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Fantasy Focus. Fantasy.
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Fantasy Focus. What's good friends welcome into Fantasy Focus Football alongside field Jace and Mike Clay. My name is Daniel Dopp. I feel like my chair is shorter than yours now that I look at it.
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Maybe I drank a lot of milk over the last few months.
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Did you grow a lot?
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Did you grow also? Do we have new background music right now?
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Sounds like. Like we do right now.
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Mike.
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Let's see some of those moves.
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We got some edge.
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No, I regret asking for this.
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Can we. Can we please gift that if you're.
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Not watching the YouTube stream? You made the right decision today because you didn't want to see Mike Clay dancing.
B
You told me to dance. That was actually pretty impressive.
C
Like that. Not bad. Yeah. All right.
B
If that was. It was like the dad joke version of dancing. Yeah, those were the.
C
That's what I was going on as we talked about right before the show. I do that all the time to the girls just to irritate them.
A
Those fist pumps don't lie, Mike. You were doing a great job with that.
B
I think he was doing like.
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Like the Egyptian.
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Egyptian.
C
Yeah.
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Yeah.
C
How about this? This is the old. The old dad one, right? Yeah.
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The lawnmower. Yeah, that's a good one.
C
I like that one.
A
Do you have a nerd version of that? Do you. Do you do like a cool, like, typing thing? Like I'm on my computer doing typing stuff.
C
Yeah, the typewriter.
B
Ding.
A
Yeah, that's. This is what. This is the show today. This is good.
B
I do love it because one of the. Like, there are some. There are some signals in the NFL that are universal. And one. One of the most common ones is when. Yeah, that too. But when a defensive coordinator. So as you know, obviously, the offense dictates the pace between plays, right?
A
Sure, sure.
B
Sometimes when the defense is running around and they want to just do the exact same thing. You see this often, like two minute drills. You'll see the defensive coordinator just do a. Like this or like play. Simulating playing a piano. It means play it. Like, just play the same Thing we played last time. So if we were in cover two the snap prior, this is the universal signal for do it again, cover two on this next snap. But it always looks hilarious because no coordinator ever is just on there on the sidelines. They could shot right here where it's just like, okay, guys, gentle playing. Every time it's like this. It's like, play it, play it, play it. Every defensive player is like, okay, got it.
C
Happens all the time. They know those signals and they get. They do them like maniacs.
B
Yeah, they're like maniacs.
A
Every time I think another one that would be good for that would be someone slapping the bass, which is slap the bass. Let's go, baby.
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Hey, whatever works to get the call.
A
Whatever instrument you want to pull from.
C
Paul Rudd reference.
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Hey, let's. Let's shout out really quickly our buddy Eric Moody. Speaking of music, you made an awful Led Zeppelin joke on Sunday. Feels good. Was it a joke?
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It was an attempt to get underneath his skin. Have there been repercussions? I heard some people and the thing is that I told Eric Moody, basically on fantasy football now we had the opportunity to trash talk each other's teams. And the first two people who were up to talk trash didn't talk any trash.
A
No, they did.
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Not me who I talk less trash than anybody in human history. But after last year and my team absolutely wiped the floor with the rest of the league and because no one else was participating and I felt like it was good for content, I decided to throw some flamethrowers out.
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Went in.
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So I described Eric Moody's fantasy team and FF now as overrated. Like Led Zeppelin.
C
Like Led Zeppelin.
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Knowing that would get right to the heart of Eric Moodyu, who is the biggest music fan not named Daniel Dopp ever. But he likes classic rock.
A
Yes, loves classic rock.
B
I actually don't really have much of an opinion on Led Zeppelin. I appreciate their place in history, but it's rare that I'm like, let me go turn Led Zeppelin on right now. Mostly because I listen to like the cocomelon theme on repeat in the stage of my life.
C
I've been that stage of life. Yeah, I've been there.
B
That being said, or we would listen to the greatest showman soundtrack on repeat. But it was an attempt to get underneath the skin. And I want to apologize to all enthusiasts of Led Zeppelin.
A
Well, Eric Moody hanging out in our chat right now. If you guys have any good music takes, you want to drop into our YouTube chat, head on over there, hang out with our buddy Eric Moody. He's in there every single day hanging out with us. Ask some questions. And by the way, ask some questions for us later on in the show too. We'd love to be able to get to a mailbag if we have some.
C
By the way, Field for the record, had to say that Zeppelin Incorporated reached out famed us. And you must make a statement on. In public. Yes. To apologize.
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And this counts. Streaming Internet counts as in public. Yes.
C
Yeah.
A
So that's it.
B
That was actual tv. It might have been ESPN news, but it was tv.
A
But it was tv. Exactly right. We got a very fun show planned for today. We're going to do a couple a little look back if you don't mind, at the headlines from the future. We had a couple of those that paid off or maybe didn't we? We also had a really big injury update overnight that we're going to dive into that will impact a bunch of our fantasy squads and we're going to preview the rest of or the beginning of week two with a bunch of different things. Mike, I know your playbook is out. We'll probably talk some wide receiver, cornerback and all that good stuff. So. Plus a Thursday Night Football preview which will be great. Quick, shout out to our buddies over at trophy smack. Head on over to trophy smack.com use the promo code focus10. Get this really awesome chain or a cool belt or a trophy or this toilet seat that's behind me. Anything that you want for your league, use the promo code focus10 over@trouple smack.com and and let's tee up really quickly. Our first segment, headlines from the future. Papers have been the future, which is probably accurate for my putrid papers have been printed. The ink is dry on week one. And Mr. Field Yates, you had something that came true after just one week.
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I mean it was true, but I think I may have totally undersold it. My glimpse into the future was that Danny Dimes is a top 10 fantasy scorer in week one.
C
Nailed it.
A
You undersold it.
B
I undersold it. He was the third highest scoring quarterback for the entire week. Now things set up right really, really well. At the time we were having fun with just how thin the Dolphins cornerback depth chart is. Now it's not fun because every quarterback going against the Dolphins might be your top streaming option in a given week until proven otherwise. But Dimes was great throwing the football. On top of that, he did run the ball seven times. He of course found the end zone as a runner as well. It's, it's funny because for all the reasons for optimism surrounding Dimes. He also draws the Broncos this weekend.
C
Tough match.
B
Slightly more difficult matchup compared to the Dolphins last week. But yes, was happy to see Dimes make me look sort of smart.
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Very smart.
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Very.
A
He looked very smart in week one with a top three finishes.
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Well, here's the thing. But here's the thing. History will tell us that I'm money when it comes to Colts week one quarterback.
C
Yes.
B
Because Anthony Richardson was amazing last year in week one for fantasy. I wouldn't say he was great in real Life. He had nine completions for 209 yards and two touchdowns plus two rushing touchdowns. I was high. I mean I was on cloud nine.
A
I was like I thought he was. You almost just said I was high as a kite right there.
B
Right. I know. Yeah.
A
Which, you know, not no big deal.
B
Normal for me.
C
We'll have to see next year what you think of Danny Dimes in week one with the Colts when After he signs his five year extension. So. Oh, Michael, they're drafting a quarterback in the first round.
B
But yes. So I have less optimism this week about Danny Dimes. But that is neither here.
A
Yeah. That was a headline from the future. We're not talking about week two. We were talking about week one. Mike, you also had a headline from the future but this one was not quite the same.
C
It wasn't. But I. It's not my fault. And okay, I know it's not my fault because the Jags responded in kind on this. Mine was that Bashaw Tootin was going to be the most added player on waivers after a big week one on us. On a small sample of work, I thought he would have a few explosive plays and you know what he did to some extent. He flashed a little bit but didn't get enough volume and Jags knew they messed up. They said, you know what? Mike was right about this. He should be the most out of player on waivers after a big week one. But we did not give him the ball enough. Yeah. And you know what they did? They said we're going to trade one of our running backs away. So they did that. They sent Tech Bigsby to the Eagles because they got to free this guy up so he could be the most added player on waivers after week two.
A
That's what it was.
C
I stand by this one for now because by the way, so quick, you know, serious fantasy. Not on this because that is what we're here to do. There is an opening here for plenty of carries for two and I don't think lequin Allen is going to get a lot of carries. I think I'll have some passing down work. Trevor ETN still clearly the lead back for now. We'll see if he keeps up his efficiency when he's not playing Carolina going forward. We'll see on that. But even if ETN's still a lead back and we see a little eye on in passing situations, there is room now for maybe eight carries this week for. For Tootin and if he flashes and is the more efficient back then he could take on a larger role. So I still think there's reason for optimism to keep him on your bit.
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Do your girls love Bashel Tootin because of his name?
