Week 12 Fantasy Recap: Top Studs & Biggest Duds | Fantasy Focus 🏈

Summary

Fantasy Focus Football

Episode: Week 12 Fantasy Recap: Top Studs & Biggest Duds

Date: November 24, 2025
Hosts: Daniel Dopp, Stefania Bell, Liz Loza

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Overview

This “ladies' day” edition of Fantasy Focus Football, hosted by Daniel Dopp, Stefania Bell, and guest Liz Loza, delivers a lively and insightful recap of NFL Week 12 for fantasy managers. The crew breaks down studs and duds, impactful injuries, waiver wire priorities, and playoff strategies, with plenty of playful banter and honest assessment of big-name disappointments and rising stars.

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Main Segments & Timestamps

1. Monday Morning Blitz—Winners, Losers, and Surprises [02:24-22:46]
2. Big Fantasy Takeaways [23:13-41:18]
3. Rookie RB & Volume Watch [41:18-44:56]
4. Wide Receiver and QB Shifts [44:56-53:09]
5. Miscellaneous Studs and Monday Night Preview [53:09-end]

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1. Monday Morning Blitz: Winners, Losers & What-the-Heck Players

Top Week 12 Fantasy Studs

• Wandell Robinson, WR, NYG

  • Monster game: 9 rec, 156 yds, 1 TD, 30 FP. “He entered the week the wide receiver 8 in targets … he has been stepping up in a major way” — Liz Loza [04:27]
  • Volume isn’t a fluke: Consistency and usage will continue with NYG’s bad defense.

• Emmanuel Wilson, RB, GB

  • Stepped up for Josh Jacobs: 28 carries, 107 yds, 2 TD, 26.5 FP, RB2 of the week.
  • Stefania: “You want the backup to come in and perform capably, but RB2 on the week, I don’t think anybody was expecting that.” [05:14]

• Jaxon Smith-Njigba (JSN), WR, SEA

  • 8 catches, 167 yds, 2 TDs, 37.1 FP. Seven straight games of 20+ points, already broke team receiving record in 11 games.
  • Daniel: “He is a 37.5% target share, which leads the NFL by an astronomical amount … in 11 games ... broke DK Metcalf’s single-season Seahawks record.” [07:30]

This Week’s Duds (“Losers”)

• Justin Jefferson, WR, MIN

  • Continues to disappoint, hamstrung by J.J. McCarthy’s QB play: “He has now managed single-digit fantasy totals in two of his last three games.” — Liz Loza [09:50]
  • Entire Vikings offense is a mess: “I don’t feel comfortable starting any of them.” — Daniel Dopp [12:04]

• Lamar Jackson, QB, BAL

  • Two straight games of <10 points; rushing numbers way down.
  • Stefania: “Only 21 yards on 11 carries in those two games combined ... there’s hesitation on running designed for him.” [13:23]

“What The Heck” Players

• Jameson Williams, WR, DET

  • Zero points after two weeks of hope. “He is blanked on three targets … had a 36-yard catch called back by penalty.” — Liz Loza [16:43]

• Jameis Winston, QB/WR, NYG

  • TD on a wild trick play: “Must-see television … it was Gunner Olszewski, WR, throwing a 33-yard touchdown … rumbling into the end zone.” — Stefania [18:36]

• Jameer Gibbs, RB, DET

  • “What the heck” in the best way: 15 carries, 219 yds, 2 TD, plus 11 rec, 45 yds, 1 TD. “Three of his last five weeks have been straight-up week-winning weeks for your squad.” — Daniel [21:21]

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2. Key Takeaways & Insights

Lions’ Backfield Clarity

• “The gap between David Montgomery and Jameer Gibbs has become so vast ... Gibbs has recorded 43 touches [last 2 weeks], Monty 15.” — Liz [23:40]
• Gibbs is trending toward RB1 overall finish, surpassing even Jonathan Taylor.

Bears Backfield & DeAndre Swift Worries

• Uncertainty as snaps split between DeAndre Swift and rookie Kyle Manungai; Swift may be losing work near the goal line. Stefania: “I feel like we’re going to have uncertainty week-to-week now.” [25:46]

Rookie Running Backs on the Rise

• Chase Brown (CIN): 19 carries for 107 yds, plus 2 rec, 23 yds. Has gotten better since Joe Flacco took over: “He went from 2.5 ypc to 5.8 ypc … Four straight games over 15 fantasy points.” — Daniel [32:36]
• Travion Henderson (NE): Inefficient but bellcow: 21 touches to Stevenson’s 7. Faces Giants next week, very soft matchup.

Tight End Alert

• Bengals have allowed 13 (!) TDs to TEs, most by a mile. — Liz [36:17]
• “I was so mad at myself for not putting Hunter Henry in my daily … you knew it.” — Stefania [37:07]
• Mark Andrews up next vs. Cincy, must-play.

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3. Wide Receiver & QB Landscape Shifts

Jacksonville’s Receiving Corps

• Jacoby Myers and Parker Washington both step up with Trevor Lawrence: “Parker Washington also topped 17 fantasy points in three of the last four games.” — Daniel [38:47]
• “I don’t feel super confident when I start a Jaguars WR, but they’re more than a dart throw.” [40:08]

Las Vegas = Get-Right Matchup

• Raiders are a balm for struggling RBs: “Next up, your 49ers. Maybe we get a Brian Robinson TD!” — Liz [41:03]

Browns’ (Cleveland) Offensive “Identity”

• Shadour Sanders surprises as a winning starter; Stefania: “I found myself asking, who are these Browns and what should we do with them?” [43:49]

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4. More Surprises & Players to Watch

Cardinals WR Michael Wilson

• Back-to-back monster games with Jacoby Brissett at QB: “Michael Wilson last week … 15 rec, 185 yds … this week, 10 rec, 118 yds … This is the best two-game stretch of his career.” — Daniel [46:10]
• May be a strong WR2 even when Marvin Harrison Jr. returns.

Dallas Cowboys WR1 Debate

• “Is George Pickens the WR1 for the Dallas Cowboys?” — Stefania [48:08]
• One-year prove-it deal for Pickens, but currently outproducing CeeDee Lamb: “Managed 29 fantasy points in back-to-back weeks.” — Liz [50:43]

Dak Prescott: Fantasy Value

• Highly undervalued at draft time, delivering at “legitimate MVP level” [50:21]
• Playoff schedule: Chiefs, Lions, Vikings, Chargers, Commanders — favorable for fantasy.

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5. Miscellaneous Studs, Playoff Strategies, & Monday Night Preview

Unexpected Heroes

• Matthew Stafford, QB, LAR: “Matthew Stafford’s world ... only one week with <10 pts all season, over 22 in four of last five.” — Stefania [51:03] “Probably gonna be the runaway MVP.”
• Cam Ward, QB, MIA: “First-ever 20 FP game. Hopefully first of many.” — Daniel [53:21]
• Colson Loveland, TE, CHI: 14.9 points — “Excited to see Bears love on the show.” — Stefania [55:19]

Injury Roundup [55:44]

• Notable injuries: Ashton Jeanty (ankle), Rashee Rice (hamstring), Alvin Kamara (knee, MRI pending), Tee Higgins (concussion, out for Thursday), Baker Mayfield (shoulder, status TBA).

Monday Night Football Preview (Panthers at 49ers) [59:00]

• Tedra McMillan, WR, CAR: “Biggest game of season last week … only third time he hit double-digit targets. This is a smash spot.” — Daniel [60:27]
• Brock Purdy, QB, SF: Back and healthy; strong play vs. Panthers.
• CMC, Panthers RBs, and more: All get discussed as strong options.
• Spread is 49ers -7, O/U 49.5.

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Notable Quotes

• Liz Loza [04:27]: “This isn’t a fluke. Wandell Robinson ... has been stepping up in a major way.”
• Stefania [13:23]: “Only 21 yards on 11 carries in those two games combined [for Lamar Jackson]. That’s a real concern.”
• Daniel [21:21]: “Three of [Gibbs’s] last five weeks have been straight-up week-winning weeks for your squad.”
• Liz [23:40]: “The gap between David Montgomery and Jameer Gibbs has become so vast.”
• Stefania [48:08]: “Is George Pickens the WR1 for the Dallas Cowboys?”
• Daniel [50:21]: “We’ve seen Dak play at a legitimate MVP level in this league before.”
• Stefania [51:03]: “This is Matthew Stafford’s world and we’re just living in it right now.”

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Tone & Takeaways

• Highly conversational, fun, and energetic — “Ladies who fantasy!” Delivering sharp, actionable analysis but never afraid to inject humor or relatability.
• Heavy focus on actionable advice for the playoff run: identifying reliable volume, cautioning about collapsing QB situations, and uncovering waiver wire gold.
• Serious warning flags raised for the Vikings and Ravens, blunt assessment of dangerous volatility at the QB position.

