Fantasy Valentines: Emeka Egbuka, Zay Flowers, Chase Brown and More (02/12 Fantasy Football Podcast)

Summary

Fantasy Football Today — "Fantasy Valentines: Emeka Egbuka, Zay Flowers, Chase Brown and More"

Release Date: February 12, 2026
Host & Analysts: Adam Aizer, Dave Richard, Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings

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Episode Overview

The team celebrates Valentine's Day by showering love on their favorite early fantasy football picks—rookies, breakout stars, and some post-hype sleepers. Each expert picks two “Valentine’s” (players or draft strategies they’re enamored with) from the 2026 fantasy landscape. The episode is full of playful banter, mock draft tips, and actionable insights for anyone hoping to get a leg up in early drafts and dynasty leagues.

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Notable Quotes and Moments

• Adam kicks things off with a cringe-worthy fantasy love song (03:07), setting the tone for a fun and light-hearted episode.
• "No, nobody asked you to do that … You just made the choice." — Heath Cummings on Adam’s song (04:30)
• “When it comes to these late-round quarterbacks… I don’t care who they are, where they’re from, or what they did. As long as they love me and my fantasy.” — Dave Richard, parodying Backstreet Boys (12:37)
• “I just think [Zay Flowers] is still a little bit under the radar as a star wide receiver. He hasn’t gotten the red zone targets … But we know that [touchdowns] can be a little bit fluky.” — Heath Cummings (22:00)
• “Chase Brown … has the potential to be an RB1, honestly. Like, probably in a weaker RB year, but he has that potential.” — Adam Aizer (36:22)
• “Tony Pollard is a boring back—I’ll leave him for someone else to draft. I mean, I kind of agree.” — Adam Aizer (40:48)
• “If he stays in a tandem with Tyjae Spears [in TEN], I like that best for him.” — Jamey Eisenberg on Tony Pollard (41:49)

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Main Discussion Points

1. Coaching Changes & Offseason News (04:44–08:53)

• Cleveland TE David Njoku likely leaving, uncertain fantasy impact.
• Deep dive into the Giants’ revamped coaching staff (Matt Nagy, Greg Roman, Brian Callahan), with optimistic counterpoints from Heath on how specialist roles could maximize Jackson Dart and others.
• Jamie Eisenberg: “I think it always comes down to Jimmy’s and Joe’s versus X’s and O’s. If you have the players, they’re going to make coaches look good and I think the Giants have the players.” (08:15)

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2. Fantasy Valentines — Players We Love

Dave Richard’s Valentines (09:26–12:25)

• Emeka Egbuka (WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

  • Early-2025 “good Buka” averaged over 20 PPR points per game before a hamstring injury derailed his season. Dave expects a return to that level (09:41).
  • “He’s super talented. I drafted him in round four in our mock—I’d do it again.” (10:45)
  • Projected as the lead WR in an offense that could mirror the high-octane, bad-defense shootouts fantasy owners love.

• Late-Round Quarterback Value

  • “I can’t justify taking even Josh Allen in the top 30 or 40, knowing I can get two of those quarterbacks real late … The potential is there.” — Dave lists Trevor Lawrence, Mahomes, Stafford, Goff, Mayfield, Nix, and Darnold all going after round 11 in recent mocks (11:31).

Heath Cummings’ Valentines (16:09–23:15)

• Sam LaPorta (TE, Detroit Lions)

  • Consistent production: 17-game average of 102 targets, must-start for three years, especially under new OC Drew Petzing, who feeds tight ends (16:45).
  • “He has a chance to give you top five tight end production, but you don’t have to reach into round four or five to get him.”

• Zay Flowers (WR, Baltimore Ravens)

  • Massive year-over-year yardage jump, better yards/target and yards/game every season.
  • “I just think he is still a little bit under the radar as a star wide receiver … If touchdowns swing up, Zay Flowers could be a top-six wide receiver.” (22:00)

Jamey Eisenberg’s Valentines (25:27–31:31)

• Colston Loveland (TE, Chicago Bears)

  • “This feels like the guy who's going to lead the Bears in targets and tight ends with that kind of potential are difference-makers.” (25:45)
  • Top four TE with a case to be TE3 behind McBride and Bowers; end-of-year momentum and a major mismatch on the field.
  • “The sky’s the limit for what he could do.”

• Jordan Love (QB, Green Bay Packers)

  • (Pushed by theme) Emphasizes more excitement about Christian Watson and the Packers’ passing offense if all pieces return healthy.
  • “Love belongs in late-round QB discussions, but really, I’m excited about Watson’s potential as a WR2.” (29:24)
  • Team has legacy running and passing efficiency but needs more volume to enter the weekly top-10 at either position.

Adam Aizer’s Valentines (33:46–43:38)

• Chase Brown (RB, Cincinnati Bengals)

  • “He took over as the starter in 2024 … number 3 running back per game in full PPR… When Joe Burrow came back… 22.3 points per game.” (35:00)
  • Volume and offense are elite; if Perine leaves and Brown gets third-down work, RB1 finish is possible.
  • Concerns: rushing efficiency and the Bengals’ tendency toward predictable runs, but passing work offsets.

• Tony Pollard (RB, Tennessee Titans?)

  • Not a “love” pick by conviction, but likes round 7 cost (RB28) for a boring but reliable 1,000-yard back.
  • “If he can score three more TDs and catch seven more passes, he’s a guy who could finish RB18 or so—basically never leaving your lineup.” (42:10)
  • Cut/trade scenarios could open up more upside, but stable value in TN if he stays.

