Fantasy Football Podcast 2016 - Studs, Duds, Rising Stars, Injuries, Mayhem

Summary

Fantasy Football Podcast Summary: "Studs, Duds, Rising Stars, Injuries, Mayhem"

Episode Overview Released on September 19, 2016, the Fantasy Footballers podcast episode titled “Studs, Duds, Rising Stars, Injuries, Mayhem” delivers an in-depth analysis of the early weeks of the fantasy football season. Hosts Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, and Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright dissect player performances, injury impacts, waiver wire strategies, and provide actionable advice for fantasy football enthusiasts aiming to navigate the tumultuous start of their leagues.

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Opening Remarks and League Promotion [00:00 - 00:42]

The episode kicks off with Andy Holloway promoting the Draft app, encouraging listeners to join the Fantasy Footballers leagues for added excitement and potential cash prizes. He emphasizes the ease of joining by using the code "ballers."

Andy Holloway [00:00]: "You put in the code ballers. It will automatically put you into our league."

Jason Moore and Mike Wright welcome listeners from the fantasyjocks.com studios, setting the stage for a discussion filled with humor and camaraderie.

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Weekly Challenges and Listener Insights [01:07 - 03:14]

The trio humorously discusses their physical state post-weekend games, with Mike noticing minor injuries among the hosts, reflecting the emotional and physical toll of fantasy management.

Jason Moore [01:22]: "From last night's games. Mental, Mental reps. My body has gone with the games. I just watch, I get sore. I feel like I got injured."

Mike Wright references J.J. Zachary’s commentary on the unpredictable nature of the fantasy season, particularly in the early weeks where key players might underperform or get injured, leading to significant roster adjustments.

Mike Wright [02:06]: "There are some desperate fantasy football owners out there waiting for this show to drop for some insight, for some updates, for some hope."

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Trade Dispute Discussion [04:00 - 07:50]

A segment unfolds around a listener's question regarding a trade involving LaShawn McCoy and Adrian Peterson. The hosts debate whether the trade should be allowed to proceed given that McCoy played on Thursday night, preventing the trade's processing until after the weekend.

Andy Holloway [05:31]: "The trade is up to whoever is getting the Adrian Peterson side. If they want to back out, they are allowed to back out. 100%."

Jason Moore [05:43]: "Because the trade has not gone through. And now you're receiving a player who is injured, but the trade hasn't got through."

The discussion highlights the complexities of trade processing windows and injury contingencies, emphasizing fairness and the need for clarity in league rules. Ultimately, the hosts agree to continue the debate on their Twitter page, acknowledging the trade's contentious nature.

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Injury Reports and Impact Analysis [10:52 - 19:46]

The hosts provide a comprehensive rundown of player injuries affecting fantasy rosters. Key injuries discussed include:

• Arian Foster: Suffering a hamstring injury, potentially missing multiple weeks.

  Mike Wright [14:43]: "It was really bizarre to me. And then seeing the way he went into the locker room was like, okay, he's done. Like this might be career."

• Adrian Peterson: Exhibiting severe knee issues, with MRI results pending.

  Jason Moore [14:03]: "What is going on with those guys injury wise."

• Josh McCown: His involvement leading to potential opportunities for rookie Corey Coleman.

• Julio Jones & Tyrell Williams: Handling injuries impacting their performance and target availability.

Mike Wright [10:52]: "Jimmy Garoppolo has a sprained AC joint landed right on that shoulder."

The hosts delve into the strategic implications of these injuries, debating waiver wire pickups and optimal roster adjustments to mitigate losses from key injuries.

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Stud Muffins and Rising Stars [30:30 - 51:56]

Stud Muffins: Top Performers of Week 2 The hosts highlight standout players who delivered exceptional performances despite the season's chaos:

• Philip Rivers [30:34]: Achieved 396 yards and three touchdowns.

  Andy Holloway [30:54]: "Very surprising performance there from Rivers."

• Cam Newton [30:59]: Compiled impressive stats with 53% completion and four touchdowns.

  Jason Moore [31:15]: "They just kind of go to sleep because they dominated so easily."

• Derek Carr & Carson Palmer: Both quarterbacks had strong performances against Atlanta's struggling secondary.

• Travis Benjamin & Kelvin Benjamin: Both receivers scored two touchdowns each, capitalizing on their targets.

Rising Stars: Emerging Players to Watch Several players are identified as rising stars, showing potential for increased fantasy value:

• Melvin Gordon [46:06]: With increased opportunities due to Danny Woodhead’s injury, Gordon posted 24 carries for 102 yards.

  Mike Wright [46:06]: "What I'm seeing from Melvin Gordon. I think he has a really good chance if he stays healthy."

• Corey Coleman [34:31]: Showed promise with 104 yards and two touchdowns, contingent on McCown’s health.

• Stefan Diggs [35:50]: Emerging as a top receiver with nine receptions for 182 yards and a touchdown.

  Jason Moore [35:50]: "Stefan Diggs is the number one guy."

• Kelvin Benjamin [47:27]: Demonstrated strong performance and potential as a WR1.

  Jason Moore [47:27]: "Kelvin Benjamin... he is matchup proof. He is a red zone weapon."

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Fantasy Strategy and Waiver Wire Tips [19:46 - 35:48]

The hosts offer strategic advice on managing injured players and capitalizing on waiver wire opportunities:

• Arian Foster vs. Matt Asiata: Debate on whether to invest heavily in Asiata versus McCinnon for similar returns.

  Mike Wright [15:27]: "I'd rather spend like, you know, 15 fab on Aziata versus like 70 fab on McKinnon."

• Charles Sims [13:35]: Anticipated to rise as Doug Martin's injury sidelines him.

  Jason Moore [13:59]: "He's going to be near the top because either he's going to get that start or McCoy's back."

• Raphael Thomas' Waiver Priorities: Emphasizing the importance of monitoring injury updates to make informed waiver decisions.

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Player Performance Analysis [37:05 - 56:59]

A deep dive into individual player performances, identifying both underperformers and those exceeding expectations:

• DeAndre Hopkins: Continued strong performance with over 100 yards.

• Eric Decker: Steady as a top option with consistent targets.

• Stefan Diggs: Exceptional game, leading the league in receiving yards.

• Melvin Gordon: Leveraging increased opportunities to produce solid fantasy points.

• Todd Gurley & Jeremy Hill: Mixed performances raising concerns about their reliability.

• Tight Ends: Highlighted are Martellus Bennett and Greg Olsen for their standout games, while expressing concerns over players like Dennis Pitta and Dwayne Allen.

Jason Moore [43:09]: "Stefan Diggs... he is the NFL league leader in yards right now at the wide receiver position from the Minnesota Vikings."

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Long-Term Concerns and Benchmarks [52:05 - 59:44]

The conversation shifts to long-term concerns for certain players, evaluating their potential risks and future performances:

• John Brown & Emmanuel Sanders: Monitoring their performances against strong defenses.

• Sammy Watkins: Considering purchasing him at a low cost given his recent updates.

• A.J. Green: Despite a strong individual game, concerns about matchup difficulties.

Mike Wright [58:09]: "I have major long term concern with John Brown this year."

• Russell Wilson & Jameis Winston: Evaluating their performances and potential for consistent fantasy points.

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Closing Highlights and Predictions [57:49 - 61:10]

As the episode nears its conclusion, the hosts recap key takeaways, reiterate the importance of staying updated on injuries, and tease upcoming segments like the "waiver show."

• Predictions:

  Mike Wright [60:57]: "I'm gonna take the Eagles as well."

• Rising Stars Recap:

  Jason Moore [47:27]: "Kelvin Benjamin... he is matchup proof."

• Final Advice:

  Mike Wright [61:06]: "Footballers, huge waiver show tomorrow. Don't miss it."

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Notable Quotes

• Jason Moore [01:22]: "From last night's games. Mental, Mental reps. My body has gone with the games. I just watch, I get sore. I feel like I got injured."
• Mike Wright [02:06]: "There are some desperate fantasy football owners out there waiting for this show to drop for some insight, for some updates, for some hope."
• Andy Holloway [05:31]: "The trade is up to whoever is getting the Adrian Peterson side. If they want to back out, they are allowed to back out. 100%."
• Jason Moore [14:03]: "What is going on with those guys injury wise."
• Mike Wright [46:06]: "What I'm seeing from Melvin Gordon. I think he has a really good chance if he stays healthy."

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Conclusion

This episode encapsulates the chaotic and unpredictable nature of the early fantasy football season. The Fantasy Footballers provide listeners with valuable insights into managing injuries, optimizing rosters, and identifying key players to watch. Their blend of humor, expertise, and strategic advice offers both entertainment and practical guidance, ensuring that fantasy managers are well-equipped to tackle the challenges ahead.