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Listener Utility

If you missed this episode, you now have a comprehensive sense of:

• Who’s over/under-performing and why
• Crucial injury news for Week 13 waivers
• The true state of tricky backfields (Detroit, Chicago, New England)
• Key rookies making late-season playoff impacts
• Matchup and schedule-based forward-looking strategies

Don’t miss out on Gibbs, JSN, and Robinson shares — and beware the sinking ships of the Vikings, Ravens, and formerly bankable stars!

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For Next Week

• Monitor injury news, especially at QB and RB (Mayfield, Kamara).
• Watch for backfield snap shares in Detroit and Chicago.
• Consider Jacoby Myers, Parker Washington, and Michael Wilson as flex/WR3 options down the stretch.

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Happy Thanksgiving and good luck in your playoff pushes!

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

You're in the whole 6, 010. What's good, friends? Welcome into Fantasy Focus Football, presented by Wingstop. It's a ladies day alongside Stefania Bell and Liz Loza. My name is Daniel Doppelganger. Very excited to be hanging out with the two best fantasy football analysts here at ESPN Fantasy.

[C]

In the studio.

[B]

That's right. Absolutely in the studio. How are you two ladies doing today?

[D]

Good. Good. I feel like it's like, you know, ladies who lunch.

[B]

Oh, I like it. I'm good with that.

[D]

Ladies who fantasy. Yeah. Cass, Daniel, you're just one of us, girl. We're just three. Talking and having football.

[B]

I like this. And we decided to let Liz show up today because Liz played field in the fantasy focused show league and just crushed him this week.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

So field unfortunately not a part of the show. Well, not unfortunately. We get to have Liz today.

[C]

So vacation for the first time since, like, I don't know, ever April.

[B]

Yeah. Gets to breathe for just a minute. So it's going to be very a lot of fun. Be able to dive into all the things that was week 12 today. Quick shout out to our friends over at trophy smack. Visit trophy smack.com, use the promo code focus10 for 10% off your order over there. And hang out. In our YouTube chat today, our buddy Eric Moody always has a good time being able to answer your questions. And if for some reason Eric said in there, Mama do will answer any questions that you have as well. Ask her all the questions that you want.

[D]

Special shout out to Mama Dot. Special shout out to Mama Dot Faves in the chat.

[C]

What does mama dot make for Thanksgiving? It's kind of like specialty dish.

[D]

Oh, I know there's pie. Yeah, I know there's gonna be pie.

[B]

There's definitely pie.

[D]

There's lady does love the pie.

[B]

She's a big pie person. Yeah. So we do. That is a thing. We're a fairly like Traditional Thanksgiving family. We're just, you know, mashed potatoes and stuffing and turkey and cranberry sauce and nothing special.

[D]

One tradition that's different. The Lions are not losing on Thanksgiving. There you go.

[C]

Extra pie for the Lion.

[B]

I love that. This is already my favor. All right, then, let's dive into our Monday morning blitz. Breaking down our winners, losers, and what the heck Players of the week. And Liz Loza, because you are the guest, I'm gonna start with you.

[C]

Well, I have to give big shout out to Wanda Robinson.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Who by the way, has been incredible if you picked him up off of waivers, as I know you all did suggest. Actually mentioned him on SportsCenter last week as like a last minute pick up ahead of the trade deadline, which is this Wednesday. In fact, if you're following the esp. Standard ESPN Standard trade trade, you guys, it's Monday.

[B]

We had that. You know what is Monday?

[D]

It's that cider world. Every Monday when we.

[C]

I am not functioning as efficiently as Wandell Robinson was on Sunday. He had a absolutely monster game. Converted all four. What I appreciated too, in the first quarter, he was already on fire, right. Caught four balls for over 100 yards. And then you managed to pile up the other 56 yards and touchdown. I think he had the touchdown in the first quarter, too.

[D]

Over.

[C]

They ended up with nine of 14 targets for 156 and a touchdown. That was good for 30 fantasy points. He also had 28 fantasy points in Week 2 at Dallas. So this is not like it's been a minute, but he's been producing consistently. I have to say that I think the play calling in New York, he's been a little bit more creative.

[B]

I agree.

[C]

Giants plays. Jamis Winston has been such a vibe. So fantastic. We were worried after Jackson Dart and Cam Scatter Boo went out that the vibes would just not be so much. Brian Dabel hit the skids and now we've got Winston not eating dubs, but certainly helping fantasy managers eat dubs via Robinson's.

[D]

Quite frankly, no Giants fans in this room. So we're all about the fantasy production that we're getting out of New York.

[B]

So, yeah, that Wondell Robinson touchdown was a flea flicker that they threw to Jameis Winston that went all the way back. Why not, right? A little bit of lion's own medicine used against them. That was tough to watch.

[C]

But Wanda, I mean, this is not a fluke. And that's what I want people to realize. He entered the week the wide receiver 8 in targets, the wide receiver 9 in receptions and the wide receiver 12 in yards after the catch. So he has been stepping up in a major way since Malik Neighbors obviously exited early in the season. And even with Darius Slayton back in.

[B]

Play, yeah, he is getting a ton of volume. And even though the name recognition doesn't really resonate as much as the production does, you need to be paying attention to him down the stretch because with the volume that he's given getting, excuse me, with either Jackson Dart or Jamis Winston under center, he is someone that you can utilize in your starting line.

[C]

That defense is so bad. Defensive coordinator fired. Actually, that did happen this morning. So with a bad defense, we love what that means for the offenses. Volume.

[B]

Yep. Love it. All right, Stefania, who is your winner of the week?

[D]

Well, you know, some people might have been upset that Josh Jacobs wasn't able to go yesterday, but if you had Emmanuel Wilson as insurance for that occasion, then you too are a winner, my friends, because Manuel Wilson, there was no dip really from the performance of Josh Jacobs. 26.5 fantasy points for Wil Wilson, RB2 on the week. RB2, RB2. I mean, you want the backup to come in and perform capably, but RB2 on the week, I don't think anybody was expecting that. 28 carries, 107 yards and two times in the end zone.

[B]

28 carries, Stefania.

[D]

I know. It's as if they ran the ball and.

[B]

And they basically just gave it to.

[D]

Him traditionally run the. Oh, yeah.

[C]

Well, that's what happens when you crush the competition 23 to 6.

[D]

I mean, that it, it did help the game script helped him. But I think the other thing to note is, you know, the packers did put Josh Jacobs through some workout before that game and there was some concern that he was still having enough soreness that he wasn't ready to go. Their next game is on Thursday. So there's no guarantee even though Josh Jacobs wants to play. And we talked about this yesterday, it's not just if he's not feeling great, but it's also the swelling. Can he run effectively? You don't want to set up for a secondary injury. And if they had questions about whether Emmanuel Wilson could perform, I think those were answered. So keep an eye out for Thursday as well.

[B]

And this Thursday, as our friend Matthew always used to say, flying on a short week across the country, you know, I remind you, it is from Green Bay to Detroit, but it's still flying across a time zone on a short week, which is a Thursday. So something to think about. But if you were a Josh Jacobs Manager and you picked up Emmanuel Wilson. You not only got great production out of him, but you saved your running back, which you want for the fantasy playoffs, from potentially aggravating that injury. So I love the move. I'm glad the packers did it and hopefully you benefited from Emmanuel Wilson in your lineup. If you have jsn, I'm going to be real quick about this. Dude, you benefit every single freaking week. 8 catches, 10 targets, 167 yards and 2 touchdowns for 37.1 fantasy.

[D]

Does anyone else play on that team?

[B]

It doesn't seem like it.

[D]

It really doesn't. Like he's a monster. He's having a monster season. It feels like every week it's a new superlative for him.

[B]

Seven straight games with 20 plus fantasy points. This is his eighth game with 100 or more receiving yards, which leads the NFL. He is a 37 and a half percent target share which leads the NFL by an astronomical amount. Like it's not even close. And he broke DK Metcalf single season Seahawks wide receiver receiving record.

[D]

Not surprised.

[B]

And he did it in 11 games.

[D]

Wow.

[B]

It is 11 games into the season and he already broke the single season receiving record for this team. So like he's just. He gets Minnesota in week 13. A reminder, in week 13 you're going to have zero teams on a buy. Everybody's back. The full slate of everybody. Because of Thanksgiving, we couldn't be able to put we, the NFL couldn't put anyone else on a buy. So you're going to have the full slate of players. But JSN locked in as the wide receiver. One of fantasy.

[C]

Isn't it crazy to think that there are some managers who have either Jonathan Taylor or Jameer Gibbs and also JSN on their teams? I want. I have a request for Tristan Coughroft. Tristan Coughroft.

