Building Your Playoff Roster

was really nice. Yeah yeah, Well, I you have to work your way through to the foot butler. Yeah, yeah, exactly. The first one is just password. Then you have to then you have to defeat the second one an armed battle, and um I killed him with a trident. Very impressive. Well, Ron Burgundy and then uh, the third butler, Uh, if you don't get past him, he releases the hounds. Oh yeah, so we're very big on released hounds here, scraps and peppers.

They're brutal, really brutal, very much so. Last week's Fantasy Football Weekly, we talked about all the different kinds of playoff formats that people have got and you know, ways to play in the playoffs. We love playoff fantasy football and um so then following up that now is when everybody's building their roster this week. I just I just submitted my roster to your game in the last last few minutes in which I went back and forth lots

on and so it's tough. You gotta play out the bracket, right, you do? I think you don't know what we're doing in this That is what we're doing for you. So I think the best advice we can give people is to help you look at how many games each team is gonna play, then identify the players you want from each team. So what I've challenged you with and myself is give me the number of games you think each team is gonna play. And then I asked for a chalk player from every team, like who's the obvious guy

to take? And a lot of these playoff formats, Matt, I'll let you take anybody like you know, just give me one player from each of the fourteen teams. But if you're in a big enough pool, you have to go against the chalk sometimes sometimes, so then we've got the hunch player. You got a chalk player and a hunch player. And that's how we'll that's how we'll structure

this show. Very excited and if we have time at the end, I want to talk to you about the Music Fantasy League that I've just found out about it. I'm very excited about that. Okay, so let's start with this first is Um, I've done two brackets. I did a chalk bracket, like you know, if this thing plays out mostly to form, here's I'll probably go. And I played did one that was a hunch bracket. So let's start with Kansas City. How many games do you have

Kansas City playing? I think they will play to two. I have two or three. Yeah, they're gonna win their first round game and then they are going to win their first round probably. Yes. Um, I've got them playing Jacksonville in the first round of as I've got Jacksonville winning. So we think two and three. That puts a lot of chiefs into play. But two is not Two is not the magic number here. We really want to find threes and four threason four is is the magic number.

And and that's why for me, when building playoff rosters, if you don't have to take a player from every team in the first round, like if you're able to switch and stuff. I don't want to take that many guys on the Eagles and the Chiefs right now, those are teams that can play at most three games, you know, So there's there. They don't have the upside of some of the four teams that we'll talk about in a minute. So who's your chalk player from Kansas City? I think

it would have to be Jalen Hurts right now, Kansas City? Sorry, oh, kans Oh sorry, okay. I went to the other one seed, Patrick Mahomes. Of course, Travis Kelsey. I thought I can find other good quarterback. Yeah, I think you're You're right. It's it's definitely Kelsey. I mean he's the tight end difference maker. If you look at the pool of tight ends, there's George Kittle, There's t J. Hockenson, there's Dallas Goddard, and then it drops off significantly. So Travis Kelsey's going

to be very chalky, all right. And then the hunch player. Do you want to stick with your awesome December call? Jrrick McKinnon is your hunch player? Do you want to go somewhere else? No? I think I will. He's he's just been awesome. He's been involved so many touches in the passing game and the running game, and they've been really quality. They're splitting him with Pacheco pretty evenly. But

I like the way this goes. And I personally have the Chargers beating the Jaguars this this week, which would put the Chargers there. And Chargers are terrible to get the run, and so I would be looking at those Kansas City running backs. All right, I think the super hunch player would be Patcheco because McKinnon and McKinnon can't physically keep this up with the receiving touchdowns. It's never happened before. We're in, you know, like never before territory.

All right, let's go to the Let's go to the number two seed in the FC. I'm just doing the FCS first. The number two seed, Buffalo. How many games you got here? I think they're going to the super Bowl. I do too. I've got him as a four game team, so that means you and I have are loading up rosters on Buffalo Bills players. I believe. So, I think Buffalo and San Francisco are the two teams most likely

to play four games. I think you can probably agree with me, correct all right, So who's your chalk player for San Francisco, sorry for Buffalo. Josh Allen is the choc. The entire offense just runs right through him. Give me your hunch player. Uh, the hunch player. You gotta go. Gabe Davis, I think because of just what he did against Kansas City in that playoff game last year, big moment came stepped up big that the NFL just did announce that that neutral site game, if it's Kansas City Buffalo,

