The BEST WR Starts for Week 12 Fantasy Football | Fantasy Focus 🏈

Summary

Fantasy Focus Football — "The BEST WR Starts for Week 12 Fantasy Football" (Nov 20, 2025)

Hosts: Field Yates, Daniel Dopp, Mike Clay
Theme: Week 12 Wide Receiver & Fantasy Starts Preview, Injury Updates, and Key Matchups

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Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into Week 12 fantasy football analysis, with a focus on the best and riskiest wide receiver starts, plus key quarterback and running back storylines. Field Yates, Daniel Dopp, and Mike Clay break down implications of quarterback injuries and lineup changes, analyze defensive matchups, and discuss pivotal start/sit decisions as fantasy playoff races heat up.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Quarterback Updates: Joe Burrow’s Status and Fantasy Value

• Joe Burrow returned to full practice and is targeting a Thanksgiving-ish return. This is a critical note for fantasy managers debating QB options.
  • “Burrow being a full participant in practice yesterday means that he took every rep with the starters… I don’t think the Bengals would have Joe Burrow take every first team rep if they didn’t think there was at least a chance he plays on Sunday.” —Field Yates, [03:14]
• The group debates who you’d start over Burrow if he’s active. Obvious QBs (Allen, Mahomes, Lamar, etc.) remain ahead, but Burrow hovers around QB9 this week given injury and missing top pass-catcher Jamar Chase.
  • “If Joe plays, we’re going to rank him as probably a borderline top eight or nine quarterback.” —Mike Clay, [06:06]
• Caveat: If pre-game reporting signals mobility concern, that ranking could drop.

Bengals Receivers: T. Higgins Facing a Tough Matchup

• With Jamar Chase suspended, T. Higgins is the de facto WR1 but likely to be shadowed by New England’s Christian Gonzalez.
  • “T. Higgins does not [move into the slot]; he’s 88% perimeter the entire game. So they’re gonna be one on one 90% of the time. That gives me a little pause.” —Mike Clay, [08:28]
• Higgins’ recent hot streak (WR7 since Week 5) is offset by the expected shadow, making him a “start” but with reduced ceiling.
  • “Somewhere between 12 and 15 [fantasy points] is in play for T. Higgins, especially if he does not find the endzone.” —Field Yates, [09:25]

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Jets Offense Shakeup: Tyrod Taylor Replaces Justin Fields

• The Jets bench Justin Fields for Tyrod Taylor. This boosts pass attempts and potentially helps certain skill players.
  • “It’s a more beneficial offense for the pass catchers… Just going to be more pass attempts. Good for the passing game.” —Mike Clay, [11:24]
• Breece Hall could benefit with more checkdowns, but no Jets WR is a recommended fantasy play.
• Joke: The “dual threat” label is questioned for Fields, calling him a “single threat quarterback” — drawing laughs. [12:42]

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WR Deep Dive: Matchups and Start/Sit Guidance

DK Metcalf (Seattle) vs. Chicago Bears

• Metcalf is highly touchdown-dependent but in a plus matchup vs. a defense allowing the 2nd most WR TDs.
  • “This is probably his easiest matchup of the season… If it doesn’t happen this week, then we have to have a real conversation about him.” —Mike Clay, [17:36]

Jonathan Taylor (RB) & Colts Skill Guys vs. Chiefs Defense

• Taylor is a must-start, but the Chiefs D has limited RBs to modest fantasy days for weeks.
  • “If Jonathan Taylor only has 16 points this weekend, it’s in the realm of possibilities. It would not be in the realm of possibilities most weeks.” —Field Yates, [20:29]
• Daniel Jones is startable but with high risk; Pittman and Alec Pierce (fringe WR3) are also dinged by a tough KC secondary.

Michael Wilson (Arizona) Without Marvin Harrison Jr.

• Wilson becomes WR1 with Marvin Harrison Jr. out, coming off a career-best week.
  • “With Harrison out, he’s going to see more volume… That’s good enough to make him a fringe wide receiver, too.” —Mike Clay, [35:13]
• But lack of previous production and “chasing points” warning: “It feels like we’re going to be doing the same thing with Michael Wilson that people did with Sean Tucker after one big week.” —Daniel Dopp, [37:03]

Roman Wilson (Seattle) vs. Steelers — Bounce Back Spot

• After volatility, Roman is in a perfect matchup vs. Pitt ("39.2 points per game to WRs"). High-upside “get-right” scenario.

Justin Jefferson (Vikings) — Value Drop

• Jefferson has fallen outside the top-10 WRs due to lackluster QB play and Vikings’ offensive struggles.
  • “Daniel obviously talked about how he’s a quarterback-agnostic player… but the Vikings are not a good offense right now.” —Field Yates, [28:50]
• Lowered expectations but still a lineup lock.

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Shadow Report: Defense vs WR Matchups

WR Upgrades (Positive Matchups)

• DK Metcalf (SEA) vs. Bears (already discussed)
• Jackson Smith-Njigba (SEA) and Seattle WRs — Titans are now desperate at corner, with low resistance.
  • “All of Seattle’s wide receivers, love that.” —Mike Clay, [39:44]
• Zay Flowers (BAL) — Jets are vulnerable at WR1 after trading Sauce Gardner.
• T.McMillan (CAR) (vs. SF), Xavier Legette (with big game potential) given soft 49ers CBs.

WR Downgrades (Tough Matchups)

• T. Higgins vs. Patriots/Christian Gonzalez: already discussed.
• George Pickens (DAL) vs. Eagles/Q. Mitchell: Tough prior meeting; slight downgrade but not a bench.
  • “I downgraded him a little bit, but I’m still optimistic. I’m at 13 on him.” —Mike Clay, [44:24]
• Emeka Buka (LA) vs. Rams/Forbes: Slight knock, but recent shadowed WRs have been fine.

Fun Sidebars:

• Extended banter on aesthetically pleasing receivers (“Why is George Pickens the most aesthetically pleasing receiver to watch?” — Mike Clay, [44:41])
• Light ribbing over text response delays and mustache filters on the YouTube feed.

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Thursday Night Football Preview — Bills at Texans

Matchup Focus

• Josh Allen: Home/road splits are extreme; averaging nearly 30 fantasy points at home, just 17.4 on the road. Facing Texans D allowing the 2nd-fewest points to QBs.
  • “No quarterback has reached 20 against [Texans]… This is all the makings of a bust game for Josh Allen. But how do you bench him?” —Mike Clay, [52:13]
• Start/bench verdict: Hard to bench Allen, but expectation should be lower than usual. Friendly challenge between hosts on whether Allen will be a top-8 fantasy QB this week.
  • “Josh Allen is a top eight quarterback in Week 12.” —Daniel Dopp, [54:09]
• Woody Marks (Houston RB): Prime spot vs. bad Buffalo run D. Could be a Week 12 surprise starter.
  • “If ever there was a night where Houston says to itself: let’s run the football… this is it.” —Field Yates, [55:09]
• Quick start/sit calls:
  • Bills: Allen, Cook, and (in deep leagues) Khalil Shakir
  • Texans: Nico Collins and Woody Marks; others are dart throws

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“Monopoly Fund” — Deep League, <0.1% Rostered, Touchdown Picks

• Mike: Mitchell Tinsley (CIN WR)
• Daniel: Ross Dwelley (SF TE)
• Field: KhaDarel Hodge (ATL WR)

Discussion on wins, near-misses, and amusing strategy for this super-deep fantasy flex challenge.
“This is one of those games where Detroit could score 48 points… So is there a chance you’re on the two yard line, you just throw a little tight end?” —Daniel Dopp, [60:51]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “There is no way that you, like… There is no win in this argument because you got to have two or three years to be able to tell [with young QBs].” —Daniel Dopp, [02:09]
• “Is Justin Fields really a dual-threat QB or a single-threat?” —Field Yates, [12:49]
• “If it doesn’t happen this week [for DK Metcalf], then we have to have a real conversation about him.” —Mike Clay, [17:36]
• “How do you possibly bench [Josh Allen]?... Every week matters for your [fantasy] playoff race.” —Field Yates, [09:25, 53:14]
• “Feels like we’re going to be doing the same thing with Michael Wilson that we are… with Sean Tucker… After you see a big week and you’re just chasing it.” —Daniel Dopp, [37:03]
• “George Pickens is the most aesthetically pleasing receiver to watch.” —Mike Clay, [44:41]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:52 — Joe Burrow injury status and fantasy outlook
• 07:18 — T. Higgins evaluation as WR1 vs. Christian Gonzalez
• 10:52 — New York Jets' quarterback and offense shake-up
• 15:17 — DK Metcalf & Chicago Bears matchup breakdown
• 19:28 — Jonathan Taylor and Colts RBs vs. Chiefs
• 25:59 — Roman Wilson & Steelers WRs’ matchups
• 27:15 — Justin Jefferson’s rest-of-season outlook
• 32:55 — Arizona’s RB/WR situation without Marvin Harrison Jr.
• 38:35 — Start/sit wide receiver upgrades (Shadow Report)
• 43:15 — Start/sit downgrades for shadowed/covered WRs
• 48:27 — Thursday Night Football: Bills vs. Texans analysis
• 51:30 — Josh Allen start/sit debate
• 54:45 — Texans’ RB Woody Marks as deep sleeper
• 60:11 — Deep league “Monopoly Fund” touchdown dart throws

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Overall Show Vibe & Tone

Consistently informative yet easy-going, the Fantasy Focus trio mixes in stat-driven insights with quick wit and banter, providing actionable advice for all fantasy experience levels. They balance “start your studs” reassurance with practical warnings, specifically for those making tough playoff push decisions.

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Bottom Line Takeaways

• Joe Burrow (if active) and T. Higgins are viable but lower-upside starts
• DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson: Bounce-back “buy-low” options in great spots
• Monitor Jets, Cardinals, and Texans for surprise deep league value
• Josh Allen—start but temper expectations on the road vs. elite D
• Check the Shadow Report for key WR/CB battles before setting lineups
• Don’t chase last week’s points blindly, especially with volatile WR2/3s

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Transcript

[A]

You're in the whole 6, 010.

