Fantasy Football Podcast 2015 - First Round Runnings Backs, Fantasy Face-off, Mailbag

Summary

Fantasy Footballers Podcast Summary

Title: Fantasy Footballers - Fantasy Football Podcast
Episode: Fantasy Football Podcast 2015 - First Round Runnings Backs, Fantasy Face-off, Mailbag
Release Date: March 31, 2015
Hosts: Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright

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Introduction

The episode kicks off with the hosts warmly welcoming listeners and setting the agenda for the show. Andy Holloway outlines the topics for the day, including a continuation of their running back discussions, an analysis of the consensus top 10 running backs, news and notes from the NFL, a spirited Fantasy Face-off segment, and a mailbag section where listener questions are addressed.

Notable Quote:

• Andy Holloway [00:29]: "Thank you for listening to the show. We're gonna have a great show for you this morning."

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News and Notes (00:55 - 09:43)

The hosts delve into recent NFL news, particularly focusing on player signings and team strategies impacting fantasy football rankings.

1. Miles Austin Signing with the Eagles

   • Mike Wright [03:07]: "Breaking news, this just in. Yesterday, Miles Austin has signed with the Philadelphia Eagles."
   • Discussion revolves around Miles Austin's potential impact on the Eagles and his placement in fantasy rankings. Jason Moore expresses skepticism about Austin’s longevity and health.
   • Andy Holloway [04:09]: "How old is Miles? I think he's 31."

2. Steven Ridley Joining the Dolphins

   • Mike Wright [06:54]: "He’s going to start making free agent visits. And then it came out this morning that he's actually visiting with the Dolphins."
   • The potential of Ridley thriving in Miami is debated, with Mike supporting his ability to perform given the right coaching environment.
   • Mike Wright [07:34]: "Steven Ridley could thrive and have a decent year and a decent fantasy year."

3. Contract Discussions

   • DeMarco Murray’s contract and future with the Eagles are examined, highlighting guaranteed money and potential performance.
   • Jason Moore [06:15]: "I just think if you put him in the right situation, he could perform well."

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Top 10 Running Backs Consensus (09:46 - 28:05)

The core of the episode focuses on evaluating the top 10 running backs for the upcoming fantasy season, with detailed analyses from each host.

1. Le'Veon Bell, Eddie Lacy, Jamal Charles, Marshawn Lynch (Top 4)

   • Previously discussed in the last episode, these four are considered consistent high-performers.

2. Adrian Peterson (Ranked 5)

   • Mike Wright [10:42]: Highlights Peterson’s durability and historical performance.
   • Jason Moore [12:54]: Echoes the confidence in Peterson’s abilities, moving him up in his rankings.

3. Arian Foster (Ranked 6)

   • Andy Holloway [17:08]: Emphasizes Foster’s role as a workhorse back if healthy.
   • Jason Moore [17:38]: Expresses concerns about Foster’s injury history affecting his availability.

4. Jeremy Hill (Ranked 7)

   • Mike Wright [21:47]: Praises Hill’s versatility and explosive play capability.
   • Jason Moore [25:04]: Supports Hill’s high potential and situational usage.

5. C.J. Anderson (Ranked 8)

   • Andy Holloway [28:25]: Presents a contrarian view, expressing concerns over Anderson’s role in a crowded backfield and the potential for shared carries.
   • Jason Moore [32:23]: Defends Anderson, highlighting coaching statements and his performance potential.

6. DeMarco Murray (Ranked 9)

   • Mike Wright [41:35]: Applauds Murray’s fit in the Eagles’ run-blocking line and his skill set.
   • Jason Moore [43:30]: Positions Murray as a solid RB2 option due to his consistent performance despite volume concerns.

7. LaShawn McCoy (Ranked 10)

   • Andy Holloway [45:21]: Advocates for McCoy based on volume and offensive system, though acknowledges differing opinions.
   • Jason Moore [47:17]: Expresses reservations about McCoy’s touchdown potential and overall offensive effectiveness.

Notable Quotes:

• Mike Wright [10:55]: "He's a generational body. And when I say that, what I mean is a guy, his body is literally built to play the running back position."
• Jason Moore [17:38]: "I'm absolutely scared of the injury. I do not think we can just brush it off."

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Fantasy Face-off: C.J. Anderson Debate (28:19 - 40:23)

A heated debate ensues as Andy Holloway and Jason Moore discuss the viability of C.J. Anderson as a top fantasy running back.

• Andy Holloway’s Argument:

  • Concerned about the crowded backfield and the Eagles' evolving offensive scheme.
  • Andy Holloway [29:11]: "All these guys in that backfield. It's too crowded."

• Jason Moore’s Counterpoints:

  • Cites Gary Kubiak’s comments favoring a bell cow back.
  • Jason Moore [32:23]: "Kubiak did not say... he wants a three down back, he wants a bell cow."

• Conclusion:

  • Andy Holloway [37:36]: Summarizes his position by cautioning against relying solely on Anderson due to team dynamics.
  • Jason Moore [40:23]: Advocates for judging Anderson based on his fantasy finishing position rather than mere possession.

Notable Quotes:

• Andy Holloway [31:23]: "I believe what's important is how he plays in the offense."
• Jason Moore [38:37]: "If he’s going to be their number one back, that’s where I stand."

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Mailbag Q&A (52:07 - 57:16)

Listener Jordan S. poses a question regarding roster decisions in a hardcore league setup. The league format includes:

• Roster: 2 QBs, 3 RBs, 3 WRs, 1 TE, and 2 FLEX positions.
• Keeper Players: Nick Foles, Kaepernick, Le'Veon Bell, LaShawn McCoy, Latavius Murray, Jordan Matthews, and Mike Evans.
• Decision Needed: Choose one additional player to keep from a list of candidates (Devontae Freeman, Eric Decker, Doug Martin, Allen Robinson, Percy Harvin, Golden Tate, Terrence West, Andre Williams).

Host Responses:

• Andy Holloway [53:07]: Recommends Terrence West for his upside and potential in the Browns' run-heavy system.
• Jason Moore [53:57]: Suggests Eric Decker for his role in a receiver-heavy lineup but ultimately sides with Terrence West.
• Mike Wright [54:53]: Aligns with the decision to favor Terrence West due to his potential impact in the new system.

Notable Quotes:

• Andy Holloway [53:33]: "Terrence West offers most upside, most dynasty potential in that backfield."
• Jason Moore [54:27]: "If gun to my head, I take Eric Decker."

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Conclusion (58:01 - 59:11)

The hosts wrap up the episode by previewing upcoming topics, including more in-depth discussions on wide receivers, bust analysis, positional stats, and streaming quarterback strategies. They encourage listeners to subscribe, leave reviews, and engage on social media.

Notable Quote:

• Jason Moore [58:31]: "Thank you for listening to another edition of the Fantasy Footballers Podcast."

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Key Takeaways:

• Adrian Peterson remains a top contender despite questions about his fit and team dynamics.
• Arian Foster’s health is a significant concern, affecting his ranking and draft strategy.
• Jeremy Hill emerges as a high-potential running back with explosive capabilities, likely to be a strong early-round pick.
• C.J. Anderson is a polarizing figure with debate on his reliability due to a crowded backfield and evolving offensive strategies.
• DeMarco Murray and LaShawn McCoy offer strong production but come with their own set of risks regarding workload and system fit.
• Listener engagement through the mailbag provides practical advice tailored to specific league formats, emphasizing the importance of understanding player roles within team systems.

The episode effectively combines statistical analysis with lively debate, offering valuable insights for fantasy football enthusiasts aiming to optimize their draft strategies and roster management.

Transcript

[Mike Wright]

Foreign.

[Jason Moore]

To the Fantasy Footballers Podcast with your hosts, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright.

