Week 16's Big Questions, Waiver Wire Deep Dives, Drops

Hey everybody, It's Tuesday, December seventeenth, twenty twenty four. Welcome to the NFL Fantasy Football Show. We're just trying to survive in advance. It's me and your man, MG Marcus Grant, joined by Michael f. Florio and Lakwan Jones Fellas. We are into Week sixteen, which once upon a time would have been Championship week.

I guess that those days are further and further in the rearview.

Mirror though, right that this was championship week, that's just a semi finals.

Yeah, we're probably closer to getting another game added.

To the schedule than we ever are going back.

Yeah, yeah, we're not going back now.

But that's a whole that's a whole other conversation, Like what happens when they eventually go to like the eighteen game regular season, like and then fantasy just goes that much longer, Like I don't know, at some point there's critical mass you just wonder about.

But I think this is the.

Max players getting hurt every single week. Who are you going to have by week eighteen?

Like, come on, they'd have to add a second by week I feel like the answer to all your questions is money.

Yep, that's it. That's it, Like, that's that's the that the answer to all your questions is money. And then the official in the middle of the year.

And every team gets off that week, and then that's like a natural breakpoint.

We can also probably just generally do away with all star games across all sports. But again that's another conversation for another show. That's another show. I mean, yeah, that's it. Or just you know what, a name of name an all Star team, give them a bonus, give them a trip to Hawaii or something.

And athletes compete against other athletes, like let's get creative, like Tyreek Hill versus Christian Ronaldo in a forty time who who knows who wins?

That interesting? Tyreek would smoke Christiano Ronaldo.

Anyway, we got some big questions for week sixteen and beyond. We'll have our waiver Wire deep dives as well, But whyt to get started with the big questions because I usually say for a week, you know, sixteen and beyond. This time, I just decided to go beyond, right, I Mean, for a lot of people, the fantasy playoffs were over.

Your fantasy season is over.

If that's the case for you, by the way, thank you for still hanging out with us and listening to the show. But I think we can start kind of pivoting toward the long view, looking toward twenty twenty five and that sort of thing. So start with you, Floria on this one. Jamar Chase has obviously been phenomenal on all year. Now. I know there are still some contract issues that need to be worked out, but let's just assume everything works out. He stays in Cincinnati, he and

I would say yes, but they'll they'll there's always gonna be contrarian people out there who want to argue. And I do get it because, like I get the thinking of you don't want to draft the guy who was last year's like video game cheat code player. You want to try to find the like cause last year that was Ceede, Lamb and Tyree killing. Now it's Jamar Chase. It's it's very rarely the same player in back to

I have first pick.

I mean, Lakwan, is there anybody else at this point that you feel like is in the conversation for that number one pick?

Absolutely not.

The gap is wide right now as of today when you look at it. I mean, Jamar Chase has been doing historical things like Florio said, and honestly, I feel much safer with him to begin with going into this season as well, even with the T Higgins hole now, like I feel like Jamar Chase is on that tier.

I mean, right now, you look at non quarterbacks, it's Chase that's number one. He is about twenty five points clear of Saquon Barkley, and those are the only two non quarterbacks in the top eight of Fantasy point scoring at this point. And he's just been so good. The ceiling is so high, and the floor is still pretty high too. Like you know, I think you to your point, Florio, I think you will have some contrarians.

But I think that's.

Also a function of us talking about this in the offseason, Like you know, we'll start having this conversation. I'm sure after the Super Bowl, and then by the time we get to August, everybody's gonna be tired of just saying Jamar Chase. So somebody's gonna pop up in there with an alternative idea, mostly because we get bored. We get bored and we need other things to talk about. But I think I think most people are gonna look at this and it's probably gonna be chased heavily at the top.

Pooka could be.

In I think Nico Collins will be another one. People start pushing up.

I just.

That's a whole, that's a different that's an interesting conversation too. I like Nico Collins, but man a number one overall for Nico Collins.