[B]

Focus fantasy.

[A]

Fantasy focus. What's good, friends? Welcome on into Fantasy Focus Football presented by Wingstop alongside Mike Clay and Phil Jaetz. My name is Daniel Dopp, here with our Part 1 of a Week 12 preview for your fantasy squats. Very excited to see your faces today, guys.

[C]

How are both of you doing today?

[B]

Doing great, thank you. Week 12 is upon us. I'm actually very excited for tonight's game. I would have felt that way three weeks ago, but the Texans have been playing better ball even without CJ Stroud.

[A]

I was just going to say this.

[B]

Is going to be a competitive game tonight. We'll do our game preview and game picks in just a little bit. But I am totally jacked up for this game. Not to overlook the fact that they're wearing their battle red uniforms.

[C]

Ooh, I like those.

[B]

I like those.

[C]

Which team? Which ones in the red?

[B]

Texans are.

[C]

Texans are in the red.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Battle red.

[B]

Win anything?

[C]

I don't know.

[B]

I don't think so. We were talking about this for last, I guess after last Thursday's game with the Patriots, and I was saying that part of the reason why I think I liked the Patriots rivalry uniforms, because I don't love their normal uniforms. Texans would fall into that category as well. I don't love the Texans normal kits. You know, they're okay. Nothing special. Not terrible, but nothing special. So I like them in the reds.

[C]

Yeah, I like those. I like those as well. Are they all red? I can't remember.

[B]

Yes, all red.

[C]

See, I like those kind of uniforms. Like when Jacksonville's in the all Blacks or Seattle and the all Blues. Like the. I like those kind of uniforms.

[A]

I'm with you on that. We're very much with you on that.

[C]

You good?

[A]

I'm good. I'm good. I had a really fun day yesterday. I listened field you and Mel went back and forth redrafting the top 10 of the 2025 NFL Draft. A really fun podcast to listen to.

[B]

That one got spirited. And I'll ask you guys, if you guys had the number one pick, if you were the Tennessee Titans, would you have taken Cam Ward or Jackson Dart?

[A]

Oh, that's a tough one.

[C]

Right now, based on what we've seen, it's. I would say dart. Okay, what's your take?

[B]

I was Camborg. I felt like infrastructure there. I definitely believe in Kimword. Okay.

[A]

It's so hard to tell when we're not even a full season into it. There's so many variables to, you know.

[C]

I Spent three seconds of brain power on this.

[A]

There is no way that you, like, there is no win in this argument because you're like, you got to have like two or three years to be able to tell. Like, are you even. We don't know. We don't know what these guys are going to be.

[C]

If we were having this conversation a couple of years ago at this point, we'd say CJ Stroud over Bryce Young and everyone for sure. He's the win of the draft. And we, you know, you know, it's a little closer now. Right now, Stroud still out playing, but it's more of a conversation. So.

[A]

Well, field talked ball yesterday. We're going to talk ball today as well. Going to dive into a bunch of good stuff here. Like I said, we've got all of our week 12 previews. We're going to dive into the Shadow report, as we always do, part of the playbook which Mike Clay puts out, and then the Thursday Night Football preview. So let's kick things off with our Week 12 preview, Part 1, and start with you feel Jates. We each brought a couple of topics to the table.

[B]

Yeah. So let's start in Cincinnati. And I have a question about T. Higgins in a moment, but I want to start with what we saw yesterday.

[C]

Yes, sir.

[B]

Joe Pearl returned to practice in full yesterday. He started practicing last week. And Joe, by his own admission, has been saying Thanksgiving ish is his target for when he would like to come back and play. The Bengals are one of six teams.

[A]

This is Thanksgiving ish, right?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

We are a week from Thanksgiving today.

[C]

So.

[B]

Yes. And six teams play during that slate. Remember, there are now three games on every Thanksgiving. And Burrow being a full participant in practice yesterday of course, means that he took every rep with the starters, which is his normal role. We learned lots about what it means to be a full or not full participant in practice. It's not just being there and doing everything. It's also playing your normal role. I don't think the Bengals would have Joe Burrow take every first team rep if they didn't think there was at least a chance that Joe Burrow plays on Sunday against the Patriots. We can talk about what the fallout would be for. I guess the bump would be for the other players in just a moment. But I wanted to put it to you guys here. I think this is the most straightforward way to analyze Joe Burrow is I want you to go through the quarterbacks that if you have that quarterback, you would definitely start that player over. Joe Burrow Over Burrow. Okay. So like, let's, let's, let's cross off some of the obvious ones. I don't think there are too many rosters that have Joe Burrow and Josh Allen. And we'll talk much more about Josh Allen later on.

[C]

Yes, we will.

[B]

Given the fact that Josh plays tonight and we don't know on Burrow, you're probably playing Josh Allen anyways.

[A]

Agree.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Yes. No doubt.

[B]

Patrick Mahomes over the Colts. We still agree there.

[A]

I would play Mahomes over Burrow.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Lamar Jackson against Lamar.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Yep. I would assume the Ravens playing on Sunday against the Jets. Great matchup there. Drake May against the Bengals.

[A]

Same way we take Drake May for as well.

[B]

Brock Purdy against the Panthers. Yes or no?

[C]

Yes.

[A]

I would take him over Burrow.

[B]

Okay. Brock Purdy over Burrow. Okay. So we're not. It's not. This is not Joe Burrow. Like, we don't know for a fact he's full strength Joe Burrow. It's. He could come back and he could be limited. His mobility could be compromised. Who knows?

[A]

By the way, it's full. I mean, who knows what strength Joe Burrow? But also he's not going to have his top pass catcher like this is. We're having him come back from his first game after injury without, without Jamar Chase. So, yeah, I mean, that's a, that's also a factor for me when I'm looking at the rest of these quarterbacks.

[C]

Yeah, I think he's in that vicinity, though. I think if I put him back in the projections. You have, I have May Hertz, Lamar Mahomes, Stafford and Allen, which we'll get to again. We'll get to him or later. Purdy, Daniel Jones, Jackson are right in that vicinity, I think is where we drop.

[B]

So I think that's, that's the important part here, that if Joe Burrow plays, he's a borderline top nine option here.

[C]

Yeah. What's this on the screen? Do you see that? No.

[B]

What was it?

[C]

Go back to me.

[A]

What was it? What is that?

[B]

Hey, I must ask you a question.

[C]

What?

[A]

Wow, that's not watching the YouTube stream at home. Mike has got a killer mustache all of a sudden.

[B]

Amazing.

[A]

That is amazing.

[C]

What is the. Did I miss something?

[A]

You look like Yosemite Sam with that.

[C]

Mustache is what you look like.

[B]

I was trying to think who that was and I was like, who is that? It's Yosemite Sam. That's it. I think you should grow this out.

[A]

Good for you, Mike.

[B]

Clay, as a very only dancer, do.

[A]

You think your girlfriend would be into that?

[C]

No.

[A]

No.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

I don't know why, though.

[C]

Why? My question is, why? Wait, did I. Is there a punishment? I forgot about that glitch. Nobody knows. For fun.

[A]

I love it, though.

[B]

All right, so if Joe plays, we're going to rank him as probably a borderline top eight or nine quarterback. Now, the only caveat that could change that is if we got some Sunday morning reporting from Shefty. And it's like he's going to play, but there are concerns about mobility or whatever. I don't think they would play him if there are concerns about mobility. I don't know if he's going to play, period, this weekend, but I wanted to put that out there especially for people that may be having to make a difficult decision. That's not like. I think it's a little bit more compelling if you have Daniel Jones, who you picked up to replace Joe Burrow that night. That, to me would be a much more fascinating dilemma. I think that's close to a coin flip this weekend.

[A]

Is this the second year in a row that Joe Burrow was trying to dig his team out from a three, seven hole?

[B]

I believe he. They were three and seven and they went nine and eight. They want nine and eight.

[A]

They finished. Yeah, they finished super strong.

[C]

But, yeah, they're two games back of the Ravens, three back at the Steelers. So they're still in it.

[A]

I mean, technically still in it.

[C]

Still up for grabs. I don't know.

[B]

By the way, the Steelers play the Bears this weekend and then they play the Bills next weekend. Yeah, the Ravens and the Bengals play twice over the next four games.

[C]

So the division is still there, still opening.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

But also their defense is probably worse than it was. It is worse than it was, worse.

[B]

Than it was last. Everybody but DJ Turner, especially with Trey Hendrickson still banged up. So that's the news on Joe.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

But I want to get into his teammate, T. Higgins, and this evaluation, I think is important. Whether Joe plays or to see other Joe. Joe Flacco playing. T. Higgins is going to take over as the wide receiver one here for the Bengals. If you look at T. Higgins of late, he's been really good. Weeks 7 through 11, T. Higgins is wide receiver 4 on a points per game basis.

[A]

Good.

[B]

He has over 10 fantasy points in every week since week five. 17.3 fantasy points. That's actually wide receiver seven in that span. So by all accounts, he should be in your lineup every single week. I'm not saying he shouldn't be in your lineup this week. But, Mike, I think Jamar Chase suspension means that T. Higgins is going to spend the entire weekend being shadowed by Christian Gonzalez. And that's a problem.

[C]

Yeah, it is. And had Chase played, he would have saw a lot of Carlton Davis on the other side, which is still one of the better corners in the NFL, you know. Yep.

[A]

You played him at lines last year.

[C]

But, yeah, I do think he draws Christian Gonzalez now. Mixed results so far on Gonzalez. He only started shadowing. He's only shadowed three times. He didn't. He missed the early portion of the season. Then he just played his side for a couple weeks. Now he started shadowing, but he held Jerry Judy without a catch. Then Drake London had a huge game, but almost none of that was against Gonzalez. It was literally in the slot.

[B]

Every single one of his touchdowns was not exactly right. Yeah.