[Andy Holloway]

Happy Tuesday, everybody. Welcome. Welcome to the Fantasy Footballers. I'm Andy Holloway joined as always by Jason Moore.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

And the fantasy hitman, Mike Wright.

[Mike Wright]

Good morning, party people.

[Andy Holloway]

Party people. It is. It is March 31st. We're almost in April. Draft, I think the first preseason games next week. Is that right? No, no, still got draft. Draft. Yeah. Things are coming. Things are coming up soon. Thank you for listening to the show. We're gonna have a great show for you this morning. Last week we talked a little bit of running backs. We're gonna keep that discussion going today. We're gonna go through the rest of our consensus top 10, gonna talk some news and notes as well. Later in the show, you'll want to stay tuned and listen to Jason and myself take each other on In a Fantasy Face Off.

[Mike Wright]

That was almost terrible. What was gonna take each other on a date.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, it'll be far different than a date. This will be a confrontation.

[Jason Moore]

If you love CJ Anderson or if you are down on CJ Anderson, stay tuned. Or if you love or hate myself or Andy Holloway, because one of us will be eviscerated.

[Andy Holloway]

And I think when we do that, we need to have our listeners tweet who they think the victor is.

[Jason Moore]

Let's do it. Although, are you going to be able to handle that? I mean, I just. You've got thin skin.

[Mike Wright]

That's an ego blow.

[Andy Holloway]

I will say this. I feel like it's less me versus you and more me versus the world based on where I'm seeing C.J. anderson being drafted. But stay tuned for that. You don't want to miss it. We're also going to hit the mailbag later. If you have a question that you'd like to ask us, you can email us. Mail at the fantasy footballers.com and we'll be happy to answer it. We got a couple mailbag questions we're going to take today, see if we can help you out. Mostly Keeper questions still. You can also reach us on the web at the fantasy footballers.com you can follow us on Twitter heffballers. You can tweet us your questions. I think we need a hashtag for specific questions so that they come through for us. So let's go. Hashtag TFFB Question no. Mailbag. TFB Mailbag. Let's do that.

[Mike Wright]

Okay.

[Andy Holloway]

TFB Mailbag. If you send. If you tweet at that hashtag, we'll answer it on the show. Be sure to subscribe to us on itunes. We're also on Stitcher. If you like listening to podcasts on Stitcher and who doesn't? Who doesn't? Let's be honest, there's actually pretty, pretty cool. I like Stitcher.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, I think to get stitchers when I have a wound on a gaping wound.

[Andy Holloway]

So let's go ahead and get into it. Today.

[Jason Moore]

News and notes from around the league.

[Andy Holloway]

For the third consecutive week, a an elite wide receiver has signed a contract.

[Mike Wright]

You should probably hit the breaking news button for that one.

[Andy Holloway]

Are you sure?

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't feel very good about that.

[Mike Wright]

You got to do it. Breaking news, this just in. Yesterday, Miles Austin has signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.

[Andy Holloway]

Jason, knowing your propensity to misrank players, where do you have Miles Austin on your. Is that top top 10?

[Jason Moore]

He's. He's outside the top 10. He's 11. No, I'm sorry. I'm looking at 2011.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, wait, these are the wrong ones. Yeah, pull up 2015.

[Jason Moore]

I found 2015. He's not on them. He will be. I think this is a good move for him going there. He'll be on my, you know, top 100 rankings now. You know, this move strikes me as incredibly prideful. Like I look at Chip Kelly and it's like he, he is not going to sign a guy who does not have injury problems so he can tout his, his health program or something.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, the power smoothies, man, we were talking about him.

[Jason Moore]

What happens this year if these injury prone players are injured? What would you do as a fan? You'd be like, stop. Like, what did you expect to happen you thought you could do?

[Mike Wright]

That's the point though. If they're injured, it's while they were injured. If they're not injured and they succeed, then you're a genius. Chip Kelly is a health guru.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, well, he's got plenty of opportunities. What Sam Bradford, Kiko Alonso, you got Ryan Matthews, DeMarco Murray, Miles Austin. All these guys who are pretty much dead physically.

[Andy Holloway]

It'll be interesting to see Miles Austin, I was reading he had a, what they call a career resurgence with about 500 yards receiving last year in Cleveland. But I, I honestly don't know if he'll make the team. I don't even know if I'll be on the team.

[Mike Wright]

Contracts said that he's going to make the team because it was a decent.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, they, it was a 2.3 million, but I didn't think it was guaranteed. But I did think when I saw the contract, I was like, Good for you. Miles. How old is Miles paid? A little bit.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

How old, how old is my.31, I believe. Is he older than that? I think he's 31. I thought he was 52, but that's.

[Jason Moore]

This surprised me when I, when I looked it up, he's 30. I just, I see him as like he's 30, 32, 33. You know, he's obviously got so much weight.

[Andy Holloway]

30 going on 40.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

But he's, he's 30 years old. So if Chip Kelly could restore him.

[Andy Holloway]

He'S a good four for them. Yeah, three or four.

[Mike Wright]

Right now he's the three.

[Andy Holloway]

Wow. Then I guess you're right. But they'll draft somebody for sure. Demarius Thomas, Jinx Black. Demarious Thomas, one of my favorite fantasy football players, mostly because he's always on my team, says he will not create problems with his one year contract that he currently has franchised. Right.

[Mike Wright]

Of course he won't because he's going to play out this year. 13 million guaranteed with Peyton Manning. And then next year when Peyton Manning's not on the team, either they franchise him again for an insane amount of money or he gets to sign an insane contract with whichever team he chooses.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

So he's probably pretty happy about it.

[Andy Holloway]

And he'll probably play pretty well.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Jason Moore]

Now would you say. Because at the same time that this came out, it also came out saying that he's not going to participate in any off season programs or any of the.

[Mike Wright]

No, why would you.

[Jason Moore]

No, I know, but it's just ironic that those things come out at the same time. I'm not going to cause any problems, but I'm. Because I'm not going to be there.

[Mike Wright]

Well, that's the best way to know. Don't show up, don't work out with.

[Jason Moore]

Manning in the offseason or anything.

[Andy Holloway]

What do you guys think? Steven Ridley, who we haven't heard of from a while, for a while, had a torn ACL and MCL last year, came out this week. He's going to start making free agent visits. And then it came out this morning that he's actually visiting with the Dolphins.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I didn't, I didn't like that so much because I'm pretty high on Lamar Miller this year and would say of the three of us, I'm probably the biggest Steven Ridley believer. I like him. I think he's a terrific powerback. Yes, he has some fumbling problems, but, but I, I think if you put him in the tender, caring hands of a coach who's not going to freak out at every. Every minor little turnover. Not that they're minor, but if you put him in the right situation, I think Steven Ridley could thrive and have a decent year and a decent fantasy year.

[Andy Holloway]

And we saw Noshon Moreno succeed in that offense. I know they don't want to give the rock to Lamar Miller all the time.

[Mike Wright]

Not all the time.

[Andy Holloway]

We've seen that for years. We've seen that from the beginning when he was hyped up two years ago and it became Daniel Thomas got the Rock a little more, which is a sad reality for that team. But Ridley, if he went there, I think it's a good landing spot for him. I think he has the potential to produce. If he did go there and was healthy. But that's all I have to say about that.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, it wouldn't be a bad landing spot in Miami.

[Andy Holloway]

I bet you. Hakeem Nick signs next week, so we have a fourth receiver to talk because we had, what was it, Dwayne Bo signed. That was our news from two weeks ago. And then we had Darius Hayward, Bay and now Miles Austin. So next week, Hakeem Nick seems like a perfect fit. He's visiting the 49ers, which seems like a perfect fit. So. Yeah, I mean, I don't think anybody's a. I don't think Knicks is a perfect fit for anybody. I think he's kind of done, Ron, and he's another young guy, too, that you're just kind of like, you don't understand. But you can see it on the field.