That I wouldn't rich. But he's gonna be a fantasy darling.

I think, yeah, No, I think that part is true for sure. Lakwan is Josh Jacob's a first round pick next year.

Oh no, no, no, no, no, I trust him. I can't trust him personally. I mean he's burned fans, fantasy fans before in the past. We all remember that Instagram you know he said he was injured not playing, Like I could never trust him again. And on see, I'm done, like literally stamp this today. I'm done taking running backs

Even if you're sitting at like eight nine and Jamior Gibbs is sitting there, or or Derrick Henry is sitting there.

You're not gonna do it?

Huh No, No, because I have to stick to my guns. No, Nope, I got to stick to my guns. I have to go wide receiver. All my leagues that I've gone heavy wide receiver in those first couple of rounds are thriving, are thriving. In the running backs. I've just kind of mid It's just mid tier. I mean, Bijon I think was like one of my heaviest like pushes at the end of the summer where I'm like, know what, I could see him as the one on one and then he's just been okay.

Yeah, I mean I think that's fair. And it's it's weird because Bjon was the one that we had kind of questions. We're like, well, Tyler Algiers there, he's gonna get some opportunity. It was Breece Hall that were like, well, yeah, that Breecee's he's full speed of handling. Nobody's gonna take opportunities from him, and the Jets have been so awful.

Was taking opportunities early.

It was just like, what's happening. Yeah, I don't know, it's been it's been tough, but all right, I'm gonna hold you too.

I'm trying to remember this and hold you to it, like in case you start getting crazy, because.

My season has been the exact opposite of la Kwan's, Like I went zero RB in almost all of my teams, and I'm like, I hate this.

Year that I'm having right now.

So it's it's very funny how he went very differently and we kind of had similar seasons. But yeah, no, I'm I'm also out on I would not take this is a me problem because if you look at his stats and his usage and everything, you could make the case for Josh Jacobs as the first round pick. But I would never like Lakwan, I would never take come in the first round.

Yeah, I mean, here's the thing with your RB, like it is, you have to pick the right running backs, which is not necessarily a guarantee, right, Like you can have a bunch of targets, but if they don't perform, then the whole thing just completely falls apart.

I guess that that applies to every strategy.

I guess it's I tweeted that it hasn't been a great year for zero RB and someone was like, well it was if you have Chase Brown or Rico Dowell, where I'm like.

Okay, cool two.

There's been a couple others that have hit, but like, it's not like it normally is.

Now and it has not exploded the way the way it really does in the past. Florida is Baker Mayfield the QB six in drafts. I was gonna say, originally, when I put this question together, I was gonna say, it's he a top five quarterback. And I mean it was like no, because I I rattled off like five guys in my head, right, you mean Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, uh, Jalen Hurts, Jaden Daniels, probably Joe Burrow uh sly into

Yeah, well he's in that group.

To me, they're they're like, I agree with your top five. I think those are gonna be the set it and forget it top five. But after I could see Jared Goff because and Baker because it. Baker might lose his OC this year, like Liam Cohen is becoming a very popular name you're hear, but so could Jared Goff with Ben Johnson.

Bo Nicks is one that I could see being in that tier.

And then you got like Kyler Murray who runs and everyone loves and uh so he's in the discussion. I would say, I don't think he's like a set it and forget it QB six, but he will be in that tier after the top.

Five, all right, I think that that's fair. I mean, have we underestimated Lakwan? We underestimated Baker because I think I heard yesterday that since the start of last year and I have to verify this, but I believe since it started last year, no one has more touchdown passes than Baker Mayfield.

Well, I think we are because we constantly bring up Baker Mayfield and like I think we still have that taste of him as a Browns quarterback, Like that's far. It's like he has put that to bed and like what he has been doing these past two seasons, it's all credit to him, Like it's really him just going out there and performing at a high level. And my biggest question, honestly, is is Mike Evans going to be on the Bucks next year? Is he going to hang

All right, one I caught you know, so you are you are you not saying guaranteeing, but you believe Mike Evans is gonna get to one thousand.