For more detailed analysis and to stay updated on the latest in fantasy football, listeners are encouraged to join the Fantasy Footballers community at jointhefoot.com and follow them on Twitter @FFBall.

Transcript

[Andy Holloway]

Hey, Foot Glen, before we start today's show, I want to tell you again, you got to download the draft app. Have you joined in on the fantasy footballers leagues on draft? It adds excitement to the. To the weekend. Even more excitement for football Sunday because we are doing weekly Snake draft games. You play against us, you're playing against other Foot Clan listeners. You can play for fun or you know what, you can even play for a little side action and a little bit of cash on the draft app. This is what I need you to do. You download the Draft app on iOS or Android, you. You put in the code ballers. It will automatically put you into our league. So grab the draft app right now.

[Jason Moore]

Welcome to the Fantasy Footballers Podcast coming to you from the fantasyjocks.com studios with your hosts, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore and Mike Wright.

[Mike Wright]

How you guys feeling? Are you okay, Mike? You look like your. How's your triceps? How's your quadriceps?

[Andy Holloway]

I made it through the weekend slightly unscathed. My body is not.

[Mike Wright]

You've got like a little pimple on your forehead.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Is that. Is that from the weekend?

[Andy Holloway]

That was the co host for the. From the periscope that I did on Sunday.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, okay. So you took a little bit of damage. Jason, how are you doing?

[Jason Moore]

Oh, man, I am sore.

[Mike Wright]

I am really?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, From. From last night's games. Mental, Mental reps. My body has gone with the games. I am just. I watch, I get sore. I feel like I got injured.

[Andy Holloway]

I wear a full virtual suit that it. It does. The impact simulates the impacts of the game.

[Jason Moore]

Look, you die in the matrix. Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

You die for real.

[Jason Moore]

You die for real.

[Mike Wright]

J.J. zachary said. He said, week one, we knew some things. Week two, nope. And I thought that summarized this weekend really, really well. I think there are some desperate fantasy football owners out there waiting for this show to drop for some insight, for some updates, for some hope.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. You know, in a dark world, down was up, up was down. I mean, there were so many positive.

[Mike Wright]

Yards were negative yards. If you asked Thomas Rawls or T.J. yelden. Oh, I, you know, look, I told somebody this morning on Twitter what Jason says in the beginning of the year and what we say all the time, there's a reason you don't win your fantasy championship at the draft, and that's because week two happens every once in a while and your whole world gets turned upside down and you have questions and you start to see, you know, here's what happened. You had all the injuries, and we're going to break them all down on the show. We're going to break down all of the pooped in their big boy pants and all of the stud muffins and give you some insight. But essentially, you have a situation where not only do you have the injuries, but you have two weeks in the books to add to the paranoia, to add to the. To the itchy drop fingers and all of the adjustments that we need to make. And so listeners are looking for insight. They're looking for some way to go with their roster with the Kobe Fleeners of the world.

[Jason Moore]

Tomorrow is going to be a big show with the waivers. I mean, a week like today where. Where, you know, so many people got injured and so many different things happened during the game that changed kind of what our thoughts were going into the week, that tomorrow and in everybody's league, I mean, this week's waiver pickups, they're going to change the landscape of everybody's.

[Mike Wright]

League and how much you spend on them, how much you react to the injuries and go, do you spend all your fab on certain guys? I mean, here's the reality, too. We're going to update you on the injuries. They may be updated after the show's over because things are happening all day today with MRIs and tests and reports, and we're gonna break it all down. But first, I want to get into the quick question of the day.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, this is a good one.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know what it is.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. And, Mike, you're gonna help settle this situation, because that's what I do. A listener, a listener sent a message to Jason and myself. I didn't know it had been sent to Jason, too.

[Jason Moore]

And he said, I didn't know it had been sent to Andy. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

And so they. And we. Thanks, listener might have been sent to you too, but probably not. So the question is this. And Jason and I apparently responded in opposite fashion.

[Jason Moore]

And I was sure of my answer, too. So I found it fascinating when he said, oh, Andy said the opposite. I was like, what?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Okay, so a trade was made in a league, and it was made after Thursday, but before the weekend. And the trade involved LaShawn McCoy. Therefore, it could not process until after the weekend because McCoy played on Thursday night. All right, the trade was LaShawn McCoy in a deal for Adrian Peterson. And the question that this listener posed was, well, because it's not processing till after the weekend. And now they were the person that traded away Adrian Peterson and got McCoy back. And they said, should this trade be allowed to go through in the league now? Without saying which I don't want to tell him.

[Jason Moore]

I actually want him to guess which.

[Mike Wright]

I just want him to give it. Yeah, he can guess who said what. Mike, you can guess what Jason and I said because we said the opposite.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, I'm surprised that someone gave the wrong answer.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, that's a good way to introduce that. What is the right answer?

[Andy Holloway]

The trade is up to whoever is getting the Adrian Peterson side. If they want to back out, they are allowed to back out.

[Mike Wright]

What?

[Andy Holloway]

100%.

[Mike Wright]

Why would they be allowed to back out on a trade that was agreed upon before the week?

[Jason Moore]

Because the trade has not gone through. And now you're receiving a player who is injured, but the trade hasn't got through. Think about it. This is what I told the listener. It's just like in the NFL. They make trades in the NFL where, you know, the guy comes to the new team and he can't pass the physical.

[Andy Holloway]

Then the trade's off.

[Jason Moore]

The trade's off.

[Mike Wright]

But the trade was made. The only reason it didn't go through on Friday was because McCoy played.

[Jason Moore]

Look, if the trade had gone through on Friday or on Wednesday.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes.

[Jason Moore]

If the trade goes through and then a player gets injured, that's. You're out of lose.

[Mike Wright]

Here's the thing, and here's why I don't agree. And I know we've said different things about this before on the show. At what point? I mean, what type of injury now now blocks trades that have been agreed upon before the weekend? Is it a two game injury that gives them the chance to get it out? Is it a one game injury? The trade was agreed upon before the weekend. The risks were known for each player McCoy had already played. You know, to me, it's just not a fair situation for the person who made the deal to now be in a position to lose. You know, the trade.

[Jason Moore]

That's.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, I just think it's. It's an agreed upon trade. And if McCoy played on Sunday, it had already gone through.

[Jason Moore]

This is one that must, must be posted to our Twitter page.

[Mike Wright]

And I don't want anybody to get screwed over by the trade.

[Jason Moore]

Well, someone is going to.

[Mike Wright]

Trade was already done. And so I think you sleep in the bed.

[Andy Holloway]

But the trade.

[Jason Moore]

The trade's not done.

[Andy Holloway]

The trade is not done.

[Mike Wright]

But it was.

[Jason Moore]

No, it was agreed upon.

[Mike Wright]

It was agreed upon. It can't process in the system because of McCoy playing early.

[Jason Moore]

Right? Yeah. The trade had not gone through. Correct.

[Mike Wright]

The trade had not been processed. The trade had gone through.

[Jason Moore]

No, no, no, no. If the Trade had gone through. It's finished.

[Mike Wright]

It was a trade.

[Andy Holloway]

The trade was agreed upon, but it had not gone through.

[Mike Wright]

We need to bring it up to debate. I think, I think it's unfair for the guy who.

[Jason Moore]

It's unfair for one of them no matter what.

[Mike Wright]

It is not unfair for one of them no matter what.

[Jason Moore]

If you're on our side. Yeah, okay.

[Mike Wright]

No, I'm saying it doesn't make it unfair. The guy traded Adrian Peterson away and traded Sean McCoy.

[Jason Moore]

Well, he agreed to trade. Right. Peterson away.

[Mike Wright]

He agreed to trade him away. So it's not unfair. You sleep in the bed. You may.

[Jason Moore]

Well, we'll. We'll see what the listeners say.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Well, at least one thing happened this week. My almost upset of the week. Got. Got it taken care of. Won by a point.

[Jason Moore]

No. Yeah, they won.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. I fail or succeed.

[Jason Moore]

No, that was a. That was a good. Succeed. That was you. You called that Tennessee.

[Mike Wright]

Tennessee over Detroit.

[Jason Moore]

Yep. And that was a pretty, pretty big spread there. So they covered.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Well, we are a year round fantasy football podcast. We go five days a week all season long. You can keep it right here on Twitter at the ffballers, on the website, the fancyfootballers.com we have new articles and things dropping on there all the time. And now you can join us on jointhefoot [e-mail] and what we've added this past week is we added our premium projections on there as well as a bonus feature, just something extra for the foot. For the foot. So you can check that out, get some additional information each and every week. Now, we do not have our other crystal ball auto predict the 12 injuries a week thing on there, do we?