[Mike Wright]

The leg injuries have just taken him out.

[Andy Holloway]

Ron Rivera came out and said that he's targeting 15 carries a game for Jonathan Stewart. Jonathan Stewart was Mike the fantasy hitman's guy last week. When you're talking running backs, does this temper any of your expectations for him, Mike, are you happy with that?

[Mike Wright]

No, that I actually find that encouraging. The fact that he's already saying, I want to get him 15 in a game because that number will inflate if they have, unless they take another guy who is actually talented to get carries than Jonathan Stewart, that that number is going to. I would be really, really happy with 17 to 18 carries a game for Jonathan Stewart where he's going to get drafted, that you're going to get a fantastic return.

[Andy Holloway]

I think the leg cast will also inflate around his wounded legs next year, but we'll see. He has so much potential in that offense which we brought up last week, but he just needs to stay healthy. Any other news and notes that you guys want to share with our listeners?

[Mike Wright]

No, nothing.

[Andy Holloway]

Nothing much going on.

[Mike Wright]

We've given him enough. Let's move on.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, let's get into the running backs. Last week we went through and we talked. We only got through our top four in the consensus rankings.

[Mike Wright]

That's right.

[Andy Holloway]

That's right. Yeah, we got through La Veon Bell. He's our consensus number one. Eddie Lacy was our two. Jamal Charles is at three, and Marshawn lynch at number four. Those are four staples of those offenses. Those are four guys you can count on week in and week out. And today we're gonna try to get through six through 10.

[Mike Wright]

We can do it. Yeah, we can do it. Team.

[Andy Holloway]

I wanted to talk 5.

[Jason Moore]

5 through 10.

[Andy Holloway]

I wanted to talk briefly about what.

[Mike Wright]

We could do that, too.

[Andy Holloway]

What did I say?

[Jason Moore]

Six through ten? Because you thought we're skipping five.

[Andy Holloway]

We're skipping. Yeah, yeah, we're just skipping them. No, we'll go six through 10 today. We'll have our fantasy face off in the middle of that. Did I say it again? Gosh dang it. All right, take over.

[Mike Wright]

All right, so our consensus number five guy, Adrian Peterson, who I have at number three, very high. Do you want to know why I'm so high on Adrian Peterson?

[Jason Moore]

We need to know.

[Mike Wright]

Here's the deal with Adrian Peterson. 5.0 lifetime average, one season below 1250 plus yards, and that was in 2011 when he played 12 games. I will admit there was the last year he did not have the yardage either, but that was a little different circumstances.

[Andy Holloway]

What? What last year? Last year, yeah. You mean when he didn't play?

[Mike Wright]

When he played one.

[Andy Holloway]

His yardage was down when he didn't play?

[Mike Wright]

Yes. He didn't have over 1250 plus yards. I believe they're gonna the. If they really want him back, they're going to run him into the ground. Demarco Murray style. They want someone to take the pressure off Teddy to improve his game. Norv Turner is known for having spectacular fantasy running backs. The Minnesota. Minnesota does have a decent run blocking line. Their star left tackle, Matt Khalil had a very down year after a sensational rookie year. It came out later that he had hurt his back in some fashion. So. So I have to assume that his poor play was a factor of the back injury. So you get that line healed up, you get Adrian Peterson coming off a year where all he. All he had to do was stay in shape. He had to work out, keep his freak body going. He didn't have to absorb the hits, just because he's a generational body. And when I say that, what I mean is a guy, his body is literally built to play the running back position. It can handle the abuse. He still got it. He's going to be fantastic.

[Jason Moore]

I went on this morning because I started thinking just intellectually, not in the numbers and thinking, okay, he's getting to 30. He was out last season, so you could see that as a plus or as a con. So I started looking at his numbers and really digging deep to see if I needed to move him down in my rankings. And the deeper that I looked and the more that I really remembered Adrian Peterson, I moved him up. So.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

No, honestly, where is he on your list now? Because he was six. He was six when I last looked at it.

[Jason Moore]

Right now he has five on my list.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, so he went from six to five. I have him the lowest of us three.

[Jason Moore]

Where at?

[Andy Holloway]

I have him at eight.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I think that, I think, you know, any of these spots is good. Like we kind of talked about last week. There are so many.

[Mike Wright]

See your list.

[Jason Moore]

There are so many different guys that are in this kind of after those top two, at least to Mike and I, that are all near the same. And did you see the. I guess this is also news and notes from around the league. Did you see the new offensive lineman that the Vikings signed? The Vikings signed a giant. That is exactly who they signed. They signed. They should have got the mountain. Instead they got Hodor. They signed a gigantic, gigantic Polish offensive tackle. He's the first Polish born player in the NFL that is not a kicker.

[Mike Wright]

Congratulations.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. He is 6 foot 9, 351 pounds.

[Andy Holloway]

Come on. That's humongous. Oh, my goodness.

[Jason Moore]

I don't know if he's any good, but I do know he's large.

[Andy Holloway]

So Peterson can jump on his back and just.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Just be carrying this thing onward.

[Andy Holloway]

You didn't talk about a Peterson backpack tour here.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, yeah. Also another, my last piece of breaking news on the Adrian Peterson because obviously his value is tied to where he plays football.

[Andy Holloway]

And there's, we're all assuming right now is Minnesota.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I think, I think it's a done deal. And here's why I think it's a done deal. I know it's sad because as fans of the Arizona Cardinals, we wanted to come here. This is why I know it's a done deal. Because Larry Fitzgerald's father tweeted Adrian Peterson going nowhere, exclamation point.

[Mike Wright]

And I believe Larry Fitzgerald father also said Larry would not resign with the car.

[Jason Moore]

That instead of. That's very correct. I love how in the off season I've never seen so much news and notes from fathers of players in my life. Adrian Peterson's father and Larry Fitzgerald's father have more publicity than half the players in the league.

[Mike Wright]

Hey, if my kid's in the NFL, I'm be tweeting all the time. I'm going to have like 50,000 followers.

[Andy Holloway]

You'll be attaching yourself to your boy, vicariously living through him.

[Mike Wright]

Absolutely.

[Andy Holloway]

So here's the only reason I have. Pearson not as high as you guys. In 2013, he only had 500 yard games. He only had 29 receptions that year and he also only had.

[Mike Wright]

Which year?

[Andy Holloway]

Sorry, 2013. The last year he played a complete season.

[Mike Wright]

How many total yards did he have?

[Andy Holloway]

I think it was about 1200.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, 1250 plus.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm not doubting he's in my top 10. I'm saying this is why I'm tempered. And he only had Toby Gerhardt behind him that year as opposed to now having a guy. I mean, I feel like it's kind of awkward for Minnesota to say, okay, we're gonna run him to the bone like you said, but we want to get rid of him. But we want Jerick McKinnon to be our future. But Jerick McKinnon doesn't get carries.

[Mike Wright]

But don't want to get rid of him though. No, Only everyone else besides the Vikings want Adrian Peterson to move. Here's a tidbit. I forgot to add double digit touchdowns.

[Andy Holloway]

Every year if he's playing.

[Jason Moore]

Absolutely unbelievable.

[Mike Wright]

Even 2011, the down year where he had, where he played 12 games, still double digit touchdowns.

[Jason Moore]

Here's his touchdowns. 12, 10, 18, 12, 12, 12, 10.

[Mike Wright]

Kaboom.

[Andy Holloway]

Don't consider me a doubter of Adrian Peterson. I don't want to be in that camp because that's a foolish camp. I think we're with McKinnon and Asiata behind them. Asiata re signed. McKinnon is there and we'll have a roll. He's not catching. Not a lot of passes to be caught by Peterson. I don't think this year. And I just. I just have him a little lower than you guys. It's okay.

[Mike Wright]

No, it's. I would say that the fire for me is really projected outward. I apologize that you're taking the brunt of it.