C
Yes. Yes.
B
Oh, yeah, I agree.
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I mean, they're at that age. I mean every age. Funny fart jokes are funny at any age.
A
Your daughters and Stefania also love Bashel Tootin. Yes, absolutely.
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Yeah.
C
Stefania is the one that's gonna get me canceled someday. I'm gonna tell a joke. I'm gonna have to push it so far on FF now for her to laugh that, that it's going to go too far.
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It's going to be.
C
Yeah.
B
Oh, man.
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We almost got there this week. So make sure you hang out and watch fantasy football now on Sunday morning is always a ton of fun. Being able to hang with these guys. That's going to tee us up. Then let's dive into our first part of the week two preview. Mike, you just talked about a rookie running back. I want to know if you have any rookie running back preview options for week two.
C
Yeah, I want to talk through a segment we did last week. I essentially want to recap my running back, rookie running back segment. Right. So I basically remember we had three tiers. It was like the clear lineup blocks, the like maybe flex options and then this. The bench, guys, the bench stashes. Let's see what happens in week one. And guys, it went bad. It went bad all around. We had two top 20 performances by rookie running backs, which was not what we expected.
A
Oh, Ashton Genti and Omarion Hampton.
C
No, neither of those guys. Oh, gosh. Dylan Sampson, who was 15th, so he was the best one. And then Bill Crosby Merritt, our guy, found the end zone and was 17th. So that was it. 15th and 17th. So I wanted to kind of reevaluate these guys pretty quickly here. I still think we have two lineup blocks. Of course, Ashton Genti, you know, Marian Hampton, remain lineup blocks. The volume is terrific. They're going to be fine. The next one I called could maybe start soon, but ideally on your bench, Trevion Anderson. I think we ranked as such with Ramon Jerry Stevenson playing so much. Dylan Sampson, maybe we'll see what happens with Quinn. Sean Judkins this week. I think even if he's active, he won't play much. So.
B
Yeah, I agree. I mean the guys have practiced in a month.
C
Sampson's probably very much like Henderson on the flex radar. RJ Harvey, same thing. Not enough volume yet, but I think it'll come at some point. J.K. dobbins got a lot of the work and then Bill Crosby. Merritt, who plays tonight, Thursday Night Football, probably talk about him a little bit later. Who will Another guy. Ideally. You're not starting. So that's it for that list. And then we have the bench slash. Waivers. Got waivers guys. So these guys all had four or fewer touch touches in the opener. Caleb Johnson, Micheltun, we just talked about him. Cam Scatterbo, Jaden Blue was inactive. Ollie Gordon at three touches and Woody Marks had three. So by the way, Raheem Sanders outscored basically all of these guys that on one carry.
B
I know more to come on Raheem Sanders later.
C
Yeah. So those guys didn't get really any work and they are your typical insurance backs, end of bench sort of stashes for now. So I think that's kind of the, the rookie running back landscape for the time being and we'll see how that kind of evolves in the next few weeks.
A
Interesting.
C
Any thoughts?
A
Taylor Johnson was the fifth most dropped player in fantasy football and that just seems, and I know we talked about it like if injuries bit your team, you to probably find a spot. But that feels you're giving up on a rookie that you drafted in, you know, still the middle round so early.
C
Yeah.
B
So my, here's my question. This is a question to both of you because I posed it on this very show two, three weeks ago. @ this point I asked, are we getting too far in over our skis on Trayvon Henderson? He was being drafted like 42nd overall. By the time we got really close, he was going higher than that. In some of the leagues that I am in, do you guys feel any different at the time? The answer was no, we're not. You know, do you guys feel any different now or was the thought process at that time that, hey, it's just a matter of time before he becomes the obvious lead back in this backfield? Because we talked about it yesterday. Mike, you. I actually think that's a great segment. Like five things that bothered Mike.
C
Yes.
B
From Andre Stevenson. I just was watching the game and there are times where the box score can lie a little bit and a player can look better than what the numbers suggest. I felt like in looking at Ramon Dre Stevenson's touches, it was like, no, they looked like you expect the box score, I think was in line with what the eye test showed you, which is that this is not a running back who adds value.
C
Yeah.
B
It's a running back who takes up opportunities.
C
Yeah, I don't think there are a ton of running backs that do really move the needle, but Henderson could be one of those guys. So them losing at home to the Raiders should be a little bit of an eye opener.
B
Better be.
C
We need to use our playmakers more. And again, the reason why I feel like this is going to work itself out pretty soon too is they spent a second round pick on a team that had a lot of needs. They sent a second round pick on an explosive running back. And by the way, he was plenty involved in the passing game. That's not going to go away at all. So I still feel very confident that this will work itself out. And I did notice it. I don't know if you guys noticed this too, but especially in the first half of games this week, the snaps for the rookies were not great. Yeah, it took a little while for them to start ramping up. That was the most part for rookies. But I could have mentioned this yesterday too. In that angry segment, you notice that, like Brock Bowers wasn't playing that much in the first quarter or so.
B
Yeah.
C
And then that changed. It was like he was being clearly out snapped by Michael Mayer. And I was like, what are they doing?
A
Michael Mayer had a couple of catches. It's like, why do we keep hearing Michael Mayer's name right now?
C
Yeah, yeah. So that was a little bit of a side note.
B
But anyway, for Bowers, yeah, I think.
C
There'S a little bit of, hey, it's week one. We're going to let the vet give a little bit of veteran deference. And then the rookie's role starts to evolve a little bit. And I feel like I saw that a lot in week one. So no, I'm, I'm still not worried about it maybe this week. But I think it'll change.
B
I think it changes. I think it has to. And some of the pushback I got in posting the video that we had yesterday was like, no, the idea of Trayvon Henderson was never to have him be the lead back unto himself. He is. And as me, I described during the preseason, like he was at his best at Ohio State when he had some relief from Quinn. John Judkins, right. I'm not asking for him to play 86% of the snaps like Ashton Jensen did. I'm asking for him and Ramandre Stevenson to flip roles. I need Travion at what, 56 or 60% of the snaps and Ramondre at like 30 or 35% of the snaps. That's what we are asking for.
C
I don't like rookie season Bijan, you know, like Tyler Algier and the Ramon Dre role is like pretty logical. And I know Bijan didn't quite live up to what we wanted as a.
B
Rookie season, but if you're drafting RB19 versus RB4, you'd be cool with it.
C
Exactly right. If we get consistent good RB2 numbers for Henderson going forward, we're going to be happy with that and I think he'll get there.
B
Okay, so we just talked about Bajan who was drafted as RB1 overall this year and perhaps if we were redrafting he would have gone as player one overall. It's a week to week game. It is. That is important to note. But you also have to be mindful that some players are probably built to last more than others. Is there a better fantasy option? This is my first question for week two. Is there a player that deserves to be ranked higher amongst non quarterbacks? His quarterbacks obviously have more scoring upside than Christian McCaffrey right now. Right now?
C
I don't think this week. Yeah, they're huge.
B
I did because I have to rank. But those out there who are listening like if I told you you could draft that. It's just a one week week two game. Are you drafting Christian McCaffrey first overall?
C
Yes.
B
And is that going to be the case until he gets hurt or I guess unless he gets hurt.
C
I think so. It might be close depending on the matchup. Like he draws the saints so that's why there's such a big gap. But he will be very close if not first Quick break.
A
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Gnc.Com nothing makes you feel more like.
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C
I was gonna say he'll be top three at Adams. We did call this. I mean we called this all through.
B
Our if he stays healthy, this is the value in Christian McCaffrey. If he stays healthy for 15 games this season, you got a 5 to 7 pick discount on Christian MC. He showed it in week one, even in a game in which Brian Robinson had a role. I think Isaac Arendo might be in witness protection. I don't recall seeing him at all in week one. But as we know with Kyle Shanahan, like you might draft a kid in the third round and he will never play at running back. That's what Kyle is. And I'm not going to sit here and tell Kyle Shanahan how to design or orchestrate a running game because he's a master at it. But Christian McCaffrey had 31 touches in week one, by far the most of any player in the NFL. And I know there was some news. We should probably address this news that Brock Purdy is going to most likely miss this game on Sunday. Yes, Kyle Shanahan has described him as a long shot and it could be a multi week absence. I don't think it really moves the needle that much for me as it pertains to Christian McCaffrey's value. Like I'm cool with that. And I think guys for the most part I feel pretty solid about the pass catchers only because this offense has been built to sustain. Yeah for many many years you guys. And I use a Nick Mullens dad on the show yesterday. Right. But like Mac Jones can Be fine. Yep, it can be fine. Also, like just a side note, I'm low key excited. I mean, I'm bummed for Brock. I'm low key excited to see what it looks like with Mac Jones. Because you guys Both recall the 49ers made a big trade up from pick number 12 to number three in the 2021 NFL Draft. That was way early, by the way. It wasn't on the clock like the Jaguars and the Browns trade this year. And Shefty, who I will put his reporting up against, literally anybody in the entire world, talked about how, in any topic, I don't care what it is, he's the goat. He talks about how, like, yeah, one of the names that I think is prominently on their radar right now is Mac Jones. And it certainly felt like Kyle Shanahan's preferred target was Mac Jones. He ended up not taking Mac Jones. It ended up being, of course, Trey Lance. Not that Mac Jones has had some otherworldly career. I think it's safe to say though, that if you could have redone that, Trey Lance was not the answer. So I'm kind of excited to see what it looks like. Maybe, you know, maybe we're just at a different stage of Mac Jones career trajectory that Kyle doesn't have nearly the same affinity for him or a hope and excitement for him. That being said, if it looks serviceable on Sunday, you know who won't be surprised? Kyle Shanahan.