[B]

There you go. That's right.

[C]

I want to know at the end of the season how many championship teams had both of those players on it.

[B]

I have a league with our friend not cool Keith and our buddy Field Yates and Tristan H. Cockroft in which I have. It's a keeper league. I have both Jonathan Taylor and JSN and Aman Ross St. Brown. And you're winning and I am 7 and 4. But I have the second most points scored. So it's one of those things where I'm going to think that we're going.

[C]

To get that astro. I know everybody loves it.

[D]

You know what? Just one more thing on jsn.

[C]

He.

[D]

Everyone knows that he's the target. Everyone knows that Sam Donald is going to him and it doesn't matter. This is what's perhaps to me the most impressive. So this week would be interesting is Brian Flores defense. I mean I'm it'll be fascinating to see what happens.

[B]

Revenge game, right? Brian Flores, you know is going to bring the heat. We know that Brian Flores knows that Sam Donald struggled with the heat down the stretch. That's why that's gonna be a big one.

[D]

My only little caution mark on JSN this week is I wonder, I wonder if he'll be able to keep it up in week 13 if he does it this week. He and Darnold obviously both have to perform well. It will be impressive.

[C]

His routes are more crisp than the button downs in every episode of succession.

[B]

Yes, good call. It is just call is topical as always. Who's your loser of the week? Let's go negative now.

[C]

Well, we're talking about Minnesota and Brian Flores on the other side of the ball. Justin Jefferson continues to underwhelm. Not entirely his fault obviously. I think this is tied to J.J. mcCarthy. We talked about it on fantasy football now on Sunday. Really struggling against pressure in terms of accuracy. Can't get the ball more than 10 yards downfield. That's not particularly helpful for Jefferson. I thought maybe he'd have a floor of around 12 fantasy points, but in fact I think what he managed 8.8 fantasy points. So he has now managed single digit fantasy totals in two of his last three games. Caught four of six for just 48 yards. It was his worst yardage total since Week 1 at Chicago, which was McCarthy's debut. So we're not finding anything to look positively towards. And also they've got the Seahawks as we just mentioned in Week 13 and the Seahawks have a a recorded pressure rate of 37%. That's the second highest. Doesn't seem good for JJ McCarthy and have given up at least entering week 12 had given up 45 completions of 10 or more air yards which was the eighth fewest. So I would buckle up for some more bumpy rides.

[B]

So I'm going to jump the line here Stefania, because my loser is everyone that is attached to a J.J. mcCarthy led offense. I didn't talk about Justin Jefferson when I looked at this, but nobody topped 8.8 fantasy points in Week 12. Nobody on the team, period. Which is just atrocious. TJ Hawkinson unusable at tight end, hasn't hit 10 fantasy points since JJ McCarthy took over as the starter. Jordan Addison here's what he's done since J.J. mcCarthy started. 2 for 38, 3 for 35, 2 for 20 and a touchdown. Thank the Lord for that touchdown. And then 0 for 0 this week, everyone, Aaron Jones is grasping for flex value because he can still catch the ball a little bit, and he's been efficient as a runner. But everybody, yes, everybody that's attached to this J.J. mcCarthy offense, like, I hate to put everything on the kid, but his play right now is just not getting it done. And I don't feel any confidence. I'm getting to the point where the guys that I just mentioned, I don't feel comfortable starting any of them. And Justin Jefferson is now falling into like that low end wide receiver 2 range for me with the way that this team is playing.

[D]

Yeah, I feel like this is going to be a conversation tomorrow when we're talking about waivers and what we're going to do. Because if you're trying to make a push to get into the fantasy playoffs or your playoff bound, somehow, and you've managed to navigate this situation, particularly with Justin Jefferson, who you expended a high draft pick on, maybe your first overall pick, likely your first overall pick, then you have to make some serious decisions about what to do. And good luck trading for him, because I'm not sure that's gonna happen.

[C]

So the only silver lining, though, is that the schedule does ease up. Weeks 14 to 16, and they're facing the commanders, the Cowboys and the Giants, over that time. But again, everything is fluid. Like, this is why I don't always want to marry myself to a rest of season, strength of schedule, because injuries happen, coordinators get fired.

[B]

You gotta get there as well. Like, how. How comfortable would you feel? You get to week 14, week 15, it's your fantasy playoffs, and you're like, you know who I'm gonna start this week? J.J. mcCarthy, in spite of what he's looked like, because the matchup is too good. Like, there's. You're really. You're really well.

[C]

That's why you have to find that upside and flex and find the balance. That's every week's challenge.

[B]

All right, Stefania, you got a loser?

[D]

Yeah, I do, because I have him on a couple rosters. So I.

[B]

Your eyebrows went up and you were very serious. Yeah, Yeah, I do, Daniel.

[D]

And my loser is Lamar Jackson.

[B]

Oh.

[D]

It was this really. This is really hurting. And it's. What. What's really puzzling to me about it is now we have two bad outings of less than 10 fantasy points in a row. These are consecutive outings 7.22 fantasy points in week 12. That was high compared to week 11 when it was 4.72 fantasy points. Here's my biggest concern of all. Only 21 yards on 11 carries in those two games combined.

[B]

Wow.

[D]

And Lamar Jackson, if you drafted him as one of the top quarterbacks, which he was in that discussion of your top picks, you know, is it Josh Allen? Is it Lamar Jackson? Is it Jalen Hurts? And we counted on Lamar Jackson with his legs. Those were the high picks. Jaden Daniels, he's been hurt, so that's a different story. He was. He was running Lamar Jackson. When he's had these spectacular weeks, it's been a combination of the passing and the rushing. He's been getting it done on both fronts. Uh, to me, this is a real concern because he was on the injury report with the ankle issue, which didn't seem like too big of a deal, but he also had the hamstring that cost him multiple weeks. And I wonder. It just feels like there's hesitation on running design for him, and it. It's just whatever it is, it's not working out. The offense looks out of sync. Derek Henry, you know, obviously he can still carry the ball and run for you, but right now, I don't know exactly what it is, but it's off. And that makes it hard for me to look ahead and go, wow, I feel really good about Thursday.

[B]

Another short week, another trying to figure things out. You said they play the Cincinnati Bengals. Maybe that's the silver lining.

[D]

That's the. That, that. Yes, that's it.

[C]

Well, you would think against the jets, there was that.

[D]

Right, right.

[B]

You're right.

[D]

But I throw this back. So there's. This is my. Is this personal dilemma here. I'm just going to take advantage of having you two wisdom.

[B]

Let's do it. Let's do it.

[D]

But, like, I think Joe Burrow is going to play on Thursday. So now all of a sudden, the Cincinnati offense, look, they've been functional, serviceable, and Joe Flacco has done quite well. But Jamar Chase will be back from the suspension. Like, all of a sudden, Joe Burrow come out and light it up. Ravens are going to have to score, and I feel like when they're in that he's got to help take the team on his back. You see more of the running from Lamar Jackson.

[C]

There is a play up to expectations sort of feel right.

[D]

So maybe all is not lost. I'm just saying if. If you needed him this week and I did, and I'm probably going to lose to our friend Mina Kimes in the War Room League because of my Lamar Jackson underwhelming performance. It's been tough. It's been a tough couple weeks.

[B]

Two of the five top quarterbacks that we drafted this year have panned out for us right now. Both Jaden Daniels. Jaden Daniels and Joe Burrow have been hurt. They've been dealing with injuries. Lamar Jackson outside the top 10. I mean Jaden Daniels also outside the top 10 in fantasy points per game. So even when he has played, he hasn't been delivering. It's just Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts. They've been the two guys that we expected to be good and are continually good week in and week out. You've had a lot of volatility at the top of that quarterback spot. All right, Liz Loza, what the heck player from this week.

[C]

I went from being so thankful for Jameson Williams blocking, you and me both, to a what the heck goose egg. I was having flashbacks to week seven. We'd done this before. I thought we fixed it. We were on FF now.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Sipping cider, passing superlatives. Williams got all of mine. And I mean he entered this week with 10 catches, 207 yards and two touchdowns since Dan Campbell took over the play calling duties. And then he is blanked on three targets. He did seem to have like a 36 yard catch in the third quarter but it was negated by a penalty on one of the offensive lineman.

[B]

It was a touchdown actually. Would have taken it to the house had it not been, but it was. That was so frustrating. Yeah, I'm with you on that one.

[D]

So.