[Jason Moore]

No, not yet. We're working on that. I think when that comes out, it's going to be a big hit.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

I will say this though, and I'm not promising this, but there is a chance that we're going to actually be putting up our statistical backed flex rankings that people have been wanting for a long time also for the Foot Clan. So if you are a member of the foot, there's over 2,000 of you over there. We really appreciate your support. We're gonna try to give you the real flexed in rankings.

[Mike Wright]

Here's what's amazing about this show. Things like that. Jason and I didn't even get to discuss that before the show. I asked him the question this morning. So, hey, do you think we can get the flex rankings in? I didn't hear the reply till just now.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I'm out I'm out.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, it's a little bit more work for us, but we work hard. That's the nice thing about being independent. We want to do something. Guess what we do? We do it. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

No approval from the man upstairs.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

All right, John. John, upstairs. All right, here we go.

[Jason Moore]

Weekly rewind.

[Mike Wright]

Oh. It was. It was bloody, it was bad, it was sad, and it touched nearly everybody in some way.

[Andy Holloway]

The only way you can properly express the feelings is with. With Bono's voice.

[Mike Wright]

I. Look, I. I was grieving these losses this week. I lost Foster and Stewart, my two running backs, in the first quarter. I'm facing Jason in the league of record, and I have, like a three point lead now because of Stewart and Foster, and he has Jeffrey tonight. So it's over.

[Jason Moore]

No, it's not over. I mean, given this weekend, Jeffrey could go down on the first play. Oh, no. Don't you do that to Jeffrey.

[Mike Wright]

I'm sorry, Alshon.

[Jason Moore]

I don't want anything serious. Go pick up Kevin White immediately. Go get Eddie Royal.

[Mike Wright]

No, I can't. I don't want to will my injuries upon these players. I want to take them on my team and then ruin them.

[Jason Moore]

This was a hard week for everyone. Yeah, I mean, like Andy said, either you were playing against someone who had someone injured or you yourself had someone injured. I had a game.

[Mike Wright]

Read the list.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I'll read the list. But I had a game where in a. This league has, like an average. If you have a decent week, you score about 110 points. And I was about to win the week last night in our league, I think 68 to 65. And normally I'd be like, whoa, what? But we all had, like, both teams were just decimated. I didn't feel guilty for that one. All right, here's some of the players that have been injured. Jonathan Stewart, hamstring. Thomas Rawls, Bruce. Danny Woodhead, knee. Arian Foster.

[Andy Holloway]

Surprise, surprises. Groin. Groin or hamstring?

[Jason Moore]

Amir Abdullah, foot. Doug Martin, hamstring.

[Mike Wright]

Adrian Peterson, just running. No, there's another one. Adrian Peterson.

[Andy Holloway]

Adrian Peterson, knee. We don't. But we still don't know.

[Jason Moore]

Julio Jones, ankle. Brandon Marshall.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Going back to Thursday. That the miracle for Marshall?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, he's still. It's possible he misses a knee.

[Andy Holloway]

Tyler Lockett, knee.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, Dante Moncrief.

[Andy Holloway]

That was.

[Jason Moore]

That was.

[Andy Holloway]

That one. That one. And that one's either a concussion or a shoulder.

[Jason Moore]

No, it's a shoulder.

[Andy Holloway]

It's confirmed.

[Jason Moore]

It's a shoulder. Doug Baldwin, knee. Josh McCown. I remember him.

[Andy Holloway]

Josh McCown.

[Jason Moore]

Flash bright very quickly.

[Andy Holloway]

I feel like Josh McCown desperately. All he wants in his life is to die on the football field.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, well he does his best to make sure that happens. Jimmy Garoppolo, he wants to be a Disney movie. Who was on fire?

[Andy Holloway]

Remember me?

[Jason Moore]

Andy Dalton ankle had an ankle injury afterwards. Virgil Green.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. He was seen in a walking boot afterwards.

[Mike Wright]

Somehow I heard walker. Oh no, he was using a walker.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean there's, there was reports that Rashad Jennings had some type of hand cast on.

[Jason Moore]

Oh I feel like today you could just say well there was a report. Anybody? There was a report today.

[Mike Wright]

Remember when Sammy Watkins used to cover our be our injury report. Speculation.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, actually.

[Mike Wright]

What it's going to be like deciding these guys. There's no probable tag anymore.

[Jason Moore]

What's crazy is he should have been on this list. That was this week his foot. He left the game.

[Mike Wright]

No, he's the healthiest NFL player right now. Sammy Watkins. Sammy Watkins is the healthiest. So that was the quick list. I mean we're going to dive into some of these and really we're going to give you insight tomorrow on the waiver show as the news and kind of projections for next week whether they start come out. But Doug Martin left the game early, slight very early tweak to the hamstring. He himself said he's not sure how long he's going to be out. You know Charles Sims rises to the top.

[Andy Holloway]

I bet Martin misses at least a week. This is the with the hammy when you tweak it like that. I mean we're talking the very beginning of the game. He just immediately went out. You know that if you don't rest you're. It's just going to get worse and worse and you're going to miss even more time. So you have to sit at least a tiny bit.

[Mike Wright]

So we'll have to talk about Charles Sims tomorrow. We'll have to talk about how much fab he's worth if he's a one or two week rental.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, well I think he's going to be near the top because well I.

[Andy Holloway]

Mean maybe Charles Sims is pretty owned.

[Jason Moore]

As far as leagues. Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

He's not super available. I'm going to look up his number.

[Jason Moore]

But in the leagues he's available. He's going to be near the top because either he's going to get that start but like like Mike said, let's say he doesn't get that start because Doug Martin's back then you've got a almost more probability that you've got a longer term value for Charles Sims when it re aggravates the hamstring.

[Andy Holloway]

Sims owns 65% in ESPN.

[Mike Wright]

Let's talk about the Adrian Peterson injury because that looked terrible in terms of him no weight on it. If you saw the video of him after the game, he was in a full leg brace to protect the knee and was crutching around.

[Jason Moore]

It was so weird because it was like he didn't even know that he had hurt his knee. You know, like he went to get up like normal after that play and then all of a sudden his leg didn't work and he's like, why can't I walk? It was really bizarre to me. And then seeing the way he went into the locker room was like, okay, he's done. Like this might be career. And now the head coach comes out, says he might miss a game this week, he might not.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, MRI today that will give us conclusive news in terms of the long term thing there. The question that I have is, I mean, Jerick McKinnon, everybody wants to go grab Jerick McKinnon when something like this happens. I don't know if that's what I want to do.

[Andy Holloway]

Between him and Matt Asiata, I think.

[Mike Wright]

I'd rather spend like, you know, 15 fab on Aziata versus like 70 fab on McKinnon. And I might get the same production.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, no, you might be right for.

[Mike Wright]

Sure as the pounder. I mean, he's the guy that's going to be in there and he catches passes.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean, we. Last time, last time, when Peterson's missing time, it's. They go to Asiata. But I'm with you. I. We'll break that one down tomorrow.

[Jason Moore]

That one's very difficult. Yeah, we'll have to. We're gonna have a 20 hour show if we don't punt.

[Mike Wright]

I was gonna say there's no way we meet the four. We normally try to do these shows like 45 minutes. There's no way it's gonna get there today. I don't care. I don't care. It was just a crazy weekend. Now Jimmy Garoppolo has a sprained AC joint landed right on that shoulder. Now they're saying it's not as bad as initially believed. He has a chance to play Week 3. It's still very doubtful that he'll play Week 3, which means he's on Thursday.

[Andy Holloway]

Now he's not playing.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, you're going to have a situation with a rookie taking on the Texans defense and J.J. watt and Jadavian Clowney and a defense that played very well this week against the Chiefs. Now they're at home. But I look. It doesn't get better than them as a streaming option this week or a defensive option if you can grab them off the waiver wire. You're playing a rookie.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know if you guys were following this, but did you realize who the emergency backup quarter became after Julian Edelman? It was Edelman.

[Mike Wright]

I would have loved to see it.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't want to see an injury, but I was playing Edelman and if all sudden he had swapped into quarterback, I would not have been upset by that.

[Mike Wright]

That's like the, you know, in baseball sometimes when, when a position player goes. Yeah. Takes over the mound and.

[Andy Holloway]

Except Edelman played quarterback in college, so we know he can do it.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, right. Yeah, we kind of. Kind of know that. We know he can throw the ball.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

So.

[Jason Moore]

So you're saying Houston good, good pickup for this Thursday. They look great. They're defense, probably.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, yeah. Short week with a rookie.

[Jason Moore]

You never, you never rule out.

[Mike Wright]

It makes no sense for Garoppolo to play this week.

[Jason Moore]

No. None whatsoever.

[Mike Wright]

Week and then come back in week four.

[Jason Moore]

I don't know that he needs to come back in Week 4 because they're playing the Bills. Oh, below the belt.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Right in the. Greg Roman.

[Jason Moore]

That's the money maker. Oh, all right. What else we got here?