[Andy Holloway]

No, man, it's all right.

[Mike Wright]

There's. There's just a decent amount of Adrian Peterson doubt out there, which is.

[Andy Holloway]

It normally works in the favor of Adrian Peterson to doubt him.

[Mike Wright]

That's.

[Andy Holloway]

That is correct. We'll go through this next guy pretty quick. So number five is Adrian Peterson. Number six, we talked about him last week. He's my guy this year. Arian Foster. I have him at number three. So he's where Adrian Peterson is for you, Mike.

[Mike Wright]

Wait, three? I thought you had him at two.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm sorry, was it two?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, you had him.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, I have him at two. You're right. You're right. I have him at two. And I'll just go through the bullet points of what I said last week real quick. He was the number five overall back last year. He had 20 or more rushes nine different times at 100 plus yards in seven of those games. And I think the two, he didn't. It was like 99 and 96. He was up again two years in a row on his yards per carry. He was at 4.8 last year. He's got no competition in that backfield, and he's still heavily involved in the passing game. So what is the problem with Arian Foster?

[Jason Moore]

Injuries.

[Andy Holloway]

Concern. Yeah. Concern about his health. But if he's healthy, he is a workhorse back who gets more overall touches than just about anybody in the league. And that's why I like him. That's why I'm at number two, because I am betting on his health per touch.

[Jason Moore]

He. I think he puts up the second most fantasy points per touch. So I do love Arian Foster on the field. I am absolutely scared of the injury. I don't think we can just brush it off. He missed 11 games in the last two years, and he left the last. I think the way he left the last game of the season, granted, you know, it doesn't impact us now, but it just shows the wear and tear as the season goes on is what scares me. So you're entering fantasy playoffs and he's going to be more likely to be injured. He left the last game of the season with both a knee injury and hamstrings. Then he didn't play in the Pro Bowl. He's had so much work on him, and so he's only 29, but that's, you know, with his workload and his injury history, I do not see him playing more than 13 games. I love him when he's on the field, but I definitely move him down in my rankings from his injury history.

[Mike Wright]

I, too, have him penciled in for about 13 games. A question for you two guys. Where do you think he's going to get drafted?

[Jason Moore]

Great question.

[Andy Holloway]

I Think he goes, does he still.

[Mike Wright]

Stay in the first round?

[Jason Moore]

No.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, yeah. Back, back nine, 10 maybe. I would think only because he finished so high last year. And I think when, when push comes to shove and they start, we start looking at the rankings, I mean you're gonna, this next guy on our list is a guy that people are going to be deciding between. Right. Jeremy Hill is our number seven on our consensus rankings. And you're going to be staring down the tried and true Arian Foster and the up and coming Jeremy Hill. That's very different backfield situations and you're gonna have to make that decision. You know, we're not saying go draft. I'm not saying you have to go draft Darian Foster over Jeremy Hill. I'm saying this is what, how I parse all the information I have about these guys and depending on your team and the risk reward factor of, you know, how you like to play fantasy football, those are two guys that on different ends of the spectrum.

[Mike Wright]

To me I say in 13 games of Aaron Foster is still fantastic, you're still probably say probably you're still going to get that first round value, the back half of the first round value. So I'm not avoiding him by any means. Just, just tempering that. I really don't see him playing a full season.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And one thing to consider with that, and I totally agree with you guys, that is the bet. Right. His handcuff will be cheap in the.

[Jason Moore]

Draft unless they get a good running back.

[Mike Wright]

If they get it. I don't know that he'll be cheap because people know that Foster gets injured.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, but, but from a production standpoint, I don't think he's a, I mean he's not a top tier productive guy. It's when he's been in there.

[Mike Wright]

So carries though, it's just volume of getting, getting a guy who in week six or seven, all of a sudden, hey, I have a running back two that I can plug in.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And I think, I think maybe that's him coming off a 13 game year. Maybe it's not as scary.

[Jason Moore]

Maybe it is to support what you're saying. If they, if they draft a rookie say in the fourth or fifth round, a later rookie, not one of the big names, then your handcuff is going to be very, very late because nobody's going to know who to grab.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, it's going to be difficult to know who to. If it's blue or the new guy.

[Jason Moore]

And that could be, that could be a good thing or it could end up Getting you to draft the wrong handcuff. So we will give you that research. We will give you the answer for that once we know who they draft and when we get closer to the season.

[Mike Wright]

We're a show about fantasy football information. And your answer was, make sure you do your research, people.

[Andy Holloway]

That means listen to the show. That's the exact thing I'm saying. Listen to your show.

[Mike Wright]

Our show.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it's yours today. Because I can't.

[Mike Wright]

If they have a. If you have a show, you should listen to it.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, let's go to your tattoo boy. Let's move on to. So we had Peterson at 5. Did I get the number right? Arian Foster at 6. Jeremy Hill. Jeremy Hill.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, man. Jeremy Hill.

[Andy Holloway]

Let me, let me. I'll hand it off because I know you've got him tattooed across your chest.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

However, I want to say I wanted to be the guy that tempered some expectations for him. So I went and looked at some stats last year, and here's what I thought was interesting for the last four games of the year. Here's his snap counts, okay? 47 out of 75, 41 out of 65, 42 out of 71, and 21 out of 62.

[Mike Wright]

Wow.

[Andy Holloway]

And so I looked at those snap counts and I went, that's a problem. And then I went and looked at his carries in those games. 25, 22, 23. And in the game in which he only had 21 snaps, he had 13 carries.

[Jason Moore]

That's why I said wow was because I knew how much work he had done, which just means if he gets on the field more, goodness gracious.

[Andy Holloway]

Anyways, Mike, Jeremy Hill around him.

[Mike Wright]

All right, so here's the deal with Jeremy Hill. His games with 15 plus carries, he averaged 5.6 yards per carry. He had 20 carries, 20 plus carries five times each game. He had over 100 yards. He had 622 yards after contact. The guy can. Not only can he grind it out, he can hit the home run. As we saw when he burst on the scene with the Jaguar game, where he gave the safety the okie doke leg move and juked him out of his pants. Took it all the way. There was the sensational fantasy championship week, which I believe had myself against Andy Holloway. And Andy was clinging onto a. He was clinging onto the fabric of hope until Jeremy Hill busted off an 80 yard touchdown run.

[Andy Holloway]

I was on a car ride home with my family, and I had that Monday night game on, and I was going, you know, if Jeremy Hill just lays an egg Here I've got a real chance. And the announcer comes on and he's just like broke up whatever it was. 75 yard, 80 yard touchdown and I'm just like, all right now I don't listen anymore.

[Mike Wright]

You're not talking about a guy who's, who just gets the four yards. Four yards. He can take it to the house every single play. The, the opposition to Jeremy Hill is Gio Bernard. The Gio Bernard experiment, I believe should now be settled in the minds of the Bengals and Hugh Jackson. They tried desperately at the beginning of the year to see if Gio Bernard could be the inside the tackles guy. Gio Bernard had. Let's see of. There was two games where Geo had 15 plus runs and averaged over 4 yards of carry. One of those games happened to be against the Panthers and he had an 89 yard run. You take the 89 yard run out, he stunk. Gio Bernard just does not, doesn't have the body to hold up and he, he can't, he can't do what Jeremy Hill can do.

[Andy Holloway]

It just doesn't matter that he's still there. Yeah, it doesn't matter to Jeremy Hill's.

[Mike Wright]

Production and I still, I have Geo being a great gadget player getting those, the catches and taking the dumps, if you will.

[Jason Moore]

Thanks, Mike.

[Andy Holloway]

Thanks.

[Mike Wright]

And after that, with the amount of carries I think Jeremy Hill is going to get and what he can do with the ball, he just, he's a sensational player and he's going to finish in the top five.

[Andy Holloway]

So Jason, you have him the lowest of us three right now. You have him at nine.

