September 23: Matthew (@MatthewBerryTMR), Jay (@croucherJD), and Connor (@ConnorJRogers) detail why Trey Benson should be the top waiver target of the week following James Conner’s injury. They also highlight Darnell Mooney, Elic Ayomanor, and Tre Tucker among a long list of pass catchers to consider this week before reacting to breaking news of the Giants naming Jaxson Dart their starter this weekend against the Chargers. The trio also examines Mark Andrews scoring twice on Monday Night in a game dominated by the Lions running backs and finishes the show with their favorite early-week bets on sides and totals in Week 4.
Loading summary
Matthew Berry
Traditions have the power to bring a whole city together. Tapas tailgate in the pouring rain or refuse to wash that lucky jersey. And tradition is what inspires Tostitos to make their masa the traditional way, starting with whole corn kernels and made with no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives crafted for that perfect crunch. Anytime I'm watching football on Sunday, I look around and there's always somebody eating Tostitos. Whether you're at the tailgate or home watching with friends, choose Tostitos for your next game day. Tostitos tradition matters. Official chip and dip sponsor of the NFL. If you're a maintenance supervisor at a manufacturing facility and your machinery isn't working.
Jay Croucher
Right, Grainger knows you need to understand what's wrong as soon as possible.
Matthew Berry
So when a conveyor motor falters, Grainger offers diagnostic tools like calibration kits and multimeters to help you identify and fix the problem. With Grainger, you can be confident you have everything you need to keep your facility running smoothly.
Jay Croucher
Call 1-800-granger.
Matthew Berry
Click granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done.
Jay Croucher
Undertaker gift for the ride or die.
Matthew Berry
That's right. Yeah.
Jay Croucher
That's right.
Matthew Berry
Bolt up, baby. Bolt up. Omarion Hampton, baby. Number eight on the field, number one in your hearts. Fantasy ride or die. Suck it, haters. Daniel Moultrie. The ankles will be sweating due to his multiple victory wraps around Hampton. They won't be sweating. Oh, no. These. These ankles are ready to rock. They're in good shape. There's been no victory left. They're fresh.
Connor Rogers
Very fresh.
Matthew Berry
Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry.
Connor Rogers
Welcome to the Fantasy Football Happy Hour. Connor Rogers. Matthew Berry, Jay Croucher. Yes, A nicely done victory lap from Matthew yesterday. But today we're here to help those that need.
Matthew Berry
Need help.
Connor Rogers
It is.
Jay Croucher
Waiver wire finally here.
Matthew Berry
I'm sure we will. I'm sure we will.
Connor Rogers
Hangover right now.
Matthew Berry
You have no idea. Look so crazy. Monday night Football game. Tons of Monday night miracles. You know, whether it was Jir Gibbs or Dave Montgomery or Mark Andrews on America's Benches. A lot of people coming through. Troy Olsen saying, this is my favorite Daily Show. I appreciate that. Not to be confused with the Daily Show.
Connor Rogers
Right?
Jay Croucher
We're just.
Matthew Berry
We're a show. We're a show that's on every day. That's right. That's. Way to look at the schedule, Connor. Nice job there. We have lots to get to. People. People need their waivers. Some people more than others.
Jay Croucher
Not him.
Matthew Berry
Me. Sure.
Jay Croucher
We'll get into that for sure.
Connor Rogers
Electric Monday Night Football game. Lions, Ravens. We're going to cover all of that later, but let's jump right into waiver wires, because that's what we do every Tuesday for you, the regulars that are here with us. And of course, we start with running.
Matthew Berry
I don't want people to feel exclusionary. I don't want people to feel like they.
Connor Rogers
They can't either in or you're out.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, no, no. You can join in the reindeer games. Like, just come in, the water's warm. There you go. All right.
Connor Rogers
Trey Benson with a tweet for James Conner. Got you for life. 6. I promise. Trey Benson ready to take over this backfield after a devastating injury to James Conner. We got to hear from the quarterback of the Cardinals, Kyler Murray, on the run game moving forward.
Matthew Berry
Not only is he my teammate, you know, I feel like that's.
Jay Croucher
That's a brother of mine.
Matthew Berry
Just, you know, see him go down like that, you know, you never want to see that. I understand it's part of the game, but it's not what. You know, it's not ideal. You know, all the work that he puts in and just who he is as a person, you don't want to see him get hurt like that. We got to continue to go. We got to continue to get better and be able to. We got to be able to run the ball.
Connor Rogers
Waiver wired. That was Kyler Murray. A very defeated Kyler Murray. Very upset Kyler Murray. But it is Trey Benson time in Arizona. As you look at what he's done through the first three weeks, obviously the snap rate skyrocketed in week three with the Conner injury. Matthew, that's not going to slow down anytime soon, especially against the Seahawks this week where he is now the RB one of this team.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, unfortunate James Conner. We love James, much like his teammates, friend of the show, been a fantasy stalwart for so many years, but. So we wish him a speedy recovery. But yes, it is Trey Benson time in Arizona. And more importantly, this is one of those guys, like, if you've been saving your number one waiver pick, if you've been saving all your fab money, this is the kind of player you go blow any of that on because he's potentially a league winner. He is going to get the majority of the work for a pretty good offense. Not an amazing offense, but an above average offense. Following James Conner's Injury, he played 87% of the snaps. He had an 87% snap rate at 50%. Route participation on the season he's averaging 6 yards per carry. He's a little bit inconsistent. Connor Amari Dimacardo is going to be the third down back but still Benson's going to get the majority of the work again on a better than average offense. Don't know that. He loved the matchup this week against home to Seattle. Then they're at Indy, then they're home to Green Bay, then it's a buy. So the next four weeks I'm just. You know what I mean, like we're telling you, go pick up Trey Benson, go spend all your fab, everything like that. But just understand that it may be a little rocky coming over. Although I will say listen, the Browns ran on the packers last week, you know, Quinton Judkins and again, just even if it's not the most efficient workload in the next couple of weeks because the lineups they're playing Jay, the volume is going to be there for Trey Benson.
Connor Rogers
As you see this one from Cameron Thompson. If I'm good at running back, he has Bijan and Bucky. Good for you. And need wide receiver. Would Benson for Ladd make sense? I think that's a great trade if you play Bijon and Bucky.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I would do that trade in a hard time.
Connor Rogers
Great situation.
Jay Croucher
Yep. I prefer Ladd. I mean this Cardinals offense, look, Trey Benson is going to be the featured guy in a run heavy offense that has Kyler Murray a quarterback which is still for Kyler's sins. It's still a cheat code to have a running quarterback like that for rushing efficiency. And they have to run the ball because no one on the team can catch outside of Trey McBride. I don't know what's going on with Marvin Harrison Jr. Or the rest of that receiving.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Jay Croucher
So yeah, it's a question of what type of ceiling can Troy Benson get to him. A little skeptical that he's going to be like a legit RB one or anything like that, but he's going to be a guy that you're starting every week.
Connor Rogers
I don't know if their line is good enough for him to be an RB one, but the sheer volume is. I mean this is a team in rushing attempts last 11th. When you look at yards, seventh. When you look at yards per attempt second. So like the offense structure, there is ability there to run the ball and Benson's talented. Just because he's been buried, don't sleep on how talented this guy is.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I mean I think, I think there's some inconsistency like Lawrence and I have talked about this before but you know, Lawrence and I were talking to an offensive coach on the, on the Cardinals and we were asking him in the off, this is at the combine, we're asking him sort of like, you know, hey, what's the deal with Benson? And they're like, listen, if you call a play that you know is supposed to get you six yards, Trey Benson either gets you 20 or like three. Like he just, he's always trying to break one which is one of the. Because he's so explosive and that's exciting. But I think it's one of the reasons why at least initially they went with a veteran Conner who was able to execute it. But it does feel like as we saw Benson's snaps increase, that there's a little bit more of a maturity and a little bit more patience to Benson's game and including to the great breakaway speed and power. So we do think Benson is very talented to your point. And the other thing that I think is interesting here, right, so you know about Trey McBride, you know about Marvin Harrison, like if I said okay, who's third on this team in target chair, it would probably take you a couple of guesses before you got to Trey Benson. He's got a 12 and a half percent target share so far this year in a part time role he's been playing behind James Conner and yet still he's third on the team in targets and so now that he's going to be playing almost every down well, I mean again, you know, Mercado is going to be playing DiMarcardo I should say is going to be playing some third downs but still, you know, anyway, you know, an RB2 for the rest of the season with some RB1 potential upside in specific weeks. Ryan Scott asks on YouTube, how do you compare Benson between Arizona's line versus Ashton Genty? Connor Rogers?