C
Yeah, he gets the most out of his players, certainly his quarterbacks. And, you know, maybe he can turn his career around. We've seen several examples of these. High pedigree, early drafted quarterbacks, first round quarterbacks, kind of turn the corner a little later in their career. And one of them last year was Sam Darnold, who actually had a cup of tea with the 49ers. So maybe Mac Jones is next and we have quarterback controversy. We're not going to have a quarterback.
B
We're not going to have. What's going to happen though is Mac Jones is going to play well and then the 49ers are going to trade him to the jackpot.
A
That's what it is.
C
Yeah.
B
He can get Brian Thomas Jr. A season on track. What's your question?
A
I was actually just trying to look up what Brian Thomas Jr. Did with Mac Jones as a passer last year.
B
I have the answer.
C
He did exceptional, very well.
B
Kicked booty.
C
Yes.
B
That's what he did.
C
That's what, what it was.
A
My big one was, do we think that JSN can go off again this week here in Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Yes, it feels like it. When you look at everything that he had, his target share is not going to be as high as it was.
B
37% it might be, but it might.
C
Be 37 and only throw to him. He could. He's a strong bet I would say to lead the NFL and target in target very possible in that sort of offense.
B
Totally. Yeah.
A
I mean you looked at the rest of the wide receivers and there's really not very many. It was Cooper cup and Torrey Horton which if like that was really it and then you got the tight ends that are available there. So Cooper cup was the next closest with three targets for two catches and 15 yards. So taking on the Steelers team, do you think we're going to get a shadow by any chance with Joey Porter?
C
No, I don't think so.
B
They gotta.
C
Porter was. I don't know if he was a little beat up. Maybe I should have looked into this. But he was third in line for snap. There was Ramsey full time and Darius Slay played more snaps than Porter. Yeah. Wow.
A
Okay.
B
All right, here's what I'll say. My only so great call JSN is going to absolutely mash his target share is going to be silly.
A
I thought the Steelers actually were going to be better on defense than they were last week.
B
One game.
C
I think they will.
B
They will be. They're just way too talented to not be better than 32 points allowed against the Jets. Cooper cup is one of those players that if he has 1, 2 at maximum quiet games will be amongst the most dropped players in fantasy football because it's the reasons for optimism. This did not turn out to be the case. But like if Keon Coleman had back to back to back moderate games to begin the season, you'd be telling yourself like there's a glimmer of hope for a second year player with Josh Allen as his quarterback. If Cooper cup has another like you know, two catch, three catch game, maybe follows it up with three or four the following week. Probably welcome to Dumpsville. Right. If you need it. Just because the Rams made a bet that Cooper cup is essentially not the player he was anymore after one game they're winning that bet. Yes, my friends, the Cooper cup rostered.
A
In 85% of fantasy league. So there's a lot of rosters that he is on right now.
B
Yep.
C
Yeah. I will say only 24 drop backs for Seattle in that game. Yeah, they'll pass, they'll throw it, they'll.
B
Throw out more with definitely he. I'm just saying he needs a bounce back week as we are thinking about players that could like Caleb Johnson was like the poster child for droppable after week one. I think if Cooper cup has a couple more quiet weeks, given his roster percentage percentage, his age and the decline we saw last year, he will be that poster child.
C
And he's not going to. I mean that's not going to crush you. I mean he was a guy that was.
B
Yeah, he was going like wide receiver.
C
42, second person on your bench or something like that. Totally. Yeah. We'll see what's next.
A
You're up next.
B
I'm up next.
A
Oh, sorry. No, Mike's up next. We started with Mike. That's my friend.
C
We started with me today. We changed it up next one for me. Are we going to run it back with some of these veteran running backs that crushed it in week one? Because there was three guys that we were kind of on the fence about throughout the off season who finished in the top 10 in week one. Travis Etn, Bree hall and Javante Williams. Obviously Etn dominated the snaps as we talked about earlier in the show goes up against Cincinnati this week. They allow 25 fantasy points to the Browns running backs. Yeah. In week one Breeze hall goes up against the Bills who got roughed up, of course by some guy named Derrick Henry in the opener. I remember hall. We talked about this yesterday. 36 snaps. The other running backs combined for 27. So that got probably a little closer than you realize. But hall still dominated the touches. And then of course Javante Williams, 80% of the snaps for the Cowboys in the opener. It sounds like based on comments that Jaden Blue will again not be active this week. He's not. It seems like maybe the reports from the offseason that he was going to be like a slow roll there are true. Because he's obviously an active for the team.
B
The reports from Fantasy Focus are true.
C
The reports from Fantasy Focus.
B
Yeah, we talked about this. Yeah, listen, I scared a lot of things, but. Yeah, but like, you know, he is the classic looks great when it's just running faster in OTAs. But then once the pads come on, it's like you have to pass, protect. You got to hold onto the football. You got to know where you're supposed to be every single snap. There's a reason why a player that talented went in the fifth round rather than the third round.
C
And as a result, Javante Williams is going to remain the lead back for now. I think he's going to have to be more efficient. He scored the two touchdowns, but the efficiency was not good. 3.6 yards per carry, 3.3 yards per target in that game.
B
Terrible.
C
They have to get more out of him or we're going to see these other backs. But they are playing the giants guys allowed 164 yards and 25 fantasy points to Washington's backfield in week one. So.
B
Right. Good opportunity.
C
These could be good matchups for all three of these veteran running backs. I have them ranked 23rd for ETN, 17th for Hall, 24th for Javante. So all at least startable as flex and certainly in the RB2 conversation.
B
Question for you, Mike. Daniel and I are just kind of like smaller brain dudes than you, but do you ever deal with expected fantasy points?
C
Yeah.
B
In your analysis. Yeah, we have OTD.
C
Okay, well, we have OFP too. We post that every week on ESPN.com it's this new up and coming sports website and we put fantasy analytics and there's one called expected fantasy points.
B
Okay. Yes.
C
Which is implied fantasy points.
B
Wait, where do we have on ESPN.com.
C
It'S in the fantasy football section. There's stats, there's tabs for X expected touchdowns right next to its expected fantasy points.
B
Oh, X. Okay. I didn't say. I just, I look at the touchdown. I care more about the touchdowns than the fantasy football.
C
Yeah, same thing.
B
Yeah, I was teeing you up.
A
I'm looking at it right now. It's under the more section. It says XFP leaders.
B
Okay, got it.
C
All right.
B
Because I bet that Javante Williams, even if he duds in week two like duds like you know, has. I could see him going 17 carries for 59 rushing yards and one catch rate yard and people are like, what the heck, man? But it's like you got 18 opportunities from a starting running back.
C
Yeah. He's not going to score all their touchdowns every week.
B
Yeah.
C
In fact, he'll score zero often. CD Lamb is going to score and Ferguson's not going to score zero again like last year. And George Pickens is going to get touchdowns. It's not going to be Javante all the time. So is that a guaranteed scorer? What? They don't score this year?
B
Yeah, yeah.
C
I'll put it on the board. We'll put that on the board.
B
I did it for Deontay Johnson once a year and it did not work.
C
So I feel strongly that Ferguson will score a touchdown.
A
I agree with that.
B
I might have been. I might have cursed Deontay Johnson.
A
We were sweating it out for Trey McBride for the majority of last year.
B
But at least Trey McBride had like a thousand catches.
A
Yeah. But you felt like it was inevitably going to happen.
C
Oh, yeah. Find in fantasy. Can you imagine the monster here he would have had if he had eight.
A
Touchdowns gotten in the end zone?
