, they got to get the ball in everybody's hands. Conklin, what, had six? That's a long way.

Berrios had six. So, do you like Kareem Hunt? If they throw 30 pass attempts, we're talking about... Trade Corey Davis to the Colts for a pick. Yeah. There is your solution.

Yeah, yeah. Do you like Kareem Hunt better than Michael Carter? I forgot the answer from 45 minutes ago. Yes, I do not. You don't. Jamie does. Oh, why not, Heath? I'm just not as high on Kareem Hunt.

You're a scorned Heath fan. I'm a scorned Chief fan. You used to be the Kareem Hunt guy. He didn't leave the Chiefs. They cut him. We were Kareem Hunt guy. He didn't leave the Chiefs. They cut him. We were Kareem Hunt guys together, Heath. We were. This is maybe just a Michael Carter guy.

Maybe. I'm not. Amari Cooper or... No. Jahan Dotson. I don't even know how I have it ranked, but I'm saying Jah John Dotson. If I have Dotson behind Cooper, then I will move one of them.

This actually, we'll see how it plays out, but the Jets might not be such a great matchup for wide receivers like Amari Cooper. They might have a good secondary, a decent secondary. We might be talking on Monday or Sunday night about why in the world didn't we pick up Donovan Peoples-Jones. Yeah, we should talk about that. He had a really nice game last week.

Who's your favorite wide receiver in this game? Eliza Moore. Yeah, but none of them are in my top 35. Moore is there for Jamie. He's 29th, right around there. A lot of times I do the rankings the day before or the night before, and they change a little bit, but not too much. So Elijah Moore, you don't have to completely get away from him.

But this is a tough defense, tough matchup. They're going to be all over Joe Flacco. And that's pretty much it, right? We'll do a few more Kareem Hunts. Kareem Hunt or Jerry Judy? I'll take Kareem Hunt. I will take Judy. I would want to say some guys I would start Kareem Hunt over,

so I'm not an anti-Kareem Hunt guy, because I don't want to be an anti-Kareem Hunt guy. I would start him over... 30th! Brees Hall, both of the Jets, or both of the Jags, Naeem Hines. Do you like Zeke better than Hunt?

I currently have Zeke ahead of Hunt, yes. Do you like Dave Montgomery better than Kareem Hunt? I do. Wow. So what about Rashad Penny with Ken Walker going to play this week? Would you start Kareem Hunt, Michael Carter, or Rashad Penny? I don't think Ken Walker's going to have a big role in his first game back from a hernia when Rashad Penny's there. Yeah.

All right. You ever heard the song Living with a Hernia? Living with a hernia. No? Weird Al? If you want to learn more about hernias. Houston's at Denver. Oh, Cleveland DST is top three. Start them and sit in a joku.

Houston's at Denver. Denver is a 10-point favorite. Nathaniel Hackrett. Which running back for the Texans do you like better, Jamie? Burkhead and PPR. I'll still go back to Pierce and non-PPR. Either one of them are start guy. How about Pierce?

How about Pierce or Kareem Hunt or Burkhead or Kareem Hunt? I mean, I'm sure he has both guys over. Hunt, Burkhead, Pierce. Oh, okay. Like, I just want to say, like, where I'm sure he has both guys over here. Hunt, Burkhead, Pierce. Oh, okay. I just want to say, where I'm ranking Kareem Hunt is pretty much where we all drafted Kareem Hunt. I just didn't move him up into the top 20 after

one good game. What does the draft have to do with anything? Because we've let one week change a RB30 into a top 15 running back. Well, I mean... He's a similar role we expected. He scored two touchdowns. And he got 15 total touches. That's more than Rashad Penny got. That's more than David Montgomery

got. Well, nobody has him. Where's Donovan Peoples in your wide receiver rankings? Why don't you move him up into the top 15? Well, because I didn't have any expectations for Donovan Peoples. I had expectations for Kareem Hunt. Well, first of all, he's not in the top 15. I don't think, anyway. He was 16th and 20th, I think. 17th for Jamie in PPR.

Yeah, 20th. Okay, so I was looking at non-PPR. And the season-long rankings don't necessarily reflect the week-to-week rankings. No, they don't. They move a little bit, but it's not as alive depending on the rebate. I mean, the Jets think.

The Jets feel like they have a decent defense. If you're ranking week-to-week based on the season, my gosh, man, come on. That is where rankings start from, yes. For the season? Yes. And then we move them. We talked last week about guys we had ranked differently.

