Key notes from 100 Facts for the 2025 Season

Summary

Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry

Episode: Key Notes from 100 Facts for the 2025 Season
Date: August 14, 2025
Host: Matthew Berry with Jay Croucher & Lawrence Jackson

Overview

This episode dives into key player trends for the 2025 fantasy football season, condensed from Matthew Berry's highly anticipated "100 Facts" column. The trio (Matthew Berry, Jay Croucher, Lawrence Jackson) break down undervalued fantasy assets, potential breakouts, and the real meaning behind oft-cited stats and coach-speak. They also debate “regular” fantasy producers versus flashy names, address major injury updates, and discuss strategy risks—including the volatility of certain situations (e.g., Rashee Rice’s looming suspension). The playful, banter-filled tone is in full effect, balanced with actionable advice and sharp analysis.

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Headlining Theme:

The 100 Facts Philosophy & Player Perceptions

• Fantasy Football analysis is always partially subjective. Every stat can be spun; wise managers recognize that's part of the process.
  • “All any of us are doing...is we’re taking a slice of that story, and we are presenting the facts that support the side we believe in.” — Matthew Berry [06:08]
• Berry’s "100 Facts" column illuminates commonly misunderstood truths and underappreciated performances, encouraging listeners to look beyond ADP hype cycles.

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Key Discussion Points

1. James Conner: Boring but Bankable

• Big Takeaway: Conner remains a fantasy value—he consistently outperforms draft position yet elicits little excitement.
  • “All he does is outperform ADP, year in, year out.”—Matthew Berry [08:14]
• Supporting Stats:
  • Last 5 seasons: Only Josh Jacobs, David Montgomery, and Conner have 13+ games and 700+ rushing yards each year [07:29]
  • Top 3 in avoided tackle rate and % of runs for 10+ yards at age 29 [07:54]
  • Arizona coaches trust him for all the “little things” and goal-line work, plus he’s a sneaky pass-catcher (45+ catches in two of three seasons) [08:36, 09:10]
• Coaching Insight: “If I give James Conner the ball at the three yard line, he’s getting in the end zone...they just trust him with all the little details.” —Matthew Berry [09:27]

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2. Alvin Kamara: The Unsexy Floor

• Big Takeaway: Even when the Saints struggle, Kamara dominates as a pass-catcher and volume option.
  • “He’s just such a staple, especially for inexperienced quarterbacks.” —Matthew Berry [13:12]
• Supporting Stats:
  • Only RB with at least 50 receptions in each of the past three seasons
  • 8 straight seasons of 40+ receptions (no other RB does this) [12:21]
  • Team structure and new OC Kellen Moore should benefit him; lack of weapons increases his usage [15:09]
• Community Take: Listeners debate avoiding Kamara to be “a year early.”
  • “Who cares if New Orleans is bad? Kamara will FEAST.” —Listener Jesse Balanos [14:17]

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3. George Pickens: Boomer, Not Buster

• Big Takeaway: Pickens, now with Dak Prescott, may be even more explosive—his game gets a boost from a QB willing (and able) to throw deep.
• Supporting Stats:
  • 2nd in yards per catch since entering NFL, 4th in average depth of target [16:55]
  • Prescott is top-8 in both deep attempts/game and deep ball accuracy [17:22]
  • Pickens is an elite contested-catch receiver; expected target volume similar to past years, but with more big plays [18:26, 19:49]
  • “He’s not a volume guy. George Pickens is the guy who makes your day on one or two plays.” —Matthew Berry [19:26]

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4. Undervalued Wide Receivers

Jacoby Myers

• Consistent Production: Top-30 finish in points/game last three years, now gets Geno Smith at QB for Vegas. Last year, a 27% target share in 12 games without Davante Adams [22:41].
• “Has top-20 upside with an upgraded quarterback and faster pace of play.” —Matthew Berry [23:41]

Calvin Ridley

• Bounce-Back Opportunity: Now paired with rookie Cam Ward, who is aggressive and accurate deep.
  • Ridley led NFL in deep targets; only four games last year with 7+ catchable targets, averaged 18.3 FPPG in those [27:06]
  • “Cam Ward’s no dummy... 43% preseason target share for Ridley.” —Matthew Berry [27:45]

Jauan Jennings

• Next Man Up: With Iyuk out until at least week 6 and Deebo gone, Jennings could open as 49ers’ WR1.
  • In 9 games with 70%+ snaps, averaged 17.9 FPPG (would’ve been WR7 last year) [29:04]
  • “His opportunity has increased, not decreased this year.” —Matthew Berry [30:18]
  • Caution: Still “some uncertainty about when he’s going to be available, how banged up he is.” [30:18]

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5. Supporting Cast & Injury Updates

• Darnell Mooney: Deep threat for Michael Penix Jr. in Atlanta—should support three fantasy-relevant options (London, Bijan, Mooney) [33:05].
• Trey McBride: Red zone usage boomed (led all TEs in inside-the-10 targets) but only 2 TDs; natural progression expected [35:36].
• David Njoku: Chemistry with Joe Flacco is off the charts; was TE1 in PPG with Flacco and leads TEs in end zone targets [41:04, 41:33].
• James Cook: Signed an extension, locked-in role beside Josh Allen; strong fantasy RB2 [48:32].
• Rashee Rice: Disciplinary hearing after week 4 keeps his suspension timing unpredictable, adding volatility to his draft value [50:07].

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Memorable Moments & Notable Quotes

The Art of "100 Facts"

• “It is literally me manipulating stats to lead you in a direction about an opinion of a player.” —Matthew Berry [06:08]

James Conner, again

• “No one in your draft is ever going to say like, ‘Oh man, I want James Conner.’ But all he does is outperform ADP, year in, year out.” —Matthew Berry [08:14]

The Kamara Conundrum

• “He’s always just such a staple, especially for inexperienced quarterbacks in a division with some good defenses...He’s kind of like the PPR version of James Conner.” —Matthew Berry [13:12]

Pickens’ Special Sauce

• “George Pickens is the guy who makes your day on one or two plays.” —Matthew Berry [19:26]
• “He made it look like they made a good throw” (on his QBs), highlighting Pickens’ talent for adjusting to bad passes —Lawrence Jackson [17:43]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [05:01] — “100 Facts” Column Philosophy
• [07:01] — James Conner Value Analysis
• [11:05] — Alvin Kamara’s Reliable Production
• [16:55] — George Pickens' Deep Threat Appeal
• [22:41] — Jacoby Myers’ Consistency and Geno Boost
• [24:02] — Calvin Ridley & Cam Ward Connection
• [29:04] — Jauan Jennings’ Sudden Opportunity
• [33:05] — Darnell Mooney’s Injury & Fit
• [35:36] — Trey McBride: Red Zone Upside
• [41:04] — David Njoku: Flacco Effect and Red Zone Monster
• [48:32] — James Cook Contract Extension
• [50:07] — Rashee Rice Suspension Uncertainty

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Tone & Community Interaction

The episode is shot through with lively banter, inside jokes, and playfully irreverent nicknames ("Leather Daddy" saga, repeated mockery and fan interaction about the right nickname for the podcast following).

• “Happy Hour Regulars,” “The Regs,” “Barry’s Barflies” and other name debates happen throughout [01:21-04:59].
• Fun references to the podcast’s wall of fame/jersey wall and tongue-in-cheek analogies to player archetypes (“I’m the Frank Gore of fantasy football.” —Matthew Berry [39:00]).

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Strategic Takeaways for Listeners

• Don’t be seduced by flash; year-in/year-out reliability in fantasy football is key, and some “boring” players will win you leagues.
• Monitor team and coach behavior, not just coach-speak—preseason competition bluster usually doesn’t align with in-season usage (e.g., No real threat to Conner in ARI).
• Value can swing on suspension/news timelines—be aware how events like Rashee Rice’s hearing timeline directly impact their draft day risk/reward profile.
• Target the undervalued “wide receiver twos” on high-passing offenses, especially when a new QB upgrades the situation.