C
Yeah.
B
Ridiculous.
C
There's just guys like that that we had to get him the ball near the goal line more.
B
All right, if I'm ranking those guys in terms of confidence that they continue to have a fantasy relevant role for this week, I'm going to go with, believe it or not, number one is going to be Devontae Williams. The reason why he's not in terms of.
C
Not in terms of.
B
Not in terms of where I have him ranking, like, for the week. Not like I have Breece hall ranked higher because Breece hall is the best player out of those three, in my opinion.
C
Agreed.
B
And I also think that, like Javante, just to Mike's point, the competition is very slender. They should be winning that game. Breece hall. The fear would be, does Buffalo come out of this game or come out of the gates up 217 at the, you know, middle midpoint of the second quarter and the jets have to throw the ball a lot.
C
Yeah.
B
And then so I would go. I would go. In terms of ordering them, it would go Javante, Bree, tall, etn.
C
In terms of secure role, it's how you're ranking them, correct?
B
No, no, I'm ranking. I'm ranking them. I think it's etn, Hall, Javante.
C
I have ETN or I mean, I have hauled and etn.
B
It's like. But those two are kind of back in, like, sort of right there in.
A
That Javante's the number three.
B
But just like, there's. There's. I don't think there's a way in which Javante does not have a lot of work this weekend.
C
That's great. Yeah.
A
All right, how about your next one? Field?
B
Yates, Daniel Earmuffs, if you'd like.
A
Oh, great.
C
Oh, boy.
B
Will the Lions offense get back on track? The hard part about what took place on this past Sunday was we spent so much of the off season saying to ourselves, how much is Ben Johnson going to be missed in Detroit? Aaron Glenn as well. But we're talking about fantasy football, so we're talking about offensive guys. And it was the perfect storm because they got bum rushed last weekend, and it felt like the offense had no answers for the Green Bay defense.
A
What does bum rushed mean?
B
I don't know. They just can hear. They. Yeah.
A
Oh, yeah. When I cover my ears. I actually just have these.
B
They got dominant.
C
Yes.
A
Not even earpiece in. This is not helping.
B
Dominated. Yeah. That actually probably helps you here because the noise made it stronger.
C
I just want to know if someone tuned in right after you said that and then he was just sitting here.
A
Like this the whole time while you're.
C
Talking, like looking around.
B
So there probably was somebody that tuned in just at that time. But it was the perfect storm because they played an awesome defense and they were not ready. And it's week one. There could be curveballs thrown your way, but they got to get back on track in a hurry because we invested a lot in a lot of players in this offense. Amon Ra had three catches and I was. We did our tears episode at the very, very beginning of Fantasy Focus. I had amon ra outside my tier 1 wide receivers for one simple reason. There are so many mouths to feed in the Detroit offense. Right. Those mouths weren't even really fed that much in week one because they were so inefficient. But Jameer Gibbs, still a top 10 running back play for me. Amon Ross, St. Brown, still a top 10 wide receiver play for me. But we thought there was room for both of those guys, plus maybe some JMO deep shots, plus Sam Laporta who was good. And then Jared Goff's going to have his probably seven to eight weeks a year where he's really good for fantasy mixed in with the duds like last week. But we need this offense to get back on track. It's a, I think an easier test. Not a simple test against the Bears, but an easier test because if they don't, a lot of big time investments are going to end up not returning value.
A
Yeah, I am worried about the middle of that offensive line. I think we talked about it at the end of week one. It's something that I will definitely be watching here in week two because not only does the running game need to get on track, but with the way that the Lions run their offense like they need to be able to run the ball to set up play action and all the things they want to do, there's no way, unless you're using JMO over in the middle of the field, which I am very okay with, getting some short yardage, short area targets for Jameson Williams. He doesn't just need to be a deep shot, but Jared Goff is just not going to have time to be able to find his guys deep down the field if that offensive line doesn't start playing better. So between the Offensive line and the change in coordinators and just how bad week one was. Vibes feel not great heading into this game. I'm going to expect it's a must win.
C
Got to get it.
B
There are two games, two games that feel like must wins. Not literal must wins, but there are two games featuring four teams where if whichever teams, whichever two teams emerge 0 and 2, it might feel like, all right, congratulations, we're on the 2026 Lions, Bears, Patriots, Dolphins. Patriots are like a trendy, like, could they sneak into the back of the playoffs team? The Dolphins are like, hey, if we don't win this year, we're going to have to blow this entire thing up.
C
Yep.
B
The Lions are a team that of course was an NFC favorite coming into the season. And for the Bears, it's like, yeah, we've had this roster that I think is pretty good. It's just a matter of having the right person at the control panels. That being Ben Johnson, if they start owing to panic is going to endure in Chicago.
A
All right, I want to talk about Keon Coleman because I'm tired of talking about the Detroit Lions. It just hurts my heart too much for them.
C
Really sorry about that.
A
But do you think that we can trust Keon Coleman in week two after what happened in week one? Because this is one of those things that when you look at the box score.
C
Yeah.
A
You might be caught thinking, oh, wow, Keon Coleman had an unbelievable game. I'm set up with this awesome wide receiver one in this Bills offense not fully sold. When you look a little deeper, you recognize seven of his eight catches came in the fourth quarter. Right. That touchdown catch he had wasn't even a pass to him. He just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I'll take the production. Like, I'm thrilled if you happen to use him in week one. And I'm excited that when the fourth quarter was there that like he was a guy that Josh Allen was looking at. But do I feel like all of a sudden we've just unlocked Keon Coleman to be this consistent starting potential player for our fantasy squads? Not quite yet.
B
I don't feel that way either. Or as well, I should say. He's right outside my top. He's outside my top 34 wide receivers this week. Is Keon Coleman outside your top 40 this week? Top 40? Excuse me. Yeah, where do I have.
A
Yeah, I've got him at 41, you've got him at 43. Mike has him at 39. So maybe in a 12 team league he'd be like a low end flex option, but in 10 teamers I think I still want to continue to see it. I'm certainly, if he is for some reason available, go out and grab him. But.
B
Perfect storm. 394 passing yards Josh Allen in week one. So much of that came from like the midway point of the third quarter. And on. On top of that, Josh has had some struggles against the Jets. This is a very talented defense, albeit under different defensive coordinators and such. But this is a tough matchup for any opposing offense. Do you think there's any kind of shadow coverage?
C
Do you want me to talk about this now or save for the shadow report?
B
I could save it for the shadow report.
C
Save for the shadow report because I have. Yeah, I have an interesting note. I will say my general optimism for Keon Coleman seems to be a little higher than your guys. I mean I'm optimistic almost every snap. He was over 90% of the snaps. Clearly seems to be established as the top perimeter target for Josh Allen. I think the more thinking it might be a little bit. Yeah, okay. Maybe more to week two. But you know, I think as we saw last year, there's going to be games where they're more. They don't have to throw it as much. They don't have to fling it around the field as often as they did in this game. So he might be a little inconsistent. I don't think he's a wide receiver one, but it should. Should he be an every week starter? Probably.
B
Is this a week rest of the season preview or is it.
C
That's like going forward.
B
Yeah, going forward. I agree on that. By the way. It's already, it's already feeling like a great value because you got him super late.
A
Super late.
C
Yeah.
A
And I doubt he's available in any of your leagues. He's rostered in 85% of fantasy leagues.
C
So more, more thoughts on the four team leagues.
B
Which by the way, shout out to the four team leagues.
A
Why not?
B
Why not? Yeah.
A
Hey Mike, you were in a four team league with your daughters. Didn't I think one of them beat you last year though in the four team league. Right. Weren't you telling me that you were in a four team league with your daughters?
C
Oh, we did pick them.
A
Oh, that's what it was.
C
That's right.
B
I went 12 and 4 in week one.
C
Yeah, I went. I did not do as well. I think it was 11 and 5 or something. I did not. I'm in last.
A
Oh, that's all right.
B
Okay.
C
You're up Getting smoked. Oh, my turn. All right, Last one for me is the tight end market crash because we had three guys that we ranked as tight end ones last year, at least fringe tight end ones. In the case of Colson Loveland, who we all have Outside the top 10 this week, Evan Ingram, Mark Andrews and Colson Loveland. So Ingram very concerned about the back. I went through and went like play by play to see how he was being utilized because it was very clear snap count was concerning early on in this game. He got hurt on a third quarter catch. He played one more snap and then he left for good in the game. But prior to that injury, the initial injury, he played 20 of 49 snaps. Now, for comparison, that's about 40% for comparison in his three seasons. And Jacksonville played 76% of the snap. So Adam Troutman was very clearly the number one tight end for Denver in this game. And I don't really understand why that was.
