
Fantasy Football Podcast for September 4, 2015. Friday's episode of The Fantasy Footballers Podcast is jam packed with fantasy football information sure to help you win your league and mock your foes incessently. The guys take a few minutes to talk about
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Mike Wright
Foreign.
Jason Moore
To the Fantasy Footballers Podcast with your hosts, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright.
Andy Holloway
What is going on, everybody? It is time to talk some fantasy football. This is the Fantasy footballers podcast. Friday, September 4th. And we're back again. This is Andy Holloway joined by Jason Moore.
Jason Moore
It's always time to talk fantasy football.
Andy Holloway
Andy and Mike the fantasy hitman.
Mike Wright
Right, let's get, let's get this going.
Andy Holloway
Let's do it. Let's do it. We got a good show for you today. We're talking news and notes. We had a bunch of week four games last night. Not a lot of news from those games themselves.
Mike Wright
Do you guys watch all those games?
Jason Moore
I hope every snap of every game?
Andy Holloway
Yes, yes. Very exciting because watching Chris Johnson run the football and try to run the football was kind of the pinnacle of.
Mike Wright
He had some bursts.
Andy Holloway
He looked okay. Yeah, he looked okay. He'll make the team. Now we're talking to Matt Harmon from NFL.com reception perception. Good stuff today.
Mike Wright
Yes.
Andy Holloway
You have to hear this.
Mike Wright
Very sharp man.
Andy Holloway
Very sharp. Well dressed. Right.
Mike Wright
I was going to say, I like ZZ Top. Sharp dressed man. But he. I don't know how he. I don't know how he was dressed over the telephone.
Andy Holloway
No, that was tough. All right. And then we're talking kind of, we're just gonna open up five big questions for this season. Fantasy implications. Talk about some. I don't know if we're gonna get to five actually. So big questions, things that are important, things that are going on. We'll see. Maybe five big questions. So quick question for the day, guys. How do you approach post draft trading? Specifically this little period of time in between the draft and week one. Any thoughts?
Jason Moore
I love post draft trading because you can.
Andy Holloway
Why didn't you just draft them?
Jason Moore
Well, because a lot of times what happens is after the draft you see the needs of your team and you see some teams that made mistakes. And I really like targeting teams that made mistakes.
Andy Holloway
That's a good point.
Jason Moore
In trades, it's saying, oh, they, they had no reason to draft, say that second quarterback and I can get them really cheap or they are desperate for a wide receiver, I've got an extra one and you can kind of take advantage of people.
Mike Wright
I also like if, if I have ended up with someone else's handcuff, I don't purposely seek them out, but if I have ended up with somebody's handcuff and it looks like their roster that they really should be backing up their guy like a Nile Davis type for a Jamal Charles owner, I might see If I can swindle a little two for one hot action at the before the season even starts.
Andy Holloway
Yes, I had I have Sam Bradford on one of my rosters and when the news broke on Brady, I picked up Brady right away and then I had a bunch of trade offers for Brady. So I guess part of it is also news breaking and things changing and people wanting to acquire guys. Somebody came after him that had Gronk and so he wanted that combination. So yeah, I like your point, Jay. Taking advantage of weaknesses that people discover after the draft is over. How can you find the show? You can find us on the fantasy Sports network, which is awesome. It's awesome to be on there. You can find us on YouTube. All the episodes are on YouTube. You find the podcast on itunes. Stitcher on Android devices. We're everywhere that you want fantasy football that you can listen to fantasy football. So the fantasy footballers.com youm can go on there, check out articles, submit questions to the show. One thing we like to do from time to time is read a review that we get in itunes from our guests. We're going to go ahead and do one of those today.
Jason Moore
Reviewasaurus Rex. This one comes in from Dorf58. Thanks Dorf. He or she says. I've been listening to these mostly bearded wonders since summer. It's a show with so much information amid snarky comments and Oreos that I can't wait for the rest of the season. I owned my draft because of the show. Sorry I can't tell my other fantasy owners about the show but we can't all be winners. That's a true Dorf.
Andy Holloway
That's true Dorf. Very good review. Thank you very much. And brings up some good points specifically listening through the season so that we can help help you every step of the way. We're going to have all the waiver wire pickups every single week. The guys you need to be paying attention to, we're going to have start sit advice. We're going to answer listener questions throughout the entire season. So make sure you tune in here. We really appreciate the reviews. They help the show a lot and so we like to give a shout out to our foot clan every once in a while when when we pick out a review. So that's what we did there. And anything else going on guys, let's.
Mike Wright
Get to the news.
Jason Moore
News and notes from around the league.
Mike Wright
Brady resuspended.
Andy Holloway
No, no, he's not. I was going to say the news yesterday was Brady's suspension's over. I think right Now, a lot of cuts are taking place. So if either of you guys see any cuts that are of significance while we're on the show here, we can hit the breaking news button. But basically Brady is back on the field. The NFL has said they're going to appeal the suspension, but they're not going to seek an injunction to take him off the field ahead of time. So he will start at the beginning of the season. Browns coach Mike Patton said Isaiah Crowell has the edge right now over Terrence West. We know Duke Johnson is recovering, so I think Crowell actually represents some pretty good early season value right now. Agreed. So he's been a forgotten man to some degree. One thing that was interesting about the games last night is two players that played a lot and their names were Monte Ball, who was pathetic. One point something a carry, I think. I think he's gone. I think there's no chance he makes the roster, which is kind of, I guess, humorous considering the beginning of this offseason. It was just him talking about how he's taking the starting job back. Yeah, except for you can't overcome mediocre skill. So the other guy is, what do you think about Dwayne Bowe being on the field for three quarters on a fourth preseason game after signing a $9.3 million guaranteed contract? There's rumors that he's on the roster bubble.
Mike Wright
Well, the pen came out and said that's not true, which it still could. That could be just coach speak, but I think it speaks more to a player who has been injured and has gotten no reps and no snaps of any kind of value for during training camp or preseason. So they just wanted to get him a little bit acclimated to game speed, taking some hits.
Andy Holloway
Couple more guys that played last night, legarette Blunt and Devontae Parker. Legarrett Blunt had another poor game. He's obviously missing the beginning of the season, but he hasn't looked very good at all. That running back situation is always in flux, it seems like.