Connor Rogers
Well, at least you've seen the Arizona line be able to run block at times where the Raiders this year have not had one good performance of it. So I think the problem we have with the Raiders right now too that you can't say about Arizona. Through the first couple weeks the Raiders have been playing in pass heavy scripts. I mean they're in second half so it's like okay, time to throw the ball a million times. Where Arizona, yes, they've beat up on some cupcake competition, they've had a soft starting schedule but Arizona, at least there's balance in the scripts or at least run heavier.
Jay Croucher
Yeah, I would still take Gentee because he's Ashton Genti, sure.
Connor Rogers
No, without a doubt.
Jay Croucher
But is Tribe Benson.
Connor Rogers
It's crazy we're having the combo.
Jay Croucher
Yeah, no, I agree. I just worry like, what do you think is wrong with this Arizona offense, Connor? Because when I watch these games, they're just so stuck in the mud. There's just nothing explosive. I mean, there is something explosive. Marvin Harrison drops it.
Connor Rogers
Right.
Jay Croucher
So I just don't know. There's just. They don't seem to be in rhythm. Even last year they were more, I think effective than they have been this year.
Connor Rogers
Don't they feel like the NFC's version of Jacksonville where you have all these big hopes, like Martin Harrison Jr. Is out there. Kyler Murray's awesome.
Jay Croucher
Should work and then it doesn't. The quarterback is underway because of the lack of rhythm.
Connor Rogers
That was the conversation we had with Jacksonville yesterday. It feels like that with Arizona at times, but I don't know. I still have belief because there's so much talent.
Matthew Berry
Kyler drives me crazy.
Connor Rogers
I mean, drives everybody crazy.
Jay Croucher
Annoying.
Matthew Berry
Kyler drives me crazy. Like, is. Is Kyler Murray the worst good player in the NFL? If that makes any sense at all. Do you know what I mean?
Connor Rogers
Exactly.
Matthew Berry
He's the worst good player in the NFL. Yeah, he drives me up a wall and like I wish I could go back in time and take back my ride or die from last year.
Jay Croucher
To be fair, he got completely screwed by his receivers against San Francisco. He played well enough to win that game. He's a fine quarterback, but he's a league average quarterback. I think at this point where there were hopes that he would be, you know, a real needle mover, a top eight guy and just haven't really seen that.
Connor Rogers
So the card schedule.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, he's sort of middle of the pack. He's fine. Yeah. Quarter on good. But like he has the physical skills to be great. Connor.
Connor Rogers
He does, but it's just. How many years did we see the same start over again?
Matthew Berry
I know.
Connor Rogers
Here's Arizona's schedule. The Seahawks defense, which went absolutely bonkers last weekend, they have them on the shorter week here in week four, that is Thursday night football. Then Tennessee, the Colts and Green Bay before the bias.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, so I misspoke. Obviously, Week five that they have the Titans, so that gets a little bit easier there. Week 6 and at the Colts, then it's Week 7, home to the Packers. So it's a little bit of an easier schedule than I initially mentioned. I forgot the Titans game. I apologize.
Jay Croucher
Quick context as well. People might be surprised. Cardinals are underdogs at Home to Seattle, which isn't a great sign for where that team is right now. I understand they're banged up in the secondary, the Cardinals, but Seahawks are really banged up in the secondary too. I think Seattle's just the better team than Arizona right now.
Matthew Berry
It's a pretty thin week on the waiver wire. Again, Trey Benson is the clear shining star. That's the guy that you go and be aggressive to go get. But he's only available in about 48% of the league. So about half the leagues out there. He's already rostered. And so if you are not able to get Benson or if he's already rostering the league, there's not a ton of running backs that I love but here are some deeper league stashes that I think we're interesting there. So you see Benson obviously at the top of your chart there. We talked about Blake Corum on Monday, Connor about like just how explosive he looks and clearly given the fact that Kyron Williams has mistimed in every year of his his pro career, Blake Corum needs to be there. Woody Marks I think is interesting. 49% of the snaps in week three, only one fewer snap than Nick Chubb. It's been trending all the way up and just to the eye test. He looks like he's got some juice in a way that Nick Chubb just doesn't.
Connor Rogers
Right. That no one else in this backfield does. They're just looking for any kind of splash from youth and Woody Marks is a good pass catcher. And the Texans right now they can't protect CJ Stroud where they might have to get some of those dump offs working.
Matthew Berry
Ollie Gordon, I thought Jay looked good on Thursday night. Now some of that may have been because listen, Thursday night game. Achan had had a big workload the previous week so they may want to get especially on the road at Buffalo. They may have wanted to get Gordon moving a little bit more because they didn't want to, you know, just on a short week give all that much work to Achan. But still I thought he, I thought he looked the part and when they get in close they're using him. He's got 75% of the dolphins goal to go rushing attempts this year, 67% of their red zone rush attempts. And I thought he looked good enough on Thursday night against the the Bills last week that he's earned kind of a probably a bigger role. Hn still going to be fine.
Jay Croucher
Yeah.
Matthew Berry
But I do think Ali Gordon needs to be rostered in more leagues.
Jay Croucher
Yeah, I think so. I worry a little bit that the Bills rush defense just might not be very good given what Baltimore did to them in week one. And Baltimore haven't been able to generate much at all on the ground in the past two weeks though. Going up against a couple good run defenses. Yeah, with Ollie Gordon, he's going up against the jets which is pretty favorable of a matchup. There's not many games where the Dolphins are going to be two and a half three point favourites, so this a good matchup for Ollie Gordon.
Matthew Berry
Rounding out that list, Kareem Hunt. Look, nothing exciting here, but he's getting almost 50% of the Chiefs running back touches through games, including all their goal line attempts. When they get in close, Cream Hunt's the guy they use and 46% of the team's running back touches through three games. Chris Rodriguez active in this game. I know that Jeremy Nichols had the, had the, you know, the splashy run touchdown. Of course everyone loves Jakory Crosby Merritt, but Chris Rodriguez is involved offense. He actually led the Commanders with 11 rushes in Week 3, including two goal to go rush attempts. It was a weird game where they got out big and the Raiders made a run to make it a little bit closer than this. The game wasn't as close as the score indicated the Commanders were so that may have affected that somewhat. But it's going to be a three headed committee and McNichols looks like he's the more. McNichols is probably the closest comp to Echler in this offense and Rodriguez and JCM so it's a three headed monster. So Chris Rodriguez and Jeremy McNichols Oscar asks I have Kyron Stock. Should I drop Tootin for Corum?
Connor Rogers
I want to see your bench Oscar. That that's the decision. Like there's no one worse than Bashal Tutin to drop. Yeah, yeah, I wouldn't want to drop Bashal Tootin right now, but if you have Kyron Coram as one of the most valuable handcuffs in the entire league.
Jay Croucher
Jacksonville's schedule is also about to get a bit more real so they may not be in run scripts as much. I do think though that like in a nutshell I'd much rather have Tootin than Coram, but if you have Kyron, it's really just about injury risk though. So every year, yeah, he does get hurt every year.
Connor Rogers
Blake Corum might have four weeks this year where it's like thank God I had Blake Corum.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I just think Oscar. Like I think Oscar, that's a Good question. That just sort of like a very quick general discussion about roster construction. Generally speaking, like it depends on who else you have. But like I would want to drop almost. Not almost anyone else but like ideally there's somebody else that you can drop for Corum while still keeping Tutin. You want to protect that. That LA Rams starting running back. But we think in terms of the backups, there may be no person that has as much upside as Baychal Tutanki. The explosiveness we've seen through three weeks. So if you've got like a Nick.
Jay Croucher
Chubb type, I'd rather drop him than Bashaltutin.
Matthew Berry
And the other thing that I would say here, Oscar, it sort of depends on how deep your league is. My guess is it's not. I guess this is an 8 or 10 team league if he. Right. But in a scenario where you're in more of a shallow league, I would not make this move. Yeah. Which is that in essence, like I'd rather kind of roll the dice that Kyron stays healthy all year and then you in Bashaw Tootin pops as opposed to just sort of locking it. I'd rather roll that dice. But in a super deep league where there's kind of nothing on the waiver wire, I think I would rather have Quorum because in an event where Kyron goes down and Tutin hasn't established a full time role, then you're. There's nothing.
