Fantasy Football Podcast 2015 - Top 20 RB's, Preseason, Fantasy News, Mailbag

Summary

Fantasy Footballers Podcast Summary

Episode: Fantasy Football Podcast 2015 - Top 20 RB's, Preseason, Fantasy News, Mailbag
Release Date: August 11, 2015
Hosts: Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright

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Introduction

In this episode, the Fantasy Footballers delve deep into the preseason activities, evaluate the top 20 running backs for the upcoming fantasy season, discuss the latest fantasy news, and engage with listener questions from their mailbag. The hosts provide expert analysis, share strong opinions, and offer matchup-winning advice to help listeners dominate their fantasy leagues.

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Hall of Fame Game Insights

The hosts kick off the discussion by reflecting on the Hall of Fame game and its implications for the upcoming season.

• Andy Holloway [01:35]:
  "Did you really learn anything from that mostly meaningless Hall of Fame game?"

• Mike Wright [01:48]:
  "Don't draft Sean Swisham."
  "He tackled. Tackled. He went, big man for the Hall of Fame game."

Despite the game's limited significance, the hosts glean valuable insights, particularly concerning player injuries and performances. They highlight Adrian Peterson's sharp appearance despite not playing, emphasizing his readiness for the season.

• Jason Moore [02:48]:
  "Adrian Peterson looked really sharp in that uniform. That's true."

---

News and Notes

The podcast transitions into the latest fantasy news, covering team camp updates and player statuses.

Saints Camp:

• Andy Holloway [05:34]:
  "Saints camp Ben Watson is listed officially as the number one tight end on the Saints' first depth chart of the season. Not Josh Hill."
  "RIP Josh Hill's fantasy value was never there. It was an illusion."

The hosts discuss how Ben Watson's promotion affects Josh Hill's fantasy prospects, attributing Hill's initial rise to the "Alpha Blue effect" and clarifying that Hill cannot replicate Jimmy Graham's role.

Bears Camp:

• Andy Holloway [06:42]:
  "First-round wide receiver Kevin White could miss the entire preseason."
  "Eddie Royal is looking better and better as weeks go by."

The Bears' tight ends situation is scrutinized, with concerns over Kevin White's availability and a shift towards Eddie Royal's potential in the passing game.

Steelers Camp:

• Andy Holloway [07:13]:
  "Martavis Bryant had the cast removed from his elbow... was a good news for him."

Updates on Martavis Bryant's injury and his recovery are shared, along with observations on Landry Jones' performance and the emergence of rookie wide receivers like Sammy Coates.

---

Top 20 Running Backs Rankings

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to unveiling and analyzing the consensus rankings of the top 20 running backs for the fantasy season.

1. Adrian Peterson

• Andy Holloway [12:07]:
  "The consensus number one on our boards across all three of our rankings is Adrian Peterson once again, all day."

• Jason Moore [12:32]:
  "Adrian Peterson is one of the most athletic freaks that have ever graced the NFL."
  "For PPR value, AP normally takes a slight hit. I think he gets a boost."

Despite Peterson being 30 years old and having missed a full season, his consistent performance justifies his top ranking.

2. Eddie Lacy & Le'Veon Bell

• Mike Wright [14:27]:
  "He had the best hands on the team in a high-scoring offense with the best quarterback."

• Jason Moore [14:48]:
  "Le'Veon Bell's points spiked massively... seven to eight points a game."

Both Eddie Lacy and Le'Veon Bell share the second spot, with emphasis on their involvement in the passing game and their touch efficiency.

4. C.J. Anderson

• Jason Moore [17:33]:
  "C.J. Anderson is being used with the first team because he is the starting running back."
  "He has great hands, can play all aspects of the game."

C.J. Anderson's rise is attributed to his training camp performance and his role as the primary back, especially in a team led by a functional QB.

5. Marshawn Lynch

• Andy Holloway [19:35]:
  "DeMarco is first in everybody's hearts last year... he gets underdrafted every single year because he's not sexy."

• Jason Moore [20:24]:
  "He is the ultimate inconsistency. He's the only guy to finish in the top five three straight years."

Recognized for his consistent production despite not being a typical draft favorite, Marshawn Lynch remains a valuable but underrated asset.

6. Jamal Charles

• Andy Holloway [21:17]:
  "Jamal Charles is the most efficient running back in football."

• Jason Moore [22:13]:
  "He has a nose for when he gets down there. He finds a way to split on the ground."

Jamal Charles is commended for his efficiency and goal-line prowess, despite concerns over workload and team offensive strategies.

7-20. Additional Running Backs

The hosts continue to evaluate other running backs, discussing their strengths, potential, and fantasy prospects:

• Jeremy Hill [23:22]:
  "He is incredibly talented. He is a gigantic man who can run like the wind."
  "He has a nose for the end zone and he's got that potential and speed."

• DeMarco Murray & Justin Forsett [25:10]:
  "DeMarco Murray... high volume and efficiency make him a valuable pick."
  "Justin Forsett is a reliable option with consistent production."

• Frank Gore [36:04]:
  "Frank Gore has been underdrafted three consecutive years and outperformed his ADP."
  "He catches passes, has great hands, and is on a strong offense."

The rankings emphasize a mix of established veterans and emerging talents, each with unique attributes that make them viable fantasy options.

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Mailbag: Listener Questions

The hosts address questions submitted by listeners, providing personalized advice on fantasy strategies.

Strategy for Last Pick in Snake Draft

• Adam from Canada [48:23]:
  "What should my strategy be for the last pick? Should I go wide receiver?"

• Jason Moore [49:22]:
  "I’m taking an elite wide receiver such as Desmond Briant and Julio, and then Jeremy Hill."

• Andy Holloway [48:44]:
  "If you're in that position, you're also going to wait another 20 picks to draft your first running back."

The hosts suggest balancing elite wide receivers with potential high-impact running backs like Jeremy Hill to maximize value.

Drafting Peyton Manning and C.J. Anderson Together

• Brian from New York [53:24]:
  "Should I draft both Peyton Manning and C.J. Anderson?"

• Jason Moore [49:46]:
  "You do not need to give them a bonus for being on the team. Don't be afraid to pair them."

The consensus is that pairing a quarterback with a running back from the same team can be beneficial without mutual interference.

Choosing Between Arian Foster and Todd Gurley

• Caleb from Arkansas [50:18]:
  "Recent news seems more optimistic on Arian Foster's return. Would you feel more comfortable taking Foster or Todd Gurley based on ADP?"

• Jason Moore [51:25]:
  "I lean towards Arian Foster... most leagues have an IR spot where Foster can be placed."

The hosts recommend prioritizing Arian Foster if he returns within a manageable timeframe, especially if the league accommodates IR placements.

Drafting Le'Veon Bell vs. Eddie Lacy vs. Charles in Keeper League

• Nick from New York [53:24]:
  "Who do you take with the first overall pick: Le'Veon Bell, Eddie Lacy, or Charles in a 12-team keeper league?"

• Jason Moore [53:54]:
  "Le'Veon Bell is a must with his consistent performance and team strategy."

The recommendation leans towards selecting Le'Veon Bell due to his dual-threat capabilities and strong team environment.

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Closing Remarks

The hosts wrap up the episode by promoting upcoming shows, announcing special guests like Christopher Harris from HarrisFootball.com and JJ Zacharison, and reminding listeners to subscribe and leave reviews. They also mention moving to four shows a week to provide more in-depth coverage and insights.

• Andy Holloway [57:09]:
  "We have a show on Thursday with Christopher Harris... special guests coming up next week."

Listeners are encouraged to engage with the podcast through various platforms, ensuring they stay updated with the latest fantasy football strategies and advice.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Mike Wright [01:48]:
  "Don't draft Sean Swisham."
  [00:00 - 08:31]

• Jason Moore [12:32]:
  "Adrian Peterson is one of the most athletic freaks that have ever graced the NFL."
  [12:28 - 14:10]

• Andy Holloway [19:35]:
  "He gets underdrafted every single year because he's not sexy."
  [19:35 - 20:34]

• Jason Moore [49:22]:
  "I’m taking an elite wide receiver such as Desmond Briant and Julio, and then Jeremy Hill."
  [49:05 - 49:22]

• Jason Moore [53:54]:
  "Let’s check our tape."
  [53:27]

---

This comprehensive summary encapsulates the key points, discussions, insights, and conclusions from the Fantasy Footballers' August 11, 2015 podcast episode. Whether you're a seasoned fantasy player or new to the game, the expert analysis provided by Andy, Jason, and Mike equips you with the knowledge to make informed decisions and enhance your fantasy football experience.