I'm not saying you're wrong, just you think he gets it.

I think he gets it. I think he barely gets it. Eighty three yards per game, yeah, so like eighty three we're going to force it.

I think I think they're definitely forced it.

And to my earlier point, Baker Mayfield is actually tied with Jared Goff for the most touchdown passes since the start of last season, both of them.

At at sixty right now.

So, uh, just been been really really productive over the last couple of years in this office.

The Cowboys, Panthers, Saints to finish it out, Mike Evans getting a.

Thousand if healthy, Yeah, yeah, Mike Evans. Mike Evans is getting a thousand. By the way, Baker Mayfield also on top of the touchdowns, he is third in passing yards in to the start a last season, behind.

Golf and Josh Allen. Those are the only two guys ahead.

And I don't think he gets credit for he's running more too. He's running a lot adds value.

Talk about it, talk about it like he's running, and like it's not like he's just running because he's on like he's running getting yards like he's a sneaky runner.

Yeah. No, he's been very, very effective running the football as well too.

So yeah, you're getting those those cheat code yards out of Baker Mayfield, which is not a thing that I would have thought we'd been saying about him coming into the season for sure. All Right, So those are our big questions as we start to look toward draft season next year. Obviously, as we wrap up the fantasy season in twenty twenty four, we'll start to you know, kind

Tony Pollard of just having that constant back and forth right before you know, game time of if he's gonna play, if he's not, how much usage, and like they started giving him the rock and then the ankle flared up, you know, mid game, and then Taj Spears took over. So honestly, like I've learned my lesson, Like I should have went my gut and just benched him, But then I think about who else was I gonna put over

Yeah, I you know, it definitely stunk that he got hurt, didn't play particularly well. But it also for me, who's been kind of a tai J Spears Stan kind of gave me something to point out and say.

Say, look, can you give this guy a good workload? He can be kind of productive, Like.

Like I mean, like I really thought the season was going to be more of a fifty to fifty split in that backfield and it wasn't.

Uh.

And look, to Pollard's credit, he's actually played really, really well. He has earned all the work that he has gotten in this offense. But I just wanted to see what Taj Spears could do.

That's all Florida. Who was your big fantasy faux pas for the week?

Uh?

Coopered?

You got coopered right because you had Cooper Cup on Thursday giving you zero points.

And then the handshake meme.

Amari was like, I'm not going to leave you out there. I'm gonna join you as zero fantasy points for a Cooper and that one, I think was even more frustrating because at least when you watch the Cooper Cup game, you're like, yeah, the Niners did a great job just sticking on him. It was bad weather, It wasn't a lot of points scored the Bills. I mean they put up like a historic performance yesterday, and Amari Cooper, a week after having fourteen targets, had zero. He was fourth

That'll do it. That will for sure do it. Uh.

You know, it's been a weird year for veteran wide receivers getting traded mid season, right because Amari Cooper gets traded to Buffalo. He's been kind of Deontay Johnson suspended because he decided he didn't want to play a games. Uh. Mike Williams not really getting a whole lot of love since he got traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. It's just been it's been tough for some of these veteran guys. Yeah, the house been, you know, he's had moments the only.

He lives with Rogers.

Yeah, that's true, that's it. So that's I guess that's the trick.

When you get traded, then you gotta, you know, be roomies with your new quarterback.

Apparently we just.

Eat breakfast little lived with them.

Yes, Cooper got his breakout, you know, staying with Jared Golf for a little bit and they had breakfast and look how that blossomed out.

Yeah, yeah, that worked out pretty well. My big one this week was to a tongue of ioloa. And look, I get it, it wasn't necessarily a great matchup again against the Houston Texans this week, but you also didn't think Tua was gonna go out there and leave you with a big fat three point eight points either, right, Like I get if, you probably weren't starting him outside of say two quarterback leagues, which you certainly needed more than what you got out of him.

It just was a really bad day at the end of.