Connor Rogers
You're sunk.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, we sunk. So it's a little bit of like sort of league context. And. And by the way, are you two and one and three and oh. Or are you oh and three? Like also how, how patient can you be or how aggressive can you be? So all those things go into it when people ask questions. The more details you can give us, the better it goes.
Connor Rogers
Let's jump into the wide receivers here. We start with Darnell Mooney, who's still available in 55% of leagues because he started the season out injured. But Darnell Mooney is back and as we see there there Jay the target share phenomenal 11 targets in a game that the Falcons passing offense was absolutely miserable.
Jay Croucher
Yeah. So the Falcons, who are a bit of a disaster at the moment, but from a fantasy perspective, they're very easy team to understand in terms of their usage. Like from the receiving perspective, it's Drake London, it's Darnell Mooney and it's Kyle Pitts. And then Ray Ray McLeod gets cycled in for his Ray Ray McLeod stuff. And then the running back, it's Bijan Robinson and then Algier will come in every second series and take about half the work on that series. But with Darnell Mooney, I think it just comes down, Connor, to like, do you think that Michael Penix is going to turn the corner?
Connor Rogers
I do. I believe in the talent. I think the scheme has not been great this year. I don't know what they're trying to do, quite frankly for a quarterback that throws the deep ball really well. The offensive line has had some problems as well. And Penix didn't play well. There's no way around it. He didn't play well last weekend.
Matthew Berry
It was a disaster. Yeah, I mean, I mean like against Carolina.
Connor Rogers
Right. I mean just oddly don't play well against.
Matthew Berry
And what the craziest part, like it's one thing to not play well. I mean like he had no touchdown. They got shut out.
Connor Rogers
Right.
Jay Croucher
He lift them up last year when they play.
Connor Rogers
Yeah.
Jay Croucher
So why is this happening now?
Matthew Berry
They got shut out and they're not going to do this. But the fact is, is in the post game press conference and so far this week Raheem Morris has been asked legitimately, are you considering a switch back to Kirk Cousins? And regardless of what the answer is to which he's so far Raheem Morris has been like, no, no, no. Panic says, okay, but the fact that that's a legit question, the fact that that's not some, some kid trolling, but that's like you understand why they're asking that question. When you get shut out at Carolina, it's, you know, I mean it brings up all questions.
Connor Rogers
I fired their receiver coach this week.
Matthew Berry
I'm sure we're going to get into this the next segment but like I will tell you, I got cut in a guillotine league this week because I had like, I loved my team but Michael Penix was my quarterback. I'm like, jaden Daniels is out. Somebody beat me to Mariota. So it's, it's like, all right, Michael Penix, you know, against Carolina, Malik, my two wide receivers, Malik Nabors and Zay Flowers. My starting running back, Chase Brown, like I got less than 20 points from four players and that was all she wrote. Johnny Dangerly, definitely one of the regulars. Asks Darnell Mooney or Cedric Tillman going forward. That's a great question. I think I'd rather Cedric Tillman club said I feel better about his role, I feel better about his talent and weirdly I feel better about his quarterback at the moment.
Connor Rogers
In the short term, that's exactly right. I think what you're worried about, you can't think in long term, in fantasy, like you probably have to win weeks right now. The problem is I have confidence that Penix and Mooney are going to turn it around at least the second half of October. Where in the second half of October is Dylan Gabriel playing?
Matthew Berry
Right.
Connor Rogers
It's like what happened? The club said, well, they have a rookie third round quarterback and they're trying to figure it out.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, but don't you think 1000% Flacco would be. If Flacco loses the job, it's going to be a downgrade. Although I will. Like they're one and two, you know, they're, they're, they're one and two and with a decent field goal kicker, they're two and one.
Connor Rogers
Right. I mean they might have the best defense in football.
Jay Croucher
Yes.
Connor Rogers
Like I just watched that tape yesterday. I'm like, this is potentially the best defense.
Matthew Berry
And I would argue again, like I said, like they lost week one to Cincinnati because of their field goal kicker now.
Connor Rogers
Right.
Matthew Berry
There's, there hasn't been a lot that Joe Flacco has done where you're being.
Jay Croucher
Like, well, he's pretty bad in weeks.
Connor Rogers
The running interception was a comedy.
Jay Croucher
He was bad, but he was outside of that, he's okay. Yeah.
Matthew Berry
I still think again, we're not in practice. We're not seeing what Dylan Gabriel and Shadur Sanders are doing right now. And so my point is, is like I'm not sitting here trying to. All jokes aside for, you know, I'm not trying to tell you that I think he's great, but I think it's, you'd be hard pressed. Again, we're not seeing what's going on in practice, but given on what they've done on the field so far, I have to believe that Kevin Stefanski believes their best chance to win is still with Joe Flacco under center. Given, given everything we know so far.
Connor Rogers
Why make that move now? You just beat Green Bay.
Matthew Berry
Just beat Green Bay.
Connor Rogers
Most people think it's the top three team in the sport.
Matthew Berry
A thousand. And that's what I'm saying is, okay, fine, he was bad in week two, but my point is he played well enough in week one that they should have won that game and he played well enough in week three that they did win against what many people consider to be the best defense in football. Now they're on the road to Detroit next week. So, you know, Detroit defense had just made Lamar Jackson look human except for junk time. Not that I'M bitter. We'll get to that. Yeah, I'm sure we will. But anyway, Johnny Dangerly, I would say Cedric Tillman, I get the thing.
Connor Rogers
But like, oh, right now I am absolutely. If it's a start Set question, it's club set.
Matthew Berry
It's Club said. But he's asking who would you rather have on your roster right now. And I still think Club said, because I just think that they're not going to if Dylan Gabriel becomes the starter, it's going to be because they think he's an upgrade over Joe Flacco in terms of getting being able to run this offense and pass because Stefanski wants to throw the ball like they want to. They want to run Judkins and set up play action and so whatever. I got a soft spot for, club said. And also, by the way, Mooney, look, 27% target share in week three, 91% route participation since returning. But like he still hasn't, you know, it hasn't translated into fantasy production. He's playing Washington this week, which helps commanders allow the fifth most yards per game on deep passes. So hopefully they go to the tape and they fix it because obviously what went on against Carolina is brutal.
Connor Rogers
Our next receiver here, guys, Elik IO Manor, 79% available. I've been begging people to pick him.
Matthew Berry
Up since the spring. No question. I got to give you credit. Yeah, you have been on this bandwagon from moment one.
Connor Rogers
He has taken over the wide receiver one role in Cam Ward's Tennessee offense right here. And I understand Calvin Ridley still getting targets here, Jay, but you know, the argument's gonna be, well, El Guy Manor's productive right now because he's catching touchdowns. But as a prospect, what El Manor does at his size is catch touchdowns. So that's the point.
Jay Croucher
Yeah, this is a pretty simple one. I've watched almost every snap of this game because I'm a big Colts fan now. Saints are dead to me. Giants have been dead to me for a year. I'm a Colts fan now. I need Jonathan Taylor to do very well this year. But watching the Saints, yeah, the Saints are done. No, no, they're done. That's a wrap. But being a Colts fan and seeing my division rival, the Tennessee Titans, two things. One, Kenwood's good. Like Kenwood's good right now. His the way he uses arm slots and everything is extremely unique. He had the terrible pick six to Kenny Moore, but outside of that, like he's able to move the ball against the Colts. And then the other thing, the simple thing Is that Elik? I'm. Manor looks good. Kelvin Ridley looks terrible. Ward has a rapport with Iron Manor. Ward is going to get better as the season goes along. There's too much talent there. He's going to get more comfortable in the offense. And look, the matchup this week is not great against Houston, but Derek Stingley, banged up like that defense doesn't scare you as much as it perhaps did at a different point in time. So, yeah, I think Alec IO Manor, the reality is he's the number one wide receiver for a quarterback with talent and upside who is growing each week. So I think he should be rostered everywhere.
