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Narrator/Intro
This is Fantasy Football Today from CBS Sports.
Heath C
What a play. Can you believe this?
Narrator/Intro
No, I can't.
Heath C
It's time to dominate your fantasy league. Off to the races and he stays on his feet. This is gonna go the distance.
Narrator/Intro
Now here's some combination of Adam, Dave, Jamie and Heath.
Heath C
Yeah, here we go. Welcome, everybody, to fantasy football today, presented by BetMGM. Make it legendary like that intro, Dave.
Jamie
No.
Dave
Yes, I do. It was funny. I don't know if he does the full. Yeah, here we go.
Jamie
He doesn't do that anymore.
Dave
Yeah, I think he's changed it up a little.
Heath C
You might be right about that. We welcome you to fantasy football today. And today we are talking about week 16 tough calls. Trevor Lawrence, Breece Hall, Ameka Buka. The Chargers offense, can they put up points against the Cowboys. Dak Prescott is a tough call. Drake May. Drake May in his last six games is the number. Jamie Drake, man, his last six games is the number. Blank quarterback and six point per passing touchdown leagues per game. 14, 11, 11. Not as bad as I thought, but not great. And Baltimore's been pretty good. So Ted roll McMillan a Mecca.
Dave
Buca.
Heath C
Tough calls that people want to hear about today and we will discuss. Guys, I am. I am really NBA champs. Been wait my whole life.
Dave
We won.
Jamie
Let's go.
Dave
Anyway.
Heath C
All right, let's get to the news and notes. We also have a Rams Seahawks preview. What a. I mean, are you kidding me? Huge game in the NFL and huge fantasy game. I mean, we could have some crummy fantasy game that no one really cares, but we kind of have a Browns titan or something. We've got Rams, Seahawks and tough calls to kick off week 16. That's awesome. Let's do some news and notes. The jets released quarterback Adrian Martinez from the practice squad, so that could be an indication that one of their two typical starting quarterbacks is going to be good to go this week. Adonai Mitchell is 37% rostered. Maybe you might want to look for him. Jamie. Mike McDaniel did not rule out a quarterback change against the Bengals. What. What do you make of this?
Jamie
I mean, look, he was asked about it and he said everything's on the table. You understand that when you get eliminated from the playoffs, your job's on the line, you know, and your quarterback look like, you know, total Booty cheeks in, in that game against the, against the Steelers. So why not? You know, he's trying to save his job and if two is not the way to do it, then he's gonna, you know, explore something else. And maybe the, the message from ownership is let's see what Quinn, yours can do or maybe even what Zach Wilson could do. So wouldn't shock me if they bench tua, but at this point, I think TUA still starts.
Heath C
Yeah, I think it does make it. I've seen many Colby Parkinson or Darren Waller questions here, and I feel like it complicates that or maybe it gives us a little clarity there. Maybe you just go Parkinson if you don't know by Thursday night if 2 is starting.
Jamie
I would imagine between today and tomorrow we'll get practice reports. The Dolphins Beatriders are pretty good. You know, about who's. Who's getting those opportunities. And so as long as to a start, you go Waller. If, if. At least for me, if, if, if there's any question about Tua, then you go with Parkinson.
Heath C
All right. Josh Jacobs, I guess, kind of re. Aggravated the knee and he would have been listed as a DNP if they had practiced yesterday. So I was all ready to drop Emmanuel Wilson in a few leagues for, for Michael Carter and some other guys. And I said, I'm not gonna drop him yet. Let's drop someone else. So just, you know, maybe don't drop Emmanuel Wilson just yet because they play Saturday. Devonte Adams has not been ruled out. They're going to give him every chance to play. We still don't think Adams is going to play Thursday at Seattle, but he has not been ruled out yet.
Jamie
Saquon Bark, go back to two weeks ago, what we had with my Ross St. Brown, different injury, but.
Heath C
But he was Thursday to Thursday.
Jamie
He was Thursday. Thursday. Correct.
Heath C
This reminds me of a Buka who shockingly did not miss a game, but he was Sunday to Sunday. I'm pretty sure.
Dave
Yeah.
Heath C
Saquon Barkley and Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter were listed as did not practice. And Barkley has a stinger.
Dave
So were three offensive linemen for Philadelphia.
Heath C
Oh, yikes. All right. I don't think we're picking up Tank Bigsby yet, are we?
Dave
I did. In a couple of my deeper leagues, I had the roster space to play around with and it is the Commanders this week.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Chris Rodriguez practiced in full though. So if you. If you were hoping for Jacori Crosky merit, it's probably going to be a mess this week.
Dave
Bad news for Bill and their left.
Heath C
Tackle, Laramie Tunsil, missed practice. Donovan Knight is out for the season. Atlanta this week. Then at Cincinnati. Josh Allen. Josh Allen says he throws up pretty much every week. I guess the cameras caught him throwing up on the sideline. He said that's nothing new. Happens pretty much every week. Usually pregame, sometimes during halftime. Do you guys throw up before shows? No, not anymore.
Dave
I do the opposite.
Heath C
You throw down.
Dave
That's not the opposite. You eat.
Heath C
Oh, you eat. Houston sign running back to our Jordan to the active roster. I don't think that necessarily means anything about Marks. Maybe it does.
Jamie
No. They didn't want anybody stealing, right?
Heath C
Okay.
Dave
That's what it is.
Heath C
Devon Vale is week to week. Christian Watson and Green Bay right tackle Zach Tom were listed as did not practice. So were Roma Dunze and Luther Burden that game. Remember Chicago Green Bays on Saturday, Patrick Mahomes had surgery. He had a torn ACL and lcl. And Dolphins safety Minka Fitzpatrick is week to week. I would say that's good news for Tyler Schuck. We were on CBS Sports Network yesterday. We are on again.
Jamie
Tomorrow is playing the Dolphins.
Dave
Maybe Tyler Shock is like, sorry, yeah. Patrick is a voodoo doll of Tyler Shuck. And now that Fitzpatrick is on the shelf, it's like, okay, cool. No voodoo doll for Tyler.
Heath C
I keep mixing up the jets and and Dolphins this week. I don't know why. It's good news for Joe Burrow, I guess. All right, CBS sports network tomorrow, 1:00pm Eastern. Dave, Jamie and Heath going through their rankings and their tears. Oh, Jacob's on. Very cool. Everybody's invited but me.
Dave
You want to be on?
Jamie
No.
Heath C
All right, so I asked you guys for tough calls, and Dave, you have your week 16 all tough call team. I also asked people on Twitter for tough calls, and there is some overlap here, so I would say I don't. There's only one that I just don't agree with. And Jamie, maybe you can weigh in on this, too. But there's Trevor Lawrence at Denver, Omarion Hampton at Dallas, Breece hall at New Orleans, Ameca Buka at Carolina Lab McConkey at Dallas, D.J. moore against Green Bay, Harold Fannin against Buffalo. Our Flex is Tedro McMillan at Tampa Bay, and our DST is the Seahawks against the Rams. Dave. The only one I don't agree with. Jamie, whose side are you on? Is this a tough call? Is Omarion Hampton at Dallas. I really don't want to start him, you know, so that's kind of like I was leaning like he's. I would like to go into the week with him as a sit. Jamie?
Jamie
I would like to go into the week with him as a sit. I would like to go into the week with Lawrence as a sit. I would like to go into the week with Fannin as a sit.
Heath C
All right, Dave, what do you think here? What do you think about Hampton? So why is that a tough call for you at Dallas?
Dave
It's really more the, The. The hope. A lot of these guys you're hoping for big things from and you're kind of like overlooking the matchup, ignoring the matchup, not taking the matchup seriously. And it might be the latter of those three that you might do with Hampton. But it's two weeks now that he's been back and he still hasn't dominated snap share. The carries have been relatively close between him and Videl, and I think he's been the better running back overall, but it's not by a lot. And the offensive line isn't getting better for the Chargers. I know Quinn and Williams isn't going to play for the Cowboys. That's a big deal, figuratively and literally. But I, I'm, I'm nervous to rush him back even into my top 24. He's right on the cusp of someone who would be a good number two fantasy running back, and it has to do with just his utility over the last couple of games. And that's what makes him a tough call for me.
Heath C
I, I think it's a. Yeah, I think the Quinn and Williams factor. You said he's going to miss the game. He's in concussion protocol. I don't.
Dave
I'm expecting him to. Me. You know, when you're in the concussion protocol, you usually miss a week.