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Position Debates, Draft Takeaways, and Dynasty Takes

• Egbuka vs. Zay Flowers:

  • Jamie prefers Flowers by a hair but says it depends on Mike Evans’ status in TB; both have new coordinators and uncertainty.
  • Heath regrets not taking Flowers earlier: “I probably should have taken Flowers there… I just think he has a higher floor.”

• Colston Loveland’s True Fantasy Ceiling:

  • Is he the Bears’ no. 1 or 2 in targets? Split between analysts, but consensus is he’s a prime breakout TE with high weekly upside if volume is there.

• Late-Round Quarterback Approach:

  • Depth at QB argued strongly by Dave and Jamie; you can build with two in double-digit rounds and avoid early QB runs.

• Running Back Value Tier:

  • Adam leans Brown > Hampton > Cook > Taylor for upside, but says picking Brown over Taylor was a mistake in last mock.
  • Tony Pollard = “Perfect hero RB or RB3 for zero-RB builders, as long as workload stays.” Jamey prefers him to risky dart throws, but only just.

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro & Love Song: 03:07 – 04:23
• Giants Coaching Staff Breakdown: 05:19 – 08:53
• Dave’s Valentines (Egbuka, QBs): 09:26 – 12:37
• Heath’s Valentines (LaPorta, Zay Flowers): 16:09 – 23:15
• Flowers vs. Egbuka & WR Debate: 23:15 – 25:27
• Jamey’s Valentines (Loveland, Jordan Love, Christian Watson): 25:27 – 31:31
• Adam’s Valentines (Chase Brown, Tony Pollard): 33:46 – 43:38
• Draft Tactics and Player Comparisons: sprinkled throughout

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Conclusion

The team has fun celebrating fantasy “romances” with breakout candidates and draft strategies, leaving listeners with actionable advice:

• Don’t reach for a QB—late-round value is immense in 2026 drafts.
• Monitor RB and WR situations tied to coaching and free agency for breakout potential.
• Tight end landscape is flush with ascending stars—Loveland, LaPorta, and more are all in the must-draft range after McBride and Bowers.
• Value reliable, moderately-upside RBs like Pollard and Brown in mid-rounds to anchor flexible builds.

Final Thought: The podcast delivers equal parts entertainment and analysis, helping Dynasty and redraft players narrow their offseason “crush list” and arming them with the stats and context to crush early drafts.

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Note: All timestamps are approximate, and superfluous banter, commercial breaks, and non-fantasy content have been omitted in this summary.

Transcript

[A]

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[A]

Feel the love everybody. It's our Valentine's Day edition. Woo. What's up, Heath? You look a little stunned.

[C]

I. You know, I never wished I had the ability to comment on the chat by myself. I'm sure I do. Just never figured it out.

[A]

But of course you do.

[C]

Wow. That was something.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Come on, we're spreading the love. It's our Valentine's Day edition even though it's February 12th. But you know we're getting you ready for a love filled weekend. Dave, you feeling it?

[E]

I'm feeling something.

[C]

All right.

[A]

Jamie, I love you. I hate your shirt.

[D]

Love you too, buddy.

[A]

All right, today we're going to talk about players. We love an early edition and I feel like this is the second straight year I'm using Chase Brown. So hopefully it works out a little better this year, even though he had a good year. We're going to talk about. Well, actually I've. I've prepared a song.

[D]

Yes.

[A]

About the players that we're going to talk about. Oh yeah, hold on. Let me queue up the music.

[D]

Oh, great.

[E]

More music.

[A]

It's a song.

[E]

Will this music also destroy our eardrums like the first music that you played?

[A]

The music won't. The singing definitely will.

[E]

Oh, boy.

[A]

Okay, here we are. I actually really think this is going to be bad and I don't want to do it, but I have to now.

[D]

Right?

[A]

We're committed.

[C]

You're just going to try to get us to beg you to.

[A]

Here we go. Here we go. Oh, God. Oh God. E O J far oh my God. In full PPR I believe that Chase Proud is a star. He will say he's in love with Ze and Dave loves his abookah and Puka and Omaria. I know you're not talking about those guys, but the only ones I could fit into this song. Okay, there you go. There's my rendition. Was laughing too hard to sing it.

[D]

Okay.

[A]

Well, hello guys.

[E]

Only. Only one stanza.

[A]

Yeah, that's it.

[C]

I just want to clarify for the audience. No, nobody asked you to do that.

[D]

No.

[C]

You didn't lose any bets.

[D]

Correct.

[C]

You just made the choice. Okay.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

Thank you.

[A]

I wrote it. I wrote it out and everything. All right, well anyway, let's get to our news and notes. David Ajoku said he's not going to be back with Cleveland. He averaged only 25 yards per game, 24.4 yards per game. Three straight years before that between 45 and 55 yards per game. And then he had, you know, whatever, just a bad year. Also left one game after six snaps with a season ending injury. And he's kind of getting up there in age. We'll see where David Najoku ends up. And Dave wanted to talk about the Giants coaching staff. So go ahead, Dave.

[E]

We know that Matt Nagy is the offensive coordinator. Greg Roman is there as a run game coordinator. Is that the official title? I'm not exactly sure. I'm a little fuzzy on it. And then Brian Callahan, who we loved as the Titans head coach is now going to be the quarterbacks coach. So yeah, we love Jackson dart, love the rushing, had some great throws. Jacob Gibbs has been showing us that on X Cam. Scatter Boo is a ton of fun. We know that when he was healthy, starting and playing a lot, he was averaging north of 19 PPR points per game. But these are the three coaches. These are the three wise men who will be leading Dart Scaboo. I can't forget about Malik, Neighbors, Nagy, Roman, Callahan. That, that, that is a, that is a circus circus buffet of worry when it comes to play design, play calling and hoping that these players end up being great. Knowing the track record of two of the three guys. Roman, we might give a little bit of credit to but I'm just wondering if you. Has there ever been a coaching staff where you look at the coaches and you go these guys suck. I've got to hold it against this player. When it comes to fantasy, when it comes to drafting them, I don't know.