will be held in Atlanta. I hadn't heard that, but that was my early That was my early pick was Atlanta. That so, uh, the fact that Buffalo won't have to go on the road for a true road environment game, I think that that plays well into into their uh, their ability to make the Super Bowl as well. Uh. Gabe Davis has a wonderful matchup this week. Oh man, everybody, everybody's got a wonderful matchup. By the way, Miami's outside

cornerbacks are awful. So Buffalo is a thirteen and a half point favorite right now with Skylar Thompson and I kind of like Skylie Thompson um in the last eleven games where a playoff team was double digit favored. The They have covered ten of the last eleven times, so that's that would bode well for Gabe Davis as well. Let's go to the three seeds Cincinnati. How many games do you have Cincinnati playing well? They have won eight

straight not not not too shabby at all. I'm unfortunately I got them planned too, because if they win, they go to Buffalo, and I think that that's that's the stopper right there for them. That will be a very emotional game, obviously the one that was canceled just a couple of weeks ago. Damar Hamlin will be in the house. It'll it'll be a raucous crowd in Buffalo, and I think that the momentum is going Buffalo's way and that one. Yeah, I have a two and a three in my two.

I have a chalk is too, just three games for Cincinnati. It's a good team. Your chalk player for Cincinnati, I think you'd have to go Jamar Chase. Yeah, yep. My hunch player was Tee Higgins. I just think people forget T Higgins and in any game he can put up more and better numbers than Jamar Chase. Yeah. I mean, and the the other one that I think this guy's way off radar. But if you've got to go cheap at tight end, if you're in a salary cap related league,

Hayden Hurst kind of an interesting guy. He'll be way off the radar. And if if you're not going to go Travis Kelsey, go with a guy who's got a little bit of a track record, can play and and tight ends tend to get focused on a little bit in these playoff series when it's really tight, down and down into the game. I'm not taking Joe Mixon. No, I'm not either. It's been so up and down more down. It's just the eye test. That guy looks cooked. Your

four seat in the AFC's Jacksonville. How many games you have Jacksonville playing I alluded to a little bit earlier. I think they only play one. Even though they've won five straight, including wins over Detroit in Tennessee, which are quality wins, knocked them out of the playoffs, and they beat Dallas and that shootout win in like week fifteen. Problem is that they're the youngest playoff team left and they don't have a lot of playoff experience on that roster.

So I just think that they've been winning, playing good d against some teams that don't necessarily have good offenses, and I think that's Detroit. Well, they those are teams that can score points. Those were early the last three games where they've given up like three points. Three points. It's been like Tennessee and a couple of other junk teams. So I I just think that Los Angeles is just more talented team. Um, well, not without Mike Williams. That

was what a dumb maass move. And I hate to you know, I know this has already been played out from the previous weekend. Brandon Staley, what the hell are you doing? Meaningless game? Playing all your starters? People get hurt? Dumb right, what a dumb game. Yeah, so I've got Jacksonville winning Chargers two banged up, um a variety of places,

not just the offensive weapons. By the way, on that if the Chargers lose this game, is Brandon Staley out in l A. There are people that think he might be I don't, but I there people think he might be here if he's one and done, um, and he will have brought it on himself to no small degree. So who's your chalk player? I think Chock is a Travis E. T N with the great matchup against the Los Angeles run defense. He's horrible. Um, he should score. I think he's like a minus one thirty to score

touchdown in the game. And so if he's a favorite to score touchdown as opposed to not score, you gotta like those I picked him in your league. Yeah. Um, Christian kirk is my hunch player. He has been a really constants are going all the way back to week one. In fact, one of our three tough questions on this show in like week three was is Christian Kirkin finishes the top ten? Remember that? And I said yes, he said yes. It ended up playing itself out here right

around the tenth highest scoring wide receiver this year. Let's go to the number five seed, the l A Chargers. We just mentioned them. Yeah, I think we've both. You've got him as a two winning two games. I've got I'm playing two games waiting. Sorry, thank you for clarifying. They'd have to go to Kansas City, and I don't think that they're gonna beat Kansas City. Uh. The the pundits would say, oh, it's the dreaded West Coast team

going all the way to the East Coast. The Chargers are three and oh and games in the Eastern time zone this year, so they got that going for I've never really bought that. Yeah, I think they're just a more talented team, and I just think it matches up really well with with all the weapons they have on offense. Yeah. I've only got one game for the Chargers. Your chalk players obviously Austin Neckler, Austin Ekeler, but I would consider

Keenan Allen here too. Um. I think that the Jaguars have some some tendencies to get beat by receivers, and I think Keenan Allen is a guy who can especially with Mike Williams trending the wrong way, I think Keenan Allen could see a lot of focus his way. The number six seed in the a f C is Baltimore. I've at them going one game. Uh. Tyler Huntley has not been what I had hoped he would be able to. I was hoping he'd be a poor man's Lamar Jackson.