Heath C
Look, if he gets 15 carries against a Quinn and Williams list Cowboys team, then. Okay, you know what? Maybe I, Maybe I'm being a little. I'm rushing to judgment here. That could be very good. 15 carries for 61 yards like the last two weeks. 13 carries for 56 yards, 15 carries for 61 yards against the Eagles and the Chiefs. That's not bad. Only three catches in those two games.
Dave
That's bad.
Heath C
Dallas without Williams could be really bad against the run. So you know what? I think that actually is maybe a tough call.
Jamie
He. I think you go into it with him as a flex and the. If he was, if he was playing more, I think that's a different story. Like, we got lucky the first game that he scored a touchdown. They caught a touchdown.
Dave
Yeah.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Because he's had 28 carries over the last two weeks and Kymani Vidal has had 26 in general. I think one of the big questions of the week is this. Do you think the Chargers are going to score, let's say 24 points or more against the Cowboys?
Dave
Yes, I worry about it.
Heath C
Okay.
Jamie
I think Herbert has a nice bounce back game this week.
Dave
What, what is the implied team total?
Heath C
Well, let's take a look. Now I have to do some math. Dave.
Dave
Oh, this is going to take forever.
Heath C
So they charge two point under. It's pretty high. It's 23ish.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Let's see. 50, 25. Yeah, it's about 23.
Dave
Is there implied getting close to 23 points? Wouldn't surprise me. It's having like.
Jamie
What'd you say?
Dave
24?
Heath C
Yeah.
Dave
27 plus would be shocking just the way that this offense has operated the last couple of weeks. And I know it's Dallas and they're not going to be as good without Quinn and Williams there, but it would be shocking if they scored that many points.
Heath C
Let me see if I can convince you. So they lost Joe Alt in the middle of week nine. They played Tennessee that week. They scored 27 points that week. They scored 25 points, I think against Pittsburgh and 31 points against Las Vegas. They had bad games at Jacksonville, Philadelphia and at Kansas City. So I think you look at the last six games or five and a half games without Alt, they've pretty much scored a good amount of points against bad defenses and they've struggled against good defenses. Gave me a little bit more hope for him, more hope for Dak, more hope for, you know, every the game basically when I saw that because their, their offense has been terrible the last couple weeks against good teams.
Dave
They also have one game this year, two games this year on the road where they've scored more than 20. Yeah, I was against Miami at the time. Miami's defense was booty cheeks. And then Tennessee, whose defense has been cheek of the booty for many, many, many years now.
Heath C
All right, so let's move off of Hampton here and get to some other guys. Before we do that though. It is time for football 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 the bonus code fantasy 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 and use that code fantasy when you sign up. I want to talk about two wide receivers here on this list that you might as well talk about. Let's start with these two because the listeners on Twitter also asked about them. They're playing each and again, is this going to be a high scoring game? You got two of the worst offenses in football in terms of yards per play. Tampa Bay and Carolina. Tampa Bay's can score a little bit better than Carolina, but it's a mecca. Buca and Teterom McMillan. Jamie, how do you feel about them? Do you think they're tough calls?
Jamie
I mean, they're definitely tough calls. You know, I, I think in the case of McMillan, you hope that the matchup is something that he could take advantage of and, and really, like you said, that these teams can score that Tampa Bay scores and we have to see Bryce Young throw the ball and that's where McMillan will hopefully shine through. But he's still, he's certainly struggling lately. He got lucky with two of the last three games where he scored touchdowns. Last week was, was certainly frustrating to see the lack of, you know, basically everything for him. But again, I'm, I'm looking at this Tampa Bay secondary and, and what they've given up recently. And I'm hopeful that we see Tampa Bay get a lead. Bryce Young has to throw. And if he, if you tell me right now he's going to be north of 30 pass attempts, I'm going to feel comfortable about McMillan as a number two receiver.
Heath C
Right. He's only done that three times. Bryce Young more than 30 pass attempts. You know, I, I think it's. I don't really know what to say about that. I mean, sometimes it's like they don't have the ball that much, you know. Okay, you know what? I found the games where they gave up a lot of points and still didn't throw, and it was games where they ran really, really well. I mean, I remember the game Rico Dowdle had against Miami at 200 yards. The game against the Rams recently where they ran the ball a ton. Are they going to be able to do that against the Bucks? That could really affect McMillan. Dave, what do you think about McMillan and Abuka?
Dave
I feel like they've both been let down receivers, certainly from what we saw from Abuka earlier this year. And McMillan at times throughout the year almost feels like the floor has kind of come out on both of them and you could end up with some really rotten games. And that's why they're flex plays. I don't, I know the matchups are favorable, but I don't have the same type of confidence that I did a few weeks ago for both of these wide receivers. And I'm worried about the target volume, especially for McMillan, because Jalen Coker started to come on. This is a Panthers team. If the game script does go the right way and they do run the ball, forget about 200 yards rushing. But if they do run the ball a decent amount, sorry about that. The dog's going crazy. I, I, I just, I think there are flex plays as well. You're gonna have to excuse me for a second.
Jamie
Not mine for once.
Heath C
Not yours.
Jamie
I think in, in the case of Abuka, you know, they say he's worried about the targets for McMillan. I'm worried about targets for Abuka because, you know, now that everybody's healthy, they don't have to try and feed him. And so what we see last week, we saw six targets, right? I think it was six.
Heath C
He had seven targets. You want me to terrify you, though? When Mike Evans was on the field, Ameka abuka had a 13% target share. When he was, When Evans was off the field, he had a. Oh, gosh, where is a much higher. I'm sorry, I lost it in my notes. A much higher target chair. And Evans didn't play the full snapshot. He ran 70% of the routes. He also moved to the slot. He played basically outside pretty much every snap. When Evans was off the field, and he became, he was slot guy. 43 of the snaps on Evans was on the field. I don't think the splits will be that dramatic, but a lot of the production from last week, which was four catches for 64 on seven targets, came when Evans was not on the field.
Jamie
Yeah, and, and this is not, you know, season long. The, the numbers are not good in terms of wide receivers facing the Panthers. So I'm, I'm more concerned about a book of than I am McMillan.
Heath C
Okay, so you take McMillan over a book. You, you take me, Miller, Abu. Go, Dave. How about you let me ask the dog? What? Say that again.
Dave
Do you want me to ask my dog? Yeah, he's right here. Hold on. Come here, you.
Heath C
Oh, geez.
Dave
Yeah. Okay.
Jamie
What do you think?
Dave
What do you think?
Heath C
Wow.
Dave
He likes McMillan more than a Buka, and I do, too. I just think that there's a better chance of a touchdown in a big breakout game. I, I, I like. What the hell? I like the, I like the matchup. Better for McMillan than a buka.
Heath C
All right, more tough calls after this break. We'll break down the wide wide receiver position a little bit more. We'll be right back on fantasy football today.
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Heath C
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Heath C
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Heath C
Okay, welcome back. We've talked about Hampton, we've talked about a Buka and McMillan. Are these guys in your top 24?
Dave
No, no.
Heath C
Top 30.
Dave
Yes, they they've made the.
Jamie
I'm sorry, McMillan is in my top 24. Yes.
Heath C
So. So let's see.
Dave
I have the.
Heath C
I don't have the wide receiver rankings. This is the top 150. Let me get the wide receiver rankings up here. Would you start?
Jamie
All right.
Heath C
You got two more guys on the tough call list, lad McConkey and DJ Moore. So under the assumption that Burden and Odunze don't play, I think, you know, then more becomes super interesting. So would you start McConkey at Dallas or DJ Moore? Dave against Green Bay over McMillan and Abuka? Yes.
Dave
And these two receivers are in my top 24. And that is based on Burden being out. It definitely seems like Odunze is unlikely to play on Saturday. It's, it's easy to, to like look at the opportunity and the matchup and all that stuff for DJ Moore. And it, all it takes is ignoring what DJ Moore has done before last week. Over the course of the season, his floor has been minuscule. So if he, if he, if he has this opportunity to see seven plus targets against the zone heavy defense that can't rush the quarterback like they did earlier this year, he should be able to go off. He's actually their leader over their last four games in red zone targets and end zone targets. That's a big deal. And so I think you could, you could coax yourself into starting DJ Moore. I can also coax myself into starting Lad McConkey because without Quinn and Williams in Dallas, maybe that pass rush isn't as bad. The interior pass rush, those a gap blitzes that you see, the Chargers should be able to handle that better and that could mean easier throws, a little bit more time for Justin Herbert to throw to McConkey. A lot of McConkey's routes are inside of 15 yards anyway, so the volume should be there for him and maybe he can make a play after the catch. And we know that the Cowboys secondary isn't very good to begin with, so they're both low end number two receivers for me this week. You just have to ignore the floor and the fact that they could go into this game and finish three catches, 25 yards. That would be gross. That would be ugly. That would be Justin Jefferson esque. But they've, they've got more upside. I think they have more upside than both the book and McMillan.