Transcript

[Mike Wright]

Hey, Foot Clan. We just want to let you know today's show is brought to you by Handsome Fancy organic facial products for the modern man and his modern beard. Head to handsomefancy.com and use promo code BALLERS for 15% off your order.

[Jason Moore]

Welcome to the Fantasy Footballers podcast with your hosts, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright.

[Andy Holloway]

Welcome to the show. It is Tuesday, August 11, and we are the Fantasy Footballers. I am Andy Holloway. I am joined, as always by Mike the Fantasy Hitman. Right, yeah.

[Jason Moore]

And his beautiful beard.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Thank you.

[Andy Holloway]

That is true.

[Mike Wright]

Thank you.

[Andy Holloway]

That's some good stuff.

[Mike Wright]

We'll talk about why it's so beautiful a little bit later.

[Andy Holloway]

And Jason Double Stuff is here.

[Jason Moore]

I am here. Both of me.

[Andy Holloway]

Don't say that. Hey, we've got a great show for you today. We got our top 20 running backs on the show. We've got a lot of news and notes. A lot of things breaking in camp. We got some mailbag for the show today. Answering some questions from the listeners. If you want to follow the show, you can do so on the web atthe fantasy footballers.com youm can also follow us on Twitter @the ffballers. You can follow us on Facebook. You can. You can Visit us on YouTube. Very easy to follow. The Fantasy Footballers. We'll bring you everything you need to know to win your league this year.

[Mike Wright]

That's right.

[Andy Holloway]

And every year, forever.

[Mike Wright]

Well, or we'll die eventually.

[Andy Holloway]

That's true. Someone else will take over. Quick question for you guys today. Did you learn anything at all, a fantasy value during that mostly meaningless hall of Fame game?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I did.

[Jason Moore]

I did.

[Andy Holloway]

Did you really?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Don't draft Sean Swisham.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, poor Sean stinks.

[Andy Holloway]

Torn acl.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he's done.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. I was going to say, I always went, football's back.

[Andy Holloway]

When kickers.

[Jason Moore]

I learned.

[Mike Wright]

You just learned that?

[Jason Moore]

It was like, what just happened? Football's back.

[Andy Holloway]

When kickers do that, I'm always. My first reaction is always, how did they do?

[Mike Wright]

Did they see you?

[Andy Holloway]

No, I didn't see it. What was it on?

[Mike Wright]

He tackled. Tackled.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, he.

[Mike Wright]

He went, big man for the hall of Fame game.

[Andy Holloway]

And was it worth it?

[Mike Wright]

No.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, clearly he would answer.

[Mike Wright]

No.

[Jason Moore]

Nope. Should have phoned that one in.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, fair enough.

[Jason Moore]

But if we have to have an injury to a starter, Sorry, Sean, we're.

[Mike Wright]

Picking you and just in for legitimate. Teddy Bridgewater looked good.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, he looked good. I mean, he didn't do anything to stand in the way of. Of a lot of people's opinions that he's going to have a good year, that he's going to have some more weapons. Obviously, Adrian Peterson did not play, but he looked good. He looked sharp.

[Mike Wright]

He did.

[Jason Moore]

Adrian Peterson looked really sharp in that uniform. That's true.

[Mike Wright]

He was. He was. He had the pads on.

[Jason Moore]

Mustache was ready.

[Andy Holloway]

Tells you how kind of boring. Boring last night's game really was. All the tweets about. All the tweets about the game were like, antonio Brown looks like he might play. He's putting his pants on.

[Mike Wright]

Stop it.

[Andy Holloway]

He's got his. He's got his ankles taped. Lev Bell's got his ankles taped.

[Mike Wright]

As. As always. It's the best. Worst football game of the year.

[Andy Holloway]

It's great because it means football's back. And I'll take meaningless football over no football any day of the week. I will tell you that.

[Jason Moore]

Amen, brother.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Hey, big news. Big news, guys. Next week, we go to four shows a week. That is double stuff.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

When it comes to episodes normally running two shows, quattro. Now we've got four, so stay tuned for that. It's gonna be pretty sweet. All right, let's go ahead and read a review.

[Jason Moore]

Review a source. Rex, this one comes in from Dirty P. Just dawned on me how that sounds. He says, I am a peace corps volunteer in Peru. Thank you for your service. I want to thank you guys for crushing each and every episode. Internet is pretty hard to find down here, but I make sure to download your podcast each weekend. And here's what I like to do. I take the fantasy football gold that comes out of your mouths, and I turn it into golden information nuggets that I store in my brain. My plan is to use those golden information nuggets to righteously wax my opponents in this year's fantasy season. So thanks for the leg up on the competition, and please keep doing what you're doing. Hashtag foot clan all day.

[Mike Wright]

Man, I was. I was worried that he would. The waxing would not be righteous.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

So I'm glad that was taken care of.

[Andy Holloway]

We like to read unique reviews, and that was unique.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Appreciated. And make sure you guys out there subscribe to the podcast. If you're listening for the first time, go onto itunes. Click the subscribe button. That way, those golden information nuggets are delivered into your pocket every day into your phone. Make sure if you enjoy the show, you deliver us a review. Just like that one.

[Jason Moore]

Just like Dirty Pete.

[Andy Holloway]

Just like Dirty PETA. Let's get into some news and notes.

[Jason Moore]

News and notes from around the league.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, I'M gonna hit these kind of quick. You guys let me know if there's anything big that stands out for you. But I want to make sure people know what's going on before we get to our running backs. This is something we've talked about. Saints camp Ben Watson is listed officially as the number one tight end on the Saints first depth chart of the season. Not Josh Hill.

[Mike Wright]

RIP Josh Hill's fantasy value.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Was never there. It was never there. It was an illusion.

[Mike Wright]

The, the, you know, cloud of hope was there.

[Andy Holloway]

No. You know what it was? It was the Alpha Blue effect is when something happens, somebody has to quickly just usher somebody into the throne. And for some reason, Josh Hill had the unfortunate. He was the one chosen for Jimmy Graham's role.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

And it didn't last long because he's. He's not Jimmy Graham.

[Jason Moore]

I think it would be fortunate if I was him. Get my name out there a little bit.

[Andy Holloway]

So here's a bit of news worth mentioning. Often Injured Jordan Reed is second on the depth chart behind Niles Paul in Washington.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

I love that. It is good news.

[Jason Moore]

It's great news because Niles Paul is a good player, is dependable and reliable, healthy. And when he was playing, he was great. The problem is he was behind an always injured guy. So it was just a mess. If this sticks, I love it. I don't expect to stick.

[Andy Holloway]

I do. Jordan Reed's talented. I don't think he's gonna. He's not gonna miss the field. It's just interesting to see that. I think what this is, is an investment into Paul because he'll be around.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

So Bears camp. First round wide receiver Kevin White could miss the entire preseason. I think that's very likely. He.

[Mike Wright]

That's brutal.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Because we already know John Fox doesn't like starting. This is Eddie Royal bump.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

To me. Yeah. Eddie Royal is looking better and better and better as weeks go by. Jeffrey Royal, forte, I think Bennett, you know, those are the guys involved in the passing game. I don't think Kevin White is anything but a dynasty player right now.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean, he could surprise me and he could come out and do something in the second half of the season. I wouldn't doubt that. Probably.

[Mike Wright]

It's probably next year, but it's not.

[Andy Holloway]

Going to be consistently. Steelers camp. We've been talking about Martavis Bryant. Marty McBride had the cast removed from his elbow on Saturday.

[Jason Moore]

Good.

[Andy Holloway]

It was a good news for him that none of the starters played, so Marcus Whedon couldn't go out there. I Mean, if they're competing, it's better that they all go out there together, right?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. No, I was trying to think of the quarterback's name.

[Andy Holloway]

Landry Jones.

[Mike Wright]

Landry Jones. We're.

[Andy Holloway]

We're all mattered. How good of a route.

[Mike Wright]

Well, Coates, Sammy Coates torched One of the DBs I saw. Landry air mailed it out of the end zone.

[Andy Holloway]

I would say other than I like the. The tight ends in Minnesota during the game a little bit. Rudolph and Pruitt were both involved. Just from a. You know, Rudolph's only played half the season, so it was cool to see Pruitt have a good game. But the other thing I was curious to see was Coats, just to see him on the field because rookie wide receiver, they don't play him a lot in Pittsburgh, but it was interesting to see him on the field and he looked okay.

[Jason Moore]

Archer also had a little bit of juice. Yeah, he did, you know, because I was really interested in the running back game knowing that Lev Bell's not going to be there the first two games. I want to see what's happening. You just can't trust the hall of Fame game. You got to watch the next few pre season.

