The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Dr. Roto's Fantasy Football Feature Week 15

Episode Date: December 12, 2019

Dr Roto joins Matt with his Fantasy Football advice as the NFL Season rolls on into week 15

Who's that really? Sports Talk 790. Happy opening playoff weekend. Good, Dr. How are things? Things are good. I can't believe it's, well, I don't know if it's opening weekend. I think week 14. There are a lot of teams that have playoffs,

but certainly this is a big week for most people. This week and next week is when we win our championships. All right, I'm going to tell you something right now. You have given me the knowledge of don't draft a quarterback to like the sixth or seventh round. I've gone through seven different quarterbacks this year. I'm going first round next year, Dr. Roto. I just got to be able to. Did you make the playoff this year?

Oh, hell no. Well, let me ask you this. How many quarterbacks do you think are worth taking the first round? The Holmes isn't? Maybe only Lamar Jackson. Oh, all right. Speaking of Lamar, let's get right to it. He's going to break the rushing record for quarterbacks, it sounds like, tonight.

Are we a little nervous? You can give me an answer to no, that this could get really ugly and that maybe even though he puts up really good numbers, it could be not great numbers because the fact that this could be a blowout, say, in the fourth quarter of this game? Yeah, I know. I am a little nervous about that. I was just writing an article about that very thing. So, look, the Jets have a very good run defense.

So I don't think this is a huge night for Mark Ingram, but their past defense is terrible. So Lamar Jackson, this is a Hollywood Brown night if I've ever seen one. So Brown should score maybe Sneed. Jackson, of course, it might run one in. So here we are at the end of the third quarter. It could be 30 to three. 30 to 10, some like that, and then they just shut them down in the fourth quarter. If that's the case, you still have to think the Lamar Jackson has 25 to 30 points.

It's the other players that may have good games, just not great games. Let's get to some of the Sunday action now. These Denver Broncos came to Houston, Texas, and embarrassed the Texans last week. Vangio's defense is getting better, but the offense was the one that was putting up the huge numbers. Is there any chance they go to Kansas City and replicate that? And how will the Chiefs do this week against that Bronco defense? Yeah, there's no chance of that. So last week when I was on with Ross, I said, and sadly enough, I was right,

that it was a trap game for the Texans, right? They had just come off that big win against the Patriots, and then they were looking forward to the Titans this week. So the Broncos came in town and they weren't ready. The Broncos played exceptionally well. They really did. But now you've got to go play the Chiefs after a big win like that. Look, Drew Locke has been good.

Cortland Sutton's been good. No offense, it's been exceptional. but you're not being the Chiefs at home, you know, excuse me, the Chiefs on the road with a rookie quarterback. Just not going to happen there. Mahomes is not 100% but watch them expose the Broncos, run defense with Shady McCoy, and watch that. He throws a lot of short passes to Tyree Kill and to Sammy Watkins. New England goes to Cincinnati.

Apparently the Patriots, allegedly, all they would say denied it, were filming coaches of the Bengals. It is what it is. but more importantly, in New England's offense, who are we playing? I mean, Tom's numbers are putrid, the receiving core. I mean, are there any must plays even against the Bengals this Sunday? Well, Julian Nettleman is a must play, right? I mean, this guy's going to get his catchers no matter what.

He's sensational. But you're right, after that, is there anybody who we love? James White? Maybe. I mean, I can tell you this is a Sony Michelle week, but I don't feel warm and fuzzy about it. I think Edelman is the only absolute starter on that team. After that, all these guys, I would look at my roster up and down and make sure I had better options. Look, if the Patriots are winning, they don't need James White. If the Patriots are losing, they don't need Sony-Michel.

And their offense just hasn't been that good, but let me say this, they're going to win this game. I don't think there's any doubt of that. So, I mean, especially after Baltimore win tonight, they're going to want to keep a shot at having the number one seed. So the Patriots will win. Tampa Bay goes to Detroit. The Buccaneers might be the most schizophrenic team in the NFL. They will look amazing against a really good opponent one week and lousy against a sub-opponent. What do you think the Buccaneers' offense can do at Detroit this Sunday?

