The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Dr. Roto Gets You Set For Fantasy Football Week 8

Episode Date: October 29, 2020

Dr. Roto Gets You Set For Fantasy Football Week 8

Give me the news, I really Let's spend the fastest 30 minutes in Major Market Radio right now with our good friend, the one and only, Dr. Roto on Sports Talk 790. Dr. Roto, please try to sell me on the fact that I want to spend any length of time watching the Falcons and the Panthers tonight.

Then you're not a fantasy football guy, M.T., because if you were, you know there's a lot of guys in this game that you'd want to have. Teddy Bridgewater, Mike Davis, DJ Moore, Robbie Anderson, Calvin Ridley, Julio Jones, who loves Thursday nights, Todd Gurley, Matt Ryan, need I go on? Oh, you know what? You mentioned

Robbie Anderson, a sneaky good eighth round pick by yours, truly, by the way. Not that anybody cares, but I just had to brag on myself for a second. He actually has been really good. You know what? That was a smart free agent signing. He went to his old college football coach who knew exactly

what to do with him and one place to run. You leave Adam Gage, you go to a guy who wants you, and boom, look what happens. Yeah, well, all right, so you've given us plenty of fantasy. All right, so I'll watch it after all. Let's get to some games that we are very curious about. How is Lamar Jackson going to do against the Pittsburgh defense this week in Baltimore?

Look, it's really not a great matchup for him. So firstly, Mark Ingram is not 100%. There's a real good chance he doesn't play this week. So then you've got Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins, who have been dying to see more of this year. The Steelers are very good against tight-end, so it's really not a good week from Mark Andrews. I think the guy who's got the best matchup is Marquis Breast. Hollywood ground. But can Lamar find him? Lamar is a great athlete. I mean, a supreme athlete,

but is he a great quarterback? Not so sure he's going to be running for his life this week. So, I mean, he's a good start, but he's not a great one. All right. Let's get down to South Florida. Tua Tagovaloa is going to make his first start for the dolphins at three and three. Should we expect much different from the skill position players we have what we take from Miami? I mean, look, Tua is very accurate, and he throws a great deep ball. And they, we're going to move on from Ryan Fitzpatrick, but Fitzpatrick didn't do anything wrong. But the Dolphins know the two is the next step, right? But the Dolphins defense has been very good.

You know, I don't like West Coast teams who travel over the East Coast, especially in a short week. I think this has the makings of a Dolphins victory here. You know, the big thing is that Vante Parker is going to be shut down by Jalen Ramsey. So two is going to have to find, whether it's Preston Williams or Mike Iseki or Miles Gaskin, somebody's going to have to step up and make a play if they want to win. I'm really surprised the NFL schedule makers put this game in this spot because the Rams played the Monday night game. It was home, but it's fine. But then they have to travel.

Usually teams that go one direction to the other end of the coast go two days early. It doesn't feel like a real good wrong practice week for the Rams. No, it's not. And I think people need to take advantage of that. So if you choose to put a few dollars down on the game or if you're playing on draft games, you're playing in seasonal leagues. Look, I like the Rams this week, but I don't love them. I mean, I think it's a tough matchup of the Dolphins' defenses. very underrated. So, you know, maybe I play Cooper Cup. Maybe I play Daryl Henderson. After that,

I'm not playing anybody. All right. We know what the Chiefs are going to do. Even they put up points, even on weeks where they get slow things going offensively. Is there anybody on the jet side worth playing at KC on Sunday? Sure. So Michael P. Ryan is getting more, you know, touches. He's a pretty good player. And the Chiefs have not had the best run defense. I think he's interesting. I think this kid, Denzel Mims, who you guys might know well from Baylor, I think he's got some talent. I think he's interesting. Look, the jets are going to get killed. They're going to lose by 25 to 30 points, but I think those guys, if you're looking for some fantasy goodness, I think you can find

it there. We saw firsthand how good Devante Adams was for the Packers. The other receivers kind of got involved because Devante had to take a couple of breaths. Are the Vikings underperforming fantasy-wise, like their record is, or are they kind of doing what they're doing despite the fact they're one in five? No, but I mean, look, the Vikings are a very good defensive team. However, Daniel Hunter is out for the year. Anthony Barr is out for the year. It's a young secondary. They're a bit overmatched. I mean, had they had Hunter and Barr,

it might be a different story. So look, this week, you play Aaron Rogers, you play Devante Adams. I don't think Aaron Jones is going to play. The Packers are very, very, you know, careful with the with their medical team. So I think Jamal Williams plays again. Robert Tanya might actually score this week. And on the

other side, I really do like Dalvin Cook. I think a lot of people are not going to want to play him. But he's back. He's missed two weeks. I think he's ready to go. This seems like a sneaky, high-scoring game. Colts and Lions. The Troits, I think, is a massive surprise at 3-3-3. Are we seeing some of their skill position players performing better than expected? You know, it's a really good call there. I think this game could either be really boring and terrible, or it could really be wide open and high-scoring. It just depends on how it shakes out. Both teams want to run the football, right? Jonathan Taylor's a really good start.