[Andy Holloway]

Archer was talented.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, he's very fast.

[Andy Holloway]

I have to wonder if New England would like him right now.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, please don't put another running back in New England, please. I'm having such a hard time.

[Andy Holloway]

Don't worry.

[Jason Moore]

Ridiculous amount of running backs in New England.

[Andy Holloway]

They're gonna cut some of them.

[Jason Moore]

Please cut like three?

[Andy Holloway]

Yep.

[Jason Moore]

Bill, are you listening? Billy.

[Andy Holloway]

Out of Brown's camp, not looking good for the running backs. Running backs coach Wilbert Montgomery called out his position group after Sunday's practice for failing to take hold of the starting job. We're talking Duke Johnson, Isaiah Crowell turns.

[Mike Wright]

West, mostly Crowell, because Duke and Burn.

[Andy Holloway]

They'Ve been on the shelves.

[Mike Wright]

Duke and west have been hurt.

[Andy Holloway]

So it was a subtle way of saying his name out loud saying, Isaiah Crowell, you're not grabbing the job.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

So does this do anything to what you're thinking about?

[Mike Wright]

No, not really yet.

[Jason Moore]

You know, I was really, really close in stating my guys and looking at how the stats broke up last year, I was really close to actually believing that it was going to be like 100 carries. 100 carries and 100 carries.

[Andy Holloway]

Honest to goodness, I've been much higher on Crowell and I still think he will be the guy to emerge during preseason. But it's worth noting he's calling him out right now. And then just a bit of news here. The Rams signed Nick Foles to a two year deal. I was on Yahoo Sports radio and asked about Nick Foles last night by. By Dylan Gwynne.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

And I am, I must say, how do you not crush Nick Foles right there. You had a national audience. I would have just devastated.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think I was kind to him.

[Mike Wright]

You were. I'm just saying I would have crushed.

[Andy Holloway]

I said I don't think he's going.

[Mike Wright]

To have a good year. And I would have said he stinks.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think Knicks Foles stinks.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, you know, he, he is, I think, going to be exposed for being a not good quarterback.

[Andy Holloway]

I know you've been saying that. I'm going to, you know, be kind to him. He came out of Arizona here.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, that's what it is.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't like. I'm an ASU of a guy, so I should probably crush him.

[Jason Moore]

Really hurting your cause here.

[Andy Holloway]

Dang it, you're right. Hey, let me remind everybody about fanduel. It's fanduel time, people. Yeah. If you are not signed up for FanDuel, do it right now. Go to FanDuel.com, use the promo code ballers and you can get up to $200 towards your first deposits and get ready for this NFL season.

[Mike Wright]

You know what everyone should do?

[Andy Holloway]

What?

[Mike Wright]

Any website you go to that has a coupon code, just type ballers in because you never know.

[Jason Moore]

Try it out.

[Andy Holloway]

It's true.

[Mike Wright]

You might get a discount.

[Jason Moore]

We're everywhere.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's true. So anything else going on, guys, before we get to the main event here, Just a reminder.

[Mike Wright]

Fantasy draft wizard.com. get those two minute, two to three minute mocks done super quick and bust.

[Andy Holloway]

Them out completely free. Fantasy, calm, easy, breezy.

[Jason Moore]

Running bags.

[Mike Wright]

Consensus.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, man, that just died. That died. I thought there was music at the end of it.

[Mike Wright]

No, it was consensus.

[Andy Holloway]

Man, I was not expecting that at all. We are going to dive into running backs today, but we're not going to linger too long on any specific running back because we want to make it through more than these kind of early guys that we've talked a lot about. So we're going to try to get through our top 20 running backs. This is our consensus rankings. If you want to see our individual rankings, all you got to do is go to the fantasy footballers.com, myself, Mike, Jason, all of our rankings are on there. You can download them, you can compare them on the website.

[Mike Wright]

No, we added that there was the foot Clan were clamoring saying, can we get downloadable copies of those?

[Andy Holloway]

And they were clamoring.

[Mike Wright]

Clamoring. Did I say Clanner?

[Jason Moore]

No, I think I said clamor.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, whatever.

[Mike Wright]

They wanted them and Andy hooked you guys up. You're welcome.

[Andy Holloway]

Yep. You can download them all. We, we've all updated them fairly recently. I think some more updates are going to go through tomorrow, but, you know, things are changing. Jeremy Hill dropped down my board a little bit.

[Mike Wright]

Saw that.

[Andy Holloway]

I know. We'll talk a little bit.

[Mike Wright]

Disappointed.

[Andy Holloway]

I know. I'm sorry, buddy. All right. At number one.

[Mike Wright]

These are standard.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes, these are standard. We will basically we'll share a little bit of PPR differences as we go along. Guys that we think are jumping up a lot in ppr, falling down in ppr. But the consensus number one on our boards across all three of our rankings is Adrian Peterson once again, all day. All day. So give me the bullet points on Adrian Peterson in case people haven't watched TV in about 10 years.

[Jason Moore]

Okay. If all. If you only watched last year, you don't know much about.

[Mike Wright]

Well, no, you know some things about. Yeah. So here's not football related.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, very quickly, very easily. Adrian Peterson is one of the most athletic freaks that have ever graced the NFL. He is a monster, has been a monster forever. And he has the look and feel in his eyes and the chip on his shoulder that he had after he blew out his knee and he came back and destroyed the league for 2,000 yards.

[Mike Wright]

And on a, on a sub average offense.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And now the offense is better. Another thing I learned from the hall of Fame game, which I already knew, but it just confirmed Teddy Bridgewater. Every single throw was his second read. It was a check down, a shorter drop. That just looks so good for ap. I think his, you know, we. For PPR value, AP normally takes a slight hit. I don't think he takes a hit this year. I think he's. It's a very. Yeah, he gets a boost. He's going to be above the average backs and catches.

[Andy Holloway]

So if I was going to play the detractor for Adrian Peterson, the two things that I would say would be that he's 30 and that he hasn't played in a season.

[Mike Wright]

Yep. That's all you can say.

[Jason Moore]

Both and that's it. And if this. And honestly if his name was not Adrian Peterson, those two things to me would be big flags and I'd have a guy who's great probably at number 10. So we are really going off the fact that this Is Adrian Peterson. And I believe that's warranted. It's Adrian Peterson.

[Andy Holloway]

He has a 5.0 lifetime.

[Mike Wright]

Lifetime.

[Andy Holloway]

Lifetime average. He scores. Double digits.

[Mike Wright]

Double digits.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. So until he doesn't do it, we've got him. Number one consensus.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

I think he's number two on my actual board, but. All right. These next two guys are actually tied with one another, so I'm just going to go alphabetically and drop Eddie Lacy, number two on the board here. He's tied with Le'Veon Bell last year. Very good season. Very involved in the passing game.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. And for the passing game, he had the best hands on the team in a high scoring offense with the best quarterback. He's a tremendous pass blocker. 18 runs of 15 plus yards. And for. For a guy who's called Fat Eddie, he's the second most elusive running back when it comes to missed tackles or. And he can also run guys over.

[Jason Moore]

You know how hard it is to get your arms around him, though. It's.

[Mike Wright]

I tried to hug him once.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Didn't work.

[Mike Wright]

No.

[Jason Moore]

Tough man.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

We needed.

[Jason Moore]

I needed two guys like go hug a refrigerator. Difficult.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. I like Lacy. The thing that was difficult at times with him, I owned him in a couple leagues last year, was simply these drives that they just decided to put Starks in the game on. Starks is capable. We've said that before. But there's the occasional drive where it's not. It's not. Starks comes in for a play. Really. It's like Starks comes in for seven or eight plays in a row and it's, it's, you know, his, his total. I mean, what do you have, 245 carries last year?

[Mike Wright]

246.

[Andy Holloway]

246. So he's not pushing 300. That's fine. I mean, you probably don't want that from your back. As long as he's efficient with what he's got. But that would be the only thing that, that is, you know, in the concussions. But Lacy can't go wrong with Lacey. Lev Bell also tied at that number two spot, just had a suspension reduced from three to two. Another guy that, that Dylan asked me about on the show last night, he's not down the board for me. He's my number one running back despite missing two games. And that's fine because of the difference he will make in your matchups from week three on. You know, you need that guy who is both consistent and can give you boom games. And that's what he did last year.