Matthew Berry
Forget the touchdowns. More receptions than Calvin Ridley each of the last two weeks. You mentioned Houston. And they're banged up secondary. Then at Arizona, then at Las Vegas, home to New England. So it's actually pretty nice schedule here over the next four games. And, you know, we always talk about Dwayne McFarland and his utilization score over@fantasylife.com which is a number from the scale of 1 to 100 on how much they get used, like, in terms of route participation and, you know, target share and everything like that. And through three games, Calvin Ridley's utilization score is 57. Elicaya Manor's is 60. Like, fourth round. They're using him more. They are using him more than Calvin Ridley.
Connor Rogers
Yeah, it's been something to watch. I didn't think it would be this early, but here we are. El Kio Manor is here to stay for that Tennessee pass game right now. Once again, 79% available. He's most likely out there in your league. I would spend a good amount of fab on him. Trey Tucker.
Matthew Berry
Greg Lau says, mind your AO manners.
Jay Croucher
That's Lord of the IO Manor.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, that's pretty good. Yeah, not bad.
Connor Rogers
Not bad.
Matthew Berry
That's a fantasy football team name.
Connor Rogers
We'll keep working on it. Trey Tucker, a name you probably didn't expect to hear. But week three, Trey Tucker.
Matthew Berry
Producer Adam thought it was funny. Just, you know, Greg, you had one run. Yeah, there you go. Adam liked it.
Connor Rogers
Trey Tucker, 96 available, nine targets. We talked about this Raiders throw script, which was wild in week three. Nine targets.
Matthew Berry
Like, what are we doing commanders? Like, what are we. What are we doing? Anyway, he was just burning by people. We talked about this. I know, I know, but still, it's like, you know, the same guy gets deep for three of them. Like, at some point, like, three touchdowns.
Connor Rogers
Is absurd for Trey Tucker, but here we are.
Matthew Berry
But like, on the season, he's got a 93% rob participation. He's got an almost 20% target share. So he's out there. He is. You know, we always joke about like, you know those guys that run wind sprints. He is literally wanting running wind sprints.
Connor Rogers
The cardio king until week three, 1,000%.
Matthew Berry
But he has seen an end zone target in every game so far this year, you know, whatever. 33% target share last week and that should earn him more time moving forward. They haven't been able to get the run game going and so the way the Raiders have moved the ball so far this year is on the arm of Geno Smith and obviously Bowers who seems less than 100%. He's gimping around on that leg and you've got Jacoby Myers. But Tucker is their deep threat and so it is going to be a little bit boom or bust. But playing the Bears this week at home, I mean like vulnerable secondary, you can throw deep. Especially assuming Jalen Johnson's not playing. I can't imagine he's back.
Connor Rogers
That might be the most ridiculous graphic we've aired.
Jay Croucher
Just lapping.
Connor Rogers
But it's like Trey Tucker by 16 points, wide receiver to Garrett Wilson.
Jay Croucher
Yeah. Had a thousand million percent more fantasy points than Jamar Chase. Yeah. It's a little, oh, believe me, a little absurd.
Connor Rogers
Let me ask you this. Do you think Trey Tucker scores 40 points in next three weeks?
Jay Croucher
Does he score 40 points? No. He does, but. No, I take that.
Connor Rogers
I don't think so either.
Jay Croucher
I take the under easily.
Matthew Berry
Might take. Might take the under. But do I think, do I think like he's a guy that has that, that can make your week in one play? Yeah. And do I think over the next three weeks, do I think that there's at least one game where Trey Tucker catches a 60 yard touchdown. Right. And winds up with like 16 fantasy points for the game and it's like.
Connor Rogers
A, you know, amazing. Best ball player, 1000% wish I knew that in the spring.
Jay Croucher
He's like bad, tame. Gabe Davis is how I think of him.
Connor Rogers
We got another comment here, guys. This one from Derek Ryan Tucker, or.
Matthew Berry
I assume you mean Troy Franklin, Trey Tucker or Troy Frank. I think that is a good question. I think I'd probably still rather Troy Franklin.
Connor Rogers
Me too. Just because he had a slower week. He's still out there.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Jay Croucher
He still got all the snaps. He just didn't get the production. But the underlying stuff was still there. So Troy Franklin.
Matthew Berry
I think there's a scenario where Troy Franklin or the second half of the year that Troy Franklin is the. Is the number two person on that offense behind Cortland Sutton. I think there's a scenario where Tucker's fourth behind Bowers Genty and then Tucker is fourth. So I understand the question. It's close, but. And against Chicago this week, I might. I might start. Might start Tucker. Denver's home to Cincinnati, actually, you know, but anyway, so probably starting Franklin. But yeah, I like the question.
Connor Rogers
Now we enter desperation play territory. Christian Kirk is 66% available. There really hasn't been a lot to love about the Texans offense outside of.
Matthew Berry
Nico Collins, but Christian Kirk is always.
Connor Rogers
66% available and he did have eight targets, but he doesn't even walk away with six fantasy points. I mean, I guess the question really for me is to you, Matthew. Do you think things are going to get better for this passing attack that can't protect C.J. stroud? And when they do, if it's not to Nico Collins, it just never really looks pretty.
Matthew Berry
Feels like it almost has to. I mean, look, this is more of a desperation I could see him being when we get to fantasy football pregame this Sunday in Dallas, Texas. By the way, Jay Croucher. Yes, sir. Myself, you, George Severicis and Lawrence Jackson will be in Dallas, Texas at Texas Stadium as we prepare for football night in America. Of course, the game next week. Packers Micah Parsons return to Dallas, but fantasy football pregame will also be on set next week. And when we do our desperation plays, I could see Christian Kirk being one of those.
Jay Croucher
You made seven points.
Matthew Berry
Yeah. Well, listen, Titans bottom 10 in terms of most yards allowed to the slot so far this season. Again, he did get a decent amount of targets in. Something has to give with this passing offense. Yeah, I don't think they'll be able to run against the Titans. So I do think Kirk, you know, it'll be second. Second week back. They've got to change something up, right? You know, because it's clearly not working so far. I will say so. After Tennessee, they're at Baltimore and then they have a buy. I have to believe that the bye week is where they really try to like get everything fixed because it does. It looks like a disaster so far.
Jay Croucher
It does. I think we're getting. There's still some shine on the CJ Stroud name because he was so amazing in his rookie season and then bowled out in the playoffs as well that year. But I think we now have. We have a year and three games of evidence that Stroud, like most quarterbacks in the NFL, probably can't overcome a Poor context around him. Like the absolute. The bosses in the NFL, like Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, just put them out there and they will figure it out. Like, if you put C.J. stroud on Indianapolis, I'm sure he'd be fantastic.
Connor Rogers
Oh, I agree.
Jay Croucher
He'd be amazing. But he's got a bad offensive line, he has one receiver and he has no running backs who move the needle. And I just. I don't think this is going to get. I think it's going to get a little bit better because Nico Collins is so good and Stroud is better than this, I think. But I don't think this is going to turn the corner that much.
Matthew Berry
It's a new offense coordinator for sure. But there's nothing. There's nothing that makes you feel like it's going to suddenly be two years ago. It's going to be C.J. stroud's rookie year. Just. There's. There's nothing there that, you know, just in every week where they struggle, I feel like CJ Stroud just gets more in his head. Just gets more and more spiral and. Yeah. Spiraling. Like it just. Yeah.
Connor Rogers
All right, before we move to Sterling shepherd, who's next on our list, got a little update here from Jenna Lane, who covers the Bucks for espn. Source tells me Mike Evans has a moderate hamstring strain. Three to four weeks.
Matthew Berry
It doesn't sound moderate. I have to be honest with you. Three to four weeks is what he had last year. So this is a bummer. Mike Evans is on my team in our show league. We're going to get to that.
Connor Rogers
But at least you haven't had Andrew.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, exactly. So. But this is just tough, obviously. Look, you know, I mean, I think. And that brings us, by the way, to Sterling Shepard. Obviously, we know a Mecca Abuka. There's a chance that Chris Godwin comes back this week. There. There were rumors about that. So we will see.
Jay Croucher
He's coming back. Otherwise they would have put him on ir. He's going to come back. Him and Wurfs are going to play this week. This is the strangest reporting ever. He's targeting week six. Then why isn't he on ir?
Connor Rogers
He's coming back.
Jay Croucher
They're both going to play this.
