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Robert Turbin
Whoa.
Dave Richard
When did I get here?
Carvana Representative
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Heath Cummings
I swear it was just moments ago.
Dave Richard
That I accepted a great offer from Carvana online. I must have time traveled to the future.
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Heath Cummings
It is the future.
Dave Richard
It's.
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Robert Turbin
It's all good.
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Jamie Eisenberg
Here we go. It's week one. It's Thursday. The game is tonight. We got the Eagles and the Cowboys. The NFL season is here. All the drafts we've done finally get to see it put into action. I'm Jamie Eisenberg. That's Dave Richard. That's Heath Cummings. This is Fantasy football today presented by BetMGM, the sportsbook. Born in Vegas. We are going to talk about a lot of rankings. We're going to start with our quarterback rankings. But first, how excited are you about the NFL season kicking off?
Dave Richard
I'm very excited. We put a lot of hard work and effort into these rankings and now it's time to see where we're right and where we can learn from them.
Heath Cummings
The big payoff. We get to watch Javante Williams be the lead running back for the Dallas Cowboys.
Jamie Eisenberg
Well, we've all been waiting for. I hope Devontae Williams not the best running back in this game tonight, but we'll see where they stack big problems. If that happens, there would be a lot of big problems. We're going to start with the quarterbacks. So we're going to show you our consensus rankings. You can see our individual rankings and yes, they are on the site. CBSSports.com youm can check out our week one rankings. But here's our consensus rankings for our quarterback. So no surprise with the five guys at the top. These are the five guys that were drafted in some order. Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, Jaden Daniels, Joe Burrow and Jalen Hurts. Patrick Mahomes, number six. And then we get to number seven where things get a little bit changed. A little bit of a change from what our consensus rankings are. Dave, when you see Dak Prescott number seven, you're the high guy on Dak. You think he's gonna have a big game tonight against Eagles?
Dave Richard
I don't think a big game is in line but a decent game against Philadelphia.
Heath Cummings
Yeah, I'm terrified. Their team total 19 and a half points against an Eagles defense that had lost some guys, but also has so many young former first rounders that could be improved this year.
Jamie Eisenberg
All right, you see, Baker Mayfield should have a good game against the Atlanta Falcons. Bo Nicks should do whatever he wants to against the Tennessee Titans just based on how the game flow should go. And then we got some other quarterbacks here that we're going to look at. Kyler Murray is in a great spot taking on the New Orleans states. As we flip the page to rankings 13 through 24, you're seeing some guys here that we are very fond of for this week. Drake May is the start of the week. We'll talk about that in a second. Heath, you really like Trevor Lawrence though for this week.
Heath Cummings
Absolutely. Fantastic matchup. First time we get to see him with Liam Cohen. First time we get to see him with Travis Hunter. He should be a top 10 quarterback this week.
Jamie Eisenberg
All right, so we'll get into a lot of these rankings. We're going to break it down from guys that we like to start, guys we're going to avoid from a sit perspective. Some sleepers that we like and also some news that we're keeping an eye on. So Matthew Stafford and Jordan Love both off the injury report on Wednesday. Dave, any interest in starting those guys? Stafford in his matchup against the Texans and Jordan Love taking on the Lions.
Dave Richard
I modest interest in Love and in dfs. I'd be more interested in both of those guys because I'm just trying to have a different lineup. But in redraft, absolutely not.
Jamie Eisenberg
All right, so some fantasy managers, 14 team leagues, 16 team leagues. You might have to start one of those guys. I think we all probably agree Love over Stafford just a lot, the circumstances and the matchup. All right, let's talk about some of the things that we're looking at here. And again the rankings for us. We spend a lot of time going through this to make sure that the process comes out to where it's good for everybody. Depending on who you follow, you might follow, Heath might follow, Dave might follow me. But again we're looking at the consensus ranking. So there's always one player at every position. Maybe two, maybe 10 that were going to be a little bit of like, man, I like the matchup, but I don't like the player. I like the player. I don't like the matchup. Who is the toughest player for you to rank Week one at the quarterback position?
Dave Richard
It's Purdy and it's because I think that Seattle defense could end up being a lot better than we think it is. And I think their pass rush is going to be dangerous and we don't know how healthy Jawan Jennings is and how quickly Purdy will be able to get the ball. And there's that guy back for 49ers that running back Christian McCaffrey handing off to him doesn't get him any fantasy points. He's outside of my top 12.
Jamie Eisenberg
Interesting. You also have not a great feeling about Brock Purdy this week.
Heath Cummings
Not a great feeling. It's getting better as Juwan Jennings is working his way back into things, I think. And we've heard a little bit like this idea of Ricky Pearsall as the number one wide receiver and Scott Skymore and Russell Gage maybe as the number two and number three. Pretty terrifying to me. Another game that doesn't have an extremely high over under. And so, yeah, a little bit nervous about Purdy. If Jennings gets into full practice by Friday, I'll move Purdy up a little bit.
Jamie Eisenberg
Okay, so we'll see how Jennings goes, but trending in the right direction. Jennings, we'll talk about a little bit. Got his contract extension based on some playing time incentives. And you brought up, which is a great situation. He's going to play through some injuries, most likely because he wants to get to that $3 million that the 49ers have dangling out in front of him. But good that that situation got resolved. So the toughest player for you to rank, though, Heath, is who it's got.
Heath Cummings
To be Caleb Williams. And it's partially just the juxtaposition between what we thought Caleb Williams was a year ago at this time and what we saw from Caleb Williams on the football field. But then also he gets Ben Johnson, he gets Colston Loveland, he gets Luther Burden. We heard a lot in training camp about, oh man, he's struggling, things look ugly. And then we see him in the preseason against the Chiefs and he looks awesome. Caleb Williams could be one of the breakout quarterbacks of this year and it could start week one, but also there's plenty of reason to have concern.
Jamie Eisenberg
Did have one great game against the Vikings last year, one miserable game, but that was, you know, as the season evolves, we'll see how it goes into year two, but more importantly, Ben Johnson. So hopefully it is a good start for Caleb Williams. I don't know how many people are starting him in one quarterback leagues, but, you know, should be interesting to see how he does for Super Flex and two quarterback managers. For me, the toughest guy to rank is Patrick Mahomes. We're I think all excited to see how this is going to look but the history against the Chargers last year, not very good in those two games. No Rashi Rice as we know for the first six games of the season. So you're starting Mahomes. Obviously nobody's going to tell you to set Mahomes. At least I don't think anybody here is going to tell you to set Mahomes. But I hope to see him come out and have a big game so that we can justify he was a steal potentially in round four as opposed to oh my gosh, I'm dealing with this again. You know a guy that's going to hover around that 20 point per game range. So let's go for a big game for Patrick Mahomes as he takes on the Chargers in Brazil. So Chargers had his number last year. We'll see what happens for this year. Let's move on now to guys that were sitting for, excuse me, starting for this week. So Heath, you're starting Jordan Love. Dave you're starting Trevor Lawrence. I'm going to start Drake May again the start of the week. So a little disagreement here on Jordan Love. So you actually like him for this week and you just a little tepid in terms of how you want to approach him for this week.
