Week 2 Start/Sit: Dak Prescott, Kenneth Walker III, Travis Hunter + Rookie RB Report

Summary

Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry

Episode: Week 2 Start/Sit: Dak Prescott, Kenneth Walker III, Travis Hunter + Rookie RB Report
Date: September 10, 2025
Host: Matthew Berry (NBC Sports)
Co-Hosts: Connor Rogers, Jay Croucher

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Overview

In this lively Week 2 episode, Matthew Berry and his co-hosts deliver their signature blend of fantasy football insight, playful banter, and timely start/sit advice. Key segments include sharp analysis for headline fantasy players (Dak Prescott, Kenneth Walker III, Travis Hunter), deep dives into the rookie running back landscape, and a spirited "Keep It Open or Close It Out" (start/sit) segment. Notable show moments include friendly fantasy trash talk, creative AI-generated jokes, and a review of some surprising Week 1 performances.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Opening Banter and Fantasy Trash Talk

• The show kicks off with light-hearted ribbing over last week’s fantasy losses and championship credentials.
  • "Honestly, I could not win for the next five years and I'm still good. I won two of the first three." (Matthew Berry, 01:42)
• Jay Croucher tells a story about catching a foul ball at Yankee Stadium but jokingly admits to stiff-arming children to get it, leading to running AI-generated photo jokes.

2. Start/Sit: "Keep It Open or Close It Out"

This segment features the hosts tackling the biggest start/sit decisions for Week 2.

Dak Prescott vs. Giants (11:32)

• Matthew Berry:

  • "I've got him QB11, so I am keeping it open. I am starting him this week." (11:34)
  • Berry notes the Cowboys' strong offensive outlook, Dak’s sharp play despite four WR drops, extra prep after the Thursday night opener, and a Giants defense allowing the 6th-most yards per completion in Week 1.
  • "If somebody in your league is panicking about Dak Prescott, go trade because I thought he looked brilliant." (12:31)

• Jay Croucher:

  • Points out Dak’s improved athleticism and better matchup. "He will statistically more resemble 2023 Dak than first half of 2020." (12:58)

Kenneth Walker III vs. Steelers (13:32)

• Connor Rogers: Urges caution due to poor Week 1 usage and a committee backfield:
  • "The usage is what's concerning to me compared to Zach Charbonnet." (13:32)
• Matthew Berry:
  • Details Charbonnet's red zone and goal-line advantage, Seattle’s bland offense, and scheduling negatives.
  • "I'm closing it out on Ken Walker on the road at Pittsburgh until I see it again." (15:26)
  • "I have Charbonnet ranked higher than Ken Walker this week." (15:44)

Tyrone Tracy (NYG) vs. Cowboys (18:26)

• Berry: Points out high snap share and RB usage, remains optimistic despite poor Week 1 stats.
  • "I'm keeping it open on Tyrone Tracy." (21:22)

Travis Hunter (Jags WR) vs. Bengals (21:24)

• Berry and the team highlight high involvement, solid Target Share, and a high Vegas over/under.
  • "I'm keeping it open. I'm at WR26. To me, he's a wide receiver 3 with some upside." (21:35, 22:21)
  • Noted Trevor Lawrence’s off day may have capped Hunter’s upside.

Cooper Kupp (SEA) vs. Steelers (25:20)

• Berry:
  • Major red flag, cites extended stretch of poor performance: "Over his last four full games dating back to last year, he has 68 total receiving yards." (26:03)
  • "I just can't imagine starting Cooper Kupp. I'm not ready to drop him just yet, but I would. I want to see it first." (27:04)

DeVonta Smith (PHI) vs. Chiefs (27:57)

• Berry:
  • Not concerned about underwhelming Week 1, expects a rebound in a plus matchup:
    • "No team in the NFL allowed more fantasy points to opposing wide receivers in week one than the Kansas City Chiefs." (29:14)
  • "I'm keeping him open. If you would normally start him given your lineup and roster size." (30:14)

Mark Andrews (BAL TE) vs. Browns (30:14)

• Jay Croucher and Berry:
  • Both advise sitting Andrews, citing his lack of involvement and competition for targets within a loaded Baltimore offense.
    • "He was targeted once on 16 routes...30 different tight ends in the NFL ran more routes in week one than Mark Andrews." (32:55)
  • "Not only am I closing it out this week, but...it just doesn’t seem like he is somebody that fantasy managers are going to be able to count on consistently this year." (33:31)
  • Recommend streaming TEs like Hunter Henry over Andrews for Week 2.

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3. Rookie RB Usage Report & Insights (41:58)

Asho*n Gentry (LV)

• Berry:
  • Despite middling stats, extremely encouraging usage:
    • "He still got 88% of the Raiders running back touches...played 85% of the snaps. That’s third among running backs in week number one." (42:25)
    • Stays an RB1.

Amari*n Hampton (LAC)

• Jay:
  • "Unequivocally his backfield...he looked good...he looked explosive." (43:23)
  • Minor concern that LAC may be extremely pass-heavy, but usage is very strong.

TreVeyon Henderson (NE)

• Berry:
  • Moderated optimism, points out usage limitations in favor of veteran Rhamondre Stevenson, but expects role to grow:
    • "I still believe in the explosiveness. I still believe in his role in this offense." (46:20)
  • RB24 for the week.

Ja'Quori McKoy-Merritt (WSH)

• Berry:
  • Likely evolving into a 50/50 committee with Austin Ekeler; will get more red-zone use but may not take over the whole backfield. (50:16)

RJ Harvey (DEN)

• Berry:
  • Utilization concerns, big-play upside limited by coaching trust and pass protection issues; only “stash” level for now. (51:15)

Caleb Johnson (ATL)

• Berry:
  • "He ran zero routes...I just, yeah, I'm, I'm nervous. He’s my RB60 this week and I might be too high." (53:10)

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4. Notable Quotes & Moments

• Berry on fantasy credentials:
  "Until there's a new one, I am still your champion." (03:16)

• Jay Croucher (on foul ball):
  "As you catch it, you kind of look around. It's like, jeez, I hope there's no children around here." (07:41)
  "Secondly, it may not have been Riley Green, I can't remember...but it was either Riley Green or Kerry Carpenter. Either way, it doesn't matter. I have the ball." (06:29)

• Berry on Mark Andrews:
  "Since the start of last season, in games in which Mark Andrews does not score a touchdown, he's averaging four fantasy points per game. Four. Like, and by the way, didn't even get to four on Sunday night." (32:57)

• Berry on Cooper Kupp’s decline:
  "You have to go back to Week 14 of 2024 to find the last time that he scored more than 5.4 fantasy points per game." (26:03)

• Connor Rogers (on Patriots rookie RB Henderson):
  "This is one of their most explosive offensive threats. But at the same time, they aren't just ready to completely hand him the keys." (46:20)

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• 01:32–06:37 – Friendly banter, fantasy league trash talk, Jay's foul ball story, AI-generated photo gags
• 11:06–36:02 – "Keep It Open or Close It Out" (Start/Sit): Dak Prescott, Kenneth Walker III, Tyrone Tracy, Travis Hunter, Cooper Kupp, DeVonta Smith, Mark Andrews
• 41:58–53:41 – Rookie RB Report: Detailed usage analytics for Gentry, Hampton, Henderson, McKoy-Merritt, Harvey, Johnson
• 56:21–58:00 – "Back to the Futures": Early favorite bets for NFL awards (Coach of the Year, Offensive/Defensive ROY)

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Tone & Style

True to the show's format, the episode mixes sharp fantasy analysis with humor and camaraderie. The hosts poke fun at each other, riff on both NFL and personal mishaps, and keep the advice actionable and clear for fantasy managers of all experience levels. There's a strong focus on data-driven commentary but with plenty of outsized personalities and relatable moments for fans.