[Mike Wright]

Ian Rapaport reporting this morning that Amir Abdullah's injury on his foot came back negative in terms of the X rays. Have more tests on Monday. No breaks. Had a noticeable limp, was in a boot. Probably going to miss some time. You got Theoretic, you got Dwayne Washington, you got a mess.

[Jason Moore]

He was looking really good beforehand too. Running, running well again for another week. Now Theo Riddick becomes. I mean, I have really liked so far week one and week two, I've had both Amir Abdullah and Theo Riddick decently ranked. And I just keep wishing like one of those guys would kind of take over more of the volume. Well, unfortunately, wish granted, I'm in a.

[Mike Wright]

Situation in our league with losing Foster and Stewart and thinking they're both not going to play this week because that's the way it looks. I just sent. I sent a straight up offer of Jonathan Stewart for Theo Reddick.

[Jason Moore]

What?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. And he turned it down.

[Jason Moore]

What? What?

[Mike Wright]

He turned it down.

[Jason Moore]

I can tell you right now.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, because that owner would. I know the situation of. That person would have no running backs.

[Mike Wright]

That person lost Woodhead and ap.

[Jason Moore]

Well, there you Go. Yeah, you turn that down.

[Mike Wright]

Crazy though. This is the world we're living in. We're trading for theoretic. We're desperate for theoretic. All right, Moncrief MRI on his shoulder coming today. Don't have any more news than that. Philip Dorsett looked good, caught a long pass. He'd be a must start guy.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

If Moncrief was out.

[Andy Holloway]

I agree.

[Mike Wright]

Thomas Rawls, after that brilliant start of the week worthy performance, suffered a late contusion and did not play in the second half. Terrible game for Rawls injury plus seven for negative seven.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, he did. He did add some through the air though. So he should have broke even at a solid zero.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

For you.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, and the good news is he was at negative 11 rushing at one point.

[Mike Wright]

That's the good news.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, he didn't end up there.

[Jason Moore]

Here's the thing that's weird about that is like when you start and most of those runs, I really did not blame Rawls on I mean the problem with the Seahawks offense right now is obvious to everyone. It's their offensive line. They look atrocious. Kristen Michael came.

[Andy Holloway]

I was gonna say it didn't stop. It did not stop. The woke one from averaging 6 yards.

[Jason Moore]

Of carry and he looked really good. I said that on our slack and I told you and you said don't tell anybody, tell no one that I said this. But he did. He passed my eyeball test and I didn't like.

[Andy Holloway]

My favorite part of of not favorite but a part that was a delight of the weekend was how Kristen Michael Look. He was 10 for 60. He looked great. He was basically one bright piece of that offense. He has the unfortunate fumble that loses the game and Twitter just destroys him like, oh wow, he sucks.

[Jason Moore]

He also, I will say this, he.

[Andy Holloway]

Was one of the only good parts of the offense today.

[Jason Moore]

He was also the reason for one or two really good sex on Russell Wilson. I don't think he is a very prolific pass protector and that's going to keep him from taking over that starting job when Thomas Rawls is healthy.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, look, Russell Wilson masks the offensive line problems when he's athletically able to do what he does. He wasn't in this game and they played a good defense at home. Russell Wilson cost me a week in our league. I that was the first time they didn't score an offensive touchdown since 2012.

[Jason Moore]

You know who the Seahawks could use? Max Unger. Just throwing that out there, that would really.

[Mike Wright]

No, no. Jimmy Graham can play center.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, he's really Good blocker.

[Mike Wright]

All right, before we move on to the rest of these reports, we're going to get into the stud muffins. We're going to get into the pooped in the big boy pants and our rising stars on the show today. But before we do that, I do want to thank the sponsors that keep this show alive, keep it going, including draft. Now, Jason and I faced off in draft this weekend. We faced in draft last weekend and I beat him then as well. I beat him this week. My Eli Manning, C.J. anderson, David Johnson, Julio Jones and Alan Robinson.

[Jason Moore]

I blame Antonio Brown defeated Drew Brees.

[Mike Wright]

Ezekiel Elliott, Lamar Miller, Antonio Brown and Odell Beckham Jr. Man, I had Odell.

[Jason Moore]

Beckham and Antonio Brown. I was sure I was going to win.

[Mike Wright]

What's awesome about this app and us facing off every week is that it is not like this giant time consuming, you know, sucks you in for an hour. It's not like doing a mock draft in the preseason. This is like you jump in, put.

[Jason Moore]

A little money where your mouth is.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. You make a little bet. And then I get to come in here on the show every week, I mean every single week of the entire year so far, and tell you how I defeated Jason with my astute analysis and picks. And you are silent.

[Jason Moore]

I have nothing to say. Nothing.

[Mike Wright]

Because you chose that scrub Antonio Brown who. Who did not deliver for you.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, he stinks.

[Mike Wright]

So if you want to get involved, challenge your buddies, play in leagues together, that's what we like doing on the draft app. You can go to playdraft.com ballers or just go to the iOS store, the Android store, and just type in draft, download it, put in the coupon code ballers. And then you get added to the two leagues with us.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And those leagues draft every Sunday morning. So you'll get a message alert and you can hop in and draft with.

[Andy Holloway]

US and hey, Dr. Football, you owe me a water video for the mano a mano waterbed of the week.

[Mike Wright]

You had to deliver your water video today.

[Jason Moore]

And then of course, one of our other great sponsors that help keep the lights on here, great friend of this show, Pristine Auction. Do not forget about Pristine Auction. They are the best sports memorabilia place ever that we have ever ran into their local here. We've been to their factory. We've met these guys. We.

[Mike Wright]

Factory, huh?

[Jason Moore]

Warehouse. Their warehouse. Yeah, that would. That would be.

[Mike Wright]

I'm seeing smokestacks a little bit more accurate.

[Jason Moore]

But I mean, if you look at our studio, we've got it decked out and I Got to be honest here, guys. We've got it decked out with stuff from Pristine Auction, but I'm getting a little jealous because I keep seeing these tweets go out of people who are truly decking out their place.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, man, they're loading up.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, if. Look, if you've got a place where you watch football or you got a cool game room or you got a cool office, or you got something like that, you can line the walls with unbelievable merchandise signed, and everything is super authentic. They care about authenticity so much with Pristine.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Someone had a question this weekend about the authenticity of some of these items. And Jared, the CEO over there, I let him know he got personally emailed him in like two seconds, talked about him. This guy's a great, great company, great.

[Jason Moore]

Product, and you wouldn't believe how cheap you can get some of these things. So check them out. Pristine Auction, P R I S T I n e auction.com. if you got gifts or anything coming up, it's a great place to check out.

[Andy Holloway]

Grab a free account and let them know that the fantasy footballer sent you.

[Mike Wright]

All right, let's talk about Tyler Lockett. He made a couple of big over the top plays. Probably the only plays that the Seahawks made on offense the whole day. He suffered a sprained knee.

[Andy Holloway]

He did come back.

[Mike Wright]

He did come back.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

So are we. I mean, with Baldwin's injury, I wanted to wrap those together. Baldwin is going to have an MRI in his knee. He also got banged around a little bit. Seem to be hurting. Things are not looking super great for that offense right now. They play San Francisco next week. Would you start Russell Wilson?

[Jason Moore]

Oh, yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Today. I don't know. Actually. I'm going to say I don't know.

[Mike Wright]

Okay.

[Jason Moore]

Are they. Do you know if they're home or away?

[Mike Wright]

I believe they're in San Francisco.

[Jason Moore]

That's. That's.

[Mike Wright]

No, I think I'm actually wrong about that.

[Jason Moore]

Will you.

[Mike Wright]

Will you vet that?

[Andy Holloway]

I'm pulling it up.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, sure. But the reality is with injuries like this. Pacific.

[Mike Wright]

In Seattle.

[Jason Moore]

In Seattle, I'm playing Russell Wilson against the Niners. But with. With injuries like this has to be a wait and see. We can't give you any solid advice yet. We have to wait till the MRIs come back. But just be aware that those guys are hurt and that you need to follow up before you make starts with either them or Russell Wilson.

[Mike Wright]

Now, good news is Russell did come out and say that the ankle felt good and he thought it would feel even better next week. A little bit of concern for Jonathan Stewart. Hamstring, ankle injury, ankles coming into the week. Hamstring during the game. I believe he wants to add the groin next week and then he's going to do the trifecta.

[Jason Moore]

That was so upsetting to me. Jonathan Stewart, I apologize to everyone. He was my start of the week and I, man, I was so confident on that start of the week. I knew it was going to happen. And then he gets injured in the first quarter. But in my defense, did you see what Fozzie Whitaker did?

[Mike Wright]

Fozzie 100 plus yards off the bench.