[C]

And that's why, again, I never understand why teams put guys on the perimeter full time. Because you lit every week. You see the. You see. You see it on X. People are like, how was Drake London up against a linebacker or something? That happens all the time when guys are lined up in a slot. Just do that more often. And then Emeka Buka, he shattered as well, and he actually did get the better of him. He had 23 points in that game. So kind of mixed results so far. But the difference here is a Booka and Drake London, again, they move inside a lot, and that frees them up. T.E. higgins does not. He's 88% perimeter the entire game. So they're gonna be one on one 90% of the time in this game. So that gives me a little pause, I think. It's not a situation where you're benching him, but you're boosting his targets because Chase is out. But then you're dropping him for the matchup, so he kind of ends up where he would have been. Feel like. So I have him at 12, so he's still pretty good. I mean, you know, the Bengals don't have a defense or me throwing the ball a lot, so. Stardom. But definitely a little pause there. Maybe avoid in dfs.

[B]

I've realized that we're at the point of the season where a lot of the conversations we have are not as much like, hey, are you starting or sitting this guy? You generally know who you're starting and generally know who you're sitting, right? There are definitely some. And we'll get into those throughout the show today and tomorrow. But a lot of what we're Talking about right now is where every week matters for your chance to either bolster your playoff seating or get into the playoff race or maybe avoid finishing in last place. And a punishment in your league is just if this guy duds. We kind of told you so ahead of time. Right. And this would be one where If Teagan says 15 on Sunday, as opposed to, you're thinking to yourself, hey, he's taken over for Jamar Chase. Maybe he gets you 25. This might be a week where somewhere between 12 and 15 is in play for T. Higgins, especially if he does not find the end zone.

[C]

Yeah, there's always tricky guys like that. We had the same conversation. We're gonna have a conversation like this later in our preview for tonight, but we had it the other week with Patrick Holmes where it's like, how do you possibly bench this guy? But also, there's a very real chance he bust against Denver, and he did. You know, it's like you were better off benching him for that game. Yeah, but it's so hard to pull the trigger on something like that.

[B]

Except for when you bench him for Aaron Rodgers and he gets hurt in the middle of the game, which is what I did against Daniel.

[C]

Matt. That's true.

[B]

That's only lost, like, four points in that swap. But still, I mean, if Aaron Rodgers had scored 62 points in the second half, I would have been.

[A]

You would have come back and had me.

[C]

Yes, you would have. Against the Bengals, we lost Warren and Rogers. Potentially huge game. Huge.

[A]

Yep.

[C]

Injury.

[A]

All right, how about you, Mike Clay, what you got for your first topic?

[C]

All right, guys, my first topic here is I just want to make sure I'm going in order. Okay. It's really important. Yeah, we're going to go with the New York jets offense.

[D]

Ooh.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, tell me more.

[C]

A little bit of a shake up here. Justin Fields to the bench. Tyrod Taylor is the new starter. He's only played one full game this season, was back in Week 3 in Sabuckaneers. 197 yards and two touchdowns and 36 attempts. Also ran for 48 yards on eight carries in that game. First of all, if you're looking at the offense as a whole, we'll talk about, like, how the skill guys are affected.

[B]

Elite.

[C]

Just. Yeah, it's elite. Yeah. No Garrett Wilson, so. But anyway, we'll get to that. But Fields is averaging this season in his seven full games, 25.8 pass attempts per game. He reached 33 once. As I mentioned, Tyrod Taylor attempted 36 passes in his only game, that full game. And that's the trend. If you look back on Tyrod Taylor, he runs quite a bit, but not as much as Fields. And it's a more beneficial offense for the pass catchers. It's just going to be more pass attempts. So that's good for the passing game. But then you think, all right, who does this affect? Okay, no one like Breeze hall is not really affected. He's pretty much neutral. Maybe his target share has been down the last month and a half, so maybe that recovers a little bit.

[B]

Aaron Glenn's talking about it now, too. Aaron Glenn is like, put the ball in his hand.

[A]

Is the narrator. Is there a narrative? Because it feels like to me there is a narrative that Justin Fields does not throw to running backs nearly as much as what Todd Taylor might do.

[C]

That's common for running.

[A]

Running quarterbacks.

[C]

Yeah, dual threat quarterbacks. Maybe Mason Taylor gets a little boost, but we're not touching the wide receivers because last week they shook it up with John Mechi. Isaiah Williams and A.D. mitchell were the top receivers and even Tyler Johnson. They all played 28 plus snaps. So we're not interested in them. But maybe a little boost for. For Taylor, maybe for Breeze Hall. Yeah. What do you think?

[B]

Well, the question was sometimes we do this, and this is a little bit mean, but like, oh, dual threat quarterback. You consider Justin a threat as a thrower?

[A]

No, he is a single threat quarterback.

[C]

Well, yeah. You know what I mean, though. Yes.

[B]

No, no, I know. It's. This is not. I'm not pointing this towards you. I'm pointing this towards the concept of.

[C]

I never thought dual threat player.

[B]

Right.

[C]

They do both of those things. It doesn't mean they do them well.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Are they threatening the opposing team or their own team?

[A]

Like Jared Goff is not a dual threat quarterback because there is no threat of the legs. But you do have. Like, if you know, Justin Fields could throw at 60 yards to Garrett Wilson.

[B]

On a play, I'm not being probably given.

[A]

But you're. No, but you're right, though. We're talking. That's a great. It's a good poll.

[B]

Jameis Winston's a dual threat quarterback not because he runs, but because as Chris Berman always says, no quarterback keeps it. Both teams in the game.

[A]

That's right.

[B]

It's actually a Bill Walsh quote from a long time ago that Boomer has used in the past. Something like, no, I can't remember who the quarterback was that Bill Walsh talked about. But no quarterback keeps a team. Both teams in a game quite like Jameis Winston.

[C]

That's funny.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

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[A]

I'm going to talk about a couple of wide receivers here, but there are a handful of variables that I want to talk about here when I'm looking at my outlook for DK Metcalf against the Chicago Bears this week. Matchup is great. Bears are allowing the 10th most fantasy points per game to opposing wide receivers. And the thing that, like we know with dk, he's been struggling to be, but unless he finds the end zone, he's been really struggling. Chicago Bears have given up 14 receiving touchdowns to wide receivers this year, second most in the NFL. And that's what DK needs in order to pay off is he needs to find the end zone. No scores in four of his last five has not scored in three straight games. Under 10 fantasy points in all three of those. Aaron Rodgers did not practice on Wednesday. Right now they're trying to figure out whether or not he's going to be able to go. That's Another thing to be able to factor in here because I love the matchup knowing that DK basically needs to find the end zone. This is a team in which he can do it against. So I'm going to feel a little bit better. But if there's no Aaron Rodgers, and we're still not sure on that. Didn't practice on Wednesday. They said it's a safety thing to figure out whether or not he can go with the fractured left wrist. But if Mason Rudolph is the starter.

[B]

Does that help things?

[A]

I know, like that's the thing. I was just going to say how do you guys feel? Because I'm not sure between Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph. I've got him as a top 25 wide receiver right now. I'm not sure it really changes the needle that much. It moves the needle that much. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Aaron Rodgers said something a couple weeks ago and I believe it was in response to a question about getting DK the ball more or, or at least throwing the football in the general direction of DK at all. And I think his response was something to the effect of like I throw the ball to where the football. I throw the ball to like where players are open. Right.

[C]

And it was almost Tyler Murray with Marvin Harrison.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. It's like I'm going to make the right reads. Which by the way, Aaron Rodgers, one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game, has made a Hall of Fame four time MVP, super bowl winning career out of doing the right things as a thrower.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

So perhaps there's some merit to that. Maybe Mason Rudolph, maybe this is. And I don't know, I think you have some Nico Collins thoughts later on in the show. But maybe we've seen a little bit of this with Davis Mills and Nico Collins where it's like maybe the read is somewhere else, but I just trust number 12 so I'm going to throw it to him. Maybe that's the case with Mason Rudolph and that lovely mustache of his.

[A]

We wanted that with Davis Mills, we wanted that with Joe Flacco. Just come in and throw the ball to Jamar Chase over and over and he did it. So like maybe that is part of what we get here if we do get Mason Rudolph. Either way, I think with the way the Steelers offense is playing and with the matchup, it gives me a little bit more love because of the touchdown ability against this second.

[C]

Yeah. He did match the season nine targets with nine last week and four of those were from Mason Rudolph. So he was getting football when he was on the field. I will say this. I've talked about it over the past month or so. DK Metcalf whenever he's been shadowed and had an extremely tough matchup. He is busted this year and that's been most weeks. This is probably his easiest matchup of the season and he's had 16 plus fantasy points three times. So when the matchup hasn't been shadow situation are really hard like Seattle, he's come through and this is one of those situations. So if it's not, if it doesn't happen this week, then we have to have a real conversation about him. I did not. I think I did actually put him back into the lineup lock mix this week because I think the situation is set up well for him.

[B]

Yeah, you have practicing for the Bears and if he plays he might be utilized as a shadow corner. First time we've seen him with Dennis Allen coordinator. Right.

[C]

Possible I'd be surprised if he does raid out of the gate, but me too. Yeah.

[B]

Just of note in case he does return over the next couple of weeks. All right, so Mike said we're going to talk about a player later on that's really interesting in terms of a start state or at least decreased value conversation. I have one more. Jonathan Taylor. I know we talked about this yesterday, but let's just give you some of the numbers. Of course. Jonathan Taylor has five games with 30 or more fantasy points this season. He has six games with 29.5 or more fantasy points this season. He's RB1 on the year at 27.4 fantasy points per game. I'm not saying Jonathan Taylor is not going to be started. As a matter of fact, I think the lowest ranker this week has him is RB3. Jonathan Taylor is amazing. But if ever there was a time where you start him and you just. You kind of just hope things work out as you expect, this is probably it. The Chiefs have allowed 18.8 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs this season. They've been especially good over the last six games. Over their last six games, the Chiefs have not allowed a running back to reach 13 point more than 13.5 fantasy points. Okay, that was James Cook. A game in which the Chiefs lost to Buffalo. Buffalo played great.

