Fantasy Football Podcast 2016 - Wk 9 Studs, Duds, Rising Stars, Updates

Summary

Fantasy Footballers Podcast – Week 9 (2016) Summary

Release Date: November 7, 2016

The Fantasy Footballers hosts—Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, and Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright—delve deep into Week 9 of the NFL season, providing expert analysis on studs, duds, rising stars, and essential updates to help fantasy managers optimize their lineups.

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1. Opening Remarks and Giveaway Announcement

• Andy Holloway kicks off the episode by announcing the Foot Clan Giveaway with exciting prizes, including signed jerseys, championship belts, bobbleheads, and gift cards. [00:00]

2. Overview of the Week's Fantasy Landscape

• The hosts briefly discuss the absence of significant injuries over the weekend, setting a calm stage for the week's analysis. [01:15]
• Mike Wright humorously references a "Colin Kaepernick type of weekend," indicating a relatively uneventful period. [01:25]

3. Monday Night Football Preview and Upcoming Episodes

• The trio outlines their plans, mentioning the special "Megalodon" episode scheduled for November 23rd, promising an extensive and engaging discussion. [02:50]

4. Listener Question: Bench Strategy When Leading Finely

• A listener, Brian Canoe, asks whether it's advisable to bench Monday Night Football players when leading by a narrow margin, especially if the opponent's score is set.

  Andy Holloway advises against benching unless there's a high risk of negative points, emphasizing the low probability of stat corrections impacting the game significantly. [04:14]

  Jason Moore concurs, highlighting that defensive players often face negative scoring and suggests benching defenses if leading by more than a point. [05:26]

  "If I'm up by more than a point, I would always bench my defense because defenses go negative all the time." – Jason Moore [06:03]

5. Social Media and Verification Banter

• The hosts engage in light-hearted banter about Twitter verification, emphasizing its importance for credibility and community engagement. They joke about verifying each other and the challenges faced in getting verified accounts. [07:04 - 08:23]

6. Weekly Rewind: Key Player News and Updates

• Jeremy Macklin's groin injury leads to him being downgraded in fantasy rankings, cautioning managers against relying on his performance this week. [09:52 - 10:24]
• Travis Kelce faces potential suspension after being ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct, adding uncertainty to his availability. [10:24 - 11:02]
• Derek Henry's calf injury during warm-ups raises concerns about his availability and future performance. [11:44 - 12:44]
• Victor Cruz and Sterling Shepard's injury updates are discussed, with implications for their teams and fantasy value. [14:02 - 14:16]

7. Stud Muffins and Top Performers

• Matthew Ryan, Marcus Mariota, Aaron Rodgers, and Drew Brees are highlighted for their strong performances this week. [14:21 - 14:47]

• Eli Manning and Dak Prescott emerge as significant stud muffins, with Prescott notably securing three touchdowns despite tough matchups. [15:18 - 16:32]

  "Dak Prescott had three touchdowns and never slowed down, even securing an impressive lead." – Jason Moore [15:26]

• Melvin Gordon is praised for his resurgence, now considered a top-tier running back with versatile capabilities. [22:47 - 23:20]

• Latavius Murray and Jay Ajayi also receive commendations for their pivotal roles in their respective teams' victories. [23:49 - 26:14]

  "Jay Ajayi is legit. He's got a good upcoming schedule and continues to demonstrate his value." – Jason Moore [26:14]

8. Duds and Underperformers

• Mark Ingram struggles with consistency, prompting some managers to consider benching options. [25:05 - 25:35]
• Eli Manning's erratic performance and Andrew Luck's turnovers are highlighted as significant concerns. [17:25 - 17:46]
• Cam Newton faces criticism for inconsistent fantasy output, leading to debates about his long-term viability. [46:34 - 47:40]

9. Rising Stars of the Week

• Paul Perkins and Derek Sprouls are identified as rising stars with increased involvement and potential future value. [40:11 - 42:34]

  Andy Holloway emphasizes Perkins' rising snap percentage and potential for more explosive plays:

  "Paul Perkins is getting more involved and is an explosive option that fantasy managers should keep an eye on." [40:20]

• Michael Thomas is lauded as a must-play weekly wide receiver, showing consistent performance and leading the Saints in receptions and touchdowns. [43:26 - 45:46]

  "Michael Thomas is filling the role of the Saints' leading pass catcher and is a weekly must-play." – Jason Moore [43:38]

10. Tight Ends and Other Positions

• Jason Whitten and Antonio Gates receive positive mentions for their touchdown contributions despite some inconsistencies. [37:34 - 38:28]
• Golden Tate and Jordy Nelson's performances are scrutinized, with debates on their current and future fantasy value. [32:30 - 34:12]

11. Rising Canes Rising Stars of the Week

• Mike Wright selects Darren Sprouls as his rising star, noting his high snap percentage and effectiveness.