[Jason Moore]

I Took all of his stats that I. This is a great example of how good Bell is on a per game basis. I took all of his stats and I did this for everybody and mapped them out over 16 games. And then I went and thought, I can't in good conscience do that for Le'Veon Bell. So I took all of his stats that I had for him and I multiplied him times 0.875, which is 14 games. And guess where he ended with only 14 games in PPR1.1. He finished one at 0.87, 5.875 finish one.

[Andy Holloway]

That's actually kind of interesting.

[Jason Moore]

I'll tell you who to in standard. So he, I mean, if he comes back, if the knee is good and he's. He's back, you know, practicing and you know, doing well before then, then I love him. Love him.

[Mike Wright]

The, the guy that Lev Bell wants is Marty McBride. If you go look at the splits of games once Bryant started playing after those six games, Le'Veon Bell's points spiked massively. I'm talking seven to eight points a game.

[Andy Holloway]

Is that field stretching?

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Wow, that's interesting. I didn't know that. I did not know that. Did not know about the splits. Yeah, we love Love Bell. No reason to not get behind them. That offense could very well be a top three offense this year. I love that offense. They've been able to move the ball. They have no defense or very minimal. They'll be in the bottom, bottom half for sure. All right, the next guy on our list is moving up all of our boards of late. And that's how he landed at number four. Maybe a surprise to those who have listened to us earlier.

[Jason Moore]

Surpr. Been here every time.

[Andy Holloway]

He's four on both of our boards. So where is he for you?

[Mike Wright]

He must be five or six.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Jason Moore]

C.J.

[Andy Holloway]

Anderson. C.J. anderson has climbed all the way up. Now we're talking standard leagues here. So why, why, why the rise of C.J. anderson?

[Jason Moore]

Right now I'm feeling more and more comfortable and confident that he is the absolute back there. I've thought from the beginning that there will be a Bell cow. There's not going to be a timeshare. Having Kubbs come out and declare that he loves a Bell cow and say that he wants a guy is great. And then you look in, in their training camp so far and CJ Anderson is just the guy in training camp. He is the one that is being used with the first team because he is the starting running back. And so barring injury or something like that, which of course we can't predict here unless it's, you know, Jonathan Stewart or something, or Arian Foster.

[Andy Holloway]

That's okay. I'm over it, guys.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he's moved on. So the second half of the season he was getting 20 carries a game, averaging about 100 yards, almost 5 yards of carry. He had eight touchdowns in the second half of the season. He was a monster. And over the course of the season, he still got 44 targets. It's. The guy has great hand, he can play in all aspects of the game.

[Andy Holloway]

You know, what that has to do with too, is if you've watched Peyton Manning over the years in Indianapolis and in Denver, the running back behind him catches passes and they catch passes at the goal line. If you remember Joseph Adai from years back, Adai didn't even have very good yards per carry numbers, but he would come in and he'd score eight or nine touchdowns because he'd catch those little dump offs at the line of scrimmage, 5 yards, 10 yards out, and he'd.

[Jason Moore]

Get the ball there, you know, more.

[Andy Holloway]

Than other guys, Moreno did. Moreno caught passes all the time for sure.

[Jason Moore]

And I remember even, even in his prime, Peyton, in the, in his prime sometimes would only throw for 28 touchdowns, you know, and he's used to handing that ball off near the goal line in his career. And now you get a head coach that wants to do that, wants to take the pressure off of Peyton and.

[Andy Holloway]

Julius Thomas is gone. And he was another one of those kind of release valve guys. So number five, we have the tried and true beast mode. Beast mode is there. Number five, Marshawn Lynch. He just keeps doing it year after year after year. I just watched him in the league.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, the intro.

[Andy Holloway]

That was very funny. Yes, that was very funny.

[Mike Wright]

If you haven't, we won't spoil it. But if you haven't seen the Marshawn.

[Andy Holloway]

Links, I was going to spoil it. So there you go.

[Mike Wright]

Don't. It's very funny.

[Andy Holloway]

Last year, 280 for 1306, 13 touchdowns. He is the ultimate inconsistency. He's, I believe, the only guy to finish in the top five three straight years. And yet he gets underdrafted every single year because he's not sexy, because he's getting older, because they're going to change the offense because this is Russell Wilson's team. And then the Seattle Seahawks pay him $12 million. Do you think they paid him $12 million to do nothing?

[Jason Moore]

Nope.

[Andy Holloway]

I think they paid him $12,000,000 to.

[Jason Moore]

Run him into the ground. And I think they're going to do that. I think they're going to run him until he can't run anymore. And I believe he can run.

[Andy Holloway]

The ground runs into him.

[Jason Moore]

Exactly. He is.

[Mike Wright]

He.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, has there ever been a guy more appropriately nicknamed? I mean, the guy is straight up beast mode. He just destroys. I don't know that there's any running back. I enjoy watching more other than the fact that he's on the stupid Seattle Seahawks. Other than that.

[Andy Holloway]

But showed a little homer and there.

[Mike Wright]

Lynch. No, he talked about that he was considering retirement and then he said the Seahawks offered him $12 million.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

When you do that, you got to reconsider things.

[Andy Holloway]

Very persuasive.

[Mike Wright]

So I agree with Jason. I think this might be the last year for Lynch. I'm not going to say for sure, but that's the way.

[Andy Holloway]

They could give him 12 million again because he could run out. He could go out and put up the exact same numbers.

[Mike Wright]

But his contract situation is. It seems like a one year deal and he's just been great. That my. The only kind of question talking about with Adrian Peterson is will that back injury finally catch up with Marshawn Lynch? If you were a Lynch owner, every single game there was, at least throughout the week, a tweak of oh, because it was.

[Andy Holloway]

You don't think that's just like Marshawn lynch gets a day off every week, so let's use the back. No.

[Mike Wright]

Well, he gets the day off, but he just.

[Andy Holloway]

You don't know though as an owner, sometimes it's frustrating. Number six, Jamal Charles, the most efficient running back in football. One of the most dynamic. The problem with Jamal Charles, if there is one, now he's at number six. So we don't think there are very many problems with Jamal Charles is just the workload and the fact that Andy Reid has a way of discouraging fantasy owners with running back.

[Mike Wright]

I guess Jamal should have ran the ball some more.

[Andy Holloway]

They were a good team last year. They're gonna be a great defense this year. All the signs point to a great workload for Jamal. But they, you know, there could be some if this team is in position to make the playoffs. I would worry about his second half of the season workload before the playoffs because if they can bring Nile Davis in there and their defense holds down the four and their offense is doing enough, I think they're a playoff team to me. And so because of that and because of him only getting 206 carries last year, this is why he's not number one or two.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, right.

[Andy Holloway]

That's. That's the point.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. If he was getting even just 250. If you got 250 carries, you'd probably have him near number one. I've got him getting 225 because last year he still missed some games and finished with 206. So I think he's not going to get, you know, definitely not going to be in the 300 range. But he is so good at finding the end zone too. I mean he is really. He's got a nose for when he gets down there. He finds a way to split on the ground. Yep. Both ways.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Jeremy Hill comes in at number seven. I mentioned earlier he has dropped down my board a little bit. He is my number 11. Jason, I'm not sure where is he on your board? Do you have it up?

[Jason Moore]

Yes, he is on standard. He is seven.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, so he's seven for you and he's. Where is he?

[Mike Wright]

I think three for standard.

[Andy Holloway]

So we differ a little bit on Hill. He had a great year last year. Mike, give me the, give me the highlights.

[Mike Wright]

Here's why I like Hill so much. He didn't even really get going till the second half of the year. He finished with 222 carries, 1100 yards, nine touchdowns. Now he is a workhorse back by in games with 15 plus carries. He averaged over five and a half yards per carry. So he's. He's not just chunking along, he's also getting a ton of big plays.

[Andy Holloway]

Do you think though you've made some arguments against Odell Beckham Jr. On the basis that his numbers towards India were unsustainable.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

They happen though. And is that argument. I mean for me, the reason he's down for me is I just don't think over the course of a full NFL season, second year in the league, I don't think he can sustain that level of yards per carry. That's all it was for me. I took him down from about 5.2 like he got last year to 4.7. A good season, a high volume season. But that dropped him down enough for me.

[Jason Moore]

Do you know what you have him at yards per carry on your stats?

[Mike Wright]

I think I have him at. He's statted about five.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Jason Moore]

I've got four, nine.

[Mike Wright]

But the, the difference where if we're talking about Odell Beckham and Jeremy Hill is is carries. Carries to me are far more reliable than targets because a target has to do with how the flow is so much of the. Who's open. What play is being called for a carry. You just say Jeremy Hill's getting the ball and then he goes. And what I, what I like about him so much is the touchdowns. Like his ceiling for touchdowns is gigantic. Now we always say, I agree touchdowns aren't easily predictable.