Mike Wright
Yeah. So a. I've been asked, you know, who's. Who's a later round, last. Last round guy that I'm looking at. I'm looking at Jonas Gray because Jonas Gray, you want to swing for the fences with your last pick because they're so easily cuttable. They represent no cost for you. Go complete upside. Jonas Gray's done it before.
Andy Holloway
You know what's interesting, though, I'm just going to devil's advocate. Jonas Gray, would you consider, I might consider Bolden above Gray, Brandon Bolden. Yeah. Because if he's going to be the third down guy and he, he's taken between the tackle carries too, is there a chance that he ends up with a kind of majority role, more than we think?
Jason Moore
No, I don't think so because we've.
Andy Holloway
Seen three games at a time.
Jason Moore
I think with two big backs in front of him in Jonas Gray and Legarett Blount, I couldn't see him taking the, the workhorse type role. And honestly, he's not small, though. I love, I love the idea of Jonas Gray, but I feel like even if Jonas Gray gets off to a hot start, you just don't know game to game. All of a sudden they're going to, they're going to take a different guy and give him the, you know, a lion's share. You just can't rely on that running right.
Mike Wright
But we're talking about your very last pick and let's say he goes off week one, you have a trade chip sitting on your bench that maybe you don't buy into. He'll be the, the weekly guy, which it still happens. I mean, you look at Steven Ridley a couple years ago, he was fantastic. For fantasy purposes, Jonas Gray had a stretch where he was useful and then he overslept.
Andy Holloway
So who are some other guys in that category? Because Marcus Wheaton's another guy that could have a good first few games that you can trade away. So there are certain players that are going to get opportunities early in the season.
Mike Wright
Yeah, Steve Smith is a, is a big one.
Andy Holloway
Just with Perryman coming back and his age.
Mike Wright
Yeah.
Andy Holloway
Because he's a front season.
Mike Wright
The Ravens really, really need Steve Smith to perform if they want to have a decent looking offense. And to me, the. It's hard to. You don't want to just take last year's narratives and plop them right into this year, but it's, it seems like a low hanging fruit that they're going to have to overuse Steve Smith to start the year because they don't have the number one wide receiver rookie. And he could get, he could bust off some big games and then I would look to move him.
Andy Holloway
Anybody else come to mind as early season starts?
Jason Moore
Rashad Jennings.
Andy Holloway
Okay, that's a good one.
Jason Moore
I think anywhere where there's a huge question mark as of. Yeah, exactly. All those situations when you, when it appears like, oh, we finally know who the guy is at the very beginning of the year, it's going to be Crowell, he got the ball all game, or Jennings or if that happens to Me, I am more of the mindset that I can't see any of those situations lasting through the season. So I'm going to take advantage of that in a trade. Now maybe I'm being a fool and I'm the one being taken advantage of because, oh man, Crowell's a 20 touch guy all year long. I just don't see basically with the coaching situations and the running back situations behind those players in those places, you know, New York and Cleveland, places like that. I think you're better off to trade them.
Mike Wright
Let's say you can get an upgrade though, right away. You can do Crowell and some scrub on your bench, do a two for one, get an upgrade at a starting position. It's the bird in hand situation. You know, I'll, I'll take it. I'll take the guy who's useful to me right now instead of this maybe on my, on my bench.
Andy Holloway
Yeah, I have to agree with that. And one of the things that can be really frustrating is you might take a guy as a flyer in the draft and love him, but you know how hard it is to keep that roster spot for him two, three weeks into the season when he hasn't performed and he hasn't done anything. So one other bit of news that I didn't have written down here, but Jay Ajayi has a broken rib. Yeah, he actually put up 5.6 a carry in the preseason and looked okay, but the broken rib could put him on IR and he's going to miss time regardless. So the clear cut handcuff for Lamar Miller, Damian Williams. Yeah, all right, so I agree with that. So before we hit the big questions here, I want to talk to you about stamps.com today. You can get basically anything on demand. That's what this podcast is all about. You might be listening to it at night when you're working out. You might be listening to it on your drive to work. Well, just like our podcast stuff, stamps.com is convenient for you. So why are you still going to the post office and dealing with their limited hours when you can go to stamps.com and get postage on demand? Anything that you can do at the post office you can do from your desk@stamps.com. that means buying and printing official US postage for any letter or package using your own computer or printer. And unlike the post office, stamps.com doesn't close. So you get postage whenever you need it 24 7. Right now you can use our promo code footballers for a special offer, a four week trial and a $110 bonus offer including a digital scale and up to $55 a free postage. So do not wait. Go to stamps.com before you do anything else. Click on the microphone at the top of the homepage and enter the promo code. Footballers. That's stamps.com. enter footballers. Let's go ahead and get to our questions.
Matt Harmon
Would you like me to repeat the question?
Andy Holloway
All right. I like that drop.
Mike Wright
Thank you.
Andy Holloway
I like that drop. Good job, Mike. Alright, so we're just going to kind of. This is going to be free flowing. We're going to talk about some big time questions that we see jumping out at us for this season. It seemed like a really good topic and segment to discuss right before we get to next week. And next week, just so you know, is going to be all of your start sit for week one. It's going to be all of the guys you need to be paying attention to and getting ready for the season. I'm super excited about week one. I know these guys. You guys are kind of bored.
Jason Moore
I am jonesing for week one. But this is going to be a fun time too because this is the time where we just talk about these big questions like, you know, in conjecture. A little bit more banter today because we don't know the answer.
Andy Holloway
These are landscape questions. What is the fantasy landscape? What is going on? So the big kind of first question I want to just discuss is which, it happens every year. Which top picks do we think are going to bust? Which guys have the potential to bust and so what talk about players and them not performing.
Mike Wright
So I'll just start this conversation out with the bust data. I've done some research over the past three years and it comes up with some really interesting things for the top 12, top 12 drafted running backs and top 12 drafted wide receivers last year. So 2014, the top 12 ADP running backs drafted. There was three busts. Adrian Peterson because he was suspended. There's no possible way you could have seen that. Monte Ball, you could have possibly seen it. And Doug Martin. So of the three and of the three guys of the top 12 were massive, massive busts. And but then you look at the. Let's look at the top 15 who finished in the top 15. Eight of the top 12 guys, top 12 guys, finishers were drafted as the first 12 running backs.