Dave Richard
It's almost like how I feel about Brock Purdy. He's okay, but I can find other quarterbacks I like better and one that I do like better is Trevor Lawrence going up against Carolina. I know that defensive line is healthy. I still don't know how dangerous that pass rush is and I don't know how deep that secondary is. And I do like that receiving core for Jacksonville and and I've got questions about their run game. So I think that there is a chance where Trevor Lawrence can come out of the week as a top 10 quarterback.
Heath Cummings
So I totally like Trevor Lawrence more than Jordan Love. Dave just sent his email in first so I had to take the next guy in my top 12 and Jordan Love is in my top 12. I think we'll see the pass rate rebound from last year because what they did last year being one of the most run heavy teams in the NFL is not typically what we've seen from Matt LaFleur. I think the fact that he actually has a number one wide receiver and first round pick Matthew golden helps Jordan Love and he's. I know we just said he came off the injury report. It was his left thumb. He's healthy in terms of running the football and so I think we see him bounce back as a rusher as well. He's QB12 for me, so someone you can start definitely over golf and deck.
Jamie Eisenberg
So a couple questions because originally when I was riding starts it yesterday I had him as a start and then got a little nervous for a couple reasons. One, the history against the Lions not great and they're getting healthy on defense, you know, so we're going to see new coordinator Aiden Hutchinson back. How much will that impact Jordan Love from a high end potential? No Jaden Reed, most likely the way it's looking, trending in the wrong direction. So yes, he does have Matthew golden, but no Christian Watson we know for the majority of the season and now potentially no Jaden Reed. So can Jordan Love put together enough stats, enough production that you're going to say, okay, top 10 finish? Because that's kind of what I think looking for with nobody on a buy.
Heath Cummings
No, I think he can. And I think the nice thing about the way the packers receiving core was built before they got Matthew golden was that they had four guys who were all kind of number two wide receivers and if they lost two of them, they still had two guys that were number two wide receivers. Romeo Dobbs will be just fine as the second guy behind Matthew golden. And Tucker Kraft is one of the most efficient tight ends in the NFL.
Dave Richard
That's the one that I'm looking for is Tucker Kraft. I think he could end up being second on the team in target.
Jamie Eisenberg
I hope so for the season. I don't love him for this week though, just because the Lions were great against tight ends last year. They were great against me. He did score a touchdown, but only one of three guys to score a touchdown against the Lions from the tight end position. So if he does not find the end zone could be a little difficult for him. We'll talk about that later though. For me it's Drake May. He's the start of the week for us on CBSSports.com, love the setup for him. My most drafted quarterback, my most rostered player overall. I think Drake May is going to get off to a great start against the Raiders defense. That still could be a work in progress. Yes, Pete Carroll is going to do some nice things with them over the course of the season, but I think the addition of Josh McDaniels, Travion Henderson, Stefan Diggs, maybe Kyle Williams, just a lot of things to like about the scenario for Drake May so use his legs a little bit in this game as well. He did that last Year would have been on pace in his healthy games, would be the third best rushing quarterback. So just a great setup for them at home against a team west coast to east coast. I think Josh McDaniels want to stick it to his old team as well. So like the setup for Drake May as a top 10 quarterback. Let's go now to the quarterbacks to sit Dave and Justin Fields was a guy that you started out liking in the offseason or didn't like in the offseason. Then you liked him a little bit. Then you got off a little bit after watching him perform in the preseason. It's just a brutal matchup against the.
Dave Richard
Steelers and the brutal matchups will continue after this week. You can look at the schedule and see that for yourself. But the Steelers know all about this guy. So even if he was a halfway decent thrower of the football, they would know here are his strengths, here are his weaknesses. The problem is that he's not that great of a thrower. He's a runner. The Steelers have done a great job against rushing quarterbacks over the years and it makes me very nervous to start really a lot of jets, but especially Justin Fields.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yeah, the Steelers number four and fewest rushing yards to opposing quarterbacks last year. And as you mentioned, they faced Lamar.
Dave Richard
Jackson two games against Lamar.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yeah, twice. Twice in a season. So they do a really good job under Mike Tomlin. Brock Purdy we already talked about. You're a little bit concerned if Jennings full practice though. How much will you move Brock Purdy up and take him off this list?
Heath Cummings
So I've got him. I think at 18 right now he would get into the top 15. I don't think I'd have him ahead of Jordan Love, but I would definitely move him up the tar. It's so interesting. As good and efficient as Juwan Jennings has been when given the opportunity and the number of targets that went his way last year, I just feel better about Purdy, but not quite into the top 12 range because even guys who have practiced the full week after holding out. And I'm not saying Juwan Jennings was holding out, but those guys have often struggled in week one.
Jamie Eisenberg
I will say the one thing that I do like about Purdy, his track record against Seattle, including the two games last year against Mike McDonald. So to face this defense, he's been 20 or more fantasy points in four or five games, including both those last year. So I actually think he's not a bad play this week. But I understand again some of the concerns. Great week for Quarterbacks this week for some of the guys that we're going to see. For me, I'm going to sit Jared Goff, just a bad track record in Lambeau Field three straight years in a row where he's been under 17 fantasy points. I want to see how this new offense is going to look. I want to see how much Michael Parsons is going to play and how much of an impact that's going to make on this defense. And so typically, if you're drafting a guy like Jared Goff, Brock Purdy's probably in a similar situation. If you're drafting Justin Fields in a similar situation, you're drafting these guys. You don't want to go to the waiver wire and pick somebody else up. Go see if Trevor Lawrence is there because he could have a better opportunity this week against the Carolina Panthers. Go see if some of these other sleepers we're going to talk about in a second. Maybe not the Joe Flaccos of the world, but Jared Goff, Justin Fields, Brock Purdy, not exactly the best scenarios. So you might want to try and find another quarterback if in fact you didn't draft one and there are some guys on the waiver wire and then sleeper for this week. I think this is important because a lot of people as we get into the running backs, wide receivers, guys you could pick up off waivers. So for you it's Bryce Young. For you it's JJ McCarthy. For me it is the old man, Joe Flacco. Make your case. Why Bryce Young could be a top 10 quarterback this year. Top 12 quarterback.
Heath Cummings
He's got Ted Roa McMillan, who might be a top 12 wide receiver by the end of this year. He was awesome at the end of last year. Second year in Dave Canales system, facing a Jacksonville defense that may be just as bad as the Panthers defense on Bryce Young's own team. This could turn into the shootout of the week.