Heath C
It's hard. I mean, you look at Lab McConkey and he has scored fewer than five points in three of his last four games. That's amazing. I don't even Dallas is 32nd against wide receivers. Jamie, of the four receivers we've talked about a Buka, McMillan, McConkey and D.J. moore. Who's your favorite?
Jamie
McMillan. Just based on again the matchup against. Against Tampa Bay and what. How I kind of see the game going. McConkey is second, Morris third and Abuka's fourth. But the ABU is the only one not in the top 24 for me. So I have almost essentially Back to back McMillan, McConkey and more.
Heath C
Who's your favorite?
Dave
Dave McConkey.
Heath C
Oh, man. What? I'm going to read the consensus rankings and. And you guys stop me when you think it gets difficult. Chase Puka.
Dave
Done.
Jamie
Stop.
Heath C
It's.
Jamie
We're there.
Heath C
ST Brown, jsn Michael Wilson's, which we're assuming no. Marvin Harrison, CD Lamb, Nico Collins, Jameson Williams, AJ Brown, Chris Olave, Rashid Rice, Cortland Sutton, George Pickens, Mike Evans, Wandale Robinson, Juwan Jennings, Jalen Waddle, Terry McLaurin, DK Metcalf, Zay Flowers. We're in the difficult part now, right? I mean.
Dave
Yeah.
Jamie
Yeah. Okay.
Dave
Fun exercise.
Heath C
All right. How about. How about Breeze Hall? Dave, he's been so bad lately at New Orleans. Think. Let me just. They're at New Orleans, right?
Jamie
Yeah.
Dave
Yes.
Heath C
Why is he a tough call?
Dave
Because.
Jamie
Trader for makeup. Fitzpatrick. Yes.
Dave
He's a tough call because you know that he is generally good for a big workload. You know that he gets a bunch of high value touches and you know that he can give you 15 fantasy points in a PPR pretty easily. He hasn't done that a lot lately. You make the argument he hasn't been great this year at doing that as consistently as we want, but it's really not that bad of a matchup. I watched the Saints film yesterday. Their defense is okay. They're. They're really good at like clogging rush lanes and that's it. And if so, if Breeze hall is used as a receiver used out of the backfield a little bit more, I think he can be okay. And I think we know that in our minds. But then you just think about the downside and the floor. This is the exact same type of conversation that we just had with McConkey and DJ Moore. And it makes you nervous to start him. And this is somebody that we were hoping to start. And then take all of what I said, compare it with running backs. We can do the same game we just played where it gets tough at the running back position. Dude, it gets tough early at the running back position. And starting Breeze hall over a Seattle running back, a Pittsburgh running back. Like, you might have a hard time doing something like that. And so he. He's going to be challenging. And yet at the same time, I don't know if I can name 15 other running backs that aren't in the same boat as him.
Heath C
All right, let's do it. Tell me when it gets difficult. Gibbs, Bijan, Achan, McCaffrey. This is the consensus rankings in PPR. James Cook, Jonathan Taylor, Barkley ETN Jacobs, Chase Brown, Rico Dowdle, Javante. All right, Javante, I mean, Javante Williams, as long as he's healthy, I think is easy.
Dave
I would put Javante over rico.
Jamie
Okay.
Heath C
Dowdles seventh for Heath and 16th for Jamie and 12 for Dave Travion Henderson. DeAndre Swift. I think it's, you know, those guys are not. I mean, Trayvon Henderson, I think is a tough call. He's got a much tougher matchup than he had last week.
Dave
Sort of. Sort of.
Heath C
DeAndre Swift, Derek Henry, Bucky Irving, Kyron Williams. I think once we get past this, we're 17 running backs deep. Once we get past this, then it's. It's tougher calls. Woody Marks, Kenneth Gainwell, Tyrone Tracy, Quinch on Judkins.
Jamie
Now you're there for me.
Heath C
Okay. Genty Breeze Hall, Aaron Jones, Michael Carter, Tony Pollard.
Jamie
Yeah, I'm starting. Gainwell overhaul this week. Tracy overhaul this week. Michael Carter, overhaul this week. Woody Marks, if he plays overhaul this week. I think they're all just all in better. Aaron Jones overhaul this week. I think they're just all in better spots. Yeah, Gainwell, especially if Brady Cook starts.
Heath C
I'm pretty sure, like, I feel good that Gainwell is going to catch five or more. Even though Detroit really good against the run, against pass catching running backs.
Jamie
And if you look at it, though, they really haven't faced a lot of teams that throw to their running backs.
Heath C
Okay, so what that. That should be. That should be pretty, pretty solid there. I just don't know what the split's gonna be because Jalen Warren. Yes. See that? He looked like he was about to fall asleep during his postgame interview. He was pretty sick. So I just wonder what the split's going to be because Gainwell had four carries the week before.
Jamie
You know, I think the split's going to be as they're behind and Daniel's on the field a lot.
Heath C
All right, fair enough. Trevor Lawrence at Denver is definitely somebody people wanted to know about. I think we'd like to avoid him. So we said yesterday, like the waiver Wire Guys, the McCarthy's of the world and the who was it? The Shucks and the Bryce Youngs and the Minchoes are behind him.
Jamie
Right.
Heath C
But does that change at all? Are they still behind Lawrence?
Dave
I McCarthy out of Lawrence?
Jamie
They're all still behind for me. I think again, the upside, downside conversation about all these guys, including Lawrence, kind of puts them around for me like a median of about 18 fantasy points. And so we just saw Lawrence go for 50. We've seen him go for consistently 23 plus in the last month. Like I don't want to trust McCarthy with 160 yards and three touchdowns. I don't want to trust Gardner Minchu who's thrown five passes this season. I don't want to trust Kirk Cousins who could easily hand the ball off 30 times, 40 times if Algiers involved in a matchup against the Cardinals that can't stop the run. So I think what we'll see from Lawrence is having to throw a little bit more than expected and that hopefully will help him a little bit. But we've seen this Denver defense, one quarterback in Denver over 20 fantasy points. Only four quarterbacks in Denver. Only four quarterbacks against Denver on the season over 20 fantasy points. Only one guy has done that since week seven and that was Mariota. So I just don't think Lawrence is, is safe this week. But again, I don't think any of Those other quarterbacks, McCarthy, Cousins, any of those guys are should be considered safe.
Dave
No, I agree with you. What about this is to line up somebody against Lawrence and then I have a Lawrence question after shock going up against the defense that Trevor Lawrence just absolutely crushed.
Jamie
Yeah.
Dave
Do you think of him as maybe a little bit safer and would you take him over Lawrence?
Jamie
I don't think he's. He's safe. We also saw, and again this kind of plays into the backfield for the Saints, but we saw, I believe it's four or five quarterbacks in a row score 15 points or less against the jets because everybody just runs on them now.
Dave
Right.
Jamie
That could not be the case for the Saints because they're potentially down both their top running backs and Camara and, and Devin Neal. But that also could still be, hey, you should go get Audrey Estimate and Evan hall because that could be what the Saints game plan is because they may actually play with the lead in this game and not have to rely on Tyler stuff to have these sort of fourth quarter heroics. So again, I wouldn't put the word safe with any of those guys. Any of the waiver wire guys. There's huge upside with all of them though. You know, Minchu, Chuck Young, cousins, McCarthy. You know, we've seen it at times for almost all of them, but we've also seen it with Lawrence. That's why I have him ahead of those guys.
Dave
All right, the question with Lawrence, does his rushing floor help sell you on Lawrence in a tough matchup? Because you mentioned that Dart's the only quarterback to get 20 plus against Denver. In Denver and running was obviously, it's part of what Jackson Dart does. And Trevor Lawrence ran for a touchdown last week. He's had a number of games this year where he runs a decent amount. Do you, do you buy into that as. Okay, at least I know I'll get two to six fantasy points from Lawrence's legs and then that can help set up a decent floor of, let's call it 18 fantasy points in a six point per passing touchdown league.