[C]

So Kevin Pulsifer, our esteemed and my friend were discussing this because we were both like what is happening? We were having those like a crash out moment about it and he made this excellent point. He's like, listen, obviously the Giants were also aware of what an incredible offensive weapon Williams is and how he'd been on fire so much. So maybe the sellout was to take him away and then in return Amon Ra St Brown and Jameer Gibbs go off and they can't but like to your benefit or yeah, to your benefit. The Lions have that sort of offensive firepower that they don't need to rely on just one piece of the puzzle.

[B]

As a fan, that's really cool. As a fantasy manager, it's a little different.

[D]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Because I also had the same expectation. No Sam Laporta, we've seen him get more involved and we're playing. I don't want to sound disrespectful, but the Giants, like the Giant secondary is one that you think you can absolutely take advantage of. And Amon Ra did, but we just didn't see it from Jamo for whatever. Yeah. It did not materialize with Jameson Williams. I'm gonna go right into mine then. Because you're. While you're talking about it, I had Jameer Gibbs. I mean, what the heck.

[D]

There is nothing. What the heck.

[C]

In the best way possible.

[B]

In the best way possible.

[D]

Opposite. What the heck. But then there was nothing left for Jameson Williams.

[B]

No. Yeah. I'll tell you, I'm gonna save mine because I wanted to lead into the next one. Stefania. But you guys know where I'm gonna go. Who do you have as your what the heck player?

[D]

I. Jamis Winston. And really, because I was mesmerized by this play. If you weren't watching the game, you got to go back and find the highlight of this because it's just fantastic. But he scores a touchdown on a catch and a run. And I don't know what was more impressive, the fact that it was Gunner Ol Suski. I don't even know if I'm pronouncing that right. My apologies. Wide receiver Gunner Ol Shoeski. Thank you. Throws a 33 well in the air. I don't know how, but it was end up being a 33 yard touchdown. But it was, you know, pretty on the money for Jameis. But he was going to be tackled right there at the sideline. And no, he breaks away. I mean, he looked like a linebacker Derek Barnes tackle. And then he's like the whole, you know, to borrow from Boomer, the rumbling, rumbling stuff into the end zone. The whole play was fantastic. And I don't know with Jameis Winston is must see television. That's, that's the thing when he's playing, it's like you never know what exactly is going to happen and it makes a game that I. Yes, you're. You're a fan, so you were watching it. But if I got a bunch of screens on and we're watching it in a room and everyone is focused on like, what crazy thing is Jamis doing next? So I could have picked a number of plays, but that, that, that play was just so unexpected, so crazy and it energizes the team. And you're right about the vibes. I mean, Scatterboo was the guy who like got them all fired up and crazy.

[C]

Crash Batticoot.

[D]

Yeah. Kim and Jax and Dart together. But Jamis has really Taken over that role and provided the, you know, enthusiasm.

[C]

Around and the handshake between Dart and Jamis at the end. Like, I, I love it. I, this team is, it should be. It's Broadway, baby.

[B]

If you are a Giants fan, I recognize I have one of my best friends, Scott is a Giants fan and he was like, listen, I'm at the point where, like, I'm not, I don't want to win football games, guys. Like, we, we're, we realize we're not going anywhere, but I'm really pumped about the future that we have with the guys. This was the kind of game, as a Giants fan you wanted to see. Jameis Winston delivered some fireworks. You got to see a bunch of talent all over the field with Wandell Robinson doing the stuff that he did. Tyrone Tracy was able to actually look pretty good in this one as well. And so the vibes, it felt like were really high for the Giants, even though the Lions got the win. Vibes were much lower for Lions fans than they were for Giants fans, even though we got the dub in that one. But I really quickly have to talk about Jameson James. Jameer Gibbs. Excuse me. Best fantasy game of the season. Not his best fantasy game of the season. Like fantasy football's best fantasy game of the season. Topping Jonathan Taylor's 49.6, he had 55.4.

[D]

That is so ridiculous.

[B]

How do you do it? You ask? Thank you. 15 carries for 219 yards plus two touchdowns and 11 catches for 45 yards and another touchdown. Three of his last five weeks have been straight up week winning weeks for your squad. Week 7, 36.8 fantasy points. He had over 200 total yards and two touchdowns in that game. Week 10, 38.2 fantasy points. He had 170 total yards and three touchdowns. And then here in Week 12, 55.4 fantasy points with over 250 total yards and three touchdowns. Three of the last five weeks, he has scored over 36 fantasy points for your squad. It has been unbelievable. As frustrating as it is, if you have Jameson Williams on your squad, the two guys you can count on week in and week out are Amon Ross, St. Brown and Jameer Gibbs. And every once in a while, sure, they're going to have a dude, but they are the two guys in this team. He just looks different. The gap between him and David Montgomery has never looked wider. And it's not because I think David Montgomery just got bad. I think the offensive line has been impacting it, but you just recognize the breakaway speed that Juice that he has. I mean, Jameer is just. He is one of a very few players in the NFL that can do the things that he does at the running back spot.

[D]

I can't wait until we're talking about running backs for next year.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Because the running backs at the top, who've been consistent performers, minus, you know, bad week here there, but McCaffrey and Jonathan Taylor and Jameer, like, they have been so good in very different ways. And when we're trying to figure out how we're going to rank these running backs coming into next season, I can't wait to see what that conversation.

[B]

I am with you because I think Jameer Gibbs might be. Well, I shouldn't say it. People.

[C]

Say.

[B]

Go ahead, Liz.

[C]

Well, I think we're going to talk about takeaways now.

[B]

Yeah, let's dive in.

[C]

My number one takeaway is to piggyback on exactly what you're saying in the Lions backfield because the gap between David Montgomery and Jameer Gibbs has become so vast. And I'm not. I think part of it, you're right. Is about the offensive line, but it's also no coincidence that Ben Johnson left town and now these two running backs are not. You used to believe that this offense could support two top 15 fantasy producers at the position.

[D]

Right.

[C]

No longer. Over the last two weeks, Gibbs has recorded 43 touches. Again, this is since Dan Campbell took over Monty 15.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

So there is a chasm. And I think people keep playing. You see this in different kinds of formats. People keep Gillette, Guillotine and maybe Daily as well. People keep playing David Montgomery as though he is the Montgomery of 2024. And that just hasn't been the case. Sonic is the guy. And also I would like to say, you know, we entered the week being very grateful, as well we should for Jonathan Taylor's production. But Jameer Gibbs, who was drafted ahead of him, you know, back in August, has eclipsed him. I think Gibbs is going to end up as the RB one at the end of the season, not Jonathan Taylor. And while according to Mike Clay's cheat sheet, Gibbs doesn't have the easiest strength of schedule, it ranks, I believe, 25th. Taylor's ranks 32nd. That's last, Y'.

[D]

All. Yeah.

[C]

Which means it's the hardest. So I have a. I, I am, I am believing that Gibbs will finish the season as fantasy's RB1. He is take that spot away from.

[B]

Taylor, coming on strong at the right time, and his offense needs him with the way that they've been playing recently. He has been the safety blanket. When you have 11 catches for 45 yards as a running back, it doesn't mean that you actually have a good offense in that moment. Right. Like, the offense is not doing great, but you're. You have been a great safety blanket for your quarterback. And as long as he can keep doing that, that's unless you're, you know.

[D]

Christian McCaffrey wrote the script on how to be a pass. So, you know, we'll see. And I think if their offense continues.

[C]

To move forward, I think Matt Forte might take.

[B]

He's. He was pretty good back in the day as well. Okay. Maybe Marshall Falk, we should throw it in there, too. We can go.

[D]

Keep going running.

[B]

Okay. Okay. Okay.

[C]

To be clear, my Bears fandom just couldn't resist. Yeah. We are in first place. Oh, wow.

[B]

Wow. Thank you, Liz.

[D]

I know. Not across the bow like a very short.

[B]

You've earned it, though. You are in first place. We're not the ugliest shout out to you guys. First place is first place. Don't matter exactly.

[C]

Unless you're Jamis.

[B]

You don't get to choose your opponents. All you get to do is beat them. So that's, you know, you're in a good spot.

[D]

Yeah, I have a running back takeaway, but it's not nearly as positive. Mine is more of a conundrum. Now, is Kyle Manga taken over the RB1 role in Chicago or is this the new version of stuff going on backfield? Yeah, and I'll tell you why. The uncertainty. I. I feel like we're going to have uncertainty week to week now. Now, I didn't initially because DeAndre Swift has been so solid and been explosive continuously despite playing through either hip or groin or some kind of soft tissue injury most of the year. He's only missed one game where they actually had to sit him out because it was becoming too problematic for him to go. But he bounced right back when he came back and I kind of wondered, like, would the tide start to shift after he had been out?