[A]

Yeah, he's good too.

[B]

Other notable running backs in that six game stretch. I would say these guys are all fantasy stars or notable fantasy star players. Jameer Gibbs. Fantasy Star.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

7.5 fantasy points.

[A]

Don't love that.

[B]

Now he had zero actually he had one catch for zero yards in that game. He had zero receiving yards. That's an anomaly for Gibbs, but still the Chiefs bottle him up. Ashton Genti, 4.4 fantasy points. That was the game in which The Raiders had 30 offensive plays. Travis Etn, he's been really good.

[A]

He's playing well.

[B]

8.8 fantasy points. So the Chiefs have been tough against opposing running backs.

[A]

Yikes.

[B]

This is a big test, too. They're playing on the grass of Arrowhead. It's not going to be like Acrosure Field, which is where they played against the Steelers a few weeks ago and the grass was just awful. That being said, you know, they're a different team on grass versus the turf. They play in for their eight or nine home games per season. So a little bit of you've been warned. If Jonathan Taylor only has 16 points this weekend, it's in the realm of possibilities. It would not be in the realm of possibilities most weeks.

[C]

Yeah, I'm really fascinated for this game to see even if the Colts lose, just to see how well Daniel Jones handles his defense and if they're competitive, if they're like, it's a chance to prove they're a competitor in this conference and it's going to be huge for us from a fantasy perspective to too, because as we talked about yesterday, they might have the hardest fantasy schedule the rest of the season. They don't have a light game going forward. So if this is a disaster and they score nine points and Jones gets picked off a couple of times and he had a game like that recently, then we have to start, you know, asking questions about what this offense looks like over the next month and a half because it's going to be, you know, we're in crunch time in fantasy season and they're not going to have a light game the rest of the way.

[B]

Well, I also want to talk about Daniel Jones in this game. Can you start Daniel Jones confidently this week?

[A]

Wait a second. Your first two players you have been negative on, are you going to go three in a row with being.

[B]

I mean, can you start? I mean, this is what we're here.

[A]

This is why we're here for. You got to let the people know, right?

[B]

I got all kinds of negative stuff this week.

[C]

I mean, I'm at 8 on him, so I saw him as a starter, but there's higher risk potential for sure than usual.

[B]

Yeah, let's talk about some of the quarterbacks.

[A]

Yeah, let's do this.

[B]

So the Chiefs have been mostly solid. They've had a couple like Josh Allen got them. It turns out Josh Allen might be the best player. He's just along with Patrick, right. 28.8 fantasy points for Josh Allen. He's an alien. Believe it or not, Trevor Lawrence got them for 26.2 fantasy points when he had those two rushing touchdowns on Monday Night Football back in the day.

[A]

There you go.

[B]

Justin Herbert, all the way back in Week 1 got him for 27.9 fantasy points. Those are the three good ones, right? Other notable quarterbacks. Jared Goff, 16.8. Not bad for a non running quarterback against the Chiefs. Lamar Jackson, he got hurt during that game, but he had just 10.7 fantasy points prior to the injury.

[A]

Yep.

[B]

Jalen Hurts, Fantasy Rock Star, 11.5 fantasy points. Bo Nicks last week played great football. He had 12.6 fantasy points.

[A]

Is Jared Goff the best quarterback out of all those ones you listed? I guess.

[B]

Well, of the non Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence variety.

[A]

Oh, dang it. He's worse than Trevor Lawrence.

[B]

That being said, I mean still this Chiefs, they're. It's a legit task. Yeah, it's a legit task. I guess test would also work for there. It's a big, big challenge for the Colts on Sunday. This is a big prove it week for Daniel Jones. Big prove it week because don't forget that they lost. They played Pittsburgh. They lost that game. Right. They lost to Pittsburgh and Jones was not good. He had 340 passing yards but three touchdowns, three interceptions, I should say. They played the Colts. Sorry, they played the Falcons in wherever it was, Berlin the last time we saw them. Jones was sloppy for a lot of that game. He ended up winning that game in overtime and Jonathan Taylor went bananas. But Daniel Jones, big stretch.

[A]

He did not win that game. Jonathan Taylor won that game. Yes, yes. He had a huge one there.

[B]

Anyways, buyer beware here on Daniel Jones this weekend. What do you got?

[C]

Buyer beware on Jonathan Taylor. A little bit Daniel Jones. And how about their wide receivers? Michael Pittman, Alec Pierce, I think he's worth a discussion. I. I don't know if you guys have spent time on him on Mondays or Tuesdays, but feel like he's kind of flown under the radar quite a bit. You look at recently 17 plus fantasy points at two straight prior to their uh, week 11 by. But check out the splits between the first month and the last month. First four games of the season, under 11 fantasy points in all four of those games. His last four games, guys, he is averaging. Get ready for this. 8.8 targets, 91 1/2 yards and 14.9 fantasy points. That's over four games, not two, four games. So it's been pretty good. He is 34th in fantasy points per game and he's only scored one touchdown. He's been unlucky. He's kind of like over regressed from last year. Like last year, he was over his head with seven touchdowns, four expected. This year he has two expected, one touchdown. So that if that improved, if he scored a few more touchdowns, we, you know, he'd be a little bit more on the fantasy radar. He's number one at receiver in yards per catch. He's number one in average depth of target among qualified receivers. So always a threat for a big play. But here's the problem. I don't know if you guys know this, but Chiefs defense pretty good.

[B]

Okay, Very good.

[C]

All right, tell me more.

[A]

I haven't heard about this.

[C]

Nine passing touchdowns allowed, seventh fewest fantasy points to receivers. This is where it gets really wild. Three receivers have reached 14 and a half fantasy points against him this season. Two of them are in week one.

[B]

Clinton Johnson and Keenan Allen.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

Wow.

[C]

So one, one guy, one receiver has reached 14 and a half fantasy points against the Kansas City Chiefs.

[A]

Who was that? Do you have it?

[C]

I do not.

[A]

All right. That's okay.

[C]

But it was like, by the way, it was like week three. I mean, it was. It was early.

[A]

It was early.

[C]

So it's. It's been. Excuse me. It's been a while. That all being said, Pierce still seen a lot of volume, is still a high scoring offense, and he, you know, that role that he plays allows for a big play potential. So I saw him at 28, a fringe wide receiver 3. But this is a guy that I want to say, when there's a neutral matchup, we'll have him ranked higher. But they don't have a neutral matchup going forward.

[B]

The schedule's nuts going.

[C]

I know.

[B]

Let me see.

[A]

Going forward.

[C]

We broke that down yesterday.

[B]

You had yesterday. But just to remind people what it is.

[C]

I know it's twice they have Texans. Twice the Texans. Twice they have Seattle.

[B]

They have Denver too. Right.

[C]

Maybe there's another one. I think their only light one is the Niners, who really, you can't call a light matchup. But they've been getting put up in the air.

[B]

So Chiefs. So obviously Chiefs this weekend. And the Texans, The Jaguars, the Seahawks, Niners. Jaguars again. And then Texans in week 18.

[C]

Yeah. So that's all the way through. I mean, it's. That's all the way through. The entire. Not if you Play in a week 18 that still affects you. We don't even talk about that game usually it's run real. So anyway, Pierce, I think you could still consider him for like your flex, maybe your wide receiver 3 slot. But this is a tough matchup across the board for this whole offense.

[A]

Week six, six for 66 and a touchdown. The best wide receiver in the Detroit Lions since that time, which was Jameson Williams. Jameson Williams was the other one.

[C]

Yeah. Wow.

[A]

All right. I just talked about DK Metcalf. I would like to talk about a wide receiver on the other side of that game because Roma dunes a taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rome needs a bounce back week in a major way. There has not been consistency since the bi week. We've had two really big games and then four games under six and a half fantasy points. It's like things have sort of like shifted since then. The good thing is this defense is allowing the most fantasy points per game to wide receivers this year. 39.2 points per game to the position. They're allowing the most completions and receiving yards to the position. It literally does not get better than this matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. So I know his targets have been everywhere last six games. Five targets, six targets, 11 targets, three targets, 10 targets, six targets. There's like no consistency in that. It's just, it feels like whatever the defense has given him is sort of where Caleb is going. They're spreading the ball around a little bit more. We've talked about Luther Burden getting more involved. We've talked about some of that. So I am buying this matchup just as a bounce back opportunity for Roman Dunes. I think he's still a really good player and if there is a shot in which he can get back on track, this is the defense in which you want to play him. So I'm going to trust him in spite of how bad it's been two of the last three weeks.

[C]

Yeah, agreed. I mean I've been 21, so he's not where we were ranking him after that. Not quite as hot start, but he.

[B]

Still four touchdowns in four games. Yes. Yep. Good player. Good selfless player there. You guys said like, do you have more negative and I don't know, I'm like, am I crazy for asking how high we should be ranking Justin Jefferson?

[A]

No, you're not crazy.

[B]

All right, let's go.

[A]

Did you hear what JJ McCarthy said yesterday? Talking about how his game is is like a cork that's about ready to pop out of the bottle.

[B]

Maybe. And maybe I'll Be proven right with my playoffs.

[A]

That's right.

[B]

Or maybe I'll look like the biggest idiot alive again. Let's just talk about Justin Jefferson. Weeks one through five. He was wide receiver 12.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

He was pretty good, right?

[C]

Obviously that was, that's fine. Yeah. Not what, you know, not where we want him, but wow.

[A]

I guess Mike's the negative one. Sorry, Field, I didn't mean to call you.

[C]

I mean, am I wrong? I mean, you didn't draft him. No, you didn't.

[A]

Top five pick to be correct, yes. Wide receiver 12 is not wide receiver 30.