Andy Holloway
Eight of the top 12.
Jason Moore
Yes.
Andy Holloway
At the running back position.
Mike Wright
Yeah. So that's a very high probability that you're getting a top 12 guy by staying with the running backs because everyone freaks out.
Jason Moore
Oh yeah. Half of the first running. Oh wait, where's that voice? But Mike, half of the first running backs bust.
Mike Wright
Yes, yeah, that is, that is true. And then we move over to the wide receivers because that's, that's the argument. Right. And now granted, we're only looking at one year, we can go back even further. But last year three busts of the top 12, Brandon Marshall, Keenan Allen, Cordrell Patterson.
Andy Holloway
Now what Marshalls Corduroy Patterson was going in the top 12.
Mike Wright
He was top 12 wide receivers.
Andy Holloway
Wow.
Mike Wright
Marshall was an injury. Allen was, I think he was beat up but in just inconsistent play and Patterson was just a massive bust. Let's look at the top 15 finishers of the year. Eight of the top 12 were from the top 12 ADP guys. So not almost identical bust rate last year for wide receiver and running back.
Andy Holloway
So here's what we know then. We know that players will bust. Some percentage of them will bust. So who are the guys then this season that you think have a potential to do that, who are in that range? Ok, a couple guys jump out to me as I'm a little bit concerned.
Jason Moore
I'm going to go with a guy that a lot of people really love. And obviously if you look last year, the top 12 guys, people really love them, that's why they go top 12. But if you look at two of the three busts, Keenan Allen and Quarterell Patterson, what do they have in common? Oh, they're going to take a huge sophomore. They're going to take that huge sophomore leap. But the problem is people forget that there's also a very common sophomore slump. And I think that the big difference between, you know, hey, who's the sophomore wide receiver that's going to take a step forward or step backwards is situation. Right? You look at Jordan Matthews, his situation got better. Jeremy Macklin left. But with Keenan Allen and Quarterell Patterson, their situations were basically just the same and there was an assumption of progression. So to me, Mike Evans is the guy. I don't see anything really that makes his world any better. We're just expecting he was awesome as a rookie, he's going to be awesomer as a sophomore and he could, he could be. Yeah, he's going to be awesomer as a, that's a, it's a word now.
Mike Wright
It is now.
Jason Moore
But that, that's the name that I would throw out from, from wide receivers just because there's really no reason other than he's going to get better in his sophomore year.
Andy Holloway
And one component of bust has to be the injury factor as well, because we talked about the suspension. That was an unknown with the Aryan. I'm sorry, with Adrian Peterson. If, if this injury had happened a little bit later for Arian, that would have been an already kind of bust type situation where you just don't see it coming. But there's a risk involved to those pieces. One guy I want to talk about that fits into that mold, I love him on the field is C.J. anderson, but his situation isn't solidified enough. He's not a big enough guy in terms of production over time to where if an injury happens, even a small one, if he pulls a hamstring and misses a game and a half, if he gives the opportunity to Ronnie Hillman for a little while, you could see a very shared backfield, in my opinion. And that would translate to a bust situation for Anderson because of where he's drafted. Do you guys agree with that or do you think that that is outside the realm of possibility?
Mike Wright
I think it's absolutely a possibility. And what I think we should strongly, strongly reiterate right here. We are not saying these guys are going to bust. We're just saying that we know historically every year that somebody will bust. And so we're throwing out guys that we think have that, that little tag of potential that they could bust.
Andy Holloway
When players at the starting running back position have some talent behind them they need to be paid attention to. I mean, even Alfred Morris, I don't think he's a top 12 drafted back right now. But if Morris goes down with an injury and Matt Jones comes in and has an effective workload, you know, there are certain players that I'm not so worried about who's behind them. Arian Foster, for one, like Aryan. Somebody did send in a message about Arian, by the way, because he was my guy yesterday. And he's like, are you forgetting, like what the week to week risk of Aryan, like everybody's just talking about, ooh, maybe he's back soon. But all the kind of tumult that an owner of Aryan Foster deals with. Probably a little bit. Yeah, we should have been talking about that a little bit. But he was my guy, so I'm just going to pretend that he will be okay. But yeah, when a guy, when there's talent behind you, that that needs to be paid attention to a little bit. You know, we were talking before the show about draft trading and these things. The same quick question and the idea that sometimes you just like the sure thing. And so if you have the opportunity to trade a guy with a question Mark, like let's say somebody in Your league loves C.J. anderson and they have Adrian Peterson or they have Eddie Lacy and you can throw something in with CJ to get that guy. I mean, that's the kind of trade I do to give myself the best odds at a top running back for the entire season. Because that's what you need. That's why we say draft a running back.
Mike Wright
You want that solid guy and the guy, he's not top 12, but he's top 15 right now. A running back that is. I'm sticking with it because I still have concerns about him. And that is Latavius Murray in Oakland. He fits in perfectly what Jason was talking about where he's now in. He's showed a little bit last year and we just expected giant leap to happen. So now he's going in the third round.
Andy Holloway
I don't think we expect a giant leap.
Mike Wright
You better expect the giant leap for taking a guy in the third round.
Jason Moore
Yeah, I agree with that. But you can't just say nothing's happened because the situation changed.
Andy Holloway
Because I mean, no Shirt Richardson, no Darren McFadden.
Jason Moore
Yeah. No Darren McFadden. No. No MJD.
Mike Wright
Okay, that, yeah, that's fair. But Roy hello is there. And that's my point is I think Roy hello is a talented back.
Andy Holloway
You guys, I don't think Roy Helou should ever be your point.
Jason Moore
Hello.
Mike Wright
Yeah, I know you don't agree with that, but watch him on film. He is, he is a very solid runner. They gave him a solid contract to have a role in this offense. And if Latavius Murray struggles out the gate, it would not surprise me at all to see Halou get some early down work.
Andy Holloway
So what is the second big question we're going to talk about?
Jason Moore
The second big question is, is this the year, is this finally the year where there is a changing of the guard at quarterback? Because we've got some of the best quarterbacks in the history of the NFL playing right now, but several of them are nearing the end of their career. You've got Drew Brees, who, you know, some, myself included, have kind of.