[E]

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[D]

But now we went backwards again as far as Swift fantasy managers are concerned. So Yesterday, Manangai snap percentage 56% Swift 43% wow. Rushing attempts Nungai had 12, Swift had nine. Swift had one in the red zone. Manga had four in the red zone. That's one of the things that concerns me is the scoring opportunity. Maybe they're more for him. Swift also lost a fumble early. I think it was early in the second quarter. And so that may have factored into sort of what they're doing. But he's not had real issues with ball security. So I don't see this being a situation where they're like, you know, sit yourself down. Just looked really good yesterday.

[C]

Doesn't it feel a little bit like Ben John that DeAndre Swift is the running back that Ben Johnson settled for?

[D]

Yes.

[C]

And not the one he's actually.

[B]

No, no, no, no, no. It feels like Ben Johnson was on this team when they drafted Jameer Gibbs and they already had DeAndre Swift and they traded him to the Bears. So was like, actually, this is a guy I didn't even want.

[C]

That's what I mean.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

He's like, he's inherited this guy again. He's like, well, I guess I'll settle for it.

[B]

I get it. I know how he works.

[C]

But I'm really in love with.

[D]

That's true. But DeAndre Swift you know, say what you want, but he's exceeded, I think, the expectations that everybody had for him. And as any good coach, you wouldn't think, well, just because he's not my guy, I'm just gonna sit him down over here and have this rookie take the lead. But it also wasn't like once Common Ange was in there that he just ran with it, no pun intended, because we did see it flip back towards Swift.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Even after Manga had showed himself. So I felt like there would be sort of this balance. Swift would kind of be bulldozer ish and would come in for these explosive opportunities. But after yesterday, I'm a little bit more concerned about what that looks like for my fantasy playoffs because this is really what it comes down to. No, you know, you can worry about your Bears and how you're doing, you know, and as long as they're spring on the ground. Yeah. But for fantasy purposes, how do I feel about DeAndre Swift on my roster and am I comfortable starting him? I mean, I think he's still certainly serviceable as an RB2 even you don't think, you know, he's not RB1 category. But I don't want to see what we saw in Carolina when it was 50. 50.

[B]

Right. That's one of the things I think I will continue to monitor as we get down the stretch because with Manungai coming on and the Bears playing really well, they probably to have the running back back there that's just playing the best. And I don't want to say like hot hand approach, but when you're you're leading the NFC north, you're a playoff squad, like you need to be able to like put your best guys on the field to keep doing what you're doing. So it does kind of feel like we saw it. In Week 9, Kyle Manungai had 22.8 fantasy points when he had like 175 rushing yards. Without DeAndre Swift, it's not like the guy isn't good at football. So we may just be seeing a rookie starting to break out at the right time. And that's probably great for a Ben Johnson offense, but maybe for us in fantasy, like you're saying, Stefania, we got to watch what's good, what it will mean for our DeAndre Swift shares. I'm going to talk about another running back because I thought Chase Brown was going to have a good game in a different way. I did not expect this. 19 carries for 107 yards on the ground. That was unexpected. Two catches for 23 yards through the receiving game. I thought we were going to get more of that. That's the whole thing that we talked about on fantasy football now, and Mike talked about it on this show where they've actually been. The Patriots have been really stout against stopping running backs on the ground, but they let a lot happen through the receiving game. However, if you look at this, I was surprised when I saw this super increased rush efficiency since Joe Flacco took over weeks one through five. Chase Brown averaged 2.5 yards per carry since Joe Flacco took over in week six. Week six through 12, he went from 2.5 yards per carry to 5.8 yards per carry. And if you took out the very first game that he played with Joe Flacco, while he's trying to, like get his feet underneath him and understand the offense, he's seeing over six yards per touch. Unbelievable. From Chase Brown, who started so inefficient. And we thought we did not have a guy that we could count on fantasy football. Four straight games over 15 fantasy points, it feels like we've got our guy back that you can trust in this offense and now maybe we're going to get Joe Burrow under center with the entire compliment of the offense. That's what we wanted when we had Chase Brown as a running back.

[C]

So you love when Daniel, like, has clearly done his homework and he's done and you see him like sit up real straight and he was like, I have a presentation.

[E]

Yes.

[C]

Are you ready for the math that I just mathed?

[B]

It was an and it's useful.

[C]

Thank you for it.

[B]

Absolutely. This next week they're going to get the Ravens too, which will be a slightly easier matchup. If you look season long, it looks.

[D]

Like a lot easier matchup that never used to be. No, you're talking about Ravens defense. We're like, yeah, it's a slightly last.

[B]

Month they have played a heck of a lot better. So I don't want to say it's going to be as easy like a super easy matchup, but it will be a little bit easier than the Patriots. But Chase Brown just looked great this week.

[C]

Well, my next takeaway is the flip side of that. In fact, with Stranger Things about to premiere.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

We're going to go to the Upside Down.

[B]

Let's do it.

[C]

Because I thought Trayvon Henderson would absolutely feast against an extra exploitable Bengals run defense girl. And in fact, his efficiency was not particularly just 3.7 yards per carry. It didn't matter though, because the main takeaway is that his volume remained robust. 21 touches with Ramon Dre Stevenson. That's the key part of this takeaway. Back on the field, Stevenson only had seven touches. So you have to feel good. If you're not going to be efficient, you best get a lot of volume. And that bared out nicely for Henderson managers. A lot of these rookie. We're talking about a lot of these rookie running backs starting to hit their stride at the. At a great time for managers.

[B]

Yep, it was. And I want to. I want to agree with you on the positivity. Positivity is the volume was there because he had 21 touches for Trayvon Henderson. It was a poopy diaper performance from both of these guys.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

In this.

[C]

Well, Drake may struggled at the top of the game and.

[B]

And Jared Wilson, offensive lineman, rookie offensive lineman got hurt. He left and anytime you lose an offensive lineman, that impacts it.

[D]

But.

[B]

But this is the worst game that a team of running backs has had against the Cincinnati Bengals this year. They have given up the patriots at least 18 fantasy points to a running back since week three.

[C]

The Bengals the.

[B]

No, the Patriots. Sorry. Yes, the Bengals. Sorry. The Bengals have given up at least 18 fantasy points to a running back in every single week since week three. Until you get to this week where Trayvon Henderson, like you said, gets 21 touches and comes away with 11.1 fantasy points. I was just disappointed because I really thought with like I still trusted Ramon Dre in this one too because we talked about how you could play both running backs against the Bengals because as I look back at this week five, Monty and Jameer Gibbs both had over 16 and a half fantasy points in week two. Travis Etn and Bashel Tutin both had over 15 fantasy points. We've seen a number of backfields. Have two guys be able to do stuff here. Instead it was 11.1 and two fantasy points. So I was very disappointed. But I love where Liz took it and I'm going to live there. Which is the silver lining of Travion. Henderson had a ton of volume and it was his show, not the Ramondre Stevenson backfield that we saw this week.

[C]

He also has a chance to redeem himself in another soft matchup against the Giants.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Coming week, the Giants have allowed the second most fantasy points to running backs and 5.9 yards per carry to opposing rushers.

[B]

Didn't they just give up like 200 some yards on the ground?

[D]

Yes.

[C]

I mean it is inflated. I don't think we need a little bit. Bit belabor yeah.

[B]

Okay.

[D]

Okay. And whoever the new defensive coordinator is, I don't think it's gonna change that much that rapidly.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Although it is a Monday night game, so they get a. Maybe an extra. An extra day. They're not playing on Thursday. Another point that we cannot belabor enough though, because it is so delicious, is how automatic tight ends are against the same Cincinnati Bengals defense.

[B]

What's up?

[C]

Hunter Henry.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

71 15. We love to see it. Next up up, the Bengals will face Mark Andrews. As we've mentioned, he did not have a great game. He has not had a ton of yard yardage. All of his fantasy production has really relied on his presence in the end zone. We don't like to do that in fantasy, except sometimes we're tempted when it just keeps working out. And against the Bengals, you gotta believe it's gonna work out.

[B]

You gotta believe it.

[D]

I was so mad at myself. Excuse me. As I prepare.

[B]

As you prepare.

[D]

I was so mad at myself for not putting Hunter Henry in my daily f to see. I sat there, watched it. I was like, you know this, you know that the tight ends perform well against him, but Hunter Henry's been kind of quiet. I mean, he's been kind of consistent and yet not splashy.

[B]

Right.

[D]

And then yesterday I'm watching him rack up the points going, Stefania, you knew.

[B]

You knew this, you knew this.

[D]

And like sometimes when you think you know something, you're like, nah, they all know. Like Cincinnati knows that they're not great against tight ends. They're going to key in on the tight. No, didn't work that.

[C]

Bengals have allowed 13 touchdowns to the position that is the most. The Second most is seven.

[B]

We haven't even played 13 weeks.

[D]

If I start Mark Andrews on Thursday and I get three, I'm going to.

