The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Dr. Roto Gets You Ready For Fantasy Football Week 3

Episode Date: September 24, 2020

Dr. Roto Gets You Ready For Fantasy Football Week 3

Earl's it down. Hey, it's Daniel House. Listen to Rockets Radio on your smart speaker. Alexa, play Sports Talk 790 on Iheart radio. Give me the news, I really. And let's get to the good doctor here on Sports Talk 790. Dr. Roto is a proud resident of Fort Myers, Florida.

What are you about halfway between the dolphins and Jaguars? How is the state split tonight in this Titanic NFC matchup? I'm pretty far from the Jaguars, and I'm not sure the state is split. I think the state wants to see Tom Brady play a little better. But one of the O's has to go tonight, the Mighty Minchus are going to play the Dolphins. I kind of love the Dolphins a little bit tonight. And I'd like Mike Kiseki. So if you're going to play him, DJ Chark, as are going to be out.

And Keel and Cole is interesting. And James Robinson should have a very good day rush in the football. Have we been teasing the Jaguars too much? Garner Minchu hasn't had a bad start of the season, has he? No, he's been great. And I think that, look, they're behind in most games. so they have to play comeback offense. And MNchu is not afraid to throw the ball downfield.

Robinson's been a revelation now that they got rid of Four Nets. And, you know, Char is a good player when healthy, got hurt last week. But Cole has really stepped up. And Leviska-Shanalt, if you don't know this guy, he's like a Percy Harvin pipe where he can catch about four or five passes. And then they've given balls to, you know, end around and sweep like four or five times. So he's an exciting young player. I want to spend some time talking about O and two teams

because I'm always curious about where they are fantasy-wise, because as we know, fantasy doesn't care when it comes to team records. Let's start first with the Eagles. What are we finding here with the Eagles off to an 0-and-2 start and where their players are from at least a fantasy perspective? Well, the Eagles' prom is their offensive line is decimated. So they've really struggled to run the football and to give Wend's protection. And their receivers are injured, right?

Jeffrey's been out. Now Jalen Rakers out probably until week nine. So Miles Sanders is a great matchup this week against the Bengals. I really like him. You've got Zach Ertz and Dallas Goddard. Went should have more time to throw the football. So I think this should be a good week for the Eagles to play much better. All right.

The Vikings are all into. The Texans will see them next week. The Vikings missing Stefan Diggs? What's going on with them so far? Well, look, the Vikings are stubborn in that they've got one good receiver and Adam Steele. But you're not going to win with B.C. Johnson. You're not going to win.

win with Kyle Rudolph. You're not going to win with Irv Smith, Jr. But you draft a guy named Justin Jefferson, and you've got to let him play. You've got to put them out there because right in that team's loading up and the Vikings offense is silent. Rodo, you're there. Go ahead, Rodo. Hello? Yeah, there. You're back. Go ahead.

Oh, I'm sorry. So, you know, you've got to take more chances on offense. And if you don't do that, it's a big problem. And the Vikings aren't going to win games with a boring offense. Well, 11 points certainly would be the definition of boring. Let's go to another 0-and-2 team. Actually, we'll go with a one-in-one. You mentioned Tom Brady, the Buccaneers.

What is Tom Brady's history going into Denver? And the Broncos and the Patriots play together bolt-loaded times, I'm assuming in playoff games. What do you think is going to happen for him this week as they go to the Broncos? They have a decent defense, but just not putting much things up offensively. I think this is a really good matchup for Brady and his receivers. Okay? So Bryce Callahan is about 5 foot 8.

He's going to be covering Mike Evans. Right? So Mike Evans has an immediate matchup advantage. Chris Godwin has an advantage, and we really haven't seen him since week one. So I've got to think that between Evans and Godwin, Brady should be able to throw the football. Hopefully we'll see multiple touchdowns from him. And the other good thing is this. The Buccaneers run defense is terrific.

Melvin Gordon will struggle running the football, and that'll put Jeff Driscoll into bad situations, which should mean a lot of turnovers. All right. The Niners were in New York or at MetLife Stadium and lost like half their team for a few weeks. They're there again this week to play the Giants. How skittish do you think the Niners are going to be to try to move down the field when they don't trust the turf? Yeah, I mean, it's kind of pathetic that you can't have more trustworthy surfaces in the NFL.