You factored 18 weeks on a week to week basis? We talked last week about guys we had ranked differently from the full season. Those were the guys that were the exceptions. The rest of the guys were ranked similarly to how we had them ranked. That's why we had the discussion. I would like for you guys to have a civil

conversation about this, because I think it's very interesting. We're not having a civil conversation? I can't tell, honestly. I think it's a really interesting discussion here about the different ways that you guys go about your rankings. Because Heath, you're less likely. This has always been the case. I think Heath, at the beginning of the season, is less

likely to move off his season-long rankings than Jamie. Is that fair? Based on matchups? I think week, at the beginning of the season, is less likely to move off his season-long rankings than Jamie. Is that fair? Based on matchups? I think week-to-week, mine probably changed less, and there are exceptions. Okay. All right.

All right. I guess the conversation's over. So, Brandon Cooks, you guys have in the top 15 or top 17 or something like that. I guess no hesitation there. And that's pretty much it. Oh, OJ Howard. Anyone starting OJ Howard?

No. No. Okay. Russell Wilson. Big game this week? Yes. I mean, he had 340 passing yards and one touchdown. If Albert O falls in the end zone,

if they don't call, you know, runs at the goal line and he gets another touchdown there, it's like you said about Matt Ryan. Nobody is concerned about Russell. They moved the ball so well last week. They just stunk near the goal line. All right, so then what do we do with Melvin Gordon? I know everyone's going to start Javante Williams, even though he only had seven carries last

week, which is weird. But Jamie, what do you think about Melvin Gordon? We've talked about a lot of running backs that are I feel like every running back we've talked about, we don't want to start. Jaguars guys, Jets guys, Zeke. Who do we want to start? Do you want to start Melvin Gordon over any of them?

No, but I do think that when you look at it, again, if he gets the touchdown instead of the fumble and now you're looking at them as a 10-point favorite at home, he's probably going to get 12 carries again,

I would assume, in that range. If they did that in a game that was back and forth. So I don't think Gordon's a horrible flex. No, I would start him over both the Jets. Kareem Hunt? I would start him over Kare Jets. Kremont? I would start him over Kremont, yes. I wonder why you guys are so low on James Robinson, though.

Especially you, Heath, because you're lower on ETN, I think. Because I don't... It's a bad offense, I think. They're underdogs against a good defense, and it's an uncertain touch distribution between the running backs, but it's going to be a split. Yeah.

One of the closest committees I would expect this week. I think I like their offense better than you do. In fact, I know I do. I'm not going to call them a good offense yet, but I see a lot of potential there. I just need Lawrence to play a little better. All right, back to this game. Sorry.

Sutton and Judy, I feel like, are going to be both started in at least 80%, maybe 90% of leagues. How confident are you in Sutton and Judy, Jamie? Must start, guys. You know, I think the fact that they only got seven targets is a little frustrating, but I still think you're talking about Russ at home

in a game that they just lost. They're not going to check down as much as they did last week. So I'm perfectly fine with both those guys. Alberto Okwebonam. He's a borderline start here. So we're not going to start him over Zach Ertz. Would you start Alberto over Cole Komet? Yeah.

Yes. Would you drop Cole commit for Alberto if I'm Owen one I would probably consider it I probably wouldn't but I would start

Alberto over him so I understand if you want to because as we said earlier Jamie if you go on to you are done true Alberto so we like Gerald Everett better

right yes Alberto or Logan True. Alberto, so we like Gerald Everett better, right? Yes. Alberto or Logan Thomas? Alberto. Alberto or Tyler Higby? Higby. All right. Denver DST is top four.

Start them. New England at Pittsburgh. I'm sure everyone's going to start Najee Harris if he plays. I don't know. I think we should wait another day, too, for a practice report before we discuss this, but you're going to start Najee Harris. Deontay Johnson, where do you have Deontay Johnson ranked this week, Heath? Top 20 wide receiver. I'm going to start.

I'm more confident I'm going to start Deontay Johnson than I am that I'm going to start Najee Harris. Yeah, I think people will be, the general public will just start Najee Harris, you know? Oh yeah, I'm sure they will. Jamie, anyone else? There's no time Montgomery. So what does that mean for the Patriots running backs? I want to see what they do first before I say I'm starting either one.

I mean, Harris was involved in the passing game last week, which was encouraging, you know, two catches for 10 yards. Stevenson didn't exactly, you know, separate himself from Harris. So I'll still give Stevenson a slight nod in PPR just because I think that he's going to get that role sooner than Harris gets that role. But, you know, if you think the Patriots are going to win this game, you should like, you should like Damian Harris a little bit. But if you think the Patriots are going to win this game, you should like Damian Harris a little bit. But if you think that they're going to be in a back-and-forth type of game where they struggle, it's probably going to be tougher. Yeah, Harris, high-end flex.