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Summing Up

Matthew Berry and the crew blend actionable player analysis, fun debate, and crowd banter to prep listeners for a sharp 2025 fantasy draft. The message is clear: understand the context behind the numbers, know that all “facts” are subject to perspective, and don’t be afraid to zig where your league-zags—especially with proven (if unsexy) veterans.

For more details, check out Matthew Berry’s "100 Facts" column on rotoworld.com.

Transcript

[Matthew Berry]

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[Lawrence Jackson]

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[Matthew Berry]

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[Lawrence Jackson]

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[Matthew Berry]

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[Lawrence Jackson]

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[Matthew Berry]

Heard about Indeed on this podcast. Indeed.com NBCSports Terms and Conditions apply. Hiring Indeed is all you need. Are you ready to get spicy? These Doritos Golden Sriracha aren't that spicy. Sriracha sounds pretty spicy to me.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Um, a little spicy, but also tangy and sweet.

[Matthew Berry]

Maybe it's time to turn up the heat.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Or turn it down.

[Matthew Berry]

It's time for something that's not too spicy. Try Doritos Golden Sriracha. Spicy but not too spicy. I like putting your made up screen name to a bold prediction. So keep it up. Happy Hour Nation. Did we ever come up with that?

[Jay Croucher]

That's a first Happy hour.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, we need a. We need a. It's kind of crazy Season four and we. We haven't come up with a, you know, for the audience. Yeah, yeah. Happy hour attenders. Happy Hour. We have to think of like what's the name? That's a question for the audience. What would you like called, you know, like Nation, The Groove. Happy Hours. The drinkers. Yeah, the Barflies.

[Jay Croucher]

The best ones will be.

[Matthew Berry]

Will be rolled into the show. Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry.

[Jay Croucher]

Welcome to the Fantasy football Happy hour. Happy hour Hoodlums. Happy hour high. Happy hour Nation. Still working on it. I'm Jay Croucher. He's Lawrence Jackson. This is Matthew Barry. Connor Rogers. Another day off after another brutal men's loss. They blow a six nothing lead and lose 11 six, which would definitely be the happy hour regulars. That's a good one.

[Matthew Berry]

Happy hour regulars is pretty good. That's strong. Happy hour Bargoyles. No, I kind of like it though. I like that. That's from Ryan Baxter. El Herman Blanco.

[Jay Croucher]

El Hermano Blanco.

[Matthew Berry]

All right, Happy hour patrons.

[Jay Croucher]

Furnace. Yeah.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Either way, that's not Bad shot callers.

[Matthew Berry]

Shot callers. I like that.

[Lawrence Jackson]

We call some shots.

[Matthew Berry]

We do happy hour benders. Yeah, that's right.

[Jay Croucher]

Courage. Responsible drinking. The norms.

[Lawrence Jackson]

The norms.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. RIP George Wendt.

[Jay Croucher]

Sad Barry's barflies.

[Matthew Berry]

I like that. I'm pretty sure that's what their nickname is already.

[Jay Croucher]

Barry's boozes.

[Matthew Berry]

I'm pretty sure that's what his wife's nickname is.

[Jay Croucher]

Dev Stafford, who, by the way, has a YouTube profile photo of the name Dev Stafford.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Well, you gotta know it's him because, you know, you can't see it in the main page, but it's very.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, that's. That's very odd that he has his own logo. I like that. So Deb Stafford. Just so everyone knows Deb Stafford is Stupid Dev, which I'm annoyed that that's his logo. Should be Stupid Dev. He drinks free today. By the way, his birthday yesterday. Happy birthday honoring you. We love Stupid Dev. He does a great job. He does graphics for the show. Apparently did graphics for his own YouTube logo.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Hey, he's a everybody. You gotta build your 2025. You gotta build your own brand, no matter who you are or what you do.

[Jay Croucher]

I guess I'm gonna throw the challenge flag on that yout profile photo. I don't like that at all. What are we doing?

[Matthew Berry]

I just hope he did it on personal time and not, you know, not while he was supposed to be doing it.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Hey, if you need your logo, hit up Dev Stafford. That's his name on YouTube, right? Not stupid Dev. That's his professional name, his real name.

[Jay Croucher]

Intelligent Dev.

[Matthew Berry]

Within the context of this universe, he is Stupid Dev who will always be known and beloved for losing to me in the finals of the first year of the show.

[Jay Croucher]

Yes.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes.

[Jay Croucher]

At the hand of Juwan Johnson, wasn't it?

[Matthew Berry]

Yes, it was Juwan Johnson. That's right. Because Stupid Devil, Stupid Dev tried to steal all the tight ends because my. I think Mark Andrews was out for the year.

[Jay Croucher]

Yes.

[Matthew Berry]

Okay.

[Jay Croucher]

A hero to many. Juwan Johnson. We're going to get to other heroes on the show, including the latest.

[Matthew Berry]

I think happy hour regulars is probably the regulars.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Because then you could just be like the regs.

[Matthew Berry]

The regs. The regulars. A friend of mine shout out to my friend Josh Benedict, who texted me. He said, the Buzz Club. Not bad. Not bad. Yeah. Getting buzzed. It's a club.

[Jay Croucher]

Sure, sure.

[Lawrence Jackson]

That will be up there.

[Jay Croucher]

Let's get into the heart of the show. We're going to talk about your Hundred Facts columns, Matthew.

[Matthew Berry]

Oh, yeah. Part of the show is about me.

[Jay Croucher]

Good this is like your full moon party all nighter on Koh Phangyang, Bering island, kind of drafting this monstrous column.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, it's. Listen, you know, I want to. 100 facts is my favorite column to write every single year. It is unlike any other column that I write. Hopefully you were familiar with it, but for some reason you're not. My basic belief is that you can talk up or talk down any player you want. That as you go through analysis, as you watch our show, as you watch any other show, as you read our columns on NBC, on Rotoworld, or on fantasy life or wherever you get your fantasy content, any other podcasts you listen to, any other websites you go to. The fact of the matter is, is that everyone will tell you, hey, this is a fact. This is a fact. This is why you should love this guy. This is why you should hate this guy. You gotta avoid this bum in round five. You gotta make sure you get this guy in round eight. And the truth of the matter is, is it's all opinions. It's all opinions. You can. There's not enough time to talk about every single facet that goes into a fantasy player's success or lack thereof. So all any of us are doing, all that Lawrence and Jay and Connor and myself are doing on any given day is we're taking a slice of that story and then we are, we are presenting the facts that support the side we believe in. Right. Because there are negative and positive stats for everyone. So that is what the Hundred Facts column is about, trying to present that story. It is literally me manipulating stats to lead you in a direction about an opinion of a player. And the intro goes into that deeply and I think it's good and fun and important for people as they get into the research phase of fantasy football to understand.

[Jay Croucher]

Let the manipulation begin with friend of the show. Kind of a champion of the show. We're always high on James Connor. Feels like every year he's kind of an underrated because he's not a huge sexy name. He's Bichon Robinson. But the man just produces.

[Matthew Berry]

The argument you made about Derek Henry the other day in the show about like, you know, like devise human nature. Like I've got to jump off this bandwagon one, one year too early. You know, I hate Derrick Henry. Like you go back, watch the tape. Jay was like, I'm at running back 47. It was outrageous what he said.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You're going to have a 47 yard touchdown.

[Matthew Berry]

He just, he said, I think Kate Mitchell gets 20 touches it was Lawrence, it was blasphemous.

[Jay Croucher]

King Henry, Porchester Henry.

[Matthew Berry]

But James Conner is similar to this, right? Over the last five seasons, here's the entire list, last five seasons. Here's the entire list of running backs that have played at least 13 games and have at least seven on rushing yards in all five years. Josh Jacobs, Dave Montgomery, James Conner. That's the entire list, right? Last year, James Conner, 29 years old, but still top three running back in the NFL in both avoided tackle rate and percentage of runs gaining 10 plus yards. He is not lost a step. Since coming to Arizona 2021, James Conner's had at least 1,000 yards from scrimmage and at least eight touchdowns every single year. He's never finished lower than RB15 in points per game and yet he's currently going as running back 19. No one ever is excited about James Conner. No one in your draft is ever going to say like, oh man, I want a James Conner. Or like ooh, James Conner. They'll do that when you draft, you know, Ashton Genty or Amari and Hampton. They're not going to say that when you draft James Conner, but all he does is outperform ADP year in, year out. Lawrence.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah. Without me banging on a table like you just did. I will agree with you, Matthew.