Mike Wright
Yeah. So refer to yourself.
Jason Moore
Well, I mean some outside of here and myself have kind of predicted a little bit of a fall off and the beginning of the end for him. You got Peyton Manning, who some people think that started last year. You've got Tom Brady at the end and now you've got the, the new risers, a lot of new, newer talent, you know, obviously Andrew Luck. So is this going to be the Year where it changes from the old faithful to the new hotness.
Mike Wright
Do you want to. Oh, I guess you.
Jason Moore
That's the question we're looking for as we go to this year. So what do you guys think? The old guys, are they reliable? Are they going to go 16 games, put up solid production this year?
Mike Wright
I still, I'm still buying into Peyton Manning. I'm still buying into Drew Brees. I still like these guys. I know that Jason has valid points. They're. They're older and getting towards the end. I guess not Drew Brees, but Manning. I think this could be Peyton Manning's last year. But I. But I believe he has enough left to have one good year. His, his game is. Is so mentally based and that we know that his physical skills have eroded in front of us. He looks often like he's playing Duck Hunt when he just lobs it up. But Demarys Thomas doesn't care. Various. Thomas will catch that duck every day of the week and he just because he's still mentally sharp, he can get it done.
Andy Holloway
One of the things that is difficult when you see a transition like this is trusting the younger guys to be consistent. One of the things you get more so with the older guys is the week to week consistency. You know, one of the things that's been hard about Matt Ryan for years has been big game, small game, big game, small game. One of the things I fear out of Ryan Tannehill is a lack of consistency. I want to see it, I think he's capable of it. But with the younger guys it's hard to kind of rely on those type of things. And so I think people like Philip Rivers on a roster will help more fantasy teams than some of these upside plays that people might have more excitement putting them on their team. But I have a hard time believing that starting Philip Rivers is going to hurt you as much as starting one of those guys.
Mike Wright
Philip Rivers is a very interesting guy because he, he is inconsistent. To me where last year he came out just the barrels of the gun were steaming hot, just glowing red and then he completely cooled off towards the end of the year. I think what an interesting thing of this question is, is there a quarterback that we are projecting this year can take the leap that he will be considered a top five, a kind of elite status quarterback next year.
Andy Holloway
So last year Andrew Luck was outside of that category because. And then obviously he quickly became that guy. So are those the names you're looking for? Somebody who could be in the discussion as the upper tier?
Mike Wright
Robert Griffin.
Jason Moore
Yeah.
Andy Holloway
I don't think so.
Jason Moore
Well, you got Teddy Bridgewater. If he were to come on gangbusters this year, and I don't expect it because of Scheme, but he was drafted for it, he's looked good, he could take that leap. The only other guy that comes to mind is maybe, maybe Sam Bradford, because if he, if he just comes out and looks like the guy who was drafted number one overall, that's something to remember.
Andy Holloway
Yeah, yeah.
Jason Moore
I mean, he came out to be an Andrew Luck. To be one of these guys. An injury and no talent around him has never let that happen. But could, could that happen this year at the same time that some of these bigger names drop down? So I think this year and probably even more so next year we talk about streaming and really that's just a matter of getting more value late in a draft. The big name quarterbacks are starting to come towards the end of their value where they're worth that name.
Andy Holloway
Yeah. And then they're just a name and.
Mike Wright
I love that name. Sam Bradford of a guy who next year I bet is being drafted as a top five quarterback.
Andy Holloway
Yeah, yeah, that could be the case as long as he's healthy, which. All right, here's the next question for you guys to talk about here. Which players drafted after the fifth round can break into the top 15? And Mike, you have some data as far as historically, how many guys drafted after the fifth, so we're talking sixth and later, how many of those guys have broken into the top 15 at the running back or the wide receiver position? This is a really interesting.
Mike Wright
Yeah. Last year in 2014, there were five running backs drafted after the sixth round or not drafted at all because you had Justin Forsett and C.J. anderson. So five guys drafted sixth or later who finished as top 15 running backs. There were five wide receivers drafted after this, after the fifth round who finished in the top 15.
Andy Holloway
That is interesting because a lot of those guys that, that happened to last year, the result was, or the reason it happened was a lot of the times opportunity created by injury, for one. And it's not necessarily things that are foreseeable, not something that we can hold on to now. So a guy that jumps out is like Ryan Matthews this season. If DeMarco Murray's gone, how is he not a top 15 running back?
Mike Wright
He completely is instantly. And the, if he's, I imagine he's drafted almost everywhere, but if there's, if there's ever a league where he's on the waiver wire and Murray goes down, that's like wow, that's a full fab wallet that's going to get thrown at Ryan Matthews.
Andy Holloway
Yeah, without question. Alan Robinson is another guy that right now is being drafted outside of the fifth round that we talked about yesterday or we've talked about a lot and we'll talk about today with, with Matt Harmon. But what are your thoughts on him, on Alan Robinson?
Jason Moore
Well, we know he's a fan of the footballers or the footballers are a fan of him.
Mike Wright
I think you had it right. He loves the show. That's what I hear.
Jason Moore
Mutual, mutual love for the target monster, but he definitely has the ability to. To grow. However, there is the same exact situation I see with Alan Robinson that I was saying with Mike Evans. There's not much change there now. Now the big change that does kind of improve is Cecil Shorts leaving. So there's a lot of extra targets. So hopefully that is the reason why he takes a step forward. But I'll throw another name out there because I know two, at least two of the top 15 that did it last year were drafted out were rookie wide receivers. I don't expect that to happen all the time, but a guy that's going really, really late who, you know, most of the rookie wide receivers, I just don't see them being able to surprise me with a top 15 year. But Devonte Parker is really sneaky because that's going to be a good offense.
Andy Holloway
He said He's a top 15 pick.
Jason Moore
He could be the number one wide receiver on that team. I know, Andy, you said he was going to. We have a water bet, you and I.
Andy Holloway
That's right.
Jason Moore
I still think it's going to be Jarvis Landry, but that's a chip, you know, you talk about who are you going to take with the last pick in your draft. I'll take Devonte Parker in the last pick of my draft and maybe have a top 15 wide receiver upside who he played yesterday.