Stevenson, low-end flex. Yeah, Patriots are favorites on the road. Two-and-a-half points, two two-and-a-half points, depending where you're looking. And that's going up. And, yeah, I took the Steelers. I just don't believe in the Patriots, which is a weird thing to say.

But no, T.J. Watt is a huge deal. I mentioned it twice now. I mentioned it again last year. They gave up a full yard per play more when T.J. Watt was not on the field compared to when he was on the field. And that is staggering. I just think you have to throw out

what the Patriots did offensively in week one. They were facing the Dolphins. You can't move the ball against the Dolphins' defense. I agree. The Steelers last year had a dreadful run defense. Terrible. Last week, they were great against Joe Mixon. They gave up a 31-yard run

and other than that, he had 26 carries for 51 yards. And even with the 31-yard run, they did a really good job against Mixon. So we'll keep an eye on that, but this was a great matchup for running backs last year. I can't imagine you're trusting any Patriots wide receivers. And Pickens and Claypool,

Heath, you said something earlier about starting Claypool. What was the context there? Do you like him this week, or is he just kind of desperation? I was starting him over someone I didn't like, I believe. I believe we were talking about people who start over someone we don't like. So yeah, he's a number three-ish wide receiver.

Okay. And so Pickens, by the way, has been dropped. He went from, I think, 84% to 76%. So it's coming from the guy who dropped Justin Jefferson for, what was the guy, what was his name? Who was the running back? Oh, Peyton Barber. We're not going to let you forget that one.

I always forget. From the guy who dropped the running back? Oh, Peyton Barber. We're not going to let you forget that one. I always forget. For the guy who dropped Justin Jefferson after week two for Peyton Barber two years ago, just be patient with rookie wide receivers if you can. And Fryermuth is a start. He's a top 12 tight end. He's seventh for Jamie. I think he's ninth for Heath in PPR,

11th in non-PPR. So we're going back to him. 10 targets, five catches for 75 yards. But the problem is, there were only two tight ends all year that scored double-digit PPR fantasy points against the Patriots. Dalton Schultz had 12.9. Austin Hooper had 12.5.

That's incredible. They did not face good tight ends last year. I will say that. The best one was Schultz, and he had 5 for 79. Actually, they faced Pitts, and he had 3 catches for 29 yards. But this is year after year, guys. This is a tough matchup for tight ends. So I don't know if there's that much more to say,

but Jamie, how do you balance that, the matchup versus what we saw last week out of Friar Muth? The talent pool at tight end right now was obviously a little bit tough to trust. And so, you know, with Komet struggling, with Njoku struggling, with Knox struggling,

I think if you drafted Friar Muth, you're starting him, and hopefully you get that type of target share Komet struggling, with Njoku struggling, with Knox struggling. I think if you drafted Fryer-Muth, you're starting him, and hopefully you get that type of target share like we saw from last week. You know, it's not like Trubisky was throwing the ball over because they had 30 attempts, but, you know, I don't know if that's going to be the norm. But I think, you know, as you start to look at the pecking order here, he might be two behind Deontay Johnson, especially if Najee's

not as involved in the passing game. One of the things that factors pretty heavily into my week-to-week projections is Vegas totals. And last week, the Bears and 49ers had the lowest total at 40.5 and then the weather on Sunday morning drove it all the way down to 38.5.

This game is the lowest of the week right now at 40, which is just, like, for example, the Chiefs and Chargers over under tonight is 54. 40 is exceptionally low. I think there's only one other game close, and that's San Francisco and Seattle at 41. For the most part, oh, Cincinnati and Dallas

at 41.5 as well. So for the most part, if you have borderline guys in games with that low of a total, I'm probably trying to stay away from them. And, you know, just conceptually, if you said to me, hey, do you think there'll be 14 more points in the Chiefs-Chargers game than the Patriots-Steelers game? I would say yes.

Lots more. It's a lot of points, but I would say yes. Okay, which DST do you like better? Steelers. Steelers, 27 points last week. Four interceptions, seven sacks, a touchdown, a fumble recovery. T.J. Watt. Tennessee, are you starting the Patriots DST?