Look, I like Derek McKinn in the street. He will be one of the running backs. I like this guy, Jeff Wilson, who will be their goal line back. So let me talk to you about this. If you're in a PPR format, I think you can play McKinneman with full confidence. If you're in a standard format, Jeff Wilson is very sneaky this week. He will get carried. All right, let's go to some surprise two and O teams.

The Chicago Bears had to be the top of that list. How are they performing in a fantasy world? They're performing okay. I think this week, though, you're going to shock what I'm going to say. The Falcons run defense is good. All right, Grady Jarrett and those guys, they're going to stop David Montgomery. So now the football goes into Mitch Trubisky's hands, and Mitch is going to have to step up. Now, the Falcon's secondary has been terrible, but can Mitch Trubisky have another good week?

If he can find Alan Robinson, if he can find Anthony Miller, then I think they will be successful again. But if he resorts back to the old Trubisky, then the Falcons might surprise and win. Will Ryan Tannihill throw for four more touchdowns in a particular game any time between now and the end of the season? Yeah, I don't know, but the guy went 18 for 24, and he's just dead. very accurate and doesn't make a lot of mistakes. So look, it's all based around the run game. A.J. Brown's going to most likely be out. You've got John O'Smith. You got Corey Davis.

You got Adam Humphreys. They figure out a way to win each week, right? It's not a sexy offense outside of Henry, but they figure out a way to win each week. Dr. Ordo, there was an impromptu quarterback change with the Chargers because of an improper shot. They hung tight with Kansas City. Can they get fat and happy off of the Panthers defense this week? Well, yeah, because the Panthers have the worst run defense in football. So Austin Echler, he's a guy you want to play for sure.

Joshua Kelly. If the listeners don't know about him, you better know about Joshua Kelly. He's their goal line back, and he's legit. So look, I respect Tyrod Taylor. I think he's a hard worker. I think he's good in the locker room. But the truth is, I don't think you're winning a Super Bowl of Tyron. Justin Herbert's the future of this franchise.

He's mobile and he's got a much better on than Tyrod Taylor. I really like Keenan Island out of Good Week. Great Sunday night matchup. Packers, 2-0, the most prolific offense, probably in the league right now. The Saints are giving up a boatload of points, case in point at the game against the Raiders on Monday. How do you see this one fair and out? You know, I hate to say this because Drew Breeze is a future Hall of Famer, but I think his arm may be shot. I mean, he was not throwing any out patterns to Emmanuel Sanders. Everything was like over the middle, five, ten yards, trade for him.

Smith, Alvin, Kamara. You know, I think that team is much better when Michael Thomas is there. Obviously, you know, he's the best receiver in the game. I think if Devante Adams is playing, the Packers should have a big advantage between Aaron Jones and Adams and this kid Alan Luzard, who I like a lot. I think the Packers are playing pretty good football right now. All right.

The Dallas Cowboys put together an amazing second half comeback against Atlanta. They're taking on a significantly better football team. Can we trust Dallas to put up those type of numbers this week, which they did in the second half of last week's game against the Falcons? Well, that second half was crazy. I mean, that may have been one of the worst on-side field goal return teams I've ever seen. You've got to go after the football. So look, Dallas did a great job, and now they're playing Seattle, two teams with bad secondaries.

So I like Tyler Lockett. I like D.K. Metcalf. I like Michael Gallop a lot. I know a lot of people don't want to play him after last week's disappointment. I like him for a contrarian week. C.D. Lamb, the Seahawks' slot corner, has been terrible all year. I think C.V. Lamb has a good week. You start that game with full confidence.

All right. We come back. We'll get to the Monday night game between the Chiefs and the Ravens. We'll get to the Texans and Steelers. And then we'll start taking your phone calls. You've got any questions for Dr. Roto. Two ways to get them in. One is on the phones. 713-213-212-5-790. 7-13-212-5-790. Or you can tweet a question to us at SportsMT or at Dr. Roto.

We'll get those answers in for you in just a couple minutes. Houston lunchtime sports conversation most respected by head coach Bill O'Brien. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Matt Thomas. In his career here in Houston. Of sorts. The Matt Thomas Show. Our buddy, Dr. Rodo, with us to the top of the hour on Sports Talk 790. 713, 212, 5-790, 7-1-3-212-5-790.