Jamie
Three of the four quarterbacks, I forget who the fourth was, but three of the four quarterbacks have had success running against Denver. Dart was one, Daniel Jones in week two was one and Mariota in week 13 was one. So the quarterbacks that have done well against them have used their legs and that's certainly been a part of Trevor Lawrence's game under Liam Cohen. But again, like, what for me, like, how I'm ranking these guys. I'm expecting him to kind of max out at around 18 to 20 points. Like, and that's why he's ranked where he is. It's a, it's a fairly good week for quarterbacks if you sort of bypass a couple of bad matchups, one being Dak Prescott, the other potentially being Baker Mayfield in terms of his history against Carolina. But like, for the most part, we have some pretty good scenarios here for, for the position. There's a lot of questions, but I think when you get to the back end of like the top 24 with all these backup quarterbacks, like one or two of these guys are going to be great. It's a question of like, can somebody like Mariota, excuse me, like Lawrence, take advantage of, of this Denver defense? Can Caleb Williams and Jordan love in their respective matchups, which could be, you know, one of these typical NFC north slug fests. Can they take advantage of it? And then the big one for me is Jackson Dart, because Minnesota has just erased some great quarterbacks and Dart is really tough. So Dart is to me a little bit tougher than actually Lawrence.
Heath C
Yeah, you guys have Lawrence. Everybody has him, 17th or 18th, so he's basically A sit. That's because there's no teams on by and there, you know, there's just. It seems like a good week for quarterback, as Jamie was saying. But dart. So I am in a 10 team league. I'm in the semifinals. So I have Dak and Dart this week. I'm starting Dak. I dropped Dart. The guy I'm playing against had Trevor Lawrence. I dropped Dart to pick up Bo Nix. So he couldn't get Bo Nix. He ended up picking up CJ Stroud. I'm curious to see if he goes and picks up Dart now. And I wouldn't mind that. I wouldn't mind him playing Dart again because I do not want to start Jackson Dart. I wouldn't mind facing him. Like I just haven't loved what I've seen from the Giants offense the last two weeks at New England and home against Washington. I know he put together a good stat line at the end, but. But no Minnesota, they're just like what else do you need to see? I mean they just held Dak Prescott to 12 fantasy points in Dallas. They're incredible.
Jamie
Dak is the first quarterback since week seven to throw for over 200 yards against them. Yeah, like that's. They've allowed in that last six games one touchdown to opposing quarterbacks. And it's not just Dak, it's Dak, it's Lamar, it's Jayden Daniels because he played in that game. It's Sam Darnold, it's Caleb Williams, it's Jordan Love. Like they have done it against a very good group of quarterbacks and they've done it in a very dominating way. And so Dart has only one game this season under 19 fantasy points as a starter, nine starts. Yeah. And so that was hard to get.
Dave
Away from the Patriots. Right?
Jamie
It's hard to get away from. Yeah. But I just think you look at the body of work for what these quarterbacks are like, I would much rather start CJ Stroud and Bo Nix over Jackson Dart.
Heath C
To be fair to Dart, I do think the weather was just. Wasn't great last week and I think it kind of affected him a little bit.
Jamie
He still ran for 63 yards like that. You're going to get that.
Heath C
And the weather things looks like it's going to be pretty, pretty solid.
Jamie
And here's the other thing about Minnesota. They're eighth in terms of fewest rushing yards allowed to opposing quarterback. So you're not going to get easy yards that way from Dart.
Heath C
But they don't have Jonathan Garnard. So that does help. All right, so let's go rapid fire on the rest of the tough calls here or like, give you 30 seconds on each. Harold Fanning against Buffalo.
Dave
Dave, love the role he has in the Browns offense. Hate the matchup. So I've got him as a start in full ppr. I think I'm probably gonna just find myself moving him down and down as the week goes on because I think he'll be pretty inefficient.
Heath C
Parkinson over Fanning?
Dave
Not there yet. Not in full cpr?
Jamie
Yes.
Heath C
How about Schultz? I think tough called to Schultz or Fannin.
Jamie
Anybody not playing Buffalo or Fanon for.
Dave
The most part, I get it. Totally got it.
Heath C
All right, next up, we'll do Seahawks dst. When we talk about Thursday Night Football, the audience ones were McMillan Abuka, who was after that? Drake May. Drake May, number 11 quarterback in his last six games. As I mentioned, he's basically on the same exact yardage pace as he was in his first eight games when he was phenomenal. But the touchdown interception ratio has. Has tapered off. He went from. He's. He's on Pace for 23 touchdowns, 11 picks in his last six games. His yards per carry is way down, which is probably a fluke. And his deep balls. Okay. His first eight games he completed 17 of 26 deep ball attempts, five touchdowns. Last six games, only nine of 28, one touchdown. So Drake May at Baltimore. Jamie, where do you have him ranked?
Jamie
Actually have him ninth. So the graphics not updated. But you know, we're all in the same spot. I think just in the case of. Of May, similar to Dak, similar to. If you're still starting Dart, you know, the, the quarterbacks that you may not love their scenarios, love their matchups. I just think in the case of Baltimore, they played really well last week. To me, it was more about Joe Burrow than it was about the Ravens defense. They still struggle to rush the passer. I still have questions about the majority of their secondary, and I think this is an opportunity here for Drake May to sort of bounce back. To what extent we'll find out. I don't think he's going to be a top three quarterback, but I still think if you got this far with Drake May, you should still start Drake May. I'd love to see him get back to running the ball and using his legs because I think that's a big part of his game, starting for fantasy. So for me, I still trust him as a number one quarterback, but clearly not to the same level. But I also like what you said about some of the quarterbacks this week, like Brock Purdy, you should trust him against the Colts more so than you should Drake May, Jacoby Brissette, at this point, obviously you should trust more than Drake May.
Heath C
All right. In the chat, Drake May or Joe Burrow.
Jamie
Yeah, I have that decision in a couple leagues. I'm gonna take the chance with Burrow because of what the Dolphins defense has looked like the majority of the season. And the only quarterbacks the Dolphins have really done well against have been a lot of booty cheek guys. So I think just, you know, Burrow, I like what Zach Taylor said, that they want to win. I'm sure Burrow wants to end his season on a high note and they can in their final two games. Certainly this game against the Dolphins, there's no, as far as I know, no weather concerns. I don't think it's going to rain. You know, Burrow should come out and light up this Dolphins defense without make a Fitzpatrick on a short week for them and them knowing that, and now the Dolphins knowing that their season's officially over as well. I think Burrow goes out on a high note and, and week 16 for sure.
Dave
Plus, if the Dolphins are going to start resting veterans for whatever reason, they're going to do it on both sides of the ball. It won't just be a quarterback.
Heath C
Drake May or Stafford.
Jamie
Stafford. I just think Stafford's in a better spot. So I go Stafford. But they're. They're close.
Heath C
Better spot. All right, I will, I will question you on that shortly. Here. It is crazy that we are going to think about maybe benching the number two quarterback in fantasy in your fantasy semifinals. But I'm very excited to preview that game. So I'll give you just one more real quick. How about we finish with Quinshon Judkins against one of the worst run defenses in football against Buffalo. Is this a tough call, Dave?
Dave
I think you need to have a little bit of courage to start him. And I think the only reason why you would start him is because you're hoping for the workload to, to be there and for some breakaway runs against, like you said, the worst run defense.
Heath C
One of the worst. One of the worst, right?
Dave
Not the worst.
Heath C
The Giants are still playing.
Dave
So I, I get why there would be some concern over starting Quinshon Judkins. He doesn't catch the ball much. The Browns don't score a lot. You're just, you're hoping for just a couple of breakaway runs and something that finishes in the end Zone, but it's. It's tough to buy into. And this could be a game where the Bills maybe really focus on stopping the run and trying to build some momentum on that front.
Heath C
All right, we're going to take a break and fired up to talk Seattle and the Rams when we come back on Fantasy football today.
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Heath C
Thursday Night Football. Yes. Are you kidding me? 211 and three teams. Rams. This is a division battle here. Rams and Seahawks tied for first in the conference and obviously in the NFC West. And the winner of this game, unless I'm crazy, will have the one seed for the time being.
Dave
Well, both could be true.
Heath C
Yeah.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Yep. Right now, let's see. Right now, Seattle. Because the Rams are the ones.
Jamie
How the reindeer is right on Dave's forehead.
Heath C
The right now Seattle is the 5 seed.
Jamie
Put it back.
Dave
Put it back.
Heath C
So that's. That's what's at stake. You're either the one seed or the. Or the five seed.
Jamie
And this is like Minnesota and Detroit.
Heath C
Last year at the very end of the year. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Dave
Oh, Sam Donald was great in that game.
Heath C
Oh, boy. Oh, Jamie. Oh, man. Bringing that up. Okay, so these are two of the top three.
Jamie
That's bad. Wait until you hear about Sam Darnold against the Rams.
Dave
I already know.