[Andy Holloway]

But I think, I agree.

[Mike Wright]

I think for Hill they will be. So he had nine last year and to start the year, Geo had three touchdowns of one yard and he had one touchdown. That was a four yard run. Those four touchdowns are going to Jeremy Hill this year. So that puts him at 13. I just, I really think so.

[Andy Holloway]

You have him as probably leading the league in touchdowns. Running back position.

[Mike Wright]

I also strongly believe he has three down back. I'm not scared of Geo. Like most people.

[Andy Holloway]

He can catch the ball a little bit.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. So keep it in catching.

[Andy Holloway]

He is my 11 right now. But I think he's much better in standard leagues than PPR because Geo is a weapon. Gio will be on the field.

[Jason Moore]

Yep.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, we need to move on. These next two guys are tied. So once again I will, I'll. I'll put DeMarco Murray first because he, he was first in everybody's hearts last year. DeMarco at number eight, tied with Justin four set in our consensus rankings standard. Which is interesting because for set had about 150 less carries than Domarco last year, which is incredible.

[Jason Moore]

That is a pretty big disparity.

[Andy Holloway]

It's like almost one Jamal Charles amount of carries away from each other. DeMarco obviously last year he was both great and efficient. 4.7 a carry, 1800 yards, got the ball almost 400 times. He can catch the ball. It was kind of one of those perfect storms for DeMarco. Now he's on a team that could do some things offensively to make it another perfect storm. And so we have him at number eight. What. Where do you see it breaking down? I know we've talked about in this in the past, but Ryan Matthews sprawls and DeMarco. If you had to break it up percentage wise, what do you guys think?

[Mike Wright]

I got DeMarco sitting between right around 65.

[Andy Holloway]

I think that's the exact number that's in my head.

[Mike Wright]

I think he gets the ball a ton and people think, wow, he ran the ball so much last year. The Eagles ran the ball only 34 times less than the Cowboys. So they run the ball a ton up in Philadelphia.

[Jason Moore]

You know, if you go back and look at Chip Kelly in college, he had some years where he had a complete Bell cow. But when he had two good backs, he split work and he is, he's done that before on a real, real heavy split basis. Guys getting same carries. I don't see him getting 65% of the carries there. I really don't. I think that they, they just went and signed two injury prone backs, both who were fantastic, both who are coming in brand new. And all of a sudden we are, we are crowning demarco Murray. While we're forgetting about Ryan Matthews, I think it's going to be more like a, like a 55, 40 and then sprouls taking in the rest.

[Mike Wright]

Wow, 40.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. I love Brian. I love Ryan Matthews this year. So maybe not, maybe not 40, maybe 35. I mean, these are guesses, right? We haven't seen it, but I think it's going to be a much closer split than the average person is thinking. Just based on a little bit of history, based on keeping both players healthy, you know, and we don't know. And you can get one in, you got to take them in the back of the first or second and the other, you can get super late in the draft.

[Andy Holloway]

So, yeah, that's good perspective on DeMarco. The guy tied with him is Justin Forsett, which in standard leagues might surprise some people, but he's going to be on the field and I don't think anybody's going to compete with him. And so if he can do what he did last year, we're going to see a high volume guy. I don't think 250 carries. We're talking 220.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I've got him listed for 225 at a 4.7 yards per carry.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

Last year I think he was 5, 2, so I've dropped him in that, but I've upped his catches to 70. We talked about this a lot on recent shows about Trustman coming in and proof positive that it should happen. And just with that getting those yards, you know, he gets yards every time he gets a catch.

[Mike Wright]

So just forte averaged 112 targets.

[Andy Holloway]

Wait, under Tres Forte? Oh, yeah.

[Mike Wright]

We're talking about four set, right?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Mattress Forte is next on our board. So I thought you were moving on.

[Mike Wright]

No, no. Under Mark Tressman system, Forte averaged 112 targets a year.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And we talked about tressman in the 15 gyms episode and how often he throws to the running back. So it's really, you can rely on him catching the ball each and every week. Matt Forte leaving the Tressman system, comes in at number 10. He is somebody that I am slowly moving up a little bit. We had him way down compared to the other kind of experts in the field. He is slightly moving up my board. He is a top 10 for me, I believe.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, well, that's what I got him at it.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. That's where he came in at our consensus. Yeah. He is number 10 on my standard board, which I think is just the right place for Matt Forte. There is going to be a more of a dependence on the running game itself in Chicago with John Fox coming in with the realization that Jay Cutler cannot win a game for you through the air.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

That being said, his numbers are going to come down because he's not going to catch as many passes. And so he's still an RB one for me, but he's getting older and.

[Mike Wright]

He has a lot of touches over 2,200 touches. And what we've said all along on Forte is, is not that he's just completely done, although I think he's. He's about to hit the cliff. It's just the comparison where people are trying to take him as a top three back still when he's not going to get that workload. He's not going to get those. He's not going to get the catches.

[Andy Holloway]

I agree. Any other thoughts on Forte?

[Jason Moore]

No. You guys covered it very well. I've got him a little higher than you. I've got him at 8, but I don't like them, so that's funny.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, so we're halfway through our running back rankings, and before we get.

[Mike Wright]

To the bottom 10, we just want to take a couple seconds and talk about our sponsor, Handsome Fancy. If you go to handsomefancy.com use the promo code ballers for 15% off.

[Andy Holloway]

There's that promo code again.

[Mike Wright]

Ballers.

[Jason Moore]

What is Handsome Fancy, Mike?

[Mike Wright]

So Handsome Fancy, this is what they know. They know that a beard, it's more than just grow and show. You can't just show up with your beard. You actually have to take care of it. A lot of people think you just. What do you do? I sit there and I grow a beard.

[Jason Moore]

No, that's my problem.

[Andy Holloway]

The ladies don't like that you have.

[Mike Wright]

To take care of your beard. So Handsome Fancy provides all natural, organic beard oils that provide a clean and natural way to condition your beard. It moisturizes the skin. It moisturizes the hair, the hair follicles. This stuff is made out of fantastic ingredients.

[Andy Holloway]

I will tell you, beards are in. And every single person that I have talked to that has used a Beard oil versus not has. Loved it.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

It made a huge difference.

[Mike Wright]

Thank you. If you've never used beard.

[Andy Holloway]

I've used Handsome Fancy for months at a time.

[Jason Moore]

I got to try some today because I have not had a real beard. I've just had what I've got now, which is kind of embarrassing. No, thank you. Thank you. Well, I'm really gonna get there now with Handsome Fancy, but I couldn't believe how good that smelled. So it's, like, fresh, and I have. I want to wear it on my face.

[Mike Wright]

If you've seen me, I have a larger beard. So I've. I've tried, and I've sampled several other beard products, and I. A lot of them contain this really musky woody. Oh, man.

[Jason Moore]

Your grandfather's beard oil.

[Mike Wright]

I'm building a ship, and I'm gonna sail the seven seas. Like, that's not who I am. I'm a. I got a big beer, but I'm still a modern guy. The Handsome Fancy scent is a crisp, clean, not overpowering citrus blend that is refreshing. It will invigorate your senses.

[Andy Holloway]

It is true. Go to handsomefancy.com, use the promo code BALLERS.

[Mike Wright]

Mm.

[Andy Holloway]

And get 15% off your order. Try it out. See what you think. We love it. All right. Number 11 on our running back rankings. At times this offseason, he's been my guy. At times, he's been my enemy.

[Mike Wright]

This is really funny to me that he's all the way down to 11.

[Andy Holloway]

It's Lashawn McCoy. It's still RB1.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

And he is number six on my board now.

[Mike Wright]

Okay. So he's not too bad.

[Jason Moore]

So are you. Are you the one killing it, Mike, for his.

[Andy Holloway]

Where do you have.

[Jason Moore]

I've got Lashawn at 11, so there you go.

[Mike Wright]

I have him at 11.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, interesting. That.

[Andy Holloway]

Wow.

[Jason Moore]

He is our consensus 11.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I guess so. So McCoy is. He's a problem for people, and he might be a problem for fantasy owners this year, but the. The fact is, is, you know, Fred Jackson's hurt right now. We know. I think Rex Ryan came out this week, and I don't remember the exact quota, but it was something like, we're going to have more running plays in the playbook than any team has ever had in the history of the NFL. Something to that extent.

[Mike Wright]

Here's what I know about myself. I. Maybe I tend to exaggerate and be a little hyperbolic. Me and Rex Ryan are friends in that nature.