B
Soft spot?
C
What?
B
Sean Payton soft spot.
C
Oh, yeah. Oh, no, no doubt. He has his guys that he likes a lot. So my question is, if he's healthy and plays in this game, can we trust him after he played so little? Is that going to change? Is that our first game with the team? Is it a matchup theme? Like why +BO struggles?
A
I think this goes back to the phrase that we used to say where trust is a strong word.
C
Maybe I wouldn't feel great putting him in my lineup this week.
B
So here's the counter that I think most people are probably going to have to deal with themselves is if I drafted Evan Ingram, I probably didn't draft a second tight end. If you grabbed, here are some of the names that were on waivers that I think I would start. Maybe you guys would or would not. Juwan Johnson, of course.
A
Yeah, let's start him.
B
Would you start Harold Fannin over him?
C
I don't think I would go as far as Ban and I know he played, he played a lot. But David and Joku's not going anywhere. And also Cedric Tillman had a good game and Jerry Judy's going to be involved.
B
I'd play Fannin over him. So those two, I would play with you. So if you could grab either of those guys off of waivers, I understand how it's a conversation, but if it's like, yeah, like I have Evan Ingram and I can grab Mike Kosicki, like, I probably wouldn't roll that dice.
C
I think Fan was ahead of Kosiki, so I won't go that far.
B
But it's crazy. Yeah, Fan Had a touchdown. He had a fantastic, fantastic debut.
C
Fantastic. I see what you did there. So anyway, worried about Ingram a little bit. I think he's a bench guy for now, not a drop bench guy. We'll see if his playing time goes back up. Maybe he's fine. So next one is Mark Andrews. He's the guy I'm most confident in from this group, at least short term because it looks like Isaiah likely is again not going to play. I know that Andrews only had the 1 target in this game. Actually moved him up a little bit last night. It says 17th on the screen if you're watching. I moved him up to 12 because I removed likely from the projections. He did play 76% of the snaps. 64. He ran 64% of the routes. That's up a little bit from last year. Keep this in mind. He had one target. That's not great. They only attempted 19 passes in this game.
B
That's true.
C
That's part of it. A lot of it went to say flowers. He was open. He's the one that dominated. They're going to throw more passes and not a lot. It's not a high volume offense but there's enough where if he throws 27 this week and Andrews gets 20% of the targets, he'll be okay. He'll give you a tight on one number. So. So at least with likely not there, I still feel like you can. Andrews is a passable starter so I think he's fine. And then the last one, of course, Colson Loveland, he's on benches for now. He's look, he was the 10th overall pick of the draft. That's the kind of guy you keep on your bench in fantasy, 100%. But Cole Comet, early on it might again. Might have been the rookie thing. He's a very young rookie. Cole Comet had four targets and 57 snaps at Ranmar routes and Colson Loveland who had just had the two targets in the game. So Loveland on the bench and we're not starting commit. He's not yet. So that's my view. Andrew's borderline starter. Ingram on benches. Loveland on benches.
A
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A
Gosh. Well, let's turn that frown upside down and go from a tight end market crash to maybe a tight end that's soaring in fantasy football field.
B
Jades, is Tyler Warren already a top five tight end?
C
Yeah, he's on that. He's six for me this week, but.
B
In the next three for me this week behind only a couple guys, fellows named Brock Bowers and also Trey McBride. The volume was great. Last week he what, nine targets, seven catches. The thing about Tyler Warren that I think is so encouraging for fantasy purposes is that so much of what you need to do with him is pretty simple. It's just like underneath routes that you just dump the football off to him and let him do the work after the catch, which is very, very helpful for PPR formats. He had over 700 yards after the catch only last season. He was one of the best run after catch players in the entire draft process. So there are players who are like super, super talented, but in order to get them the football, you have to give them like Jameson Williams to fall in this category. Like in order to throw the football down the field, you have to block them up to give your quarterback the time to throw the football down the field.
A
Correct.
B
Tyler Warren should be like an easy one every single week. Like defenses are not going to just say like, okay, let's like make sure Tyler Warren can't catch the ball one yard past the line of scrimmage. Like that's not a defense. You talk about the, the, the. The counter to that is tackle better. Right. He should see a ton of targets. And I, I am just thrilled that we have yet another superstar tight end that has entered the mix because we went through a very dry spell for quite some time. But the young pipeline has been awesome. Tight end three for me. Also got a carry last week.
C
Yeah, he did, yeah. Which, which is something he did at Penn State, so we'll keep getting those. So that was baked into the projection this year too.
B
Not bad number, but yeah, you're not.
C
Going to get a ton of tight end carries, but you'll get them here or there.
A
I'm going to close out my third talking point by talking about another Baltimore Raven. And for me, this is more of a PSA for everybody on Zay Flowers. In case this is your first year rostering Zay Flowers, you need to be know what you're in for right. This last week, nine targets, seven catches, 143 yards for two touchdowns. That's good for 28.1 fantasy points. That was awesome. Yeah, it was. You feel thrilled with that, but there's some things that you need to be careful of.
B
Okay.
A
Mike already mentioned it. They threw the ball 19 times. 19 times. And he was still able to come up with 28 fantasy points.
C
Crazy when you have.
A
When we mentioned him last year field, we talked about him as being one of the, if not maybe the like most known yo yo player in the NFL. This is a Baltimore Ravens team that when they are ahead and winning, Zay Flowers can just sort of disappear into the ether because they'll just use Derrick Henry. We don't need to go out there and throw the football when we're playing the way that we want to play.
B
Smart by them, honestly.
A
And by the way, if you've got a wide receiver that's 5 foot 9, 180 pounds and you're up by three touchdowns, like there's no reason to put extra wear and tear on his body, right? So this is one of those offenses where if things are working the way that the Ravens want to, this is a wide receiver that even though you drafted him as a low end wide receiver too, or potential high end flex play, he might not be able to deliver that consistent value. And that's one of the things with Zay Flowers consistency. He can give you these huge weeks and when Baltimore needs him, he can be that guy. But if this is your first year rostering Zay Flowers, this is just a PSA to say this is not what you're going to get every single week. He's not this kind of consistent player. You love what we were able to get from him in week one, but I think there's going to be a little bit of a return to earth because we won't see this kind of efficiency on 19 pass attempts from the Ravens and him being able to pull down seven of them for 143 yards.
B
Two things. One, Mike talked yesterday. I think it was in reference to Tyree Kale. There's this big mass from like wide receiver 15 to 40 or something. It's very similar. Applies to Zay Flowers as well. Second thing, and I won't, if the answer is yes, then just save it for the next subject. But is he part of your wide receiver cornerback matchup?
C
He is not.
B
He's not. Okay, no. But Cleveland is a good defense, as we saw last week. They did a great job on both Jamar Chase and T. Higgins. The entire Bengals offense struggled. So just worth noting that the challenge, I think is much more difficult this week against Cleveland than it was against Buffalo last week. Who the kryptonite for the Bills defense is? The Baltimore Ravens.
A
Every single, every single time we see him play each other, it feels like it's a high scoring game from that Ravens offense. Have they figured it out for what it's worth? We just have them. And I think all of us still see Z Flowers as starters. Field, you're the lowest as wide receiver. 31, I'd assume. And you'd still consider him as a flex option? Potentially.
B
I mean, if you have him as.
C
Your second wide receiver, he's a weekly lineup block. I mean, he's done that the last couple of years. He's still the number one receiver in a very high scoring offense and you're going to have games like last week. If you benched them last week, obviously you're kicking yourself. You're right, he's going to be.
A
He'll have a game where it's three for 22 and he gets you five and a half fantasies.
C
Five big games last year and they were all before week 10. So it sounds like you're saying try to trade him or trade him soon.
A
I'm just saying this was a really good week one. If you rostered Zay Flowers, I wouldn't expect him to get 28 fantasy points again in week two. That was all. But speaking of the shadow report, Field already mentioned it. Mike Play, why don't we dive into your wide receiver cornerback matchups for week two?
C
Yeah, let's do it. We'll start with upgrades and we'll go to downgrades and then I'll just give you at the end. The other guys I think will be shadowed this week that aren't. We're not really moving the needle for so upgrades here. Chargers receivers going up against the Raiders. We've talked about this secondary in the past and actually last week despite facing New England who again at a very limited. Stefan Diggs give up the six most fantasy points across the league. Two wide receivers, Kyle Blue Kelly, Eric Stokes, Darnay Holmes. They are in fact the top three corners. I expect the Chargers receivers who you may have caught that game on Friday night last week they did good. All three of them had a good game. 5 plus catches, 68 plus yards and 13 plus fantasy points. So we're upgrading Chargers receivers against the Raiders and then the second group here is the Patriots receivers going up against the Dolphins corners again. Storm Duck is even going to play. If not he's hurt. Russell Douglas steps in with Jack Jones and Jason Marshall. Remember Miami last week allowed a big game to Michael Pittman. Indy didn't have to throw it a lot but Pittman saw it 6 for 80 and a touchdown. In that game they gave up 272 passing yards, almost 10 yards per pass attempt to one Daniel Jones.