Andy Holloway
He played eight snaps, I believe in yesterday's game. Caught a pass. Very good name to bring up.
Mike Wright
Yeah. So they're easing him in and he's. His value represents so much upside right now that the offense is great in Miami. We talk that up constantly. So another rookie is that Prashad Perryman. And so you got devonte Parker, Rashad Perryman, you got to go with Parker because Perryman's situation will be much better when he gets back. But the wind is going to be no idea. He's still now practicing and so that's going to take some time where Devontae Parker could sneak in, in a couple weeks.
Jason Moore
You also look at volume, right? I mean, the guys that did it last year were volume guys. They got a ton of targets, the rookies that got there. So Perryman, I expect could go into that Torrey Smith role and have a bunch of yards or maybe those big play touchdowns, but maybe not the same volume that could be there for.
Andy Holloway
You think Parker has more volume potential? I mean, with Landry and with Stills and Jennings and Cameron, I mean, I don't.
Jason Moore
The reason I say that is because we don't know how he's used. But there's more volume in the offensive passing is what I'm saying. Now maybe Tressman changes that in Baltimore, but Baltimore has been a run first team and so we'll see the wide receiver position.
Andy Holloway
Perfect transition here. We're going to go ahead and talk to Matt Harmon and discuss kind of what he sees on film from wide receivers.
Jason Moore
You talking to me?
Mike Wright
The fantasy footballers are now joined by Matt Harmon, Fantasy Writer for NFL.com and creator of Reception Perception. Why don't you say hello to the people, Matt?
Matt Harmon
Hey guys, how's it going? Excited to talk to you today. This is, you know, we're right in the thick of things. Everything's kind of kicking off your first game of the season, seven days away. So.
Mike Wright
That is music to our ears. So we want to introduce the listeners to kind of the reception perception idea. And we're gonna, we're gonna talk about some sophomore wide receivers and what Matt thinks of them, how for what he's studied on film and they're kind of how he projects them for this year. So we're gonna start it off with a guy who's kind of the, a forgotten man. And that's Sammy Watkins up in Buffalo, who was a top draft pick, was hot off the, on fantasy rosters last year, but because of the quarterback position, people are, I think, scared off of him a little bit. So what did you see on tape for Sammy Watkins? And before you get into that, actually just explain what the reception perception is.
Matt Harmon
Yeah, reception perception is basically just an in depth methodology for evaluating wide receivers. I track basically how often they run each route on the Route 3, how often they get open on those routes and then how often they beat both press man zone and double coverage. And there's also other, you know, ancillary measurements, like how often they, you know, make contested catches, how often they break tackles. So it's basically just if you want to know about a wide receiver, you check out his reception perception and see like how he basically does everything on the field, you know, and there's a lot of good wide receiver metrics out there. I do think mine's a rather in depth one. So, yeah, just what I see on the film and then putting it into a hard data percentage point and it kind of lets you know how they're used by their team and what they do well. Great stuff. Yes. And so as far as Sammy Watkins goes, he actually did not come out well in reception perception and I think that kind of surprises people because he definitely had some big statistical game. A lot of his production came in for contests where he really went crazy against the jets and some other teams. And I think that kind of misleads people to what his season long outlook was. However, I'm open to that being kind of a misnomer for his career because he was obviously injured last season. He was dealing with, I think a hip flexor or hip pointer or something towards the end of the season. And the hip is really important for a wide receiver because it's where you generate a lot of your power when you're running routes. You know, you think of just guys running the post or a slant, how often they have to sink their hips and how often that like needs to be a fluid, flexible part of the body. So I'm open to that being kind of, you know, an outlier in terms of his career, how he looked as a route runner last year and getting open and everything like that. So. But the trouble of course with Watkins is that he's tied to really kind of a dreadful offense. Rex Ryan's the head coach there. Only one wide receiver ever went over 110 targets with the jets when he was a head coach and that was Eric Decker last year. So it's kind of. I don't really know what his opportunity is going to look like. He had 128 targets last year. I think he kind of struggles to see that many again. And obviously I'm a big Tyrod Taylor fan. If you follow me on Twitter or read my work, you know that I'm really liking his early season outlook as a fantasy streamer or a DFS play because he can run. But while he looked good as a passer in the preseason, that's still kind of a question that we need to see answered. So there's a lot of risk with Watkins right now and I'm usually finding myself shying away from him.
Mike Wright
So you're not targeting him where, where about in a draft? Would you be okay taking him?
Matt Harmon
I would. I see. I consider him more of like a seventh or eighth round pick, but usually at the height of his stock, he was going in the fourth round. Now you can kind of see him fall to the sixth round in some places, but I just think that's a little too early and I think there are safer wide receiver targets in that range.
Mike Wright
So moving to a guy who had huge success last year was Mike Evans. His situation is very different now, but he's being drafted extremely high. He's being taken as a wide receiver one. Are you buying into that at all or you passing him for that value?
Matt Harmon
I am buying into that. While I think that Jameis might see his rookie year struggles, I'm sure he's going to throw a lot of interceptions. If you watch him at Florida State, he was a guy who loved to throw targets up to big players. He and Kelvin Benjamin were very productive in Benjamin's final season at Florida State. And I really see Evans as kind of the bigger, more improved version. Well, maybe not the bigger, but more improved version of Cal Benjamin. So he's a guy that I definitely, I definitely think Evans is going to take that wide receiver 1 leap this year, especially on a per game basis. It might be a little bit, you know, there might be a little bit of fluctuation there because of the quarter rookie quarterback struggles and everything. But I think his ceiling is just so tremendous and he can definitely win you weeks in games where Tampa Bay is going to be throwing to catch up. They have. He has a very favorable quarterback schedule because he plays in the NFC South. So I like, I like Mike Evans kind of to make that leap into wide receiver one status. There's a little bit of risk there, but you can often get him in the third round and I really like that price.
Mike Wright
I'm buying into Mike Evans as well. I think he can have a successful year with Jameis Winston throwing in the ball. He had success with just garbage last year.
Matt Harmon
Yeah.
Mike Wright
So a guy who graded out kind of low on your reception perception who has a huge opportunity now that Jordy Nelson went down is devonte Adams in Green Bay. What, what do you have to say about Devonte?