[Matthew Berry]

Look, you're welcome. You can bang on your side. Look, there you go. Thank you.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Let me tell you something here about James Conner. And look, adding to this fact too, we talked to some Cardinals folks, right Matthew, at the combine and they the reason why James Conner keeps performing because they really love the small things he could do and the veteran things he can do from a running back position. He's going to get you that four, five, six yards. He's not looking for the home run, he's not a home run threat. But when they're around the goal line, they like to use James Conner. And here's another thing about him, we don't really know him as a pass catcher. At least 45 catches in two of his last three seasons. So that's another added value to him from a fantasy perspective. His last three seasons, 17 and a half touches per game. 17 and a half for old 29 year old James Connor. So while Trey Benson will have more of a role, James Conner still the lead.

[Matthew Berry]

I do not buy the 1A, 1B James Connor, Trey Benson hype. I know a lot of people do. But yes, Lawrence and I had a very in depth conversation with somebody on the offensive coaching staff of the Arizona Cardinals where we talked about this. And we said, you know, what about Trey Benson? And they liked Trey Benson. They said nothing but positive things, but they said, here's the thing. To your point, it's the details. If I give James Conner the ball at the three yard line, he's getting in the end zone. If I know James Conner has to, you know, take three steps to the left and chip a linebacker, he's going to do that. Like they, they just trust him with all the little details. And I think he's kind of the heart and soul of that locker room. They love him. They love him in Arizona and they love him on the field there.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah. One of the worst preseason tropes, this happens every year is coaches getting in front of microphones saying that the number two running back is going to get more work and that the number one. Because that's just what you have to say. Because what are you going to say? Go up there and that. Yeah, Saquon Barclay, we're going to give him 25 carries. Like, that's just not what you would say. Never forget Frank Reich saying after Jonathan Taylor's 2021 where he had that epic season, Frank Reich saying, big year for Naheem Hines coming up. Nahim Hines, big part of the offense.

[Matthew Berry]

Fantasy world on fire. Like what, What?

[Jay Croucher]

Jonathan Taylor, we can't give him that same workload. Week one against the Texans, Jonathan Taylor, 30 carries.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Literally 30 carries in this too. Right. It's not like you gotta. I don't want to use Jameer Gibbs as an example, but someone who's, who's stylistically like Jameer Gibbs, it's not as if someone like that breathing down James Connor's neck. Trey Benson, he's a home run hitter guy, but not that type of dynamic running back to where he's so much different to where you got to take James Conner out of the game.

[Jay Croucher]

Yep. Okay. Well, a dynamic running back, someone who's been a fantasy staple for years and years. Lawrence is Alvin Kamara, who quietly was having an awesome start to last season before the wheels kind of came off for New Orleans. Now they have an uncertain offense, but the thing about the Saints is that their offensive line, if it's healthy, actually pretty good. And Kamaru is going to be the workhorse in this backfield you suspect.

[Lawrence Jackson]

And we all know what the quarterback situation right there is in New Orleans. The thing about it is I don't think it matters for Alvin Kamara. He's done it with Drew Brees, with Jameis Winston for a short time, Derek Carr, and in the three games he played with Spencer Rattler last year, if Taysum Hill.

[Matthew Berry]

He's done it with Taysum Hill.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Taysum Hill. If Spencer Rattler is the quarterback. The three games they played together, 11 targets per game to running backs. In that game when Alvin Kamar left, those next three Spencer Rattler starts, that dipped down to seven targets per game for running back. So it's an Alvin Kamar thing. They know they have to get him the ball and we know that at his best, he's an 80 catch per year guy.

[Matthew Berry]

I can't believe you forgot the Jake Hayner era in New Orleans.

[Jay Croucher]

Still potentially on God.

[Lawrence Jackson]

But after week one of preseason, I don't know if it's going on longer.

[Matthew Berry]

Real quickly, guys, I'm going to give you this. Here's the entire list. Let me give you the entire list of running backs with at least 50 receptions in each of the last three seasons. Here's the list. Alvin Kamara. All right, now here's the entire list of running backs with over 40 receptions in each of the last eight seasons. Alvin Camara. That's the list. Here's the entire list of running backs who had at least a 21.4% target share last year. Alvin Kamara. That's the list. Like Last year, only two running backs had more games with at least 15 fantasy points than Alvin Kamara. To your point about, you know, there's just such a massive floor there. And as we sit here and look at the Saints, whether it's Tyler Schuck, whether Jake Hayner or Spencer Rattler gets a shot at this, whoever it is. I mean, by the way, they might just, you know, do Wildcat with Alvin Camaro. We've seen that. It's not crazy. They may just screw it. Like he's just touching the ball in every play. The fact is, is that they don't have a lot of weapons. Right. We'll see if Shahid and Olave are healthy and can stay healthy. Right now, things look good, but, you know, history suggests that that may not always be the case. But he's always just such a staple, especially for inexperienced quarterbacks in a division with some good defenses, some good defensive lines as well. So I think Kamara is kind of like the PPR version of James Conner. Not that James Conner isn't viable in PPR as well, but like, he's just such a.

[Lawrence Jackson]

He's getting like that.

[Matthew Berry]

No one's excited about Alvin Camara. He's just been around for so long. But, like, you're going to look up at the end of the day. And he's a top 15 fantasy running back. That didn't cost you that in ADP.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah. Comment from Valminton Fung live on YouTube. I'm not drafting Kamara. New Orleans is going to be rough this year. I acknowledge. I might be wrong, but I'd rather be a year early than a year late.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, no, you're like, you're like, you're like Jay Croucher. Jay Croucher also said Jay Crasher told me before the show that he's not drafting Jameer Gibbs this year for the exact same reason. He doesn't know if it's this year or next year, but he just. Yeah.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Rather get off a year early. Right.

[Jay Croucher]

We're going to be in a bit. Okay. Jesse Balanos. Who cares if New Orleans is bad? Kamara will feast all caps.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah, that's right.

[Jay Croucher]

Break and check down passes.

[Matthew Berry]

Jesse Balanos is absolutely correct. That's the thing. Like, like, I love whoever the other guy was who's saying like, he did.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Acknowledge that he could be wrong, though.

[Matthew Berry]

I'll acknowledge that you were wrong because he's just like, New Orleans going to be terrible this year. Yes, they are. You know what they were last year? They were terrible, terrible. They've been good since Drew Brees retired.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Like, if you, if you are a young quarterback trying to find your way in this league and you know, again, not a great team, you just trying to get some completions, what are you going to do? You're going to try to throw down the field? Are you going to get it to a running back that you know can catch the ball and get you some yards to help your passing stats? I would do that as well.

[Jay Croucher]

And scored on their first 17 drives last season. Nothing good happen the rest of the year?

[Matthew Berry]

No, it did one thing. And by the way, like, I didn't put it as part of the stats. Again, this column is, is, is more stylized in terms of how I write it versus other stuff. But I don't think we can underestimate Kellen Moore's impact on this offense as well. Again, think about what he did with Saquon Barkley last year. If you're Kellen Moore, you're a brand new coach coming into New Orleans and you know, you've got some rebuilding around it. So you're looking around like, all right, what have I got to work with? And the answer is not much. But he knows that Alvin Camara is one of those things that he's got to work with. And so he's going to put Camara in a position to succeed. A lot of carries, a lot of dump offs, try to take pressure off the quarterback again. We saw this with Saquon last year. Just like he puts obviously different kind of player and they didn't use him in the passing game. They need to, they didn't need to. Hard to pass when you know he takes the first carry 60 yards for a touchdown.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You got A.J. brown, Devontae Smith, they don't have that there. They got Alvin Kamara and hopefully Chris Salave.