[Jason Moore]

Waka waka waka goes out there and gets 100 yards on the ground. Man, if Jonathan Stewart didn't go out, he would have been, he would have been great.

[Mike Wright]

And another eye roll moment for Chargers fans and fantasy owners alike. Danny Woodhead exited the game with a knee injury, caught underneath Telvin Smith in the first quarter, dropped the ball, stayed on the turf, was carted off and suddenly Melvin Gordon looks like a top 10 back.

[Jason Moore]

Melvin Gordon looks like a top 10 back. Kelvin Benjamin now has more targets to Travis Benjamin. Travis Benjamin.

[Mike Wright]

It was all about the Benjamins this week.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, it was. Travis Benjamin has Tyrell Williams. The whole passing game changes with Danny Woodhead being out and like you said, Melvin Gordon, he has. Has there been anything bad from Melvin Gordon from training camp on?

[Mike Wright]

No. He was one of the preseason players you could see with your eyes. Was a little bit different this year.

[Andy Holloway]

And I was concerned about the week one snap percentages but I mean you take Danny Woodhead out of the equation, then that changes everything.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he had 24 carries this week after Woodhead went out and he looked good. First over 100 yard game for Melvin Gordon added another touchdown and three more three catches. So I was shocked. I think you. This one's shocked.

[Andy Holloway]

Do you have the breaking news?

[Mike Wright]

No, let's just go with this. Arian Foster injured.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh man, that's so weird.

[Mike Wright]

Going to miss a game.

[Jason Moore]

Going to miss every other one.

[Andy Holloway]

At minimum he will miss one.

[Mike Wright]

I hate this situation. I have Jay on my bench. I was a Foster owner. I don't feel good about that because he, he fumbled. You got Kenyan Drake. Damian Williams is probably going to be a three headed monster.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, we don't celebrate.

[Mike Wright]

You mean monster.

[Jason Moore]

We don't celebrate injuries here and certainly not this one. And so I won't say I told you so.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, you're a, you're an astute man.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I mean, what is there to say? A healthy one point I got out of Arian Foster. He killed me. This week. Mike Florio reports Brandon Marshall has an MCL injury. This is the Marshall miracle we saw on Thursday where he went down. Everybody thought he was done, then he played some more. Now you're talking MCL injury. I remember Larry Fitzgerald had an MCL injury and took him a little bit of time to come back. Marshall was walking fine, but I know he did not come to practice today. You simply have to monitor this situation this week. Now, the nice thing is is Marshall gets 10 days because he played on Thursday. So he has more time than normal to get healthy. I would expect him to go. But we will need to update you on what's going on.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, if it was someone else, I mean, this is one of those situations where it really comes down to the person, their pain tolerance, their willingness to work through things. You know, an Eric Decker, a Brandon Marshall. I expect them to be back out there.

[Mike Wright]

Bills have fired offensive coordinator Greg Roman. I would like to be hired for 2.5 million a year and then fired and paid that money anyways. So I don't have to work now. I don't have to work. I mean, I wouldn't want to work with Rex.

[Andy Holloway]

So the coaches get paid that, but the players, if you cut a player, they're like, yeah, I'm not, I'm not paying you anymore.

[Mike Wright]

Well, in this situation, Greg Roman was the highest paid offensive coordinator that's in the league.

[Jason Moore]

That's unconscionable that.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, from a 30 something offense to like number nine last year or something like that and now he's the scapegoat for. Look, they're going to start. Oh, and for probably, I mean, this is a team I, you know, they, their next two matchups. I know they have the Patriots in week four.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Who do they have this week? The Cardinals. Right. I think they have the Cardinals this week.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm pulling it up.

[Mike Wright]

Yep.

[Andy Holloway]

In Buffalo.

[Mike Wright]

In Buffalo. The Cardinal. Look, this is, I mean, Rex is on his way out. Not a good situation in Buffalo. So that's all there is to say about that.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I would not, I would not want to come in for the temporary offensive coordinator job in Buffalo.

[Mike Wright]

All right, let's make it. Let's turn to the positive side of things.

[Jason Moore]

This week's fantasy stud muffins.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Fantasy stud muffins. From week number two, the guys that avoided injury and played well, happy to say Matt Ryan delivered 26 for 34. 396, three touchdowns came away with the win. Matt Ryan delivered Philip Rivers. I Don't need no Keenan Allen.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Very surprising performance there from Rivers.

[Mike Wright]

Big time game from Rivers. Cam Newton had a huge game. 24 for 43, 53 and 4.

[Andy Holloway]

Cam Newton owes for fantasy owners. I should say you owe a big thank you to San Francisco for somehow staying in that game and letting Cam Newton produce.

[Mike Wright]

You saw that last year times with Carolina.

[Jason Moore]

They would get up big and then they just kind of go to sleep because they dominated so easily. They're like, whatever. You can't do anything. And they. They come back in the game, they still don't lose. But that's so great for fantasy. If they can keep that up, that'd be really good. Start your Carolina.

[Mike Wright]

It's a good stat padding strategy by Cam Newton.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, yeah. Very, very wise.

[Mike Wright]

What else is going on? What other quarterbacks delivered in week number two?

[Jason Moore]

Obviously, we had Tyrod Taylor bounce back late on Thursday, but the guy that I. That I liked seeing a lot of the most was Derek Carr against Atlanta. This is two weeks in a row now where Atlanta's secondary has been kind of carved up. I wasn't sure whether Derek Carr was going to get the touchdowns through the air or whether they were going to run them in, but he had 300 yards and three touchdowns. That's great.

[Mike Wright]

And then you had Carson Palmer 18 for 31, 308 and three touchdowns. Larry Fitzgerald looking like he's 22.

[Andy Holloway]

Are you guys buying back into Tyrod?

[Jason Moore]

No.

[Andy Holloway]

Like he had 303.

[Mike Wright]

But they do want to pass more now.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's what I was going to say. With the new oc Allegedly, they want to pass a little bit more, but Tyrod's almost his entire production, you know, came on two busted plays.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I'm not buying in. I have so many other options at quarterback.

[Jason Moore]

It's going to always be a matchup.

[Mike Wright]

I don't need to. All right, let's talk about some wide receivers that delivered the goods. We talked about the Benjamins. Travis Benjamin and Kelvin Benjamin. Two touchdowns apiece, six for 115 from Travis. He sure benefited from the. He seemed to be the main beneficiary. Although Tyrell Williams played well, too.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I think that there were several beneficiaries in this game, but Travis Benjamin played the part, played it well.

[Mike Wright]

Jacksonville, Maine.

[Jason Moore]

Wow. How's Gus? Bus, you got a flat tire over there. Oh, yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, hold on, hold on, America. Brace yourself. Andy's in pain.

[Mike Wright]

Gus, Gus, listen, we've been through a lot over the past few years, and I have stayed by your side. As though we were married. And now it is time for me to say goodbye.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, some paperwork being filed, Gus? Oh, no. He's taking the Gus Bradley picture off of the computer and putting it face down.

[Andy Holloway]

Face down.

[Mike Wright]

I don't know what to say other than you have good players and you can't win and you can't even compete. I'm disappointed. I'm hurt. This is a very long one and I, I am done with you. And it's been years and I'm done. Goodbye, Gus.

[Jason Moore]

Goodbye. Yeah, welcome. Good. Welcome to the right side now. That's, that's good. Let's see who else, who else? Let's get back happy. This is the saddest show after this weekends of football and he's going to be crying for a while. So I'll take over. How about this? How about the true beneficiary of Josh McCown taking over and that was rookie sensation Corey Coleman. Now he has someone that can get him the ball. 5 for 104 and two touchdowns. Had eight targets in the game.

[Mike Wright]

Great.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, we never. Coming into this year, Corey Coleman was one of the guys we had absolutely, you know, on another level of hype. But then Robert Griffin, the lacking, you know, of a passing game, you just, you had to down, downplay him. He wasn't going to get enough targets to be relevant. So now the news is wait and see if McCown is still healthy because obviously he got.

[Andy Holloway]

He's not going to be. Even if he plays next week, McCown is just going to take himself out of the game.

[Mike Wright]

It doesn't take long for McCown to go down. Eric Decker, is he a one, a wide receiver? I mean, he's played him 18 straight games with a touchdown or 80 yards. He's been a one. He was a one last year.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, at this point, do you have. Look, is he going to, is he going to be better than Brandon Marshall this year?

[Jason Moore]

No, but. But it's a legitimate question watching the game and how it's going. You see kind of Brandon Marshall, Quincy and Nunois is taking some of those targets away, but nothing is changing for Eric Decker. He is flying across the deep middle of that field, open enough and getting targets and in the red zone. He's an option. Eric Decker, you lit it up again. He'll light it up next week. Play him, start him from here on out. Until things change.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, every week. Every week.