[C]

What you're talking about. Dave Jackson dart now has like he stole Patrick Mahomes offensive coordinator. The guy designing the run game is the guy that was the designing the run game when Lamar won his first mvp. And the guy designing the past game is the guy who developed Joe Burrow as a passer. As an offensive coordinator like Jackson Dart is basically going to be Patrick Mahomes with Lamar Jackson's rushing and Joe Burrow's development as a passer. This is.

[E]

So maybe you moved up Jackson Dart in your rankings then is what I'm hearing.

[A]

Oh, sorry. Go ahead, Heath. I drowned you out with the music there.

[C]

No, I'm just saying it's, it's phenomenal.

[D]

He's got you only play day Dave off.

[E]

Yeah, I'm the only one that gets played off around here.

[A]

Well, I like not, not all of them are call calling the players or coaching the team.

[D]

Right.

[C]

They, they, they're all doing what they're best at.

[A]

They have had. Right. I think that's kind of the. What they're trying to do is let, let Matt Nagy focus on the passing game more and let Greg Roman design a running game which he's been really good at. And then Brian Callahan developing quarterbacks is something he's been really good. It's not just Burrow these guys have worked with. I think it was Matthew Stafford. Right? Callahan worked with Stafford and isn't.

[C]

Isn't Callahan.

[E]

Callahan worked with a bunch of quarterbacks.

[A]

What's that?

[C]

Isn't Callahan younger than Stafford?

[A]

Probably, but I don't know. I mean actually it's an experienced coaching. I'm not sharing all of your pessimism. I think the Nagy hire really I didn't like it. But the Roman and Callahan hires don't bother me at all.

[D]

I think it always comes down to Jimmy's and Joe's versus Xs nos. So if you have the players, they're going to make coaches look good and I think the Giants have the players. So is it the most ideal situation? Obviously not. We said that when they hired Nagy. I don't know who was on the show, but we talked about this, that this was not the guy that we wanted to see taking control of this offense. In terms of who was out there, does that mean it's going to be bad? I don't think so by any stretch. It's just not the ideal situation on paper. So, yes, these guys have a good track record at times being in control of certain parts of their offense. Hopefully that's the case. I think they got good players to work with and if these guys do what they're supposed to do, they're going to make these guys look good as coaches.

[E]

All right.

[A]

All right, that's it for Anderson. Notes. All right, Valentine's, here we go.

[E]

You've committed to the bit now. I don't know why you're stopping the music.

[D]

I never rooted for the iceberg more than.

[A]

I needed to do it without laughing so much. Also, I probably realize now that the people watching on YouTube probably couldn't even hear the music. So it was just my whole horrible singing.

[C]

That's even better.

[A]

No, no, no, Dave. A Mecca Abuka and late round quarterbacks. These are your fantasy Valentine. So are we gonna get early season of Buka, late season of Buka or something in between? Why do you love him so much?

[E]

I think you'll get closer to early season of Buka. But keep in mind that late season of Buco was. It was gross. It was really bad. We're talking about 8.1 PPR points per game from week seven on. That's not even late season of Buka. That's mid season of Buka. But he had the hamstring injury and I think that that was part of the downfall for the Bucks and not just his injury. But Baker got hurt, the offensive line had some, some mixing and matching to do and it really tanked Tampa season. When I think about what this offense could look like when healthy, provided that Mike Evans is back, it's. It's going to be deep. But they've seen the good of a Mecca Buka and the good from a Mecca Buka is insane. And he was getting just about the same type of target share when he averaged 20.5 PPR points per game in his first five games as he did when he was averaging 7.7 targets per game from week seven on. I think he's super talented. I think it's silly to ding him too much for last year. I don't think he's going to be a 20 ppr point per game receiver, but I bet he could get to 15. I think he'll be the lead wide out in Tampa. I think Baker will be more like Baker this coming year. And more importantly, I think the Bucks could end up being like the Cardinals, like the Cowboys. A team that's loaded on offense, crappy on defense and leads to a bunch of high scoring games. I want players from those teams. And so a BUCA is the one that I'm kind of swooning for. I drafted him yesterday in round four in our mock. I would do it again and I think that that's where he'll end up unless the hype gets out of control in his second year and then he goes into round three. At that point we could have another conversation about it, but for now, round four is where it's at. And speaking of rounds and values, I want to run these names past you guys. These were all the quarterbacks taken round 11 or later in our PPR mock yesterday one QB league, 12 teams. Trevor Lawrence, Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, the league MVP. Matthew Stafford went round 11. Plus Jared Goff, aforementioned Baker Mayfield and then Bo Nix and then Sam Darnold was like the last quarterback taken whatever with Darnold, but the rest of those quarterbacks, pretty awesome. And I, I can't justify taking even Josh Allen with a top 30 or even a top 40 pick knowing that I can get two of those quarterbacks if I wanted to real late in the draft. And we know that. We know what their potential is. We saw it from half of them this year. And the ones we didn't see it from, we saw it last year. Think about those names again. Lawrence, Mahomes, Stafford, Goff, Mayfield, Knicks, Darnold. Look, when it comes to these guys.

[C]

I just don't understand why I get played off after 30 seconds.

[E]

No, pipe down. I want this when it comes to these late round quarterbacks. Play the music, Adam, let's go.

[A]

I already did.

[D]

I don't care. He already did.

[E]

Who they are, where they're from or what they did. As long as they love me and my fantasy.

[D]

That was good.