Good doctor. where are we going to see every position player, every skill player for both the Chiefs and Ravens scoring this week, are we expecting a defensive surprise? I wouldn't say a struggle, but perhaps a small defensive surprise. I mean, that's a tough question. I wouldn't bench anybody. Somebody asked me, should I bench Pat Mahomes for Gardner-Minchu? No, you don't bench Lamar.

You don't bench Mahomes. You don't bench Andrew Tillera. You let the game play out. I think it should be a high-scoring game. I think I would say somewhere like 3428, but should be a great game, and looking forward to watching it. So nobody, everybody that you normally play plays, right, basically. Yeah, you can't get cute. When you start to get cute with the best teams, it becomes a mistake.

So don't overthink it. I even like Mark Graham. I wouldn't play Jim K. Dobbins, but I would play Kelsey. I play Andrews. I play Marquise Brown. I play Edward Tillar. Play your stars. All right.

Let's get to the Texans and the Steelers. David Johnson, Roto, was pretty good in week one against Kansas City, a non-factor last week against the Ravens. How do you envision him for week three? Yeah, I don't like this matchup. I think if Fuller's not there, it's a real mess. So, I mean, I guess you have to play David Johnson because he's still going to touch the football 20 times. But, man, if he had 42 yards rushing and, you know, two receptions for 10 yards, it wouldn't shock me. And then, you know, the other thing is that I think the Texans, they've been gassed with the run.

So I've got to believe that they're going to try to do what they can to stop James Connor. Well, if you stop James Connor, now Ben Rathesburg is going to throw up for three touchdown to Juju Smith-Schuster and Deontay Johnson. So, man, the Texas has had a bad matchup this week. Steelers are playing good football. And I just wouldn't, I don't feel comfortable starting anybody out from the Texans this week. But it sounds like you want everybody to load up on Pittsburgh players. I would. I really would.

I mean, look, I think Ben was probably the best value fantasy quarterback this year. I think Johnson is a fantastic route runner and receiver. Juju's back to being the Juju that we know and love. And if you roster either of these guys, if you've got Deontay Johnson or you have Juju Smith-Shooster, you might want to roster a guy named Chase Claypool. This guy is their backup, and he is big, he is tall, he is fast, and he is talented. Well, Houston, you hear it from Dr. Roto,

not only from a fantasy perspective or maybe from a game scores perspective about how things might work Sunday in Pittsburgh. Let's go to some phone calls. 713-212-5-790. 7-1-3-21-5-7-90. Manual for Dr. Roto on 7-90. Hello, Manuel. Hey, hello, Matt.

I have a quick question for you, Dr. Roto. I have two questions real fast. I have Munchu or Ryan. Who should they start? Look, I like Gardner mentioned. He's done a great job, but Matt Ryan, is sensational and even years, this guy is always still in the football

for close to 4,800 yards and tons of touchdown. I'm not going to get up in that Ryan train right now. Is Atlanta one of those teams that, you know, has underperformed the last couple of years, but they just at the end of the day, if you grab a Falcon player, more times than not, they're going to help you out fantasy-wise?

Well, that's the difference between fantasy and reality. I mean, the Falcons haven't been much for the Super Bowl, you know, appearance, but fantasy-wise, they're terrific. Calvin Ridley's arguably the best receiver in all fantasy football. Russell Gage has been sensational. Hayden Hurst, it looked good. I don't really like Todd Gurley,

but terms of the passing game with Matt Ryan and Julio Jones, and those guys, they're sensational. Got an email him from Jason. Should he drop J.K. Dobbins for Mike Davis, Miles Gaskin, or Joshua Kelly? Well, look, Mike Davis has a life expectancy. It's about a month. With McCaffrey out, he's a very good player.

Not this week I'm a little worried because the charges have a great run. defense. But he's a good pass catch out of the backfield. I mean, he had eight receptions in the second half last week. So, I mean, Davis is a guy that you might want a roster. I like Kelly Moore in terms of the entire season, but for the next four weeks, I like Mike Davis. Let's go to Corey Med Center on 790 for Dr. Roto. Hi, Corey. Hey, fellas. How are you doing today? Good. I'm taking my call. You got it. Good. Hey, Rodo, I got a running back and a receiver. My running back question is Joe Mixing or Chubs.