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Quick Reference: Start/Sit Calls

| Player | Start/Sit | Rationale (Short) | |---------------------|-----------|-------------------------------------------------------| | Dak Prescott | Start | QB11; strong matchup + bounce-back potential | | Kenneth Walker III | Sit | Committee worries, bad usage, road/early game | | Tyrone Tracy | Start | High snaps, usage — better days ahead | | Travis Hunter | Start | High target share, big role, upside matchup | | Cooper Kupp | Sit | Alarming trend, outside top-50 WR | | DeVonta Smith | Start | Past track record, KC is weak vs WRs | | Mark Andrews | Sit | Bad usage, crowded offense, outside top-20 TE |

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Closing Thoughts

The Fantasy Football Happy Hour crew provides both humor and hard-hitting advice, with a focus on not overreacting to Week 1 but being ready to shift strategies when red flags flash. Monitor trends (especially concerning RB committees and aging skill players), trust your analysis, and don’t be afraid to make bold moves — just maybe don’t honk at your co-workers at the green light.

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For more rankings, tools, and personalized insights, check out FantasyLife.com, and remember: it's always fantasy football happy hour somewhere!

Transcript

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[Matthew Berry]

It's just whatever. It's just one game. I think I lost week one last year as well. It's okay.

[Connor Rogers]

You like the Bengals?

[Matthew Berry]

I like the Bengals.

[Connor Rogers]

Slow starter. Slow, slow starter.

[Matthew Berry]

I got two titles. Honestly, I could not win for the next five years and I'm still good. I won two of the.

[Connor Rogers]

Oh my God. Good Lord, please.

[Matthew Berry]

I won two of the first three.

[Jay Croucher]

Years of this league.

[Connor Rogers]

The next five years.

[Matthew Berry]

He's saying. If I've got two titles in six years, that's still a pretty good mark.

[Connor Rogers]

Did you imagine the opening monologue of the draft after year five of no championship?

[Jay Croucher]

I feel like that's what Patrick Mahomes goes into the Chiefs locker room every season. Like, guys, it doesn't matter if we don't win one for the next five years. We've already banked three.

[Sponsor Voice (Indeed)]

Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry.

[Connor Rogers]

Welcome to the Fantasy Football Happy Hour, home of the five year drought, apparently. Connor Rogers Matthew Berry.

[Matthew Berry]

I'm just saying. I've got a leash. I'm just saying. Ownership, ownership, ownership. And the fans are going to Give me a long leash. They're so happy with the back to back titles. We're going for the title this year. But I'm just saying if for some reason injuries pile up. Barty lost Xavier Worthy.

[Connor Rogers]

There we go.

[Matthew Berry]

Injuries pile up. I'm just. You guys have something to prove. I don't have anything to prove, Andre.

[Jay Croucher]

Matthew Bay, one of the great babies of our time. Unbelievable position that he's taken out of the old diaper. One of the great caveat is, oh.

[Connor Rogers]

Nobody can survive an Xavier worth injury.

[Jay Croucher]

You're blaming George Kittle's injury for your loss in week one.

[Matthew Berry]

He's not even on your team. I know, but I was just distracted and sad by it.

[Connor Rogers]

You know, it was really good too that I would have beat anyone else. I would have beat anyone else except.

[Jay Croucher]

For me and him and everyone else.

[Matthew Berry]

No, I would have beaten back up producer Pete. I would have been producer Damien, producer Adam. Thousand percent. I was like sixth in points. I was like middle of the pack. Yeah, exactly.

[Jay Croucher]

But if I'd got played the other five, that's fine.

[Matthew Berry]

I'm still. Refer to me please as champion because until there's a new one, I am still your champion. You are still my. In the world of fantasy football, in our fake football league, there's another aspect as well. Lots to get to today. Connor, take control of this, for the love of God.

[Connor Rogers]

I am. But before we do anything, I have to start with a story. So I have an interesting start to the day here.

[Matthew Berry]

Okay, sure.

[Connor Rogers]

I get off the highway, get to a light. I'm waiting at the light. Light turns green. I'm waiting. I'm like, ah, this is kind of taking a while. This person in front of me must be kind of sleeping at the wheel. I need them on my level. I slam the horn and then we're driving in. I'm like, oh boy. This is somebody I work with. But a lot of people work here. Millions of cars here at work. So I'm like, it won't be that.

[Matthew Berry]

Big of a deal.

[Connor Rogers]

And it was on. I gave a long time for them to go.

[Matthew Berry]

Before you gave the honk?

[Connor Rogers]

Before I gave the honk. And I pull in and I'm like kind of curious who this was. I think it was you.

[Matthew Berry]

Oh, really?

[Connor Rogers]

I'm about 99% sure it was you.

[Matthew Berry]

Okay. Yeah.

[Connor Rogers]

But it was a hilarious look back.

[Jay Croucher]

Should we go forward when there's a green light, Matthew?

[Matthew Berry]

Probably. I don't know. Probably because Connor was behind me and effing me.

[Connor Rogers]

That's what I was wondering. I was like, I think Matthew is actually messing with me here. And then we went on our way and now we're on the desk for keep it open, close it out.

[Matthew Berry]

That's fair. Well, here's the. Yeah, but at least in the positive, you know, nothing will happen to you. It's not like, you know, it was one of the big bosses or anything.

[Connor Rogers]

No, it was actually reassuring. When I saw the outline of you, I was like, ah, that's actually perfect. I wouldn't want it any other way.

[Matthew Berry]

100%. Jay, what did you do last night?

[Jay Croucher]

I caught a foul ball, Matthew. Yankee Stadium took my younger brother Will, who's visiting from Australia, to the Bronx. And as the caption says on Twitter, I did have to stiff arm some children out of the way, but I was able to catch a foul ball off the bat of Rock Riley Greene. But it will go in my office and we will say that it was off the bat of Aaron Judge.

[Matthew Berry]

That's right. But it was actually off the bat of Riley Greene last night. So congratulations, Jay. And I also just want to say a quick thank you, thank you to the regulars. The regulars are out there everywhere. And the regulars sent me a couple of photos. Pete, show the first photo. So this is the kid. Oh, no, this is the kid that Jay stole it from. The Yankees were playing the Tigers last night. Yankees were playing the Tigers last night. And so this poor kid is the one that actually had a shot at the foul ball. Jay pushed him out of the way. Here's Gary's second photo, obviously.

[Connor Rogers]

Wow, that's a nice face ball. That's a real nice face.

[Matthew Berry]

It's absolutely a real photo. You can tell this hasn't been auto generated at all. Is that a potato? But luckily, luckily. Thank you, Riley Greene. There's a picture.

[Connor Rogers]

Oh, they made it right. They made it right.

[Matthew Berry]

Riley Greener and the kid. You know. Thank you to the Tigers PR staff and everyone in the Detroit Tigers organization. Thanks for.

[Connor Rogers]

Great job, Riley Grind.

[Matthew Berry]

You drank.

[Connor Rogers]

Great. Nicely done.

[Matthew Berry]

Well done. I couldn't believe.

[Connor Rogers]

That's evil, J. That's really messy.

[Matthew Berry]

Pushing a little kid out of the way to get a foul ball off Riley Green when he's a Yankees fan.

[Jay Croucher]

It's every man, Every man for himself and child in the foul ball.

[Connor Rogers]

Yes.

[Jay Croucher]

Now there's two. There's two caveats. So one may not have caught the ball on the full. There may have been some ricochets, but I ended up with the ball. It was airborne.

[Matthew Berry]

I caught her. No, you push the little kids out of the way I get it.

[Jay Croucher]

Secondly, it may not have been Riley Green, I can't remember, but it was either Riley Green or Kerry Carpenter. Either way, it doesn't matter. I have the ball. It sits in my office for all the time.

[Matthew Berry]

Right.

[Jay Croucher]

Yankees lost 12, 2. Wasn't a great result for the team, but we bounced back, we marched towards.

[Matthew Berry]

So just so I. I understand the full picture, just so our fans understand what happened is that so drunk at Yankee Stadium, a foul ball ricochets around you drunkenly put wasted. Drunkenly push a bunch of six year old kids out of the way, managed to grab the ball. Poor kid is crying. But thank you to the regulars. They all took pictures, they got it, everything like that. And. Yeah, but anyway, and then, you know, like, I'm sure you saw this on social media as well, but the Tigers organization saw it, they came back, made it right. They made it right as well. Is it was. It was your younger brother that you took to Yankee Stadium?

[Jay Croucher]

My younger brother Will, his first time watching baseball. He asked me when the Yankees started to implode, he asked me why don't they let Judge pitch? Which doesn't really. It's not how it works really. You just don't get your best player doesn't get to do anything unless he's Shoi Ohtani. But no, it was a great time. Very fun at the baseball. One thing about the foul ball situation though, which is the first time I've caught one. Won't be the last. Definitely won't be the last.