Matt Harmon
Yeah, Devonte Adams has been a tough one for me all year or all offseason, I should say. You know, back in the beginning he was kind of going in that eighth round range. Sometimes people would even push him in the seventh round. And I thought that was crazy because there just were no targets available for him to take. But of course now that's changed with the Jordy Nelson injury. So we kind of have to reevaluate. I would feel fine with him in like the fifth or sixth round range. But now people are pushing him up to the third or fourth round and again I can't, I just can't pay that price. Given what we know about him from his rookie year, I think that that the last thing that we remember about him is that him tearing up the Cowboys in the playoffs. But if you really look at the whole sample of his rookie year, there was a lot of inefficiency, there was a lot of poor route running and ability to. And he couldn't. He was struggling to beat number three corners last year. So I don't see how it's going to get that much better from year one to year two. I think often just projecting players to get better without any real evidence that they will is a dangerous proposition. So with the inflated price of, of Adams, I'm still kind of backing away because I just think in the third round and the fourth round you can get much safer guys that are going to get a lot of targets too. I look at Amari Cooper in Oakland as a guy like he's going to be there number one. He's going to get a lot of targets. He's kind of going in that same range or a little later. I would much prefer prefer to have him over Adams and there are many situations I find myself just not being able to take him at his asking price. I'm excited to see him with a more, a more expanded opportunity and see if he has grown. But until I see it, I'm not interested in paying his redraft price. I will say he's very cheap on daily fantasy sites in week one he's going to be in a lot of my DFS week one lineup because of the opportunity in line but on a season long basis I think he's still going to be a volatile asset.
Mike Wright
So we can't let you off the phone. We're going to talk two more guys and one of them has to be my man Alan Robinson in Jacksonville. I've, I've been talking him up all offseason how I think he's just going to be just showered showered in targets. He's going to literally bathe in footballs from Blake Bortles. Talk a little bit about of his outlook and how you're viewing him in drafts.
Matt Harmon
Yeah, I love Alan Robinson and I think anybody that's followed, I think anybody that followed my work for a long period of time knows that he was a guy I pegged back in April, before minicamps and everything as somebody that was going to really break out this season. If you, if you just look at the stats, Bortles and Robinson played together from week three to week 10 and bortles through to Robinson 24 times on third down, which was 13 more than the next highest player. So you know when, when Bortles is in trouble, when he needs a completion, he's looking for Robinson. So you're right, he's going to get a ton of targets, especially now that Julius Thomas is out early in the season. That just leads to more, more looks for Robinson. There's really no competition there. Marquis Lee's not a guy that I'm a fan of. And Alan Robinson, I mean Allen Hearns is a guy who can make some flash plays, but Robinson's clearly the best route runner, the number one guy there. So targets are definitely not going to be an issue. And he's. When I looked at Robinson's reception perception, I saw a guy getting a lot of separation underneath, running really good slant and curl routes and things like that. So he's going to present an easy short target for Bortles in the intermediate range of the field. I love Robinson this year. I agree he could push for 150 targets in an offense where they're probably going to have to be playing a lot of catch up. And look, I don't want to fall for Bortles for two, two preseasons in a row. But the guy does, the guy does look good. I'm a little, I'm a little confident that he can make a slight step up from his rookie year and not be a total disaster. And that's just more benefits for Robinson. So everything about him is a green light for me and I like the price in the, in the sixth round if my league and everybody knows I love Robinson, so my league may often make me pay up for him if I have to pull the trigger in the mid fifth round, I'll totally do that. I feel comfortable with everything about his outlook.
Mike Wright
Yeah, he's kind of a forgotten guy from that draft class of where it seemed like just 500 wide receivers were widely touted and excellent prospects. So I think people are not remembering how well Allen Robinson was in college or how well he played in college. I want to move to a guy in Kansas City. Andy, our co host here is huge.
Andy Holloway
He's my guy. He's my guy.
Mike Wright
Jeremy Macklin this year we know the talent is there, but will he pay off for his draft price in Kansas City?
Matt Harmon
You know Macklin's been an interesting one for me all year or again, I should say all off season because I think for a lot of these free agents, we oftentimes write the narrative for them before we end up seeing what happens. So I think that obviously Macklin is not going to produce what he did last year in Philadelphia. The opportunity is just, is going to be a little, it's going to be a little bit less and we're also going to see, you know, a downgrade in just general offensive efficiency and how many plays they're going to run. So I don't think we're going to see it. Numbers that we saw from Macklin last year, but I think that's already priced into his ADP in the sort of 5th or 6th round range of fantasy draft. So I like, I like targeting Jeremy Mack on there because I think he's going to give you wide receiver two numbers. I think he's going to, he's going to contend with Travis Kelsey to lead the team in target. I think he's going to get open fairly easily for Alex Smith. And while there is some like, you know, kind of a chicken egg argument to wide why none of the wide receivers scored any touchdowns. Was it Dwayne Bo's fault? Was it Alex Smith's fault? I think Bo is not like a terrible NFL receiver nor do I think Smith is a terrible NFL quarterback. But I just think that they, they just didn't fit together. The way they play the game, the way they play the game just didn't really add up with each other. I think Macklin fits Smith a little bit more. So like I said, some of the regression in his, in his stats is already priced into where you can take him in fantasy drafts. So I like, I like Macklin as a target. I don't think he's going to fall off the cliff or anything, but I can see 80 catches, you know, nine, 900 to a thousand yards and maybe, you know, six or seven touchdowns. So I don't, I don't, I like Macklin as a wide receiver two candidate. I'm not scared off by him.
Mike Wright
That's. We have several bets on of the outlook for Macklin. So he's also a very interesting guy for us to watch this year. And so this one really quick because we're huge Arizona Cardinal fans. John Brown is the next. John Brown is the next Antonio Brown. True or false.
Matt Harmon
I totally can see it.
Jason Moore
Yeah, that sounds pretty good.