B
So Bob Douglas might have positive receiving yards.
C
Yeah, might get there. Hopefully we get a little more Stefan Diggs. I like to see a large.
A
Just gonna ask you that. Yeah, so we saw he played about half the snaps, right.
B
You would think a guy he'll just. You should see more and more of.
C
Him ramp up over the next couple of weeks.
A
Yeah, he ran 10 routes and had six receptions on 10 routes. It just felt like we are gonna find a way to get him involved.
C
We'll have a big target chair once.
A
Absolutely.
C
And he. That's part of my hesitation on waivers with Kshawn Booty. I didn't spend really anything on him this week because as Stefan Diggs role evolves, I mean we don't expect this to be a high powered passing offense to support multiple guys. So Mike's only saying that Mike does not like Booty.
A
I beat him. That's a better joke than where I was going. All right, go ahead with your next one, Mike. That's it.
C
All right. He just. You started the joke and he stepped.
A
I know.
C
No big deal.
A
No big deal.
B
What was you're going to be your version.
A
Mike was upset because I spent $3 in Fab on Keisha Booty and he spent $2. So I got him. So he's just like, booty's out. He's just. He's not actually good at football.
B
What league was that?
A
That was our. I think it was our dynasty league. Was it not? Or it might have been the ff.
C
It might have been probably Focus or.
A
Focus or FF now. One of those leagues I, I play in so many leagues with you guys. It's actually hard to keep them straight.
B
In a few of the leagues you have the name of Mike Clay. It's like very confused.
A
I know. I gotta, I gotta change that up.
C
It's very confusing. Let's talk downgrades. We'll start with Keon Coleman. We just talked about him before, so check this out. I think this would be. Will be a surprise.
B
I love it.
A
Check this out.
C
Check this out. I think this would surprise a lot of people who understand that Sauce Gardner is one of the best corners in the NFL. I would agree.
B
Yeah.
C
So I've been charting this stuff for a long time. Obviously his whole career. I've charted every game. Week one was the first time he's ever shadowed full time. First time. The jets throughout his the beginning. Yeah, they've had him just kind of play aside DJ Reed on the other side. But last week Aaron Glenn kind of shook it up and had him shadow DK Metcalf in that game. He was on him on 29 of 32 routes, including all 29 in the perimeter. And Metcalf was fine. He had 12 points in the game, so nothing spectacular. But Gardner played well. He's one of the best corners in the NFL. And I think, and this is why I look closely at how they use Coleman last week. He was a full time player and played on the perimeter about 90% of the time. Gardner's not going to go to the slot. A lot of times top receivers will move around CD Lambs in London spot half the time. Guillon, Coleman did not do that.
B
He won't do that. He's not nearly silent enough to do that.
C
I feel like he did enough in week one to say, hey, I'm the number one perimeter receiver, not Josh Palmer or anyone else. And that's going to sell the jets this week when they're prepping. But Gardner on that side. And even if they don't, which I think they will, but even if they don't, Brandon Stevens pretty darn good corner on the other side. So Coleman will be up against those two throughout this game. I think he comes back to earth this week. So startable but bust bust rate much higher last week. All right, that's one. The other one is I think Mike Evans for the second week in a row will draw a shadow this time from Derek Stingley Jr. So it's not ideal. A tough start. Stingley shadowed Devonte Adams last week. You may recall if you had Adams in your lineup, didn't do so hot seven points in that game. A lot of that came late as well. And he was very good and effective last season. And also Mike Evans only eight points last week while shadowed by A.J. terrell, which is a matchup. He's usually done well, so this is a tough one.
B
Shefty is bullish on Devonte Adams this week. I saw on get up He did his three must plays for the week. No surprise Christian McCaffrey. But his other two were Devonte Adams and Zach Charbonnet.
A
Okay, interesting.
C
Yeah, interesting. I'm hoping Ken Walker does a little more. But. But yeah, we talked about it.
B
Sounds like the answer is probably not.
C
If Shefty's picking Charbonnet, that makes me nervous.
B
Makes me nervous too. Yep, Walker to the bench.
C
Oh, by the way, one other question I think people may be thinking about is will Pat certain shadow Michael Pittman in this game? Best corner in the NFL shadow Calvin Ridley last week. But he has faced the Colts and when pit with a Pittman active twice in his career and shattered him neither time. That includes late last season. So I don't think they view Pittman as a guy I that they want to match up in that way. So it could happen, but history says it won't happen. So you don't have to be super nervous about.
A
You ever get the. I mean I know it's a wide receiver cornerback matchup is what we're talking about. But do you ever get like the rare tight end shadow that you got to be careful of?
C
I mean, it's sometimes there a top corner will like, align.
B
Like sometimes used to do it.
C
Yeah. You would see, like I was just gonna say like. Like that. Or maybe the Chargers, like, they would take a guy like Michael Davis. The Chargers would. And put. Put them on Travis. Travis Kelsey only when he's in the slot. So it'd be like sixth place. Gotcha. So. So no, that's nothing I'm ever worried about.
A
Okay, well, the way you said that was so dismissive. That's nothing I'm ever worried about. I don't even know why you say that.
C
It's just not enough plays.
A
That's fair. All right. All right. We'll go check out the playbook.
C
Oh, wait, hold on. We got a full screen here. The other shadows.
A
Oh, we got a couple more for the week.
C
It's just the other ones. We're not. We're not going to change the value. Fantasy value of these guys, but I expect them to be shadowed. AJ Terrell and Justin Jefferson. Trevon Diggs on Malik Neighbors, probably especially now with the Duron Bland out for this one.
B
Yeah.
C
Christian Benford will shadow Garrett Wilson as he did last year. Trent McDuffie on AJ Brown as he. As he was in the super bowl. And Reek one on DK Metcalf. But again, start those guys with confidence.
A
All those guys are starters.
C
It's a big week for Shadow. So there was a lot of names this week. It won't always be this lengthy. Yeah.
A
Did you guys see that? Malik Neighbors was like, I gotta learn how to smile more, I guess, because you guys.
B
Right.
C
Yeah.
A
That was a fun. That was a fun article to read.
B
Did you guys also see. Speaking of stuff taking place in pop culture that I guess football culture. Malik, Excuse me. Micah Parsons is an IDP junkie.
C
I did see that.
B
Micah Parsons. So he had his IDP draft and he took Edger and Cooper with his first round pick. I think the first pick overall as well. He posted it on Social after the fact. And Cooper did ball out in Micah's scoring system. He had 36 fantasy point. That's a big number. So Micah bypassed himself for Edger and Cooper. How you indoctrinate yourself into the locker room?
A
Do you know when he is doing this draft? Is he only doing in one of those things?
C
Whatever. I'm not.
B
Stefania is.
A
Do you know when is he playing like an actual IDP league? Where he also rosters offensive players or does he only roster defensive players? And that's what their fantasy league is, just defensive guys.
B
Yeah. That sounds like psycho behavior.
C
It does.
B
Only people like you guys would.
C
And by the way, someone. Then someone else drafted him and he. And they were like, do you trade for yourself? And he was like, if you was too much traffic.
A
I saw that.
B
So good. Micah is a wise, wise man.
A
All right, well, let's dive into our. Oh, by the way, like I said this before, right before we were trying to wrap this up, but go check out the playbook. Mike Clay writes it every single week. It's an unbelievable article. I love the color, like, coordinated. Like, should I start a guy? Should I not start a guy? Like what. What is their matchup? You make it really easy to be able to read through that. So go check that out.
C
Unbelievable. Thanks.
A
Did you really you did that?
C
Of course. All that stuff. Good job. By the way, I have a stat XP xfp.
A
Oh, I've never heard of that.
C
It's on espn.
B
Where can I find that? Oh, really? Oh, that's gone under the more tab.
C
Yeah, under the more tab.
A
Under the more tab. There you go.
C
Exists in our game.
A
Let's dive into a Thursday Night Football preview. We're talking Washington Commanders and Green Bay packers like we've been doing every single week. When we're talking about games, there's things we're trying to watch for. In this one, it's only. We're only one week in the season, so. So field, let me start with you. Like, what's the one thing you're watching here? In Thursday Night Football you can do more than one, but what's the one thing you're watching?