[B]

Cartwheel to get him at wide receiver 12 right now because he's been wide receiver 25 since the team came back from its week six by Gross. The packers, who they faced this weekend, have allowed the 11th fewest fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. The last five finishes for Justin Jefferson, wide receiver 27, 21, 18, 42 and 26. I'd say one of those is, I mean, none of those are passable really. You want Justin Jefferson to be a top 10 wide receiver pretty much every single Sunday. And this just comes down like it just comes down to this. Daniel obviously talked about how he's a quarterback agnostic player. That's been true for every year of his career except for this one. Because the Vikings are not a good offense right now. No, the Vikings, over each of the last three seasons, 23, 24 and 22. I should have said 22, 23, 24 talks top six in both passing yards and passing touchdowns. This year they're bottom 10 in both.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

Just like when. When those numbers fall off, inevitably the top wide receiver is going to fall off as well. The Vikings are saying all the right things. Kevin o' Connell is kind of the like the quarterback whisperer. He's got this off the charts emotional quotient that like I believe in JJ McCarthy just as much because of Kevin O' Connell is from JJ McCarthy's skill set itself. That being said, it is getting late in a hurry here in Minnesota. We hope this is not some forgotten season for Jefferson, who was outside my top 10 wideouts.

[A]

This is really difficult because JJ McCarthy has been so disappointing and I bought in, I think like a lot of us did in the idea that when the Vikings moved on from Sam Darnold, it's okay because what Kevin o' Connell was able to do with Sam Darnold, he's just going to be able to do the same thing with a number like a first round pick in JJ McCarthy and it just not has not materialized. Yet I don't think it gets to a point where I can't not trust Justin Jefferson. But kind of like you were saying with some of the other guys you've talked about, I have lowered my expectation when I'm putting him in my starting lineup. I'm not expecting 22 fantasy points anymore. Listen, that's how it feels right now.

[C]

They put, obviously they believe in McCarthy. They put all their eggs in that basket. They didn't. They weren't like we need a good number two option. They were just like bank Sam, see us. They traded Sam Howell and signed Carson Wentz have a better backup. But not that he's moving the needle for you. I mean they're planned for McCarthy to be the real deal.

[A]

So crazy that I would rather have like Nick Mullins or Josh Dobbs under center for fantasy for Justin Jefferson right now.

[C]

Here's the other thing. They have to believe in McCarthy because it's Max Brosmer next. And he was what, six round seven undrafted. He was undrafted. I mean that's.

[A]

Did he make the redraft list for the first draft?

[B]

He did not make it.

[A]

He did not make it back in.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Dang it.

[B]

I like Max. Unh to Minnesota. So he played at Minnesota. It's some familiarity.

[A]

University of New Hampshire. Is that what you.

[B]

University of New Hampshire.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Yes. Yeah. And I think the Vikings, I think it's fair to acknowledge that the Vikings came into the year with super bowl aspirations. Like they didn't go out there and spend all that money on two 30 plus year old defensive tackles and reinforce their roster with players a veteran status to try to be a 7 and 10 team. I think if you listen to some of Kevin o' Connell's recent comments, he keeps talking about like we think the cement is going to dry at some point soon here with JJ and some of the mechanics stuff. It's an acknowledgment that like this may not be a contending year but rather a transition year for this franchise.

[A]

They were 14 and three last last year. So that's. They definitely came in with. With I know super bowl aspirations and.

[B]

Mike has talked about this. I know Joe Fort boss like a big believer in this but like one score games are a very, very, very important note. Last year the Chiefs were 11 and oh in one score games. They are now winless in one score games this season they're oh and five in one score games this year. As Joe, Joe keeps saying. You know basically the bill came due. Right. Like Chiefs are paying the tax now that they avoided last season. The Vikings have some of that to them as well. They're losing a lot of close games this year because they seemingly won every close game last year.

[C]

Yeah, we don't I acknowledge enough how close these teams really are. Sometimes you're like this team is a clear contender and this team is garbage. And they're like four games apart in the endings. Like and like variants could flip that very easily. Just some bad luck. Good luck. So. Yeah, it always goes that way. Yeah.

[A]

Last one for you, Mike.

[C]

And then I got one more Arizona offense. A couple of things to talk about here. We're going to start with the backfield here. We're keeping an eye on Trey Benson. If he's able to play in this game. Amari Di Mercado is out for this one. He will not play. So if Trey Benson does not return, we're going to be probably starting Bam Knight as a flex option. Maybe an RB2 with Michael Carter involved there as well. But if Trey Benson comes back, you know, he should have a decent role in this one. Potentially. He's a. I think he'll be a risky star. As you can see, we have him ranked as if he's playing here and I have him at 27. So that makes him a flex option but very potential league winner down the stretch here. If he comes in and you know, remember this is a day two pick last year. He expects to be the feature back for this team and he was running it well early this year. Five and a half yards per carry. Cut 13 of his 15 targets as well, actually at four plus targets in three straight games before he got hurt. So keep an eye on him. Make sure he's on your roster if he's available.

[A]

Michael, he is available in 45% of ESPN league still wait to happen. Yeah, yeah. So he's still out there for a.

[C]

Lot of scoop him up if he can. Definitely his RB2 zero point potential going forward.

[B]

This a mustache back? That's. Yeah.

[C]

Bring it back.

[B]

That the ice cream truck music?

[A]

I was gonna say. Yeah, I want a little bit of both.

[C]

I don't know what, how these sound effects like are correlate with what we're saying, but I'm here for it.

[A]

I like it.

[C]

I'm in. Other one, guys, is Michael Wilson. No, Marvin Harrison ii. He's out. So yeah, yeah, I have, I have Wilson at 24. That's about wide receivers.

[A]

Can I ask a question before we go any farther than this and I'm starting to do this, but is there a difference between Junior and second. Yeah. Yes, there is.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Thank you. Thank you for knowing where I was going with that feel.

[C]

Is there. What's the difference?

[A]

That's what I just. I don't know.

[C]

It's the same.

[A]

You're leading the people astray is what it feels like.

[C]

And I could be the second. I don't see what the difference is.

[B]

I think that's one of those things, like when you register a name, you either register it as Junior or the second.

[C]

Yes. Oh, well, yeah, that way. But I'm just saying it means the same thing.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

Correct.

[A]

So, like, rather than saying, like, Michael Wilson iii, you could also just say, like, Michael Wilson junior Junior. Right, right.

[C]

Okay. Okay.

[A]

Got it.

[B]

Or you just say junior with like a very long, drawn out Michael Wilson Jr. Yeah.

[A]

And then his.

[B]

The fourth is junior.

[C]

It's not Michael Wilson isn't a Junior, though.

[B]

He's Marvin Harris.

[A]

Marvin Harris. Yes. You're right.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

We confirmed that.

[A]

Sorry, we got off the rails there for a second.

[C]

So anyway, are we buying another big game for Michael Wilson? The first this week, fellas. Let's talk about it, though. 18 targets, 15 catches, a buck 85 against the Niners. Yeah, it was a great matchup. We've talked about the Niners struggling against receivers, and Jacoby Brissette literally set the NFL record for pass completions in one game. Yep. Can't expect that going forward. Obviously, Wilson was under 10 fantasy points in his first nine games. Now has reached 16 fantasy points in two of 39 career NFL games. Obviously with Harrison out, he's going to see more volume, so. And we saw Verset lean on him last week. The Jags are mid. This week's matchup. The Jags not as good as last week. The Jags are mid pack against receivers, but top 10 in targets, catches and yards allowed. But their efficiency has been really good. 4th lowest yards per targeting catch rate. So might not be the most efficient game for Wilson, but the volume should be there in this game. I haven't projected, as you can see on the screen, for eight targets this week. That's good enough to make him a fringe wide receiver, too. Yeah.

[A]

My third topic is are you buying Michael Wilson without Marvin Harrison Jr. Mike already laid into all of the conversation, so that's okay. I'll add one more stat.

[C]

It says instead of just did the wrong.

[A]

No big deal.

[C]

I had that on my note, so I apologize.

[A]

Last week, first game with more than four receptions and 45 yards. When you said this is his second game out of 35 games. He had nine straight with single digits. Is that what you had said?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Nine straight performances.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

So, like, where are you at this week? Because I feel like I've got him inside my top 30, but I still feel like I'm throwing a dart because there's not consistency in this player. When I feel like there's like, I don't, I don't know what I'm.

[C]

I think it's your. You like to use the if then thing, right? Yes. Marvin Iverson junior's out. That's a different. This guy is the starter, then he's startable. Yeah.

[B]

Doesn't this also feel like one of those quintessential fantasy stories? I play with a lot of people that in leagues that are not hardcore fantasy football players, they play it for fun. They play it as to be a part of a group. They play it in an office, casually, whatever it might be. And they get 33 and a half from Michael Wilson and then the following week Wilson has like eight and a half and they text me and they're like, what happened to this Wilson guy?

[C]

Yeah, yeah.

[B]

Feels like we're prime for one of those.

[C]

Yes, it could be. But I also am curious. Like, this is year three, remember year three used to be the rule when I first started in this industry. Every, it was always like, don't draft rookie receivers. Like you're three. That's when you draft them. That's the breakout year. None of that has changed, obviously. I think that it was that like Mike Evans class that kind of changed everything. All those second rounders broke out. I wonder if like year three, Michael Wilson has this game and now they're like, okay, and maybe we actually should get him the ball a little more often. But it's also like he's been a.

[B]

Full timer since he was Arizona finding religion at like pretty much every position.

[C]

Like, why does it take this long?

[B]

Quarterback, we should be set. Wide receiver, it should be Marvin Harrison Jr. And Michael Wilson maybe. Yeah.

[A]

There's a part of me just like the pump the brakes part that's like, I feel like we're going to be doing the same thing with Michael Wilson that we are. People will probably be doing with Sean Tucker this week as well where like after you saw that big week, you were just chasing it like, oh, shoot, I didn't start them last week, so now I have to start them this week. And then you're going to get that six point game. And you're like, this is how chasing fantasy games work.