Matthew Berry
Yeah. Super weird if they don't. But will he be on a limited snap count? I don't know. But the point is that even if Godwin is back, and of course we know Emeka Abuka, but Sterling Shepard is now the number three wide receiver and potentially in some sets, he's the Number two, if Godwin doesn't play a full complement of snaps, he's right now he's third among the Buccaneers wide receivers in target share and route participation. 80% of the routes he's out there running. We like this offense now. They're home to Philadelphia this week, but shepherd is going to be more of the slot guy. I don't like. I don't love him as much outside. I'm just saying if you're in a deeper league, you could and probably have done worse than Sterling Shepard. He doesn't have a ton of upside. He's more of a floor play than an upside play. But the injury to Mike Evans does open up an opportunity for Sterling Shepard, who is already playing more than I think people realize.
Connor Rogers
All right, so to recap, Matthew, your top wide receiver waiver targets we broke down Darnell Mooney who's available in about half a league. Alec IO Manor, who is still almost at 80% CH your league. If he's out there, there's a lot of players you'd probably drop for him. Trey Tucker, monster weak, but there is a role in this offense. Christian Kirk, Sterling shepherd, some deeper ads of course. Luther Burden Tyquan Thornton got a lot of deep looks in Kansas City's offense.
Matthew Berry
He's got 53% of the team's air yards this season. The Chiefs do. Jalen Tolbert is likely to be Dallas number two wide receiver while our friend CD Lamb is out. He had five different games with at least 12 fantasy points in 2024. Parker Washington very quietly, I don't know that he's great, but he did have a 29% target share last week. He actually leads the team in targets per route this season. With Brian Thomas Jr struggling with Travis Hunter's role sort of all over the place, it does seem like there's a little bit of a rhythm there between Trevor Lawrence and Parker Washington. Torrey Horton has now scored in back to back games. Obviously he also had the return for a touchdown. A lot of speed. It's been up and down for Cooper Cup. We know JSN is the lead of this offense, but their passing offense seems a little bit better as well. I think it depends Jay, on what you're trying to accomplish this week in terms of hey, do I just need a spot start? We think has a decent matchup. Sterling shepherd potentially. But then if you're like no, no no, I'm just trying to look for somebody to stash that could pop in the second half. Luther Burton is somebody whose routes have increased Every single targets and routes have increased every week. Played 31% of the snapshot. I feel like it's only a matter of time. Borges, clearly the number three and potentially the number two in Chicago. Horton is another guy that I think Tolbert would be more of a, like a this week guy. Tyquan Thornton, more of a this week guy, you know. So it sort of depends on what you're looking for when you go to waivers, whether it's somebody you need just this week or just, you know, some bench depth that might possibly pop in a little bit.
Jay Croucher
Yeah, I think Horton's an interesting one because the Seahawks haven't played a normal game this season. They've all been weird. Like they never had the ball against the Niners in week one. Week two was a game decided by Caleb Johnson not understanding the kickoff rules. And it was just bizarre interceptions, that one. And they beat The Saints like 100 to nothing last week. So it just wasn't a real game. So I think there are going to be more games where the Seahawks do have to actually drop back and pass a bit more. And it can't just be JSN for everything. It can't be like, you have to throw it.
Matthew Berry
Other people. It might be.
Connor Rogers
No, I know you mean take them away.
Matthew Berry
Mooney and IO Minor, by the way, are both starts for this week and potentially people that we think will do even better as the season goes on and they get more familiar with their offense. I'm told in my ear that we have breaking news.
Connor Rogers
We do have breaking news as we move to the quarterbacks. That's right, the Giants are making the switch. Jackson Dart will make his career debut starting debut on Sunday against the Chargers.
Matthew Berry
Bolt up.
Connor Rogers
Talk about throwing the kid into the fire.
Matthew Berry
He is a priority on the waiver wire for leagues where he's available. You know, I will tell you like he is. I just think Connor, what we saw in the preseason, like the mobility he brings. I mean, listen, they've been running Russell Wilson. They've been running Russell Wilson in terms of like, in terms of how that Giants offense goes or putting him on design runs. And so Dart, who is.
Connor Rogers
Which looks great.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, but I mean, but like, he's. That's the offense. But it'll look.
Connor Rogers
It'll look much better with Dart.
Matthew Berry
That's my point.
Connor Rogers
100%.
Matthew Berry
That's my point is that like, design quarterback runs are part of the offense that Brian Daboll is running this year. And so Jackson Dart, who is younger, faster, looks, you know, more athletic than Russell Wilson does at this stage of his career. Like I think Dart is going to be a borderline top 12 fantasy quarterback. Yeah.
Jay Croucher
How good do you think he's going to be from the get go?
Connor Rogers
I just worry about the schedule. I think he'll be fine against the Chargers and the Saints and then I just think he goes to the Lions den with the Eagles, Broncos, Eagles, Niners. That's just where I look at and go like, like from a fantasy perspective I'm not he the upgrade over Russ. I have no questions about Russ is not throwing in the middle of the field. Russ is not the same athlete anymore that Dart is. So he's going to be an interesting one. I think he's really valuable in two quarterback leagues. I don't know if he'll crack QB1 territory consistently over the next six weeks. I don't, I don't. The Giants right now like they have problems bigger than this and is Andrew Thomas on a pitch count still? Because that matters a lot. Can they develop the run game with Scatter boo now that Tyrone Tracy is out?
Matthew Berry
Maybe Tyrone Tracy's out for, you know, multiple weeks.
Connor Rogers
When teams take away Malik neighbors do you have an answer because you didn't have one against Spags and the Chiefs it was like oh, they took away Malik neighbors. Well now we can't do anything. That can't be the case.
Matthew Berry
No, it can't be the case.
Connor Rogers
And maybe Dart helps those things.
Matthew Berry
I think, I think that's the argument. Like you listen Brian Dable has to do something. He's 03. They're fighting for their jobs here. This is a desperation and by the way, so Russ looked good against the Cowboys but then Caleb Williams looked like, you know, the second coming of Tom Brady and you know, Joe Montana peak Patrick Mahomes like I mean so you know the Cowboys this might be, you know, one of the bottom five defenses in the NFL. I mean I think so. So on Saturday Night Football get going.
Jay Croucher
On if he doesn't light up the Cowboys it's big trouble for the Are you surprised?
Matthew Berry
I'm all over the place but it's 47 and a half is the line for packers like like I don't know how the Cowboys score against the Packers. No CD Lamb. No CD Lamb and given like can.
Jay Croucher
Be 40 to 8.
Matthew Berry
Is that what it is? It might be.
Jay Croucher
I remember the last time I think the last time packers went to Dallas is that playoff game where they scored a million points and Dak threw a million interceptions.
Matthew Berry
I wonder what they ran total.
Connor Rogers
It's going to be for Green Bay.
Matthew Berry
They ran totals all over them in that playoff game. Aaron Jones was awesome.
Jay Croucher
Was it 47 and a half?
Matthew Berry
So it's 47 and a half.
Jay Croucher
Seven point line. So yeah, 27, 20. It's the projected final score by the market.
Connor Rogers
I think Dallas can get to 20 in that game. Green Bay corners have been surprisingly good.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Connor Rogers
But I. The problem is, of course no CD is the issue. So can Javante Williams keep the run game going?
Jay Croucher
I don't think so. I don't think he can.
Matthew Berry
The Browns were able to run on them and, and I mean, listen, Jalen Tor is not terrible. Like, he's not CD Lamb. No one is. But like it's not like, you know, anyway, like Pickens could get deep for one. All right, maybe Zach's in trouble. We'll talk ourselves into it. I got a weed. Of course you guys are going.
Connor Rogers
You have to talk yourselves into this.
Matthew Berry
Listen, it's going to be an amazing atmosphere. Micah's return, like it's going to be unbelievable. I mean there's a reason, like NBC isn't stupid. There's a reason why we're all going there because it is a game of that importance. It is that big. I think everyone is, you know, disappointing. Obviously that CD Lamb won't be there, but it's still going to be an incredible atmosphere. And Dak Prescott is playing awesome. Like the cowboy struggles are not on Dak Prescott.
Jay Croucher
To me he's been fun. He's just.
Matthew Berry
He lost CD Lane. I mean, like. Anyway, back to. Back to Jackson Dart here. I think Jackson Dart is again in a super flex league. Yeah. I think Jackson Dart is similar to Trey Benson, which is. This is a. If he's available. This is a blow your budget. This is use your number one waiver pick. I think Jackson Dart is going to be that good fantasy wise. I think the jury's still out on terms of how good he will be in the real world. You know, I mean given all the weapons around him and what he does and does not have. But yeah, I mean, I think Jackson Dart's going to be a really good fantasy quarterback. And again only in a two quarterback league or a super flex league. But I do think, because I don't know that there's going to be another quarterback that comes into the league that has that kind of upside.