Heath C
Yeah, we see that these are two of the top three defenses in football. Points per game allowed. Houston's first. Seattle second. Rams are third yards per play. Seattle's first. Rams are seventh. I love this stat. These two teams have allowed a combined seven running back carries of more than 13 yards. Seattle's allowed four, and two of them were to Kyron Williams. And the rams have allowed three running back carries longer than 13 yards, and one of them was to Ken Walker. So let's start with this. Who are the easy starts in this game? Jamie.
Jamie
Puka, Nakua Jackson, Smith Najigba, and I'm going to say Matthew Stafford. Colby Parkinson. Kyron Williams.
Heath C
So all of the Ramps, basically that's fine. I mean it's just, it's funny.
Jamie
I mean I'm just not sitting those guys. In the case of Parkinson, I'm starting him. But in the case of the, the normal Rams that I'd be starting, like I'm not benching Kyron Williams.
Heath C
All right, Dave, who are the easy starts for you?
Dave
Basically the same guys. I don't think Colby Parkinson will take a little bit of courage. I know that it's a good matchup and he's been rolling great and you can make the case for, you know, his red zone skills. It makes him easier to start. But it's still Colby Parkinson. It's still not necessarily a great situation and it's a tough position and there is a part of me that is a scared little boy that this ends up being a low scoring, sloppy back and forth game where the defenses dominate. And so it's, I can't help myself. It's not like I can really build a convincing case to sit Nakua, Njigba Stafford, although he's not ranked as high as he normally is, and Kyron Williams, like those guys, I think they're locked in. I think everybody else, you've got to at least question and that does include Parkinson.
Heath C
Include Stafford for me. So if we look at what I would consider his tough matchups, he scored 15.6 fantasy points against Houston in Week 1, 17.8 fantasy points at Philadelphia. This is all 16 six point per passing touchdown leagues. 11.3 fantasy points at Baltimore. With Pukinakua leaving with an injury. I don't even know if that was a tough matchup at that point. I think it was 17.2 points against Seattle on 28 pass attempts. 15.6 fantasy points at Carolina. And then the only team that was ranked in the top 10 at the time of playing Stafford, I believe that he had a good game against was Arizona, but they've kind of fallen apart and that was a couple of weeks ago. So basically he has not been good in tough matchups. He scored only 17.2 fantasy points against Seattle. I went back, I watched every throw and he, he had some chances there. It could have been a better game. They only had the ball for 22 minutes but he averaged 4.6 yards per attempt. That was a season low by far. You know there was a Pukinakua, there was an under thrown ball to Pukina Kua. That could have been big play. I basically my takeaway was he could have had an okay, he could have a decent game. But he was a little off. Seattle's really good. So look, I mean, Stafford's eighth for you, Jamie, I think and 11th for Dave or something.
Dave
No, I'm. He's six for me.
Heath C
Oh, he's 11 for Heath again.
Jamie
I think if you have Brissette, you have Purdy Goff. That's probably the extent of any other waiver wire guys or guys that might have been, you know, dropped at some point during the season. Like I'm not starting JJ McCarthy or Gardner Minchi over Matthew Stafford. That's crazy.
Heath C
No, but, but Stafford himself was a waiver wire guy. So it's very possible that people have Jalen Hurts and Matthew Stafford or.
Jamie
Sure. Well, I mean, if you've been dealing with that situation all season long. So we just got that question in the chat from Eddie. Like Stafford or hurts? Like you go hurts. That's understandable. And I would go Brissette over Stafford also. So, you know, if you have, you know, some quarterbacks who are in good matchups and playing well, I get it. You know, and, and another waiver wire guy. Just based on what, how the situation unfolded is Joe Burrow. And I think you can make a case Burrow over Stafford also just because of his matchup, but so do it.
Heath C
Yeah, put your feet to the fire here. Burrow or Stafford?
Jamie
Right now, I believe I have Stafford one spot ahead of Burrow, but I could see myself changing that one, especially if the weather is bad in Seattle. Look, he doesn't have devonte Adams. That's a big part of this also. So I, I just think like, again, this is the type of decision that you make and if it goes wrong, you are going to feel very awful about your fantasy season the entirety of the next eight months. He's just too good. I think Seattle's defense is amazing. There's no question about it. But he's the MVP of the NFL for a reason. Or he's, you know, top two in the, in in the discussion for a reason. And this is the type of game where you expect him to rise above and play at a good enough level. Is he going to have 30 points? I doubt it. Is he going to get you in that 20 to 25 point range? That's kind of where I'm expecting, you know, that's why I have him ranked that way. So a good enough game to, to where Stafford helps you win isn't the reason why you win.
Heath C
Okay.
Dave
I wouldn't rule out a three touchdown game just because I, I think Seattle's offense is not going to hold up its end of the bargain. And it could turn into turnovers that give Stafford some advantageous field position and could lead to maybe an extra possession or two that ends in a touchdown. He's still tough matchup on the road. If the weather's really bad, then obviously that's going to drive down his, his ceiling too. But assuming that there isn't a major weather issue, I think you still have to consider the literal ceiling for Stafford and he still can be the QB one even in the stuff matchup because in part I don't think Seattle's offense is going to do very well.
Heath C
I think it is going to rain. It's supposed to rain in this game.
Dave
So I, I thought I saw cloudy and not rain. I'll double check right now. I think this thing called a computer.
Heath C
Yeah, I think it's, I think it's going to rain. But now that doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be bad now. Kyron Williams. All right, let's do this. Sit Sam Darnold. Right. Like we don't really want to start Trevor Lawrence, but we'd rather start him than Darnold.
Jamie
He's combined for 18 fantasy points in his last two meetings against the Rams, one with the Vikings in the playoffs and the four point dud that he had with the four interceptions this year.
Dave
They totally have his number. It's going to be. I had a league where my quarterbacks were Mahomes and Darnold and the whole idea was Darnold's the backup in case anything happens to my home. So something has happened to Mahomes and I'm going to keep Darnold because maybe I'll use them in week 17 if I win this week. I, I spent a good amount of fab to lock up Tyler Schuck and I'm starting Tyler Shuck in the fantasy playoffs. What the hell is wrong with me? But here I am doing that because I lost Mahomes and I'd rather start Shock, I'd rather start most of Those waiver wire QBs over Darnold because not only have the Rams had his number, but he might be without his starting tackle Charles Cross. And that's a big loss for Seattle. That's going to be tough on them.
Heath C
And we've got to get away from Ken Walker at this point.
Jamie
Right? I mean, totally.
Heath C
Okay.
Jamie
I mean it's unfortunate because that's not.
Dave
Even a hard call anymore, you know.
Jamie
But you guys had the, the, the argument, I'll use that word loosely, about had he been running well, and I think you're right, Adam, he has been running well. They just don't give him enough chances. They don't give him the high level touches. The work in the passing game has gone away. Like, it was kind of shocking that he had the game against the Rams that he did, because at that point, even then he wasn't playing very well.
Heath C
Now Kyren, on the other hand, so he just keeps producing and they run on everyone. I mean, tough matchups, it does not matter. He. He had 12 carries for 91 yards and a touchdown against Seattle, but, you know, he doesn't catch the ball very often and he's rarely more than 13 carries. He had 15 last week. He had two touchdowns.
Jamie
They play eight offensive linemen at times.
Heath C
All right, so Kyron, he's not in the top 12, but he's not far. Like. Yeah, I mean, I assume he'll be started in. In most leagues. Would you start Bucky Irving or Kyron Williams?
Jamie
I would take the chance on Bucky, but it's close.
Heath C
Javante Williams or Kyron Williams?
Dave
Javante.
Jamie
Javante. But it's close.
Heath C
Jonathan Taylor or Kyron J.T.
Jamie
Taylor.
Heath C
All right, and then Corum, we can't trust. If he doesn't score, he's in trouble. So, yeah, if. Should we even do an. If Adams plays, I mean, if Adams plays, would you trust them?
Jamie
Yeah. To start Adams if he's out there in your fantasy semifinals. But again, who you're comparing him to, so, you know, some of the guys that we named, I would start him over. McMillan over. McConkey over. You know, those, those guys, you know, it'd be tough call, let's say with like a Cortland Sutton right now or. I mean, Michael Wilson's easy, you know, so I don't think it's a slam dunk, but for the most part, you're.
Dave
Starting three for 30 and a touchdown. Wouldn't surprise me if he goes without practicing all week and then he shows up for the game.