You know, DeAndre Swift's a good start. But both their secondary are really bad too. So is this a week that Kenny Goladay perform as well? Is this a week that T.Y. Hilton finally shows up. So I think it's whichever team is willing to open up their offense first will win, but I do think that Hilton and Goladay are good plays

this week. OBJ is out for the Browns. How does it affect everybody else on that offensive side of things for Cleveland? Look, you're going to think I'm crazy, and maybe you do, but I think that Baker Mayfield's going to be better without Beckham. I do. I think when he was back there, and Beckham demanded the ball, he was forcing

the ball to Beckham. And he was making a lot of bad throws. Now without Beckham there, you've got Rashad Higgins, and Baker's always had a good connection with him. You got this rookie Donovan People Jones, who's very tall and rangy, and you have Jarvis Landry, who's a great route runner. I think the Browns are going to be more efficient. They're not going to be more explosive, but they'll be more efficient. I think you're going to see better numbers from Baker-Mayfield. All right, Dr. Roto's going to be with us to the top of the hour. If you've got a question for Dr. Roto on again the next segment, you can join us at 713-212-5-790. 713-212-5-790. You can also send us some questions at SportsMT and at DR Roto, Dr. Roto.

Back to the noon games on Sunday. You've got the Titans and the Bengals. Is it safe to say that Joe Burrow was the rookie of the year fantasy-wise or is some other candidates in the mix? I mean, Justin Herbert's looking pretty good too. So, I mean, I like both those guys. I will say that this is the game that you want to piece up. I mean, between Tanahill, Derek Henry, A.J. John Huss Smith, maybe even Corey Davis, Joe Borough, Giovanni Bernard, A.J. Green, T. Higgins, Tyler Boyd. I mean, look, I've given you all these guys who should feast in this game. It's the highest-scoring game, according to Vegas. I think it will be in real life, too. All right. Cam Newton's had back-to-back subpar weeks. It's not, I don't think it's coincidental coming off of the COVID. Have we started to abandon skill position players that we're using in fantasy for the Patriots, or can they get right in a place they've had a lot of success over the years in Buffalo?

Yeah, I don't think so. I think the reports are Julian Edelman's going to miss time. He's not 100%. I don't know if he's going to miss the season, but he's going to miss a significant amount of time. So now that you don't have Edelman, you've got Damier Bird, you've got Jacoby Myers. You've got issues there at Receiver. You've got to kill Harry and Cam. Most inaccurate quarterback there is. So I don't like any of these guys. They don't have a tight end to use. So maybe this is a James White week. I mean, they might have to use him more than not. But I really like the bills this week. I think Josh Allen has to play better. I think Stefan Diggs is going to stay. step up. The bills want to be the AFC champions. Go out win this week. All right. You mentioned Justin Herbert and the Chargers. Who has benefited mostly from his taking over the starting quarterback spot there? The entire team. I mean, he's really good. I, you know, I don't think that I even in my wildest dreams thought this guy was going to be as good as he is. I think Keenan Allen has seen a big spike. The problem is that Mike Williams has all sorts of talent, but they don't open it up enough for Allen and Hunter Henry and Mike Williams. So Keenan Allen, a great start. I think Hunter

Henry's a really good start this week. I think the running game is always a good start because Anthony Lynn likes to run the football. So Joshua Kelly, Justin Jackson. On the other side of the ball, I mean, this is a Melvin Gordon revenge narrative. I love it him this week. All right. Seahawks are 5-1 with maybe one of the five worst defenses

in the NFL. Does that mean the Niners were going to load up on their players this week when they go up to Seattle? Yeah, it's a good question, but look, they've been out without Jamal Adams who's only the best safety in football, right? So when he's not there, our teams feast on the Seahawks. They just signed

the trade for Carlos Dunlap from the Bengals. He's pretty good. I think their defense's going to get better. But this week, you know, Adams still could be doubt and Dunlop's not playing because of COVID. I love George Kittle this week. I love Brandon I youth this week.

But the question is, do we trust Jimmy G. Jimmy G is so material. Some weeks is really good. Some weeks it's really bad. Is it a good one? I don't know. But I know the guy I want to start in this game. D.K. Metcalfe.