Well, this all comes down to James Winston's health. So right now he's dealing with a slight fracture in his thumb, and he was literally throwing a tennis ball around in practice today. Now, I have it on good word that Bruce Ariens wants to get him 5,000 yards, and Bruce Ariens wants to finish with a winning record. He really does. So they will be trying. If James is going, they will throw that football.

And I like them. I like this kid Justin Watson a lot. Mike Evans is done for the year. So they're going to go to Godwin. And they're going to go to Brashtaraman. And Watson is better than Paramount. So he would be my number two. You're right about the Buccaneers.

But if there's any team that's going to try, the rest of the way, Bruce Ariens will get the Buccaneers trying. Atlanta goes to San Francisco. and the Niners and Saints last week played a fantasy football dream game. Are we accustomed now to the Niners putting up those kind of prolific numbers? And can they do it for a second straight week

against an Atlanta team that's kind of mailing it in? I mean, they can, but I don't think they will. I think, you know, look, they're going to run the football and they're going to run it a lot. So Rahim Mostert's going to get another 15 carries. I think Matt Brider is going to get another 12 or 13 carries. Kevin Coleman may get 5 to 10 carries.

Jimmy Garoppola will not throw the ball that much this week. They won't need to. They'll play really great defense. Calvin Ridley's out. Remember that for the Falcons. So you have Julio Jones, who I think is going to be shut down. Take a look at a guy named Russell Gage for the Falcons. If you're desperate for a receiver, he may be more involved.

But I think that this is a game that the 49ers will control, and when you control a game, you run more and pass less. All right. Our friends in the North, the Dallas Cowboys at 6 and 7 are still very much in the playoff race in the NFC East. LA has put together a nice little run here after struggling in middle of the season. The Rams defense got exposed in one of those games earlier this year against Tampa Bay. Can Dallas get its mojo back at home offensively against this Rams defense,

or are they playing at a higher level than they were, say, four or five weeks ago? Well, Las Vegas seems to think so. Las Vegas has this game, I think, 48 and a half, and that tells you a lot. So when you want to see whether or not a game is going to be high scoring and not, always start with Vegas over under the numbers. right so that tells you that Vegas thinks that Dak Prescott and Dallas is going to play well they also know that the Rams don't travel well

right there's a big difference between golf on the road and golf at home so I'm an agreement that the Rams defense is playing much better and their offenses jelling better with Brandon Cooksback but look the Philadelphia Eagles are going to win the game against the Redskins so the Eagles so Dallas will know by 4 o'clock if they have to win or not if they need this win it's a must to win for them because otherwise there's no chance that they make the playoffs.

Yeah, but you know what? As you say that, people in Houston don't believe that. Because Dallas has had multiple opportunities to beat opponents, get way ahead of it, and win the division, and they just can't do it. They've been a massive disaster. Look, am I going to play Doc Prescott? I am. Am I going to play Zechia L8?

I am. Am I going to play Cooper and Gallup? I am. So, I mean, Dallas has been a mess. And the fact that Jason Garrett hasn't been fired, that makes no sense to me. I get this guy out of there five years ago. But I mean, Dallas can actually make the playoffs, which is mind-boggling. All they have to do is win this week and beat the Eagles next week.

They're practically in. All right. Speaking of coast-to-coast traveling teams not traveling well, Seattle's 10 and 3, so they can win in any time zone. Carolina has put up some really big numbers despite not winning games. I feel like Seattle, Carolina could be first to 35 wins. Is that fair or do you think it'll be a lower scoring game? Well, once again, Vegas thinks this is going to be a higher scoring.

game, but I think this all comes down to Carolina's willingness to play hard. So last week, they just mailed it in. This week, Chris Carson is going to run for about 1,000 yards this week. I mean, really, Carolinas run defense is terrible, and Seattle wants to pound the ball, and Rashad Penny's not around.

So Chris Carson is an absolute star this week. So I would look to his direction. Carolina, look, I'm worried about Christian McCaffrey. I am. I'm worried about DJ Moore. These are guys who brought you to the fantasy playoffs, and now you need two more weeks from them.

Well, is Kyle Allen going to be the quarterback? Are they going to bring Will Greer in? Are they even playing like they care? So there are a lot of things to worry about here with Carolina. All right. Last game in our segment, this first segment, Minnesota at the L.A. Chargers. The Chargers at home aren't nearly as prolific as they're on the road.