[Matthew Berry]

No.

[Jay Croucher]

But as you catch it, you kind of look around, it's like, jeez, I hope there's no children around here. Yeah. And outside of the ones away.

[Connor Rogers]

Yeah.

[Matthew Berry]

And there was. We have pictures of them. Thank you to the regulars, as always for being Johnny on the spot.

[Jay Croucher]

And then I looked at them and.

[Matthew Berry]

I was like, nah. But real talk for a second. Yeah. Evil J knows no bounds. There's no question about it. Julio. Yeah. Like, is anyone surprised by that at all? I will say that is true. Jokes aside, I don't know if you guys could tell, but the second photo was AI generated.

[Connor Rogers]

Not the first one.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, yeah.

[Connor Rogers]

No, the first Riley Greene really did make it.

[Matthew Berry]

Green1 was completely legit, as was the first one.

[Connor Rogers]

The potato face wall is a little questionable.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, exactly. The first photo, which by the way, if you notice, the first photo is a day. Like it was a night game. Like it's completely.

[Connor Rogers]

And the child keeps changing. Is that the same kid?

[Jay Croucher]

That's definitely not Yankee Stadium.

[Matthew Berry]

This is. This is what I put in. I said, do you know NBC sports analyst Jay Croucher? Yes, I do. Here's all your bio. Can you take a picture. Can you create a picture of him holding a baseball happily at Yankee Stadium next to a crying kid in a tiger's hat? And that's what. That's what came up. So AI is coming, but we've still got a couple of.

[Connor Rogers]

We've still got a couple shortcomings with that. The chat is loving this, by the way. Salty old dog said, I'm more amazed that Jay has an office. That's a very good point. When you did say, the baseball will sit in your office. I don't know quite where that is. All right.

[Matthew Berry]

I don't have an office. Do you have an office here? I don't have an office.

[Connor Rogers]

I throw my book bag in the corner of the studio, usually.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, exactly.

[Connor Rogers]

I don't even have a place to park anymore. I'm not kidding.

[Matthew Berry]

That's right. I double parked, too. That was the other thing is I took two spots.

[Connor Rogers]

Good for you. Point. You got to show your status.

[Jay Croucher]

Surprising.

[Matthew Berry]

But real talk for 10 seconds. If. If I actually was at a baseball game and caught a foul ball, I would not only be. Look, I would try to find a kid. Like, I would chase down a kid like some kid with cotton candy. Hey, hey. Here, take the ball.

[Connor Rogers]

I don't want to hold this. I don't want to be on camera.

[Matthew Berry]

I don't want to be on camera.

[Connor Rogers]

Near any kids get canceled at any moment. You're done.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah.

[Jay Croucher]

I was very happy with how it played out.

[Matthew Berry]

Also.

[Jay Croucher]

I was thinking about giving it to my brother who's visiting from Australia, but that thought passed pretty quick.

[Matthew Berry]

No, he doesn't appreciate it.

[Connor Rogers]

He's like, what do I do with this? Does Aaron judge need this back so he can close out the game?

[Matthew Berry]

Did you think about when you came home, bringing it to one of your children who, once again, you left at home for the night? Yes. Ignoring them.

[Jay Croucher]

I thought about it, and then I thought, no, I like the baseball more than I do.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah.

[Jay Croucher]

So I keep it myself.

[Matthew Berry]

Exactly. Exactly.

[Jay Croucher]

Okay.

[Connor Rogers]

We're finally here. You can tell. You could really tell. It's a backup producer payday.

[Matthew Berry]

Oh, yeah.

[Connor Rogers]

Rolling in the tv on the video and saying, you guys got this.

[Jay Croucher]

Gotta watch Deadpool Society.

[Connor Rogers]

Yeah. So believe it or not, we're gonna just start.

[Matthew Berry]

Sit.

[Connor Rogers]

Keep it open or close it out. Steven is somewhere enjoying his life and Adam. And we've never lost him like this.

[Matthew Berry]

When Pete is in. So it's so interesting.

[Connor Rogers]

You guys watch a movie, you do the show. Here's AI generated video games.

[Matthew Berry]

I think I got this right. Oh my God. I'm just gonna sit by the desk reading field and scream.

[Connor Rogers]

I'm just gonna like the control room's staring at him. Like please press some kind of button. All right. We did get the keep it open or close down animation. It's our version of Start sit here at the fantasy football happy hour bar. And we're gonna start with Dak Prescott, who by the box score and by the fantasy numbers did not have a great week one. But by the tape, Dak looked pretty good, which inspires at least some hope for me. Matthew, a bounce back against the Giants. Where does he come in for you with your rankings and is it enough to start dak in week two?

[Matthew Berry]

I'm in my initial week two ranks as QB11, so I am keeping it open. I am starting him this week. First off, we expect the Cowboys to offense to be pretty good against the Giants, right? They have an implied team total of over 25 points. That's top 10 on the week two slate. Remember that game against Philadelphia? Four drop passes, obviously a lot of them on CD Lamb, my guy eight that was tied for the most in week one. So I thought Dak looked really good and they actually should have had more, you know, there should have been more meat on the bone if CD Lane comes down with a with passes that he normally does. Remember also that was the Thursday night game. So they've, they're off the mini buy. They've had 10 weeks, 10 days to prepare for a home opener against a Giants team that's now traveling to Dallas. I thought that, you know, Jayne Daniels missed a couple of throws as well. But if there's a, if there's a flaw in the Giants defense, it's that secondary where I think you can really attack. They allow the six most yards for completion of week number one. Jay, I think all wheels up and if somebody in your league is panicking about Dak Prescott, go trade because I thought he looked brilliant.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, thought he looked spry was the big thing last year. He looked a little bit lethargic. He didn't look as athletic. He looked slimmed down, giggling, still laughing about get your eyes closed.

[Matthew Berry]

Like just the backup producer Pete thing that the assistant.

[Connor Rogers]

Take the wheel.

[Jay Croucher]

Jay.

[Matthew Berry]

Please, please.

[Jay Croucher]

My Giants are no good as well. That's the other problem and I think the Dak, he will like them. Also those four drop passes, they weren't like little five yard out routes like they were dropping 50 yard bombs. Also, he would have had a touchdown if not for a pass interference call. Like Dak looked excellent in Week one and he's got an easier matchup this week against the Giants. And also I don't think the Giants are going to sustain a lot of drives even against a pretty mediocre Dallas defense. I think Dak will have the ball a lot. I think it's going to be a throw a lot offense. I think he is going to statistically a lot more resemble 2023 Dak than first half of 2020.

[Matthew Berry]

I would say. I thought he looked slimmer too. It looks like he's moved well right.

[Connor Rogers]

In really good shape. I'm with you guys. I am very optimistic about a Dak rebound. Obviously you have him QB11. It's not like we're thinking Dax can have a top three to four quarterback fantasy week, but I think a rebound for Dak but somebody I'm not as optimistic on Jay is Kenneth Walker and it's not just we talk about health with Kenneth Walker a lot. This is not a good matchup in this game against the Steelers, but the usage is what's concerning to me compared to Zach Charbonnet.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, it seemed like Zach Charbonnet's backfield and Kenneth Walker he didn't look good. He didn't look explosive. His rush yards over expectations really poor. He's going against the Niners defense. Their run defense has been one of the worst in the NFL the past two years. I think they really fixed it. Even though they addressed some aspects in the draft. They just couldn't get anything going on the ground either. Seattle, I think they have to throw the ball a little bit more against Pittsburgh. I said Pittsburgh's defense and cover itself in glory against the jets but still regressed. That should be a very good defensive line. So tough matchup for Kenneth Walker, tough usage situation and just tough look for how he looked overall.