[A]

I like when you tied the song in there.

[C]

I would feel a lot better about that group if Jalen Hurts and Dak hadn't gone in round eight. This because I When I saw Dave's I was thinking about putting Hertz as My Valentine. Just because I think he's fallen to like QB12 or something in Dynasty now and fell to round eight in the draft. We just did. And like I might have a hard time passing on that to wait for the double digit rounds, but you could just take one of each, which I did.

[A]

Just a little off subject here, but I just want to bring this up with Josh Allen who's, you know, probably going to be QB1. He deserves it. Here is fantasy points per game in the last five years.

[E]

And this is every time we talk about Josh Allen in the off season.

[A]

Removing. Well, I don't think I've done this yet. So this year you already have once. Yes, I don't think I have. Removing week 18.

[E]

Yes you have.

[A]

All right, well, it's worth it.

[E]

Okay, go ahead. We have new listeners.

[A]

It's worth repeating. Six point per passion touchdown league points per game removing week 18 of last year and 202024 and 2025. Josh Allen has averaged 28.9, 27.6, 28.7 last six years. 26.2, 26.6 and 25.8 fantasy points per game. Phenomenal. But not, not so far away from, you know, the guys that are going six rounds later.

[C]

I think everybody knows the dip the last two years was Sean McDermott's fault. And now that he's gone, everything's going to be better in Buffalo.

[A]

Well, I mean he obviously needs a wife. It's so coincides with Stefan Diggs, right? It's Diggs was, was. Diggs was there and great and Allen was amazing. Diggs was there and not good and Allen was, was great but not amazing. And then the last three years, Diggs hasn't been there and he just hasn't had any good receivers. Really. All right, so Abuka Buka went one wide receiver, two picks, one wide receiver before Zay Flowers who is one of Heath's love love guys. It actually went Abuka Colson, Loveland and Zay Flowers and they're all going to be talked about today. Just want to remind you all that football season is over. But the action Never stops at BetMGM. Register with BetMGM to get instant access to the best variety of parlay selection features. No sweat. And boost tokens, live betting options and much more. New players can receive up to 1500 dollars back in bonus bets with bonus code Fantasy bonus code Fantasy. Use it if they don't win their first bet. You don't want to miss out on any of the hard hitting action at BetMGM. Place your moneyline, parlay bets and more today. BetMGM make it legendary. All right, quick break and we'll talk about something that Heath loves and more after this.

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[A]

All right, Heath, you love FFT Dynasty. We all love it. Give us a quick FFT Dynasty promo.

[C]

Yeah, I had a one man mailbag on Tuesday. Also working through kind of the state of the position before the positions before we get to free agency and the draft and everything looks different looking where the openings are. We'll be working on tight ends tomorrow.

[A]

Excellent. Okay. And. And let's get right into it. Tight end Sam Laporta is someone you love. Sam Laporta was the number seven tight end per game on pace for only 93 targets in those nine games that he played. So yeah, he's someone you drafted yesterday and he's on your love list. Yeah.

[C]

And he's been a must start tight end first first three years in the league with a 17 game average of 102 targets. So because he's in one of the best offenses in the NFL because he's been really good at scoring fantasy points on a per target basis, even at 102 targets, he's a top six tight end and I think one of the best values in terms of drafts right now because everybody's more excited about the second year guys. Of course the big boost for him is that his new offensive coordinator, Drew Petzing, each of the three years that he was an offensive coordinator, the team threw the ball to tight ends more than 150 times per game. The the Cardinals averaged closer to 180 targets for tight ends per game and it won't be the same thing in Detroit because he didn't have an amun Ross St. Brown in Arizona. But you still. I still think we're going to see a target boost for laporta. He'll continue to be one of their favorite options in the red zone as long as he's healthy for training camp. Which we've heard some reports that it's questionable whether he's ready for the start of camp. But I think most People expect him to be ready early in the season. He has a chance to give you top five tight end production, but you don't have to reach into round four or five to get him.

[A]

Why were you worried about the Lions offense going into. What was it. Was it the pass volume? You were worried about the touchdown?

[C]

Well, first off, it was just. I don't know that. I think I was pretty clear that I thought they were going to be a top five offense. Just the year before, they were the number one offense by a huge margin. So there was some obvious regression coming. Ben Johnson had left and we had a bit of an unknown at offensive coordinator, and I think we saw those concerns kind of play out. The offensive coordinator got fired because the coach wasn't happy with the things that he did. And they did regress by a little bit in terms of scoring.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, I wasn't trying to call you out on that. I was wondering if, if it had anything to do with pass volume because it's now two years in a row. If we go back to preseason, one of the things that may have concerned people about the Lions was their defense completely fell apart late in the year in 2024, and Jared Goff just started throwing so much. And the same exact thing happened because during Sam Laporte is nine games, Jared Goff averaged only 30 pass attempts per game. And after his injury, it wasn't like their defense fell apart immediately. But after his injury, Jared Goff averaged a lot more than that. Come on. Pro Football Reference.

[C]

Whatever.

[A]

But I guess I just want to, you know, I've brought that up before. Sorry. But if the Lions defense can just stay healthy, they might be kind of a low pass, lower pass volume team. And I wonder how that would.

[C]

And again, that probably comes down to how much control is Dan Campbell still exerting over the offense?

[A]

Or.

[C]

I mean, he. He took over the offense and called plays for half of last year and then decided let's go hire someone who has done that before and said that he's going to call plays. So I think it probably has some impact on how much is Dan Campbell still pulling the levers?