[Jason Moore]

Now here's the originator. I believe this is the originator of the stay in the flames. It is. He is And I believe we can officially hop right in that fire. And that is Stefan Diggs, man, nine for 182 and a touchdown. He is the NFL league leader in yards right now at the wide receiver position from the Minnesota Vikings.

[Andy Holloway]

And he didn't make it into the actual stud muffins, but Sammy Biscuits, he looked fantastic. He looked fantastic in that, in that first game.

[Mike Wright]

Does Sam Shields matter? No, I said, does Sam Shields matter that much to that secondary?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, just like Jordy did to the, to the offense. I mean, it depends on the matchup, right? Like, if you're going up against a team that has a really, a number one weapon, then, yeah, you need your number one cover guy. I mean, think about the Cardinals if they lost Patrick Peterson. I mean, that would change everything on that defense. That's the same thing with Sam Shields right now.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. And who knows when Shields is back. Look, these are the guys we won't talk about tomorrow. So Stefan Diggs, rest of season, where do you see him? I mean, he's had two great weeks. He's clearly the number one. Showed. Showed the one thing I wanted to see, which was a connection with the new quarterback.

[Jason Moore]

I think Stefan Diggs going forward can be a wide receiver too. I think, you know, probably more of a low end wide receiver too. I don't expect him to continue leading the league. They're still, even without Adrian Peterson, a team that wants to run. He'll have his big weeks, but they're not all going to be. I mean, this was an incredible 182 yard game. He, he looks the part though. He is very, very good. The offense and the defense of the Vikings to me is what, what limits him from being able to be a wide receiver. One though, on any kind of regular basis.

[Mike Wright]

He reminded me of Antonio Brown in this game. Yeah, Route running, big plays, smart routes.

[Jason Moore]

Short routes that he can take longer.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, very impressive game. We Talked, you know, DeAndre Hopkins had a great game. Him and Will Fuller combine for 100 total yards each. Great, great matchup for, I mean, great situation for Oswalter to have those two guys on the outside.

[Jason Moore]

Look at the rookie wide receivers this week, man. Corey Coleman, Will Fuller, and you had Sterling Shepherd, 8 for 1. 17. He led the New York Giants in passing.

[Mike Wright]

Everyone's asking the question, does this mean Odell Beckham Jr. Can't do Odell Beckham Jr. Things anymore because of Cruz, who by the way played almost every snap and Sterling Shepard. Look, if you watch the game, Odell Beckham Jr. Still had a good game and he dropped a touchdown pass. I mean, he had a sideline touchdown pass that would have put the game away. He just dropped it. So, I mean, changes the whole hole.

[Jason Moore]

In the bottom of his bread basket.

[Mike Wright]

Hole in the bottom of the bread basket.

[Jason Moore]

It just snuck right through. But he would have had another great game. Who else here? Anybody else?

[Mike Wright]

Marvin Jones had a monstrous game.

[Andy Holloway]

I think Marvin Jones is interesting because Golden Tate, Golden Tate was the yin to the yang here.

[Jason Moore]

I was not watching this game live, the Lions game, because, you know, you just can't catch every game live. And I kept looking on my computer and on my phone for news as to what happened to Golden Tate, why he's injured, what his injury is.

[Andy Holloway]

He still got. Tate still targets.

[Jason Moore]

He wasn't injured.

[Andy Holloway]

No, no, he still got targets.

[Jason Moore]

So that's.

[Andy Holloway]

At least you can feel good about that. But as for now, looks like Marvin Jones has taken over as the alpha of that pass game.

[Mike Wright]

And Jarvis Landry, we were all very high on him this week. 10 for 137. Big game.

[Andy Holloway]

Game flow sure helped out the Miami Dolphins offense for fantasy purposes.

[Mike Wright]

Game flow, getting flow. Just the fact they had to pass and they lost.

[Andy Holloway]

Aaron Foster Garoppolo win took the Patriots up huge. Garoppolo goes down. So the Patriots offense starts to turtle and just absolutely feed LeGarrett blunt and that allowed. That allowed the Dolphins to climb back in.

[Mike Wright]

All right, running backs that blew up this week. We already talked about. Matt Forte had a monster game workhorse back. We don't need to discuss him anymore. D'Angelo Williams doing D'Angelo Williams things. Always finds his way into the end zone when he has a premier role and had only 32 carries.

[Jason Moore]

32 carries, man, that seems decent.

[Mike Wright]

We're going to talk about Melvin Gordon in just a minute, so I will not discuss him in this segment, but he will get some airtime, trust me. LeGarrett Blunt, 29 for 123 and one.

[Jason Moore]

Mike start of the week.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I was going to say great start there. Latavius Murray had a touchdown again, but very limited workload. Eight carries in this game. He is a stud muffin for the week and he is a question mark for the next few weeks.

[Jason Moore]

He's a slight concern in the sense that, you know, you. The thing that made Latavius Murray great last year was his incredible share of both the running game and the passing game.

[Andy Holloway]

It wasn't a share. It was a full stranglehold on the rushing.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, now there was him. They're getting plenty of Other guys, Rashad and Washington involved in that running game, he still led the charge. And because there was a high scoring, you know, down game, there wasn't a whole lot of rushing attempts in general. And he was very involved in the passing game. 6 for 44. You know who else was involved in the passing game?

[Mike Wright]

Oh, I love it. Demarco Murray.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, demarco Murray was for sure. He had a great game.

[Mike Wright]

We'll get back to your guy in just a sec. Let's talk DeMarco real quick. DeMarco 7 for 56 through the air, 12 for 89 on the ground. Integral part of that offense. Now, Jason wanted to talk about Gio Bernard.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. He got nine receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown. That is a great game from a.

[Mike Wright]

Wide receiver because A.J. green was like, I don't want any. You can, you can have them. Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

A.J. green, he stinks. Antonio Brown, he stinks. What happened this week?

[Mike Wright]

It's a divisional game, man. Yeah, it's a divisional game. And it, you know, here's what I, what I see when I see A.J. green and Antonio Brown have the games they do. Here's all I think. I'm so jealous of the owner they got to play against him this week because nine times out of ten you get just destroyed by them. And this week that person got lucky enough to not play a real A.J. green or a real Antonio Brown. C.J. anderson looked great again. 20 for 74 and a touchdown. 3 for 19 through the air. Very consistent. Solid week.

[Andy Holloway]

Yep.

[Mike Wright]

Anybody else want to talk about at the running back position? I think that's any. Are you very confident with DeMarco as a RB1?

[Andy Holloway]

I'm very confident with him as a 2. The actual game, his. His final line on the ground was 12 for 89. It was really bad.

[Jason Moore]

He had a long terrible to start.

[Andy Holloway]

And then he busted off a huge run which fixed his.

[Jason Moore]

I think he had a seven yard run, but every other. His 11, I think he was 11 for 22, which is terrible. While at the same time Derek Henry. Henry was involved in the running game average. It averaged 4.44 yards per carry and had just a few less carries than DeMarco Murray. Now, DeMarco Murray's involvement in the passing game is what, you know, lets me be confident in him going forward. But I will say Henry is a good. Right now is the type of time that I would. I would maybe look at trying to buy Derek Henry.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Tight ends that produced this week, you had Martell's been and actually get targeted in the passing game. Five for 114 and a touchdown on six targets.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's big boy game.

[Mike Wright]

Big boy game. Not a lot of people probably started him because he was in there blocking last week and didn't give us the gronk type of game that we hope for Greg Olson. Hello. Eight targets. Had a 78 yard touchdown, five for 122 and a touchdown. Monster game for Greg Olson. Love to see that involvement.

[Jason Moore]

Dennis Pitta, the one hit. Is it one?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, the Dennis. Dennis Pitta the one hip quitter. He is back.

[Jason Moore]

Wow. He is back nine for 102 from the tight end position. Obviously Joe Flacco looked to him often in that game. It's interesting to see this. And going forward, he's just going to be a guy you got to keep on the radar. And if this happens again.

[Mike Wright]

But if you had Kobe Fleener pick him up, would you drop Fleener and pick up Dennis Pitta?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know if I would drop Fleener yet.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, you push comes to shove here.

[Jason Moore]

Guys, for Fleener or for Pitta, I probably wouldn't. But I do think that there are guys on the waiver right now that I would do that for. I would probably do that for Jacob. Tammy. Jacob. Tammy might not be in our stud muffins, but that's two weeks in a row where he has been incredibly involved.

[Andy Holloway]

He is in fact in the stud muffins 5 for 75 and hushed him.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, I missed him.

[Andy Holloway]

Monster game.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And he's definitely on waivers.

[Mike Wright]

Delaney Walker had a great game. 683 and a touchdown. And Vance McDonald in this had a great play. He had one play, one for 75 and a touchdown, touchdowns in two straight weeks. And I hate this type of a situation because I don't want that guy. I don't want a guy who gets two targets as my tight end. I don't care if occasionally gets these long plays. He's not going to do it every game. So I don't want him.