[Jason Moore]

I have him at six. I moved him up this morning.

[Andy Holloway]

That's where I have him at 6. So you're on board as well.

[Jason Moore]

Am fully on board. In fact, the more that I think about him, the, the excitement because the.

[Mike Wright]

Floor, the floor, I think about him a lot. Do you sit around tattoo artist has a, has an opening this weekend if you want to match you with me.

[Jason Moore]

I, I do. Well, I. In front of my toilet at home, I've got a poster. So. But moving along. So, so here's the thing.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't even know what that means.

[Jason Moore]

I know last year, last year, last year there was, he was not the number one running back in Cincinnati for at least half the season, probably three quarters of the season. You could say he was not the clear cut number one and he is going to be the clear cut number one. He's going to get improvement. You want a player whose trajectory, you know, ended the season Strong and was showing that they're going to use him more. And then I was blown away to see that given that take, given the fact that he wasn't being used nearly as much as they could have used him, especially the entire first half of the season, he had 222 carries. I mean, that's what Jamal Charles had. That's what Jamal Charles was going to get this year. So your baseline, you don't have to be scared. You talked about the tried and true Arian Foster or the new up and comer, but I'm not scared of the new up and comer. I'm not thinking that, you know, he's a boom or bust guy. His bust is going to be pretty high. And look at this. In college he averaged, he set the record for the SEC at 6%, 0.9 yards per carry in the SEC.

[Mike Wright]

Is that good?

[Andy Holloway]

That's, that is, that is a record.

[Jason Moore]

That is not going to be broken anymore.

[Andy Holloway]

Trent Richardson's running at the same time.

[Jason Moore]

So I mean his, his carries are going to go up. His, you know, some of your stats, you just talked about, Mike, about his yards after contact. He's a phenomenal back that's going to be used better in a good system. I love him. I'm, I'm full on board.

[Andy Holloway]

Jeremy Hunt, he should also cut this segment up and play it before every game because we are, we are building him up. But it's true, I think he's a guy that, you know, very Rarely do the ADPs match the finishing positions. We know that. We actually just went through the other day. We were trying to identify some of the busts at the running back position over the last few years, the percentages of running backs in the top 10 ADP that do bust. But the reality is Jeremy Hill is one of those candidates that to be able, you can get him at a different place and he could finish in that top two, top three easily.

[Mike Wright]

He's going to, he will go, I believe, in the beginning of the second round is, I think, where he'll be taken.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, that's beautiful.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

And that's what's important in knowing our rankings. Our rankings here aren't necessarily where you should draft a guy. They're where we're expecting him to finish up. You got to go with the ADP there and see your true values. And Jeremy Hill, if you can get him in the second, you know, get it, grab a wide receiver. You know, if you're, if you're near the, the back end of round one, where you're going to be quick to the turn and there's a couple more running backs on the board and it looks, you know from ADP that hill will be around in the second. Goodness gracious.

[Andy Holloway]

You know, it would be amazing to be able to grab a Calvin or a Julio and then flip around and grab hill on the backside of the.

[Jason Moore]

That would be a first two round success.

[Andy Holloway]

Agreed. So let's move it on to.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, messy face off.

[Andy Holloway]

That's right. Let's do it, buddy.

[Jason Moore]

Well, Andy, since you are the one that is against the world, I will allow you to go first.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. So everybody loves C.J. anderson. Everybody and their mother. Everybody loves every running back that is attached to Peyton Manning and I don't blame them for that. Mike, were you going to say something before I get started here?

[Mike Wright]

I just. I will be measuring this fantasy face off as the judge.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Mike Wright]

Because I would like to be. I want to hear these opinions and see if they can sway how I feel about C.J. anderson.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, this will be exciting then. Everybody likes C.J. anderson. Everybody has him. Let's look at the ranks real quick before we get into this. I have him. I have him at 11. Okay. So let's, let's be sure that you understand I'm not throwing him out of my running back intention. He's outside my top 10 though.

[Mike Wright]

He's still in the car. He's not been tossed under the right.

[Jason Moore]

Now Mike and I have him at 7. However my stats when I. When I 7, when I statted guys for a full season, I put him at number two. He finished for my stats at number two. I dropped him to number seven in my rankings because of some of the things you're going to talk about. But I think he has the chance to finish extremely high. So Andy, tell me why I'm.

[Andy Holloway]

Here's why I am scared of CJ Anderson. Now the zone rushing schemes. We always want to talk about Gary Kubiak, what he does with these one cut runners. I admit CJ Anderson is a good player. He's a good runner and his scheme is complementary to CJ Anderson's talents. However, last season, here's exactly what was said. Pierce has the best transition into Gary Kubiak's zone blocking scheme. Bernard Pierce was the talk of last season, last offseason. Plus we know that Gary Kubiak is not putting his exact system in place. He's coming in and he's adjusting to what Peyton Manning wants to manage and wants to do on the offense. So I think some of Whatever benefits, he has to do the running game get negated a little bit because of that. Now last year you had Monte Ball. He was that beautiful draft pick in the top five, six, seven running backs. Last year he was limited to five games. We know that he had a groin injury. He says he's coming back. He wants to win the starting job. But here's the catch. Monte Ball is not very good. He's not a good player. He's 24.

[Mike Wright]

Breaking news.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I don't like him. You know, I don't like, you know, I don't like Monte Ball. Not saying he's good, but he is a second round draft pick. He's got 1.6 million guaranteed coming his way. C.J. anderson is undrafted. He's cheap. I'm not saying that I believe Monte Ball is a better player, but what I'm saying is that I believe C.J. anderson is a risk. He's not a bad player. He's a good player. He was a pro ball player last year, but he's not going to get handed that job outright. That's what I'm saying. He's not Eddie Lacy, he's not Marshawn Lynch. I wouldn't be surprised if he's platooning with Ball. And in fact, Gary Kubiak came out last year and he said that in Baltimore. He said he doesn't believe you can hand it off to one guy anymore. That's what Kubiak came out and said. And last year we handed the keys to the fantasy Lamborghini to Monte Ball in the preseason and everybody went crazy over him. And they burned a top pick on a guy who's unproven. And it's not what I want to spend my first rounder on. And you have C.J. anderson, Monte Ball, Juwan Thompson, who by the way averaged 5.0 a carry last year, and Ronnie Hillman all competing on that depth chart, all dealing with a certain amount of carries to be distributed. I think that if you bet on CJ Anderson, you are playing with fire. I don't think he can. It's impossible that he's the guy the entire year. But my take is that it's dangerous. It's scary because there are too many guys in that backfield. That backfield was too injured last year and Gary Kubiak is not going to be putting a one back system into place. So that's my take on cj. Go ahead and undress me.

[Mike Wright]

I like, I like that take. The only thing that I think we need to change is Gary Kubiak needs to officially be called the Kubbs.

[Jason Moore]

Okay?

[Andy Holloway]

That's right. The Kubbs is not putting them into place.

[Jason Moore]

Let me talk about the Kubbs and get on the other side of this.

[Andy Holloway]

By the way, if you're tape, if you're, if you're replying, I'll be quiet and let you talk. If it has Terrell Davis's name in it, I'm going to be very angry with you.

[Jason Moore]

It does not have Terrell Davis's name in it. It has Kubb's name all over it.

[Andy Holloway]

Alright, sing it to me, sing it to me.