[A]

All right, I'm very fascinated with your next choice here on your Valentine's list. And it's Zay Flowers, number seven wide receiver in fantasy. On a per game basis, he was 15th and non PPR, 12th in half, 12th in full PPR. This is Zay Flowers and he had almost the same amount of targets and carries. He's a guy gets nine or ten carries a year as he did last year, but he was so much more efficient. Do I need to stop saying last year? When I say last year, what does that mean to you?

[C]

2025.

[A]

Okay. Because I've been meaning it as 2024, so I need to stop that.

[E]

Oh, my gosh.

[A]

Anyways, Zay Flowers has.

[C]

It was two years ago.

[A]

Yeah.

[E]

Not surprising. I'm a guy who thinks 11:30 is afternoon.

[A]

Oh, I have a question about that. 12:30 in the morning, is that morning or night?

[C]

That's morning.

[A]

No, it's not. It is what we call the middle.

[C]

It just said 12:30 in the morning.

[A]

Exactly. You had to distinguish it exactly. It's clearly the night. No one would be like, oh, it's morning time. It's the middle of the night. Which is why noon or 11:30am is technically, it's the afternoon. Anyway, Zay Flowers.

[C]

So you say happy New Year to your. To your wife. Like when you wake up at 8am the next day?

[A]

If I had fallen asleep before midnight, sure.

[D]

Did he sing the night before or not?

[C]

But once it becomes midnight, it's the next day.

[A]

But it's not morning. It's still nighttime. Everything about that time is night time. There's no way Heath actually thinks that 12:30am is morning. There's just no way. He's not making eggs at that point. Like, it is not morning time.

[D]

Eggs at night are great. What are you talking about?

[E]

Yeah, I have breakfast for dinner all the time.

[A]

Okay, sorry. Bad example.

[C]

Zay Flowers has gotten better every year of his NFL career. Yards per target goes up every year. Yards per game goes up every year.

[E]

He.

[C]

He is a star, and I think there's some people that will expect some regression from last year. Maybe there's a little bit. But there's also a very good chance that the Baltimore Ravens throw more than 422 passes, which is what they threw last year. And when you say his targets only increased by two, you have to take into account that he earned two more targets on a team that threw 422 passes last year. That's 55 fewer than they threw the year before when they were one of the three lowest teams in terms of past attempts. So I. I just think he is still a little bit under the radar as a star wide receiver. He hasn't gotten the red zone targets, and that's led to him only scoring five touchdowns in a season as a max, at least in terms of receiving. I think he had a rushing one last year as well. But we know that that can be a little bit Fluky in terms of touchdown production, his is so low that it certainly projects a potential for a seven or eight touchdown season. And if he does that and is anywhere close to as good as he was last year, or if he does that and they throw 50 more passes again, Zay Flowers could be a top six wide receiver.

[A]

Any thoughts? How about Abuka or Flowers? Jamie, who do you prefer?

[D]

Oh, there's too many questions to be answered with both of those teams to make a decision right now. I would probably lean Flowers, but I think you just look at if, as Dave alluded to, if Evans is gone, then the sky's the limit, potentially for a Buka. If Evans is back and now we're talking a healthy McMillan and Godwin and Evans, then it's tough to say. But in the case of the Ravens, like, I don't know if they're done by any stretch with what their offense is going to look like. I mean, they have a new head coach and a new offensive coordinator. They have to make a decision on DeAndre Hopkins, who's going to be, I believe, 34. I have to make a decision on Isaiah Likely if he returns. I think if likely he's gone. That's a big plus for Flowers because it's one less significant pass catcher there. The fact that they made the decision to stick with Andrews and move on from likely was a little puzzling. So, you know, I think you kind of know what Andrews is going to do, especially at this point in his career. But, you know, look, Lamar Jackson being healthy with seemingly part of the reason why they moved on from Harbaugh should lend itself to being a more Lamar Jackson centric offense. And what I mean by that is maybe more passing to what Heath is talking about. So that should help Flower. So no Evans. I'll probably go a buka with Evans. I'll probably go Flowers.

[A]

Okay, Dave, you took a buka over.

[E]

Flowers and I'll do it again.

[A]

Oh, Heath, who would you have taken.

[C]

Flowers?

[D]

Okay.

[C]

Yeah, I. I probably should have taken Flowers earlier than where he went, but probably it was probably due to where I was picking.

[D]

Right.

[C]

Did he not come back to me or did I pass on him before?

[A]

See, Flowers went to rj. You passed on it. You would have had to take them. Well, you took Judkins.

[C]

Yeah, I probably should have just taken Flowers there.

[A]

Okay. Devonte Adams was also on the board. Would you have taken Adams or Flowers?

[C]

Flowers.

[A]

Okay. And they both have Abuka and Flowers. Both have new offensive coordinators also. So that's part of the Question marks, I guess. All right, Jamie, you're feeling the love. Who are your fantasy Valentine's?

[D]

I, I thought this was supposed to be Valentine's, so I took Colston Loveland and Jordan Love. Right.

[A]

Which I only believe one of them for you.

[D]

Well, that might be true.

[A]

All right, so talk about Colson Loveland, who went in between a Buka and flowers in round four.