Matt Harmon
Look, I tweeted this on Sunday. I said that worst case scenario, this guy's Ty Hilton. Best case scenario, I can totally see him being Antonio Brown. And of course I got a lot of pushback from the conservative people on Twitter who don't want you to say anything interesting. But look, if you look at his numbers from a per game basis when he was playing with Carson Palmer and extrapolate them for a 16 game season, he would have had an identical rookie year to Ty Hilton. So I don't see how that's even an outlandish comparison. You know, we weren't expecting Ty Hilton to be Ty Hilton when he was a rookie, nor were we expecting Antonio Brown to be Antonio Brown when he was a first or second year player. But I can totally see him making that same leap. He can obviously go up and get the football in the deep portion of the game. He was the best deep threat charted by Reception Perception last year. And I also see him having plenty of potential to run routes in the short to intermediate section of the field and get open and make plays with the ball in his hand. And everybody in Arizona loves him. I mean, you guys know that, you know Carson Palmer and he have been tight all summer. Bruce Arians loves those small wide receivers and Larry Fitzgerald recently said that this guy is the future of their wide receiving course. So I'm all in on John Brown. I pretty much stake the flag to him. I love taking him in fantasy drafts. I'm going to really enjoy watching him when the NFL season gets kicked off.
Mike Wright
Yeah, we completely agree. We think that Bruce Arians is kind of the master of the small receiver and John Brown has the potential to be the next one. So we, we really, really want to thank Matt Harmon for joining us. Fantasy writer for NFL.com, creator of reception Perception. Where can people follow your work besides NFL.com obviously?
Matt Harmon
You can follow me on Twitter attharmonbyb and you can also find my work on thebackyardvancer.com and footballguys.com where I'm still contributing a little bit when I'm not slaving away here for the, for the big three letters through a three letter league here.
Mike Wright
Yeah. All right, so thank you so much, Matt.
Matt Harmon
All right, Appreciate it, guys. Thanks for having me.
Andy Holloway
All right, thanks to Matt Harmon for joining us on the show. That, that's good stuff.
Mike Wright
Matt Harmon, Sharp dressed man.
Andy Holloway
Sharp dressed man. Sharp mind. All right, I do want to, we're gonna go a little long today. I don't want to avoid the mailbag. We're kind of out of time. But let's answer some quick Questions on the mailbag.
Jason Moore
Mailbag, mailbag.
Andy Holloway
Alright, let's go ahead and hit the voicemail. If you have a question, you can go to the website and ask it easily. On the website, go to the upper right hand corner. Click the Submit a question button. You can also send us a voicemail. 302464, TFFB. Let me ask you this one first and then we'll get to some voicemails. Jason in San Diego said, who should I start in my flex position? Week one, Mike Wallace at San Francisco, Marcus Colston at Arizona, or Kendall Wright at Tampa Bay? What do you guys think?
Jason Moore
I think I would go personally with Kendall Wright at Tampa Bay. Yeah. I mean, it's, it's surprising, right, because you don't, you don't see him late.
Mike Wright
But yeah, that was. If it's a ppr, I'm going Kendall. Right. If it's standard, I'm going to go Mike Wallace.
Jason Moore
Yeah. Because Mike Wallace obviously could, could get that big long touchdown, but Kendall Wright's going to have the volume there. And it depends right on your roster, too, because if your roster needs a big play, if you need a boom, then that's going to be Mike Wallace. But if you're just like, look, I think I got this matchup, I can't get nothing out of my flex. You're not going to get nothing out of Kendall. Right. He's going to get targets there. And obviously Tampa Bay's defense, not the best.
Andy Holloway
All right. Earnest in New Mexico says, hey, guys, big fan of the podcast. I was wondering what you guys thought. Who should I play at my flex? So another flex question. Brandon Marshall or Jarvis Landry in a PPR league?
Jason Moore
That's a good question.
Andy Holloway
That's a really good question.
Mike Wright
I'm going to start the year with Jarvis. I love Marshall. These guys are actually very close for me. But in a ppr, I want the surefire targets, and that's got to be Jarvis Landry.
Jason Moore
Unless it's Devontae Parker. I do agree with that. I think the Redskins are who they're playing week one, and that's just a great match. So the jets have the Browns, I.
Mike Wright
Believe, or let's look it up.
Andy Holloway
You sound very confident. I am.
Jason Moore
Ron Burgundy. Yes. The jets are playing the Browns.
Mike Wright
You are correct, sir.
Andy Holloway
I am very high on Brandon Marshall this year. I just think because the team will be better and I really believe the team will be better. I think he is just a guy who's always been open when he's on the field, he's Just always open. He makes difficult catches. He has red zone presence. I just really like Brandon Marshall. So one more quick question here. If you're starting week one, which matchup do you like more? Cam Newton or Teddy Bridgewater? Week one.
Jason Moore
Ooh, Cam Newton or Teddy Bridgewater. So Cam Newton. The Panthers. Oh, I love that matchup against the Jaguars. I don't think there's any matchup that I'm going to take Teddy over that.
Andy Holloway
So Teddy's playing San Francisco.
Jason Moore
Yeah, I'm going to go. I'm going to go, Cam.
Mike Wright
Yeah. San Francisco's defense has actually looked pretty good, but can they hold up an entire game with. With that depleted roster and especially in their middle linebacker situation with Adrian Peterson just crushing the ball? And then you got to stack the box. Stack the box against Teddy Bridgewater and Charles Johnson or Mike Wallace are going deep. So I'm going to go with Teddy Bridgewater.
Andy Holloway
Minnesota's look so incredibly good.
Jason Moore
Break the tie. Cam or Teddy?
Andy Holloway
I'm gonna go with Teddy.
Mike Wright
Hey.
Jason Moore
Hey.
Andy Holloway
Completely based on preseason, what's happened so.
Jason Moore
Far, we want a week one. We want a week one water bet. Do it. So someone.
Andy Holloway
I'm not that confident.
Mike Wright
I am.
Andy Holloway
All right, you guys go.
Jason Moore
Teddy versus Cam. Water bet, week one.
Mike Wright
Put it on the board.
Jason Moore
Water bet.
Mike Wright
Instant payout.
Andy Holloway
Wow. Yeah, that's great. So we'll remember to put that on the site. You can check out the other water bets we've made. The ones I'm gonna win and then the ones. Then the ones that these guys made with each other. So that's it for today's show. Thanks for listening. We're super excited about next week. We're Gonna Talk Week 1. Get you all ready. Send in your start sick questions, send in your trade questions. We're gonna talk trades next week. Thanks for listening to the show and visit us on Twitter the FFballers.