Connor Rogers
Like when Gabriel or Shadur start, they don't run like him.
Matthew Berry
No, I mean that's. Yeah.
Connor Rogers
I mean, you know, Tyler Schuck isn't going to be. Doesn't have the athleticism.
Matthew Berry
I mean, is there. Yeah. I mean, no. Look, I mean, like, Mariota would be up there if for some reason Jayn Daniels is going to miss a significant amount of time.
Jay Croucher
Doesn't seem like you.
Matthew Berry
It doesn't seem like he will. I will. However, speaking of that breaking news, just got this in. Speaking of the commanders, the Bleach Nation fantasy app is awesome, by the way. But at. And it just gives you all these alerts. Free. It's a free app. No. Adam Schefter. Adam Schefter is reporting. Terry McLaurin, Washington wide receiver uncertain to play Sunday vs Atlanta due to his quad injury. Per source. Still seeking more information about the injury. But Terry McLaurin now his status is in doubt. We don't know if Jaden is back officially yet. And now McLaurin might be out. For my commanders, here's a question for you. Sigh.
Connor Rogers
I think this is one of my better questions.
Matthew Berry
Yes, sir.
Connor Rogers
Say, in Super Flex, you've been starting Russell Wilson. You don't drop him, right? What if the Giants trade him somewhere? Or do you. Do you think that he's not roster worthy anymore? Because he obviously is not playing this week.
Matthew Berry
Obviously.
Connor Rogers
But they have Jameis. If they need a backup. The Giants should trade Russell Wilson.
Matthew Berry
The Giants should absolutely trade Russell Wilson. They should trade him to Cincinnati.
Connor Rogers
100%.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Connor Rogers
Jamar, Chase T. Higgins. We'd never be more back. Yeah, I think I. I think I might hold if I can.
Matthew Berry
If.
Connor Rogers
If he's just obviously after the deadline.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I mean, it depends on what you have, but, like, no, I don't hate that there's enough quarterback needy teams out there. Like, I mean, like, could Cleveland make a trade for him?
Connor Rogers
They're just going to ride it out with all the young guys they have. They already have enough quarterback headaches to.
Matthew Berry
Figure out they're one and two. I mean, maybe I got Joe Flocka. What about Minnesota? Like, if J.J. mcCarthy. Do you think they think Russell Wilson's an upgrade over Carson Wentz?
Jay Croucher
I don't think he moves the needle.
Matthew Berry
Probably not.
Connor Rogers
I think it's Cincinnati.
Jay Croucher
It's Cincinnati. Oh, Boston.
Connor Rogers
Cincinnati's season is still there.
Matthew Berry
They're two and one. Yeah, they're two and one. Does Russ pack his bags and go across the city?
Connor Rogers
No.
Matthew Berry
Stop it. No. Wow.
Connor Rogers
They could have signed him. They signed Justin Fields.
Matthew Berry
I know, but now.
Connor Rogers
But now I think Tyrod is better than Russ.
Matthew Berry
All right.
Connor Rogers
It's close.
Jay Croucher
Wow. Russ isn't good anymore.
Connor Rogers
I mean, is it hot of a take?
Jay Croucher
No.
Connor Rogers
All Right, let's add to the next quarterback here.
Matthew Berry
I totally derailed the show.
Connor Rogers
Nice job by me.
Matthew Berry
It's usually what I do. Yeah. Stay in your line. Stay in your lane. I don't know. But didn't Aaron Glenn open the door? Didn't he not commit to Justin Fields.
Connor Rogers
Because he likes Tyrod?
Matthew Berry
Okay, yeah. All right. Maybe like. But not. He didn't know not.
Connor Rogers
Let's ride territory in Florham Park. Let's go to tight ends for people that need help here.
Matthew Berry
Emergency episode of Badlands or Worse lands.
Connor Rogers
Or Worse Lands, which people are still waiting for. Yes, a lot of questions about worst lands. Tight end waiver targets for week four. Breton Strange, Chigaconquo Isaiah likely working his way back from injury. Dalton Schultz makes the list. And then the rookie, Rondae Gadsden here.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, he was targeted on 47% of his routes in the season debut last week. Gadson. The Chargers don't really have a tight end. You know, Disley hasn't really stepped up. Or Conklin. So Gadson, who I always liked at Syracuse, talented player. So he's getting a little bit more. We talked about Breton Strange. Just, you know, listen, if you. If you need a tight end, go get yourself some strange. At least 59 receiving yards in two or three games this year. As we've talked about, Travis Hunter playing time, inconsistent Brian Thomas, they just can't seem to get on the. Get on the same page there as well. We went so much on Jackson Dart real quickly. Geno Smith is the other. If you need a quarterback this week, Geno Smith is available in over 72% of leagues. And then, you know, we're waiting to see whether Fields and Daniels come back this week, but there might be another week of Marcus Mariota against the Falcons 4. Oh, another revenge game for Marcus Mariota against the Falcons 4.
Connor Rogers
Every week you got one.
Matthew Berry
When do we play Tennessee? Philly.
Jay Croucher
Philly's on the schedule.
Connor Rogers
They end up playing Oregon. Somehow.
Matthew Berry
We don't know how this happened anyway, but Mariota and Tyrod Taylor at Miami. Tyrod at Miami would also be pretty interesting too, if Fields can't go this.
Connor Rogers
Week or Miami giving up 29 points to quarterbacks in fantasy per week. That's a lot of points.
Matthew Berry
So maybe you get more anyway if you picked up Mariota and Tyrod this week, maybe hang on to him just to see if you can get it. You see your waiver targets there. You got Geno. We mentioned Mariota and Tyrode. Jackson DART available in 95% of leagues and I would guys, I would move him over Geno Smith to me. I would. If I if I needed a quarterback this week, if I needed a quarterback for the rest of the season, give me Jackson dart over Geno Smith or any of these guys this week or for the rest of the year.
Connor Rogers
If you're looking to make an IR stash, keep an eye on Brandon Aiuk, Jalen Coker and Taje Spears, all working their way back from injuries. And of course, if you watch today's show, you probably have to drop somebody. No secret here. You could drop Joe Burrow. It's going to be a long time before we see him again. CJ Stroud they just can't get it going through the air. Tyrone Tracy is going to be out a couple weeks with a shoulder injury. Joe Mixon there's no timeline there. It feels like Caleb Johnson hasn't been effective enough. He just doesn't really play on regular offense. Braylon Allen is a non factor in the jets offense right now and Evan Ingram's been hurt and when he was playing, he wasn't really doing anything as well.
Matthew Berry
Yeah. So anyway, welcome to Dumpsville, population U One question for you. When you say Bray Allen's been a non factor in the jets offense, how do you tell that from the other players in the jets offense?
Connor Rogers
That's a good one.
Matthew Berry
Just asking.
Jay Croucher
Savage.
Connor Rogers
Don't worry, we have plenty for you. On the next segment, we'll talk about our fantasy league as we head to break here. When we're back, we got a Monday Night Football recap. Ravens, Lions, an update on our fantasy league right after this.
Matthew Berry
You know, the best B2B marketing often gets wasted on the wrong people. For a while there I was getting all these ads about expensive pots and pans. If it's not a frozen pizza, I don't cook. So listen, when you want to reach the right professionals, use LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn has grown to a network of over 1 billion professionals and 130 million decision makers. And that's where it stands apart from other ad buys. You can target your buyers by job title, by industry, by company, by role, seniority, skills, company revenue. You can stop wasting budget on the wrong audience. It's why LinkedIn ads generates the highest B2B ROAS of all online ad networks. Seriously. All of them. So spend $250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn ads and get a free $250 credit for the next one. No strings attached. Just go to LinkedIn.com ffhh. That's LinkedIn.com. ffhh. Terms and conditions apply. Morning, Zoe. Got donuts.
Jay Croucher
Jeff Bridges, why are you still living above our garage?
Matthew Berry
Well, I dig the mattress and I want to be in a T mobile commercial like you teach me. So Dana.
Connor Rogers
Oh no, I'm not really prepared.