[Matthew Berry]

So not only did he not get the usage that I think a lot of people drafted expecting, but he didn't get the high value touches that we want right? Charbonnet saw twice as many red zone rushes as Ken Walker. The only goal line carry went to Charbonnet, not Ken Walker as well. We talked about this throughout the whole preseason saying like Walker is banged up, Charbonnet looks awesome, awesome. And we have no guarantee that Clint Kubiak in his first year as offensive coordinator coming into the situation fresh isn't going to be like yeah, give me a committee that he's Going to do what other coordinators previously to him that all got fired, by the way. We're like, yes, it's all going to be Ken Walker as long as he's healthy. And if he's out, then it's Charbonnet. Charbonnet has proven he can be a number one running back in this league when he gets an opportunity. And so you think about this, 40 and a half over, under, it's the lowest on the week to slate. Now, obviously the lowest in the week to week one slate was Jets, Steelers. Right, Right. And you know, that was a, that was a bonanza. So it's not always right. But I just. There was nothing from the Seahawks offense that gave me a ton of confidence. That where you're like, you're like, oh, yeah, let me get a piece of that. And to the eye test, Charvonne, just like the more looked like the better, more explosive back. And not just to me, but I think to the Seahawks coaching staff because ken Walker played 40% of the snaps, he saw nine fewer snaps than Charbonnet. This was a committee with Charbonnet on the top of it. I have Charbonnet ranked higher than Ken Walker this week. I'm closing it out on Ken Walker on the road at Pittsburgh until I see it again. By the way, west coast team going to a one o' clock game on the East Coast. You don't always love that either.

[Connor Rogers]

Ethan said it's my birthday. Do I get a shout out? Here's your shout out. Ethan. Thinking of trading for Kenneth Walker since I already have Charbonnet. Any risk in that matter, Matthew?

[Matthew Berry]

Sure. There. It depends. Who are you giving up? I mean, like, it depends on who you're giving up. If you're giving up, in essence, you know, somebody else who is on the wrong side of a committee. If you're giving up Kareem Hunt, then no, there's no risk in that. I like that, that idea. But if you're giving up somebody that went around the same range as Kenneth Walker, if you're giving up Tony Pollard, then yes, I would. I would much prefer. I'm making up a name here, but Tony Pollard. Ethan, I didn't know who you're trading to get Kenneth Walker to answer that question fully. But, but Ken Walker, I think his value right now is like, is a low end flex who's on the wrong side of a committee.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, he's kind of Jalen Warren.

[Matthew Berry]

Ish.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah. Running back on the other side of this matchup. I think they're on the same Kind of tier.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. Although Warren at least is the lead. Like, I, I feel it's going to sound insane, but I feel better about Jalen Warren as the lead in Arthur Smith's offense than I do about what I, I mean, I just don't think the Seahawks offensive line is any good. No, I, I think they're one dimensional with jsn.

[Connor Rogers]

Right. That's the thing. And I saw a lot in the chat was like, oh well, did you see how the jets handled the Steelers? Yes, The jets had 180 plus rushing yards, but the jets offensive line is significantly better and Justin Fields contributes to a lot of those rushing yards as well.

[Jay Croucher]

So do you think Clint Kubiak is a good offensive coordinator?

[Connor Rogers]

I think it's kind of a TBD because when he was had a healthy team for a couple weeks in New Orleans, it was like, okay, this guy knows what he's doing. And then the wheels fell off the bus as the health went out the door. But I mean they, they chose to sign Sam Darnold and Cooper cup and if those signings don't work out, like that's the decisions you made.

[Matthew Berry]

So I thought that's not Clint Kubiak's decision.

[Connor Rogers]

That's that for the coordinator has to have a big input in that though.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I thought Donald actually looked fine. I didn't think he played poorly by any stretch as they couldn't create anything in terms of the run game. They didn't have the ball very much either and cup just did not look good at all. But JSN looked good. Donald, I thought look fine. It's still given another week. Week one. You know, it's 100% of the sample so far, but still, I still think there is some hope for this run game. But if they don't do anything, it's Pittsburgh, then it's red flags.

[Matthew Berry]

It's week one and it's also week one against the Niners who they see all the time. Like it's two teams that are very familiar with each other even though it was a new offensive system. Still, it's like San Francisco has a pretty good defense.

[Connor Rogers]

Yeah, Robert Salah comes back, gives him boost.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, it's week one. Like Saquon Barkley didn't do anything on the ground against Dallas. Like we'll see. But yeah, not a great start for Seattle.

[Connor Rogers]

I think Kubiak will be fine to answer the question. But Kenneth Walker, that's one where I'm a little bit more pessimistic. We move to another running back in Tyrone Troy. The Giants offensive line was terrible Week one against the Commanders. Tyrone Tracy. If you want to be optimistic about anything in this offense, that's not Malik Neighbors Matthew. I think it's Tracy because he always passes the eye test and you in theory should be able to run on Dallas, although we'll see how that kind of holds this year as they've made efforts to change that. Can you still start Tracy despite how poor the Giants line was last year?

[Matthew Berry]

I get the question because I have Tracy in a lot of leagues and obviously I was disappointed with the week one output. The one thing that you can hang your hat on there, as you see it there on your screen, he played seven 73% of the snaps right. He had. He had 12, 12 total touches. Now wound up with only 35 yards and five and a half fantasy points. But if there's something positive like as bad as Tyrone Tracy was, he was better than Devon Single, Singletary and Cam Scatter Boo, right? Who you know the Singletary and Scatter Boo combined for five rushes two Scatter Boo got two receptions under three fantasy points for Scatterboo Singletary nine fantasy point. So they, you know they saw a combined seven touches for 18 yards. The non Tyrone Tracy. So was Tracy good against the Commanders? No. Was he better than who might replace him?

[Connor Rogers]

Right.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes, he was. It's worth noting that he had a 15%, 15.6% target share on third down. Tracy did so like again converted wide receiver from college. They'll use him some in the passing game as well. I think Dallas wins this game so and on the road I do think they'll want to. I don't think they want Russ throwing it like I mean they're going to have great. Yeah, it did not look great as well but I mean Cowboys did give up like 158 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns to the Eagles.

[Jay Croucher]

A lot of that was hurts.

[Matthew Berry]

I know it was. I know it was but like and Russ ran. Russ was actually top 10 in design quarterback runs in week one shocking right offense at 2025 shout out Lawrence Jackson. That was his his. That was his pickup line plus money and that that cashed he on Friday on Thursday show. I think he oh no. Sunday Sunday show. Sorry. Third time they'll run together. I got Connor Rogers honking behind me. You know I'm driving. It's all distracting getting the momentum off the show.

[Connor Rogers]

We got up to a great start today.

[Matthew Berry]

In all seriousness, when you honk I probably literally was on the phone with backup producer Pete going over what we. What do we want now? You're excused the IA Yeah. Just like that.

[Connor Rogers]

Backup producer Pete Bus rolled over. It wasn't me. It was backup producer Pete.

[Matthew Berry]

You're asking why was I stopped at a green light? Probably because I actually was on the phone doing that. I'm just being honest. Yeah. So. Yeah, no, no, no, easy. Listen, I. And then like, I took off my seatbelt and, you know, started texting. As soon as you honked, I'm like, all right, let me just, you know.

[Connor Rogers]

Generate a couple more photos. I can slander Jay. Yes, Very good strategy, obviously.

[Matthew Berry]

Anyway, I'm keeping it open on Tyrone Tracy.

[Connor Rogers]

Let's go to the wide receivers. We start with Travis Hunter against the Bengals here with Travis Hunter. I think what was promising, Matthew, was the usage or the desired usage. Maybe the results in the end weren't what you wanted, though.

[Matthew Berry]

They weren't. I mean, look, there was a. There was an opportunity there that had Lawrence hit him in stride, would have been like a 40 yard gain, if not more. Say under threw him. But the fact that he had a 27 and a half percent target share in week number one, he had an 82% route participation when he was out there. They were looking for him. And that's what you're hoping for here. They'll get better. It's also the Bengals. You know, the over under here is 48 and a half. I might take the over in this one. Give me the Cincinnati Bengals. Secure any passing offense. I think Travis Hunter, I'm keeping it open. I'm at wide receiver 26 guys. To me, he's a wide receiver three with some upside. You see my ranks right there. He's right there in the Ricky Pearsall, Tetaroa, McMillan Range there. It's kind of a mid tier wide receiver 3. Connor, what do you see from Hunter on the field in terms of his comfort level at the NFL level as a wide receiver?