A stretch where he had been playing really well, and it just felt like we got to a point where we all recognized, hey, man, who was playing really well, he's doing good things. Maybe we can trust him against

Which she didn't have touchdown.

Touchdown with John Smith three points, but you know you.

Made sure you got that touchdown then, you know, you.

Know, I wonder if Johnny has passed that on to Tua too, Like, hey, man, if I if I keeps wearing touchdowns this this guy.

And Ally's gonna have to dye his hair blonde, Like I wonder.

If they have a picture of Lakwan up in their locker room like blonde hair already.

Because I'm not gonna lie.

Mike McDaniel seems petty enough to like just make this happen on your behalf, Like I just think Mike McDaniel draw up plays.

Yeah, for sure, what you just said is insane.

Though Tua head less than four points a touchdown is four points like that is crazy.

That's how bad the day was. That's how bad. He would have negative points if he didn't throw it wild.

All right, I guess like a good break, we're gonna come back with some waiver wire deep dives and folks that we are saying goodbye to.

That's coming up next on the NFL Fantasy Football Show.

I know it is near the end of the year, fantasy playoffs are going, there are a lot fewer people that are still active across their leagues, but that doesn't mean you don't need some help on the waiver wire. Obviously a lot of key injuries. We talked on Monday show about David Montgomery. Still waiting word on Patrick Mahomes, you know, Smith seeing kind of what their situations are

Damage a little bit. So Lakwad, who should folks be targeting in deeper leagues.

In deeper leagues, you got to look for the Boomer Buss and Tim Patrick Man he's scoring touchdowns, and it looks like Jared Golf is going to be looking for and when they getting scoring in distance. So I feel like, you know, when you're striking distance and Jared Golf is going to be looking at Sam Laporti is going to be looking at the mont Ross Saint Brown. But the sneaky guy has been Tim Patrick just producing week at

All right, I mean, it's been good to see Tim Patrick pop up because you know.

The guy that we liked obviously had that one year where he missed the whole year with an injury. For whatever reason, the Broncos felt like they didn't need him.

But sure, there you go. Who's your deep diveway for wire guy?

I Florio Kendre Miller just because he's looked pretty good under this new coaching staff. And then Alvin Kamara. I know they're saying he's day to day with the groin right now. But like, the Saints have nothing to play for right now, and they have an investment beyond this year in Camara, So part of me wonders if like they're gonna tell him just hey, don't push it or something like that, and next week think at the Packers, which isn't great, But like, let's say Kamara sits in

Determine it would partially determine.

Who wins fantasy leagues, And it's like, yeah, no one in a million years thought these would be the running.

Backs Kendre Miller versus Sincere McCormick for a fantasy title.

That that'd be a hell of a story to tell, for sure. I guess you could throw ty J. Spears sort of into that mix too.

You know, know that Tony Pollard, dealing with an ankle injury, had to leave the game early on Sunday, and we ended up seeing Spears play about fifty five percent of the snaps ended up with a good day over ninety scrimmag Yards found his way into the end zone, gave you a solid fantasy day, and you sort of wonder whether or not this means the Titans. We'll start to look at Spears, see I then get a longer look

So it could be that if ty J.

Spears can get a decent workload, he is worth throwing into some lineups and certainly maybe a DFS play if nothing else, if you're not going to start him in your your regular managed leagues for sure. So as always, if we are adding guys, we are dropping guys. And I think I sort of alluded to the guy that Lakwan you're talking about dropping right now.

He's like a toxic X man, Like I've had him on the drop list before, so you know, he's had this little little spur where he showed some upside and then you pick him back up and then he goes out there and Brian Cannell at Callahan, he embarrassed him in front of his old team, like you like, what are you doing? So he had to hit the bench again. But like, I'm completely done with him, man. I think that the Titans are going to be done with him as well.

Like that.

It was just a god awful game, especially that last interception to Chiggs, like it was just like what were you looking at? And like, I think the Will Levis experience is over, especially for Fantasy going into next year. So this will be the final drop for me.