[D]

I mean 10, 13, 15, 10 his last four games. And those were his targets in his last four games. Like, this feels like the guy who's going to lead the Bears and targets and time. We get that type of potential for a tight end with a coach like Ben Johnson and a quarterback like Caleb Williams, the. The sky's the limit for what he could do. So I think it's pretty clear at this point that he's going to be in the top four tight ends. I think a lot of people will probably have him as tight end three, but Harold Fannin will make that a interesting discussion after both Trey McBride and Brock Bowers come off the board. But what Loveland showed at the end of the season, some of that was obviously due to Romo Dunze and his health. But like he was the featured part of this passing game and I think that's going to continue. He was dealing with a shoulder injury coming into the start of the season. I don't think he was fully healthy until probably the midpoint of the season. And you just started to see everything improve for him. And so now going into year two, when we see a jump for these young tight ends, at least the great ones, I think he has the potential to be an absolute superstar. So everybody's going to want to draft him. You know, I, I think as we talked about in the course of the mock draft, you know, he's laid it out pretty well that, you know, once you get past McBride and Bowers, then you get that group of tight ends where Tucker Craft comes into play, if he's healthy as well. But you have, you know, the young tight ends of Loveland and Fannin and Warren, those, those four guys. You want to throw LaPorta in there also. I get it. You know, those tight ends that are in great offenses showed some great flashes. You know, obviously Warren was the beginning part of the season fan in the middle to the end of the season, like, these guys are just going to be so much fun. And I, I hope we're not talking about the mid round tight ends that typically fail us, you know, like Kyle Pitts and O.J. howard. Once upon a time, you know have done throughout the course of the, you know, the last 10 plus years. But these guys just look like they're, they're poised for greatness. And Loveland to me, is my favorite of the group. So really excited to see what he does in year two and hopefully building off the end of the season.

[A]

Okay, how confident, I'll ask all of you, on a scale of 1 to 10, 0 to 10, negative 5 to 10. How confident are you that Colson Loveland will lead the bears in targets?

[C]

1?

[D]

8.

[E]

3.

[A]

Okay. How confident are you that he will be top two in targets?

[D]

1 billion 9.

[C]

6.

[A]

Okay. And really he doesn't have to lead the team in targets, but top two in targets is almost essential. It's all it. It's so hard, very, very, very hard to finish as a top five tight end without being top two on your team. And targets. Have I said he would have been.

[E]

The number one tight end? least he was on pace to, well, Maybe not number one, but number two. There were six games that he played without Burden or Odunze. One of them was missing. He averaged 17.6 PPR points per game on 7.5 targets per game in those six games. The problem is that both those guys are definitely going to be on the Bears next year. And so maybe I was a little too high on saying that Loveland is a nine to finish top two on the team and targets, but I still can't help but think that he provides such a mismatch for them all over the field. Defense is going to have a hard time lining up against him and he should be in for a really good year and Certainly a better second season. Can it be 17.6 ppr points per game? Probably not without a major injury to Burden or Dunes.

[A]

Okay, so let's hear Jamie make the case for loving Jordan Love, who did score 25 or more fantasy points in three of his last four games, including the playoffs, not counting the Bears game that he left with an injury. Do you really love Jordan Love, Jamie?

[D]

Oh, it really was a Packer that I was going to talk about, but I was like, you know, let's just stick with the love thing. But it was, it was really Christian Watson because I've drafted him quite a bit so far, but really just the packers passing game I think is going to be fun to watch. I'm curious, you know, Josh Jacobs did not finish the season strong. He dealt with some injuries down the stretch with a knee problem. If he takes a step back, what we saw from Jordan Love in his in his first year as a starter was an impressive fantasy quarterback. We had a huge debate about this through the entire off season after I believe it's 2023, going to 2024, got hurt in the start of the season, so who knows what, you know, led to how that season played out when he got hurt in the game in Brazil. But I do think that there's more to offer for this passing game. We've seen flashes from, we've seen, we saw flashes from that, from love in 2025. We just didn't see it from a consistent basis. And I think the disappointment was that they finally drafted a receiver in the first round and Matthew golden was not great. Christian Watson was not there for the first half of the season. Tucker Craft was not there for the second half of the season. You get everybody there and hopefully a better Matthew Golden. I think this passing game can offer more. So Jordan Love, you know, I didn't want to, you know, sort of trample on what Dave's second point was because I think Jordan Love belongs in that late round quarterback discussion. But at the very tail end, you know, of the guys you can sort of draft is still a starter. Not that you'd want to, but I think he's still worth drafting as a high end backup. So like once you get past like that, Baker Mayfield, Bo Nix, and I'm not saying this is the order, but you know, the guys that are still have starting potential. I think Love still has starting potential, but really for me, you know, Christian Watson, I'm, I'm excited to see what he can do for a full season now that he's healthy because he was such a significant playmaker last year. And I hope that maybe the, the flashes that we saw end of Aaron Rodgers tenure there, start of Jordan Love's tenure with the packers, like there's been so many glimpses of him being a superstar. I think he finally started to put it together a little bit last season and if the targets can tick up a little bit, then I think we could be talking about a guy that's going to push to be a top 20 calibers. You don't think he's ever going to be a top 15 plus guy because I don't think he'll command enough targets. But certainly the touchdown potential is there. He could have a very nice season going into 2026.

[A]

Yeah, Christian Watson had a 23.5 target per route run rate in his last seven games and that's really good. And he was treated like a number one receiver in ways that we hadn't seen since Jordan Love became the quarterback. As far as Love goes, Jamie, this guy's been top seven in yards per attempt two straight years. It's been really good. But they have been 27th or lower in pass attempts. They've just been a very run heavy team. So both Watson and Love, we just need them to throw the ball more. Their their defense just like the lie, just like the Lions. The packers defense collapsed after Parsons got hurt. So you know, we'll see when Parsons is back. Torn acl. I imagine he'll be back pretty early in the season. But yeah, Love, Love's a good quarterback. He just doesn't throw that much and he doesn't run that much. Bad combination I suppose. All right, so to recap, Dave oh, I can just sing the song again. I forget it. Dave loves the Buka and the late round quarterback value. Heath loves Laporta and Flowers. Jamie loves Love. Basically Loveland and Love. And I love two running backs, although not really sure I believe one of them. But we'll talk about that when we come back after this break on Fantasy.