[Jay Croucher]

All right, well, let's go from a couple super reliable players in Connor and Kamara to a less reliable player in George Pickens, but still a super talented one. And we heard from Cowboys squad Dak Prescott talking about what makes George Pickens so special.

[Matthew Berry]

It's a guy that loves the game of football. So everything that you give him and.

[Lawrence Jackson]

The more you give him, he's going.

[Matthew Berry]

To answer that bell. And he wants, the more he wants.

[Lawrence Jackson]

As much as he can. So I almost, I'm surprised. But he does have every tool in the bag and it's fun to be.

[Matthew Berry]

Able to get out there. And as we just said, in different periods, different throws, different kind of routes.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Different coverages for him to make plays.

[Matthew Berry]

Just so he's a big time guy and to have another guy like that.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Alongside Ceedee is just going to be fun.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay, big year coming up for George Pickens as the presumed Robin to CD Lamb, eights Batman. Where do you stand on George Pickens? Matthews? I know he's been a very divisive player this year in the fantasy community.

[Matthew Berry]

I'm as a legit wide receiver three with upside, which is, you know, always the joke. But like I do, I legitimately have him at wide receiver 25 and it wouldn't surprise me at all if he blows past us. Since he entered the NFL, George Pickens is second in yards per reception. That's a stat that tells you what you already know, that he goes deep. Right. So since the end of the NFL, George Pickens ranks second in yards per reception. During that time, among qualified wide receivers, Jay Croucher, George Pickens has the fourth highest average depth of target. Yeah, they target him deep. Oh, by the way, over the last two years, Dak Prescott, top eight in the NFL in both deep pass attempts per game and deep ball accuracy. He throws the ball deep a lot and he's fairly accurate when he does. George Pickens is really good going deep. Ergo, ipso facto, George Pickens to the moon.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You put two things Together there. There's catches he made while in Pittsburgh with some quarterbacks where he made it look like they made a good throw. And that's the thing. George Pickens could come down with the ball. That's the guy they're going to need. That's their downfield guy. And if you're worried about George Pickens to the point where, well, you know, he's the wide receiver, too. He's going to get wide receiver, two targets. Hell, he played for Pittsburgh. He was already getting wide receiver, two targets last year, 103 targets. The year before that, 106. That lines up with what Jake Ferguson had, Dak Prescott's 2023 season, just above 100 targets. So George Pickett Pickens will slide into that, except to have more big plays, obviously, than a Ferguson will.

[Matthew Berry]

To your point, since he's come to the NFL, this is a stat that I had, but it couldn't fit into the article. George Pickens is one of the league leaders in contested catches. Like, he's just somebody that can just win a bunch of 50, 50 balls. To your point, like, he's catching it off his back, off his shoulder. Like, he just. He's ridiculous. Andrew Smith wants to know how much does Pickens eat into Lamb's value. Jay Croucher?

[Jay Croucher]

I don't think a significant amount because I think that the Cowboys are just going to have to throw the ball a ton anyway. You see, their running back rooms are super inspiring. I think their defense is very thin. We'll see what happens with the Parsons situation. So I do think there is an element, Lawrence, where George Pickens does space the field a little bit for CD Lamb. We'll take some attention off him. Like, I just don't think that they're going to go away from CD Lamb.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Absolutely not. Look, like I just said, right, in 2023, Jake Ferguson had 102 targets. That lines up with what George Pickens has been getting in Pittsburgh as the top guy. And in that 2023 season, CeeDee Lamb had 181 targets. So I don't think it'll affect them too much.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, like, we'll get to the comment in a second, but I'll just say, I'll say this right, like, George Pickens is not a volume guy. George Pickens is the guy who makes your day on one or two plays. That passing offense is going to go through CD Lamb. So I do not think it eats into its value at all. And I do think there's going to be, to your point, More than enough volume for both those guys because I don't think they're going to run the ball.

[Lawrence Jackson]

George Pickens might even have a career high in targets because he doesn't have to go that much higher to get that.

[Matthew Berry]

George Pickens is a guy that makes your day on two, three, four receptions.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay. Coming from Jonathan. Medic 17. Upon hearing these picking stats, Croucher, which is me, just placed a bet on the Giants to win their division.

[Lawrence Jackson]

I'll tell you this, if you did it this year, you'd have a better chance than you did last year.

[Jay Croucher]

That's true.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Ain't a great chance.

[Matthew Berry]

I don't know if the Eagles are.

[Jay Croucher]

Gonna win the super bowl, and the commanders were gonna make the NFC title game. Wasn't banking on that. Listen, New York Giants, they might have the best defensive line in football. I don't think they're gonna win the division. No, they're gonna win 10 games already.

[Matthew Berry]

Real talk, though, for a second. You know, we live here. I live in Connecticut. And so obviously, I'm surround Giants fans. And so me, yeah, yeah. Like, I'm surrounded by real Giants fans and Jay and no, but I'll go to parties or whatever, and people want to always ask me, hey, what do you think of the Giants this year? What do you think about, you know, and they're so downtrodden because it's. It's been, you know, a rough couple of years. And I'm like, look, guys, I actually think you have hope. You legitimately have a very good defense. Abdul Carter is going to be a monster. Like, he's just going to be awesome. I said, Malik Neighbors is a legit superstar as well. Kind of like Theo Johnson. We'll see what you get out of Scatterbo. But, like, feels like there's some running game there. You're a quarterback away. You're like a quarterback. Like, you need help on the offensive line. You've got to strengthen the offensive line. You need one more, you know, playmaker at, you know, receiver, tight end. But, like, they're not that far off. Like, my point is this is my prediction. You tell me what you think about this. I've said a lot of people, I said the Giants probably win like six games this year, but I bet you they lose every game by one score. Yes. I think they're going to just be a bitch to play every single week.

[Lawrence Jackson]

I'm seeing it, Matthew. Like, I was. I was at the Jets Giants joint practice twice this week. The D line. You might not even be saying, might have the Best D line in short order here. But like the greatest point you made there is, I think the Giants, they're not just going to come into these games and just get rolled over every week. It's definitely not going to be like that.

[Matthew Berry]

They play my commanders host the giants in week one, better watch out for them. I'm nervous 100%. Like all the hype, you know, oh, you know, that's a trap game. That's like an early week one trap game.

[Jay Croucher]

And there's only six and a half point favorites there against the New York Giants.

[Matthew Berry]

I bet you, I will bet you that the Giants are one of the best covering teams this year. Like they're just going to be tough. They're going to be a tough out. They're probably two years away, but they're going to be a tough effing out.

[Jay Croucher]

Yep. Abdul Carter, three pass rushing snaps in his first preseason game. Three pressures going up against Dion Dawkins.

[Matthew Berry]

He's the royal deal.

[Jay Croucher]

Jacoby Myers, another wide receiver. Matthew, with a new quarterback. What do we have on Myers? Who friend of the show as well and someone who again, relatively unsexy, but.

[Matthew Berry]

A producer that I mean and that's part of what this column is about and kind of trying to unearth, you know, because you see the flashy names. But you may not be aware that in each of the past three seasons, Jacoby Myers has finished as a top 30 wide receiver in points per game. Right? And then the 12 games he played last year without Devonta Adams, he had a 27% target share. 27% the 12 games he played last year without Devonte Adams. Jacoby Myers was wide receiver 20 last year. The Raiders, by the way, they ranked 26th in yards per pass attempt in the three years in Seattle. Geno Smith, the new Raiders quarterback. The Seahawks were ninth in yards per pass attempt, so there were 26 in pass attempt. But in the 12 games without Devonte Adams, Joe Kobe Mars was still wide receiver 20. He's currently being drafted as a top 40 wide receiver just barely as a top 40 wide receiver. This is a guy who's got top 20 upside with a, with an upgraded quarterback and a faster pace of play in Chip Kelly. Calling, calling the offense.

[Jay Croucher]

Lawrence Past couple years we've had new rookie quarterbacks come into the league and immediately just be not just excellent from a real life football perspective, from, from fantasy perspective to CJ Stroud two years ago, Bo Nix and obviously Jane Daniels last year.

[Matthew Berry]

Right.