[Jason Moore]

Alright, so here's the thing. First and foremost we've got to unfortunately talk about some of the flawed logic you have and break that down. So you said that Pearce was said to be the best back for the system but I don't know who was saying that because coming into the year it was Ray Rice. Once Ray Rice went down nobody knew what was going on and then there was a giant mess. There was a giant mess as to who was going to be the starter. And yeah, I would say that we, the analysts might have said that Pierce is the best back fit for the system but Kubiek did not say that. But getting to the more important stuff, you said that you don't think there's going to be a one back system and that is my number one thing that I disagree with. Kubiak has all always had a running back who is the absolute clear cut winner. I mean sure Ben Tate got the ball and you know, Talia Farrow got some of the ball but clearly there was a supreme back that was used the most. You've got four set, you've got Arian Foster, you've got guys that you know, you don't even remember. You've got Reuben Drones and Orlandis Gary who were thousand yard rushers in Kubiak's one cut system. So now you say well no, he's going to change that. He's not going to use one guy. Well listen to a quote from Gary Kubiak, also known as the Kubbs. He said who is going to be the bell cow? He asked who is going to be the three down player. They have to sort that out. So in fairness to your opinion, it's not completely sorted out, right? But Koobs wants a three down back, he wants a bell cow. And now that's not according to me or you or Mike, that's according to the Kubbs. The Kubbs wants that player. So who is that player going to Be well, let's see what he says. Let's see what he says about C.J. anderson. He says he's a young player who got a big opportunity late last year at the end of the season and took advantage of it. You've seen when guys are going to make big jumps in this league as great players, they usually make them in years one, two or three right in there. He made a big jump as a player and I think he's earned the right to walk into the offseason program or the OTAs and line up as our starter. So that's one thing. Now he goes on and says, but it's a competition, which is great. What else are you going to say to a young player? You're going to say, hey, you got the job. Just phone it in and it's yours. And no matter what, you got it. Throw all of that out the window, right? All of that is garbage. Now let's talk about who's the best running back. Last year, early in the season I was all over CJ Anderson. You know that. I said it way early. I said it from preseason on that he is the best back there. As soon as he got any touches, I was like, this guy can play, he is amazing and he will win the job. When Monte Ball went down, I rushed to the waivers to get C.J. anderson and stupidly they didn't put C.J. anderson in right. They put Ronnie Hillman in and that he got the chance, then he got hurt, right? And it took that to get a supreme player in the lineup who Keep in mind, he wasn't the third on Kubbs list. He was the third on a previous regime's list. He got in and let's see what he did. In six starts in six games, he put up 23 carries a game, 108 yards per game, 1.3 touchdowns per game. If he did that all season under, under a non Kubbs system, he would have been the clear cut by a wide margin, number one back in the league. So you've got Kubbs coming in saying he wants a bell cow, he wants a three down back. This guy's the starter. He was awesome last year. But it is a competition, I'll grant you that. And he's going to play in my system. You said you always want the running back who plays for Peyton Manning. I say you always want the running back that plays for Kubs and I want the running back who plays for both. So the upside potential here is higher than Jeremy Hill. So I would say no, I'm saying the potential. The ceiling would be the number one clear cut back. So that is where I drop the microphone.

[Andy Holloway]

Bam. You heard it here first six starts and some off season chatter is enough to make a career. Well Mike, lay it out for us. We can't stay on this topic all day. I'd love to rebut but we'll just, we'll just go with those two takes.

[Jason Moore]

Run away.

[Mike Wright]

The I believe the, the takes on the Kubbs demand for a workhorse running back are very strong. However.

[Andy Holloway]

Why do you sound like you're falling asleep?

[Mike Wright]

I'm not. I'm trying to be impartial over here. You don't need to be the I think the, the one caveat.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm the contrarian. I don't mind if you disagree with me. I'm just giving you. This is not fantasy advice. This is fantasy opinion. You take it and you do what you want with it. I'm not saying don't draft C.J. anderson. I'm saying be afraid because it happened ironically to the exact same team last year. I do not disagree with you. He's the best runner and that does not mean he's going to be the best fantasy running.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, the Ronnie Hillman is. I don't think you got enough time in your guys's opinion or the in the fantasy face off because Monty Ball sucked. That that's factual information that he was not, he was not good. He went down. Ronnie Hillman came in and Ronnie Hillman was fantastic. Ronnie Hillman. Ronnie Hillman does not have the, the physique to hold up as a three down back in the, in the Kube system CJ Anderson has that build. So just with the numbers that Anderson has put up it I had. Unfortunately I have to put this off until later in the training camp just because the your entire argument is based off of Will C.J. anderson be the guy. I believe what you're saying is is if Anderson is the guy then he's going to go up in your rankings. Am I. Would I be correct in assuming that.

[Andy Holloway]

If, if the preseason and camp look a certain way he would. I'm not going to be an idiot and leave him outside of my top 10 if they look a certain way. I do think it's a crowded backfield. I think they, I think from what Kubiak has said he knows that a one back only system unless everyone's hurt isn't the way things are going. And, and it's still an offense that is not going to be his exact system and an offense in which blocking for Peyton Manning is going to take the cake and somebody like Joanne Thompson can be in there on certain downs because of blocking acumen. So I, yes, I'm going to adjust if that's the case. But I have no reason why Jason and I shouldn't water bet right now in some way.

[Mike Wright]

I have one final point before the water bet is made and it's the fact that C.J. anderson was putting these numbers up during the, the mysterious decline of Peyton Manning. We where we don't know if that was. Did Peyton Manning all of a sudden fall off a cliff or was that really all predicated because he had injured his quad?

[Andy Holloway]

So many questions. It's really questions everywhere. Is the water bet number one? Here's the water bet carries.

[Jason Moore]

No, no, no, no, no. It should be about what we're talking about.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay?

[Jason Moore]

I am saying C.J. anderson is going to be their number one back. That's what I'm saying. I'm saying C.J.

[Andy Holloway]

Arguing that he's not. I've said my entire take is that he is. It's just that it's going to be shared. I think he's the best running. All right, so that's why you got to do do production.

[Mike Wright]

Are we doing what Final Fantasy Finish or actual real life stats, which what are we talking about here?

[Andy Holloway]

Well, it's very simple if you think. Let's just do where he finishes in fantasy. That's what it should be.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, hit the button, man.

[Andy Holloway]

We do that after we've established C.J.

[Jason Moore]

Anderson finishes as an RB1.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, so do I according to my top 12. I have him at 11.

[Jason Moore]

Okay. Top 10. No, you've got him out. I've got him at 7. I've got him at seven. Top 10.

[Andy Holloway]

Top 10 waterbeds. Let's do it, baby. Alright. Top 10. Next week Ronnie Hillman's gonna tear his ACL and I'm gonna be wet. But that was our first fantasy face off of the season and quite entertaining if you ask me. So wonderful job. Let's go ahead and move on here. We've got, we've got some time left in this segment. We're gonna talk our last two out of our top 10. So let's talk DeMarco Murray for a second. He's the next guy on our list. He's number nine on our consensus rankings. Obviously he's got a lot of question marks. He was dominant last year. He was a one cut downhill kind of guy. We had Andrew Goldwasser of NFL Spin Zone on the show he talked about the carry breakdown. He saw a 55, 35, 10 carry breakdown between Murray Matthews and Sprouls. I think we all agree his carries are going to be down. I still have him at a very high yards per carry. But what are your guys thoughts on DeMarco? Mike, it seemed like you moved him down a little bit in the last couple days.

[Mike Wright]

Just, just slightly and that was a volume thing that I had a little bit of volume higher. However, the production is still very strong for me and here's, here's what I like about Demarco Murray especially going to that system. Demarco has a 4.8 yard per carry average in his lifetime. He's going from the second best run blocking line in the NFL to the best run blocking line in the NFL. He has great hands. He's averaged 55 catches in the last two years. Chip Kelly hand picked DeMarco Murray. He, Chip Kelly had Lashawn McCoy who is considered to be an elite running back and Chip Kelly said I'll take the guy who had 400 carries last year.

[Jason Moore]

Technically he picked Frank Gore first.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah that's true. But the reason that was and then Ryan Matthews is because they didn't think they were that they had the money to get Jericho Murray which I don't blame him people, they had to have.