All in on him. All right. You know, I don't trust this Bears' record at 5 and 2. Are you with me on this? How are they going to suit up fantasy-wise against the Saints? Yeah, this is the worst five-and-two team in the history of football. I mean, come on. Nick Foles is terrible.

He hasn't called a good play in weeks. Alan Robinson has concussion issues. I just don't know what the points are coming this week. I really don't. Maybe Cole Komet, who looked pretty good. I love the Saints this week with or without Michael Thomas. Love Alvin Kamar this week. Drew Breeze knows how to go and win games like this.

The Bears have a really good defense. I get that. Their offense is putrid. All right, we're going to go to the Sunday night game, the Monday night game, and then start taking some of your responses. If you've got a question for Dr. Roto, again, 713-212-5-790, 7-1-2-790 through Twitter at SportsMT, and at Dr. Roto, more with Dr. Roto to the top of the hour here on Sports Talk 790.

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Let that boring brown bag lunch rot in the employee refrigerator. Oh, what's that smell? The Matt Thomas Show on Sports Talk 790. Our good buddy, Dr. Roto, with us to the top of the hour. If you got a question for the good doctor, get your fantasy football line set up. 713-212-5-790. 7-13-212-5-790. And you can ask your questions through Twitter as well at SportsMT.

All right, good doctor. Let's go to a couple more games where we get to the phones, and we'll start with the Sunday night matchup. You've got, well, a sucky matchup. I mean, Dallas against Philadelphia. the reason why this game hadn't been flex because Dallas, no matter what their record is, grabs television viewers. They're a hot mess with a quarterback situation. How damaging has it been for anybody that's had a skill position player for Dallas to see

all the movement on that offensive side of the football? I mean, it's really brutal. You drafted Z. Gelliot probably with a third overall pick, and he's terrible. And C.D. Lamb had a big goose egg last week. Michael Gallup feels cuttable. Amari Cooper, who actually looked good. He gets to play Darius Slay this week. Good luck with that, Amari.

So there's just nobody I really like. I guess it's Ziciel Elliott because, I mean, I think Ben Zanucci's going to be the quarterback. They're going to have to hand the ball off about 47 times. I think for the Eagles you play Boston Scott, I think Dallas Goddurt may return from the IR this week. He's interesting. And Travis Fulkin has been pretty darn good this year. So I think if he's out there in any leagues, pick him up. All right.

And the Monday night matchup, boy, Tom Brady has no reservations about jumping on the road and going to play. They crushed Las Vegas last week. They're going to the other end of the country to play the Giants this week. Tom's heating up just at the right time for fantasy owners, does he not? Yeah, look, I mean, Brady's great, and I think the biggest fear here is what happens when Antonio Brown returns. Chris Godwin's out. He had surgery in his fingers. He's probably going to be out next week as well. I don't love Mike Evans this week. He's going to see James Bradbury.

That's a tough matchup. So the question is, is Scotty Miller helping? Rob Gruncowski, Leonard Fournett. I mean, the Bucks are going to win this game. They're better than the Giants. It's just going to be a lot of guys you may not have heard of who are going to be putting up the box score numbers because I'm not sure this is an Evans week. It could be Rojo. It could be four net. It could be Miller. It could even be a Cameron-Brate sighting. But, I mean, the

buccaneers are clearly that's a better team. Is Gronk? Where is he, if he's a hundred, if Grock is a 10 as a New England Patriot, what is he as a Buccaneer so far fantasy-wise this year? Six, which is, you know, look, tie-ins is a wasteland. Yeah. There's a lot of bad tight ends out there, so you'll live with a fix. For sure. I've been bouncing through four or five ten. It's not been a great year at that particular position. Let's get to the phone. Seven 23-212-5-790. We'll start with Sam and Austin for Dr. Roto on 7-90. Hello, Sam. Hey, how's it going? I have a quick question, either Tyler Boyd or Devonte Parker. And then I have been Roppeltsberger starting, but I'm looking at the pre-agents, and I have Derek Carr or Teddy Bridgewater.

Which one out of those two, if anything, would I replace Roppelberger with? Yeah, you're going to want to start Teddy Bridgewater against the Falcon. who've let everybody throw against them. I mean, I would think Teddy's going to go for close to 250 and two with three touchdowns tonight. Look, Devonte Parker is going to see Jalen Ramsey. That's a bad matchup. Tyler Boyd is playing the Titans. You saw what Juju Smith-Schuster did to the Titans.