[Connor Rogers]

Well, did they want to get him targets where he could try to create something after the catch? A little bit. But he looked every bit of the par of the guy that made the most of his touches at Colorado, where the short and intermediate stuff, his routes are very crisp, obviously, like you said. I didn't think Trevor Lawrence looked great in this game, by the way, which was probably the bigger concern because Brian Thomas Jr. Did nothing in this game. This game had the weird delay as well. Hunter. Hunter's stats were.

[Matthew Berry]

And the delay was early.

[Connor Rogers]

Yes, it was the second quarter, but I think he had four catches at the delay. And then the change of the pace of the game was a little different. So I was actually very optimistic about Hunter in fantasy after this game, even if the box score didn't indicate that.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, it was just a weird game overall in terms of the Jags are playing with the lead the entire time and I think the Drags will be solid and competent this year. They're probably not going to be playing with a double digit lead so consistently. Bryce Young was horrific. I think the Jags kind of. They didn't have to have a high volume passing game. They probably will to be able to keep up with the Bengals. So yeah, I think we'll learn a lot more about Travis Hunter. I'm surprised you rank him above T. Mac. I think T. Mac is going to just get a lot more volume.

[Matthew Berry]

I think he's going to get a lot more volume. But for me it's, it's environment. Right. So I mean just being on the road at Cincinnati to me is just like, like again, it's the highest over under in the slate. I just, I feel, I feel a lot better about that.

[Jay Croucher]

Than going against Arizona.

[Matthew Berry]

Yes, than going to, going to Arizona where, you know, like listen, the. Again it was against the Saints with the Cardinals defense is plucky. Like it's not, it's not a disaster, I guess is what I'm saying. It's not. Yeah, it's, you know, it's solid.

[Connor Rogers]

How about this? Username VEDFF Happy Hour regular. Oh, yes, thank you. Ved. Travis Hunter or George Pickens for the rest of the season.

[Matthew Berry]

That's a tough one.

[Connor Rogers]

It is.

[Matthew Berry]

That's a. But boy, that's, that's right there.

[Connor Rogers]

I would, I would still take Hunter. Yeah, but I think you get more variants like bigger upside plays, like best ball plays with Pickens.

[Matthew Berry]

I think that's right. I think that's right. Like I'm not freaked out about Pickens after the first week where he only got like three targets. I think something like that, like they'll take more deep shots to him. But you know, on the road first game, it's not surprising that Dak was like looking for CD Lam. I think I. Let me put it this way. I think I would take Hunter. It depends on your format. I agree with you. I would take Pickens in best ball but in regular season long Hunter. Because I just think that there are going to be more opportunities for Hunter to have the ball in his hands. Right. Pickens is going to be deep routes. Right. And just. And they'll take those shots and some of them.

[Connor Rogers]

And he draws flags.

[Matthew Berry]

And he draws flags.

[Connor Rogers]

Which doesn't mean anything for us.

[Matthew Berry]

No, exactly. But like with Hunter, they'll do bubble screens. They'll do the reverse that we saw with Brian Thomas that got into the end zone. They'll do without Travis Hunter as well. Like they're going to do different things to get the ball in Travis Hunter's hands in a way that I don't think they'll do that with Pickens. But it's. I think it's super close. Ved.

[Connor Rogers]

Yeah, Good question.

[Matthew Berry]

Do you think Ved's his real name?

[Jay Croucher]

Sure, why not?

[Connor Rogers]

Maybe it's his initials.

[Matthew Berry]

Do you think FF Happy Hour Regular is his real last name or do.

[Connor Rogers]

You ask that I'm sure of. It's on the birth certificate.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah.

[Connor Rogers]

Clearly a wide receiver with less optimism right now. Jay Cooper cup once again back to that Steelers matchup for Seattle. But he's outside Matthews top 50 wide receivers going into the week. Not a great start to his Seahawks era for Cooper Cup. And this kind of goes back to last year now.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I think you have to close it out on Cooper cup until you see something. I wouldn't give up on him entirely. Yet it still keep the door open. Like he did have weeks last year where look terrible, look terrible. Then explodes against Buffalo at the end of the season for an amazing game. He just looks so slow and plotting and drop, he's dropping catches. He just never drops. So yeah, I fear that it might be over for Cooper cup, but it's one week. Give him another chance. But can't take the risk of starting him until you see it closing out as well.

[Matthew Berry]

It's really depressing for me. As you guys know, one of my favorite players in the NFL, my little Cooper cup, it's been a joke for a long, long time. Love Cooper Cup. Have him on every dynasty team that I have. And. But you think about over his last four full games dating back to last year, he has 68 total receiving yards. He's not averaging 68 total receiving. Like in four games he's totaled 68 receiving yards. You have to go back to week 14 of 2024 to find the last time that he scored more than 5.4 fantasy points per game. Seahawks were 29th in pass rate in week number one. I know that the Jets Steelers game was kind of this wacky, you know, high scoring game that we didn't expect. But. But again, west coast team on the road at Pittsburgh. That's a tough place to play for a 1:00 clock east game. I just can't imagine starting Cooper Cup. I'm not ready to drop him just yet, but I would. I want to see it first. So yes, I'm closing it out to your point. He's not inside my top 50 this week. Let me see it. And he's getting close to being.

[Jay Croucher]

You know, I give him one more week because there's a few caveats. One, Seattle just never had the ball in that game. Like the Niners just had it all the time and they couldn't sustain any drives. And it's the first week in a new offense for with Sam Donald, everything. So give it another, more, another week. But yeah, be ready to, to drop him if he shows nothing.

[Matthew Berry]

The weird thing is, is, I mean like, so cup ran 24 routes on last week and got earned only three targets on those 24 routes. But it's just like who else are they throwing it to? I mean, is it, Is it. I mean like, are we good? Tori Horton, Jake Bobo? Like, I mean, like where are we? What's going on? I mean like that's the weird thing.

[Connor Rogers]

It seems hell bent on just trying to run the ball.

[Matthew Berry]

Right. I mean, maybe that's what it is.

[Connor Rogers]

But at some point you're going to be in a throw script. Like that's the NFL.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah.

[Jay Croucher]

So yeah, I mean, week one they were intent on running the ball and they never had the ball. So it's like, all right, you're never going to throw the ball and all. Every pass went to jsn. So they'll get more, more volume in the passing game.

[Connor Rogers]

All right, another wide receiver, a veteran wide receiver that also got off to a slow start. Guys, Devonta Smith against the Chiefs this week. But Matthew, we've seen this with Devonte Smith before. This isn't as alarming to me as Cooper cup up.

[Matthew Berry]

No, it isn't. And I want to give a shout out to my friend JJ Zacharias and who pointed this out, but the Philadelphia Eagle wide receivers had a 35% target share in week one. That is the lowest of any team in the NFL in terms of wide receiver target share in week number one. Over the previous three seasons, Philadelphia ranked second in wide receiver target share at 65%. So like typically when they're throwing the ball, they're throwing it basically to AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith and in this game they threw to their running back. They're through to Dallas Goddard a lot. Just, it was a weird game script and I don't know if it's because Dallas made a point of sort of like taking out the wide receivers and so Jalen hurts sort of took what was available to him. But I expect that to be corrected again like it's just way too low of a wide receiver. Target share again I want to shout out my friend JJ Zacharias and for coming up with that stat. Just think about the last time they played the Kansas City Chiefs. We saw it in the Super Bowl. They're playing this week obviously. Chiefs, Eagles. It's the big game of the week week 22% target share. He led the Eagles in receiving yards. Devontae Smith did as well. No team in the NFL allowed more fantasy points to opposing wide receivers in week one than the Kansas City Chiefs. I mean the Chargers, another run heavy team in theory had no problem attacking that that chief secondary like that was an area like they did not look ready for prime time.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I'd say the two passing attacks that underwhelmed in week one that I'm just not concerned about the Eagles and the Bengals because we just know what these teams are. We know what they're going to be. That's the same players. They brought back the same quarterbacks. We know where the targets are going to go and generally what the volume will be. I think Dallas are just playing a lot of soft zone which is hurt which led to a lot of Jalen hurts running led to a lot of Dallas got it. Targets over the middle. It's a lot of running back stuff you said that's just going to correct like AJ Brown, Devontae Smith are going to be fine. Now they might not get the volume that we hope but they're going to get a lot more volume than they.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah I'm at wide receiver 31 so I'm as a low end wide receiver 3 high end wide receiver 4. So in a league where you would normally start if you're in like a 12 team 3 wide receiver league, you're starting Devontae Smith. I'm keeping him open. If you would normally start him given your lineup and roster size.