[Andy Holloway]

I agree.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

We said bravado. He will run 50 times a game. That's what he said. And if you've seen the quarterback play in Buffalo, he might be right. And this is one of those things where, like, a very, like, gross offense, and then at the end, a flower of Lashawn McCoy's fantasy numbers might come out. Yeah, okay. And that. That's what I see happening. He's not. I mean, he's a talented back. We're not just talking about anybody going to buffalo and getting 50 carries a game. Okay. If honestly, Fred Jackson was getting 50 carries a game at this point, I don't think I would believe the same thing that I do about McCoy.

[Jason Moore]

Well, if it was actually 50, yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Here's the problem. The Bills offensive line. Last year, the running backs averaged less than two yards before contact. Over in Philadelphia, LaShawn McCoy was getting over three.

[Andy Holloway]

Trust me, I know their offensive line is. It's different this year. You talked about this on 740, the game you were on.

[Mike Wright]

I know. Incognito.

[Andy Holloway]

Incognito's there. And Rex Ryan, you cannot. I mean, he's going to make a difference to the running game.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I agree.

[Jason Moore]

But just.

[Mike Wright]

Shady's a dancer, man. And if he's not getting some buffer before contact, he's.

[Andy Holloway]

I like him.

[Jason Moore]

You know, you need to dance. You need your toes to dance. Oh, yeah. He's a little banged up, but he's banged up with the same thing that was hurting him last year that really affected his game. And that scares me a little bit. Here's the. Here's the pro and con of Shady. In 30 seconds, he's going to get as many carries as anyone in the league. I have him started out with the most carries of every single person in the league. That's opportunity. That's something you can take to the bank. And you know that he has been great in the past, but he is a little bit older. His numbers are trending down. He's got a toe injury. And, you know, Chris Ivory is going to get a lot of carries. I don't have him ranked high. I got him pretty high. It's like 25. But my point is, you've got a good opportunity, lots of carries and a little bit down. Trending player behind, not a great offensive line.

[Mike Wright]

Over the last two years, LaShawn McCoy has carried the ball more than any other running back 622 times.

[Jason Moore]

Wow.

[Andy Holloway]

So he can handle a big workload.

[Mike Wright]

Or he's going to die.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, we'll see what happens this year. All right. Number 12 is a guy that I think we, as a consensus ranking, probably are in the minority as having him in RB1. I don't know why. I don't understand why.

[Mike Wright]

You don't know why he's up there or.

[Andy Holloway]

No, I don't know what. I'm sorry. You're right. Yeah. Let me clarify. I don't know why others don't. I mean, Frank Gore is number 12 on our board.

[Mike Wright]

That's so old, Andy.

[Jason Moore]

It's his age.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, well, 32 years old.

[Mike Wright]

People can't play football.

[Jason Moore]

Ageism and I. When we don't have to stand for it.

[Andy Holloway]

You know what it is? Frank Gore has been. He has been underdrafted three consecutive years and he has outperformed his ADP three consecutive years. And now.

[Mike Wright]

He was old three years ago, Andy.

[Andy Holloway]

I know, I know. Keep singing it. He uses Handsome Fancy beard oil. That's for sure. Because he's invigorated. He's at 1100 or more yards in what, four consecutive seasons?

[Jason Moore]

Yep.

[Andy Holloway]

He doesn't get hurt.

[Jason Moore]

Nope.

[Andy Holloway]

He's on an offense now that instead of seeing eight in the box, he'll see six.

[Jason Moore]

Yep.

[Andy Holloway]

He catches passes, he's got great hands and he's got an offense. I mean, do we not buy into running backs on winning teams and good offenses?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And also ones that might go to the hall of Fame.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

It's just, you know, pretty. Pretty good storm there. I mean, the only.

[Andy Holloway]

I would be willing to hang my fantasy expert chops on Frank Gore this year.

[Jason Moore]

You know what? Honestly, Justin for said I have ahead of him and I love him. These two guys I see kind of hand in hand, but if I had to predict one of those guys to get injured this year because of their age and, you know, they're being put into a situation where, you know, the injury is realistic. Justin for said I could see getting injured. He's a smaller guy. Frank Gore is used. His body is used to what he. To a workload, to carrying the ball through the middle in the trenches. And so, yeah, I agree with you. You're not going to get disappointed on picking Frank.

[Andy Holloway]

The backup law firm of Heron, Ballard, Tipton and Robinson.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

Sorry.

[Andy Holloway]

Has made Jason Driver.

[Mike Wright]

I just want to make sure I haven't missed anything. As far as I know, Chuck Pagano still has not signed an extension. Am I correct on that?

[Andy Holloway]

You're correct.

[Mike Wright]

So Pagano has turned down extensions. He's on his last last year of his contract. He is betting everything on himself and this year for more money. Who is he going to play?

[Andy Holloway]

Andrew Luck.

[Mike Wright]

Yes. At running back. Is he gonna throw Ballard out there? He's gonna throw a rookie.

[Andy Holloway]

He's gonna throw the reliable pass, catching third down, protecting Frank Gore, hall of Fame running back. So get on board with Frank Gore. If you can get him, grab him and go. All right, number 13, Mark Ingram comes in. That's very high.

[Mike Wright]

It is.

[Andy Holloway]

That's very high for Mark Ingram. That must be you guys. That can't be me.

[Jason Moore]

I've got Ingram at 15, so it must be Mike.

[Andy Holloway]

I have him at 20.

[Mike Wright]

I have 14.

[Andy Holloway]

So he. How did. How did we all have him ranked?

[Jason Moore]

Well, this is where our lower than our rankings because this is where the rankings start to separate. Yeah, there's a lot of guys that won't be in some of our rankings that are really high in others.

[Andy Holloway]

Yep, that makes sense. All right, Mark. I know math. Math is easy.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, number 13, Mark Ingram. They bring in Max Unger. Now, Jimmy Graham was traded for a player and the player was Max Unger.

[Mike Wright]

He troop two players.

[Jason Moore]

Well, yeah, Max Unger, great center, great run blocking center.

[Andy Holloway]

Ingram looked different last year. There were two players. Okay. And we're getting into preseason right now. And this is when you get to see this. There were two players in preseason last year that made me turn my head and go, huh? And they were Ingram and Le'Veon Bell.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

Le'Veon Bell looked different. Ingram looked different. And so if he's that Ingram and this offense is going to be run heavy, we like him. He should be a consistent guy. If he's somehow your RB2, you're golden.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I agree with that. I'll say, just to touch on them, the Max Unger effect from Pro Football Focus, he was the fourth rated center this last year. The Saints were using Jonathan Goodwin, the 27th ranked center, and Mark Ingram still had a great year. The question for Ingram is, can his body hold up to the entire year where it seems like the Saints are changing their philosophy? They're still going to throw a ton.

[Andy Holloway]

He gets banged up a little bit.

[Jason Moore]

He.

[Mike Wright]

Yes, he's been known to do that.

[Andy Holloway]

And Kyrie Robinson is there. C.J. spiller is there. And so if they back off his workload, that would be a concern. But he is going to be the first and second down guy. And if he plays like goal line guy. Exactly.

[Jason Moore]

You know, they're not going to give it to C.J. spiller up the middle on the one. They're going to give it to Mark Ingram. And you know, Jimmy Graham had 10 touchdowns last year. That's gone. So those are going to go somewhere.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, number 14, Jonathan Stewart. Speaking of injured, injury prone, we're not talking about that. He is one of the most impressive on tape runners in football when he's healthy. He dominated at the end of the year. Last year if you watch the games, he's a guy who jumped off the screen as wow, that's an RB one right there.

[Mike Wright]

He took the Panthers to the playoffs. Yeah, it wasn't Cam Newton last year, it was Jonathan Stewart.

[Andy Holloway]

He was absolutely outstanding and it's his job. D'Angelo Williams is gone. So if you're one of those fantasy gamblers want to gamble on a guy that could finish inside that top five if he has a healthy season? I mean, do any of you doubt that he could be there if he was healthy?

[Jason Moore]

I don't doubt that he could be there, but I would doubt if he plays 16 games. I would not peg him to be there. And the reason is just because of Cam Newton, the touchdown vulture. Because in truth, Jonathan Stewart, you look before Cam got there, he's a great goal line back. He's got a nose for the end zone and he's talented there. But since Cam has gotten there, he takes a lot of running touchdowns away and the entire running back total touchdowns of Carolina has dipped greatly since Cam's been there. So you know, that's I think the only thing keeping his potential from being the highest. So I don't necessarily see him as.

[Mike Wright]

Top five, top 10.