[C]

Be Isaiah likely is going to score.

[D]

Well, I feel like we've talked a lot about the Patriots, so I'm going to go to somebody who is a former Patriot and that's Jacobe Myers. Takeaway was, at first I was like, like Jacoby Myers is Trevor Lawrence's new number one wide receiver. And then a few minutes later I was like. Or is it Parker Washington? Yeah, because now I can't decide who's the favorite. I'll tell you why. When you look at the stats, Parker Washington was five for 71 and a touchdown. Yep, seven targets.

[B]

Love that.

[D]

Jacoby Myers was four for 50 and a touchdown on six targets. So I think what impressed me right away with Myers, I can't let that, you know, we want Someone who can catch passes comment disappear. And that's why they brought Jacoby Myers in, who has great hands and never drops. And he made that catch in the end zone. And then do you see him fall back in the celebration? I'm like this there, there's a love fest between these two. But then Parker Washington just sort of quietly got similar volume, made a couple great plays. So, uh, I don't know which one's the. I think they're vying for the attention from Trevor Lawrence, but I will tell you that Brian Thomas Jr. Is not going to get it back when he comes back.

[B]

Doesn't feel like it. It feels. I mean, and it's so frustrating watching that kid be so good down the stretch in his rookie season and have such high expectations. Yeah. And yeah, because it wasn't with Trevor Lawrence and then it just feels like it hasn't materialized. And Stefania, this is one of my takeaways too because, because I had said coming into the week, do we get to see Jacoby Myers, who was sort of left for dead on that Raiders team? It was tough for us to trust him there. You could tell the vibes were not great. Now he comes over. First game with the Jags, he played a 40% of the snaps. Second game he played just over 60%. Here we are in his third game, jumped to almost 84% of the snaps. Like they've been ramping him up. He is going to be one of the guys like. Right. We had a little bit of an acclimation period and now he is becoming one of those guys. So even Parker Washington, by the way, has topped 17 fantasy points in three of his last four games. So one of those games he did use a punt return touchdown to be able to get there. However, all the fantasy points are good fantasy points. I'm not going to shake a stick at fantasy points. I think we've gotten to the spot where I don't feel super confident when I start a Jaguars wide receiver, but I do believe they're more than a dart throw and I've seen it. I know what they can do. I understand what the floor probably looks like, so I feel pretty okay if I need to trust Parker Washington or Jacobi Myers as like a flex option when I'm getting down to some of my playoff matchups. Based on what my team looks like, I think we're in a good spot to feel like both these guys are at least on the radar.

[C]

Brenton Strange, also on the radar now off of ir.

[B]

Okay. All right. Another guy to Talk about tight end.

[C]

Whisperer is having a feeling about him. He might end up on this week's Facts vs. Feelings.

[B]

Ooh, love it. Love that. When is Facts vs. Feelings coming out? Knowing that this is a holiday week? Is it still going to be out?

[C]

Oh, it's still Wednesday.

[B]

Still Wednesday. Don't worry about that.

[E]

All right.

[B]

Don't worry about that.

[C]

No allowances.

[B]

All right.

[D]

Consistency.

[B]

Yes, that's right.

[C]

Sure do.

[B]

What's your next takeaway here, Liz?

[C]

It is that if we're talking about consistency, the Raiders defense is consistently a balm for any player needing a get right spot. It happened for Quinn. Sean Judkins, still not efficient. My man.

[B]

Doesn't matter.

[C]

2.9 yards per carry, that is now, I think four or five games in which he's averaged fewer than three and a half yards per carry. So this is not. It's not been great. However, he did find the end zone twice, and the Raiders entered the week allowing the fifth most rushing scores.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Next up, your 49ers. Maybe we get a Brian Robinson touchdown. I don't want to, like, tempt any sort of fate, but that could be. I mean, we already assume Christian McCaffrey is going to get.

[B]

Yeah, he's going to get two touchdowns. Maybe also Brian Robinson.

[C]

That's what I mean. In addition to, like, you're having the mashed potatoes and also the yams.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

You know, we need two kinds of potatoes against the Raiders.

[B]

Just sweet potatoes or is it a separate thing? Is it just another name for a sweet potato?

[C]

I believe so.

[D]

This has been one of my lifelong questions. I'm embarrassed to say I don't know the answer.

[B]

All right, you know what? YouTube chat. YouTube chat can probably help us out.

[D]

I bet Mama Doc knows it.

[B]

Right?

[D]

Because it's like they're the same. They're both root vegetables and it's like a yam and a sweet. They got to be the same family.

[B]

You'd think they're at least cousins. Maybe siblings.

[D]

I know.

[B]

Somebody help us out.

[D]

Sacrilege that I don't.

[C]

I really like sweet potato. They have good nutritional value.

[B]

They do. Copious amounts of butter and marshmallows and yeah, brown. Brown sugar. Yes. I also love sweet potatoes, Liz. Of course.

[D]

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[E]

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[D]

Oh, you know what? While we're on, the sweet potatoes are brown and orange. Oh, I'm gonna talk about the Browns. Okay, you know what?

[C]

What?

[D]

Good for you, Shador Sanders.

[B]

Honestly.

[D]

Honestly, you know what? I had the feels for this kid yesterday. He gets the start, he gets the win. I mean, he gets the win. Nobody tell me anybody who's picking the Browns to win that game? Nope.

[B]

And we all, like. I'll raise my hand. I mean, I, I had such low expectations for Shador as the starting quarterback. We all, and I didn't want to go as far as, like, taking a shot, but we all felt like this was a situation in which he is not probably going to look great. The team isn't going to look great. And coming out with a dub in your first game as a rookie.

[D]

Listen, maybe don't run the ball, Shador, for negative yards. But no, I thought, listen, there's a. It's. It's raw. But he had a couple balls that he delivered, big throws perfectly, a couple big throws down the field. And I found myself asking, this was really my takeaway, who are these Browns and what should we do with them? Because we now we've got Shadour and we don't know what Dylan Gabriel's health is or what the. The plan is. When Dylan Gabriel's fully recovered from the concussion that has kept him out, Samson stepped up. You know, wasn't sure we were going to see that again. Miles Garrett, stud as usual, which is always igniting the defense. But look at Dylan Sampson. Seven carries, 23 yards and two catches for almost 60 yards there and a score. So I found myself asking that question, who are these Browns and what do we make of them going forward? And I don't know that that's answerable today, but it's something to think about. And and good on. You should door It's. I'm not saying there's. It's that he didn't participate in the making of the narrative. I think there's a collective out there. But I was rooting for him to have a good day. Yeah. And he did.

[B]

Agreed.

[C]

Hold on one thing.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

Should two things shoulder. Sanders had a better game than J.J. mcCarthy. Just going to leave that there. The Raiders don't get the 49ers next week. They get the Los Angeles Chargers. Yes.

[D]

I was a little confused. I was like the Browns have.

[C]

The Browns have the 49ers and I got it.

[D]

Yeah. Yeah.

[C]

Just to clarify the Raiders if we're looking for a bomb. Also, what a great balm for the Chargers who struggled ahead of their buy and maybe if Omari and Hampton can come back.

[B]

Let's see if we can get some news.

[C]

I would like that Thanksgiving blessing, but we'll have to watch news.

[B]

Stefania, you talk about how well Shador Sanders did. I mean as a backup, you know, for all things considered.

[D]

First start.

[B]

First start. I want to talk about another backup and is there a chance that Michael Wilson is just the new better version of Marvin Harrison Jr.

[C]

Loved him coming out of Stanford.

[B]

Bro. This is such a weird. Sorry girl. This is such a weird situation. My son does like what is happening. I feel like the universe slash. Jacoby Brissette is sort of trying to tell us that Michael Wilson is sort of a thing.

[D]

I thought you were going Jacoby for a secus. I was just going to say we.

[C]

Are in the Upside Down.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

So here's the thing. Michael Wilson last week 15 receptions on 18 targets for 185 yards, 33.5 fantasy points. This week also no Marvin Harrison Jr. 10 catches for on 15 targets for another 118 yards and 21.8 fantasy points. This is the best two game stretch of Wilson's career and Marvin Harrison Jr. In his short career has never had two games back to back like this. We have not seen this kind of volume for a pass catcher in this Cardinals offense in a minute. Unless your name is Trey McBride, it makes me wonder. I don't even know how to say this to you guys. Like If Marvin Harrison Jr. Doesn't come back, I feel like Michael Wilson is a wide receiver too. He will, of course, obviously. But Michael Wilson is a wide receiver too. Right now When Marvin Harrison Jr. Returns, I don't know what to think because of how much Jacoby Brissette has leaned on this guy. So a very interesting thing to figure out and something I'm excited to see how Mike projects this offense moving forward this week.