[Connor Rogers]

Maybe the most alarming one guys, Mark Andrews. Jay this game had a ton of points. It had explosive passing attack on both sides of the ball. No Isaiah likely in it and Mark Andrews had a 5% target shot here.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I think this is one of the most underrated things in fantasy now is that the Ravens like just completely loaded at skill position players now even when Likely comes back he's going to add to that. But DeAndre Hopkins is going to get targets in the red zone. And that's where Mark Andrews should provide a lot of his value in theory. Zay Flowers seems like he's taken a leap. Rashad Bateman took a big leap last year and there's Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry taking carries as well. So there's just. I don't think there's a lot of usage to go around in this offense and I also think like this Ravens offense is just such a truck and that got a little bit lost because of the calamitous collapse at the end against the Bills. But I think this is going to be the best offensive football and it's going to be the best offensive football largely through the run game. And I just think there's going to be that many fourth quarters where they need to throw the ball a lot and you know, they're almost two touchdown favorites against the Browns who also have a good defense. And so it's not a great matchup there for Mark Andrews. So yeah, I wouldn't want to be starting Mark Andrews outside of very deep legs.

[Matthew Berry]

No. And by the way, if, if you left your draft with Mark Andrews as your starting tight end and that's it, like you need to make other plans.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, go get Johnson.

[Connor Rogers]

It's Harold Fanon time for you.

[Matthew Berry]

Harold Fanon time. Exactly. Juwan Johnson, Hunter Henry, like Breton, Strange. Any of the guys that are sort of out there because or even Isaiah likely by the way, Isaiah likely is somebody grab and stash because the stat I gave out on football night in America where part of my parlay one one leg of my. My DraftKings three play parlay was Mark Andrews to get four receptions.

[Connor Rogers]

Right.

[Matthew Berry]

Shouldn't be that tough. Four receptions. Especially when you think about the fact it was high scoring game that had like an over under a 51 heading into Sunday night. Over 80 cashed. But, but like in, in the four games the previous year that Isaiah likely missed, Mark Andrews had a 22% target show here and the Bills struggle against tight ends the previous year. Now they were also banged up and they were a lot healthier here. But still four receptions for Mark Andrews especially by the way, I just kind of felt like man, he had the bad drop in Buffalo last year. They brought him back. He's this team leader. He's a Ravens legend. Lamar is going to want to get him a couple of easy, you know, easy catches. Just hey, like be a part of this team, you know, let's exercise those demons. He had a 5% target share. He was targeted once on 16 routes he only ran 16 routes. He had a 68% route participation in week one. Guys. 30 different tight ends in the NFL ran more routes in week one than Mark Andrews. 30.

[Connor Rogers]

That's crazy.

[Matthew Berry]

Since the start of last season, in games in which Mark Andrews does not score a touchdown, he's averaging four fantasy points per game. Four like. And by the way, didn't even get to four on Sunday night. Didn't even get to four fantasy points. Like we'd have been happy with four points that have been above. So I just. Not only am I closing it out this week, but I'm just. You know, we love Mark Andrews, friend of the podcast the Mandrews, but great years in fantasy, but it just doesn't seem like he is somebody that fantasy managers are going to be able to count on consistently this year.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I would say. Like the thing is. So we see a question from Jess Dabs. Better start this week. Mark Andrews vs. Cleveland or Hunter Henry against Miami. Hashtag free the ankles. I say hashtag lock the ankles up, but oh no, I didn't even notice that.

[Matthew Berry]

Let's go.

[Connor Rogers]

Wow, what a day for the.

[Matthew Berry]

There you go.

[Jay Croucher]

Why are they so thin?

[Matthew Berry]

What do you mean they're so thin? Well, they're not thin. Why do you stand on these things? What are you talking about? I got good ankles.

[Connor Rogers]

Start Hunter Henry. Miami can't defend tight ends.

[Matthew Berry]

I have Henry a tight at nine this week. But I'll just say this. I think I could be an ankle model. You know how Costanza was a hand model in Seinfeld?

[Jay Croucher]

Have a bruise on one of them.

[Matthew Berry]

Well, you know what? I'm in the rough and tumble streets. I got into a fight in the parking lot. Some asshole honked behind me at a green light. Didn't give me a sense.

[Connor Rogers]

So yeah, that's what he came away with. Kicked him in the shit.

[Jay Croucher]

No, I had a point. I had a point on Mark Andrew. Yeah, here's the point.

[Matthew Berry]

Sorry that my beautiful ankles distracted you.

[Jay Croucher]

It's not a slide on Mark Andrews in general, but DeAndre Hopkins still has some juice left, which I think he does based on the insane catch against the Bill. Also, Diana was fine last year before he got hurt towards the end of the season. There is a very real chance that Mark Andrews is the fifth best pass catcher on a team that runs the ball a ton because if likely comes back him, Flowers, Bateman, Hopkins, Andrews might be fifth in the right order, which.

[Matthew Berry]

Is a problem on a team that runs the ball.

[Jay Croucher]

Very effective as much as anyone.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, by the way. And there's an argument to be made that like he might be six because they like Justice Hill in the passing game. They, you know, like, I mean, they do.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah.

[Matthew Berry]

No, but like on third down, like they, they like Justice Hill. We'll talk about the. The Ravens backfield coming up.

[Connor Rogers]

Just Pete wanting to move on and you two just going on and on and I enjoyed it. I enjoyed. I had the power. If we wanted to move on and move on, I decided to we talk.

[Matthew Berry]

More about my ankles. Yes.

[Connor Rogers]

To recap, keep it open. To keep it. I'm actually, I'll tell you what else I was laughing at in a second. But to recap, keep it open or close it out. Dak Prescott is an open. Kenneth Walker is a close at RB34. Tyrone Tracy is open to RB21. Better days ahead for Tyrone Tracy. Travis Hunter open top 30 play at wide receiver. Cooper cup outside the top 50 wide receivers. That's a close. Devontae Smith against the Chiefs should be a bounce back for him. Wide receiver, 31 and open. Mark Andrew at tight end 20 is a close. The last thing I was laughing at is the rundown just says any breaking news? Question mark Connor. Pete will let you know. I'm really supposed to trust producer Pete to tell me if there's any breaking news?

[Matthew Berry]

It really is. You know, why don't everyone tell me about your hobbies.

[Connor Rogers]

Yeah, there we go.

[Matthew Berry]

Is there substitute teacher Pete? Is there any homework? No, no, no. Just. Just everyone read quietly.

[Connor Rogers]

Watch the movie. It's nap time. We're taking our first break. When we're back, we're talking any concern around Ash after week one, we're looking at all the rookie running back outlooks right after this.

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[Matthew Berry]

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[Matthew Berry]

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[Matthew Berry]

What went in the decision to scratch Keaton?

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Numbers. Numbers. You just can't. You can't get everybody up, you know, and you've got to make a decision about who's going to be up and who's going to be down. And the number of snaps you can get. Keaton on offense are pretty. Are pretty limited. You're going to take Derek off the field, you're going to take justice off the field to do it. And those are all going to be designer plays. You know, that's what Keaton does right now. He runs the kind of the designer plays.

[Connor Rogers]

Boy, that was Ravens head coach John Harboy.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. Tough news. If you had ever been on a national television show saying, like, I think Keaton Mitchell's better than Derrick Henry, right?

[Connor Rogers]

Fade Derrick Henry.

[Matthew Berry]

Fade Derek Henry because of Keaton Mitchell.

[Connor Rogers]

Round three pick.

[Jay Croucher]

Unbelievable. I thought he was going to be a part of the offense.

[Matthew Berry]

What happened?

[Jay Croucher]

He could run in the prison. Never said he was better than Derrick Henry. Let's put words in my mouth.

[Connor Rogers]

All right, let's go to the photo evidence. Have we got any pictures of this?

[Matthew Berry]

The kid was not at the Yankee game, but he. He did draft Keaton Mitchell in the fourth round thanks to Jay Croucher funeral. Yeah, exactly. He was crying.