It turns out he's just a poor man. I think that that team is just discombobulated right now, with Lamar Jackson being hurt and the fact that he's been so good and wins so many games for that team. I think they have like a two eight win percentage, and James he's not playing something. It's something like that. And the fact that they gave a big contract a ro Quan Smith didn't give one to Lamar Jackson. They're not mutually exclusive, they're not, but I technically it's a little bit.

I think that that creates a little bit of inter locker room strife too. And I I it feels like that this team is an easy one and done. I don't think Cincinnati will have an issue with them at all. All Right, your chalk player for Baltimore, I think it's got to be J. K. Dobbins because I think of the offense rolls through him. Um, what do you Mark

Andrews is my hunch player, but now we qualified. Yes, it scored sins week six, but it's a hunch, Like I'm hunching my shoulders, like, I don't know, it's ridiculous. Let's go to the seventh seed in the final seed in the a f C Miami. I assume you've got them playing one game Skylie Thompson. Uh, the chalk player would be who I think the chuck player would have to be Tyreek Hill, just because he can break a a short pass for a touchdown on any play with

the speed that he's got. I like as my hunch player. Jeff Wilson most probably moster is gonna miss this game, probably exactly who I got. Wilson's gonna get a bunch of carries. They don't want Scotli Thompson throwing fifty times. I think Jeff Wilson's looking at a twenty carey game. I do too, And I'm thinking about can I switch my roster when your thing? Or is it once you

submit it, you're done. I mean it's a Google sheet, so as long as I haven't uploaded it yet, I might switch Jeff Wilson for is he a one dollar player or two dollar player? He might be a two dollar and then I can't afford it. Let's go to the NFC side. Philadelphia is your one seed. You've got them playing two games? Two games, all right, So you've got San Francisco advancing. I assume I do, okay, so talk to me about that. I've got Philadelphia going three.

Who is your chalk player for Philadelphia? Like I said before, Jalen Hurts, but you can talk me into a J. Brown as well. Uh, both guys have been awesome frankly, the big three there, Brown, Sanders and Hurts. All of those guys very quality. And I think that, however, the bracket breaks, whether it's the Giants upsetting the Vikings and going to Philly, or if it's the four or five game either Dallas or Tampa. None of those teams particularly

scare me in that first round matchup. But I think the forty Niners are built to just destroy the Eagles. I think so too. Yeah, well, no, I don't I like the Eagles to win that game at Francisco eventually. All Right, the guy I'm not taking DeVante Smith why he was tempted to put him as a hunch player. But Jalen Hurts has proven in his starts. Yeah, he's gonna feed a J. Brown and Dallas Goddard when Dallas

Goddard is helped, which he is now. Gardner Minshew loved Smith and used him a lot and really a shoot his tight end. But now that Jalen Hurts his back, he showed his tight end. I like him. Yeah. The number two seed in the NFC is San Francisco. You think they're gonna play four games, Yeah, they would be winning fourteen straight if they win the Super Bowl. They won ten straight right now, it's amazing. You imagine brock

Purty hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. No, but honestly, even even if Garoppolo is available, if Purtty gets them to the Super Bowl, you gotta not definitely not putting Jimmy Garoppolo in and can't at that point, No way not. They'll take chances on brock Purty. Um my hunch brackets. I do have San Francisco playing four games and getting the Super Bowl. I do think it's gonna come down to

the one versus the two Philadelphia San Francisco. I just can't seem aybody rolling into Philadelphia in February and winning that game late January winning that game. But maybe it'll have see. I think with San Francisco's really awesome defense and and the fact that they can do so many different things with how they spread the ball around, Deebo getting healthy at the right time, I think that San Francisco is just kind of built to beat this Eagles team.