B
I'll start here. Commander's backfield. Right. So this past weekend it was basically your turn. My turn with Austin Eckler and then Bill Crosby, Merritt. Merritt ended up, as Mike referenced earlier, being the highest scoring Commanders back, I would think. Think they probably hold on to that pattern tonight. Right? They won the game this past week. It's a short week against a really, really good packers defense. Is this the week that you shake things up and hand the ball or hand the rock over to Bill Crosby merit as your go to guy all by himself? Answer is probably not. I've got Crosby, Merritt just. And I mean just ahead of Echler in my rankings. But I think for our purposes, the reality is Echler probably needs a half dozen catches to pay off. Crosby, Merritt probably need to touchdown to pay off.
C
Yeah, yeah, exactly right.
B
Tough matchup.
C
I don't really want to start either guy. That's how I feel. I was only, what was it, 19 snaps for Crosby Merritt in the opener. That number needs to go up and maybe they did cap him at 10 carries because Jeremy McNichols played 13 snaps in this game. So that needs to go away. Those four carries need to go to Crosby Merritt. Yeah, a little more. Take a little more away from Eckler and then we got to start a fantasy starter, but we're not there yet.
B
It doesn't feel quite as egregious as some of the other ones, though. Right. Like Ramandre Stevenson deserves playing time less than Austin Eckler does. Who else are we talking about in that same vein?
C
Henry and.
B
Yeah, yeah. Like J.K. dobbins deserves opportunities. Austin Eckler I think is okay to continue to have a role. I just. The Patriots one to me, is just very hard to figure out.
A
But it's going to get to a point though, doesn't it feel like. And maybe this is just like the fan of me, but it feels like it's going to get to the point where if you get a game where it's like JCM is the hot hand, we're just going to let him. We're going to let him cook. Right.
B
And at that point, such a great pass.
C
Exactly right.
B
He's always going to have that in the bag.
C
Yeah, we need. We need across the America to get all the carries. That's the. That's a trick. I'm gonna see. We'll see.
B
What are you watching?
C
See how that goes tonight. I'm watching my guy, Matthew Golden.
A
I need more.
C
I need more usage because they used a ton of wide receivers in the opener. Romeo Dobbs led in routes and targets with six or in routes with 16. Jaden Reed, of the most targets with five, they only had 26 drop back. So this was another team that didn't have to throw the ball a lot. I expect a competitive game against Jaden Daniels in this Washington offense, so. So hopefully they have to throw more and that should lead to more. Matthew golden, he was second in routes, but it was only 13 because they just didn't throw it that much. So that's what I want to see. I want to see if they evolve his role and he was just limited a little bit in the season opener. In the meantime, though, I think Golden, Reed, Dobbs, fringe flex options, I don't feel great starting them this week, but I'm very curious to see if Golden's role expands. It has to. He's a first round pick. You got to expand the guy's role.
A
I mean, you say that.
C
I know I say that.
A
That's what we think.
C
I still have confidence. I have confidence it will.
B
Can't bail after one week, can you?
A
I can bail on him being a starting fantasy asset, but I'm not going to. I'm not going to drop him, but.
C
He has to play more. If this usage continues all season long, it's pro. It's a problem.
B
It's a problem. Now they're going to be so good that, like, it's going to be hard to question much of what they do.
C
Yeah, yeah.
B
But taking a guy 22nd overall and not playing him a ton.
C
Yeah, it doesn't make sense. Especially because he, by the way, we. Look, I don't want to. I Look, I don't want to. You're going to laugh when I say this, but I don't want to compare him to Justin Jefferson, okay? Yeah, see, he's laughing at me. I told you not to laugh. Okay. I asked you not to and you did it anyway. Justin Jefferson barely played in weeks one and two of his rookie season. They were like, okay, we got to put him out there, we got to get moving on offense and the rest is history. There's a chance that same kind of things happening here. They're just taking a little easy on golden first game and then they'll ramp them up. So confident.
A
I'm watching the wide receivers on the other side. This commander is wide receiving core. We obviously saw Debo Samuel just like dominate the targets in week one and then obviously Terry McLaren just didn't. Terry McLaurin had as many fantasy points as Noah Brown, which is not what I was expecting. Yeah, even with the touchdown regression that we were expecting, I still assumed that Terry McLaren would just get more involved in this game. Only four targets, which seems unbelievably low for a guy that you just had an entire contract off season conversation with. Like, I think that is the water will find its level. I think, as you say, field. But I am still interested to see, like, are we going to have two top 30 wide receivers potentially in this office with Deebo and Terry McLaurin?
B
That's the only point that I think is important to hammer home right now is that a lot of people have framed it as, hey, does Terry McLaurin get back on track and then Debo fades for this week. I don't think it has to be one or the other. It could be both guys at the Same time carrying value. They're playing with Jaden Daniels.
C
Yep.
B
And it's a very thin wide receiver room beyond those two guys. So to me, it's possible that Debo's a top 25 option each week and Terry McClaurin's a top 20 option each week.
C
Yeah. They just need to score. And it actually needs to be kind of like Philly, where you feature Brown, Smith, and Goddard. They're the whole. They're all going to have 20 plus percent targets. Yeah, it's going to kind of have to be like that in Washington, because whether we like it or not, Zachary isn't going anywhere. He's going to have 20%, and then we need the other 20. We need about half the targets to go to those two guys, Debo and McLaren. And it's possible.
B
Agreed.
C
Yeah.
A
If you were picking this game, which side would you go?
B
Oh, I am picking this game. I'm picking the Packers. Go, Pack, go.
C
I think it's going to be a great game. I'm super pumped for this. 26, 25. Packers.
A
26, 25, 1.1.
B
Would that be score gummy? I don't know. Did you guys see what happened with score Gummy over the weekend?
A
No.
C
What happened?
B
Are you familiar with the account, the NFL score gummy account?
A
I am, yes.
B
Okay. So for those out there that don't know what score a me is, it's when a game ends in a score that has never happened previously in NFL history. It turns out the Bills Ravens game, which was 4140 or 42, 41, I.
C
Don'T know, but I think.
A
I think it was 41, 40, 41, 40.
B
That's never happened in NFL history previously.
C
Didn't know that.
B
As you guys also probably know, score Gummy, usually 4140 is a confirmed score. Score Gummy immediately tweets out when a game hits with a score gummy. Like, oh, my God, it just happened. For the first time in X number of games this score has taken place. Didn't happen at all. And then he just went dark. Like, never tweeted about it. And then the following night at the conclusion of Monday Night Football was like, the Vikings beat the Bears 20 to 17. This is not a score of gummy. It's happened X number of times in the past. The entire Internet now believes that NFL score. Gami is a Ravens fan who just was so bitter after that loss, which I can't blame said Ravens fan if that's the case.
C
By the way. It has to be A bot account. Right. Like in terms of.
B
Well, it's designed by somebody people say that about.
C
Oh, it could have just been like an outage or something.
B
But don't you think the person who runs it after the fact would just go in there and throw a manually typed out tweet?
C
Maybe they didn't even think to check it. I don't know. I have no idea.
B
I'd imagine the Menchis are pretty strong.
C
Yeah, I don't know.
A
I do not believe that 25, 26 would be a score gummy. It appears as though it's happened before. However, I'm looking at a website that I do not know how to read and trying to figure it out on the fly. So there's a. You see how there's like a whole thing?
B
Yes, I do.
A
It's a little. But I think it's already happened. I also, as much as it hurts my heart to do this, would take the Green Bay Packers. They looked really good.
B
They looked awesome.
A
Like, they looked fantastic. And I can only imagine as Micah Parsons gets more involved with that defense, how it's going to work out. All right.
B
I'm so pumped.
A
It's now time for the Raheem Sanders Monopoly Fund. This is our long shots. As a reminder, we're going to have this little picture that we're going to throw it onto the desk here. I've got it in my hand. For those listening at home, we've got $5 in Monopoly money that we are putting in for every one of the people that we choose field. You guys do long shots on FF now, but I believe your roster percentage is 20%. Yeah, we decided to take it to the nth degree because Mike Clay told us 2% was too much. So we have to do 1% rostered or fewer.
C
That might be even be too high. There's guys that play like a full complement of snaps.
B
Yeah, no, there were some interesting names at 1% and below.
A
There sure were.
B
Let's do it. Yeah. Daniel, I feel like you're always so generous in letting Mike or me kick off, so fire away.
A
I'm going to start with Alama Day. Zacchaeus.
B
That's a good one.