Dave Richard
I see your Tedro McMillan and I raise you Justin Jefferson because that's who JJ McCarthy is going to throw to. Bears are going to play a lot more man coverage than we're used to seeing. That's because Dennis Allen is there. McCarthy can run a little bit on top of throwing to these great receivers that he has. It's not just Jefferson. TJ Hawkinson's there too, and I think they're going to put some points up on Chicago secondary, which is a little beat up right now.
Jamie Eisenberg
Adam Thielen, don't forget about the old man coming back.
Dave Richard
I forgot about Adam Thielen.
Jamie Eisenberg
It does suck that he doesn't have Jordan Addison, but it's going to be fun to see.
Dave Richard
They got Adam Thielen. Same thing, right?
Jamie Eisenberg
I think this is the most fascinating game to watch as a fantasy manager because you have all the things going on with the Bears offense and Caleb Williams and DeAndre Swift and just all the pass catchers and then you have the whole situation of J.J. mcCarthy. Can he be as good as Sam Darnold? Can he continue this? Kirk Cousins to Darnold. You know this is the guy that's got more upside maybe than both those two. Hopefully that continues for me. I'm going to go with Joe Flacco. I know it's tough to say you're going to start Joe Flacco in a one quarterback league, but the matchup is as good as you could possibly find. And the last time we saw him in this offense it was five straight games in a row with 300 or more passing yards. Five straight games in a row with 20 or more fantasy points. And so opportunity is there. Matchup is great. I think Flacco can get you off to a good start if you're desperate. But it was just shocking to me when doing waiver wire this week that he's only 10% roster now. I think that speaks to clearly how many people actually play Super Flex in two quarterback leagues. But if he's on your waiver wire, go pick him up. It could be a 10 team league if you don't have, you know, some options on waivers. This guy could get you off to a very good start based on how he operates in Kevin Stefanski's offense. So I want to have Joe Flacco on my team, certainly in Super Flex and two quarterback leagues and maybe even in one quarterback leagues. If you're stuck, Joe Flacco can help you. Alright, we're going to take a break right now. When we come back, our buddy Robert Turban is going to join us. Going to break down running backs. Look at the running back rankings give you the starts, the sits and the sleepers that you need for week number one.
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Jamie Eisenberg
Welcome back to Fantasy Football today presented by BetMGM. The sportsbook born in Vegas. You're taking a look at our running back rankings for week number one, and we might have been a little concerned about Saquon Barkley, but not at all for this week's matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. Christian McCaffrey, he's back, gonna take on the Seahawks. Gonna be fun to see him out there doing his thing. Bijon Robinson goes from the number one consensus running back in the preseason to number three. And Devon H.N. heath, limited in practice on Wednesday, says he's going to be good to go. Are you fully confident in Devon Han?
Heath Cummings
I'll be fully confident as long as that limit is removed before Friday. But it's not like there's a decision to be made on Thursday night if you have both Saquon and Devon Han. You just start both of those guys.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yep, that's a good spot to be in. And we're joined now by our buddy Robert Turman, former NFL running back. You remember him mostly from his days with the Seattle Seahawks. Robert, it's great to have you back with us here on fantasy football today. So I'm going to ask you some questions about a lot of these running backs and the guys will react to it as well. Let's start with the rookies because a big topic conversation with us. We haven't got a chance to speak to you. Oh, you're showing off hardware there. Which league is that from?
Robert Turbin
It took me five leagues to do it. But I do want the world to know that I am a fantasy champion officially. You know, now this is now. We lost in our league because of an unfortunate injury. I lost in the first round of the playoffs, but I did win a championship. They got a nice. I think this might be a picture of me right there.
Jamie Eisenberg
I don't know if you guys can see it or not. Okay.
Robert Turbin
But you know, I got some good hardware to take home. My son wore this to school for two weeks straight.
Dave Richard
That's amazing.
Jamie Eisenberg
Well, listen, congratulations. Unfortunately you're not going to win it in our fantasy football today league, but you'll try. You'll definitely try. Let's talk about some of these rookie running backs. Robert. So I want to ask you just. We got a highlight game between Ashton Genty and Treveon Henderson. I think everybody's all in on Ashton Genty, but just the outlook for Genti and the outlook mostly for Treveon Henderson as this pass catching running back that may work into a bigger role. What do you think about both these guys going into their head to head matchup this week?
Robert Turbin
Well, the two differences is Ashton Genty is going to get a lot of action right away. He's going to be involved, obviously getting a lot of touches. He's going to be involved in the passing game for the Raiders and it's going to be start to finish. And so from an opportunity standpoint, you like having Ashton Denty, you know, because he's going to get the ball. Now, how impactful he is with the football, you know, still remains to be seen. Treveon Henderson, you know, is a guy that everybody's intrigued by because of what he was able to do in the preseason coming out of college. You know, a little bit of high expectation there, but really shined on the preseason stage. And so you feel like over the course of the season his opportunities will continue to grow. Maybe not so much right away, but I think he'll still be impactful in the Patriots offense.
Jamie Eisenberg
Heath, I know you're really high on Treveon Henderson. Is this going to be a, a strong rookie debut or is it going to be one of those, oh, I can't believe Ramondray Stevenson did this.
Heath Cummings
Well, I don't really expect Ramondray Stevenson to surprise us in any way. We have a pretty good idea what Rondre Stevenson is going to do. He's going to go about 4 yards and fall down. The key is, and I'm a little bit lower on Trevion this week than I am for the full season because of what Robert was talking about. I think it could take a couple of weeks, but if he does what he does in the preseason, if he just breaks off a 60 yard touchdown, it's just going to be over. And I'll probably tweet that it's over. He's taken over the job, give Trevion all the touches. You just don't know if that's going to happen in Week 1 against the Raiders. Seems like a pretty good opportunity, or if it's going to happen in week two or week three and then he's going to take over.
Dave Richard
I feel like that already happened within the last month where Trevon Henderson was making so many big plays that it was over. It's going to be really interesting to see it. We know the Raiders are probably, if it's a Pete Carroll defense, probably a lot of zone coverage that opens things up underneath for any running back that can catch passes. This dude can do it very well. Henderson can.
Jamie Eisenberg
Another guy we're looking at, Robert, is Omarion Hampton. And there's been some different reports about who would be the starter for this week now that Najee Harris is back after dealing with that eye injury. So tough matchup Friday against the Chiefs. What are we expecting from Hampton in his NFL debut in Brazil?