All right, So Will Levis is done.

I did get I saw someone tweet yesterday or Sunday rather that, you know, they can't wait for Will Levis to end up going to like Andy Reid or Kyle Shanahan finishing school and somehow having some resurgence late in his career, right, like, like the right coach will get their hands on Will Levis and figure out how to put him in a system. Look, man, Sam Darnold's for the year in San Francisco as the backup to brock Purty.

Like why couldn't it happen for Will Levis? Maybe? Who knows? Florida? Who are we saying goodbye to? Wait? Wait? Oh wait?

Because why E's Mayonnates was coffee and like he bites banana skills Like he's a weirdo man, we don't want him in la uh.

I mean he'd be the youngest guy in that QB room by a.

Decade, That's true, he would be.

I mean, you know, Stetson Bennett is like on aarp at this.

Point, right, nah? It is? Are you who are you dropping? Now?

Hey, guys, what do Chris brooks Audric estimate Trey Sermon, Rashen Ali, Dario Gumbawalle and Kamani Vedel all have in common.

Points.

Yeah, yeah, it's it's bad for Gus Edwards right now.

Like you look at since he's taken over five point five, two point seven, seven point one, four point three, nine point six, two point three, like those are his last six games. At some point he took over for JK. Dobbins in that stretch, you wouldn't know it. If you looked at his game Loge, you'd still think he's backing him up because I mean he doesn't have he has one game in that stretch with over forty rushing yards.

Like, it is over for Gus Edwards.

You could pay me to play this guy in the fantasy playoffs. So yeah, it's it's done. There's no burst left for him. He doesn't catch passes. He is purely touchdown dependent, and in that stretch he has two games where he scored a touchdown, still couldn't get to double digit fantasy points. So yeah, I'm long done with Gus Edwards. It was a fun ride. There was a stretch where like you were extremely underrated as the Ravens running back.

Yeah.

I had to look up who Rasheen Ali plays for when you were saying that. I was like, wait, Rasheen a lay and like where is he nowadays? All right, He's in Baltimore, all right, So there you go. I also saw somebody made the point that I guess since JK. Dobbins went down with his injury, that Chargers running backs have scored a grand total of twenty five Fantasy points total since since JK. Dobbins got hurt.

Let's give Videl the workload for a game and see what he.

Could do with it.

Just see, let's just check it out.

You know who else has more Fantasy points? Ezekiel Elliott. That is disgusting, I mean, is foul.

What's about a time that was expected like nowadays not so much?

That's that is kind of gross.

Mine has not been as bad as either of the guys that you, uh the Q two mentioned, but Travis etn. I think it's just it's just time because it's it's not it's not good enough that you feel great about having him in your lineup, right, And he had twelve and a half points on Sunday, which was really his best game since Week three.

He hadn't hit that mark since Week three.

But you just don't feel confident enough that he's going to be able to do this consistently. The Jaguars offense is bad. Tank Bigsby, who was also has not been great. I mean, let's not get it twisted. It's not like Tank Bigsby is going out there and just snatching up opportunities.

But he's been better than Travis Etn.

There's just no.

Real upside there at this point.

He's not getting enough touches, he's not doing enough with the touches he gets, he's not scoring touchdowns. It's hard to make a real strong case to have Travis et In certainly in your lineup. And I guess, look, unless you are really shorthanded and dealing with a lot of injuries, then maybe you can sort of make the argument for it. But otherwise, I mean, I think it's just you know, hey man, thank you for your service, and it's just time to kind of move on from Travis Etn.

At this point, I have him on a team and I'm too afraid to drop him, but I'll never start him.

The worst kind of player.

Yeah, I mean that's kind that's kind of where it is with him at this point.

So probably time to say good bye to Travis etn Also, it's time to say bye bye to this edition of the podcast. I'll do it for the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast. Stay happy, safe and healthy, do good and live well, and we will talk to all again tomorrow.

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