A
Rostered and 0.4% of leagues, seven targets. So for me, a guy that just had a lot of opportunities, even though there's a bunch of people in that offense to be able to catch passes, he was just utilized. And so this week against the Detroit Lions, as much as I don't want that to happen, I'm going to go With a Lakias.
B
So I'm going to put this up here.
A
You put it up there. Deal.
B
Two things here is I love Monopoly. I always was going for the Reds. Illinois Ave. That thing was the most landed on property in all of Monopoly. Actually proven. Illinois, Indiana and what's the third one? Something else. Mine is going to Noah Gray. Everybody is sitting here saying to themselves, hey, Xavier Worthy is probably out. By the way, Patrick Mahomes did say something yesterday to the effect of like, yeah, we're going to need more of Hollywood Brown with Xavier Worthy and Rasheed Rice missing the next couple of weeks. Rasheed Rice can miss the next five weeks. Yes, but maybe an indication that it could be. And the Chiefs did not put Worthy on ir. Maybe this is more like two to three weeks as opposed to four to six.
A
You know, it's interesting. When you're a player like Patrick Mahomes, you can say that. When you're a player like Jordan Mason in week one and you accidentally say it, all of a sudden the team feels a little bit different, right?
C
Totally.
B
Mahomes can say whatever he wants.
A
Yeah, Mahomes is a lot. He's like, I don't know if I'm officially breaking news here, but I'm going to plan on this.
B
But everybody's saying like, hey, we're going to see more of Travis Kelce. I hope and think we will. But hey, man, forget that Noah Gray. Mr. Steady Eddie for this Chiefs offense. He had a two touchdown game last year. Would not surprise me if he finds the end zone this week.
C
All right, I like that call. I'm going to go with grab your money. A guy who may have come up on this show before at one point or another and he's going to be in the same game because he's on the same team as Noah Gray. Tyquan Thorne. We're back in an official. I used him in the preseason. We had a close call. So we're using him here in week number two to start this thing off. I have to. I feel like he was one of the inspirations for the show. I have to use him. 0.6. It looks like 0.7% now rostered. Some people knew this was coming and they picked him up over and over. That's why he went up to 0.7%, had four targets, played over 70% of the snaps last week. This guy has three career touchdowns after Sunday afternoon.
A
Four, five.
C
Hill. Four. Maybe five, maybe five.
A
Look, Mike's calling it two touchdown game.
C
Five, but certainly four.
A
Tyquan Thornton is just for those that maybe don't know, like, he's going to be the mvs of this offense. Right. Like, that's what the role is going to be.
B
He comes close on Sunday, I am going to call every person I know that plays fantasy football and ask them to add Thornton so that Mike can't keep using him every single week.
A
I love that. I love that.
B
Get him over 1%. I'm not.
C
I. I feel like that's outside the spirit of the game. I'm not going to keep using the same guy. That's no fun.
A
Well, good for you.
B
You have to double wager if you do.
A
Yeah.
B
You got to bring 10 bucks.
C
Monopoly.
A
Yeah, that's how it works.
C
And wait, did we decide this? Do returns count? Because he had almost had a return test.
A
Returns count. I think what we decided was we're not going to choose quarterbacks. It has to be what would be considered like an anytime touchdown.
C
Of course.
B
Right?
C
Yeah.
A
So also our producers have a pick here. Our producer, Tyler.
C
Oh, fun. All right.
B
Right.
A
Choosing Kyle Hughes.
C
Check.
A
Who may get some tight ends run this week.
B
That would be an amazing one.
C
That would be amazing. That's in the spirit of the game. I like that a lot.
A
Yeah. So that'll be a very.
B
Which one wasn't in the spirit of the game?
C
No, they all are.
B
Okay.
C
I think they're all. They're all good. Yeah.
A
Mike had to think about it for a minute. He's like, do I want to throw someone on another bus?
C
Right now is fine.
B
All right.
A
Well, if you are watching. Not watching at home, we got a full screen here.
C
Feel.
A
Taking Noah Gray 0.6%. Rostered Mike with Tyquan Thornton 0.7%. I got a Lama de Zakia's 0.4%. And the producers taking Kyle Hughes.
B
Check. Oh, man.
C
So great. Scored between two and three touchdowns each of the last four seasons. Has he really right in that two to three range. Four straight. So he's going to do it.
B
Man, I love that guy.
A
He's great.
B
He's great. I mean, honestly, valuable.
A
I could see him being one of those guys. Although I don't know if it would work the same way with Mac Jones under center. But, like, couldn't you see him rather than like getting CMC or Brian Robinson just getting that little like tight end flip at the goal line.
B
And it could happen with Juice. It could also be a one yard rushing touchdown. Right.
C
By the way, this is how we help people in 20 team leagues. Right? We're here for Everyone.
A
That's right.
C
Maybe you're looking for a desperation flex in your 20 team league.
B
We were talking about it though, at lunch yesterday. We were saying, like, what we really want is for nobody to hit until like week 13 because the drama will build each week. Like, if it happens this weekend, like, I'll be happy for whoever guessed right. But it's also like, dang, this was too easy.
A
I will also be happy if you or the producers get it. Field.
C
Yes.
B
Or you.
A
Oh, yeah. Or if I get it. Yeah. I honestly feel like if Mike gets it right off the bat, I'm gonna feel like this game was rigged.
B
Rigged?
C
Yeah.
B
Yeah.
A
I just.
B
You were talking to the schedule leakers.
A
That's it. Yeah.
B
We never got a red zone update from Kevin Pulse for, did we?
C
Oh, no, I don't know.
A
No, we did not text him. Check out ff. Now that's a ton of fun, as always. All right, that's going to do it for us today. We're going to be back tomorrow with part two of our week two preview as well as a little bit of a Thursday Night football recap. This is going to be a very fun show as it always is.
B
That's going to be great tonight, guys. Dude, I love the cadence. Like Tuesday I woke up and I was like, ah, no football tonight. And then it was like, bam, we're back.
A
It's right here, right on our doorstep. Yeah, this will be a really good one. All right. We love you guys. Don't forget to love each other and be kind to yourself. You deserve it. Have fun on Thursday Night Football. We'll see you guys tomorrow. You're in the whole 6010.
B
Fantasy.
A
Fantasy Focus. Talk about stepping up. It's time to level up your game. Introducing the all new ESPN app. All of ESPN all in one place. Your home for the most live sports and the best championship moments. The electricity is palpable. Step up your game with no annual contract required. It's the ultimate fan experience.
B
Level up.
A
For more on the ESPN app or at stream espn.com Sign up now.
Episode: The Best Wide Receiver Starts for Week 2!
Date: September 11, 2025
Hosts: Field Yates, Mike Clay, Daniel Dopp
Theme: Strategic advice and debates for Fantasy Football Week 2, focusing on wide receiver starts, injury updates, rookie usage analysis, shadow cornerback matchups, and deep sleeper picks.
This episode is a comprehensive Week 2 preview centered on key lineup decisions, particularly for wide receivers. The hosts recap notable Week 1 outcomes, dive into running back and tight end trends, revisit preseason predictions, break down wide receiver/cornerback matchups (with an eye on shadow coverage), and share their favorite deep-dive "long shot" touchdown picks for the upcoming games. The crew delivers deep analysis with their usual blend of humor, inside jokes, and actionable takeaways.
(44:35-50:41)
Upgrades:
Downgrades:
(Long Shot Monopoly Fund – 59:52 onward)
Rules: 1% rostered or less, anytime TDs (returns count, no QBs).
“I described Eric Moody’s fantasy team in FF now as overrated. Like Led Zeppelin.”
– Field Yates, 03:30
(In reference to fantasy banter and music fan Eric Moody.)
"I think the more thinking it might be a little bit. Yeah, okay. Maybe more to week two. But you know, I think as we saw last year, there’s going to be games where they’re more... they don’t have to throw it as much..."
– Mike Clay on Keon Coleman’s role, 32:26
“He should see a ton of targets. And I, I am just thrilled that we have yet another superstar tight end.”
– Field Yates, on Tyler Warren, 40:41
“This is just a PSA ... This is not what you’re going to get every single week. He’s not this kind of consistent player.”
– Daniel Dopp, on Zay Flowers’ volatility, 41:48
“If Cooper Kupp has another... two catch, three catch game... probably welcome to Dumpsville, right?”
– Field Yates, 22:10
For more details, lineups, and player evaluations, visit Mike Clay’s Playbook on ESPN and check the expected fantasy points leaderboards every week!
Tone: Friendly, analytical, and conversational, with plenty of inside jokes and audience engagement. The show blends sharp football/fantasy strategy with an accessible, community-first vibe.