[Connor Rogers]

You got a Keith Mitchell jersey for his birthday. Now he doesn't know what to do with it. Thanks, Jay.

[Matthew Berry]

Somebody Photoshop crying kid in a Keaton Mitchell jersey. Because Jay told him. But you did. But you did Think Keaton Mitchell was going to be part of this offense, but that's tough talk from Jim Harbaugh.

[Connor Rogers]

So did I, John.

[Matthew Berry]

John Harbaugh, I should say saying, like all he can do is designer plays. Like basically that if you put them out there, the defense knows what's coming. Like there's no versatility to him. If I'm interpreting that coach speak correctly.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, well, three things. One, in those seg Two was starting with a hit piece on Croucher. Two, how about you design some different plays for him, John? Like, can we get some more plays for Keaton Mitchell? He's really fast and he seemed really good when he was out there in 2023. Before he get the Achilles, let's find some other stuff for him. Is he that much worse than Justice Hill? Really doesn't have more upside? I don't know. I'm guessing making the right. I'm not going to defer to John Harbour after the way that he butchered the end of that game. So let's get some better plays there. And three, what's with the grim tone, John? Was he Manchester by the Sea Mitchell? What's going on there?

[Connor Rogers]

He looked so grim. He was totally shell shot.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, yeah. It might have been after the week one loss. I don't know exactly when that press conference happened, but that was. That's a, that's a tough one. Keaton Mitchell, by the way, was a healthy scratch before the Bills game, before the Sunday night Bills game. And, and look, I think, you know, if you manage to ignore Jay Crouch's advice and draft Derrick Henry, as I did in the league of assholes, among other leagues, you're feeling pretty good right now. Admittedly, I'm 01 and you're 1 and O in our league, so, you know.

[Jay Croucher]

Maybe Kate and Mitchell wouldn't have fumbled the game away against Buffalo very hard.

[Connor Rogers]

And once upon a time, I know it was a very low extension, but this team gave a contract to Justice Hill. They gave him a contract extension. Like, we think you're worth paying as a number two running back. So they're probably going to ride that out. Unless he gets banged up. And then Keaton Mitchell, who is much faster and much more exciting, my play.

[Matthew Berry]

But Keaton Mitchell was kind of a trendy sleeper for deeper leagues.

[Connor Rogers]

Obviously he looks great this summer.

[Matthew Berry]

He looked great this summer. He had that one big play in the preseason where he was like, whoa, he looks all the way back. And then. Anyway, so feel free to drop Keaton Mitchell in non dynasty leagues, non keeper leagues. Looks like it's going to be quite some time before he gets on the field and full confidence obviously in Derrick Henry. We don't need to talk into Derrick Henry Connor, but we do want to talk about some of these rookie running backs and their utilization in week number.

[Connor Rogers]

One starting with Ash and Genti who maybe didn't have the dream start that everybody's hoping for. Especially Ashton Genti was a first round pick in fantasy this year. Obviously how early he was drafted in the real NFL draft. But I will say this Matthew New England under Mike Rabel they're going to do everything they can to make sure teams cannot run on them and the Raiders to their credit looked around and said we have Geno Smith, we have Brock Bowers, we have Jacoby Myers. Without Christian Gonzalez healthy for this game we could feast on this New England secondary. They didn't need Genty to be a hero.

[Matthew Berry]

No they didn't. But he still got 88% of the Raiders running back touches 21 of 24 running back Rogers he played 85% of the snaps. That's third among running backs in week number one. He got the goal line carry. He converted it. He looked good that. So Im as a top 10 play this week against the Chargers he's an RB1. I think there are no concerns about Ashton Gente even though the box score outside of the touchdown may not have looked like it it the usage is there and we know from Genti's talent if the usage is there the fantasy points and the opportunity is still going to be there. Right Production I should say a little.

[Jay Croucher]

Bit of a concern that he literally had negative yards before contact and the O line might be a problem for Vegas but it's also like what are you going to do about that? Like you're going to start him every week. You don't want to trade him after that week so there's nothing really to do except to hope that they play.

[Connor Rogers]

Better and I think the utilization and just overall eye test was good for Amari and Hampton as well. Jay this is somebody that that the Chargers came out week one shocked the Chiefs with how much they threw. It feels like this is one that the pendulum will swing back and Hampton's due for a big week soon.

[Jay Croucher]

I think two things can be true out of week one. One you can be a little bit surprised that the Chargers threw the ball so much that they have been now since the midpoint of last year the top two pass rate over expectation team in the NFL and this is going to be a throwing Offense, I think. But also at the same time, you can feel very good about Amari and Hampton and the fact that this is just unequivocally his backfield. And I don't think, like, yeah, as Najee Harris ramps up, what are they going to do? They're going to suck him 50 of the carries to ramped up Najee Harris. Like Maury Hampton, he looked fine. He looked good to me. Looked explosive. He's gone up against a tough run defense in Kansas City. Like, go back and see what Chris Jones was doing in that game. Like, he was just wrecking that game. And they have to play Chris Jones the rest of the season. It's like week 15 or something, so they get to avoid him. They'll have more success running the ball going forward.

[Connor Rogers]

Teams don't run on Kansas City.

[Matthew Berry]

No, they don't. It's one of the best run defenses in the NFL. I'll just sit here and say that, that this might be my favorite show we've ever done. Hearing Jay Hand, Jay Croucher slander Najee Harris. Like, just sitting there, a man that you loved for so long, hearing you, you know, admit, yes, exactly.

[Jay Croucher]

Now I'm a Riley Grain.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah. I mean, like, if there's one small concern with Amari and Hampton, it's that the Chargers passed so much in that game. Right? Their pass rate over expectation was, was off the charts. And yet Omarion Hampton still had a 6% target share. So I want to see him more involved in the passing game. So that was a little bit of concern. But 61 route participation, he got 17 of the 19 team running back touches, 89. His utilization score for week one was 68. Now, the utilization score, that's a metric that Dwayne McFarland of FantasyLife.com came up with. It's very simple. On a scale of 1 to 100, how much was he utilized? When looking at all the underlying data in terms of, you know, snapshare and, and routes and, you know, routes for play run and everything that they, that he does there, they played where it snaps, his route participation, etc. Etc. So his, his utilization score was 68. Very strong. Genti was 74 in week one. So just kind of an easy number to let you know, like, oh, this is a guy that's being used all the ways you want, or this is a guy that, that, that necessarily isn't. And so, yeah, I mean, I have Hampton at running back 14 this week. To me, the most telling thing about the game was at the end of the Game. They're against the Chiefs. They're against the AFC champion Chiefs, one of the best run defenses in the NFL. And they're trying to, you know, run out the clock. They're just kind of eat clock and not turn, get the ball over. And Hampton was the running back over there. Out there they were like, we still trust the rookie over Najee Harris as we're trying to ice this game. So I thought that was the most telling thing.

[Connor Rogers]

The two running backs taken in the first round usage, obviously extremely promising. Now is where it gets a little bit more tricky here, Matthew, as we move to a lot of the day two and beyond, guys starting with Travion Henderson for the Patriots, where listen, we know this is one of their most explosive offensive threats. But at the same time they aren't just ready to completely hand him the keys.

[Matthew Berry]

It feels like no, they aren't. Played only 34% of the snapshot. Ramandre Stevenson played the majority of long down and distance. He also played the two minute snaps. So 34% of the snaps, 34% route participation, just a 13% target share. Which, you know, we thought Hederson would be such a bigger part of this offense. He got 11 of the team's 21 running back touches, just 52%. Got only 38% of the running back rush attempts. Remember, Drake Mayo obviously took a lot of carries as well. I'm at running back 24 this week. Kind of a mid tier flex. His utilization score was only 57, which is not ideal, especially given where you drafted Henderson. All that said, I still believe in the explosiveness. I still believe in the, in the his role in this offense. And I think as they get more comfortable and teams have to account for Drake May's rushing ability, you'll see that more. He's just, he's a better player than Ramon Dre Stevenson. But Ramon Dre is the veteran. He's the guy that wants to, that they want to put between the tackles. They don't want to overload Henderson in terms of a workload because of the injury history. And I do think better days are ahead starting this week against the Miami Dolphins defense that did not look good in week one.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, there's a couple things. One, Drake May is not going to throw the ball 46 times every week. Two, like this is the baseline. This is the starting point. Like what direction is this going to go?