[G]

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[H]

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[A]

Tony Pollard are the players I love. Don't really love Tony Pollard. Don't know why I settled on him. I couldn't think of anyone. We tried to come up with two. I only had one. I guess I could have just gone with Joe Burrow and done the Bengals thing again. But I'll make a case.

[D]

Just just to be clear The. The show topic you came up with?

[A]

No.

[D]

And you only asked for two players. Yeah, and I couldn't come up with the second one.

[A]

I could. Well, I mean, I felt like there were some obvious ones. I was gonna go with Amarian Hampton, but then I thought, like, do I love Amara Hampton? I'm not sure. I think I do. Look, I'm in a very comp. It's a complicated part of my life right now. I'm trying to figure these things out.

[D]

Trying to figure out. I got one for you that you should love.

[A]

Who?

[D]

You loved him last year, too. Quinton Johnston.

[A]

You know, I was gonna go with Quentin Johnson, who I drafted yesterday. And I do think, you know, you talk about X's and O's and Jimmy's and Joe's a lot, but we obviously think that Mike McDaniel is going to be good for all of the Jimmies and Joes, the Chargers, and also Greg Roman, I think, could have been good for them if. If they had stayed healthy, but they were without their two starting tackles for most of the year.

[D]

The guy actually was going to say, before I went with the love theme, was Loveland and Herbert.

[E]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah, I think so. But look, Chase Brown. I'll be quick on Chase Brown. He took over as the starter in 2024, which is two years ago, apparently, and he was the number three running back per game in full PPR, and he averaged 20.6 PPR fantasy points per game. When Joe Burrow came back in 2025, which I guess was one year ago, he averaged 20. 20. 20. 2.3. Sorry, 22.3 PPR fantasy points per game. So that is two stretches of absolutely elite production. And I think the encouraging thing is he did all of that this past year with Samaj P Ryan, and he was still only playing about 61 of the snaps in that stretch with Joe Burrow. Chase Brown, that is. And he still caught a lot of passes because Burrow threw to him a lot and he scored a lot of touchdowns. He's on pace for 22 touchdowns, 11 rushing, 11 receiving. I obviously don't expect that to continue, but what I. What would hold me back from Chase Brown is just not really being sure if he's that good of a rusher. And also this horrible tendency of the Bengals to just run out of the shotgun, hand the ball off to him, and have him smash up the middle into defensive lineman, and it doesn't really fit his skill set. It's annoying. But he's able to overcome that by being on one of the best offenses in football. That feeds him the ball a ton, gives him a lot of catches. And if Samaj P. Ryan is not on the team, if they give him the third down role, he played about 85% of the snaps in the three games without P. Ryan. He could be RB1, honestly, like probably in a weaker RB year, but he has that potential.

[D]

So.

[A]

I love Chase Brown. Any thoughts or should we move on to Pollard?

[D]

So you're drafting him late round one or wherever you can get him in round two?

[A]

I took him 10th yesterday.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

And I like him more than Hampton. Hampton was. Was, you know, a month and a half ago. Two months ago. Not two months ago. A month and a half ago. I was kind of like really excited about Hampton, but I've become more excited. I've moved Chase Brown ahead.

[C]

You took him over Jonathan Taylor and James Cook.

[A]

I should not have taken him over Taylor, I don't think.

[D]

But.

[A]

But I would take him over Cook. Yeah.

[C]

Okay. Those are the two.

[E]

Would you have taken him over Christian McCaffrey? No.

[A]

But I was happy that I didn't have to make that choice. And McCaffrey was off the board, if that makes sense. You know, I guess my heart on love day wants chase brown over McCaffrey. My head says that's pretty silly. Don't do that. Okay. Tony Pollard. I think what I loved about him is where he went in the draft yesterday. 10th pick of round seven. And that's RB28. Last year he was RB28 per game. So in full PPR, it makes sense. I think what I like about him is that over the last two seasons he's been on the Titans. The Tennessee Titans in the last two years have had 13 running back carries from the three yard line or closer. In that same stretch, Derrick Henry has 35. Derrick Henry's had three times as many goal line carries as the Tennessee Titans. Over the last two years, they've had one of the worst offenses in football. Each of the last two years could only get better. He finished the year really strong. 161 yards and two touchdowns at Cleveland, 104 yards at San Francisco, 102 yards against Kansas City, 85 yards against the Saints. That. Those are good defenses, even the Saints, good run defense. And then 14 carries for 48 yards against the Jaguars. Really tough match up there. But look, two things need to happen. He needs to score more touchdowns and he needs to catch more like 35 to 40 balls. He caught 33, so he probably needs to get to like 40. And then I Think you've got a real bargain if you can get Tony Pollard in round seven. And, and I can give you one.

[E]

Other thing that could happen that could make you really love Tony Pollard. He gets cut and he lands on a team where he's a 1A back, a band aid, if you will, for a year. He's going into his age 29 season, which ain't great, but it's also right now a contract year. The Titans can cut him and save 7.25 million bucks. They don't have to wait till June 1st or any designations. They can just let him go. And it's a new coaching staff. They're probably going to want to get younger and surround Cam Ward with as many fresher, younger players as they can. And I, I wonder if that's an. A move that they're going to make with Pollard. And if that happens and he reunites in Dallas and. Or if he goes somewhere else, who knows? Like, that could be the ticket for Pollard to be a pretty good fantasy running back again.

[A]

Yeah. And I, I also don't.

[D]

Oh, I got somewhere gross where he goes. Pittsburgh with McCarthy again.

[C]

Yep, I thought of that, too.