[Jason Moore]

I'll go RB1 in a 12 team.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, top 12.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Our next three guys, 15, 16 and 17 are Melvin Gordon. Melvin Lamar Miller. Melvin Lamar and Joseph. Joseph Randall who climbs all the way to 17 RB2 range. I think that's warranted. Gordon, the rookie first and second down back but a good opportunity there in San Diego. He's looked good in camp so far. We've talked a lot about Miller, Randall. Which guys do you guys? Do you have anything to say about these three of these three?

[Mike Wright]

I want Lamar Miller because Melvin Gordon, to me it's Melvin Gordon and Joseph Randall are all potential. I don't know for sure. I have my concerns about Gordon. We know his upside is tremendous because Ryan Matthews in a two down back situation was great a couple years back. Joseph Randle has possibly the best run blocking line in in all of football, but Lamar Miller did it and Lamar Miller is on a high powered offense that just continues to get better. Ryan Tannehill continues to get better. He ended with over five yards of carry, but that was kind of bumped because he had a huge, huge run in the last game. But he would have been 4.6 without that run. That's still a fantastic yards per carry average. Joe Philbin has come out and said, I don't mind getting in the ball a little bit more. If he can handle the carries, we'll get him the ball. And that's the old been the only.

[Andy Holloway]

Knock on Miller's game and nobody behind him has stepped up in camp so far.

[Mike Wright]

That's also another Jay.

[Andy Holloway]

He is not impressed. He might be somebody who takes some time and so, yeah, Lamar Miller is climbing a little bit. Randall's somebody. You got to watch preseason a little bit, too. I have Randall actually running for a good yard per carry this year, and so I think behind that line he will. It's just a matter of how much he gets.

[Jason Moore]

I'm actually warming up to Randall a little bit more. If the next couple weeks go on and there's no other running back brought into camp, I will be forced to put Randall a little bit higher on my list, but probably won't overtake Lamar Miller.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, these last three running backs in our top 20 are Latavius Murray, TJ Yeldin and Alfred Morris to round out our consensus top 20. All right, who do you want to talk about here?

[Mike Wright]

You guys can go ahead and gush over your boy Latavius.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, I'm not going to gush. He's got some warts, namely playing on. He's got some warts on the Raiders. I mean, a winning. You need a winning team. I think they're much better this year. I like Derek Carr, like Cooper. Reports about Crabtree are good. I think that team will improve.

[Jason Moore]

Where we have Latavius Murray statted is exactly where he will finish. He will Finish as an RB2.

[Mike Wright]

You have statted him.

[Andy Holloway]

Is that a water?

[Mike Wright]

Very impressive.

[Andy Holloway]

No water.

[Jason Moore]

Here's what I'm saying.

[Mike Wright]

He has against myself, right?

[Jason Moore]

He has. He is incredibly talented. He is a gigantic man who can run like the wind. And. And you. You watch. He passes the eyeball test every time. He is on an offense that wants to run the ball, they are going to give it to him. If. If.

[Andy Holloway]

Are you. Are you worried about Trent Richardson?

[Mike Wright]

Trent. Hey, hey. Trent Richardson is officially number two on the depth chart. Whoa.

[Andy Holloway]

That means I'm bumping Murray way up.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, so. So Murray is the only guy there that's ever going to get the ball. The truth is this. He's not on a good enough overall team. The team is improving and I Like the Raiders future. But this year I don't expect them to have many games that they are winning in a position where they need to run the ball and run the clock out. Which is why in with all those great things about, you know, they're going to give the ball to a running back a lot. Their running back is very talented. They want to run the ball. He's not an RB one and he doesn't have that potential because of the Raiders grade. So I think he's going to finish the year as an RB2.

[Andy Holloway]

I think he's going to hit some home runs. I think it's. He has that kind of potential and speed. It's interesting. The 18, 19, 20 on our list right here are all from teams that probably Vegas as well as ourselves would probably say are going to be losing ball clubs with Oakland, the Jacksonville and Washington. Yeah, Morris is kind of that consistency guy. Another guy I would Love is an RB2. Really?

[Mike Wright]

You're rank, you're very down on him in your rankings. Do you realize how low you have him?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't have him that low.

[Jason Moore]

Blast him. Blast him.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay. I have met 30. Woo youw're right. That's pretty low. 30.

[Mike Wright]

You moved him down then. Because when I was doing the board.

[Andy Holloway]

That was my half.

[Jason Moore]

You ought to.

[Andy Holloway]

My half.

[Mike Wright]

28.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's where he is. 28. That's okay. Just outside RB2. I'd be happy with the men in RB2.

[Mike Wright]

Okay. I like Morris. I think he's.

[Andy Holloway]

I think. I think they like Matt Jones and I don't think the team's very good. So I don't think he gets. He's going to be himself, but I don't think he gets in the end zone enough. See, that's pretty much it. So.

[Mike Wright]

And I like Yelden, but that's a. This is a going for complete on the workload and I think they've. They've done a good job upgrading their offensive line in Jacksonville.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, I want to make sure we mention this on the show Thursday. We're going to go through some deeper running backs for your teams and we're going to have a special guest on the show, Christopher Harris, formerly of espn.

[Mike Wright]

Who's that guy?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, Chris Harris. Love the guy. He's a film junkie. He knows the game and he knows running backs. We'll talk some deeper running backs with him. Very excited about that. We've got some guests coming up next week. We're gonna have JJ Zacharison come on the show. We've Got some other special guests.

[Jason Moore]

Zacharison.

[Andy Holloway]

Is that it? I'm sorry.

[Jason Moore]

No, it's all right.

[Andy Holloway]

Just apologies. Jj.

[Mike Wright]

Jj.

[Jason Moore]

Jj.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. JJ Watt will be on. Oh, wait.

[Mike Wright]

JJ is a good man.

[Jason Moore]

JJ will be on our show. That is true.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes. Go spread the word. Go spread the word. All right, let's answer some questions for our listeners.

[Jason Moore]

Mailbag, Mail bag.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, if you have a question, you can go to the website. The fantasy footballers.com in the upper right hand corner is a submit a question button. You click that typey, type your question in there, send it our way. We're going to answer as many as we can. If you've been sending them in, I promise we've been answering as many as we can do. We've got tons of draft questions coming in, so if we didn't get to yours, apologies.

[Mike Wright]

There's only. We only have 30 fingers to go around.

[Andy Holloway]

Is that true? Is that true? We got 30.

[Mike Wright]

Wait, you. You didn't Jason P. Or Paul, did you?

[Jason Moore]

No, no, no. But I didn't know, you know, are we counting thumbs? Those questions have to be considered, Mike.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, ten digits.

[Jason Moore]

There you go.

[Andy Holloway]

You know, Andre Williams has all thumbs.

[Mike Wright]

Hey.

[Andy Holloway]

When he tries to catch.

[Mike Wright]

Careful.

[Andy Holloway]

When he tries to catch the football.

[Mike Wright]

Careful. My. My love for him is growing.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes. He's raising up my board. We'll talk about him next week. All right, if you have a question, like I say, go to the website. You can also call us our voicemail line 302-464-44TFFB. You can leave us a question that way. This one comes in from Adam in Canada.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Bonjour.

[Andy Holloway]

There it is. Hey, just wondering what my strategy should be for the last pick. It's a snake draft. Most top running back will be gone. Probably Gronk gone to possibly Des. I guess he's saying Des is number one in his board. But I get this question a lot. I get to the end of the first round, what do I do?

[Mike Wright]

Okay, I assume with the last pick of the first round.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's a snake draft. It flips over. He's got 11, 12. I mean, 12, 12 and one. And this question is interesting because most people, what happens is those top running backs are gone and then they go, oh, no, should I just go wide receiver? Wide receiver. But the truth is, if you're in that position, you're also going to wait another 20 picks to draft your first running back. If you take wide receiver. Wide receiver. So what do you do, Mike?

[Mike Wright]

I'm. I'm fine. If you if there's two elite wide receivers. If you want to go wide receiver, wide receiver. If it's me, I'm taking an elite wide receiver such as a Desmond Briant and Julio. And then I'm also taking Jeremy Hill.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. If he's sitting there.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Every time.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, Brian, in Connecticut, I was wondering how you guys feel about drafting both Peyton Manning and C.J. anderson. I'm afraid they might dig into each other's workloads. I guess he means fantasy points, but also thinks it might be a good idea scoring points for almost every TD scored by Denver. I'm very high on Manning, and I believe he will drop in my draft because he underperformed late last year. What do you think, guys?