Heath C
Okay, so then let's talk about Colby Parkinson. We talked about him a lot on yesterday's show, but you guys have him in the top 10. I believe Heath is not as high on Colby Parkinson. I thought we'd have a chance to talk about that. Unfortunately, he's doing something charitable today. So he wasn't able to join the show, but he has a. He has a touchdown in five of his last six games. In his last six games, he has 14 red zone targets, seven green zone targets in six games, and five end zone targets. It's unbelievable. Five touchdowns and he's been running a lot of routes lately. Seattle allows the six most fantasy points to tight ends. I'm nervous that it's going to be a different tight end that that's good in this game. Just randomly. That kind of happens sometimes with these teams that played three tight ends. But I am excited to. In a week where I think tight end really sucks, I'm excited to start Kobe Bryanson. Like, I. I'm starting him over Tyler Warren and I'm probably starting him over Dalton Schultz. So I don't know how you feel about those two guys.
Jamie
I would too. I dropped Warren in the league last night to pick up Colby Parkinson. It felt gross. Yeah, it felt really gross. I'm probably gonna do the same thing in another league too, where I'm dropping Tyler Warren because his last three weeks have been miserable and I don't trust Philip Rivers, even though the matchup's not horrible. But this matchup is great. The opportunity is great. We could easily get burned by this. Similar to Isaiah likely last week. Although the track record for Parkinson is a little bit safer because of the touchdowns. You don't want to chase touchdowns, but he's done it so many times. He's done it against his team and this team has been bad against tight ends. I mean, you know, I'll go back to it. My. My favorite. Here's why Seattle sucks against tight ends is the Max Brosmer game, where TJ Hawkinson had one of his best games of the season despite Brosmer turning the ball over every chance he got. They just do not defend the position well. Now that may change because of the lack of Devonte Adams on the field. And they could focus more on trying to take away Parkinson and Ferguson and. And Davis, Allen and the three tight ends that they use. But that's why the rams and Sean McVeigh are so creative. You know, getting those three guys on the field together, it's hard to defend that. And clearly right now Parkinson is locked in with Stafford and you just saw a game where Adams got hurt. And. And as you mentioned yesterday, Adam, it wasn't just because Adams got hurt, but we saw season high seven targets, season high five catches, season high 75 yards receiving, and season high two touchdowns. Like you don't get a better example of, this guy is hot right now. Matchup's great. Opportunity is great. Like, it's all sort of falling in line. It's worth taking the chance on. If it blows up in your face, it's going to blow up my face, your face, a lot of people's faces. Just because of how this could, could go. Because it's Colby Parkinson and the track record of his career is what it is. But there's also a sample size of a Rams tight end at the end of the season getting really hot and helping a lot of fancy managers win championships once upon a time. So this offense has done it before. I think they could do it again. Tyler Higby about four or five years ago.
Dave
Don't forget that his main competition for red zone targets has been Devonte Adams. And so if Devonte Adams isn't around, that should open up the door. It. It makes him trustworthy. It's just how far does that trust really go? Okay, Isaiah, likely last week.
Heath C
I gotta move this.
Dave
If you've been slogging through Warren, it's easy to go with Parkinson over them.
Heath C
Give me your quick thoughts on Rashid Shahid, who's had a couple of start worthy games. Dave, in a row.
Dave
Should, should have had a touchdown last week. It was a bad throw by Sam Darnold on a post route that if he had caught, we'd feel a lot better about Shahid. I think you have to be really desperate at receiver to go with Rashid Shahid.
Heath C
Okay. And then the DSTs. Which DST do you guys like better?
Dave
Rams, I believe I have the Rams ranked higher and if not, I should.
Heath C
See Seattle Rams DST against good offenses. They were bad at Philadelphia, bad twice against San Francisco. They were great at Jacksonville. Well, that was in London. They weren't really that good, Ben. They were great against Seattle, great against Tampa Bay. So they've been, they've had some success there. Seattle's DST against good offenses, very good against the Niners, terrible against the Bucks, terrible at the Rams. Kind of mixed results for that. It's a tough call. It's a tough call. Start the Chiefs over these two.
Dave
Yes.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Start the Bills over them.
Dave
Yeah, I think I would.
Heath C
Okay. All right, let's go to the chat and see what people were asking here. How about Drake May or Matthew Stafford?
Dave
Stafford.
Jamie
Stafford. But it's close.
Heath C
Kyron Williams or Travion Henderson?
Dave
I believe they're back to back. And I feel, I feel safer with Kyron, but it's.
Jamie
That's how I feel. I, I struggle with this because, you know, Henderson had a huge game last week, but like one of those touchdown runs was fluky to me and we know what the body of work has been with him and Ramandre Stevenson. Now maybe the post Buy production kicks in for the rookie. I don't think either one has clearly an easy match up here, but as Dave said, I feel a little bit.
Heath C
Safer with Karen Bowers or Parkinson still.
Jamie
Bowers for me.
Dave
Yep.
Heath C
Warren or Parkinson?
Jamie
Colby Parkinson.
Heath C
Stafford or Bo Nix? And Blake Corum or Parkinson in the flex?
Jamie
I would go both Rams.
Dave
Yep.
Heath C
Man, I think. I feel like I want to go Bo Nix there.
Dave
I get it.
Heath C
Good matchup. You know, Burrow. Stafford or Stroud?
Jamie
Stafford has him now.
Dave
Agreed. I think it'll. I'll keep it that way. The thing about Bo Nix is if. If they don't have RJ Harvey, if he manages to miss this game, what's left in their backfield? I think it just puts more on the plate of Bo Nix. He could have another outstanding game.
Heath C
Stafford basically.
Dave
Hold on. He basically did have an outstanding game with RJ Harvey last week.
Heath C
Yeah.
Dave
Against a tougher opponent. I could talk myself into Bonex over Stafford.
Heath C
Okay. Stafford or Jordan Love?
Dave
Stafford.
Jamie
Stafford.
Heath C
Kyron Williams or Travian? Oh, did that. Sorry.
Dave
We did that one.
Heath C
Blake Corum Algier or Rico Dowdle?
Dave
Rico.
Heath C
Colby Parkinson or Dallas Goddard?
Jamie
Parkinson.
Dave
So I have Goddard, I think a notch ahead of Parkinson in my rankings. He's been part of the key to the offensive turnaround. I'm using air quotes in Philadelphia.
Heath C
And last one. Prescott or Stafford?
Jamie
Stafford.
Dave
Matthew Stafford.
Heath C
You said Dak, Jamie.
Jamie
No, I'm sorry. I changed that this morning. Stafford.
Heath C
All right, all right. We spent a lot of time on that game. Hopefully it was helpful. It's a big one, and that is Thursday Night Football. Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah. I've got some emails, but I've also got some. Hold on one second. Holding Fantasy cops. All right. Fantasy cops from Tyson. I am the commission. And by the way, if you want, I can read the text messages. I am the commissioner of our family fantasy league. In the first year. Yeah, in the first year. I have a dispute at hand in the playoffs. For context, we attempted to have our grandparents as a team in this league, but they simply do not understand the technology. The conflict is that I have been setting their lineup just so they actually have a complete lineup and did not make any trades or anything drastic. I went through the draft asking them who they would like and legitimately drafted every relevant Chiefs player aside from Rasheed Rice and even drafted Tom Brady at one point. I've simply been changing their lineup the whole season. Doing waivers is absolutely necessary, and I feel that we should keep this consistent through the playoffs. My dad, the manager who will match up with my grandparents team in the semifinals now is threatening to drop his entire team if I set my grandparents lineup. I feel that I have made the correct move here and have done nothing wrong. Let me know what you think.
Dave
What is it with dads and threatening to drop their whole team if they're unhappy because of results in their fantasy leagues? My dad did the exact same thing the one time he played fantasy football.
Heath C
Do you want. You want me to read the text messages?
Dave
Only if you do it in certain voices, please.
Heath C
Hey pal, do me a favor. This week do not change Nana and papa's lineup on your own. If they specifically call or text you with questions, of course, help them out.
Jamie
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Heath C
I've been changing it weekly. It's only fair to continue doing so. And then gets the mom involved here. Mom, what are your thoughts on this matter? And then back to commissioner setting their lives.
Jamie
Wait, hold on, hold on. Is it his parents or her parents? Like who's the grandparents here?
Heath C
I don't know.
Jamie
That could be why the. The dad is. The dad is.
Heath C
You're right.
Jamie
If it's his parents, he might be a little bit different. If her parents like. Oh, screw my in laws.
Heath C
That's a great call. Setting their lineup is 100% the correct move as commissioner. That is what will be done. And then he did the salute emoji. It's like you are playing two teams. Okay, I'm kicking all my players off and quitting. Okay. Then mom says I don't care. And I don't think it's worth an argument. We will not be doing fantasy next year. Too competitive.