• Andy Holloway focuses on Paul Perkins, praising his increased involvement and potential as the Giants shift their running back rotation.

• Jason Moore champions Michael Thomas, highlighting his role as the Saints' leading wide receiver and his favorable playoff schedule.

  "Michael Thomas is leading the Saints in receptions and touchdowns, making him a consistent and valuable asset." – Jason Moore [43:26]

12. Listener Questions and Mailbag

• Buffalo Running Back Decision: Advice to start McCoy over Gillespie if McCoy is active, given his consistent performance. [56:31]

  "If McCoy is active, that's who you play." – Andy Holloway [57:35]

• Trade Evaluation: Managers consider trading Alan Robinson for Michael Thomas to prepare for playoff matchups. Both Andy Holloway and Jason Moore recommend making the trade, valuing Thomas's consistency and future potential over Robinson's uncertain schedule. [57:43 - 57:52]

  "I would do it. I'd rather have Michael Thomas." – Jason Moore [57:52]

• Eifert’s Fantasy Value: A listener posits whether to sell Alan Robinson amidst doubts. The hosts agree that trading might be beneficial, considering Robinson's inconsistent performance. [58:03 - 58:18]

• Trading Strategy: A listener inquires about trading Jay Ajayi and Julian Edelman for Doug Martin and DeAndre Hopkins. The hosts advise against it, citing Martin's ongoing hamstring issues and uncertainty. [59:06 - 59:17]

13. Strategic Insights and Final Thoughts

• The hosts discuss the importance of adapting strategies based on player performance trends and upcoming matchups.
• Emphasis is placed on valuing players with favorable playoff schedules and consistent performances over those with sporadic or injury-prone histories.
• Mike Wright underscores the significance of Depth in fantasy lineups, encouraging managers to leverage rising stars and trade opportunistically.

14. Sponsor Mentions and Promotions

• Original Grain Watches: Highlighted for their unique handcrafted hardwood and stainless steel designs, offering a 15% discount at OriginalGrain.com/footballers. [19:25 - 20:27]

  "OriginalGrain.com footballers – 15% off the entire purchase." – Mike Wright [19:55]

• SeatGeek: Recommended for purchasing tickets to live events with a $20 rebate using promo code "footballers." [20:27 - 21:39]

15. Closing Remarks

• The episode wraps up with reminders to follow the hosts on Twitter and visit their website for more insights and community engagement. The hosts express gratitude to listeners and tease upcoming content for continued fantasy football dominance. [60:00 - 60:26]

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Notable Quotes:

• "If I'm up by more than a point, I would always bench my defense because defenses go negative all the time." – Jason Moore [06:03]
• "Michael Thomas is filling the role of the Saints' leading pass catcher and is a weekly must-play." – Jason Moore [43:38]
• "If McCoy is active, that's who you play." – Andy Holloway [57:35]

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This comprehensive summary captures the essence of the Fantasy Footballers' Week 9 episode, providing actionable insights, player evaluations, and strategic advice to elevate your fantasy football game. Whether you're navigating player injuries, assessing weekly performances, or contemplating trades, the Fantasy Footballers deliver the expertise you need to win your league.

Transcript

[Andy Holloway]

Hey, Foot Clan. I hope your weekend went very well. I hope you withstood a major victory. Before we start today's show, I want to send you over to jointhefoot.com we are doing the exclusive Foot Clan giveaway today. You can still get in on it. We're talking a signed Mark Ingram jersey. We're talking a fantasy football championship. Belt, bobbleheads, gift cards to our shop, gift cards to other places, sticker packs, Todd Gurley McFarlane. We are blowing the doors out this month with this giveaway that is jointhefoot.com.

[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]

Happy Monday, everybody. It is. It is Monday, November 7th. We are the Fantasy Footballers. And we're back. Yet another delightful episode. As the week gets started.

[Andy Holloway]

I hope everyone had a good weekend. It didn't seem. Didn't seem too crazy. Luckily there wasn't any catastrophic injuries that I can recall.

[Mike Wright]

No, just a normal Colin Kaepernick type of weekend. Just a normal Kaepernick doubling up on Andrew Lux points kind of weekend.