It's like it could definitely happen and like I said, my hunch sheets got him going for the chalk players, Christian McCaffrey without a doubt, resolutely. And who's your who is your hunch player? I mean if you just have to pick somebody else, I mean, if you want to go off radar Debo, Right, he's coming back, nobody's thinking about what thinking about him? Um? And and the and the fact that Debo has been when Deebo went down, that's when we saw the ascendant Georgia. Right. So I

think you have to be careful about pick and kettle. Yeah, I think you do too. Um. The the sneaky, sneaky play Brock Purdy. Ah, he's on my roster and your three bucks. Yeah, I like Brock Purdy. Here. Uh, the number three seed in the NFC is the Minnesota Vikings. How many games you have them playing? I think they'll get to two. Um, you you probably have more inside information, you know. I've been working with the Vikings radio network here and I don't have any like you know, I

don't have inside inside information on this. I've got them either winning one or two games. We know it's going to be close. And all probability teams like the Giants, don't blow out the Vikings. It's they aren't built the way that the teams that have blown out the Vikings have. And if it's a one score game, the Vikings are one score games this year. And you know, you know what I hate about the Vikings narrative that everybody's just glommed onto for the last ump team weeks. Now, Oh,

the negative point differential. The only one that matters is the wins. They won thirteen, they lost four. I mean that's a plus nine point differential. In my mind. That's Look, I lose by one or you lose by thirty, it doesn't matter. It kind of does. I don't know. Justin Jefferson is the chalk player for the Vikings, right, yes, And give me your hunch player. There's there's a lot of hunches. T J. Hockenson would be the easy hunch player. I think he is the easy hot I couldn't find

any it's the other. It's it's the other uh dot dot name kJ Osborne, who has come up huge lately. And if you want a guy who's you know, just nationally if you're playing in a big contest, that's like nationally based. kJ Osbourne is not going to be on a lot of rosters. They know about him in Minnesota and maybe if you've watched a couple of Viking games, he's he's been really good over the last month, and I just think that he's got the opportunity to just,

you know, be a difference maker in these games. He probably k J Osborne probably has outscored Adam Feeling over the last month or so. I believe that's correct. The number four seed in the NFC is Tampa Bay. I've got this is the worst team in the playoffs. Uh, they have no business being in the playoffs. Carolina would have taken care of business, they wouldn't be in the playoffs. Um, and it would have helped Brian a lot. And so

I've got him on one game. Do you have Tampa with more than one win to I think they're gonna beat Dallas. Dallas, Well, we can kind of lump these two together because they're playing each other and we're gonna go to Dallas next. But all time Cowboys oh and seven against Tom Brady, don't care. Um. This year Cowboys

two and three in games on natural grass fields. And even Jason Garrett, their former coach, was like, I don't like the Cowboys going to Tampa to play on a grass field, So I think I think there's something to that. Dak has thrown eleven picks in his last seven games. Security has been awful. Well, al right, he's had bad picks, for sure. Yeah, he's also he's also rolling in fantasy points and he's putting up big numbers. It's not like he's played badly. He's just making like one dumb ass

throw every game. Sure, but those dumbass throws against the team like Tampa, who's got a lot of veterans that won the Super Bowl two years ago, and they're healthier than they've been all year at this point right now, and you got the goat factor, you can go. So is Tom Brady your chalk player for Tampa? You know,

I think it's Chris Godwin. Okay, can get excited about god With Mike Evans being hurt right now and and a little iffy for this game, I think Godwin is going to see a pass funnel in his direction in this one. All right, I'm going I'm going to Brady as my chok guy, and I'm going to Evans is my hunch player. If he's gonna do what he did two weeks ago. Suddenly, you know, if he can be that guy, I don't know. In playoff. Lenny just doesn't

do it for me. You know, I was gonna, I was gonna mention that Dallas defense has not been as good over the last month or so, and particularly against the run. Yeah, so I think that Leonard four Nett very interesting in this case. Uh for the chalk player for Dallas, Ceedee Lamb to me is the chalk player because the running back split it right, gets all the touchdowns he scored him whatever, like seven or last eight games. Pology is the better runner, but that gets all split up.