[D]

It'll be interesting. So they don't play on Thursday, right?

[B]

They got a full week.

[D]

They have a full week. So I just. If you look at averages of guys coming back from appendectomies, I think it's potentially the case that we see Marvin Harrison Jr. Don't know, you know, but the timeframe starting to look like it could be possible. We'll see if he's back in practice. Practice.

[B]

But why does Michael Wilson get two games like this and they don't utilize Marvin Harrison Jr. The number four overall?

[D]

But what I'm saying is, like, now you have Jacoby Brissette, who's got these two, and I think you will see a difference in how they're utilized because he's been different for the offense. And so I. I think Michael Wilson remains a starter even if Marvin Harrison Jr. Is back. And.

[B]

And so we might be at a spot. I mean, you're obviously starting Trey McBride, and I think these other two guys, with the way that Jacoby Brissette is playing, it at least has him on the radar.

[C]

Like defensive deficiencies can make up for it in terms of an offense.

[B]

All right, Stefania, you have more takeaways. What else you got? I got one left, so I'm gonna let you do a couple.

[D]

Is George Pickens the wide receiver one for the Dallas Cowboys?

[C]

That's my takeaway, too.

[B]

I think so.

[D]

I think. Well, is it in fantasy football? Surprise me that we're all thinking the same thing because. Well, also. But just the eyeball test. And look, I love cd Although he's had a couple dropsies since he's been, you know, back from being out on injured reserve, but. Or was he on injured reserve? He was just gone for the amount of time that you also had drops in Circ 1. Well, this is also true, but George Pickens is making the circus catches. George Pickens is making these catches that you don't think anyone else is going to make. And while CD Lamp. There's no question about his talent as a receiver. I joke, but what George Pickens is doing is the thing that none of us were sure that he could or would do because of. Of his stops previously and some of the challenges he had. It's funny, when I went to training camp, people were talking about how dialed in he was with Dak, that Dak and I watched it. They would have run a play, Dak would go over and talk to him, tell him about where he needed to be, tell him he was coaching him up like every single play wasn't just after. And just watching that develop, I think he's turned into something that I'm not sure everybody really expected. So that is just a fun food for thought. But for fantasy purposes, like he's been unbelievable really multiple weeks in a row. And to. And I had a kind of a dovetailed topic with this, which is, is Dak Prescott the best value quarterback from redraft leagues outside Drake May, where we, you know, Dak was familiar. Drake May was unknown to a degree because we didn't know what it was going to look like with this whole package with Rabel and all of that. But Dak Prescott I think just got shoved under the rug. Is like, yeah, yeah, middling quarterback back. This guy came off a major hamstring repair, missed half the season last year. People just kind of forgot about him. He's been phenomenal for fantasy purposes and I think as good as he's been, you know, are you going to trust him in the playoffs? Because our upcoming schedule is Chiefs on Thanksgiving, then at the Lions, Vikings, Chargers and at the Commanders. You could do worse with a quarterback for your fantasy play.

[B]

Yeah, that I love Dak and he was one of the guys because I wasn't very big into the running game. Got that one wrong. Javante Williams proved me that I didn't know what I was talking about, but I was all in because I thought the defense was going to be bad. And we've seen Dak play at a legitimate MVP level in this league before. Like it's. And now that you added in not only the CD Lamb thing, you gave Jake Ferguson the bag, but now you bring in George Pickens. Feels like all the things sort of aligned.

[C]

It's a one year deal for Pickens. We need to, you know, because it'll be interesting. That's one year to see what sort of capital he'll command. He entered the week average averaging three more fantasy points per week than CD Lam and has now managed 29 fantasy points in back to back weeks. One against the Raiders and now against a much tougher matchup against the Eagles.

[B]

All right, Stefania, give me your last takeaway.

[D]

Yeah, this is really hard for me because we all know that I'm a diehard 49ers fan. So giving the Rams any sort of love is just brutal. But I decided this is Matthew Stafford's world and we're just living in it right now. This guy is Having so much fun. Quarterback 5 through the week 22.92 fantasy points points only one week, week six. Week six against the Ravens, when they were at the Ravens that he had single digit fantasy points. And since then more than 22 fantasy points in four of his last five games. This is the guy who is a statue in the pocket, right? This is the guy who does not add value with his legs. This is the guy who's just lighting it up and by the way, leading that offense to click all the way around. And probably Matthew Stafford is going to be the runaway MVP of the league. I just can't believe how good he looks. And I do remember everyone complaining at the preseason like, oh, his back and this is going to be an issue. And I, I said he's going to be fine, but I didn't expect this. And on top of that, he's got devonte Adams, who to me is the next guy living his best life because here he's 32 years old and he's just scoring like bananas. He is. His game, game is perfectly matched at his age for what he is doing. He's a short yardage separation guy with great feet in the end zone. And Matthew Stafford and he have, have cooked up this relationship where Devonte Adams is putting up massive fantasy points. Five catches yesterday, only 62 yards, but two touchdowns. And that's not a fluke. This is what he is doing. He is like, look for me in the red zone. That's where Puka, Nakua all over the rest of the field. Dante's like, like I let the young kid do that.

[C]

Have that.

[B]

Absolutely.

[D]

And I will take those short yardage plays and score and he's looking for there. It's. It's unreal.

[B]

No, I, I'm totally with you, Stefania. As much as I don't want to say it. Sean McVeigh is running this offense and Matthew Stafford extremely well, utilizing the pieces that they have, the way that it feels like they should be used at this point in their career because they have both been awesome. By the way, Matthew Stafford is quarterback. 69 in rushing yards.

[D]

Nice.

[B]

Minus nine on this season. So I just wanted to say of all the things, he is good at everything except for that one thing. I got to bring him back down to earth just a little bit on the rushing yards. I want to give one quick shout out to Cam Ward, by the way.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

First ever 20 fantasy point game. Cam Ward. 256 passing yards and a touchdown plus six carries for 37 yards and a rushing touchdown. All those rushing stats are season high. He had 42 pass attempts. That was also a season high. After six straight games with an interception, he has gone three straight. Being able to protect the football and not turn it over. Not a lot for us right now in fantasy football, but I just want to shout out the young fella with the idea that this guy hopefully is going to have many more 20 point fantasy games in a season. This is just the first of many for the young Ward from the U.

[D]

Yes.

[B]

Hey.

[C]

By way of a couple of stops, but yeah, there were a couple of them also. Just final two to punctuate your point. Over 30 rushing yards in back to back games now. So maybe feeling himself a little bit.

[B]

Yeah. Hey, do you think that DJ Moore is feeling himself right now or you still feel like if we're talking about some studs and duds, he came on in a major way this week. But do you believe that this is. Consistency is not the word I would utilize for the Bears passing offense. Do you think the DJ Moore is a trustworthy option or do you think that this is just another one of those weeks where it was just a DJ Moore week this week? Okay.

[D]

Yes.

[B]

Well, it was a DJ Moore week that if you trusted him, you got 23.4 fantasy points. Feels like it's a lot of back and forth right now. Same with the Eagles, honestly, where it's. Is it going to be an A.J. brown week? Is it going to be a Devonta Smith week? Is it going to be a Dallas Goddard week? And so you got a couple of guys there with both A.J. brown and D.J. moore that had two really big games, both over 23 fantasy points. But I'm not sure I believe consistency is the word.

[C]

I would utilize Brown over more in terms of consistency because one of them is a little bit yappier and therefore gets. He's squeakier and that gets greased more frequently.

[B]

I think that's fair. Stefan, you have any big studs in this week that you really like outside of? We've talked about a lot of people already given you.

[D]

That's. That's good enough for me.

[B]

That's good enough for you. All right, I want to give one quick shout out to your 14.9 fantasy points. We've been waiting to see him come on and we've talked about on this show, Colson Loveland.

[D]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

I'm excited to be able to see.

[D]

Him in a lot of Bears Love on the show.

[B]

Yeah. All right, let's talk about the thing.

[D]

Nobody wants to talk about, but you're.

[C]

So good at it.

[B]

We've pushed it off for as long as we can.

[D]

Glad we get you everywhere.

[B]

All right, so we're going to get through as much as we can because we're going to talk about Monday Night Football really quickly before we get out here. Stefania, I don't want to just totally turn it over to you, but I know we got a lot of guys to talk about.

[D]

Go ahead because I'll give you the quick ones first. Quickest ones, just names to keep an eye on. Ashton Genti. His left ankle was deemed questionable to return but didn't play on Vegas's final possession. So kind of keep these are guys like just stay tuned to practice reports. We're not going to have like there's three games on Thursday, one game on Friday, so and then the rest on Sunday.