Robert Turbin
Well, I imagine Amari and Hampton is going to start, particularly because he's been there. Najee Harris did have the injury. He was out for a little while. So Omarion Hampton, he's been the constant in terms of being there, being at practice, being a part of this offense. And I think very similar to Genty. You know, he's going to have a lot of opportunity, he's going to get a lot of carries, you know, in this football game, he can catch the football out of the backfield. And so for that reason, I like actually Amari Hampton a lot more than Najee Harris in Week one.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yeah, I hope that's the case. And you know, maybe they see Najee get worked back in a little bit slowly. But there was Harbaugh did sort of refute that report. Now we're going to get Hampton starting and so. So we'll see how he does against the Chiefs in that matchup on Friday night. Another guy I want to talk to you about, Robert, is R.J. harvey. You know, a little bit of a difference of opinion here about what will happen in Week 1 against the Titans. I think I'm probably the most optimistic. Heath, you're probably the most pessimistic. Dave's Goldilocks, he's right in between there in terms of how the porridge will go. But in terms of RJ Harvey against the Titans this week, Robert, what are you thinking?
Robert Turbin
I got to go with Heath on this one. I think that this is going to be J.K. dobbins backfield until. Until otherwise, R.J. harvey can make some plays. But you know, I think it'll be spotty, you know, throughout the season. As long as J.K. dobbins can stay healthy, he'll be able to do some things on third down and make some plays. But I don't think he's a consistent starter in the way that folks, some folks, some fantasy managers see him right now.
Jamie Eisenberg
All right, so something to to ponder there. You obviously feel similar. Not necessarily that Dobbs going to start, but that be a little bit cautious.
Heath Cummings
I think it's going to be a committee like I don't think J.K. dobbins going to have many 20 touch games. I don't think R.J. toe Harvey's going to have any 20 touch games as long as Dobbins is healthy. I think this is an underrated Tough matchup for running backs. Titans were very good against pass catching running backs. They've been very good against the run in the past and I don't think we see more than 10 to 12 touches for RJ Harvey in this game. That might be too high based on what Robert's saying.
Jamie Eisenberg
And he's the toughest player for you to rank this week as we're taking a look at some of the rankings and how we're going about this. So the toughest player for Heath to rank, Ismarian Hampton. The toughest one for you to rank is Travis Etienne. For me, it's Tony Pollard. Just with the matchup against the Broncos, Robert, I want to stick there with you on Travis Etienne again, Dave Sainz is the toughest player for him to rank. This Jacksonville backfield seems like it could be wide open. Tank Bigsby, Bashal Tutin, you know, another rookie that has a chance to make some plays here. What's your take on this Jacksonville backfield for the season and also for the week one game against Carolina?
Robert Turbin
Yeah, super difficult to rank where Travis Etienne kind of fits into this fantasy world because I think the Jaguars are going to kind of ride the hot hand whichever game that is. So all those guys are going to get opportunities, in my opinion. And whoever, you know, gets hot, breaks the tackle, makes a big play is probably the guy they're going to stick with throughout the rest of the game. And so that kind of hot and cold. I'm not a big fan of that inconsistency. You guys know that about me. So it makes it very hard to draft a guy like Travis Etienne on my roster.
Dave Richard
Sure. Well, it makes it easy to draft him if you're doing it in the middle rounds or the late rounds. But we're past that point now. Nobody's drafting anymore.
Jamie Eisenberg
Now the question you'd be surprised.
Dave Richard
There's still. Are you. You still have any drafts? No, I feel like arhe is in the barn. So now with Travis Etienne, there's going to be multiple running backs in the mix. I think ETN is going to be the one to lead off. The Carolina run defense will be better than it was last year. It was atrocious last year. The second they lost Derrick Brown on that D line, they fell apart. Dee Brown's back. They added Brown, another Brown on top of that, Bobby Brown. I think you're going to see Carolina's defense be a little bit stronger and I think it's just too many questions for etn. So he's at best of flex I.
Jamie Eisenberg
Think that's the best way to approach it, but we'll see if one guy can take the step forward. You would like it to be ETN based on where he was drafted or if you were in the Bashel Tutank, you'd like to see maybe both guys in terms of Etienne and Tank Bigsby struggle. And then we see Tutank maybe get the opportunity that he needs because of those two guys in front of him. We'll take a transition now to the guys that we're starting and I want to get your take, Robert, on Tony Pollard. But Heath, make the case why Tony Pollard is a starter for you in this matchup. That could be very difficult against the Denver Broncos.
Heath Cummings
It could be very difficult, and this is a philosophical thing for me. Fantasy managers have to make their own decisions. But he averaged 24.2 touches per game when Taje Spears was out last year. I don't care if you're facing the 85 Bears. If you're going to get 24 touches in an NFL football game, I'm going to start you and hope you fall into some production. I think he probably catches three to four passes, probably runs the ball 20 times. You hope he scores a touchdown. He's going to be a low end RB2 this week.
Jamie Eisenberg
Robert, what's the most touches you've ever had in a game?
Robert Turbin
In a game? The most carries I ever had in a game was 15 touches. Somewhere around maybe 24, 25.
Jamie Eisenberg
Okay, so you would be a guy that Heath would be looking at in that type of, that type of scenario. Robert, just your take on, on, on, on Pollard without Spears there, how do you think he'll do against Denver? Marcos?
Robert Turbin
Yeah, I mean, he's the ace, you know. And so for me, when you get the opportunity and you got a guy like Tony Pollard who's shown that he can, you know, obviously produce. I like him. I like him this week against the Broncos. I know the Broncos got a tough defense, but Tony Pollard is going to get plenty of opportunity. They're going to find ways to get him to ball in multiple spots. And when you look at it from that viewpoint, you know, I think he'll be productive. So I like him as well.
Jamie Eisenberg
So we have a couple guys that Dave likes and I like that are in more committee backfields, at least the expectation going into the training camp process and even into week one. So, Dave, you like Jalen Warren as a starter. I like Aaron Jones as a starter. Robert, when you look at the backfields for Pittsburgh and for Minnesota, is There a clear cut leader for you from this point forward. You know, whether it's Jalen Warren or Caleb Johnson, whether it's Aaron Jones or Jordan Mason. How are you approaching the Pittsburgh and Minnesota backfields this week?
Robert Turbin
Well, for Pittsburgh, I have no idea who's going to be the clear cut guy in this backfield, particularly because, you know, you got Caleb Johnson, obviously a rook, and then Jalen Warren, you know, although he's had, you know, some production over the course of his career, you know, he's never had to be the guy, you know, the number one guy. And so that concerns me a little bit in terms of what I'm going to be able to get from him. Aaron Jones has shown over the course of his entire career that he can be a number one, and I think he's still that even with Jordan Mason in the backfield in Minnesota. So I'm much more comfortable with Aaron Jones as my starter this week as opposed to Jalen Warren.
Dave Richard
And with Warren, I mean, the breadcrumbs were out there all training camp long. He got a contract extension. The other running backs in Pittsburgh weren't really impressing, certainly not on a consistent basis. And then Mike Tomlin came out and said he's our featured guy. You'll see a little bit of Kenneth Gainwell and Caleb Johnson as the game warrants. I feel pretty good about Jalen Warren getting a lot of work, kind of in that same vein that we were talking about with Tony Pollard. It's a tough matchup. It's the Jets. It's not going to be easy, but I think he'll be okay this week. So I don't mind starting Jalen Warren.