[Andy Holloway]

These things happen.

[Mike Wright]

Just little bin kind of weekend. No, there, you know, there were things that took place and we'll talk about them today. We've got fantasy rewind. All the news information you need to know are stud muffins. The weekend on the show. Today we'll preview the Monday night game. We have pooped in his big boy pants and the raising canes. Rising stars of the week. So it is jam packed.

[Jason Moore]

I got a good one. I got a good one for you this week.

[Mike Wright]

A good rising star.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, sir.

[Andy Holloway]

All right.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, sirs.

[Mike Wright]

Well, the turkey. The turkey will be rising. Does the turkey rise?

[Jason Moore]

The turkey does not rise.

[Mike Wright]

The bread rises.

[Jason Moore]

There you go.

[Mike Wright]

On Thanksgiving.

[Jason Moore]

So you're not. Can I just take a guess?

[Mike Wright]

I make a bread turkey.

[Jason Moore]

You're not making the Thanksgiving meal for your house.

[Mike Wright]

You know what? I'm specializing. I was trying to make a segue and it just didn't work.

[Andy Holloway]

The meat shrinks.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, Shrinkage.

[Andy Holloway]

Or is it they plump when you cook them?

[Mike Wright]

See, that's what I was going for Thursday and Friday. So Thanksgiving and Black Friday. We will not have a show. But Jason got his way.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, sir, I did.

[Mike Wright]

So we'll have a Megalodon episode.

[Jason Moore]

Megalodon. The day before Thanksgiving. It will be a monstrosity of an episode and you will never be able to finish it. It will be 17 hours long.

[Andy Holloway]

We need the IV.

[Mike Wright]

Don't sell it. Short, Jason. It's going to be even longer.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

So we have that coming up on Wednesday, the 24th, before the football on Thursday and the weekend and the Black Friday events and those type of things. So we'll have a big old episode and then we'll do 23rd. Is that what it is?

[Jason Moore]

I think the 24th, when is actually.

[Mike Wright]

Is it.

[Jason Moore]

I think so.

[Mike Wright]

One moment, please. Yes, it is.

[Jason Moore]

All right.

[Mike Wright]

The 23rd is when the Megalodon episode will take place. So I'm sure you're all happy about that. I thought I had other announcements, but I think that's all I got right now. So let's jump into the quick question from this one comes from Twitter. Onrobrian Canoe.

[Andy Holloway]

Brian.

[Mike Wright]

Close enough. If your team is leading by a point or two, is it good to. Is it a good strategy to bench your Monday Night Football players if your opponents score is set? So basically, right, whatever the scenario might be, maybe it's just your defense. Maybe you've got the Seattle defense tonight. You're up by a point. What do you just bench them?

[Andy Holloway]

Do you risk the negative points?

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

Which the probability of that is, you know, unlikely, especially for tonight, I would think Seattle at home. But then you are looking at another unlikely event of a stat correction if you're only up by a point.

[Mike Wright]

Maybe points if, if people don't know what you're talking about there, because I think a lot of players don't know about stat corrections.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure.

[Mike Wright]

So explain what takes place on a Wednesday or a Thursday during the week.

[Andy Holloway]

It's usually Wednesday or Thursday. The official stat keepers take their, their cloaks off. I mean, these people, this is a.

[Mike Wright]

Secret society, they go back through the.

[Andy Holloway]

Tape, they hold a members only meeting and they go through the tape, confirm that all the stats were correct. And usually what the most common one is things like defense. A defender is, oh, well, he got half a sack here. He actually had the full sack here. Those are the most common. But there's.

[Jason Moore]

There are times things get changed where it's like, oh, the pass was technically backwards, so it's not. Those are the big run. If that was a touchdown and it switches to, you lost something. Yeah. And then when do those especially happen.

[Mike Wright]

On espn, I believe they finalize on Thursday morning. And a lot of the times you'll see if you see one of those ones, even if it's not a touchdown, maybe you're in a PPR league and it changes from a carry, which might be worth nothing, or 0.1 points, to a reception that might be worth half a point or a full point. So. Well, here's the story. If I was. If I was up by less, by one or less, I doubt I would ever bench my player because I see corrections happen enough that are within a point. If I was up one and a half or two points, I would think about benching a defense for sure. If I was in a league where you can get negative points, if it.