Dave
That doesn't sound like the mom at all.
Jamie
How old is the commissioner?
Heath C
I don't know.
Jamie
Oh man.
Heath C
What else is there?
Dave
Or Nana. Nana.
Heath C
And then commissioner says too competitive. That's everything we do. And then dad says, I agree, we could play WAR and it would be competitive, but it's not fair to manage two teams all bleeping year, especially in the playoffs. And then he says the first names of the grandparents. So I think it must be the in laws. Yeah, I'll just make up names. Maria and Peter can figure it out or not. It's bs. I love this dad. He's great.
Jamie
I think if so the commissioner's grandchild obviously, right?
Dave
Yes, sounds like it.
Jamie
So what he should do is he should casually reach out to his grandparents and say something along the lines of like hey, don't forget to set your fantasy lineup this week. So then they could in return ask. So they did what the father said, which is if they ask, this is so. And then you set their lineup. And then if I was the grandchild, I would also casually mention, like, you know, in the event that something terrible happens to you, maybe anything you want to leave, just bypass. Dad, give it right to me.
Heath C
I do not think that. I think these are his. His. I think this is the mom's parents. Like, that's what it sounds like because he called them by their first names. That is a really funny one. So thank you. All right.
Dave
There's one other option.
Heath C
Okay.
Dave
And this is. This is for, like, mass chaos, is lock your dad out of his fantasy roster so he can't drop anybody right before the holidays.
Heath C
Great.
Dave
Lock him out. Say, dad, you threatened to do something that cannot happen in this league. I can't. I can't trust you with your fantasy team. Clearly, this is the last year they're going to do a family league. Mom said so already. Yeah, so you just lock them out, and then he can't change his lineup. The kid can change it for his dad if his dad wants him to, but then he can go on and help Maria and Peter with their lineup.
Heath C
Dad finished off by saying, I'm going to be done this week. If you set that lineup, you're the commission. Do as you like. It's your prerogative. I'm just telling you what I will do. Yeah.
Dave
My solution will cause chaos and make dad really angry.
Heath C
We got one more here. An ethics question from kj. The guy behind me in the standings is playing a team with a better waiver wire. Priority. Is it okay for me to drop a running back that is fourth on my depth chart but would start against the guy chasing me? I know it sounds like collusion, but in real sports, players get waved all the time, and the team of the higher priority will get them before the competition.
Dave
It doesn't sound like collusion. That is collusion. You're playing Santy Claus with. With another member of the fantasy league.
Jamie
I don't know if that is collusion, though, because he's not helping another person in his league. Of course, but he's not letting them know that he's helping them. He's doing that to help himself.
Dave
Well, then I. He's literally just admitted it on a podcast.
Jamie
But that's not collusion, though.
Dave
It's collusion, Jamie. He's helping another team beat somebody else.
Jamie
In the league, but they're not aware.
Dave
Of nothing in return. He's not getting anything in return. As far as we know, he Might not have told us in the email that he might be getting 50 bucks or.
Heath C
Well, that would be different.
Jamie
Yeah, that's collusion.
Dave
The whole thing is collusion. Oh, man.
Heath C
I'm on the fence.
Dave
Why would you give some. Why would you give somebody your fourth running back?
Heath C
See, look at this chat. Look at the chat. Soda pop says this is good strategy, and then Cam says this is collusion. I. I think.
Jamie
I don't know if this is. I. I just don't think it's collusion. I mean, I don't know if it's ethical, but I don't think it's collusion.
Heath C
The other thing is, with.
Jamie
You're working with somebody else to cause chaos in your league.
Dave
What the hell is this? What is this?
Jamie
He's not working chaos in his league.
Heath C
Well, he's. He's putting up. It's an interesting strategy. He's putting a player on waivers so that. So that someone. So that he could influence another matchup for his own benefit. I think it's a little shady, but I. I think I'm okay with it. Especially because, like, if you drop a player, right, like, let's say waivers run Tuesday night, isn't that going to change the waiver priority once those waivers run, you know, and then you're going to drop someone, it's like he's going to be available on Tuesday night.
Jamie
I also don't understand the. The standings part of this, because either. This is the playoffs.
Heath C
Yeah, I got this yesterday. I don't know.
Dave
There's four teams left. The team that's at the top of the waivers for the remaining teams is the one that would be able to pick somebody up.
Heath C
Maybe it's a best ball.
Dave
No, it's not a best ball thing. Well, yeah, I get what he's trying to do. I think it's not. It goes beyond unethical. You're literally helping somebody else.
Heath C
All right.
Jamie
Okay.
Dave
They're not colluding. It's not right.
Heath C
I'm okay with it.
Jamie
I. I think I am, too.
Dave
You'd be okay with it until it happens to you, and then you would be.
Heath C
Yeah, you're right.
Dan (Amazon Prime Ad Host)
Yeah.
Jamie
But. But again, unless it's, hey, hey, Dave, I'm dropping this running back. You go pick him up. Like, you don't have to pick up the player that he's dropping.
Dave
But if you're telling me you're dropping him, and I know it's going to make.
Jamie
If I'm telling you I'm dropping and we're colluding. Yeah, I Am just dropping the player on my roster into.
Dave
And then you're missing that the guy notices and picks him up.
Heath C
Jamie, let's say the secret now.
Dave
It's a secret Santa.
Heath C
The three of us and Heath were in the semifinals of a league and you're playing Heath and I'm playing Dave and. And I want to play Heath in the finals, not you. So I drop Michael Carter or whatever.
Jamie
Okay.
Dave
And.
Heath C
And knowing that Heath is going to be able to pick him up, let's say he has more fab than you or something like that, and he uses him against you, how are you going to be pissed about it?
Jamie
I'm going to be pissed. If you said, hey, Heath, I'm dropping Michael Carter so you could pick him up to use him. But if you just dropped him because you wanted to hopefully get this scenario to play out, then there's nothing I can do.
Heath C
Yeah, I kind of. With you.
Jamie
I.
Dave
You'd be. You would be. I don't think you'd be.
Jamie
No, you can be.
Heath C
Yeah, that's the thing. That's right. You can be pissed. You can be that it's illegal or anything.
Jamie
Right. It's not. It's not as if there's. There's not anything that is working together to screw somebody over. This is just. Hey, I'm hoping that this is going to happen.
Heath C
Yeah.
Jamie
It's the same thing. Like, you know, in the. In the essence of like you're blocking your opponent from picking up somebody else. Like, you're doing that on your own to like I give example.
Dave
It's not even close to the same thing.
Jamie
I'm. I'm in. Well, I don't need Jacoby Brissette. I'm blocking two managers from picking up Jacoby Brissette. The. The one player that's. So I'm blocking my opponent and what I think is going to be my Week 17 opponent for picking up Jacoby Brissette. If. If the manager that's playing the other semi final team said to me, hey, go pick up Jacoby Brissette because you're going to get it first, that would be colluding. I'm doing it. I'm helping one manager because now they got to start Sam Darnold. But I didn't tell the other manager I'm doing that. I did that for my purposes.
Heath C
Yeah. You know what? The more I think about this. Right. So I told you that I dropped Jackson Dart thinking that my opponent might pick him up and I would be okay with that. What if it had been. I Dropped Jackson Dart in the semifinals, thinking that in the other semifinals matchup it might help, you know, the. The weaker team win.
Jamie
Right.
Heath C
I would be. Actually, I think I'm totally fine with this. I have become. As long as you are not letting the other manager know.
Jamie
Exactly.
Heath C
I am totally fine with it.
Dave
Which we have absolutely no idea. Other than.
Jamie
Well, that's.
Dave
It's now been announced to the public on our show.
Heath C
Okay, but I agree with you. If he doesn't mean necessarily that the.
Dave
Other owner is going to know about it, he might not listen to us. But how do you prove. How do you prove it one way or the other? That same way you don't prove.
Heath C
Well, Dave. Okay, I think we can all agree on this. If the other manager does not listen to the show, then screw him and we're rooting against them anyway. All right, let's finish up with.
Dave
Listen to the power trip a few minutes.
Heath C
Yeah, right. A few minutes of your emails here from Chase at fantasy football. CBSI.com Chase wants us to start two in full PPR. Jalen Warren, Darren Waller, Rico Dowdle, Keenan Allen, Waller, Enrico. From Jim.
Jamie
Yes.
Heath C
Pick three. Puka Nakua. Okay. Yes. Pick two others. Jalen Waddle, Cortland Sutton, Stefan Diggs, Mike Evans, Michael Wilson.