Yeah. They're not a bad streamer. Pats or Panthers? Patriots DST? Yeah. They're not a bad streamer. Pats or Panthers? Patriots. All right. Tennessee at Buffalo. And... The Bills became the first team

to not punt in three of their last four regular season games since punts were tracked beginning in 1939, according to buffalobills.com. That is amazing! Three of their last four games, regular season games since punts were tracked beginning in 1939 according to Buffalo bills.com that is amazing. Three of their last four games. They regular season games. They

haven't punted. All right, Heath, let's lay this game out nice and easy here. Go ahead. Start Derek Henry start Josh Allen, Stefan Diggs, Gabe Davis. I think I'm done.

That's why we saved this game for last. Any interest in Robert Woods, Traylon Burks, or Kyle Phillips? I would be interested in... I am interested in DPPR leagues rostering Kyle Phillips. But you're also interested

in rostering Traylon Burks and Robert Woods yeah oh yeah yes yes that's my favorite

is a flex ish he's a flex ish Singletary or Jaguars or Jets Singletary behind

all but Brees Hall I think I've got Singletary behind all but Breece Hall I think I've got Singletary behind all but Travis Etienne in full PPR in non PPR he's ahead of most of them okay yeah you know I mean you gotta wait and see but after last week

can they just give Devin Singletary the work he deserves what does he have to do to prove it I don't get it after last week. Can they just give Devin Singletary the work he deserves? What does he have to do to prove it? I don't get it. Let's see. There's obviously something he's not doing. I know, but it's so weird because on paper,

he's been a very good running back. And last year when they gave him the keys to the car, he was... On running downs. Yes, yes, yes. 100%. He has not deserved it

to be the pass-catching guy. But he shouldn't be getting eight carries to six for Zach Moss, in my opinion. But on passing downs, it's even not... First off, every down for the Bills is a passing down. True. On passing situations, the fact that Zach

Moss had six catches and Singletary had what? Two. One, two? But I think Singletary ran more routes than him. Okay, but if you're Josh Allen, and there's Zach Moss on a route, and he's throwing to him, and there's Devin Singletary on a route than him. So, okay, but if you're Josh Allen, yeah, Allen was, there's Zach Moss on a route and he's throwing to him and there's Devin Singletary on a route

and he's not. I mean, I'm just not willing to say after one game that that's, that's going to keep happening. I agree with you, but,

but it's worth watching. It, you, you noted this when we had all the James Cook conversations this offseason. How many routes that Devin Singletary ran?

How many running back routes that the Bills ran last offseason? Yeah, he was third. Or last season. And how many times they did not throw the ball to Devin Singletary run? How many running back routes did the Bills run last offseason? Yeah, he was third. Or last season. And how many times they did not throw the ball at Devin Singletary? There's clearly something that Josh Allen's like, nope. He's going to tuck it and run? Or he's going to look someplace else? I think the Bills have a pretty advanced analytics department.

And when you look at the analytics, Devin Singletary has been one of the worst pass-catching running backs when they've thrown to him in the NFL. Sure. You know what? I'm not going to make the case for that. I'm just going to say the running downs. Let's just make him the primary running back. I hope it happens.

That job's taken by Josh Allen. But even in that regard, though, it's like when they get down near the goal line, they have two guys that they seem to trust more than him. The quarterback and Zach Moss. I know. The Zach Moss thing I just don't really get. But you know what? It doesn't matter because we're not starting him anyway. Gabriel Davis

is a top 18 wide receiver in non-PPR, top 25 in full PPR. It will be hard to get away from him. I know that he crushed Allen Robinson last week, but who are you going to start this week? Gabe Davis or Allen Robinson? Davis. Definitely Davis in non-and-a-half PPR. Full PPR, I might have Robinson one spot higher, but Robinson? Davis. Definitely Davis and non and half PPR.

Full PPR, I might have Robinson one spot higher, but probably just Davis. If T. Higgins is out, would you start Gabe Davis or Tyler Boyd? Davis. I would start Davis over T. Higgins. Okay. And that is it for the show.

Oh, no. Dawson Knox. Dawson Knox or Albert L. Dawson not right now? I think when you said, oh, no, Dawson Knox, you said it perfectly. Dawson Knox or Cole Komet? Komet.

Knox in non-PPR, Komet in PPR. Yeah. I'm just going to say one thing about Dawson Knox. If there's a player where what happened the previous week doesn't matter, it's Dawson Knox. There's going to be some horrible weeks, and there's going to be 30 yards and two touchdown weeks. He's going to be annoying to own.

The roster, sorry. All right, let's have some fun on Thursday night. We'll see you at 2 p.m. Eastern for the live stream, and enjoy the game tonight. Chargers and Chiefs should be a fun fantasy affair. Thanks for watching and listening, everybody. We'll talk to you tomorrow on Fantasy Football Today.