[Jason Moore]

Was a defense, I would bench them. If I'm up by more than a point, I would always bench my defense. Because we see at least, you know, in a lot of league scoring systems, defenses go negative all the time. I got negative two from the mighty Denver Broncos this week. So you need to be careful with defenses. If it's any other player, any other position, I'm not worried about the single.

[Mike Wright]

Fumble and then get injured and then off the field.

[Jason Moore]

Right. I'm going to play them because tiebreakers still matter for playoffs. You need those points.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Total points scored is oftentimes exactly what separates two, seven and six teams from getting into the playoffs or things like that. So hopefully that's some good perspective for you. I'm sure some of you have that decision tonight. Yeah, I chose to play Steve Smith senior over CJ Pro Size. I believe you see how that works out tonight. So if you want to follow the show, do so on Twitter @ the FF Ballers. You can follow Jason @ Jason FFL. You can follow me at Andy Holloway.

[Jason Moore]

Just look for that blue check mark.

[Mike Wright]

And then you can follow Mike@ffhitman. You can find us on the web, the fantasy footballers.com Twitter.

[Andy Holloway]

Come on.

[Jason Moore]

I think we can. I think we can let the foot clan in this beautiful joke. So, so Mike has.

[Mike Wright]

I could barely contain myself.

[Jason Moore]

This is so great.

[Andy Holloway]

Foot of the group.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, you're the Twitter man.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm the king of Twitter of this group.

[Jason Moore]

We're all on Twitter.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, I have more followers, but I get what you're saying.

[Jason Moore]

Twitter is very, very important as well for fantasy football. It's not just a. Oh, it's a neat social media. You know, this weekend I had Carlos Hyde as my start of the week. When he was put out, I went on Twitter and let people know, like, hey, go pick up the one, Harris. It's not going to be Carlos Hyde, but we're all three on Twitter. But Twitter has always been Mike's cup of tea. It's his bag.

[Mike Wright]

Well, he does the periscope every week.

[Jason Moore]

You know, he does the most managing on our main account. And so that's Great. And so he has had a dream, he has had a long time dream of getting that from the beginning. Oh, from the beginning of getting that blue check mark that says you are verified. You are legit to Twitter.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. And to the world.

[Jason Moore]

And to the world. It's so important. Andy, can I ask you a question?

[Mike Wright]

Sure.

[Jason Moore]

Do you have a blue check mark?

[Mike Wright]

I do have a blue check mark.

[Jason Moore]

You're verified.

[Mike Wright]

I'm verified on Twitter.

[Jason Moore]

That's incredible.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. That's pretty cool. My little sister thought that was pretty special.

[Jason Moore]

That is pretty cool.

[Mike Wright]

She snapped.

[Jason Moore]

Do you have any questions for me, Andy?

[Mike Wright]

Oh, Jay. Are you verified on Twitter?

[Jason Moore]

Twitter is so stupid. I am verified. I've got that blue.

[Mike Wright]

How about you have the blue check mark?

[Jason Moore]

I think there's one more question to ask.

[Mike Wright]

Hey, Mike, Are you verified on Twitter?

[Andy Holloway]

Don't ask my account anything because you can't know that it's me. I'm just a big dummy and big loser.

[Jason Moore]

That was stupid.

[Mike Wright]

So. And I have trolled Mike pretty profoundly this weekend as my account had the. Had the blue check mark first. So I was trolling these guys. I changed my avatar to just a blue check mark on our Slack channel. It's been really. Now we've got some of the best.

[Jason Moore]

Now we got to do it on air. Thank you for the fun part of this.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. So let's get into the news.

[Jason Moore]

Weekly. Rewind.

[Mike Wright]

You doing okay, Mike? You got any other news? You don't have any breaking news for us, do you?

[Andy Holloway]

I'm looking at a barren wasteland of a Twitter account.

[Mike Wright]

You know, it's really made me think about the fact that all of this stuff that gets tweeted on that account might be false.

[Jason Moore]

Right. There's just Follow Andy and there's just.

[Mike Wright]

No way to know for sure that the news that breaks on there, these pictures of your family and stuff, is actually you. Scary stuff. It's a scary world out there. Are you electing your next president based on verification status or even allowed to vote?

[Andy Holloway]

Look.

[Mike Wright]

All right, Jeremy Macklin left Sunday's game in the opening drive with a groin injury, did not return. It was disconcerting to see the news that he was just barely declared active basically before the game. I moved him way down my rankings due to that news, as well as the news that he's Jeremy Macklin.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Which hasn't been good for him this year.