[B]

Yeah. I think the big thing with Tucker is just that. Bucky Irving's return.

[A]

Different. Great conversation.

[C]

I'm just saying if he's not. I have. That's a topic for me tomorrow. Even if in the playbook too. I have like four reasons why you should not buy into Tucker.

[A]

Sean Tucker. This.

[C]

He might be in my DM soon.

[A]

Yes, you follow him on Twitter.

[C]

Hilarious. Easy. Really?

[B]

Jackson a jello. Long time. He loves him and he always. He has a. I'm very pleased with my performance.

[A]

Yeah, the police.

[B]

Hashtag3,4, hashtag never mind. Means nothing.

[C]

Look, none of it is his fault. I'm not saying it has anything to do with Sean Tucker. It's just the circumstances are going to make it very hard for him to be a consistent. That's fair.

[A]

That's fair. It's a tough one to figure out. No. Marvin Harrison Jr. You've had one big week of it, but the quarterback has been playing really well. So it's a little bit of a. Do you emotionally. Can you trust it? Throw someone like that in your lineup?

[C]

I mean, I'm going to start him in a couple weeks. I scooped him up last week and. Yeah, because I knew he was going to score 33. Yeah, exactly. That's it. At the end of my bench or the end of the year.

[A]

Seen as how you knew that. Do you know we've got some big cornerback matchups coming up. Can you tell us which players we should be playing and which players we shouldn't be playing?

[C]

Should we start with upgrades?

[A]

Let's start with upgrades. We like the positive.

[C]

I stole your Michael Wilson analysis.

[A]

You want me to do the shadow report?

[C]

Yeah, you stole my DK Metcalf analysis.

[A]

Okay, all right.

[C]

But we talked about that when that was first on the list. Chicago, we're upgrading DK Metcalf. We already talked about this one. So I move on to the next one. This guy. Look, I don't know if you guys generally want to start this guy, but he has a great matchup this week, so maybe he is startable. Jackson Smith and Jigba, any interest? I moved him up in my rankings from first to double. First.

[A]

Got it. First junior.

[C]

Junior.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Look, 90 plus. Let's just. Let's just give him a shout out quick. 90 plus yards in all 10 games. 18 plus fantasy points in nine of 10 games. Eight plus catches in seven games. I mean, the guy is lighting it up.

[A]

Unreal.

[C]

And of course that matchup this week, Titans just struggling. 7th Most fantasy points to receivers, the highest catch rate. 3rd Highest yards per target, 24 points in Nico Collins last week and now, sort of out of nowhere, they're using Daryl Baker Jr. Who is a bench guy, as, like, their shadow, you know, he might. He might shadow Jackson Smith in general. Desperate times right now this week. Marcus Harris, Jalen Armore, Davis, Sam Womack, they're working in now. They're just scrambling a corner right now. So great spot for jsn and all of Seattle's wide receivers love that.

[B]

Does JSN sign the largest contract ever by a wide receiver this offseason coming.

[A]

Out of this game? I mean, coming out of this big season? Yeah.

[C]

Yeah, I think he's very much set up for it. Yeah.

[A]

Do you think. Do you think that the, like, average NFL fans are going to be like, are you serious? That JSN should get more money than Jamar Chase?

[B]

Fantasy is so popular now that people will be like, that guy carried me to a champion.

[C]

He was so good.

[B]

He deserves every.

[C]

He's going to finish first in, like, every category at receiver crown winner.

[B]

Yeah, I was going to say he deserves every last penny, but they're not making pennies anymore.

[C]

No.

[A]

Yeah, they shut it down.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Nickel.

[B]

Apparently it cost $0.04 to make a penny, so that. It's not business, if you think about it.

[A]

It is not good business. No.

[C]

Next one, guys, is Zay Flower. We're moving on Zay Flowers and the Ravens receivers against the Jets. You know, we talked about. The secondary receivers have been so good against them, but now number ones the last two weeks, Jerry Judy, 19.8. Savon Diggs, 19.5. With those are the. Those are two games since SAS Gardner was traded away. So now it's just three for all for wide receivers against them. So good news for Zay Flowers and if he comes back from injury, maybe Rashad Bateman. If you're in a deep league and in a tough spot, four teams on a buy, you can consider him.

[A]

So this matchup makes sense.

[C]

Yeah, no doubt. And then did the other ones not make Penny joke? I got there. I needed a second, but I got there.

[B]

It's like us with your dad jokes on Sunday.

[C]

Yeah, that's right.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Thanks, guys.

[C]

Tea against the 49ers. Yeah, we were talking about.

[A]

Been doing well recently.

[C]

He's doing well. And another good matchup threw it for us last week. Another good matchup against the Niners here. They just allowed 33 and a half points to Michael Wilson, who we just talked about last week. Niners now top five in catches, yards, fantasy points and catch rate. Two wide receivers.

[A]

Wow.

[C]

McMillan lines up on the perimeter 82% of the time, so it's going to be Renardo Green and Diameter Lenore that he'll see in this game. Just hasn't been great for that, for that situation this year. So good spot for Carolina's receivers. That could include, by the way, Xavier Leggette. Another good matchup for him. And they're, they're hyping him up in that room or in that, you know, the coaches are hyping him up.

[A]

So if Xavier, Xavier LeGette scores 33 and a half fantasy points and it's not Teo McMillan, I'm going to lose my mind.

[C]

That's all like Leggette does though, right? He has what, two huge games and.

[A]

Then huge games and then nothing.

[C]

I believe his average in his other seven games is 3.6.

[A]

Oh, my gosh.

[B]

That seems not great.

[A]

No, it's tough when your quarterback literally is thrown for over 200 yards. I think twice this year.

[B]

And then last week threw for more yards than any quarterback in Carolina Panthers franchise history.

[A]

This is why football so weird doesn't.

[C]

Feel like the Panthers and Falcons are just impossible to figure out. They'll win like 30 to nothing and then get smoked the next week by a bad team.

[B]

There's a really, really formidable schedule stretch coming in. So they play the 49ers, who I believe in on Monday. Let me get the. The rest of these, because I keep doing this. I mentioned a team schedule that I actually have to look it up, but I know it's tough coming up here for Carolina, so bear with me.

[C]

I know the Patriots have an extremely light schedule, but I couldn't tell you they're playing. Here we go.

[B]

Yes. Here's the Panthers rest of season schedule, 49ers on Monday night, loss. Then they play the Rams in Carolina the following week.

[C]

That's a lot probably still, but at least it's at home.

[B]

But a loss, they go on a buy. Then they play in New Orleans.

[A]

That one you could maybe.

[C]

That's what I'm saying. It's Saints too. Who knows?

[A]

You can win the game.

[B]

Then they play home to the Bucks, home to the Seahawks. Yeah, you're out at Tampa to wrap up.

[C]

Yeah, I don't. That's not that good. I think that's good.

[B]

No point of my conversation.

[C]

It was easy. I'm like, that's not hard. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Okay. Sweet. Speaking of not formidable, should we talk about downgrades?

[A]

Yes, let's do it.

[C]

T. Higgins, we already talked about that one. So I'll skip right over that one. Who's on the list? George Pickens. Very fascinating one because this guy has been so good with or without CD Lamb this season. But first of all, coming off a career high, he matched a career with nine catches last week. So he was outstanding in that game, 130 yards and 20, 29 fantasy points, yet for the third time this season. So he's been tremendous. Pop four in yards, touchdowns, end zone targets, yards per target, fantasy points. He's been fantastic. But he was not fantastic in week one when he played the Philadelphia Eagles, which is who they're playing this week. Quinya Mitchell shadowed him in that game. Pickens had 15 yards on three targets in that one. It was the CD Lamb show, if you recall, because he was on Adore Jackson throughout that game, just the way the Eagles decided to attack it. And he had 18 fantasy points in 110 yards in that game. I expect the Eagles to do something similar in this one. But also, that was Pickens first game with Dallas, and his first couple of games were quiet, and then CD Got hurt. The Pickens and Dak connection kind of picked up, and ever since then, it's been great. So this is not a situation where I'm benching Pickens. I downgraded him a little bit, but I'm still optimistic. I'm.

[B]

I'm.

[C]

I'm at 13 on him. He'd be a little higher if the matchup was more neutral, but it is a tougher assignment than usual. Agreed.

[B]

Agreed.

[A]

I like the matchup. I mean, not the matchup, but I like George Pickens regardless, because it just feels like he's playing at such a high level right now that there's no way that you can find a way to take him out of your lineup. But lowering expectations a little bit because of it.

[C]

I saw a tweet the other day. It was Tyler Lochner, who is an old colleague of mine at pff, of my writers back in the day, still in the industry. And he said, george Pickens is. I think the post was, why is George Pickens the most aesthetically pleasing receiver to watch? And that's, like, so true, isn't it? He's just smooth. So smooth. And he.

[B]

Who's the least.

[C]

The least aesthetic receiver? Good question. I don't know. I have to think about.

[B]

I don't have the answer to that one either. But who's the most aesthetically aesthetically pleasing pass catcher? Not just receiver.

[A]

Darnell Washington.

[C]

Thank you.

[A]

Thank you, baby. Thank you.

[C]

The awesomest, for sure. Yeah, dude.

[A]

When I saw that and I appreciate you guys. I thought I was going to get danieled in the text message yesterday for a second because it took a minute for you guys to reply but you were probably just doing stuff. So.

[C]

I showed some of my text the other day and it was all the green bubble or the bubbles or whatever of me sending you texts and no responses. And I'm not even joking. Within 30 seconds you replied to me out of nowhere and I was like.

[A]

I can't believe this happened. I'm a bad texter. I was just sometimes I try to be a good friend, but I'm a bad texter.

[C]

Last one, guys. At least for this portion. We have more to come in Thursday night preview, but the last one to keep an eye on is a Mecca Buka against the Rams. I mean, you know Forbes, you know.

[B]

I, I don't so Rams.