[Jay Croucher]

Ken Ward is the clearest candidate for that. This year, number one Overall pick. And if he's going to be good, Calvin Ridley is going to be the guy that benefits.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah. And good for Calvin Ridley and Cam Ward that they have each other. Like Cam Ward doesn't walk into a situation where he doesn't have have, you know, a top receiver. Calvin Ridley, on the other hand, he has a chance to kind of get back to what he did his last year as an Atlanta Falcon when Matt Ryan was his quarterback. Who's the best athlete of all time. But that's for another day.

[Matthew Berry]

But look.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Even better than Michael Jordan. Like that's how great Matt Ryan is.

[Matthew Berry]

But you know, that's for better than Dominique Wilkins. Austin Daniels.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah, you want to make it tough now, right? You make it tough, right?

[Matthew Berry]

Dale Murphy.

[Lawrence Jackson]

I'm just good.

[Matthew Berry]

Tom Glavin, John Small. Who is your favorite Atlanta athlete? All seriousness. Probably Atlanta professional sports athlete.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Probably Vic or Julio.

[Matthew Berry]

I get that.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Matt Ryan, not Dyson Daniels. Dominique's in there. Mookie Blaylock.

[Matthew Berry]

Mookie Blaylock.

[Lawrence Jackson]

I used to love Mookie Blaylock.

[Matthew Berry]

I had Mookie Blaylock on a lot of fantasy basketball team in the day. Always a great source of steals and threes. Blaylock. Yeah, yeah.

[Lawrence Jackson]

For, for former Atlanta athlete Calvin Ridley back to back 1000 yard season, it doesn't seem like it, but that's because last season he was catching pass from Will Levis, Mason Rudolph and the year before that was with Trevor Lawrence. He had trouble that year. So in those past two seasons he's only averaging 70 receptions and has a total of 12 touchdowns receptions. Those are the two numbers that's keeping his numbers down in fantasy because that thousand yards, that's okay. But for a top receiver on your team, you should be having more than 70 catches. And I think he could clearly, like I think I'm talking with Cam Ward, 90 to 100 catches he should be.

[Jay Croucher]

Having now, Calvin Ridley probably pretty happy with his new quarterback situation. We heard from Ridley talking about how unique and special Cam Ward is.

[Matthew Berry]

I haven't been around a young guy with that confidence and that swagger in a long time. He doesn't crack easy. You know, he makes, you know, some bad plays, he moves on to the next play, he makes good plays, he moves on to the next play. And you really don't see that. And it's timing, you know, with his arm, he's pretty accurate, pretty on time with the ball and obviously he can always get better with it. But you know, coming in as a young guy like that and you Know, being up to date like that, I mean, I think he's ahead of his time.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay, Cam Ward to Calvin Ridley for a touchdown. Get used to hearing that this season says leaper. Tighten up. Still right up there with. Keep pounding. That's the best taglines for sure.

[Matthew Berry]

Get this. Last year there were 100. There were. Get this. Last year there were 21 different players that had at least 120 targets. And of those 21 players, none of them had a higher off target rate than Calvin Ridley in terms of how many uncatchable balls came in his general vicinity.

[Jay Croucher]

That matches the eye test.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes, of course. Right. That's the stat that tells you what we just talked about right there. He had four games. There were only four games last year where, as it gets tracked, Calvin Ridley had only four games with seven or more catchable passes. Only four games where he got seven balls that should have been caught. In those four games, he averaged 18.3 fantasy points per game, which is just, you know, massive name, by the way. Last season, no wide receiver in the NFL had more deep targets than Calvin Ridley. Again, same offensive scheme. They like to throw it deep. They like to throw it deep to Calvin Ridley. But you think about Cam Ward when he was in college last year, the fourth most completions on passes of 20 or more yards. He's accurate deep. He likes to throw it deep. The preseason, the first preseason game, 43% target share for Calvin Ridley from Cam Ward. Cam Ward's no dummy. He's looking around like I could. I mean, you know, Tyler Lockett, Van Jefferson. Oh, yeah, Van Jefferson's there.

[Jay Croucher]

Van Jefferson's gonna be like the starting outside receiver.

[Matthew Berry]

I know. Yeah, they got a couple of rookies. We'll see. But anyway, Calvin Ridley, I'm at wide receiver 31. And honestly, I might be. I'm higher on him than consensus, and I might be too low.

[Jay Croucher]

Matthew, One of the strangest players in the NFL, I think, is Juwan Jennings, who a couple years ago, Juwan Jennings, group him in with, like, the Devin Duvernays and Ray. Ray McLeod's just like kind of just a fourth receiver guy could have been the Super Bowl MVP.

[Matthew Berry]

I've said that if they had won, he should have been the MVP that.

[Jay Croucher]

Year and now could be wide receiver one for what might be one of the best offenses in football.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, it's a little. It's a weird off season, obviously, because there's. There's talk that he's got this injury, but then there's also. He wants a contract, so. Is it like a. Is it a natural injury or is it like, oh, this is the kind of injury that'll be better if I rub money on it, you know, like, so we just. We don't know. We don't know. You know, like, that's, like.

[Lawrence Jackson]

That always get people feeling better, right?

[Matthew Berry]

Well, yeah, 100%. How do you think we got Connor Rogers in here? He didn't want to come, but, like, you know, we just, you know.

[Jay Croucher]

Conor just holding out today.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah.

[Jay Croucher]

After Marcelo Zuna cleared the bases last night. The Big Bear.

[Matthew Berry]

But the thing about Juwan Jennings is, like, he. The opportunities there. You mentioned he might be the number one guy. Right. Brandon Ayuk and I expect to back until week six at the earliest. And we know the 49ers are not always crystal clear when it comes to timelines. Jordan Watkins, their fourth round rookie wide receiver, he's expected to miss a month. He's got that high ankle sprain. Demarcus Robinson, I don't know if people remember this, but they actually signed him in March. Demarcus Robinson, he's now with the Niners. He's facing a potential suspension. Deebo Samuel is obviously now in Washington. That frees up a 19% target share. So there's a scenario here with Juwan Jennings just gets a ton of run. He played nine games last year where he had over 70% of the snaps. So the nine games where Juwan Jennings got real run where he played over 7% of the snaps, he averaged 17.9 fantasy points per game. Just to give you a context, last year, 17.9 fantasy points per game would have been wide receiver seven in fantasy football. He's currently being drafted as wide receiver 44. I get there's some uncertainty about when he's going to be available, how banked up he is. But wide receiver 44 for a guy that basically averaged top seven fantasy points in nine games last year and his, I would argue his opportunity has increased, not decreased this year.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Definitely increase. And I think this situation, whatever's going on with the money and the calf, it'll. It'll figure itself out before the season. It always does with the 49ers. We've seen it in past years with Deebo Samuel in his contract situation. But look now, look. George Kittle and Debo both missed two games last year, but Juwan Jennings led his team in targets last year. He's shown, he's put it on in front of our eyes that he can be this team's wide receiver. One has a great on field Rapport with Brock Purdy career year. So I think as soon as that situation, you know, figures itself out and whether it's happening in these next few weeks, it's draft season, his ADP will go up.

[Matthew Berry]

I'll tell you something crazy. When I was thinking in the off season about who my ride or die would be this year, Juwan Jennings made the initial list and then all this stuff with the training camp. But like, I think he's super talented and just people don't realize how good he is because Ayuk and Debo and.

[Jay Croucher]

Caffrey and he's the most famous person on the offense.

[Matthew Berry]

That's right. That's the problem. But like, he is just as good, if not better than some of those guys. I've made that argument a million times that had the 49ers won that Super bowl, he should have been the MVP. He wouldn't have won it, but he should have been.

[Jay Croucher]

Yep. Absolute advanced stats. Darling as well on Jennings in terms of yards per outrun, PFF grading, percentage of his catches that go for first downs. He is, on a per snap basis, one of the most productive wide receivers in football. All right, let's pivot to the land of Mookie Blaylock and Trey Young. Another athlete, Darnell Mooney. And we heard from head coach Raheem Morris providing an update on Mooney's current injury.