[Jason Moore]

Did as well, hopefully. If you've been listening, you know, we haven't been high on him. And also, if you've just been playing Fantasy football. You've seen that he has not been performing for fantasy purposes. I hope he was not in your lineup. If he was, my condolences on this.

[Mike Wright]

Bipocalypse in Incredible Lee. Fun to watch news. Travis Kelce was ejected for protesting a pass interference call, in which case he then the referee threw a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct and then he took his towel out and threw it directly back at him.

[Jason Moore]

It was what all of us.

[Mike Wright]

He'll be spending to do.

[Jason Moore]

He might be.

[Mike Wright]

He might be suspended.

[Jason Moore]

I don't think he will be. But I mean he got. He was just rung around the neck. Nobody calls it. So he's complaining to the ref over and over and over. The guy throws a flag at us. So he's like, I reject your flag. See, I throw my flag at you.

[Mike Wright]

They throw so many pass interference penalties now that I actually find myself like kind of esteeming like a sneaky pass interference that you get away with. Like, I thought that was a sneaky PI that both refs couldn't see. But Kelsey also, he wasn't too happy.

[Andy Holloway]

And I don't. He gave the. No, you're out of order.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he did. He did. So he's gonna have to face the consequences.

[Andy Holloway]

He's already apologized profusely on Twitter.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, well, good. Let's see Twitter.

[Jason Moore]

I would check and see if he's verified. I'll be. Let me get.

[Mike Wright]

I'm sure Kelsey's verified. Most people notoriety.

[Jason Moore]

Most people not.

[Mike Wright]

Derek Henry did not play a snap.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

In the Week 9 loss after injuring his calf during warm ups. The alert said it was a first half injury. I'm going to tell you this. Go ahead.

[Jason Moore]

Breaking news. Travis Kelsey is verified.

[Mike Wright]

Well, yeah, of course. And he has a beard too. So it proves that that's not what's holding Mike back. It's gonna be a tough day for Mike and week and maybe longer. We'll see. Maybe you can get verified on the show. All right. So this Derek Henry news, I was on Twitter a lot on Sunday morning and I was getting the same type of questions. It was a lot of dejuan Harris, a lot of Tim Hightower, a lot of do you have confidence in Mark Ingram And a lot of Derek Henry over X Because people wanted to know, can you roll them out there? And I mean this is not a toot toot. I'm just saying the advice that I gave was just that it feels like chasing the points this week. You had the kind of out of normal circumstances big game last week. Murray Came off with the toe injury. Henry's very, very talented. And I know we'll never know because he didn't take the field.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I was going to say, I just could not disagree more.

[Mike Wright]

The caution flag for me. I know you said Murray struggled in this game. Henry, you think would have had a big game. I don't know why you think Henry would have a bigger game than Murray, who's leading the entire league in running back points, but I can tell you. But go ahead.

[Jason Moore]

Because Murray and his injured toe that he's been, you know, practicing through showed up on the field this week. And it took a long time in that game before he got in the end zone and got his fancy points. He was fine by the end of the game, but as you watch the game, you go, man, he just looks a little bit slower. And the matchup was still juicy for running back, so I think if Derek Henry was there, he would have done well. Hopefully you were on Twitter and saw the news that he was. He got injured during warm ups, so you kind of had. If you were right last second, you had the opportunity to save yourself and pull him out.

[Mike Wright]

So he'll have an MRI this week on the calf. We'll have to learn more about the injury and how long it'll keep him out or sidelined. Alan Hearn is being evaluated for a concussion in the after the Week 9 game, so pay attention to that. And then Travis Benjamin exited with a knee injury. I, you know, I don't think we were telling anybody to start Benjamin or Tyrell Williams, to be honest. Tyrell got in the end zone though, this week and Benjamin went off the field. But this is what I was worried about. I didn't know which guy would be on the field or stay there.

[Andy Holloway]

Victor Cruz is also dealing with an injury which you saw Shepard kind of get loose a little bit towards the second half. He scored. If Victor Cruz is going to miss time, then Shepard move him out. If Sterling shepherd gets a little bump up.

[Mike Wright]

All right, let's get into the big. The big performers this week.

[Jason Moore]

This week's fantasy stud muffins.

[Mike Wright]

All right, we know about Matt Ryan had the great Thursday night game. Marcus Mariota put together another fantastic fantasy performance. 27 for 43 for 313 and three. He had, I believe, two turnovers that really cost him this game.

[Jason Moore]

I was gonna say he threw even.

[Mike Wright]

Two more touchdowns to the other team.