[C]

Yeah, it's so Rams, but also so Commanders that Emmanuel Forbes was a bus there for the first round pick, didn't work out and now is shadowing number ones for the Rams, one of the best defenses in the NFL. Also Benjamin Saint Juice who we talked about we picked on all the time when he was a shadow corner for the Commanders for years. He's, he's playing a key role for the Chargers. Like it's a situational role, but he's playing well for them. So it's just unreal. And they're having quarterback problems in Washington still.

[B]

Like it's a great pass rush helps.

[C]

Great pass rush and great, you know, coaching development. They've done a, done a nice job with them with the in out in la. So but anyway, the Rams have been great against the past second lowest EPA allowed but they faced the most, fifth most pass attempt. So they actually are top 10 and wide receiver catches and yards allowed. So I think a book will be okay. Forbes has not like he shadowed JSN. He had 19 and a half points, which is actually kind of for JSN Evans.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And Juwan Jennings had 19.1 the week before Rashid Sheet at 11.8. So that's. Those are the three guys he has shadowed. They've been fine. I'm not too worried about Abuka. Maybe we knock him a couple spots in the ranks, but I think he'll be fine.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I don't like it when I think about one of my teams and like every pass catcher that Mike mentioned, honestly.

[A]

I think the same thing as he's going through the list, it's like dang it, dang it. I gotta go into my Life.

[C]

Yeah, it's tricky sometimes. It's just like, you know, the guy scores maybe three or four fewer points than usual, but it matters. Like, oftentimes, I feel like this year, especially when we've gone through these, it's been like. It's rare where you're like a guy. This guy shadows. He's a solid corner. He shadows every week. And you're like, oh, yeah, give up 30 here, 27 here. It's been like, no, they're averaging like nine points a game. Like, generally those sort of things can matter.

[A]

Have you guys replaced the Marshawn Lattimore, Mike Evans shadow with, like, a new shadow situation in today's current NFL?

[C]

There is.

[A]

Is there someone that has that same. No.

[C]

We could get something like Christian Gonzalez.

[A]

Garrett Wilson, or like, same division kind of thing. Yeah, yeah.

[C]

You have to think about guys that shadow every single game.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And then like DJ Turner, DK Metcalf. Could that be developing into something that way?

[B]

Let him walk this off season. Sorry, Tyler producer. But it's like, yeah, he's probably.

[C]

Well, trade him. Trade him in A and a seven for a six or something.

[A]

Yeah, something like that. That's not great. All right, well, hey, go check out the rest of the shadow report as well as the rest of the playbook, which Mike Clay has on ESPN.com right now. An unbelievable resource for your lineup. Yeah, let's dive into the Thursday Night Football preview. I know Mike is not done yet. I want to set the table really quickly as we're going to have no Dalton Kincaid and Keon Coleman looks like a healthy scratch for the second game in a row this week.

[B]

They're saying.

[A]

That's what they're saying. Okay, so that means that Josh Allen going to have even fewer pass catchers than before. And, Mike, you've already been alluding to the idea that maybe you have some trepidation on Josh Allen this week.

[C]

Yeah, we'll get to that in just a moment because we still have a little bit of an extension.

[A]

Oh, some more shadow reports.

[C]

We'll start there because there's more, but we wanted to put it in this section to talk about Thursday Night football. Bills, receivers going up against the Texans. This is sort of related to, you know, Allen. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm doing this out of order. We'll start with Nico Collins against Christian Benford. He's going to draw the shadow in this one. We've talked about this. Benford has shadowed Garrett Wilson, Tyree Kill, Chris Alave, drake, London Tet, McMillan. Sorry, Tetaroa McMillan or T. Mac. He likes to be called Travis Kelsey and Emeka Abouk on their perimeter routes. We should expect that against Nico Collins, but those receivers averaging 15.6 fantasy points. This is one of the exceptions to what I said before, where even guys that have been shadowed or Benford has shadowed often the season, but the receivers have still done pretty well. So not super worried about Nico in this matchup. So that's that side. The other side is flipping over to the Buffalo Bills. Khalil Shakir and the Bills receivers up against his Texans past defense. Second fewest fantasy points to receivers, third fewest to the perimeter. Lowest catch rate to receivers, third lowest yards per target. Three receivers every 13 points against him this season.

[B]

So Shakir could easily get 6 for 54 tonight because he's a slot guy.

[C]

Yeah. And that might get you a wide receiver 38 and you're fine in your flex or something, but that's. That's the only Bills receiver you're considering.

[B]

Question for you. Yes, and I should have just looked this up myself, but Khalil Shakir played 50. I was. I was like, he had one catch for negative three yards last week and I was like, what happened there? He banged up or something? He played 54% of the snaps. He's got to play more than that normally, right?

[C]

Yeah, I think so. Yeah, he's. He's above that. He's above that for sure. But that's the nature offense they'll have. Like, Jackson Haas will play just like a ton of snaps. Some weeks I'll just use like three tight ends a ton. Game scripts obviously a factor. And then it's funny, you remember Jackson Haas was my pick and Raheem Sanders last week, he has no targets in the two games that Kincaid has been out, but he scored touchdowns in the other games and played more often and been targeted, so it doesn't make any sense. Yeah. Wow.

[A]

His snapshot has kind of been all over the place this year.

[C]

Yeah, sure.

[A]

And looking at glitch here. Yeah, it's not the entire offense is.

[B]

Like that now to Mike's point, except for Josh Allen, offensive lineman.

[A]

All right, well, then with this, and I apologize for jumping the gun here, but now that we know he's got a lessened receiving core or even tight ends to be able to the get the football too. How are you approaching Josh Allen this week against this Texans defense?

[B]

This is. I also had this as my storyline to watch. I think it's unbelievably fascinating.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

You've been Teasing this for like two straight days.

[A]

When I got into the rankings tool, I saw that Mike had Josh Allen projected as the ninth highest quarterback. I can't believe that. That's. That's as low as I've ever seen you projected, Mike.

[C]

Hey, guys, check this out.

[B]

Oh, I love it.

[A]

Check this out.

[C]

Yo, check this out.

[B]

Check this out. Check this out. Check this out. Check this out. It's time to check this out.

[C]

Pretty good. All right, guys.

[A]

Never gets old.

[C]

We always have to enjoy that. Yeah, we do. Check this out, fellas. This season, Josh Allen at home is averaging 29.6 fantasy points per game. He has not been below 19.4. Been fantastic.

[A]

Wow.

[C]

Yeah. However, he's played four road games and he's averaging 17.4 fantasy points. This is his output, 11.8 points at the Jets. It's on your screen right now. If you're watching QB24 that week, then he plays the Falcons. 15.4 points. He was QB18, 23.2 against the Panthers. Not bad. That was a good week for quarterbacks though. He was QB8 and then against the Dolphins, at the Dolphins QB10 a few weeks ago. You recall that one? Just 19.3 points. It has not been very good on the road for Josh Allen. He hasn't finished a week better than 8th and his highest point total I mentioned is 23.2. That was okay, but again, the other ones were pretty disappointing. So you have that. You have 17.4 on the road. It's been a struggle. Home road splits and you're on a short week. Yes. You're gone the road and you're playing perhaps the best pass defense in the NFL. Houston has a lot of the fewest fantasy points, fourth fewest yards, six fewest passing touchdowns, just 10, the second lowest completion rate, the second lowest YPA and zero rushing touchdowns to quarterbacks so far this season. No quarterback has reached 20 against them. None. And three have reached 14 against them this season. So again, this feels very similar to our conversation about Patrick Mahomes a couple of weeks ago. What do we do here with Josh Allen in this, these circumstances? It says he's busted at times this year, especially in the road. And this is all the makings of a bus game for Josh Allen. But how do you bench him? Like I'm not. How.

[B]

I don't have the stones to bench.

[A]

You can't. I don't think you can especially. It's not just even Josh Allen. It's Josh Allen coming off of a six touchdown game last week. Like he Was a wagon.

[B]

How do you say, one man wagon.

[A]

I think you lower the expectations like you're describing. We understand how good the Texans have been and I say, all right, like this is how it's going to work. I will play Josh Allen here and then with the rest of my lineup, I find out that Josh Allen duds and gives me 12.6 fantasy points. Then I'm going to look at the rest of my lineup and say, where do I need to put some ceiling guys in here to be able to make up for what happened on Thursday Night Football?

[C]

Wild. He has not finished a week better than QB8 on the road. This.

[A]

You think he does it tonight?

[C]

We're ranking him as if he will against the best defense in the NFL on the road on a short week. I mean we're. I mean it's tough.

[B]

It's kind of.

[C]

It's a weekly game and it's hard to kind of justify ranking.

[A]

One of us loves good quarterbacks and the other one is you. So I will say that Josh Allen. Allen is a top eight quarterback in week 12.

[C]

All right. I have him ranked slightly ahead of that because it's Josh Allen, but I will take it anyway because I think he will not. So I will say Josh Allen will not be a top eight scoring fantasy quarterback in week 12.

[A]

Put it on the board. Love it.

[B]

Like, guys, I've got him as quarterback. Eight and a half. If he goes eight and a half, then I win.

[A]

He's eight junior for field. Anybody else in this game? James Cook. I mean, you feel anything?

[B]

We can be pretty straightforward with the Bills. It's James Cook and it is Josh Allen's skill. Shakir would be the most startable pass catcher. I think we all agree the Texan side, Nico Collins starting him right. Nobody else is a must start from the wide receivers or tight ends. Right.

[A]

Schultz is getting.

[C]

Keep an eye on Jaden Higgins. I have him ranked as a flex option in 12 teamers.

[B]

But not a must start, right?

[C]

Of course not.

[B]

I think the player that we have a chance to be talking about tomorrow is Woody Marks.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Because over the past two weeks. More than that. But he has definitely stamped that over the past two weeks. He is the guy in this Houston backfield shift has taken place. On top of that, who's the worst run defense in the NFL?

[A]

The Buffalo Bills.