Jamie Eisenberg
I don't mind it either. I love Aaron Jones this week. I absolutely love Aaron Jones this week. Last 12 games against the Chicago Bears, obviously, majority of that was with the Green Bay packers, But even the two games last year, he has averaged in those 12 games 18.3 PPR points per game. He owns Chicago. We used to talk about Aaron Jones owning Chicago. Aaron Jones. Aaron. Excuse me. Aaron Rodgers owns. Used to own Chicago. Let me get that right. Aaron Rodgers used to own Chicago.
Dave Richard
Chicago can have two owners. They're both named Aaron.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yep, Aaron. Aaron squared owns the Chicago Bears and Aaron Jones will have a big game. I think it's going to be interesting to see how the season goes on between Jordan Mason and what happens there. But Aaron Jones in week one must start running back. Not that there's, I think, a lot of people debating that, depending on when he was drafted, but Love the setup for him taking on this Bears defense. Let's look at the running backs that we're looking to sit this week. So Dave, you can make the argument against Tony Pollard because Robert likes him as Heath. Heath, you don't like RJ Harvey. Robert agrees with you on that one. And then I want to talk to Robert about Breece hall real quick. So why are we sitting 20 Pallard?
Dave Richard
Because it's well and good that he might get 20 touches in the game and it does make sense. I don't how competitive this game is going to be. This is the Denver Broncos defense that was outstanding last year against the Titans offense piloted by Cam Ward, rookie number one overall pick, his very first NFL game on the road. This narrative screams trouble for the Tennessee Titans in every way, shape and form. And so I'm just, I'm nervous. If the Broncos do what I expect them to do as an offense, it means that the Titans are going to be chasing points and they might be having to do that before it's even halftime. And that takes Tony Pollard carries off the table for them. It might mean he's going to have to carry his fantasy stats through the air. It's possible, but I don't know if I love it. And the Titans have talked about using another running back alongside Tony Pollard.
Jamie Eisenberg
Julius Chestnut, here we come. Alright, Robert Quick LL Mullings, here we come. Breece Hall. I'm nervous. Steelers matchup, not good. Losing Elijah Vera, Tucker, not good. We could see Braylon Allen and Isaiah Davis working in your thoughts on Breece hall again for this weekend, for the season?
Robert Turbin
Yeah. You want to talk about guys who are tough to judge, you know, this week. Breece hall certainly fits into that category. Just because we don't know how the jets are going to use him. You know, he went from a guy who was a perennial RB one, you know, essentially, to a guy that we have no idea, you know, how he's going to be used and what kind of production you're going to get. Particularly because of Braylon Allen and Isaiah Davis, who are likely going to be able to rotate, you know, into the fold there in the backfield. And so I wouldn't start him this week personally. If I've got, you know, Breece hall on my roster, I'm likely not starting him because I need to see first if I've got depth, you know, I want to hold him and see how the jets are utilizing him this week.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yep. Certainly want to see that rotation and how the offensive line holds up. They're going to get tested very well against that Steelers defense. All right, Robert, I'm going to give you our sleepers. You pick the one that you like the best and give us your take on these three guys here. So for Heath, his sleeper for week one is Dylan Sampson sharing the ball there with Jerome Ford. Dave's guy is Jordan Mason, as we talked about, sharing the ball with Aaron Jones. And my guy is Ollie Gordon. We don't know the full status of Devon Hn. So you got Gordon taking on the Colts, you got Mason taking on the Bears, and you got Dylan Sampson taking on the Bengals. Who do you like the best?
Robert Turbin
I like Sampson. I like Sampson. I like the Sampson pick.
Jamie Eisenberg
All right.
Robert Turbin
He did some good things in the preseason. And you know, the Cleveland Browns, you know, they do a good job using multiple backs in their system, and Dylan Sampson is a guy that they like. I'm not very fond of. They got the Colts, right?
Jamie Eisenberg
You know, the Browns have the Bengals.
Robert Turbin
I'm sorry. Yeah. Definitely not fond of the Bengals run defense at all. Okay. So I think from a run run game standpoint, the Bengals can have a lot of success. I mean, excuse me. The Browns can have a lot of success.
Heath Cummings
I'm learning. I'm learning. You know, it was a year ago we were on this show and Robert was telling me what an idiot I was doubting Derrick Henry and doubting Saquon Barkley, and he was right. And I learned over the course of the last year, we're on the same page with, like four different guys going into week one. It's going to be a much better season.
Jamie Eisenberg
Oh, I like it. So we're synergy here that we're all on the same page. So like the way that works. All right, Robert, thanks for joining us. We appreciate the running back breakdown. We're going to take a quick break here on fantasy football today. When we come back and look at the wide receivers and their rankings for week number one.
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Jamie Eisenberg
Welcome back to Fantasy Football Today presented by BetMGM. We're looking at our wide receiver rankings for week number one, and you see the top 12, no surprise here with a lot of the names that we're talking about here. Maybe Mike Evans taking a little bit of a leap from the preseason into the top 10. Great matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. And no Chris Godwin, no Jalen McMillan. As we show you the list 13 through 24, we're going to talk about the players that were the toughest for us to rank. And we're starting to get into the range of some of these guys. For Dave, it was Ricky Pearsall. For Heath it was Travis Hunter. For me it was Zay Flowers Heath. I think we talk about Travis Hunter. He's going to be one of the toughest guys to rank all season long.
Heath Cummings
I hope not. I hope he comes out in Week 1 and plays 75% of the snaps and goes 5 for 95 in a score and you just never think about benching him again. It's been such an interesting back and forth of these news reports that we get out that he's, you know, he's going to play 80% of the offensive snaps and then the next week he's going to primarily play defense. And then most recently on the depth chart, he's wide receiver. He's a starting wide receiver and a backup defensive back. So we're going to find out a lot. I'm probably just going to start him in most of my leagues because I don't want to leave that type of upside on the bench. I do believe if he's a full time wide receiver this year, he has top 12 upside.
Jamie Eisenberg
We could see him line up against Teteroa McMillan. As we look at the guys that we're talking about as starts, Dave and Teow as one of the guys you're starting this week. So how much fun will that matchup be? McMillan vs Hunter as a fantasy decision and as a real life proposition. When we see those guys one on defense, one and offense, well, in real.
Dave Richard
Life we see it, we saw it in College and Tedro McMillan got the best of Travis Hunter on a couple of plays. In fantasy, there's no question I'm taking Ted Aurora McMillan because I think he can play 100% of the snaps of the Carolina Panthers and I know he's going to be the number one wide receiver and I think he can beat any type of coverage the Jaguars throw at him. He's got the size he's got the quickness, he can get open and he can make some big plays. We saw it in the preseason, obviously we saw it in college. He is a top 24 wide receiver for me in his very first NFL game.