Matthew Berry
I couldn't possibly at t mobile get the new iPhone 17 Pro on them. It's design the most powerful iPhone yet and has the ultimate pro camera system. Wow, impressive. Let me try. T Mobile is the best place to get iPhone 17 Pro because they've got the best network. Nice.
Connor Rogers
Jeffrey, you heard them.
Matthew Berry
T Mobile is the best place to get the new iPhone 17 Pro on us with eligible trade in in any condition. So what are we having for lunch? Dude, my work here is done. With 24 monthly bill credits on experience beyond for well qualified customers. Plus tax and $35 device connection charge credit send and balance due if you pay off earlier. Cancel Finance Agreement. IPhone 17 Pro 256 gigs 1099.99 A new line minimum $100 plus a month plan with auto PayPal, taxes and fees required. Best mobile network in the US based on analysis by Ooklip Speed Test Intelligence data 1H 2025 Visit t mobile.com and now a next level moment from ATT Business. Say you've sent out a gigantic shipment of pillows and they need to be there in time for International Sleep day. You've got AT and T5G so you're fully confident, but the vendor isn't responding. And International Sleep Day is tomorrow. Luckily, AT&T 5G lets you deal with any issues with ease. So the pillows will get delivered and everyone can sleep soundly, especially you. AT&T 5G requires a compatible plan and device. Coverage not available everywhere. Learn more@att.com 5G Network how to coach.
Connor Rogers
How to win a football game.
Matthew Berry
Is that right there?
Connor Rogers
The M.O.
Jay Croucher
Is at the DVD.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I know.
Jay Croucher
I don't know, man.
Matthew Berry
I guess it would be pretty close to that, but it was also. This is the type of game. This is the type of game that was needed for this opponent. Not everyone is gonna always be the same. Some games it takes more explosives, you know, you gotta get more explosives than it does just true groundwork.
Connor Rogers
That was Lions coach Dan Campbell. And boy, was he right. It takes some explosives. The Lions win 38 to 30 in an absolute kind of shootout on Monday night.
Matthew Berry
Oh, this game was brutal.
Connor Rogers
This game was awesome.
Matthew Berry
What do you mean?
Jay Croucher
It's a great game, man.
Matthew Berry
No, phenomenal. Yeah, you looked at it from. From a different perspective than I did.
Connor Rogers
Sonic and Knuckles. I looked at it.
Matthew Berry
I looked at it from the perspective of needing Jared Goff to throw at least one more touchdown pass or Zay Flowers that even have just 40 receiving yards. No, I mean, it just, it was a. It was just a weird fantasy game. Listen, Montgomery obviously was amazing. Just needed him to go down on that last touchdown run like Jared Goff.
Connor Rogers
Was hoping for it too.
Matthew Berry
No, I know. Go down. Go down. Run it out. Yeah.
Jay Croucher
And go corrected himself in the post game. Be fair.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Connor Rogers
He was like, I was actually wrong.
Jay Croucher
Yeah.
Matthew Berry
You should.
Jay Croucher
You should score there. Say braver. Three timeouts.
Matthew Berry
Yeah. Fair enough. I'm just, you know, I'm looking at it from a purely selfish fantasy football point, but. Well, you can get into that. But let's get into it right now.
Jay Croucher
How's your fantasy attempt going? Like VOSELS Matthew, the two times do you have in three weeks?
Matthew Berry
I don't have a lot. Oh, no, I don't have a lot. I finally lio. Look, I. Yeah, I mean, I.
Jay Croucher
Explain it away.
Matthew Berry
No, I mean, look, I mean, I. Look, I think I, I. It's. What's hilarious is that with 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter, I had a 94 chance of winning. I had Derrick Henry and Sam Laporta. Denny had Lamar Jackson. And you can see the standings there. I'm 03. I'm in last place now. I'm. I'm like. I have more total points than four other teams. I am. And I'm leading the league in points against. But your record is your record. I am owen. I am 0 and 3. Listen, I lost Xavier Worthy in week one. I lost Mike Evans in week three. Derrick Henry has been bad to the last two weeks. Chase Brown's been bad the last two weeks on you. Jane Daniels was hurt last week. When you draft better players, healthier advice.
Connor Rogers
We spend an hour every week going over waivers.
Jay Croucher
So you said 94% win probability in the fourth quarter. You know what the beauty of fantasy is? Is that doesn't confirm wins or losses.
Matthew Berry
No, it doesn't.
Jay Croucher
And it doesn't feed families either. Win probability has never fed families.
Matthew Berry
No, it doesn't sound terrible. Team, clearly. I mean, I'm 03, thank God, owing.
Jay Croucher
3 and not much hope.
Matthew Berry
Not much hope? No, not a lot of the way.
Connor Rogers
I'm sure the Bengals offensive line will get so much better for Chase Brown.
Matthew Berry
Yeah. I mean, it's brutal, right? I mean, like again, right? Yeah. I mean, I lost Evans and Worthy in the first two weeks and Jaden Daniels.
Jay Croucher
Like, I And claim to lose George Kittle. He's not on your team.
Matthew Berry
I mean, like, I have. Like, I'm out of IR spots. What.
Connor Rogers
Why don't you make a trade?
Jay Croucher
I offered you Brock Bowers for Derek Henry.
Connor Rogers
I mean, you talked so much garbage.
Matthew Berry
I don't know if anyone will make.
Connor Rogers
A trade with you.
Matthew Berry
Probably not.
Connor Rogers
I would have spite. I would.
Matthew Berry
I. Look, I deserve all I have. No, I have. Look. Well, I'm gonna watch the tape. We'll get better.
Jay Croucher
We'll learn from.
Matthew Berry
We're gonna. We're gonna grind the tape and. But it is. I mean, like, I've just. I've had some bad matchup luck. I've had some bad injury luck and just guys haven't performed. Some of the guys I drafted just haven't performed.
Jay Croucher
You know what the worst thing you wanna say?
Matthew Berry
Chase Brown was a bad draft pick. Probably. Right. I guess, at this point. Right. He's been bad for two weeks. Bengals offensive line has looked brutal.
Jay Croucher
Like, your big issue, too, is that my team's an absolute juggernaut.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, it's good.
Jay Croucher
It's unstoppable. I feel like I don't want to. Like, everyone is playing for second. Everyone's playing for second. It's basically a team. It's a bet on health. I'm the Buffalo Bills with Detroit's offensive line. Like, it's. It's scary. I've got Quinton Judkins and Daniel Jones on my bench doing nothing. Tucker Kraft can't get on the field for me.
Matthew Berry
Yeah.
Connor Rogers
You guys should make a trade.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, I don't need anyone else.
Jay Croucher
I have all the good players.
Matthew Berry
In theory, I have a decent tight end in Sam Laporta. I mean, I. But I mean, it's. Anyway, we'll talk about this game real quickly and then we can circle back to this. But I don't know that there. You know, listen, you're starting Montgomery and Gibbs every week. It was just awesome to see them do this to Baltimore. And that Ravens run defense, which I use in quotation marks there, to me, I think the big story here is the pass catchers of the Ravens. Mark Andrews going off, you know, 6 for 91 and the two touchdowns with a 22% target share, under a 9% target share in the first two weeks. This is most receiving yards in a game since week 17 of 2022. And then, of course, Zay flowers. Flowers. Just two for 13. You know, nice game from Rashad Bateman. You know, this is. His 10% target share was the fourth lowest in a healthy game so far this year saw press coverage Zay flowers did on 34% of his routes. Dan Campbell talked in the post game press conference about that. That was one of their focal points. Was not let Zay Flowers beat him. So I think better days are ahead for Zay Flowers. Mark Andrews is an obvious sell high. It's nice to see him sort of back from the dead. But Mark Andrews is what we sort of is back to what we thought he was at the beginning of this year, which is a touchdown dependent tight end. I don't think the 91 yards are indicative of anything coming soon.
Jay Croucher
But like Isaiah Lockley will.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, he's a.
Connor Rogers
Might hurt his role though.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, yeah, he's a higher. He's a high end wide tight end too. To me like he's in that, you know, 10 to 14 range where he's sort of like touchdown dependent. But anyway, an incredible performance from the run game. I don't know that you can. They were so effective running the ball that the Lions passing attack just didn't get going. They didn't need to as well. But just want to tell you the Ravens run defense drinks for free because you delivered a lot of fantasy victories for everyone that had Gibbs and Montgomery on their fantasy teams. They just ran all over you guys like run defense should be in quotes there because it wasn't actually a defense.