[Matthew Berry]

It's still the same. You know, he's been out probably a week and a half now. We're kind of just waiting and rolling and he'll be at a week to.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Week basis and we're doing, you know. You feel any type of way about week one.

[Matthew Berry]

I feel great based on my medical expertise and talking to those guys. A week and go. So I feel good about getting him back healthy and ready to go when? I don't know. But we'll. We'll have him back healthy and ready to go this year.

[Jay Croucher]

So I think that's the type of thing he's dealing with, the shoulder injury. That's the type of thing where if you just read the quote and you hear it end with Raheem Morris saying, we're gonna get him back this year. That's like kind of terrifying like this. Yeah. But I think that's just like he was just ending his sentence. Like, I don't think he was actually implying anything with that. So I don't read too much into this injury.

[Matthew Berry]

No.

[Lawrence Jackson]

If they didn't specify whether or not if they would have said indefinitely, then that's a cause for some Concern or they say something like hope to get him back by midseason. When they say stuff like that, that's when you kind of worry. But there's been nothing, you know, nothing been that's been said to make us feel like he won't be back for week one. And if he does happen to miss week one, it won't be long after that.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, I completely agree. And by the way you think about, you think about Darnell Mooney and his skill set. Right? Right. Last year there were only four players with more receiving yards on deep passes than Darnell Mooney. Well, small sample size but in the three starts that he had last season, no quarterback had a higher average depth of target than Michael Pennix Jr. He's got a cannon of an arm. He loves to throw it deep. No, in the three starts last year no player had a higher percentage of his passes travel 20 or more air yards than Michael Pennix Jr. So obviously we know Drake London but, but I think this offense is going to be high octane enough to support three fantasy relevant players in London. Bijan Robinson, of course, and Darnell Mooney. I am not.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You're just gonna leave out the goat.

[Matthew Berry]

Kyle Pitts, you leave out the goat like that. I'm not a believer. Listen, you know Kyle, listen, you know the saying fool me seven times, you know.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Do you know that once upon a time.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah.

[Lawrence Jackson]

He had a thousand yards in a.

[Jay Croucher]

Season his first season.

[Matthew Berry]

You know, once upon a time he was getting t service with Justin Fields.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Just, just smiling like he just Travis Kelsey numbers every year.

[Matthew Berry]

But he's like, you know, he's like listen, I'm a top five overall pick. He got, he got paid. He's a rich man.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, yeah, he, I, I want to invest in, in Michael Penix and all the kind. And this is another peripheral way to do that by drafting Darnell Mooney. I think. I'm not sure how much to read into this but I'm not writing these guys off yet. But I think it's a good indicator that, that Roman Dunes and Jaylen Polk didn't do much last year without Michael Penix and he put up huge numbers at Washington with those. Same thing with like Bo Nix. Bonix's receivers didn't do much. So Troy Fradis, whatever. Yeah, I think that's a good indicator that yeah, Michael Pennix is the real.

[Matthew Berry]

Because the other thing, by the way we've seen Darnold, I mean not only was Darnold Mooney productive last year in Atlanta, but like he was actually he had moments in Chicago as well, you know, with, with, let's be kind, inconsistent quarterback play.

[Lawrence Jackson]

So, yeah, he was also the top receiver there. He's much better in this role as a number two.

[Matthew Berry]

Totally, totally agree. And to be clear, like some of these Donald mooney's like a 12 team 3 wide receiver type player. Sure. Like he's not a, you know, if you're in a ten team two where you only start two wide, that's. You probably forget about Mooney. But. All right.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay. Trey McBride, Lawrence, who is ostensibly the wide receiver too, after Brock Bowers. How optimistic are you that he can build on his excellent year last year?

[Matthew Berry]

You.

[Lawrence Jackson]

I think a lot when you consider he led all tight ends and targets inside the five yard line, led all tight ends and targets inside the 10 and was second amongst tight ends and red zone targets. But he only had two touchdowns. So he's got nowhere to go but up when it comes to that department. He sat here on our show two years ago and predicted his numbers. He came through not only for himself and for his team, but for us fantasy folks. So Trey McBride get more than two touchdowns next year. You're the tight end one in fantasy.

[Matthew Berry]

Nine end zone targets. The Cardinals were only able to convert one of them. He was tackled inside the five yard line five different times for Trey McBride. And yet still finishes tight end two. Only two tight ends, only two touchdowns. Lawrence, your point? I know you're wondering, Matthew, why are you getting up? I'm going to tell you something. Why? Because Trey McBride. Follow me here. Watch your steps. Follow me here. I'm good. Don't worry about me.

[Lawrence Jackson]

We'll use it on social.

[Matthew Berry]

Can you follow me up here? Can you see me up here? This. So this is. We got number 85, Trey McBride. You have to be a fantasy superstar or a jet to make it on this wall. And so we updated all the time. I don't know if you guys can see, but we've got some. Them, we've got some new additions. George Kittle here, McBride is one of them. McConkey over there as well. And it is all thanks to our friends at Fanatics. You know, this all comes here from Fanatics. We love Fanatics. They were like, they're fans of the show and they said, can we help you out with the wall? And we said we love it 100%. So they've been great partners and friends to us in terms of doing all this. You know, all the. I mean, you guys know Fanatics, right? That's where you get all The. You get your jerseys and your memorabilia and everything. So great company. I've spent a lot of money with them for my kids. And we're. We couldn't be more appreciative of all the jerseys that we got, thanks to fanatics I don't know about, but I feel like we need to figure out some of this. I don't know if Marvin Harrison Jr. Needs to be ahead of AJ Brown or CD Lamb. Like, I thought about Barry, 29.

[Jay Croucher]

What.

[Lawrence Jackson]

His numbers looking like.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, right.

[Jay Croucher]

Well, listen, Barry belong next to George Kumar.

[Matthew Berry]

I'm like McLaurin. I'm in camp. So at least we got that, you know? I don't know.

[Jay Croucher]

Baker Mayfield's on the wall.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. I mean, what's Breece hall doing down there? I don't know. And we got. We got New school, we got Travis Hunter. This is too low for Jalen Waddle. CJ Stroud can be down there. That's fine. All right. You know, but Jamar Chase, Jayden Daniels is moving from that spot. Let's just be clear about that.

[Jay Croucher]

Right on cue after that question. Comment from stuntman Chuck. 85. Question for Jaylen Lance. Is this the year to get off the Berry bandwagon before it breaks down for good, or is he aging like James Conner and Derek Henry and we should stop asking, is this it? Yeah. Matthew Berry's some big Todd Gurley potential.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You gotta make that trade. You know, Indian dynasties get. Get off of Matthew Berry. Get on a young stud like Lawrence Jackson Jr. Jay Croucher, Connor Rogers, he had a great season last year. They tried to write him off last year, but this might be the year. Stuntman.

[Matthew Berry]

Is this my.

[Lawrence Jackson]

This might be the year?

[Matthew Berry]

Is this my Trent Richardson year?

[Lawrence Jackson]

He was only like 23.

[Matthew Berry]

Exactly. Yeah, there you go. I'm the Frank Gore of fantasy football. There you go.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Like Raheem Mostert. Remember, he had 20 some touchdowns in next year. Just like, damn, what happened?

[Matthew Berry]

Jamal Williams, same thing, had 18 touchdowns.

[Jay Croucher]

And then like, this segues us nicely.

[Matthew Berry]

And that's it, by the way. That's the.

[Lawrence Jackson]

That's your. That's your fantasy value. That's your value. You know, we get you to the goal line, they say, hey, we scored a touchdown. Here come Barry running in, gets the goal line touchdown and does DAN 20, 25.

[Jay Croucher]

Nick Chubb.

[Matthew Berry]

It might be. Have you seen the commercial? Have you seen the commercial where it's like, you know, it's like Emmett Smith and Randy Moss and Dan Marino and as currently, like, that's me, that's me. Just kind of like, ah, yeah, well. But anyway, by the way, that's the question of the year so far.

[Jay Croucher]

The Joe Flacco a fan, is he.

[Matthew Berry]

Gonna get your volume?