So I thought Ceedee Lamb to me was the chalk player. What do you think? I agree with you on Ceedee Lamb, and I think the chalk guy. I want to say Pollard, but I'm gonna go Zeke because of the Pollard kind of getting dinged up down the stretch and missed the game or two. I think Zeke is the healthier back right now, and I think that that coaching staff trusts him, and and frankly the front office and the owner trusts

Zeke to no end. Probably, so it would not surprise me at all to c Z get to a twenty touch game in this game against Tampa. So he's kind of the sneaky play. The number six seed in the NFC is the Giants. You have the Vikings winning, I've got I did in my two brackets. I have the Giants winning one and losing one one one and a half games. Who's your chalk player from the Giants. He's gotta Yeah, he's gotta be the top option. A hundred and thirty three total yards in the meeting last month

that gets the Vikings and six yards per carry. Yeah, he's just gotta be the chalk. It's gonna go through him. He's gonna get twenty touches easy in this one. I think Daniel Jones is a really interesting hunch player. I have him too. I love him rushing in this game, and I think that's gonna be a big problem. Get this. He finished in rushing yards within like I don't know, ten twelve yards of Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen. Yeah, come on, Hurts missed a few games at the end,

a few games, but still the dude can run. And the Vikings past defense is so bad. I think Jones is sitting on a big game winner lose. So Jones has a big box score in this game. If you believe that the Giants win this game, if you feel like that's gonna happen, Yes, I think Daniel Jones is an absolutely excell and play because he's going to have a giant game. Oh pun intended right there. If if they do win, it's it's gonna be at least two touchdown passes. It will probably be fifty to sixty arcs

and maybe adding one on the ground. He's gonna have a big game. And then you get him in the second game and he'd be going up against Philly. That would be tough. But the Giants, no Philly. The Giants are gonna be intimidated going into Philadelphia for a game. It seems like a good play. The seventh and final seed in the NFC Seattle, this is the team in my mind that has no business. I kind of wish that they would have been like Detroit, you can go

because we don't deserve to be. Would be way more fun. All right, So we both think this is a one a one game team. Um, the weather's gonna be a factor in this game. It might suppress the box score, which gives me all the more reason to not take any Seattle Seahawks because they're probably one a one game team and a low box score. So who's your chalk player from Seattle? The guy you have to take for chalk is Lockett Um Tyler Tyler Lockett uh much better

career numbers against San Francisco than DK metcalf Uh. Plus, the weak spot of the forty Niners is to the wide receiver, the wide receiver position specifically, I think that Lockett's probably got the best chance of scoring a touchdown out of any player on Seattle. So that's that's the guy I look at. I was with you until it's just Locket's got knee and the finger surgery with ten ten pins in the finger or whatever like two weeks ago. So I'm like, you know what, I'm just going with

a safe guy. I'm the healthy guy, and I went with Metcalf. We both agree, Kenneth Locker to me is dead brutal matchup. You know, I can't take him. No, you can't take him. This would be like I don't I know he's a big name, but I can't take him in this one spot. One game, bad surface rain game. Potentially San Francisco is awesome run defense, no thank you.

I think both of the seven seeds, particularly like there there's one contest I'm in where there's only twelve roster spots and you get to take one player from each team except two. I'm leaving out Miami and Seattle for sure, because they've gotta be won one game teams and and even you know, a one game Tyreek box score. I'm gonna want the guy who gets multiple games in Baltimore. I see to me to be Baltimore because like they're gonna lose and score no points because that's what they do.

Miami's gonna score points against Buffalo with know I kind of do. I don't. I think they're gonna I think they're gonna be I think there's gonna be some points to be had. He like Jeff Wilson, Mica Jeff will seen in that one. Um, all right, well we are out of time. I want to know about the music

League I'm trying to do in sixty seconds. Um, you create a league for as many with as many friends as you want, and then things scales infinitely everybody and you come up with a musical theme like let's say instrumentals or three minute songs or less. Okay, and that is the theme for that round. Everybody submits a Spotify link. You don't even have to have anybody. You can create a free spot by account, right, Everybody submits a free one song that goes into the league for that round.

It's it's totally anonymous, nobody knows you submitted it. Then you listen to all the songs and you have to divvy up. I think it's twenty points among all the among all of the songs. So you rate all the songs, not knowing who submitted them. You just listen to them. Go, I think this is great. You get eight points. This garbage you get zero points. That kind of thing. I am in this league with you. If you're starting one, well, okay,

it's good to know. I'll put you in it and um and so then it at the end of the round, so the round could be like a week. Servety's time to listen to all the songs then everybody. Then it calculates who's submission did the best and is based on how many points you got. This idea, no, but I wish you would. I wish I would have. It's a brilliant so I'm very excited about the Music League. I gotta go. Thank you, Matt, I appreciate it. Thank you

for listening, everybody. We'll be back next week. Fantasy Football Weekly is a production of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. H