Jamie
Sutton, Wilson, Wilson and Evans.
Heath C
And if Marvin Harrison plays, do you go Sutton and Evans?
Jamie
Yes.
Heath C
Yes. All right. From Billy. Billy. Two running backs at a flex. Is that Cable Guy?
Jamie
Oh, Billy.
Heath C
Oh, Billy. I haven't seen that movie forever. Two running backs and a flex and half ppr. Kyron Williams, Bucky Irving, Michael Carter, Emmanuel Wilson, Gewar Jordan and Terry McLaurin.
Dave
McLaurin. And the first two running backs.
Jamie
Yeah.
Heath C
Could change. Oh, yeah, sure. Two running backs and a flex. Kyron Williams, Bucky Irving, Michael Carter, Emmanuel Wilson, gewarre Jordan, Terry McLaurin.
Jamie
I agree. Yeah. Two first running backs in the corner. All right.
Heath C
What if Jacobs were out? Would you bump Williams Wilson over kyron Irving or McLaurin.
Jamie
You're not going to know that by Thursday night for Kyron. And I would probably still play Bucky over Emmanuel Wilson. All right.
Heath C
And then there's Jawar Jordan. You know, I'm not going to go down that from. Who's this? From Tommy from Tulsa. 12 team PPR, half a point per rush attempt. Tony Pollard, Michael Carter, Emmanuel Wilson. If Jacobs were out.
Jamie
Wilson. If Jacobs were out, I might go Pollard over Carter because of the rush attempts. Because I don't know what the guaranteed rush attempts would be for Carter. Like Pollard, you could figure is going to get 14 or 15 rush attempts like Carter may get 10 to 12.
Heath C
Okay. And pick three receivers. I think this is easy. Evans, JMO, Tedro, McMillan, Cortland, Sutton.
Dave
Not McMillan.
Heath C
So then in a half PPR league, that's a full PPR league. That's half a point per carry. Would you start? Michael Carter or Tearl? McMillan or Tony Pollard?
Dave
Carter.
Jamie
All right.
Heath C
All right. From Christoph. For your listener from Belgium.
Dave
Nice. Struggling your waffles?
Heath C
Yeah, struggling. You know, we're doing white elephant this year for Christmas, which is very fun. And I wanted to get a waffle maker as my white elephant gift. And my wife was like, nobody wants a waffle maker. Who doesn't want a waffle maker anyway?
Dave
People who already have a waffle maker.
Heath C
Well, that's true. I need two of four. Jefferson, A.J. brown, Coker and Diggs.
Dave
The first two.
Jamie
Sorry, tell me names again.
Heath C
Jefferson, A.J. brown, Coker, Diggs.
Jamie
A.J. brown's the easy one. Probably Jefferson. Still, it's close. Between Jefferson and Coker. That's just where we are. Wow.
Heath C
Waller or Parkinson.
Jamie
For me, if two starts.
Dave
Colby as of now.
Heath C
Okay. Neil says Lord of the Rings was published in 1954 and the Hobbit in 1937. Yeah, I learned a lot yesterday. Sorry about that. Logan wants to know Burrow or her.
Jamie
Dare they ruin stranger things like that?
Heath C
What'd you say?
Jamie
How dare they ruin stranger things like that? Right.
Heath C
Burrower hurts.
Jamie
The movies weren't out yet.
Heath C
Half PBR. I need two flexes a booka. David Montgomery, Jaden Reed.
Dave
Two of the three.
Jamie
Yeah.
Dave
I'm sitting. Read.
Jamie
Yes.
Heath C
Siri Anthony from St. Louis. Start three. Rashi Rice, Devonte Smith, Kenneth Gainwell, DK Metcalf, Aaron Jones, Juwan Jennings.
Jamie
Start three.
Heath C
Yeah, Rice and Jennings, I think, are easy.
Dave
Give me the other names.
Heath C
Devonte Smith, Kenneth Gainwell, DK Metcalf.
Dave
It's down to Steelers. I think it's Gainwell.
Heath C
And finally, from Nicholas, pick four in ppr. Justin Jefferson. T. Higgins, Mike Evans, Omarion Hampton, Aaron Jones. Hampton, Jefferson, Higgins. Evans, Hampton, Aaron Jones.
Dave
Hampton is the sit unless Higgins is out. And by the way, if Higgins plays, that makes Burrow that much better. Yeah, like if I knew that Higgins was going to play. If we see Wednesday or Thursday, Higgins is practicing. It's looking like he's trending towards playing.
Heath C
I would start Burrow over Stafford just in case. This is our boss in the chat here. Kyron Dowdle, Travion Henderson, Javante Williams. Pick two.
Dave
Better not get it wrong.
Jamie
I go Williams and Williams.
Dave
I've got Williams and Dowdle as of now. Which Williams Might change it to Williams and Williams.
Heath C
Which Williams? Do you have a head?
Jamie
I have Devontae ahead of Kyron.
Heath C
Okay, Tyler, whether or not you are our boss, good luck to you. We'll be back tomorrow at starter sit.
Jamie
For the I got a. I got a dad joke for you. I just saw.
Heath C
Oh, go ahead.
Jamie
What happens when Elsa goes to the bank?
Heath C
Her accounts were frozen.
Jamie
There you go.
Heath C
That was so easy. Come on. All right, see you later, everybody. Talk to you tomorrow.
Jamie
You guys can do that quickly. Paramount Podcasts.
Narrator/Intro
What's up, everyone? It's Siya Najad from Fantasy Football Today dfs, a weekly NFL daily fantasy show that's a part of the CBS Sports Podcast Network. If you're looking for NFL game by game previews, which players stock is up or down, and DFS strategies and advice, Mike McClure, Meg Shoup, and I have you covered every single week. Download and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere podcasts are found. Make sure to turn on those notifications so you don't miss a single pick all season long. Good luck.
Date: December 17, 2025
Panel: Host - Adam Aizer, analysts Dave Richard, Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings
Episode Theme:
This episode is all about crucial Week 16 start/sit decisions, analysis of Thursday’s pivotal Rams-Seahawks showdown, dissecting tough lineup calls for the fantasy semifinals, and resolving real listener disputes in the Fantasy Cops segment. The hosts also discuss injury news, quarterback uncertainties, and answer a treasure trove of tricky listener questions.
[04:05 – 09:15]
[09:03 – 12:14]
Dave unveils his “All Tough Call Team” (players who are fringe start/sits due to matchup, usage, injury, or inconsistency):
Debate on Omarion Hampton at DAL:
[14:45 – 25:03]
[25:04 – 28:51]
Breece Hall
Running Back Rankings – When Does It Get Tough?
[28:51 – 35:32]
Trevor Lawrence (Denver)
Jackson Dart
Drake Maye
[35:44 – 39:47]
[40:51 – 54:59]
[55:12 – 73:30]
Memorable Exchange:
[57:19 – 68:04]
Grandparents Lineup Conundrum:
Is Playoff Drop-Blocking Collusion?
| Player | Jamie | Dave | Consensus/Notes | |-----------------------|---------------|----------------|-------------------------------------------| | O. Hampton (RB, DAL) | Sit | Flex (cautious)| Only start as borderline RB2/flex | | T. Lawrence (QB, DEN) | Sit | Sit | Waiver QBs not much better this week | | T. McMillan (WR) | Start | Flex | Target volume/game script key | | E. Egbuka (WR) | Low flex | Low flex | Floor has cratered | | L. McConkey (WR) | Start | Start | More upside than McMillan/Egbuka | | D.J. Moore (WR) | Start | Start | Game script highly relevant | | H. Fannin (TE) | Start only PPR| Low PPR start | Matchup is very tough | | B. Hall (RB) | Sit | Marginal start | Needs passing usage to be viable | | Drake Maye (QB) | Low QB1 | Low QB1 | Still trust, hope for legs | | Colby Parkinson (TE) | Top 10 | Top 10 | Massive RZ/endzone usage; trust | | Rams/Seahawks DST | Streamable | Slight lean LAR| Prefer Chiefs/Bills D/ST as better starts |
This episode is a must-listen for anyone sweating over lineup choices in the semifinals. The crew’s discussion steers you away from trap plays and toward sneaky, high-upside plug-ins just as the stakes peak. Their chemistry and the Fantasy Cops segment are the icing on the cake—bring your toughest questions and your wildest league ethics dilemmas!
For full rankings, position-by-position debates, and the latest injury/contextual updates, listen to the full show or visit the CBS Sports Fantasy Football Today rankings page.