Jamie Eisenberg
Guy that you're starting this week, Keith, is Deebo Samuel and a lot of talk about the commander's receiving corp because of Terry McLaurin. Does this play into McLaurin maybe getting off to a slow start because of lack of practice time or are you just all in on Deebo Samuel for this week against the Giants?
Heath Cummings
Well, I'm all in on Jaden Daniels and so I pretty much want everybody that's catching passes from from him. I expect him to have a very good week. He's my number one quarterback for the week and for the season. I do think it's a kind of a boost to Deebo that Terry McLaurin was absent so much during training camp and Deebo Samuel got so much attention playing as the wide receiver one for the commanders in that situation. I think he meshes perfectly with McLaurin's skill set. McLaurin can take guys deep, Deebo can work underneath. Going to be a good year for both of them.
Jamie Eisenberg
Should be fun to see how it goes against the Giants. Pass rush that could be a little bit of a problem. But the secondary, that's still definitely a work in progress and a defense that is going to be a work in progress most likely all season is Cincinnati Bengals. I'm starting Jerry Jeudy with all the confidence in the world because Joe Flacco is the starting quarterback and Judy last year was unbelievable when it wasn't DeSean Watson. Now we'll see what Cedric Tillman does because when we first saw the quarterback change, Tillman was actually out producing. Jerry Jeudy, obviously the tight end there and David Nijoko is going to be fun. You have manifested that Harold Fannin is going to have a big week one as well. So we'll see how all these past catcher's work in Cleveland. But I like the situation for Jerry Dudy as a top 20 wide receiver. Let's look at the guys that we're talking about as sits and three big names that we have here. For me it's Garrett Wilson, for you it is DK Metcalf and for you it's Calvin Ridley. Is Ridley just as Adam Azer said on our podcast, the poster child for who to sit this week when we talk about starts and sits.
Heath Cummings
Yeah, he was wide receiver 31 for me when I woke up this morning And I woke up with a panic that's too high. So he's now outside of the top.
Jamie Eisenberg
Welcome to my range.
Heath Cummings
He's outside of the top 36 wide receivers. For me, I think he's going to have a good year. I think Cam Ward will be good for him eventually. This is an awful matchup. All the terrible things that Dave said about Tony Pollard are even more true about the guy who has to catch passes against Patserton.
Jamie Eisenberg
You don't like DK Metcalf, Dave. And it's a lot of people looking at and say, well, I drafted him as a top four or five round player, a top 20 caliber wide receiver. Am I really sitting him in Week 1 against the Jets?
Dave Richard
I think you can. It really depends on who else you have at wide receiver and if you want to call him a flex or a number three wide receiver, I think he's worthy of that. But as a top 24 type of wide receiver receiver, I'm nervous. I think the matchup is going to be very tough against a Jets defense that will probably play more man coverage now than they ever have when Sauce Gardner was there. Gardner will probably be on DK Metcalf's hip for the entire game. It's Aaron Rodgers under center. I don't know how much throwing Aaron Rodgers is going to need to do. This feels like a low scoring game. We talked about that. This is really a matchup where I think DK's numbers could go down a little bit in week two. He's got Seattle. That's a revenge game, obviously. So I wonder if DK is kind of circling that game on his calendar anyway.
Jamie Eisenberg
Well, let's find out. Another revenge game is Justin Fields taking on the Steelers because he played there last year. Garrett Wilson is going to be his number one receiver. We kind of got a little nervous, I think about Garrett Wilson from the start of the draft process as we saw Fields throw the ball. I'm hopeful Wilson dominates targets, comes out, has a big game. But I'm nervous just because of this defense and how the Steelers will contain Justin Field and I think contain Garrett Wilson. So a starter in three receiver leagues, but not a must start guy in two wide receiver formats, even though you may have drafted him that way. I think in one of my leagues I actually have my only two receivers. It might be our podcast league. My top two receivers are DK Metcalf and Garrett Wilson. Don't love that setup, but hopefully the quarterback and running backs will carry me through for at least week number one or I Might have to turn to some sleepers and that's what we're looking at next year. So you like Cooper cup this week? You like Rasheed Shahid this week? I'm going with Demario Douglas. Are people just forgetting about Cooper Cup?
Heath Cummings
Well, they've definitely forgotten what he did in week one last year when he got 14 passes for over 100 yards and scored a touchdown. And he's basically done similar to that each of the last three, three week ones. Cooper Cup's problem throughout his career and especially lately has been that he's had a hard time staying healthy. He's healthy going into week one. I think you should expect eight to nine plus targets from Cooper cup and definitely a top 36 guy.
Jamie Eisenberg
So if he's getting that many targets and JSN's getting, I think probably very.
Heath Cummings
Similar, but maybe a little more.
Jamie Eisenberg
Okay. Do we see anything from Torrey Horton? Do we see anything from the tight ends? Do we see anything from the backside of the backfield?
Heath Cummings
I don't. I don't think they're going to have three wide receivers on the field all that often. It's going to be a lot of two tight end sets. It's going to be a lot of running. A running back might be third on this team. In third.
Dave Richard
Yeah. They'll play with the fullback a lot this year, too.
Jamie Eisenberg
I'm surprised you are supporting anything from the Saints not named Alvin Camaro because.
Dave Richard
I think they're going to have to throw a lot every single week and I'm hoping that volume not only carries Chris Olave, it looks like he's going to line up in the slot a lot more. But Rashid Shahid, not only we know he can win downfield. I don't want to count on him for that. I want to count on him for what he does in the short and intermediate area. I think Kellen Moore can design the offense and to make it easy on Spencer Radler. And as. As improved as the pass rush is for Arizona, I still have questions about the secondary there and I think Shahid can beat them for a nice catch and run maybe some big plays after that. So as far as sleepers go, as far as number three wide receivers go, I think Shahid's in the conversation now. These are our rankings, consensus 37 through 48. These are number four types of wide receivers. I'm surprised that Olave is in here and honestly I think Shahid shouldn't be in this list either. I think they should both be a little bit higher because those Saints are going to have to throw a lot.
Jamie Eisenberg
I just don't want to trust them. That's really what it comes down to is I don't want to have to trust them in week one. But we are talking about guys that could be some desperation plays. The same thing goes for Demario Douglas again, slot receiver for Josh McDaniels for Drake May. Great matchup against the Raiders. If I like Drake May, I got to like some of his pass catchers. And Stefon Diggs while off the injury report still could be a little bit limited. He's talking about he hopes he does not have a snap count. So we could see a lot of Demario Douglas being one of the high volume target getters for Drake May in week number one. Alright, we take a break right now. We come back and get into the tight ends and our week one rankings for that position. Guess who's at the top? We'll show you next here on Fantasy Football Today.