Titans do not cover the slot receiver well. You'd want to get Tyler Boyd in your lineup. Did we underestimate Teddy Bridgewater this year? Well, I think we underestimated the competency of Matt Rule and Joe Brady. Joe Brady was the offensive coordinator at LSU. Look what he did with Joe Burrow. Matt Rule was one in college. much before. Teddy Bridgewater, yeah, I think we saw him as a game manager, but he's better than

that. I mean, he's not a superstar, but he's pretty good player. All right. Let's continue on. Mike on line two for Dr. Roto on 7-90. Go ahead, Mike. Yeah, a quick question. Should I start DJ Moore or Cooper Cup? Yeah, I mean, look, Cooper Cup is probably the guy with the best matchup there, but I mean, I think you start the guy on the better game. I mean, Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons should be a high-scoring game. Now, look, people are going to talk about the rain tonight. Rain doesn't bother me, okay? These guys have played in rain before.

The offense always knows where they're going, and these are two not-so-great defenses. So I'm okay playing DJ more. I got to tell you something, Rodel. I think weather is the most overrated thing out there. I'll give you case in point. The Denver Kansas City game last week in Denver. I have Pat Mahomes in one of my leagues as a quarterback. Sluggish start first half.

he still put up comparable numbers, not like amazing five touchdown days, but good offenses, good quarterbacks, no matter what the conditions are, really with the exception of, I think, really, really windy, out-of-control wins, they're going to put up their numbers, are they not? Absolutely. So, I mean, that is the one thing, M.T., it's the win. So if it's like 30-mile-an-hour wins, maybe they're only throwing 10-12-yard passes and not the deep-ball. But rain, snow, one of my best fantasy games of all time was when the Eagles' played in the game. I can't remember who they played against where there was like 20 inches of snow. I had Nick Fulze and LaChairne McCoy. They put up like 80 fantasy points for me. And I was like,

should I play him? Should I play him? I played him. It made me a rich guy that weekend. All right. Before we get to your lock of the week, I want to ask you, if the Texans make some moves, Kenny Stills moves, Will Fuller, maybe Randall Cobb. What do you think about their second half of the seasons if there were different football teams? Because you're presuming they're going to go to a team that is in desperate need of a wide receiver. Right, but I mean, I don't know how you're better when you trade Will Fuller. I know he's at injury history, but he is very talented. I don't know how you're better when you trade Randall Cobb.

Randall Cobb is a solid receiver, and Watson needs weapons, right? I think this Isaiah Colter is going to be a good player, but I don't mind giving up stills, but let's not give up the farm. I don't think the Texans are far away. I think they're just certain pieces away. Maybe a good, you know, a good linebacker. maybe another guy in the offensive line. I think they just need some better coaching.

I think O'Brien needed to go way before the season. I mean, they lost from the beginning. So I think if the Texans panic, it's going to be a big mistake. See, I'm actually, I'm going to completely disagree with you on what you just said. And I actually want to know about what those players could look like in different uniforms. Would you start them a little sooner if they were wearing, had that a different signal caller throwing the passes to them? Well, you know, look, with COVID, they've got to sit out a few days. then they have to go and learn somebody else's playbook.

So can Will Fuller thrive anywhere? Yes, because he runs great patterns and he's super fast. So I think he can thrive anywhere. I think Randall Cobb may not be able to thrive anywhere. It may take him some time to learn the routes and what they, what he's, because he's more of a timing guy. So I think Fuller goes anywhere and succeeds. All right.

And last question for getting to the lock. LeBion Bell, long-term in Kansas City this year. What are you expecting? Well, you're stealing my lock of the week, MTV. Well, wait a minute. I don't mean to do that to you then. Let's slow play this then. So I'll forget I even ask that question.

Ladies and gentlemen, I ask Dr. Roto once per week to give us a player or two D. He thinks absolutely going to crush in the fantasy football world. We call that Dr. Roto's. Hard to fathom what it possibly could be lock of the week. Exactly. How do you not like Levi on Bell scoring a touchdown this week? And then when he gets the ball, he takes it and he spikes in front of Adam Gase's face and says, take that. I mean, look, so you're asking about Levi-on-Bell, he's probably going to get.

at 10 to 15 touches. And I think Clyde Edward Talar get somewhere between 10 and 12 touches a week. They will coexist. I think Bella's more of the touchdown goal line guy. I think Edward Tiller will get a few more receptions. I think both these guys become good

fantasy players, but no stars anymore. And that, my friends, is Dr. Roto's Block of the Week. Where can we find you this weekend, Dr. Roto? You could always find me at Twitter, my friend, at DRROTO. Nero leave it there. Have a great weekend. talk to you again next Thursday. All right. Take care.

You got it. The one, the only Dr. Roto with us here, fantasy football guru, extraordinary here on Sports Talk 790. Dana Holgerson coming off the win against Navy and a good matcher with UCF this Saturday. We'll talk with him next to start the final hour of the Matt Thomas show, 156 on Sports Talk 790.