[B]

How do practice reports if I'm watching, let's say I've got a team on plays on Thursday. What do I need to know about practice reports as I'm like reading them.

[D]

Just like normal Thursday Night Football, you're going to get like the finals on Wednesday. On Wednesday, all those teams that are playing early in the week are having these walkthroughs and such. Today you're not going to get much in the way of full practices, so pay a lot of attention to what the coaches are saying and any player availability. Bam Knight in overtime had an ankle injury coming into this week. Just looked like he was banged up a little bit, so keep an eye on him. Rasheed Rice got checked for a hamstring injury during the game. He returned to the game. He spoke to the media afterwards, usually a very good sign. But again, just stay tuned for that. Alvin Camara had got caught up in this awkward tackle in the first half by Falcons linebacker Kaden Ellis, and he was in and out of the medical test and then he went to the locker room, is questionable to return, but he ultimately did not come out, was ruled out in the third quarter. He is set for an MRI today according to Nick Underhill of New Orleans Football, so stay tuned on Alvin Camara T. Higgins five catches for 31 yards and then injured. A concussion was very apparent to anyone watching. The usual recommendations with the concussion protocol, but I can tell you you can plan on no T. Higgins for Thursday, so adjust accordingly because there's just no way that that's going to happen in advance of Thursday. And then the injury that perhaps is going to have fantasy managers hustling the most is Baker Mayfield. If you were watching yesterday his left shoulder was clearly uncomfortable. I don't know when exactly he heard it for the first time, but then it seemed to get worse as they were going towards the half and at the end he threw kind of this Hail Mary pass to end the half and immediately went down to the ground grabbing his shoulder. Now, there are a couple things that come to mind about what it could be, but some kind of instability issue potentially going on because they had him in a sling afterwards when he, when he was speaking post game. He has an MRI scheduled for Monday, which is today. And just a note, he had a labral repair on that left shoulder back in. In 2022. So I don't know if there's anything going on there. But listen, he. Baker Mayfield's always going to leave it all on the field. That's one of the things I admire the most about him. And he gets banged up all the time and you think, oh my gosh, like that's going to take him out. And he's like, I'm playing. And even yesterday he came back out, but then at one point he could not physically go on. And so wishing the best for him, but stayed tune. Yeah.

[B]

Once Teddy Bridgewater came in, that offense looked quite different in Tampa.

[D]

To be fair, he's been coaching high school ball.

[B]

Yes, he has. And he, by the way, won a championship coaching high school football. We love Teddy Bridgewater here, but. But offense just looks different with him, clearly. So that's going to be a tough one. All right, let's dive into a quick Monday Night Football preview because Stefania's 49ers are playing the Carolina Panthers.

[D]

Yes.

[B]

So if we're going to have any big takeaways, things that we're watching in this one, I just need to let you both know that I told my wonderful, intelligent, beautiful wife Rosie to start Tea McMillan this week. She's going up against Rico Dowdle.

[D]

She learned that lesson after last week, Daniel.

[B]

Well, after Field told Chapin not to play Bryce Young last week, she's like, do I listen to you or do I not? Because it sounds like the men on that show don't know what they're talking about. So I really need a big game from TMAC here.

[D]

Got you.

[B]

There's going to be a situation. I do want to say this really quick, quickly. Tara McMillan had his biggest game of the season last week, right? Yes. Only his third game this season where he hit double digit targets. It's only happened a couple times. As much as we love Tel McMillan, Bryce Young very like infrequently is able to get the ball to him with the amount of volume that we would appreciate. This is a smash spot for him against your 49er secondary. Stefania, this feels like a spot in which you could start. Tedro McMillan thinks it'd be really great. The next two weeks after this game are going to be really tough because you've got to buy and then you play the Rams, which is basically two unusable weeks for your wide receiver. I get it. You may have to start them when they play the Rams, but I don't want to start somebody against them. So if you've got Tedro McMillan, this is the week in which you're like, okay, I hope I get one more big game before I lose him for two weeks here. So that's kind of one thing that I'm watching. Not just because I'm a husband who told his wife to play, but also because I love T. Mac and I want to see him keep getting better here.

[C]

In his rookie season, 49ers have allowed the most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers over the last four weeks.

[B]

Thank you.

[C]

So it would seem as though momentum is on.

[B]

Liz also told Rosie to start Tedro McMillan.

[C]

I will, I will co sign on that.

[B]

Thank you.

[C]

I'm keeping an eye on Brock Purdy. Um, I, I feel like now that he's back and he was healthy last week and had all of the main pieces together again with him, he should produce well against the Panthers, who on paper have been okay against opposing signal callers, but have really struggled against against upper end talent. Dak Prescott, Josh Allen, Drake May even to a tongue of a loa Tungava, I believe managed 22 fantasy points when facing the Panthers. So I'd expect a big game from Brock Purdy. I really hope it's true, especially as we look for insurance. Maybe you know, people had him on the IR or weren't using him, but I know I in a league need him where Bo Nicks is my other quarterback. And so I'm really hoping now that there is an ascent from Purdy Lake in the season.

[B]

Well, I think a lot of fantasy managers with a Monday night miracle. If you got CMC playing, you already feel good because it's cmc. But if you have any of the pass catchers. Having Brock Purdy back has got to make you feel good about this one, Stefania.

[D]

Yeah, well, so I have several things that I'm watching for. I figured I would watch.

[B]

I'm sure, I'm sure you do.

[D]

You know I do. So to your point, my. It was like coming off the feel good performance last week. And we expect the Panthers to take advantage of the weekend 49ers defense. They have no pass rush. We know this. They've been just decimated up front. And so Bryce Young should have lots of time to make decisions. And then the secondary has sort of been up and down, you know, and they. I feel like the stress has been on them more because there has no pass rush. And so it'll be interesting to see how they handle that against the Panthers. But my question was, you know, was that a one hit wonder performance or are we going to get. Get a. A bit more offensive? What. What's what. How do I want to say it? Like elevated scoring from the Panthers? Maybe. Maybe above expectation scoring for the Panthers.

[B]

Not necessarily a barrage. Not necessarily a barrage of scoring above expectations. Okay.

[D]

But also could it be a big game for Rico Dowdle? You know, linebackers Fred Warner out and Tatum Bethune, who was backing him up, who became the captain, the defense, he's also been injured second. So like again, the 49ers are gifting the Panthers opportunity for fantasy production. Another on the other side of the ball. Will we see more Ricky Piersol this week? He, you know, recently back from the PCL sprain and getting more snaps and Kyle Shanahan's talked about he's been everywhere he's supposed to be in terms of on the field and running the routes and doing the things, but that the decision making by Brock Purdy was not to throw to the covered guys. And that's where Pierce hall was usually.

[B]

Smart for those quarterback.

[D]

By the way, I thought Brock looked fantastic in his first game back. He won. When somebody's missed that much time, how sharp and crisp they're gonna look. That to me was important. He came out with zero discomfort in his toes that he wasn't even thinking about it. Um, and then the. My other question is, can the 49ers win simply by running a high octane offense and trying to outscore their opponents? Because that's really the game that they have to play going forward and I think that they will.

[C]

Well, the spread is seven points in the 49ers favor. Over under is 49 and a half. So we should get some good interesting here.

[B]

49 and a half. Yo, look at.

[D]

I love it.

[B]

Stefania, who you taking in this one?

[D]

No idea. I'm taking the 49ers.

[B]

49Ers, would you by any chance take the Panthers? Liz, are you also going to go with the 49ers. All right, I will.

[C]

Also, I think the Panthers could cover.

[B]

The, COVID the spread, but probably not win out. I'm not taking a money line. I don't think so.

[D]

We want lots of fantasy production in this. Let's go. Christian McAffrey. I mean, I think if you are really throwing a dart, you could go Brian Robinson Jr because McCaffrey's been so productive early, they've been letting Brian Robinson Jr take the ball more late. So if you, you know, I'm not looking for double digit fantasy points, but he could get in the end zone.

[B]

I like it. I'm really reluctant to close out the show. I'm having so much fun with you two ladies. I am going to be sad when you're gone. Liz, you're going to be back sometime next month though, in December to do all this again, right?

[C]

Yep. Week 16, I believe.

[B]

All right, so we got one more which will be great. Thanks you so much to everybody for hanging out with us. Today's show was presented by Wingstop. Make sure you follow Liz Loza at Lizzie is Lozaff.

[D]

That's right.

[B]

Nailed it@Stephanie ESPN. If you want to follow her everywhere on social media as well. Don't forget to love each other and be kind to yourself. You guys, you deserve it. Have fun watching Monday Night Football and we'll see you back here on Tuesday morning. See ya.

[C]

Happy Thanksgiving.

[D]

You're in the.

[B]

Fantasy for God.