[Andy Holloway]

I agree.

[Mike Wright]

I'll take any other, any other tight end that you know. I'll take Pitt over Vance McDonald, take Tammy.

[Jason Moore]

You might want to keep your, you know, on the radar as well. Jack Doyle. We should keep him on the radar because he was involved again for the Colts. And so, you know, that week one you're just not sure. Is this like. Oh, the plays just happen to be there.

[Mike Wright]

So just Jack Doyle's involvement kills the Dwayne Allen?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Upside.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, it kills the.

[Jason Moore]

I love Michael Keaton.

[Andy Holloway]

It kills Dwayne Allen. And it also takes care of whatever activities that Jack Doyle has to take care of that in the Tom Clancy novels that he has in.

[Mike Wright]

Right. All right. Some other honorable mentions. Matt Jones had an okay game, 13 for 61 and a touchdown. Tevin Coleman, 12 for 46 and a touchdown. He saw the field quite a bit. Devonta Freeman and him are sharing scaring owners of Devonta Freeman.

[Andy Holloway]

You know who didn't get a target? Devonta Freeman.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, that is inexplicable. That's what changes. That gives him the baseline he used to have. So I don't know what to think about that. We're going to move on.

[Jason Moore]

Raising Canes Rising stars of the week.

[Mike Wright]

All right. It's time for our Raising Canes Rising stars of the week.

[Jason Moore]

Delicious.

[Mike Wright]

Let's get delicious. All right. Melvin Gordon. I said I'd talk about him later on. He's my rising star of the week. Melvin Gordon, 24 carries for 102 yards. If you listen to Philip Rivers talk about Melvin Gordon, he says all the right things. He says he's, he's a different player this year, that he is coming on, that he's running hard. You see it on the field. And now you have this opportunity with Woodhead being out, you're going to see past targets to Melvin Gordon. He scored in a couple weeks, has that off his back. I love what I'm seeing from Melvin Gordon. I think he has a really good chance if he stays healthy, which is a giant fantasy question mark these days of staying in the, in the running back one category.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, the Danny Wood had injury and this wasn't. We don't, we don't know how long Woodhead is out. There was some, there was a glimmer of positive news breaking out there on Woodhead.

[Mike Wright]

This was a make or break week for me with Melvin Gordon too. I wanted to see production fantasy wise, not just, you know, last week I think he had 60 something yards in the two touchdowns. Show me something else. And he did on the field. And with, you know, Tyrell Williams and Antonio Gates and Travis Benjamin, Philip Rivers has enough weapons outside of Kenan Allen to keep the offense moving. And that changes the equation for me with Melvin Gordon. So he's my rising star of the week.

[Jason Moore]

All right. My race of canes rising star of the week is Kelvin Benjamin. We said it was all about the Benjamins, but the reason that he is rising for me, one is because coming into the year, you know, I was pretty low on Kelvin Benjamin, relatively speaking. I mean, you know I wasn't sure whether he was going to bounce back to that rookie form. Completely different offense a whole year later. It's clear now without a shadow of a doubt that he is the number one target. He is matchup proof. He is a red zone weapon. And Calvin Benjamin, I can't imagine him not being a wide receiver one at the end of the year under any circumstance, barring injury. He is too involved and too big. I mean, just flat out, he's just too big. When you've got a cannon like Cam Newton that can just rocket the ball in here, where you're boxing out, there's just no way to. It's basically like Gronk, right? It's like, it's kind of like Gronk and Tom Brady. When you get down near the end zone, if you've got a quarterback that can get it to you where the defender's not because you've got a big body, it's just like an auto touchdown.

[Mike Wright]

I just love his competitive, like the competitive catches that he makes. He doesn't lose the ball in those. He may drop the occasional outside throw, wide open throw. Right. But if he's in, look, he's not going to lose the ball in a hit. He's enormous.

[Jason Moore]

It's fun watching him play too. I just love watching big guys beat up on these little corners.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he's a big boy. So Kelvin Benjamin's your rising star, all right.

[Andy Holloway]

Certainly my guy. I'm going with Stefan Diggs. Look, by now, for me at least, I am completely bought in. I didn't know what to do with Stefan Diggs over this offseason. Like we talked about, he was the originator of the stain. The flames of. He went full. He was heating up and then he was on fire. He had a four game stretch where he was unbelievable and then he completely fell into the background and did almost nothing. I believe he had one or two great games after that. So I just, I didn't know what to do with him. Coming into the draft with Teddy Bridgewater as his quarterback. Could Bridgewater take that step? And did it matter? Well.

[Jason Moore]

And would Laquan Treadwell? Sure.

[Andy Holloway]

And they spent a first run pick on a receiver. You still had Charles Johnson peeking his head out of the bushes. But Stefan Diggs. I missed. I missed on Stefan Diggs. And I am, I am here to say that I'm, I'm fully on board.

[Mike Wright]

Let's, let's test that.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, okay, fine.

[Mike Wright]

Diggs or Michael Floyd, rest of season.

[Andy Holloway]

I think I'm going to Take Diggs.

[Jason Moore]

I would take Diggs there.

[Mike Wright]

Von Diggs or Alan Hearns rest of.

[Andy Holloway]

The season I'll take Dig.

[Jason Moore]

He's Diggs is the number one.

[Andy Holloway]

Number one guy.

[Mike Wright]

Stefan Diggs or Michael Crabtree?

[Andy Holloway]

Ooh, crab people. That one. That's very tough. I'll probably still go with Diggs. I'm going to take the number one.

[Mike Wright]

Last one here. Kelvin Benjamin or Stefan Diggs rest of.

[Andy Holloway]

Season I'll take Kelvin Benjamin in that situation. But for Stefan Diggs, like Jason had said, he's leading the league in passing yards. That's, that's with Sammy Biscuits coming in with two weeks of preparation.

[Mike Wright]

What is losing Peterson do?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think it changes a whole bunch for that offense. Peterson, I mean I know he pulls the defense up and to my eyes what was really unfortunate for Peterson is I always talk about him as he's a second half guy and the chunk plays were starting to come. The defense was starting to unravel for Peterson right before the injury. So that was very unfortunate. But I think Stefan Diggs, there are people who are smarter than I who talked about the Sam Bradford. He's such a better fit for what they do in Minnesota than what they did what he did in Philadelphia. And he was solid the second half of Philadelphia. Once he finally got in the system, he was good. So now if he's in a system that is better suited for what he can do. Look, a division, division game like we talked about. We saw Antonio Brown and AJ Green soil their pants for fantasy purposes. You have Sam Bradford with no time to get ready comes in and Stefan Diggs connection with him just goes ham.

[Mike Wright]

All right, Stefan Diggs, Melvin Gordon, Kelvin Benjamin. Those were our raising canes rising stars of the week. Remember game day tastes better with raising cane's tailgates full of fresh 24 hour marinated hand battered chicken fingers and fresh brewed sweet tea. Visit raising canes.com to find your nearest location and as Mike always says, always.

[Andy Holloway]

Always get extra sauce.

[Jason Moore]

Pooped in his big boy pants.

[Mike Wright]

So many big boy pants to be pooped in this week.

[Andy Holloway]

Let's find out who we are actually concerned about.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, that's. Let's. We got to get through these because we're already at the 52 minute mark. But let's, let's skip guys that we're not long term concerned about. All right. Andrew Luck.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm not long term concerned. We saw Robert Turbin snatch away a touchdown from him.

[Mike Wright]

Not concerned. Do you bench every wide receiver against that Denver defense?

[Jason Moore]

Most of the time.

[Mike Wright]

I think most of the times you do. They've given up 12 receptions this year to wide receivers.

[Jason Moore]

Look.

[Mike Wright]

Wow.

[Jason Moore]

Last year, I know Antonio Brown went off on them. No one else did. I think, like the whole season, I'm benching everyone against them unless he's Antonio.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Russell Wilson. No touchdown.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm concerned if the wide receivers are beat up and that ankle is still not right. I'm concerned.

[Jason Moore]

I think that it is dependent upon the health of the two wide receivers. So I am to be determined.

[Mike Wright]

Are you. If you're Russell Wilson, owner, do you just.

[Jason Moore]

You just hold.

[Mike Wright]

You just play well. You roster two quarterbacks?

[Jason Moore]

Yes, if I roster two quarterbacks. If the wide receivers aren't healthy, if the wide receivers are fine, I start Russell Wilson next week.

[Mike Wright]

Jameis Winston. Oh, you're wet.

[Jason Moore]

Splash.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, Jamis. One touchdown, four picks.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, you won't.

[Mike Wright]

He doesn't. He doesn't even have big boy pants. You guys wanted to give him big boy pants last week. I said, come on.