Case in point, they destroyed the Jaguars last week. Minnesota, meanwhile, wants to stay mono-mono with everybody in the NFC North. How do you envision the skill position? players in this matchup? Well, I think this game is going to come down to the two running backs. Austin Echler is in a really good spot. You cannot run against the Vikings defense, but you can throw. I like Philip Rivers.

I like Mike Williams to score another touchdown, and I really love Eckler. On the other side of the football, I'm in love with Dalvin Cook. The charges will not be able to stop Cook. Adam Thieler is expected back for fantasy owners. I would get him to his lineup. Stephon. Diggs, obviously, he's always a play. I don't like on the road as much, but I think this is going to be a competitive game.

The thing is that when you play against the Chargers, it's really, there may be more Viking fans and the fans than Charger fans. So that's kind of disappointed. Yeah, that kind of happens every week down in Los Angeles, at least at that stadium. All right. If you've got a question for Dr. Roto, get it in right now. 713-212-5-790. 7-1-3-212-5-790. You can also tweet at us at SportsMT.

More, Dr. Roto, the primetime games, who he likes and the Texans and the Titans. That's all coming up in the next second. here on Sports Talk 790. First of all, he's a great guy. He's a hardworking guy. It's Matt, and he's back. Brings his lunchtime, Houston, sports talk. The Matt Thomas Show on 790.

Sports Talk 790. We'll get a couple of questions in from you in the audience, if you so choose. It's 713-212-5-790. Let's get to the primetime games, Dr. Roto. First and foremost, Buffalo and Pittsburgh. And I keep up I'm saying prime time with these two teams, but it's happening this Sunday. No, you should be.

These are two pretty good teams. Josh Allen has been much better this season. Devin Singletary is a breakout star, and we haven't seen the start of yet, but I think we will, certainly, next year. John Brown has been great. Cole Beasley coming over from the Cowboys. I think all four of those guys are startable. For the Steelers, Juju is back. I really don't like him this week.

the rest of the team Deontate Johnson is a very good young receiver. It's a very low scoring game, right? This Vegas has this game like around 38. That's very low. Good defenses, not much offense, not much fantasy production here. I would look elsewhere.

Indianapolis and New Orleans, can the Saints put up 42 straight weeks against the Colts team that looks kind of deflated right now? Yeah, I feel badly for the Colts. The Colts are such a well-coached team, but with all the injuries and maybe Hilton's back, maybe he's not. It's just been a hard road for them. The Saints will win the windball a lot. Everybody's start, you know, you start Breeze, you start Kamari, start Michael

Thomas, and you do it happily. All right. Now, Texans and Titans, massive dud last week. Although, from a fantasy perspective, even though the Texans got beat up, Deshawn kind of got some late points doing his thing. I don't envision to be in that kind of game this week, but what do you see from both teams fantasy-wise? Yeah, Vegas has this game in a 50. I mean, they, really believe there's going to be points scored, and as do I. I think the Texans have a really good week this week. I do. I think that the Titans are playing very good football. You start Ryan Tannehill. You start Derek Henry. You start this kid, A.J. Brown, who's a legitimate top receiver. He is. He's young, but he's very good. But for the Texans, I mean, who's going to

stop Hopkins? Tell me the person on the Titans that can stop Hopkins. Nobody. I like Watson. Why, Why Watson? Because if you don't, if you don't rush him, if you don't put pressure on him, if you give him time, he's going to really have a great game. So I don't think the Titans have the pass rush here to deal with him. So, I mean, I think those two guys in particular are good plays. Duke Johnson's always a good play. I don't think this is a Carlos Hyde week. We'll have to see a Fuller's back.

If Fuller is back, I think he makes a big play. But I think there's going to be a very close game. And it's borderline winner take all here. Winner is going to get in the playoffs for short. All right. to a couple of phone callers. Brian and Katie for Dr. Roto. Hi, Brian. Hi, I have a quarterback dilemma. I've got Josh Allen or the quarterback from Detroit, Blau. Yeah, I probably would pick up Fitzpatrick. I do think that the Tampa Bay game is going to be high scoring,

but I don't know if I trust a third quarterback. That's just a tough one there. I think the dolphins are an aggressive team. The Giants defense is bad. I think this will be a higher scoring game. I probably would go with Fitzpatrick. All right. Let's run and say hello to Kevin and Pearland at 1251 on 7-0. Go ahead, Kevin. All right, yeah, I'm in an eight-team league, so embarrassment of riches. Between these four running backs, I need to play three.