[Andy Holloway]

Imagined that he was opportunistic along with getting a great cat.

[Mike Wright]

So, so even with, without getting 400,000 carries I think this is a perfect situation for DeMarco. He won't have to run the ball every single down. He gets to use his skill set to the highest capacity and he will be very effective. And I, I have him over five yards of carry again.

[Andy Holloway]

So do I have him at 5.2.

[Mike Wright]

So I just, I, it's the perfect situation for me where if he had been back in Dallas I would have been really really wary of on demarco Murray breaking down. And here he has Ryan Matthews who I really like and Jaron Sprouls is a guy who I really also like. Their backfield is set up for success with demarco Murray leading the way.

[Andy Holloway]

Any thoughts from you Jason, before we get on to number our number 10 here?

[Jason Moore]

No, I think it's a good place for his health. I have him power smoothies man. I have him lower. I've got him probably as near like the very back end of an RB one but more likely I think he's going to be an RB2 because I agree that he's not going to get much more. He'll get the Lion's share. But what is that going to be? 55, 60% of the touch, you know, you're talking about at the end of the year, I think he's going to have around the same touches of Jamal Charles. And while he's a good back, he is not as talented per touch as Jamal Charles. And I also think that there are, there is reason to suspect the Pro Football Focus line rankings of the Eagles because there are other reputable line ranking companies that have the Eagles finishing last and next to last out for the last year. So the Eagles, Lions hard, probably because of that Chip Kelly offense. So I like him, I think he's good. But I would take him as an RB2.

[Mike Wright]

It's not just getting touches and yards, it's touchdowns as well.

[Andy Holloway]

That's what I was going to say. The touchdowns are what brings him back into my top 10. For me, because of the productivity of that offense, they're going to score a lot of points. We already know that. So it's just hard to bet on him. I think consistency could be an issue from game to game a little bit, depending on what things are going on. And he hasn't been healthy his whole career either. So number 10 on our list. By the way, four of our guys were not in last year's top 10 ADP. La'Veon Bell, Jeremy Hill, CJ Anderson and Arian Foster were not in the ADP of last year's top 10. Just kind of an interesting stat to see how things change from year to year. The number 10 guy is the guy that was essentially whose spot is taken over by DeMarco in Philadelphia. He is now in Buffalo and we're talking about Shady McCoy. Now, Shady's a guy that I probably have to speak to because I have him.

[Mike Wright]

Yes, you explain yourself.

[Andy Holloway]

I have him at number three. You guys both have him outside your top 10, which I just think is ludicrous, fading on him to that degree. Last I looked, you had him at 12 and 13, both of you. Because you're both insane. I guess it's the word I'll use to be kind. But here's why I like Lashawn McCoy. Yes, he had a down year. Yes, he has question marks. Yes, I think more often than not you should be wary of a guy who is changing teams. But I think he's the exception and here's why I have him at number three. Last year, Rex Ryan was number three in rushing attempts on that New York offense. The year before, he was number six when he had competent running backs in New York in 09 and 00:10, he was number one. He was number four in attempts. And so volume is one piece of the puzzle. The other piece is the team is already built to run the ball. Fred Jackson was number 11 overall at the running back position in a timeshare in Buffalo in 2013. The identity of that team is defense and running the ball. And now you have some competency at the quarterback position with Matt Castle coming in there. And so I think Rex has reiterated verbatim, he said, I want to be, yes, we're going to ground and pound on offense. And so volume is something that McCoy has proven he can handle historically. And he's only 26 years old. He just signed a five year, $40 million extension. You know, he's the bell cow there. I have some concern at the goal line not knowing exactly how they break that down. But I think from volume, the reasons I like him is volume, the offense he's in competency at the quarterback position and a resume that has shown that he can handle the load. Now the only other thing I will say is that I did not give him an outlandish yards per carry. I gave him 4.4 this year. He's a career 4.6 guy, but he's only 26 years old. And so I like him as a guy that, that can produce because the system is so good and he's, he is very talented. I know people faded on him last year because he was the ADP number one, but I like Lashan McCoy. So obviously you guys don't because I think that's fair to say you don't like Lashan McCoy or Thirteen.

[Jason Moore]

I love Lashawn McCoy as an RB too. If I can have him as my second RB, I think his floor is pretty high just because he's going to get 300 touches plus, you know, he's going to get the touches. I've got him at 4.3 yards per carry and I think in that offense I don't think they're going to be putting up a lot of points. And he's not really a goal line type of back. So I don't see him with, you know, double digit touchdowns. I see him with, you know, six touchdowns on the year. So if you go six touchdowns, 4.3. I just, I don't think he's going to be the, the namesake. But I do think he's going to get volumous work, which I love. So I'd like to grab, you know, a high potential RB1 and if I can get LaShawn McCoy as an RB2, if I could possibly do that. So we really, guys, we need to talk him down. Okay. So that he can throw to the second round and I can get, you know, make that happen.

[Andy Holloway]

No, I think those are fair points, too. That's. That's a good take. You have any. Any thoughts, Mike?

[Mike Wright]

I had a question which may be rhetorical, but because people talk so much about how they're concerned about DeMarco worries. DeMarco Murray's workload. Now, granted he had a very high workload last year, but do we put everything into last year's workload or do we put it into a cumulative fashion at all? Is that taken into account?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it is taken into account. It has to be. That's why Matt Forte and those guys need to be concerned with it.

[Mike Wright]

So over the last two years, Murray has 609 carries. Over the last two years, Lashawn McCoy has 626 carries.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, he's actually the most in the entire league the last two years.

[Jason Moore]

I think the big difference there is injury history.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

DeMarco Murray has a history of getting injured.

[Mike Wright]

LaShawn McCoy almost retired because of concussions. Are we forgetting about this?

[Jason Moore]

I forgot about this. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

He. The. The season where he had. We played 12 games was because of concussions and there was talk of him walking away from the game. Now, I will continue to use the Pro Football Focus line measurement of him only having 4.2 yards per carry behind what they. They graded out as the best run blocking line. He's moving to the Buffalo Bills, which Pro Football Focus graded out as the worst run blocking line in the league. Andy's shaking his head. I'm not. I'm just telling you. I'm the messenger here.

[Andy Holloway]

You're the messenger of the statistics about the line, but not the production of the running game.

[Jason Moore]

Well, but Fred Jackson's a completely different type. He's going to be catching balls through the air and not being used as a running back. I mean, Rex Ryan is going to be using him as a up the middle runner, which is so weird because.

[Andy Holloway]

I have 48 receptions, too.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I'm not saying he won't catch the ball. This is what I'm saying is LaShawn McCoy is Shady's.

[Andy Holloway]

I think that is Shady between the tackles is what Shady's done his whole career.

[Mike Wright]

But Shady is a dancer. That's what he does. He's all about agility. He is. He's not a power back. He was sent away by Chip Kelly, because he is. He dances too much. He's always trying to hit a home run. And if you can't settle, if you're in the ground and pound and you don't want to settle for the three yards every single time, you're going to get negative two yards because that's not how the system works. And LaShawn McCoy has a dastardly history of. He's either special or he's below average.

[Jason Moore]

He.

[Mike Wright]

There. There is no. There's no. Just great.

[Andy Holloway]

Our predictions on him are probably appropriate because one of us is going to be right and one of us is going to be wrong. If he's not just great, he's either going to be out of that top 10 like you guys said, because he can't produce in that offense, or he's going to be really high because he's finished number one a couple different times in his career. So I agree with that.

[Mike Wright]

So it would. I'm not Lashawn McCoy. He's still. What I have him at 13. So high end RB2. It's not like I'm. I'm not throwing him out the car door onto the freeway like I was talking about. He is. He. I still would like him on my team, but I'm not going to take him in those top five picks.

[Andy Holloway]

Mm, that's pretty low though, because you got guys like Lamar Miller ahead of him, so that's pretty bold.