[A]

I don't think Tennessee really views Taije Spears as a starting running back. He has three or four games his entire career, three years with 10 or more carries. So I think, I think, you know, in, in 2024, Pollard actually had a better year, but Spears missed a lot of that season. Spears missed the first four games of this season, but when he came back, he just wasn't really that much of a factor. Except in the passing game. He was the third down back, so.

[E]

All right.

[A]

Well, anyway, keep an eye on Tony Pollard. It's basically one last thing.

[E]

Where did you draft Pollard yesterday?

[A]

I don't think I drafted him, but he went with the 10th pick of round seven as RB28.

[D]

Right.

[E]

That's a, that's a great build. Running back depth.

[A]

Let's see if I took him, Tony Pollard. Some guy named Adam Mazer took him.

[D]

I don't know.

[A]

That weirdo is. Oh, he's the guy who sings all the time.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

It's a Tony Pollard.

[E]

Third person for the second show in a row.

[A]

Yeah. Someone says Tony Pollard is a boring back, I'll leave him for someone else to draft. I mean, I kind of agree.

[E]

Yeah, but if it's round seven and the dude's starting, that's.

[D]

He's a good hero. RB target. He's obviously a great 0 RB target, you know, depending on where he's playing. But I just think that while Dave's right, like, he could still go someplace and, and be a prominent factor and Dallas would be great if they move on from Javonte Williams. You could see Kansas City as an option, you know, as somebody that makes sense there. And, you know, you have replacement options potential in Jacksonville, the Jets and Seattle for starting options being open, especially in what is a weaker rookie class. But I think if he stays in Tennessee, that probably is his best bet to be a good fantasy asset. Because I agree with you, Adam. I think there's only one way to go for this offense, which is up. And so if he goes, like, if he, you know, the Pittsburgh situation, you know, McCarthy wants to have somebody that he knows and he's available if he does get cut, like, that just feels messy with, you know, Jalen Warren there. If he goes to Kansas City and they draft somebody, that feels messy, you know, so there's a lot of messy potential. Like if he stays in a tandem with Taije Spears, like, I like that the best for him.

[A]

And yeah, I was gonna. He. He is boring. But Tony Pollard's actually rushed for over a thousand yards four straight seasons. So if he can, you know, 10, 80 yards, I think is about what he rushed for.

[D]

This.

[A]

If he can do that, but score three more touchdowns and maybe catch seven more passes, then you've got a guy who could be like RB18 or something like that. The guy that's not leaving your lineup, basically. And yeah, is he going to win your league? No.

[D]

But if you keep his. If you keep his, you know, outlook in check and just understand that you're getting a serviceable starter as opposed to a league winning guy. Yeah.

[E]

How about this? If you had the pick over again, would you have taken Pollard or Crosky Merritt or Woody Marks, two younger running backs who went after Pollard in our draft?

[A]

Tony Pollard.

[E]

Okay.

[A]

I'm a little concerned at the complete lack of receptions from Jacori, Crosky, Merit. Also concerned that I think Chris Rodriguez was just better than him for. For much of the year. But I don't think that Chris Rodriguez is better than him in general. But Rodriguez might be a little underrated. And then in Mark's. Yeah, Marks is another guy I had been drafting. I think in our previous drafts. I drafted him both times. I don't know.

[D]

Both those backfields feel like they're getting overhauled.

[A]

Yeah, he might. He might not be very good.

[C]

I think if you're drafting your third running back, I'd probably take Marks or Cross Gamer. I probably Take Bill just for the upside, because he could have a much better year, I think, than Tony Pollard likely has. But if you're. It's a hero RV or a zero RB and you need a starter. There you go.

[A]

Sorry, sorry. Just, you know, just a joke. All right, well, have a great weekend, guys. Do you have any actual Valentine's Day plans?

[C]

Haven't done a thing yet.

[D]

Potentially two baseball games, one soccer game, and two practices.

[C]

That's right. I'm driving up to West Palm beach to watch Highlands Christian play in the regional quarterfinals.

[A]

So, Dave.

[D]

What?

[A]

Going out for a steak dinner?

[E]

No.

[B]

Okay.

[D]

Are we looking at.

[E]

What is that?

[D]

That's supposed to be you.

[A]

That's me. Is that a bunch of mes in.

[E]

The background that looks like you playing the violin while someone more handsome than you is singing?

[D]

That's definitely not you.

[A]

I think it's supposed to be me. But chatgpt is not great or whatever was used. Is that Valentine's?

[D]

I mean, the violin player looks more like you than.

[E]

Yeah.

[A]

So for those of you who can't see, there's a picture of a man, basically the Titanic sinking with the orchestra playing and someone dressed in a tuxedo singing.

[E]

And Is that Mark Sanchez singing?

[A]

Looks like Nick Costos a little bit.

[D]

Looks more like Mario Lopez.

[A]

Let's just say it's me. I'll take it. Thank you, everybody for watching, listening. Have a great weekend. I honestly don't know if we're gonna have a show on Monday or Tuesday because Monday is a holiday, but I don't know that we celebrate it like President's Day. I don't think we're off, so I.

[E]

Think it'll be Tuesday.

[C]

Tuesday, Tuesday.

[A]

All right, Tuesday it is. We will talk to you Tuesday on fantasy football today.

[D]

See ya.

[A]

Paramount podcasts at Pluto tv.

[I]

We're celebrating Black History Month with our free curated collection of black entertainment. No ifs, ands or buts about catch Award winning films like Dreamgirls, Monster's Ball and Selma. We must make a massive demonstration. Iconic hits like School Days and set it Off. Plus full seasons of shows like Tyler Perry's Sisters and Power. I got you it. Star studded, brilliant black entertainment. And it's all free. It's getting good this month and always on Pluto tv. Stream now pay never.