[Lawrence Jackson]

He gonna get you the volume?

[Jay Croucher]

Michael Azar.

[Lawrence Jackson]

You might get sacked a lot though.

[Matthew Berry]

Michael Azar. I think you, you're. You mean comeback player of the year? Joe Flacco of fantasy. Don't forget that.

[Jay Croucher]

Anyway, the Sun Man's question leads nicely into David and Joku because I think the moment you jump the shark is when you dress like David and Jo walking into NBC.

[Matthew Berry]

Had I jumped the shark 15 years before that?

[Jay Croucher]

When you're doing your vaunted leather daddy routine.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes.

[Jay Croucher]

Which poisoned minds across America. But David and Joku is going to get a lot of targets. Matthew.

[Matthew Berry]

My daughters were very. For some reason my daughters almost never watch the show. I have twin 13 year old daughters. They almost never watched the show. But for some reason they tuned in that day.

[Jay Croucher]

The Leather Daddy episode.

[Matthew Berry]

The Leather Daddy episode. Because it was a Sunday morning. It was a Sunday morning and so my kids were home and so my wife turned on the show while they were like getting ready to go do whatever they were gonna do. And then we said, you know, you called me a leather daddy for like 20 straight times and apparently scarred my daughters, you know, and my wife is like literally texting me while I'm on air, like, stop, stop. Tell them to stop calling you Leather daddy. In case you want to know what's going on in my house.

[Jay Croucher]

I'll never stop calling you a husband, Leather Daddy. But the original Leather Daddy, David and Joe Co, Tobias Fuenke, then David Njoku.

[Matthew Berry]

Then Matthew Barry and I'll tell you, certainly David Njoku scores a lot more than Tobias certainly does. That's a deep cut right there. But last year no tight end had more end zone targets than David Njoku. In fact, last year David njoku targeted on 25.7% of his routes. That's the sixth highest rate at the position 2023 Comeback Player of the Year. Joe Flacco started five games for the Cleveland Browns en route to winning that award, rightfully so.

[Jay Croucher]

Five games.

[Matthew Berry]

In those five games that Joe Flacco started in 2023, David and Joku had a 22.5% target share. He averaged 18.2 fantasy points per game. Last year, 18.2 fantasy points per game would have been tight end one by over three points. David Njoku is currently going as tight in eight outside the top 90 overall. And there he is, there's the leather Daddy himself. With his buddy Joe Flacco. Joe Flacco's driving him around. They're vibing in and around Cleveland and ATV talking about all the fantasy points they're going to put up together.

[Lawrence Jackson]

And it's important that you brought up those five games that he started in 2023 because that sounds about right for what it's going to be this year for Joe Flacco. He going to get them five games in with David and Joku and then, you know, we'll see what else is going on at quarterback. But last year only 11 games, 64 catches over 500 yards.

[Matthew Berry]

But you know what, when you think about their who else they have in the red zone, like who you talking to the red zone? Like you know, Jerry Judy, like we like Cedric Tillman but like he's going to be the main red zone threat. I'm not convinced they're gonna be able to run. You know, we'll see how the running game plays out. Judkins still has shown up. Dylan Sampson's and Jerome Ford are gonna carry the load right there. But I think it's the same point as that you've made with the Indianapolis col. Joe Flacco is going to be the starter until somebody in camp in practice is better than him. They're not going to stick Shadira Sanders or Dylan Gabriel, Kenny Pickett out there unless they're an improvement over Joe Flacco and can move the ball. So I think Njoko, I think the Cleveland offense is not going to be great, but it's going to be a lot better than it's going to be competent. It's not going to be this disaster that everyone thinks he is. Kevin Sufianski, the two time coach of the year. Not everyone knows that he's a two time coach of the year.

[Jay Croucher]

Cleveland won four out of the eight awards that season by the way, when they had 11 on six and got a five seed. Anyway, this Joe Flacco chat means it's time to go to break. When we come back, we'll hit the rotterworld player news. Before there are leaders, there are learners.

[Matthew Berry]

Before progress, there's potential students are showing.

[Jay Croucher]

Up ready to grow.

[Matthew Berry]

But they need fully stocked classrooms to thrive.

[Jay Croucher]

Donate [e-mail] backtoschool for years everyone thought Verizon had the best network because they did. But now the best mobile network in the US is T Mobile. T Mobile's network has the most advanced 5G with more towers and their signal reaches further than ever. So you can text and insta talk and say you won't believe where I am.

[Matthew Berry]

T Mobile has the best mobile network in the US based on analysis by.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Ookla of speed test intelligence data 1H.

[Matthew Berry]

2025 CT mobile.com network morning. One sausage McMuffin with egg please. Okay, your total is. Wait. Let's negotiate. How's about you throw in hash browns for a dollar? Well yes sir, that price is already a dollar.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Take it or leave it.

[Matthew Berry]

Take it, I guess. Buy one, add one for a dollar.

[Lawrence Jackson]

On sausage McMuffin with egg, hash browns.

[Matthew Berry]

And more with McValue.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Most locations open 5am or earlier.

[Matthew Berry]

Price and participation may vary. Limited time only. Valid for item of equal or lesser value. Ba da ba ba ba pre snab issues with Caleb, the delays and stuff like that. Can you explain what exactly the issue is? We've challenged him. It's been a lot. That was by design and so if.

[Jay Croucher]

We struggle at all in the huddle getting the play out, then yeah, the delays are going to pop up and.

[Matthew Berry]

That'S a little bit of part of the learning process and us growing. But by design we've made this very challenging and hard and we know what.

[Jay Croucher]

We need to do as a staff.

[Matthew Berry]

To alleviate some of that pressure. I think week one we're going to be in a good spot.

[Jay Croucher]

Rotoworld Play News Ben Johnson is running a tight ship in camp. I just like to see, I think there might be some a bit of a learning curve for this offense and this defense as well, which I think is going to be fairly complex under Dennis Allen. But the Athletics, Kevin Fishbane, he said he believes that Caleb Williams hasn't been consistent enough in training camp. Then his accuracy hasn't been there like it was last summer. Any alarm bells here Matthew?

[Matthew Berry]

Not yet. I've got some positive stats on him in in my 100 Facts column as well but but no, I'm not panicking just yet. First off, the stuff that we like about him in terms of his ability to run, he's more mobile than he gets credit for. His ability to throw off schedule, his ability to kind of create a little bit of magic and has an awesome arm. None of that disappears. And so maybe there's some growing pains. It's a tough division but they fortified the offensive line. It's the most improved offensive line in the NFL this year. So he's going to have time, he will have time to to do off schedule stuff. And you know, I mean between DJ Moore and Roma Dun and Colson Loveland, Cole Comet and you know, Luther Burden like they've given him a lot of weapons. Lawrence. Yeah.

[Lawrence Jackson]

And when they, when we just had the stats up there, the two ones that stick out to me the most is 11 yards shy of 500 rushing yards. Not a lot of quarterbacks are doing that, you know, at that position. Then the six interceptions, he's not turning the ball over. And even if you add his lost fumbles from last year, that's less than 10 turnovers. So, no, I'm not worried yet. The report from the athletic literally adds up with what the clip we just heard from Ben Johnson. So he's not as consistent, but they're by design challenging him. So I wouldn't be too worried just yet either.

[Matthew Berry]

And the other thing that again, I think this gets lost so much because there's so many, you know, you know, be reporters say something and they get put into the sort of the Twitter sphere or whatever. Yeah, the Bears and Kevin Fishbane are. Fishbane. Fishbine.

[Jay Croucher]

Fishbane.

[Matthew Berry]

Fishbane are Apologies, Kevin. They're looking at it through the lens of, hey, is he the franchise quarterback for the Chicago Bears? Whereas we're just looking like, do we think this guy can put up fantasy points? And the answer is yes. Even if he's inconsistent, he's still going to be able to run and throw for touchdowns.

[Jay Croucher]

Yep. Okay. Next line charges offensive coordinator Greg Roman said Marion Hampton.

[Matthew Berry]

Yep.

[Jay Croucher]

The vaunted ride or die.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes.