Matt Harmon
Goodbye.
Jason Moore
Thank you for listening to another edition of the Fantasy Footballers Podcast. Don't forget to visit us on the web at www.thefantasyfootballers.com and follow us on TwitterFFballers.
Fantasy Footballers Podcast Summary
Episode: “Big Questions for 2015, NFL.com's Matt Harmon, Mailbag”
Release Date: September 4, 2015
The Fantasy Footballers kick off their September 4, 2015 episode with hosts Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, and Mike Wright diving straight into the world of fantasy football. After a brief welcome and acknowledgment of the week’s NFL games, the trio sets the stage for a content-rich episode focused on key season questions, expert insights from NFL.com's Matt Harmon, and listener mailbag interactions.
Timestamp: 01:29 – 02:51
The discussion begins with Andy Holloway posing a strategic question about post-draft trading—the critical period between the draft and Week One. Jason Moore expresses enthusiasm for this phase, highlighting the opportunity to exploit teams that made suboptimal draft choices. He states:
“I love post draft trading because you can … target teams that made mistakes.”
— Jason Moore [01:59]
Mike Wright adds his strategy by focusing on players’ handcuffs and the possibility of leveraging them in trades, emphasizing flexibility before the season starts.
Andy underscores the importance of reacting to breaking news, illustrating with his experience of acquiring Tom Brady following his suspension lift and capitalizing on subsequent trade offers:
“Somebody came after him that had Gronk and so he wanted that combination.”
— Andy Holloway [02:28]
Timestamp: 03:53 – 04:24
The hosts read a positive review from listener Dorf58, praising the podcast’s depth and entertaining analysis:
“It's a show with so much information amid snarky comments and Oreos that I can't wait for the rest of the season.”
— Dorf58 [03:53]
They emphasize their commitment to delivering valuable content throughout the season, including waiver wire pickups and start-sit advice.
Timestamp: 05:00 – 10:35
The podcast transitions to current NFL news, covering several key updates:
Tom Brady’s Suspension Lifted:
Andy Holloway clarifies that contrary to earlier reports, Brady is set to start the season as the NFL plans to appeal his suspension without seeking an injunction.
Cleveland Browns Running Back Battle:
Mike Wright discusses Browns’ RB Isaiah Crowell gaining an edge over Terrence West, noting Crowell's potential as a valuable early-season pick.
Preseason Player Performances:
Notable Quotes:
“They had no reason to draft, say that second quarterback and I can get them really cheap.”
— Jason Moore [02:04]
“I had Sam Bradford on one of my rosters and when the news broke on Brady, I picked up Brady right away.”
— Andy Holloway [02:28]
Timestamp: 12:19 – 25:38
The hosts delve into five pivotal questions shaping the 2015 fantasy football season, though they primarily cover two major topics in this episode:
Timestamp: 13:10 – 20:22
Discussion Points:
Historical Bust Data: Mike Wright shares research indicating a high bust rate among top drafted RBs and WRs in previous seasons.
“In 2014, the top 12 ADP running backs drafted… three busts.”
— Mike Wright [13:31]
Potential 2015 Bust Candidates:
“Players will bust. Some percentage of them will bust.”
— Mike Wright [18:00]
Timestamp: 20:53 – 24:36
Discussion Points:
Veteran QBs Transitioning Out: Debates whether 2015 will mark a shift from legendary veterans like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady to newer talents such as Andrew Luck.
“Is this going to be the year where it changes from the old faithful to the new hotness.”
— Jason Moore [21:50]
Sam Bradford and Emerging QBs: Matt Harmon suggests that Sam Bradford could serve as a reliable fantasy option if he emulates his rookie performance, despite past injuries.
“...I find myself just not being able to take him at his asking price.”
— Matt Harmon [26:43]
Timestamp: 29:40 – 43:53
Matt Harmon, creator of Reception Perception, joins the podcast to provide expert analysis on wide receivers with a focus on their route-running and target efficiency.
Sammy Watkins (Buffalo Bills):
“There's a lot of risk with Watkins right now and I'm usually finding myself shying away from him.”
— Andy Holloway [32:24]
Mike Evans (Tampa Bay Buccaneers):
“I think his ceiling is just so tremendous and he can definitely win you weeks in games where Tampa Bay is going to be throwing to catch up.”
— Matt Harmon [34:36]
Devonte Adams (Green Bay Packers):
“In a season-long basis I think he's still going to be a volatile asset.”
— Matt Harmon [35:38]
Alan Robinson (Jacksonville Jaguars):
“I'm all in on John Brown. I pretty much stake the flag to him.”
— Matt Harmon [42:14]
Jeremy Maclin (Kansas City Chiefs):
“He’s going to contend with Travis Kelsey to lead the team in targets.”
— Matt Harmon [40:10]
John Brown (Arizona Cardinals):
“I can totally see it … making that same leap.”
— Matt Harmon [42:14]
Matt Harmon emphasizes the importance of balancing upside with efficiency, advising cautious optimism when drafting high-potential WRs.
Timestamp: 44:32 – 48:20
The hosts address listener questions, providing actionable advice for fantasy team management:
Flex Position Decision:
Question: Should Jason Moore start Mike Wallace, Marshawn Lynch, or Kendall Wright in his flex spot?
Advice: Opt for Kendall Wright in PPR leagues due to higher target volume.
“If it's a PPR, I want the surefire targets, and that's got to be Jarvis Landry.”
— Jason Moore [46:19]
Brandon Marshall vs. Jarvis Landry in Flex:
Week One Matchup Preference: Cam Newton vs. Teddy Bridgewater:
Advice: Favor Teddy Bridgewater based on preseason performance and favorable matchups.
“I'm going with Teddy Bridgewater.”
— Jason Moore [47:21]
The podcast wraps up with a light-hearted water bet between hosts and a tease for the next episode, which will focus on Week One strategies and further trade discussions. They encourage listeners to submit questions via their website or voicemail and express enthusiasm for the upcoming NFL season.
Notable Quotes:
Follow the Fantasy Footballers:
This comprehensive summary encapsulates the core discussions, insights, and actionable advice presented in the Fantasy Footballers' September 4, 2015 episode, providing valuable takeaways for both seasoned and novice fantasy football enthusiasts.