[Jason Moore]

I have no problem having both of those guys on my team. You do not need to give them a bonus for being on the team or liking the Broncos, where it's like, I've got one, so I should target the other. You know, going into your draft, if you're saying, ooh, I really want to pair these guys, I think that that's a mistake. You're going to end up reaching for one of them to pair them. But don't be afraid to pair them, because I think that they will work out fine with each other.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. There's not many teams where I want the quarterback and the running back, but the Broncos, the Packers, the Colts, those.

[Andy Holloway]

Teams give it to me.

[Mike Wright]

Those teams can sustain.

[Andy Holloway]

I agree. Agree completely. We agree on that one. No problem. Caleb from Arkansas wants to know. He said recent news seems more optimistic on Arian Foster's return.

[Mike Wright]

Careful.

[Jason Moore]

And he's got him. Number one.

[Mike Wright]

Move him up.

[Andy Holloway]

No, no, I do not make a video of He's. Where do I have him? People have asked me that a lot. Where do I have him? I have him at.

[Mike Wright]

You would have been the.

[Andy Holloway]

I have met 30. 37. 37. I think that's just fine.

[Mike Wright]

But where. Where are you?

[Andy Holloway]

Nothing like your number one pick tumbling from 1 to 37 in a week.

[Mike Wright]

Let's answer this guy.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

This guy's question is, hey, if he's back on or at week six. Okay. That would be. I mean, some reports are saying three to six weeks. Right. Four to six weeks.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

Would you feel more comfortable taking Foster or Todd Gurley based on adp? Foster, Wow.

[Mike Wright]

I know exactly what he is. If. If I. If everything says he's going to be back by this week, then I'm going to take a guy who I know is a top number one potential and not Todd Gurley, a rookie who's.

[Andy Holloway]

I assume that changes in dynasty leagues.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, yes.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. We're talking redraft. Yeah, but Gurley, they're saying he's not going to play the preseason. He's a rookie. He needs actual snaps and live.

[Jason Moore]

And also in addition to that, here's one big difference, is that most leagues have an IR spot. If your league doesn't have an IR spot, add it, because you should. But Arian Foster will be on the IR and will be able to be put into that spot in your league lineup.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, some.

[Mike Wright]

If he's actually on the ir, then you can play.

[Andy Holloway]

It depends what league you play too.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, well, yeah, it does, but I mean, he's going to be injured and out, whereas Todd Gurley is going to be ready, presumably for the season opener. He's just going to get worked in slowly, meaning he's going to be taking up a roster spot. So I would lean Arian as well.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm right in the middle on this one.

[Jason Moore]

Let's be really clear that it's not happening. I mean, I don't think it's going to happen. I don't think he's going to be back by Week 6, but they haven't put him on the list yet.

[Andy Holloway]

So the one thing you know about Foster and the backfield they have there is that when he's back, he's back.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

As long as he's back, he's back. They're not giving the job to somebody else.

[Mike Wright]

So you're drafting right now? Tomorrow morning, very early. It's a weird league. You have to draft very early in the morning.

[Andy Holloway]

Like.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, what's that?

[Jason Moore]

Two in the morning.

[Mike Wright]

Got it.

[Jason Moore]

Go on.

[Andy Holloway]

No coffee.

[Mike Wright]

No coffee allowed. Where are you drafting Foster? If at all.

[Jason Moore]

40Th running back than me personally.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, right. Where I haven't ranked.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, but what round are you comfortable taking him?

[Andy Holloway]

Six round.

[Mike Wright]

Six round.

[Andy Holloway]

I take him at the end of the sixth if he's out six weeks.

[Jason Moore]

No, no, no. Tomorrow morning. We don't know how long.

[Andy Holloway]

We don't know tomorrow morning.

[Jason Moore]

For me, I'm talking like 11, six or seventh round.

[Andy Holloway]

I'll move them up.

[Jason Moore]

I'm going 11th or 12th round.

[Andy Holloway]

I'll give him an extra round because I had a great love for him.

[Mike Wright]

I'm in the middle, you guys. I would take him around 9, 10.

[Andy Holloway]

Even now. Even with optimism.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, with. With the no sleep coffee league. I'm going.

[Andy Holloway]

All right.

[Mike Wright]

Ninth, tenth round.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Nick from New York, he has a 12 team keeper league. Who do you take with the first overall pick? Le'Veon Bell or Eddie Lacy or Charles? It is a 12 team keeper league.

[Jason Moore]

Let's check our. Let's rewind the tape.

[Andy Holloway]

No, no, because of this keep. Yeah, youth matters a little bit here. I don't think I take Levy on Bell for sure. All right, double bell. Get it. Hey, Mike. In Hannigan last year, Jeremy Hill did so well because Giovanni Bernard went down with an injury for three games and then was limited for the rest of the season. Interesting. Although Hill proved to be a workhorse with his 5.1. I think it was 5.2.

[Mike Wright]

It was 5.1.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Yards per carry. Can we expect similar numbers this year? Well, we talked a lot about Jeremy Hill, but we did not talk about the Geo effect of him being injured during the year. So do you have any thoughts on that, Mike?

[Mike Wright]

All it did to me was allow Jeremy Hill to get out there, improve what he could do as a rookie. Hugh Jackson didn't want him to go out as the rookie. They weren't comfortable with him yet. They had a second year guy with Geo so they held him back as a lot of coaches do. But then Jeremy Hill went out and proved he can do everything. So he's now the guy.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, let's hypothetically say we come out week one and geo splashes for, you know, 120 yards and a touchdown and he's running all over the place. Does that kind of a performance early in the season impact your view on.

[Mike Wright]

Hill or does it just I trade Gio Bernard immediately?

[Jason Moore]

Okay, if that's me, the only thing that would matter is carries. If he ends up with a hundred yards, great, Good. But if they're giving him the ball.

[Andy Holloway]

G is going to have these games this year.

[Mike Wright]

That's why he'll have a couple. But man, Hill is going to score.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, guys, reminder, we have a show on Thursday. Christopher Harris, formerly of ESPN now with HarrisFootball.com will be joining us. Reminder, we're moving to four shows a week starting on the 18th of August.

[Mike Wright]

I'm already tired.

[Andy Holloway]

There has been much Twitter rejoicing over this news. Well, people want more football.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, me too.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, you ready?

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, did you audition?

[Jason Moore]

I have.

[Andy Holloway]

You tried out callback? You didn't get a callback?

[Mike Wright]

He was trying to get that the Underwood job.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I know. I even. I even had like the dress. Yeah, it was like a cocktail dress. But I think the double stuffs have not done me well.

[Andy Holloway]

Photoshop alert. Photoshop alert.

[Jason Moore]

Well, don't forget everybody. You can go to fantasydraftwizard.com and actually this is a good time to point out the fact that, you know, you can do all the free mock drafts there, but as you're getting closer to your real draft, you can actually use a bunch of tools in there for your draft. They've got some draft tools that you can sign up for and actually import your league and do things to help you during the draft. And it's really valuable. I've used that before. So.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And if you need a cathartic help, you can go in there and draft Arian Foster, number one overall. You can go in there and just click it a few times if you're.

[Jason Moore]

Doing it like midnight sometimes.

[Andy Holloway]

I wanted to. I just want to see what it would have been like to do that in my leagues later on. So.

[Mike Wright]

And one last announcement. I don't know when, I don't know when, ladies and gentlemen, but sometime this week I will be doing a Twitter blitz where I will announce it that I'm taking questions for, I don't know, 30 minutes to 60 minutes. And during that time it will be a free for all and I will just answer as many as humanly possible.

[Jason Moore]

Love it.

[Andy Holloway]

You heard it here first. The fantasy Hitman on Twitter for the Twitter blitz with his handsome fancy beard.

[Mike Wright]

At FF Hitman it and I'll try and do some scratch and sniff so you can smell the beard through Twitter.

[Andy Holloway]

Does not translate well.

[Jason Moore]

Is it just handsome fancy.com that is correct, yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Put in the promo code. Ballers, get your handsome fancy beard oil. We will be back soon. You can follow us on the website the fantasy footballers.com on Twitter. Check out the YouTube channel and we will be back Thursday for a lot.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, no, that's next week.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, hang on. It'll be all right. Maybe we'll surprise some people this week. I don't know for sure, but dropping some bonus. We got some good stuff going on. Thanks for listening, everybody. We appreciate it. Stop by itunes, subscribe, leave us a review. Thanks.

[Mike Wright]

Goodbye.

[Jason Moore]

Thank you for listening to another edition of the Fantasy Footballers podcast. Podcast. Don't forget to visit us on the web at www.thefantasyfootballers.com and follow us on Twitter the FFballers.