[Jay Croucher]

Rotate with another back in week one, even if Najee Harris isn't ready to go. Najee Harris back at practice. Tough week for the Chargers losing Rashawn Slater. But how does this make you feel about Hampton?

[Matthew Berry]

Don't care. Yeah, not worried about it. Like, like I like do I think Hassan Haskins or Kamani Badal is going to take significant work away? Yeah, we don't expect him to get every single carry. Part of the argument is that A, he's a special talent and B, they're going to be so run heavy. There will be enough work for Omarion Hampton and someone else. I think he will be the alpha in that. I think he'll be 65%, 70% of the running back touches by the end of the year and his superior talent will take over. But no, I'm not worried about that at all.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, Lawrence Bill signed James cook to a four year, $48 million contract extension. Seems like like all parties happy and we pretty much just move on as anticipated.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah, it's done now. It's better that it's done now than at the end of training camp to the Natural. Oh, man. He hasn't been practicing regularly. Well, now he will. And you know, James Cook this year, I like him as far as like having a second running back on my Fantasy team, score 16 rushing touchdowns last year was tied for the league, league in the NFL. I don't know if he's going to get that, but I also believe that he could get more than the two that he had the year before that. So if you telling me he gets eight and there's a great chance at that because of the offense that he's in, led by Josh Allen rolling with the Bills there, they're in those situations a lot. Another thing, though, he breaks runs for touchdowns. He's an efficient runner. He's a guy who averages 5 yards per carry in his career despite, look, he only played 48% of the snaps. So that shows, shows you his efficiency. So depending on where you have James Cook, you don't want him anchoring your fantasy football team. But if he's your guy and you got like cmc, like, that's fine with me.

[Matthew Berry]

Yep.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay. The big news of the day, Matthew. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Rasheed Rice's disciplinary hearing is scheduled for September 30, which is after week four. And the Chiefs, in the first four weeks, they have a brutal schedule to start to play. The Chargers, the Eagles, the Giants, and the Ravens. So the expectation is that, is that he's going to be available for those first four games and then there might be clarity after that.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, I mean, and fantasy wise, I think this actually hurts Rice's value a little bit because. Right, because you're like, oh, great, he'll play the first four games. And you're like, well, no, we feel pretty confident that, or that there's, there's a better than average chance that he's suspended at some point this season. And so you would rather that if you have Rasheed Rice, you would rather that happen in the first six games of the season. They have a week 10 box, right? So think about this. Like, what if, what if they have the hearing September 30, the ruling comes up the next week, Goodell takes a week or whatever to rule. And so maybe then you sit, sit there. And then they say, okay, you know what, we're going to suspend them starting in week seven or even week six. Right. And then, then it goes. So now you're missing seven games, right? Because it takes you through those four games. Lions, Raiders, Commanders bill the buy in week 10. Then at the Broncos, Colts. Now you do get them back for Week 13 and for the rest of the playoffs, which would be great. But what happens if, if they take their time? What if there's appeal? What if, like, what if the six game starts in week 11 and you, you know, so I just think there is for a player that there's already a ton of uncertainty about, there's now more uncertainty because we don't know how many games he's going to miss and more importantly, we don't know when we're going to miss. So I do think there's still opportunity there because some people may be scared about this. I still think he's probably like a fifth, sixth round value, but just understand that there's much more volatility with this situation than there was two hours ago.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Yeah, it's definitely risky because of the time, you know he's going to miss time. You don't know when it's going to happen. And if you have your wide receiver two just gone for four, five, six. We don't know. We don't know anything. At least Jordan Addison's situation is done over with. We know what's going to happen. That is not the case here. So there it is a risk with drafting Rasheed Rice and redraft.

[Matthew Berry]

Just knowing, you know, because you can't plan for it, right. Like with Addison, you're like, okay, I'm going to slot it in my, you know, if you have an IR spot or whatever. But you know, okay, I'm dealing with him at the beginning of the year. So just there's more uncertainty there just to be aware of it. And obviously that's going to affect the value of Kelsey and Xavier Worthy and the other pass sketches as well when he's, when he's out and when he's in. But looks like right now he'll be there for at least the first four games.

[Jay Croucher]

Indeed. Okay. Reminder to everyone that if you want to join the conversation live, tune in daily to the NFL on NBC YouTube channel at noon Eastern for our livestream of happy hour. And you can still catch us on peacock at 5 Eastern. Last call is next.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. Become a happy hour regular.

[Lawrence Jackson]

The rigs baby them Ricks.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. Trial balloon.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay.

[Matthew Berry]

Keep the names coming. Yeah, Maybe it's not sold yet.

[Jay Croucher]

We trying it out post regular season receiving yards market. Coming up next.

[Matthew Berry]

When work gets crazy, I like to.

[Lawrence Jackson]

Stop by the bar after, have a few cold ones.

[Matthew Berry]

I don't drink at all until 4 o'. Clock. We limit ourselves to one bottle of wine a night. Excessive drinking has a way of sneaking up on us a few drinks a few nights a week. It can add up and suddenly we're at greater risk for long term problems like heart disease, cancer and depression. Reason enough to rethink the drink more at rethink the drink.com Noha Initiative Hey Fidelity, what's it cost to invest with the Fidelity app? Start with as little as $1 with no account fees or trade commissions on U.S. stocks and ETFs. Hmm.

[Lawrence Jackson]

That's music to my ears.

[Matthew Berry]

I can only talk investing involved risk including risk of loss. Zero account fees apply to retail brokerage accounts only sell order assessment fee not included. A limited number of ETFs are subject to a transaction based service fee of $100. See full [e-mail] commissions Fidelity Brokerage Services LLC Member NYSE SIPC.

[Jay Croucher]

DraftKings Sportsbook is an official sports betting partner of the NFL and new customers can bet $5 and get $200 of bonus bets instantly. A $200 off NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube TV. Just download the sportsbook app and use promo code FFHH when you sign up.

[Matthew Berry]

DraftKings Sportsbook Crown is yours. Yes it is yours.

[Jay Croucher]

Lost on DraftKings most regular season receiving yards marker Jamar chase is the favorite 61 to go back to back followed by Nico Collins and Jackson. Justin Jefferson I'm going to take him on. Ross St. Brown at 22 1. The Lions have a brutal schedule. You're gonna have to throw a lot more than they did last year I think. And a Monroe St. Brown. Even though there are other weapons in that offense thing, he is still clearly, the number one guy. Lawrence who you go?

[Lawrence Jackson]

Last year only Jamar Chase, Justin Jefferson and Brian Thomas had more receiving yards than Drake London. So this year I'm taking nobody to have more receiving yards than him. Numbers crazy. With my Michael Penix over 115 receiving yards per game with him I'd see.

[Matthew Berry]

That and I raise you because Malik neighbors had 170 targets last year. 170 35% target share and now he's got a competent quarterback in either Russell Wilson or Jackson Dart. He's 11 1. Give me Malik neighbors to win this, you know, regular regular season contest season long. We need more suggestions on the Beer Hive.

[Jay Croucher]

It's not bad. Yeah, we can still do better.

[Matthew Berry]

I think we can.

[Jay Croucher]

We'll know. We'll know when we hear it.

[Matthew Berry]

All right. Hey Go go check out 100 facts on rotorworld.com right now. It's closing time. You don't have to go home but you can't say, here I am. We're all back tomorrow at noon Eastern on YouTube. For Lawrence and Jay, I'm Matthew. We'll be back with Connor tomorrow. I stayed up all night. Screw you guys. I'm out of here. He said out. Hey, Fidelity, what's it cost to invest with the Fidelity app? Start with as little as $1 with no account fees or trade commissions on US stocks and ETFs.

[Lawrence Jackson]

H, that's music to my ears.

[Matthew Berry]

I can only talk Investing involved risk, including risk of loss. 0. Account fees apply to retail brokerage accounts only. Sell order assessment fee not included. A limited number of ETFs are subject to a transaction based service fee of $100. See full [e-mail], missions Fidelity Brokerage Services, LLC Member NYSE, SIPC.