[Mike Wright]

Like I said, I'm pretty high on Lamar Miller.

[Andy Holloway]

So, in summary, our top 10 consensus that we went through, if you missed last show, go ahead and download. Listen to that. We talked Le'Veon Bell, Eddie Lacy, Jamal Charles and Marshawn Lynch. Those were our top four. And then today we talked Adrian Peterson at 5, Aaron Foster at 6, Jeremy Hill at 7, CJ Anderson at 8, DeMarco Murray at 9 and LaShawn McCoy at 10. These are obviously going to change throughout the offseason as we see how things break down, injuries, those type of things, how those offenses change, what the draft does, whether somebody comes into these systems and those type of things. But yeah, yeah, that's our Fantasy Footballers top 10. Let's go ahead and answer a question from our listeners.

[Jason Moore]

Mailbag.

[Mike Wright]

Mailbag. I changed it up.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Do you want to read this one? This was an email that came in from Jordan S. Sure, I'll read it.

[Jason Moore]

Jordan S. Says let's.

[Andy Holloway]

I guess we have to shorten that a little bit.

[Jason Moore]

Says we keep eight with no round penalty to start. His league is two quarterbacks, three running backs. Three wide receivers, a tight end, and two flex. So he's in a hardcore league.

[Mike Wright]

I think that's. Oh, yeah. Okay. That's what he plays every week.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, that's. That's quite the depth of roster standard of scoring. Quarterbacks get a little bit more. 5 points per touchdown and 0.1 per completion. He says people in his league are quarterback heavy. Most keep three, so it's hard to improve there. So here is his dilemma. He's planning on keeping Foles, Kaepernick, Le'Veon Bell.

[Andy Holloway]

LaShawn McCoy, Latavius Murray, Jordan Matthews, and Mike Evans. You couldn't find the rest of the email, could you?

[Jason Moore]

I could not. There it is. So his options for his last spot that he needs to keep, assuming we keep those seven in order, are Devontae Freeman, Eric Decker, Doug Martin, Allen Robinson, Percy Harvin, Golden Tate, Terrence West, Andre Williams. Who do I keep? Well, let's start by just eliminating some of these obvious ones, right? We're not keeping Doug Martin or Percy Harvin or Andre Williams. Anybody else you want to just cross.

[Andy Holloway]

Off there very easily, probably want to cross off Allen Robinson as well. I know. I like Allen Robinson, but you got to cross him up. For me, it's Terence west, by the way. That's the answer to the question. I think Terence west offers most upside, most dynasty potential in that backfield. Devontae Freeman's interesting for sure, but that's the only other interesting guy for me.

[Jason Moore]

For me.

[Mike Wright]

Go ahead.

[Jason Moore]

I think I will throw this out there, and this isn't my pick, but I actually think Eric Decker is a little bit interesting given his current lineup. He starts three wide receivers, three running backs, and two flex. So you could say running backs are even more important, and you'd be right. But more than likely most teams, because there's not enough running backs to be able to fill those roster spots out. Most teams are probably playing five wide receivers, you know, because they've got to have three running backs plus receivers. And if you're playing five wide receivers, I think Eric Decker could be good. But my pick would be devontae Freeman. As of now, not knowing what's going on in the draft, I just like his, you know, right now, he's the number one. Right now, Terrence west isn't. But I do think those are your two best options.

[Mike Wright]

I will say this about devontae Freeman being number one. He's the number one of putting a number two on the field.

[Andy Holloway]

Wow.

[Mike Wright]

If you catch my drink.

[Andy Holloway]

Wow.

[Mike Wright]

I do not think devontae Freeman is the guy that the Falcons are going to add some buddy. If you look back on when Freeman was given an opportunity, he left it all over the floor. Now, I am intrigued by Terrence West. I'm also intrigued by Eric Decker and Golden Tate. I think I can narrow my list down to those three guys. I would lean towards Terrance west because I think in that system, once Alex Max is back. What people don't remember about the Cleveland.

[Andy Holloway]

Browns, they could run the ball.

[Mike Wright]

They almost made the playoffs because they could run the ball. What are we dead? No, we're still good. Okay. They. They almost made the playoffs on the strength of a running game that completely collapsed when Alex Mack collapsed his femur. Right.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

That was a really sad day for me.

[Mike Wright]

Yes. As a. The Ben Take guy. So. And I think Terrence west is the guy over the crowd. And Terrence west, he's young. He's a young player who has. He's shown that he has. He has some talent. He also has the ability to have his coach not dress him for a game for some reason. I would say the danger in Terrence west is the Browns seem to have no idea what they're doing. Eric Decker I like because he's in that new system where he. And he's got. He's got Brandon Marshall lining up outside of him. So Eric Decker is no longer the number one. He's the number two, which so Which I think speaks highly to Deckers game.

[Jason Moore]

Sounds like Taryn West. Terrence is our pick.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's what I was gonna say.

[Mike Wright]

Well, hold on, hold on.

[Andy Holloway]

Who's your pick?

[Mike Wright]

I'm. I'm breaking it down, man. The guy sent us an email. He. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. But Golden Tate has also shown that he is a very good wide receiver.

[Andy Holloway]

So who's your nice breakdown, golden tail?

[Mike Wright]

I got booted off the.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I just pick somebody.

[Mike Wright]

It's not just pick somebody. You got.

[Andy Holloway]

My options are blunt. He has to pick somebody. Why can't you.

[Mike Wright]

I want him to know why I'm picking somebody. Okay.

[Andy Holloway]

So if you had if gun to your head right now, who do you take?

[Mike Wright]

Terrence West.

[Jason Moore]

All right, here's what I do. Which I said gun to my head. I think I take Eric Decker and you guys have swayed me to Terrence west and Terrence west and I do not keep Nick Foles. I know you're in a quarterback.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, I see what you're saying.

[Jason Moore]

Nick Foles is not in my top 24.

[Andy Holloway]

That's an interesting take. So all Right, that's it for today's show. Next week, we're gonna go ahead and go through some more news and notes. We're gonna move on to the wide receiver position. We'll talk guys like, well, probably not like Golden Tate, who I think is a big candidate for aggression, but we'll get into that later on down the line. So we'll talk our wide receiver position. I know, because, well, you know, Calvin Johnson got hurt. We'll talk wide receivers. We'll talk interesting bust and positional stats. We alluded to that today. We've been looking at what positions are high risk and those early rounds, which I think is so important for your team and your makeup especially, you know, depending on who you draft in the first round, do you want to take another high risk guy in the second round? Those type of things. Mike's done some work on the streaming quarterback.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

He just is bubbling over with anticipation to share with you.

[Jason Moore]

It is really good work.

[Mike Wright]

I have some data that people may find. Number three. It's like the clickbait.

[Andy Holloway]

That's right.

[Mike Wright]

You can't believe the picture on number five. It's shocking.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Just listen to us on Thursday this week, again, you can follow us on twitter@the ffballers, on the website the fantasy footballers.com and if you like the show, we'd really appreciate it if you'd go onto itunes, subscribe to the show, leave us an itunes review. Jason's gonna go ahead and read our.

[Mike Wright]

Wait, wait, wait. We gotta hit the button.

[Jason Moore]

Review a source. Rex, this one comes in from Bearsfan 1721. He says, I love this show. Third pot, first podcast I list to and I'm not going to change. Just three guys talking football and joking around. That is the life.

[Andy Holloway]

There are some heavy statistics behind that. Joking around.

[Mike Wright]

We are living the life.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it's good stuff. So thanks again for listening. We appreciate all of you out there. And we'll be back here on Thursday with more good stuff.

[Jason Moore]

The coos, the cough coops.

[Andy Holloway]

See you guys.

[Jason Moore]

Thank you for listening to another edition of the Fantasy Footballers Podcast.