[Matthew Berry]

Go.

[Jay Croucher]

We're gonna get to week nine. It's like, yeah, now Ramondre is fully ramped up. It's his offense. Like this is only going to trend in one direction. I don't think it's going to get worse for Henderson, certainly. And it's just a matter of how good does it get. So, yeah, I agree with everything. Like, he is the more talented player, he's the more explosive player. And this offense is going to need to find explosiveness.

[Connor Rogers]

Let's take a look at the Fantasy Life plus tool, the utilization report, if you want to have your hands on exactly what we're talking about today and see this any backfield and Matthew, but let's talk about the Patriots still.

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, for sure. I mean, this is like an unbelievable tool that was designed by Duane McFarlane and the team at Fantasy Life. This is going to seem like a commercial and I guess maybe it is, but it is a legitimate tool right there. You can say, hey, what's going on in this backfield? So you sit here. I want to compare Henderson to Ramandre Stevenson. As we sort of see here, you kind of see like snaps, rush attempts, routes, targets per route, run targets, you know, I mean, this, every, what, what their, what the utilization scores are as well, what their snap percentage is, their rushing attempts, like every single. And you can, as you can see up there at the, on the upper right, weeks one through, all the way through the playoffs. Hey, what's happened? What's been the utilization since, you know, since week four, since their bye week. Like you can sort and, and search whatever you need to do, figure out exactly when you're sitting there trying to think about, should I make this trade? Should I try to acquire this player? Who am I starting this week? What's their usage? It's an incredibly helpful tool. On FantasyLife.com it is. And Duane has a free article, the utilization report. Just go check out that like on FantasyLife.com it's the best thing we have, I think.

[Connor Rogers]

Get personalized fantasy football insights based on your league settings. With Fantasy Life plus, your league is unique. Your advice should be to head to FantasyLife.com and use code code ROTO20 for 20% off.

[Matthew Berry]

By the way, you can also, I gotta check in on where the scoreboard is, but you can use J20, Connor 20 or Matthew 20 for 20% off just to see who you like more. If you feel bad for Jay after the beating he's taken today, J20 is the, is the, is the, is the code to use. Now let's go to the commanders here. We're sort of like, okay, well, Austin Eckler and Jaquori Krosky Merritt, you know Merritt obviously had the touchdown and looked good. Just a utilization score of 45. He got 10 of the team's 23 running back touches. That's 43%. But he also got 50% of the team's red zone rushes, which I think were a positive here. He had 10 carries, three of them went 10 or more yards. So we saw the explosiveness in a real life NFL game that we saw in the preseason as well, Jeff.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, we were a bit of a commander's insider, Matthew. So anything about where this is going to trend? Do you think they're going to ramp up and give JCM progressively more of the backfield?

[Matthew Berry]

Yeah, they are, but they still like Austin Eckler. They still like his veteran leadership. They still like him in pass protection. And Eckler is still good. I mean, I thought Eckler looked looked like Austin Eckler.

[Connor Rogers]

Perfect role for him.

[Matthew Berry]

Perfect role for him. Doesn't need to carry the full workload. He had a 19% route participation. This is JCM bill, with a 3% target share. So I think that ramps up a little bit. It played 29% of the snaps. I think this is ultimately going to be a true committee. I think it's 50, 50. I don't think it ultimately comes entirely JCM's backfield, but I think, you know, if you go back to last year when it was Brian Robinson and Austin Eckler and look at the games where both guys were healthy, I think that's probably a good sort of indicator of what we expect here out of the commanders.

[Connor Rogers]

How about the Broncos, notably RJ Harvey? Not a lot of work. He had the big run in this one, Matthew, but this is a backfield that is a extremely complicated right now.

[Matthew Berry]

His utilization score was 35, which should tell you what you, you probably already know. He played 31% of the snaps. J.K. dobbins played 52%. He got only seven of the team's 28 running back touches. So he got 25% of the team's running back touches. And the other weird part here, Connor, is that R.J. harvey had a 33% route participation. You know, like, like we think at least RJ Harvey was gonna be part of the passing, right? That was probably 7% of his routes. Tyler Beatty played in the long down a distance in the 2 minute situations. This is the thing we talked about in the preseason here. They don't trust RJ Harvey and pass protection yet. And so while they understand the upside, we saw it in that 50 yard run. There's concerns here that are going to limit his playing time initially.

[Connor Rogers]

Right. And at cost. Jay, you were drafting RJ Harvey to not only break off the big runs but maybe be a little bit of a PPR cheat especially for Bo Nix that typically might keep the ball under control and check it down.

[Jay Croucher]

Yeah, I think the key is it's just the J.K. dobbins played 52% of the SN. This offense did not look good.

[Matthew Berry]

No.

[Jay Croucher]

And it can obviously get better and it probably will get better. But I think the hope that this would like bonus year two would come out significantly improved player and this was going to be, you know, a top 10 offense with a lot of scoring opportunities and a lot of valuable fantasy real estate still possible. But you have to downgrade those expectations because Bonix looked like a bottom five quarterback against the Titans and he gets a Colts defense this week that's pretty, pretty frisky as well.

[Matthew Berry]

This will be a fascinating game on Sunday against the Colts on the Denver on the road at the Colts who obviously that defense looked really good against Miami so it'll be a really telling week for the Broncos offense this week.

[Connor Rogers]

I think our last one guys. Caleb Johnson. Listen, Caleb Johnson was not a part of the offense was out there on the kick return team. I've never seen a utilization score of 2. He actually got two points on the utilization score. It just feels like Jay Arthur Smith is going to lean on the veterans in both Kenneth Gainwell and Jalen Warren.

[Jay Croucher]

And Darren Rodgers is going to land on those. Is there any reason Caleb Johnson should be rostered? Matthew?

[Matthew Berry]

I mean I meant running back 60, I guess. No, I mean like I get it depends on the bench, your bench size. I do think a role comes for him at some point in the season like but it's going to take a few. It just depends on how patient you are. But like if I'm stashing a running back, like I'd much rather Quinton Judkins than Caleb Johnson. If I'm stashing a running back that's not really playing right now. Like I just. Yeah, I'm, I'm nervous. He ran zero routes. He's not involved in the passing game and so if he's not getting the, the rushing yardage, he's my running back 60 this week and I might be too high.

[Connor Rogers]

We're going to take our last break. When we're back back to the futures returns, our favorite awards and futures bets right after this.

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[Matthew Berry]

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[Connor Rogers]

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[Jay Croucher]

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[Connor Rogers]

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[Jay Croucher]

Wake up Matthew with the green light.

[Connor Rogers]

Oh, back to the futures.

[Matthew Berry]

Honk honk. See, you can see how it happened.

[Connor Rogers]

Jay, what do you got for us?

[Jay Croucher]

Got your man Aaron Glenn. Friend of yours. Not a friend of Aaron Rodgers, but a friend of mine too. He's 18 to 1 to win coach of the year. The jets are plus 650 to make the playoffs. I think that's incompatible. If they break the longest playoffs drought in the NFL, then I think he'll win Coach of the Year.

[Connor Rogers]

I agree Jay. Matthew, what do you like on the board?

[Matthew Berry]

How about Tetaroa McMillan for Offensive Rookie of the Year at + 1500? No rookie wide receiver had more receiving yards in week one than Tedro McMillan. I get that Emeka Buka got all the headlines with the touchdowns, but Chris Godwin's going to be coming back. McMillan is all the Panthers have. They should be in negative game script thrown quite a bit. Give me T. Mac for Offensive rookie of the year plus 1500.

[Connor Rogers]

I like that play. I think T. Mac's going to have a big year. I'll go for Defensive Rookie of the Year. And yeah, it's easy to bet Abdul Carter because he's been amazing, but I'll play a long shot. Will Johnson was awesome and he's plus 501500 should have been a first round pick. Medicals had some teams holding back on that. Well, those teams could look very dumb with how great his Week one was.

[Matthew Berry]

I like it. I like all three of those bets. All right, well listen, it's closing time, which means you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here if you're at a ballpark and you see Jay Crouch or please for Connor J. I'm at the Peace House. Sam.

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