And on my receiver question, I have Julio in the lineup, but I have Diggs on the bench. Do I need to bitch, bitch Julio? Because he cost me last week. Thanks take my call, fellas. You got it. Yeah, you got it. Look, it's never personal. Julio didn't mean to Screw your fantasy team.

And he dropped a wide open pass from Russell Cage. I mean, that would have been a highlight reception for a long time. But I think Julio came up lame on that play. I really do. I think he may try to play, but I think he's going to be way more of a decoy this week than an actual star. So I would be very careful. Let's watch that closely. When it comes to 1145 on Sunday morning, let's see what we want to do with Julio.

We've got to be very careful there because I think he may be out there in body but not put up the fantasy production. I forgot to ask you some earlier. Last week we're watching the Browns and the Bengals play. And Drew Sample might have been Joe Burroughs' favorite target. Was he drafted in most fantasy leagues? And where was he? And how big of a surprise has that tied-in been for the Bengals so far? Well, look, the Bengals have issues.

You've got a young quarterback who has a lot of upside. Joe Mixon, so back to his last call, you know, hasn't been great. I think he should be a little bit better this week. Drew Sample came out, and it was the perfect storm for him because that defense was letting a lot of receptions for the tight end. So I happen to like Drew Sample this week as well. Look at what Tyler Higbee did last week to the same team, to the Eagles. Right, three touchdowns.

And I'm not saying Drew Sample is going to have three. touchdown. But if he had 45 yards of feeding the touchdown, I wouldn't be shocked. Darius Slay is going to be covering A.J. Green. I like Tyler Boyd this week too. So Joe Burroughs going to have his good days and as bad days. That's what happens when you have a rookie as your

quarterback. Let's go next to Longest Wait. Austin and Cyprus on 790. Austin, good afternoon. Two quick questions on quarterback. Two different things. One team Aaron Rogers or Ben Rostersberger who should start. The other

one, Gardner Minchall or Drew Brise? Yeah, I think I'm going Minchew over Breeze. I don't trust Breeze right now. I think they're more of a running team. In terms of Rogers and Ben, man, that's a really tough one. I like them both. I think they both have great matchups. I think I might lean toward Ben.

I really do. I think that there's no way that this Texan secondary can keep up with the Steelers' receivers. It's just a complete mismatch here. And as much as I want to see, the Texans start to play well, it's a bad week to face Ben Rothusberger. Rathosberger at his heyday. Where is he fantasy-wise?

What's he a week-to-week basis? I'm not counting last year because he was hurt, and this year he hadn't had to do a whole lot. So tell me, realistically, if Ben Rothersberg is your fantasy surprise, what kind of numbers are you thinking about? I mean, look, Ben-Rothersberger has always been a QB-1, maybe one of the lower ones, number 10 to 11-12,

but he's always been a starter in a fantasy league. Look, what makes Ben special is the guys around him. So you've got James Connor. You've got Juju Smith-Sewster. You've got Deontze Johnson. You got this kid Claypool. You got Eric Ebron. He's got weapons.

It's not like he has nobody out there with him. So look, you could have the best quarterback with the worst weapons or a very good quarterback with great weapons and it makes a guy better. So I think Ben is in a good position. And more importantly, they play with pace. And people need to understand what pace means. It means they get more plays in. More plays, more production, more production, more fantasy.

points. All right, before I wrap things up, we ask you once a week to come on this radio show and give us the absolute no doubt about it, fantasy stud of the week. We call that Dr. Rottos. Lock of the week. Yeah, there's a lot of guys I like. I like Miles Sanders this week, but I think this is a Kenyan Drake week. I know people are liking Kyler Murray and I am too and DeAndre Hopkins, but, man, I think

they need to get Drake involved in this offense more than they have. Look at what Aaron Jones did against the lines last week. I think, can your drink? It's 100 yards rushing and lock him in for a touchdown. And that, my friends, is Dr. Roto's lock of the week. Where can people find you this weekend? You can absolutely find me at sI.com. That's Sports Illustrated.

And then you can find me there. We have a great football fantasy, S-I-Fantasy Plus product. It's wonderful. I highly recommend it. You can always find me at Twitter at DRR-R-O-T-O. Very good. Dr. Roto, have a great rest of your week, and enjoy the Battle of the Sunshine State tonight.

All right. Talk to you soon, my friend. You got it. That's the one and only Dr. Roto with us here on Sports Talk 7.10.