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Jamie Eisenberg
There welcome back to Fantasy Football today presented by BetMGM. Here are our tight end rankings for week number one, our consensus rankings of Heath Cummings, Dave Richard and myself Jamie Eisenberg. And no surprise with the three guys at the top. These were the three guys that we were saying these are the great tight ends for 2025 and should be great in Week 1. Bowers taking on the Patriots, McBride taking on the Saints and George Kittle taking on the Seahawks. Let's get McBride a touchdown right out of the gate and just not have to worry about that. So hopefully that'll be fun to see.
Dave Richard
Perfect matchup for it.
Jamie Eisenberg
Number four. Number four though is our consensus tight end in Travis Kelce. I'm a little nervous just because the situation could be great. No Rashi Rice for the first six games, but I'm a little nervous about the setup. Taking on Derwin James and the Chargers can make this a little tough for him. So you're starting him, no question, but he was my toughest guy to rank for this week. I guess you guys didn't share that same sentiment.
Dave Richard
No, I still think target and volume numbers are going to be good for him. I'm not expecting to make a bunch of splash plays and yards after the catch, obviously in the red zone. He's going to get a lot of attention anyway, but I'm looking for him to get around. Five catches, 60, 70 yards on top of that. That's 12 PPR points, what he averaged last year. Figures what he should be able to do this week against the Chargers.
Heath Cummings
They've got to get him in the end zone so we can do the down on one knee. Touchdown. Celebrate.
Jamie Eisenberg
Oh, yeah, we got a new engagement. Celebration. All right. So, Heath, the toughest guy for you to rank is Tyler Warren. Dave, the guy that you're starting this week, at least in your suggestion for starts and sits, is Tyler Warren. So why are you having a little tough time where to put him in your rankings and why are you so confident?
Heath Cummings
Daniel Jones? No, I don't. I won't be that quick, but it's a rookie tight end Daniel Jones at quarterback, Michael Pittman and Josh Downs already there. I just. I think he can be great. I don't think he's Brock Bowers, but I think he can be great. I have a hard time trusting it week one with Daniel Jones.
Dave Richard
I agree with the sentiment, but I do think Daniel Jones is going to want to get that ball out fast. And I think the Colts really want to make it a point to get Tyler Warren involved. And so I think we're going to see a lot of targets from him. Daniel Jones is going to have time to throw downfield to where Pittman has been over the last few years. And Downs is somebody who could take work away from Tyler Warren. I think Tyler Warren is going to be used in a bunch of different ways that we haven't even seen seen yet. I think he's going to end up being a top 12 tight end this week.
Jamie Eisenberg
Listen, I think the way that the draft process finished, a lot of people are counting on that to be the case. You're concerned about another rookie tight end? A guy that you're sitting this week is Colston Loveland.
Heath Cummings
Well, I'm actually sitting Warren, too. I mean, he was the hardest guy to rank, but I'm sitting the rookie tight ends and it's just again, what is the snap share? What is the target share in their very first NFL game and for the Bears in particular against a very good Vikings defense, It will be very interesting.
Jamie Eisenberg
Will be very interesting. And you said the toughest guy for you to rank was Kyle Pitts. He's a guy.
Dave Richard
I couldn't figure out how far I wanted to move him down I'll tell.
Jamie Eisenberg
You what, though, we got a couple things that are working in his favor here. First off, Darnell Mooney will find out how healthy his shoulder is, if he's going to play and how effective he'll be. He was awesome last year against this defense against Tampa Bay. It was the only two games where he did something of significance. In his two games against Tampa Bay, 11 catches, 179 yards and two touchdowns on 13 targets. At least 15.8 PPR points in each of those matchups. And I think based on what Michael Penick said all offseason, come out and prove it. If this is your buddy, this is your golfing guy. We got the Breakfast Club in Detroit, excuse me, with the Rams, and now we have the golfing club here with the Falcons. So we could see Pitts hopefully get off to a good start. I agree with you. He's tough to rank, trust me. I don't think anybody wants to start him, but could be a fun situation here for Kyle.
Dave Richard
He's easier to start if Darnell mooney isn't at 100%.
Jamie Eisenberg
Totally agree with that sentence. All right, couple guys that were just going to go through the sits here. So you're sitting Colston Loveland, you're sitting Dalton Kincaid. I'm sitting Tucker Kraft. Again. I said this earlier just because he's probably the most prominent name of this trio. Is the history against the packers. Excuse me, against the Lions. Not great. And they were number one in terms of fewest fantasy points allowed to opposing tight ends last year. Most people are not going to sit Tucker Kraft. If you drafted him, you're not going to go pick up the guys that we're going to talk about as sleepers. Chigo Conquo Hunter Henry Brenton Strange, you're still starting Kraft. I just would lower expectations personally. A little bit concerned based on Detroit getting healthier on defense. Make the case for Chig Okonkwo as a sleeper.
Heath Cummings
The Denver Broncos actually saw the fifth most tight end targets last year because nobody wants to throw the wide receivers against him. Okonkwo looks like he's going to play a higher snap share this year as well.
Jamie Eisenberg
Make the case for Hunter Hendry.
Dave Richard
I think he's going to end up being one of those best buddies for Drake May over the course of the year. But against the Raiders and those linebackers, I think he ends up being somebody that is a focal point in their game plan.
Jamie Eisenberg
And Breton Strange, look, we'll find out how much Travis Hunter plays on offense. We'll see about Parker Washington and Diami Brown. He was very good last year when he got minimal targets and I think this is a great opportunity against a team in the Carolina Panthers that struggles to defend tight ends. So Trevor Lawrence, we like him. We're going to like some of his targets. Brent Strange could be one of those guys. All right, we're going to take a break right now. We're going to wrap up the show. When we come back with your questions, Ask fft next after the break.
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Jamie Eisenberg
Today presented by BetMGM. We got your questions and we'll help you set those lineups for week number one. Half ppr. Sit one out of Tony Pollard, Jalen Warren or Emeka Abuka Dave. That was directed to you. So what's your answer?
Dave Richard
I'm going to sit Pollard. Of those three and half ppr, you would sit Ebuka.
Jamie Eisenberg
Ebuka. Okay, I'm going to sit Pollard as well. Next question. Wisest prognosticators. Well, that's a good way to get us to answer your question. And Adam, of course sit one and half PPR. Matthew Golden, Tyrone Tracy Jr. Or Juwan Jennings.
Dave Richard
I'm sitting Jennings.
Heath Cummings
I'm sitting Jennings for sure right now. Probably still if he gets a full practice in but it'd be much closer.
Jamie Eisenberg
I'm sitting Jennings as well. Next question. Would you trade Dak Prescott and Jameson Williams for Joe burrow in a 10 team league? So receivers are Malik neighbors, Teterowa McMillan, Ricky Piersoll, Emeka Buka and Keon Coleman. So would you give up Dak and Jameson Williams for Burrow? I would. Would you guys?