I got Carson, Moister, Kareem Hunt, and Melvin Gordon. Yeah, that was Melvin Gordon calling. Yes, I think it was. That's great, great call. Yeah. So against the Vikings, I wouldn't play Gordon. All right. By the way, this is a little grown man tip here, Dr. Roto. You got to be in at least a 10 team league. None of this 18.

You know, look, I get the 18, but man, even 10 is too thin for me. I'm like, really? You got that guys available in your league? That's crazy. Yeah, I'm right there with you. If you don't, if you're not at least in a 12 team league, you got to grab some more friends. Look, I've been in 16 team leagues. Those are crazy, too, too. Yeah, but then you 16 guys are too crazy. Then you have nobody left to pick. Cousins are Tanahill. from somebody on Twitter. Yeah, I'm going to play Tana Hill.

I think he's just, he's done nothing wrong and everything right. And, you know, I mentioned this earlier. There's something called a floor and a ceiling. Sealing is how high a guy can play. And a floor is how low it is, right? How bad it could be. Tanaill's floor is very high.

Right? He's going to get about 230 yards. He's going to get one or two touchdown. That's a bad game. Now, is he ever going to give you the great 350-yard game? probably not, but other quarterbacks are way more volatile. Right, at Kirk Cousins could throw for 178 yards

and one touchdown. Tannahill won't. So that's why he's a better play. All right. Quickly, on Twitter, Parker, Goladay, Slay, Slay, Slayton, Samuel. Which one of those four don't play? Parker, Gowley, Slaten, or Samuel? Yeah, I'm worried about Parker, so we have to watch that closely.

He had a concussion last week. If Parker plays, I'll play him and I'll bench Samuel, but I don't think Parker's going to end up playing. All right. Last call belongs to Gio and Umbalon 790. Hi, Gio. Hey, how's it going? Good.

All right, I got Hunter and Henry or Jack Doyle and also Levian Bill or Michael Gallup. Bell or who is the other one? I think you said Gatlin. Who is that? Who was your last one again? Levian Bill and Michael Gallup. Oh, Michael Gallup. Okay.

That's an interesting one. So I like Michael Gallup this week. I think he's in a good spot. I think Amari Cooper is going to be covered by Jalen Ramsey. So I think this is a Gallup week. I think the Jets are in a big bind tonight. Bill is my favorite player for the Jets. He's the only guy I would start.

But that said, I think this is a Gallup week, and I would use him. What was his other question? Man, you're losing your touch here, Dr. Rod. I got right thing. I'm going to go back. I'm trying to give the best analysis. I couldn't even hear him the first time. Go ahead.

I do like Gallup, and I do like. Tide-in, there were Hunter Henry or Jack Doyle. Yeah, Hunter Henry or Jack Doyle. It's a great question. All right, Jack Doyle was terrible last week. He is going to come back. He's going to be very good. He's basically their only guy outside of Zach Pascal.

I like Henry, but Minnesota covers the tight ends well. So you do it. Before I let you run, one absolute must-play this week. It's Dr. Roto's double lock of the week. Hi, Roto. We had to wait for it. Michael Thomas, the guy's going for a record. He's playing the Colts.

The Colts have nobody who can cover him. The Saints will not lose two games in a row. Breeze will find Michael Thomas. I think it's like 10 for 1.30 and at least one touchdown. And that is, that is Dr. Roto's. Lock of the week. Michael Thomas, where to really go out there, my friend. Way to really stretch it.

All right. You want another one? Real quick. I'll give you one that nobody's ever heard of. Justin Watson. and take a look at this kid for Tampa Bay. I think he makes a few plays this week against Detroit. All right. Tell folks that I can find you.

You can find me at side.com backslash fantasy. You can find me at full-time fantasy. com. Enter the promo code Roto 50 for 50% off your first two months. And, of course, at Twitter at DRROT.