[Jason Moore]

He was my streamer. And here's what I thought would happen. I thought that he would throw three bomb touchdowns right over Brandon Williams head. But you want to know what changed? Brandon Williams didn't play football this week. They brought in a guy off the street who could actually play two picks for Cooper, and he got two picks and all of a sudden the Cardinals.

[Mike Wright]

D. So what you're saying is Winston threw two picks to a guy off the street.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Who is. Who is 10 times better than rookie Brandon Williams at this point in his career.

[Andy Holloway]

James Winston was trying to set up the perfect game script for fantasy. But then he did not know. He did not follow through.

[Jason Moore]

I know. I kept. I was like. I was fine with those early picks because I'm like, great, let the Cardinals get up.

[Mike Wright]

The difference between great quarterbacks and okay, quarterbacks is great ones do it every week and okay ones dominate for fantasy every other week. Jameis Winston's in the second category.

[Jason Moore]

It's for now.

[Mike Wright]

He could have got. Look, he had his opportunities.

[Andy Holloway]

He failed.

[Mike Wright]

Running backs, look, it's hard to say. They pooped their pants when they got injured. Like Abdullah and Rawls and Martin and Woodhead, who did poop their pants for you. But, well, they. They were hurt. So, you know, long term. You're gonna have to follow us. Listen to the show. We'll tell you what's going on with those guys injury wise. Let's talk about the guys that were healthy. Carlos Hyde.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

14.

[Andy Holloway]

You knew it was going to be.

[Jason Moore]

A tough yeah, he was. He was not startable for me this week anyways.

[Mike Wright]

The guy that was, quote, I was unhappy with how I played.

[Jason Moore]

I guess it's better than him being happy with how he played. The guy that I think pooped his pants the biggest because of the matchup, the opportunity and the expectations was Rashad Jennings.

[Mike Wright]

Rashad, I was super disappointed.

[Jason Moore]

I thought for sure Rashad Jennings was borderline RB1 for the week. For the week against the New Orleans Saints and he gets 13 for 27. Did you know that there were 14 carries given to Shane Vereen in this game on the ground?

[Andy Holloway]

I was going to throw out the. Like I talked about at the beginning of. He was. Some people are reporting he was.

[Mike Wright]

His hand is wrapped.

[Andy Holloway]

He was confirmed with a cast, which would explain very much, not the inefficiency, the workload, but why Shane Vereen was getting everything at the end.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Todd Gurley, you look. He faced The Seattle defense 19 for 51. Definitely flashed at times. Are you concerned with Todd Gurley?

[Andy Holloway]

I'm concerned that he's not matchup proof until he has a quarterback that can actually scare a defense.

[Mike Wright]

Well said. Jeremy Hill, 11 for 22, including some goal line stuffages.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Not a good game.

[Jason Moore]

No, he stinks. And here's what I mean. No, here's what I mean by Jeremy Hill stinking. I'm not saying that he's not a good football player. I think he's an exceptional goal line player in most situations. But he stinks for fantasy football because I'm never confident. In fact, I am actually confident that if he doesn't get a touchdown, he's not going to do anything for my fantasy team. He gets the ball and he's running for, you know, two yards of carry right now. That's not going to get it done.

[Mike Wright]

How does that make you feel, Mike?

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, terrible. I wanted him to be good again.

[Jason Moore]

But I drafted him in our league of record. I took him over Jonathan Stewart. I regret that now. Even with Stewart's current injury, TJ Eldon.

[Mike Wright]

Had every opportunity this week. Now, Game Flow did not do him any favors. They got blitzed by the San Diego Chargers.

[Jason Moore]

But Yelden Flow sure did him a favor. He got eight catches.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Behind the line of scrimmage for like 10 yards total.

[Jason Moore]

I've never seen so bad a passing line.

[Mike Wright]

Embarrassing.

[Andy Holloway]

If I can get.

[Mike Wright]

Yelden did nothing to separate on any play from anyone. Dominant defensive performance by Verrett and the san Diego Chargers DBs. Just a blowout. You already heard me apologize or not apologize, break up with Gus Bradley.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, if I can buy Chris Ivory for very, very cheap, I am. I am going to do it.

[Jason Moore]

I am completely on board with that, Mike. Because if you are the Jags and something is wrong, you need a scapegoat. You need to say, what's wrong with our team? Well, we got no running game. They literally, over two games, have not been able to run the ball at all. If Chris Ivory comes out and runs well in week three, and we don't know exactly what he's been dealing with, but it's been called an illness, which I prefer than a knee injury or a hamstring problem.

[Andy Holloway]

I've heard that he was. He was trending up. He just wasn't ready to play.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

And so my point is, if he comes in and runs well in week three, now, you know the savior is here. They paid him the money, he's here. He's going to get the work, he's going to get the goal line, and they're going to say that's what the ailment was. That's the fix. So I agree. Look for Ivory on the cheap right now.

[Mike Wright]

All right, let's blitz these. The wide receivers. Guys. Long term concern.

[Andy Holloway]

John Brown, long term, no, but you can't. You can't play him until he starts showing up.

[Mike Wright]

I have major long term concern with John Brown this year.

[Jason Moore]

Jaron Brown playing well hurts him and it hurts my heart.

[Mike Wright]

Golden Tate, two for 13 on nine targets.

[Jason Moore]

I still do not have long term concerns with Golden Tate, but goodness gracious, you sucked. You sucked so hard this week.

[Mike Wright]

Dante Moncrie, injured.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean, long term, it depends on.

[Mike Wright]

The injury, but Sammy Watkins?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I think long term because the.

[Andy Holloway]

Lingering foot, I don't know.

[Mike Wright]

I might be buying Watkins. I might be buying Watkins.

[Andy Holloway]

I go back and forth of trying to buy Watkins for the cheap and holding in, hoping that by the second half he starts. Starts cooking like he did last year.

[Mike Wright]

Doug Baldwin, I'm not concerned.

[Jason Moore]

No concerns whatsoever.

[Mike Wright]

AJ Green, 2 for 38. Not concerned. Emmanuel Sanders had a disappointing game and a good matchup where the Colts had lost five DBs, but Sanders only 3 for 39 on eight targets.

[Jason Moore]

I was watching the beginning of this game and I'm not sure that this is exactly accurate. This is how I remember it. I feel like all three of those receptions were first quarter, the beginning of the game. I was like, oh, Emmanuel Sanders looks great. I have no idea how he ended up with this line.

[Mike Wright]

All right, Allen Robinson, three for 54 on five targets. Now, he played Verrett.

[Andy Holloway]

He said he's opened with two tough matches. We talked about that. When Alan Robinson is matched up against an exceptional db, he doesn't.

[Mike Wright]

Splits aren't as good.

[Andy Holloway]

He doesn't perform.

[Mike Wright]

The targets weren't there either.

[Andy Holloway]

No, they weren't.

[Jason Moore]

Part of that was the maybe a lack of separation. He is a guy I would go target right now.

[Mike Wright]

All right, lastly, the four tight ends I want to mention. Gary Barnage, Kobe Fleener, Travis Kelsey, Dwayne Allen, all of them did not score. They all had under 40 yards receiving. They disappointed their owners. Kobe Fleener, yet again, Gary Barnage. Okay, he caught a few passes this time, but nothing impressive. Who are you most worried about out of the bunch? Who are you least worried about?

[Jason Moore]

I'm most worried out of the bunch about Kobe Fleener. Right now. I think he's completely droppable.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, man.

[Jason Moore]

I still think if you go back to my preseason takes. I know I talked about him a lot. I know. Look, he is one of my guys, but I even said in that he might get off to a slow start and I want to pick him up off of waivers. I think in week five or six, when they start getting that connection together, I'm going to be back on him. But right now, drop him. That's the thing with the tight end position.

[Andy Holloway]

He did.

[Jason Moore]

You don't need to have loyalty to these tight ends for fantasy. You drop them, you pick him up. Guy I'm least concerned with is Travis Kelsey. He's a beast. He'll be fine.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I'm concerned about Dwayne Allen giving you much of anything this year, too.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, Allen's a. I mean, you took him super late in the draft and you knew that if he's a flyer, if he doesn't get a touchdown, he's going to let you down.

[Mike Wright]

All right, guys, real quick. Give me a winner for tonight's game. Who wins the game between the Eagles and the Bears.

[Jason Moore]

The Bears.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm gonna take the Eagles.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I'm gonna take the Eagles as well. All right, that's it, guys.

[Andy Holloway]

Check out fantasyjocks.com for all your trophy needs with the promo code.

[Mike Wright]

Footballers, huge waiver show tomorrow. Don't miss it.

[Jason Moore]

Thank you for listening to another episode of the Fantasy Footballers podcast. Join our fantasy football community on jointhefoot.com and follow us on Twitter the FFBall.