[B]

They may have jumped ahead of one or two teams after last week, but not by much. The Buffalo Bills are definitely. Actually they definitely did not because they faced Sean Tucker last week and gave a ton of Points. They're a bad run defense. If ever there was a night where Houston says to itself, like, I think there's actually there could be some motivation for both teams going into this game where Houston is saying, hey, we want to run the football effectively to keep Josh Allen off the field. Buffalo, meanwhile, is saying, it's really hard to throw the football against Houston. Let's try to control the line of scrimmage and pound with James Cook. This might be one of those where this game is over at like 10:52 like it was last week. Was that last week when almost there was a. Oh, yeah, Jets Patriots last week got off the air like 1102. It was amazing.

[C]

Yeah, that was super quick.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. It's going to be fascinating. I feel like sometimes on these short weeks, you'll have a running back play a little less than usual. Yeah, I feel like we've seen that kind of thing with, like, Bijon Robinson a lot. But on the other hand, we've seen guys have like four touchdown Trevian Henderson. Speaking of the Patriots at that, like, huge game on. So maybe that's cooked tonight. So very, very interesting.

[A]

I need to clean something up really quickly because I had said to you the Bills were the worst rush defense, which, like, we just clearly blanked on the idea that the Cincinnati Bengals in.

[C]

The NFL because they're just like, so far the worst at everything they are allowing.

[A]

The bills are allowing 27.2 points per game to running backs. The Bengals are allowing 34. So another seven points after that.

[B]

What I was thinking those. Let's check in terms of yards allowed per game because I do believe they might be the worst.

[C]

There's only 31 NFL defenses this year. Okay, that's true. That's.

[A]

That's fair.

[B]

Defense, yards allowed.

[C]

Let's go to.

[A]

I'm doing on the phone opponents rushing and it looks like, ooh, this is a. Let me see.

[B]

Ah. The Bengals gave them by 7.9 yards, but the Bills are allowing 153 yards per game, second to worst in the NFL. The Bengals are allowing 160.9. That is nearly twice as many as both the Patriots and the Jaguars and the Texans for that matter. The Texans, Patriots and jags all at 87.1 or fewer.

[C]

So Nick Chubb, two touchdowns tonight. Don't.

[A]

Mike.

[B]

I've got Woody Marks just inside my top five.

[C]

I have Mike going deep league where we start three running backs. I have Josh Jacobs on there, and I need to make a decision.

[B]

Oh, yeah, tonight.

[C]

Tonight on Nick Chubb, actually, because it's again, we're starting three receivers and people at benches and guys are hurt, so it's a tough spot. I might have to plug in Nick Chubb and hope for a touchdown.

[A]

Hope for a touchdown. All right. Where are you going in this game? You taking Texans or Bills?

[C]

My projection is 24 to 24.

[A]

That is funny.

[C]

Yeah, it is a coin flip.

[B]

I.

[C]

I'm going to take the Bills, but it is a. It's a close one. I mean, Davis Mills against Josh Allen. It's hard to go. It's hard to go with the Texans.

[B]

I'm going with the Bills as well, but it's going to be close. And the Texans have an interesting dilemma here or different interesting dynamic, which is that if you look at their schedule the rest of the way, it's hard. They've got the Colts twice. They've got the Jaguars at least once more. They obviously play the Bills tonight. I think they play the Chiefs and the Cowboys ahead. So on the one hand, you're saying to yourself, like, that's a tough schedule based off of some of the teams and how they're playing. On the other hand, like, everything is in front of them. Like, if they knock, if they just rattle off like six straight wins, not only are they going to improve to 11 and 5, but they're going to be undercutting some of the teams that they are behind right now in the standings along the way.

[C]

Yeah, this is their bat. These teams are battling for a wild card right now. I mean, yeah, the Bills are going to be on the Patriots, but they're still a game and a half behind the Patriots. But they get. If the Texans win this game, they're within one game of Buffalo, and that could be a big seating issue. But I do have Houston with the hardest remaining schedule in the NFL.

[A]

So to your point, I can't believe that it's week 12, by the way, and both the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions are not in the playoff picture as it stands right now. Yep, there's a lot of fun, a lot of parody right now in the NFL with some of those guys.

[B]

Promises to be awesome. Obviously. Last year we had the Lions and the vikings playing Week 18 for all the marbles. That would have. That was great, but it was like the only game that mattered this year. Look at some of the Week 18 games. It's always teams playing each other in their own division. But you could feasibly have, like three options that the NFL would consider flexing into the Sunday Night Football spot.

[A]

It'll Be a good end of the season. I'm also going to take. Actually, I'm not going to take the Bills. I'm going to take the Texans. I'm going to take the Texans. That's right, you guys.

[C]

That's right. I always like an upset, so I'm. I'm here for it.

[B]

All right.

[A]

What is a Raheem Sanders monopoly fund is where we're going next. Choosing players under 0.1% roster defying the end zone. We've had a little bit of a slowdown of late.

[B]

Hey, guys, this is. It's. The game is doing what it's supposed to.

[C]

This is what was supposed to happen.

[B]

It was supposed to be like this all year.

[C]

The right number. Yeah.

[A]

All right, so let's start.

[B]

Who did.

[A]

Did you guys have anybody even close last week? I don't remember.

[C]

My guy, zero targets.

[B]

Elijah Higgins. So he actually got tackled at like the. He didn't tackle. He got. He fumbled at the one yard line.

[A]

Yeah, he was involved.

[C]

You had a guy in the game that had the NFL record for completions. Yes. In that offense and did not get it.

[B]

Yeah, but he fumbled the one yard line. You see it. He got tackled. He fumbled like as. He is going into the end zone. So the process was there.

[A]

Yes. You were almost there. All right, Mike, I'm going to start with you. Who are you going to pick for your player this week?

[C]

The first time, I think, this season where I sent in a name and they said, nope, take bacon. So, really, guys, we'll see which one of you. I got it. Yeah, I got it. Okay. Definitely. So I pivoted to Cincinnati. Bang. I feel like this is a good one. I like this one. Bengals wide receiver Tinsley. Mitchell Tinsley.

[B]

It was my second option.

[C]

Really? Yeah. Christian Gonzalez, as we said, likely to shadow T. Higgins. That puts Mitchell Tinsley in the other side. He got some hype in preseason.

[B]

You got to keep him.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Eat out Jermaine Burton for that. For a role. And he could. He could. Could play a full complement of snaps. He had a touchdown against the Jags back in week two. So Mitchell Tinsley, who has, like two targets this season. That's my guy.

[A]

Love that. Nothing wrong with two targets in a season because my guy Ross Dwelly has one target this season.

[B]

So why are you picking him?

[A]

However, it's the Detroit Lions. No. Sam laporta, and they're taking on the Giants. I could see an easy. This is one of those games where Detroit was so bad, they were so embarrassed last week, they're going to that going home. I could see them scoring 48 points against the Giants. And so it's like is there a chance that you're on the two yard line you just throw a little tight end. So like I could see something like that happening. I'm just, I'm leaning into it.

[C]

Okay. All right.

[A]

Feel Jates.

[B]

My pick is probably bikes pick Kadel Hodge, the wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons who with no Darnell Moon. Excuse me, no.

[A]

Drake London.

[B]

Drake London. It's going to be Darnell Mooney as the ostensible number one wide receiver with Kadero Hodge as their replacement for Drake London. You guys remember last year there was a game, I believe it was a Thursday night football game where Drake London had three receiving touchdowns and then in overtime Drake London was like evaluated for a concussion for like, like they had just taken him off the field. And then one play later Hodge had a 48 yard touchdown. That was so pretty from like a play that clearly would have been Drake London if he were available. Yeah, London had three touchdowns that game and I think he ended up playing the following weeks of the concussion. Maybe he cleared concussion protocol. The bottom line is this. Hodge is going to play a role on Sunday. The Falcons yesterday made some comments about how like it's just a matter of time before Darno Mooney takes off I week 12. It'd be nice for that to happen right away.

[C]

And how about a month ago, week eight, there was no, no Michael Pennock. There was no London. Oh, Hodge had eight targets in that game.

[B]

Really? He might cross over the 0.1% threshold by Sunday.

[A]

By the time.

[C]

Actually it's funny you mentioned that touchdown for. I just wanted two career touchdowns. No way.

[B]

Very special teams player though.

[A]

Our producers are picking Colby Parkinson to get in the end zone this week.

[C]

Barrett's Ferguson. Give me Terence Ferguson.

[A]

Also rostered in 0.1%.

[C]

That's a name by the way if you're in a deep, deep league, deep dynasty league. You start multiple tight ends like Terence Ferguson's second round pick this year and actually he leads their remaining tight ends with Higby on IR in in routes run over the last four weeks, he's not terribly far behind. It's Higby obviously has been the one but he's on ir. But then it's actually Ferguson who's just trying to get him r keep an eye on him. For sure. By the way, I was Mason Tipton was a guy I had on my list. Yeah, it's an option for the Saints. Brandon Cooks we mentioned this, but yeah, cut loose. He wanted out. He's probably gonna try to sign with a contender like Tyler Lockett. He obviously signed with the tie in the stick and try to contend.

[A]

And then he signed with the Raiders after that to try to contend.

[C]

Oh, that's what I meant. That's what I meant. Yeah. Out with the Titan. Sign with one of the. You thought he wanted to go to a contender. He goes to the Raiders. Anyway, we'll see if Cooks lands with. Yeah, maybe New England or somewhere. Who knows?

[A]

I was going to do it for today.

[B]

Doubt it there, but we'll see.

[C]

Probably not.

[A]

But have fun watching Thursday Night Football tonight, guys. It'll be a good time. Yeah, hopefully it'll be a good game. This should be a really fun one to watch. We'll see Josh Allen against this awesome Texas. Today's show was presented by Wingstop. Don't forget to love each other and be kind to yourself. You guys deserve it. We love you guys. Have fun with Thursday Night Football and we'll see you back here on Friday.

[B]

Later.

[A]

You in the.

[C]

It.