Jay Croucher
Any concern about Derek Henry and this Ravens run game? They've done nothing for two weeks. That just didn't happen last year.
Connor Rogers
No, I mean, yes, but I just feel like I'm just not willing to bet against them. I think they'll get it going again. But man, the fumbles have been.
Jay Croucher
Fumbles have a very awesome.
Matthew Berry
I mean that's what shocking. That's ultimately like. And again, I mean we were on the group chat and I was up against Denny and winning, winning, winning, winning. And then when Henry fumbles on my team minus two points and then all of a sudden now they're in throw script and Lamar gets the by the way, touchdown. I'll tell you something just real quickly, real talk for one second. So I'm in 31 leagues and this week. No, this is true.
Connor Rogers
You are in 32.
Matthew Berry
I was in 32. Right. So I'm in 31 leagues going into this week. And I went 26, five in those 31 leagues.
Jay Croucher
I need this.
Matthew Berry
No, no, this is a true story. A 26 and 5. And that's amazing, right? 26. Like I had one of the best weeks of fantasy and yet I'm depressed this morning because I lost to Denny. I lost in another league. I was winning big. And then this person started, Mark Andrews. And you're like, right. And so I lost by three points to that person. And I got cut in two guillotine leagues because I have a lot of the same players. I had Zay Flowers, Malik Neighbors and Chase Brown on two different guillotine leagues and I'll die. And so it's just 26 and 5 and I'm depressed. And that's what fantasy does to you. It's like, I don't care about the 26 wins. I'm bummed about the five that I lost, including. It's all about Denny. Congratulations to Denny.
Connor Rogers
We're taking our last break. When we're back, early Line Alert returns our favorite side way ahead of week four.
Matthew Berry
Introducing Family Freedom from T Mobile. We'll pay off four phones up to $3200 and give you four free phones.
Connor Rogers
All on America's largest 5G network.
Matthew Berry
Visit t mobile.com familyfreedom. Up to 800 per line via virtual prepaid card typically takes 15 days. Free phone via 24 monthly bill credits with finance agreement. Example Apple iPhone 16, 128 gigs 829.99 eligible trade in. Example iPhone 11 Pro for well qualified Credits end and balance due. If you pay off earlier. Cancel Contact Us. He's Kenny Maine, the funny guy from espn. Formerly, he's Cooper Manning, the more intelligent.
Jay Croucher
And handsome of the Manning brothers. And he's Brian Baumgartner. But to me, he'll always be Kevin from the office.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, you and everybody else together. We're the hosts of the new comedy golf podcast We Need a Fourth from.
Jay Croucher
Smartless Media and Sirius xm. It's like a cold beer after a round. You hear the strangest and most bizarre golf stories from our friends, athletes, celebrities and comedians. It's all about how much we love.
Matthew Berry
Golf and how much we hate golf. New episodes are out every week. Listen now and subscribe wherever you get your podcast. Could just be anywhere, just on a couch. Doesn't matter. Want to look and feel your best this summer? Don't just think skin deep, think cell deep with Prolon. Prolon is a plant based nutrition program featuring soups, snacks and beverages that nourish the body while keeping it in a fasting state, triggering cel cellular rejuvenation and renewal. With proper diet and exercise, Prolon can help target fat loss, support lean muscle and reset your metabolism so you look and feel your best all summer long. Prolon is science backed nutrition that can help change your relationship with food in just 5 days. Get 15% off plus a $40 bonus gift when you subscribe@prolonlife.com PandoraPromo these statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. See site for details.
Connor Rogers
DraftKings Sportsbook is an official sports betting partner of the NFL and new customers can bet $5 and get $200 in bonus bets instantly and $200 off NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube TV. Just download the sportsbook app. Use promo code FFHH when you sign up. Drafting Sportsbook the crown is yours.
Matthew Berry
Oh the crown is yours.
Connor Rogers
Time for last Call Early Line Alert. We try to get a jump on the weekend's games or even Thursday Night Football. Guys, for me this is a quick one. Give me the Browns getting eight and a half points. I love this Detroit Lions team, but I think the Browns defense is going to keep them in a lot of games. That is a big, big number. I think the Browns can cover the eight and a half. Jay, what do you like?
Jay Croucher
I'm going to take Colts Rams over 49 and a half fully bought into the Colts as a top eight offense.
Matthew Berry
I'm going to take Seattle getting one and a half on the road against Arizona. I get it. A short weekend on the road, but they are so much of a better team. Arizona is a fraudulent 2 and 1. It is closing time. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here. Go get yourself some Jackson dart for Jay and Connor. I'm Matthew, by the way. At least my Gibbs bet cash last night. I'm just saying. Peace out. He's Kenny Maine, the funny guy from espn. Formerly he's Cooper Manning, the more intelligent.
Jay Croucher
And handsome of the Manning brothers. And he's Brian Baumgartner. But to me he'll always be Kevin from the Office.
Matthew Berry
Yeah, you and everybody else together. We're the hosts of the new comedy golf podcast We Need a Fourth from.
Jay Croucher
Smartless Media and Sirius xm. It's like a cold beer after a round. You hear the strangest and most bizarre golf stories from our friends, athletes, celebrities and comedians. It's all about how much we love golf and how much we hate golf.
Matthew Berry
New episodes are out every week.
Jay Croucher
Listen now and subscribe wherever you get.
Matthew Berry
Your podcast could just be anywhere.
Jay Croucher
Just on a couch.
Matthew Berry
Doesn't matter. Hello. Listen to my voice talking to you about the new Old Spice NFL collection at Walmart. Now listen to my smell. I smell like NFL stars Jared Goff, CD Lamb, Saquon Barkley, CJ Stroud and George Kittle. I smell like greatness. Why? Because I'm wearing Old Spice's new NFL Collection. How can you put the greatness of the NFL into a smell, you ask? You can't, but Old Spice can, and they did. Smell like Suntollen, speed, driftwood and drive, sea ties and toughness with the Old Spice NFL Collection, available at Walmart. Smell like the greatest smell in the NFL with Old Spice.
This episode is a classic Waiver Wire Tuesday, focusing on the must-adds as fantasy football managers look toward Week 4. After a wild Monday Night Football and a rash of injuries, Matthew Berry, Connor Rogers, and Jay Croucher break down the top waiver priorities at running back, wide receiver, and quarterback—including the fallout from James Conner’s injury, under-the-radar pass catchers, and the Giants naming Jaxson Dart as the starting quarterback. Throughout, the trio delivers actionable strategy with their familiar banter, humor, and insights into roster construction, player ceilings, and lineup decisions.
Drop Recommendations:
Key Injury News:
On Kyler Murray:
“Is Kyler Murray the worst good player in the NFL? If that makes any sense at all. Do you know what I mean?” —Matthew Berry [08:59]
On Jaxson Dart:
“Design quarterback runs are part of the offense that Brian Daboll is running this year. And so Jaxson Dart… I think Dart is going to be a borderline top 12 fantasy quarterback.” —Matthew Berry [34:16]
On Waiver Context:
“Trey Benson is the clear shining star. That's the guy that you go and be aggressive to get.” —Matthew Berry [10:23]
“Jackson Dart is similar to Trey Benson… blow your budget… I think Jackson Dart is going to be that good fantasy wise.” —Matthew Berry [37:41]
On roster management:
“If you have Kyron, [Blake] Corum is one of the most valuable handcuffs in the entire league.” —Connor Rogers [13:28]
On the pain of fantasy football:
“26 and 5. And that's amazing… and yet I'm depressed this morning because I lost to Denny… that's what fantasy does to you.” —Matthew Berry [53:40]
Top Waiver Adds:
Drops:
Joe Burrow, C.J. Stroud, various injured/non-producing RBs and TEs listed above
The episode is fast-paced, detail-obsessed, and filled with signature humor and rapport. Berry's advice always weighs league context, upside, and injury risk. The waiver wire is thin, but Benson and Dart are clear splash plays, and finding emerging WRs is key. The episode contains commiseration over Berry’s fantasy struggles and relatable reflections on injury heartbreak, making for both an informative and entertaining hour.
“Go get yourself some Jackson Dart. For Jay and Connor, I'm Matthew… at least my Gibbs bet cashed last night. Peace out.” —Matthew Berry [57:47]