Dave Richard
I would not. I'd love what Jameson Williams. Upside is see if you can give up a Buuka with Dak Prescott instead to get Joe Burrow.
Heath Cummings
I would do it, yeah.
Jamie Eisenberg
I think in a 10 team lead you get the best player. So I would take that trade. With the 2025 season just about to start. Let's talk about, let's see how you have been playing. How long have you been playing? How long have you been playing fantasy football and who was the first person you Remember drafting.
Dave Richard
So for me, I remember my very first pick.
Jamie Eisenberg
My very first pick was Chris Carter in 1997.
Dave Richard
My first pick was Barry Sanders in 1997.
Heath Cummings
I don't have any idea.
Dave Richard
Have you been playing since 1997?
Heath Cummings
No, I was in high school in 1997. I'm not quite as old as you guys.
Dave Richard
Yeah, that's true.
Jamie Eisenberg
I actually won the first year because I picked up Randall Cunningham and had the Cunningham to Carter.
Heath Cummings
I think Donovan McNabb, you were stacking before.
Dave Richard
Stacking was cool.
Jamie Eisenberg
Before stacking was cool. Any more questions?
Dave Richard
I had Aikman. He wasn't very good.
Jamie Eisenberg
Half PPR, one running back, two flex leagues need to choose two. Xavier Worthy, Tedro McMillan, Tyler Warren. I also have McBride and James Cook. So which two are you taking for these guys in a half PPR league?
Dave Richard
I'm taking McMillan and Cook. And when I said Aikman wasn't good, he was obviously great as a quarterback, but for fantasy, he left a little bit to be desired.
Heath Cummings
Yeah, the names disappeared.
Dave Richard
It's Cook and McMillan.
Jamie Eisenberg
I would take Cook and McMillan also.
Heath Cummings
Was worthy on there.
Jamie Eisenberg
Worthy is worthy.
Heath Cummings
I'd start him over. All those guys.
Dave Richard
Wow.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yeah, I struggle with that one too. Maybe just play the receivers. Cook could be tough against Baltimore. I mean, that's not an easy match.
Heath Cummings
I think he had about 11 PPR fantasy games. Two games combined last year.
Jamie Eisenberg
Yeah, I'm going to go with the receivers just to make it safe. It is half ppr, but still. All right, make sure you get those lineups right. Make sure you check out our Fantasy Football Today podcast. We're going to have you covered with everything that you need. Check out today's episode which is the start sits for the afc. Tomorrow we'll have the start sits for the nfc. You can find it wherever podcasts are available. Sunday morning we have you covered at 11:30am on YouTube only. But of course we'll be recording on Friday two episodes with our mailbag and then again on Sunday morning with Fantasy Football Express with all the last minute tips that you need for Heath Cummings, for Dave Richard, for Robert Turbin and our great production staff, I'm Jamie Eisenberg. Thanks for watching Fantasy football today. Is this a hit it situation?
Heath Cummings
It's whatever kind of adventure we want it to be.
Jamie Eisenberg
Now streaming on Paramount. Plus it's an all new season of adventures.
Heath Cummings
We have to stop this invasion.
Dave Richard
Get to this.
Jamie Eisenberg
This crew is a team.
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Out of this together.
Jamie Eisenberg
Hang on.
Dave Richard
It's one in a thousand.
Jamie Eisenberg
We get done right or don't blow.
Dave Richard
Ourselves up along the way.
Heath Cummings
I like those odds. We'll just turn it off before we blow up.
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Jamie Eisenberg
Now streaming on Paramount plus.
Date: September 4, 2025
Hosts: Jamie Eisenberg, Dave Richard, Heath Cummings
Guest Analyst: Robert Turbin
This episode kicks off the 2025 NFL season with an in-depth discussion of Week 1 fantasy football rankings. The crew covers all the key positions — quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends — sharing consensus rankings, debating tough calls, and delivering their favorite starts, sits, and sleeper picks. The episode features robust debate, actionable advice for league managers, and some classic rapport between analysts, setting a fun, informative tone for Fantasy Football Today listeners as the season gets underway.
(00:43 - 13:44)
(14:17 - 29:01)
Tony Pollard (v. Broncos):
Jalen Warren/Aaron Jones:
Breece Hall:
(29:35 - 37:14)
Heath on Travis Hunter: “If he’s a full-time wide receiver this year, he has top 12 upside.” [30:09]
Tezroa McMillan vs. Travis Hunter — Dave believes McMillan will shine (“he can beat any type of coverage...he can make some big plays”). [31:00]
(37:36 - 42:38)
Tyler Warren (Rookie, Colts):
Kyle Pitts: Both Jamie & Dave find him difficult to trust, but recognize big upside if Darnell Mooney is inactive or limited.
(43:11 - 46:45)
Heath Cummings (on Travis Hunter, 30:09):
“If he’s a full-time wide receiver this year, he has top 12 upside.”
Dave Richard (on Jalen Warren, 24:21):
“Mike Tomlin came out and said he’s our featured guy… I feel pretty good about Jalen Warren getting a lot of work, kind of in that same vein that we were talking about with Tony Pollard.”
Robert Turbin (on TreVeyon Henderson, 16:14):
“His opportunities will continue to grow. Maybe not so much right away, but I think he'll still be impactful in the Patriots offense.”
Jamie Eisenberg (on Joe Flacco, 12:17):
“The matchup is as good as you could possibly find...he could get you off to a very good start if you're desperate.”
Dave Richard (on DK Metcalf, 33:27):
“I think the matchup is going to be very tough against a Jets defense that will probably play more man coverage now… Gardner will probably be on DK Metcalf’s hip for the entire game.”
| Position | Start/Sleepers | Sit/Avoid | Toughest to Rank | |----------|----------------|-------------------------|-----------------------------| | QB | Drake May, Trevor Lawrence, Jordan Love, Bryce Young, JJ McCarthy, Joe Flacco | Justin Fields, Jared Goff, Brock Purdy | Purdy, Caleb Williams, Mahomes | | RB | Tony Pollard (Heath), Jalen Warren (Dave), Aaron Jones (Jamie), Dylan Sampson (Heath) | RJ Harvey, Breece Hall, Tony Pollard (Dave) | Etienne (Dave), Hampton (Heath), Pollard (Jamie) | | WR | Tezroa McMillan, Deebo Samuel, Jerry Jeudy, Travis Hunter, Cooper Kupp, Rasheed Shaheed, Demario Douglas | Garrett Wilson, DK Metcalf, Calvin Ridley | Hunter (Heath), Pearsall (Dave), Zay Flowers (Jamie) | | TE | Tyler Warren, Chig Okonkwo, Hunter Henry, Brenton Strange | Colston Loveland, Dalton Kincaid, Tucker Kraft | Warren (Heath), Pitts (Jamie/Dave) |
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