[Jason Moore]

To the other team.

[Mike Wright]

Well, fumbled one, right?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

So maybe at three turnovers. Mario had a big game for fantasy, though. Aaron Rodgers pulled it out in the end with 297 and three, Drew Brees. Another great game. 323 and three. Now we're getting into the guys that, you know, I want to talk about a little bit more specifically. Eli Manning and Dak Prescott. They had huge stud muffin weeks. 257 and four for Eli. Two of those two, Odell Beckham Jr. And then Dak Prescott. You know, I kept waiting for the Cowboys to kind of punch, pump the brakes in this game, and he had enough. Enough leeway there to get three touchdowns.

[Jason Moore]

They did what I think all NFL teams should do, and I give them kudos. They stepped on the gas and they stepped on the neck, and they never did the whole thing where, okay, we're up, so we're going to slow down. They got to a giant lead and then they pulled their starters out. That's the way you do it, you know, as opposed to, like, just trying.

[Mike Wright]

To leave the starters in and then just run them into the ground.

[Jason Moore]

Exactly.

[Mike Wright]

Fair enough. I mean, I mean, it's nice to have Alfred Morris. We could see this kind of a situation.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, we could see Dak Prescott and this coming, right? Of course, it was the Browns. I think he was my fourth highest rated quarterback this week. Hopefully you picked him up and played him. He was the guy we said we would stream over our streaming candidates.

[Mike Wright]

It was still scary to do. I'm telling you right now. Starting Dak was worrisome to me because for me, you know, these games, look at. Look at Andrew Lucky. It looked like it was going to be an absolute fantasy wonderland for him against Green Bay. But you get around the goal line couple, you know, I feel like Elliot had the potential to just get into the end zone anytime they were in the red zone like Frank Gore did and Nerf his day. But it's fair.

[Andy Holloway]

But it's still the Browns.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Yeah, it is. Winston Bortles and Kaepernick has huge days.

[Andy Holloway]

Before we move Eli Manning. That was a. He got really helped out here by Carson Wentz really stinking up the joint. But that was a matchup or a big game that I admittedly did not see coming for Eli Manning. Eli Manning is. Eli Manning is like nitroglycerin right now, where you just have no clue. You have no clue when this thing is going to explode and is it going to be beneficial for you? Are you digging the tunnel for the train through the mountain, or does it blow up and your hands go skyrocketing into the sky?

[Jason Moore]

And Blake Borls did it again.

[Mike Wright]

Garbage time. Well, sort of, yeah.

[Jason Moore]

I mean it was sort of garbage time.

[Mike Wright]

22 for 41 on the season.

[Jason Moore]

He has been as bad a quarterback as I can remember watching and he is the 10th ranked fantasy quarterback.

[Mike Wright]

6 for 54 on the ground. Doesn't hurt.

[Andy Holloway]

Did you see the clip of him the. The sideline? You know just they always warm up. He goes to do a just a regular standard warm up pass and the ball just flies out of his hand.

[Mike Wright]

No, but I would love to see that. Sounds about right. It's just bortles someone she's like replace the ball in that video with Gus Bradley's head and just he's just fumbling away his career. Colin Kaepernick, 24 for 39 for 398. 392. Look, the matchup was too juicy.

[Jason Moore]

Does this say that something is majorly wrong with Russell Wilson? Because the matchup everybody has been throwing for a billion yard on New Orleans.

[Mike Wright]

Not at all.

[Jason Moore]

You don't think so?

[Mike Wright]

Not even a little bit.

[Jason Moore]

Russell Wilson struggled.

[Mike Wright]

No, because the reason Kaepernick could do this was because. Because New Orleans got out to a huge lead and their defense is so pathetically horrible. This isn't the same situation that you know, if Russell Wilson's down 35 to 10 and he's got three quarters to play, I think he's going to put up these kind of numbers.

[Jason Moore]

No, that, that's a great, great.

[Mike Wright]

Kaepernick did this without any rushing yards. Basically five for 23 on the ground.

[Andy Holloway]

And two of his. He had two pass plays that accounted for half of that production. There you had the Dwan Harris ridiculousness and then the Vance McDonald had a major, major big touchdown.

[Mike Wright]

He is just patenting those.

[Andy Holloway]

That's all he does.

[Mike Wright]

I mean 1 for 70 go down this sideline. I mean before we talk about running backs, I don't want to thank today's sponsor. Look, it's a new one guys. And if you're a guy like me, you know, I mean we are all aware of how many watch brands there are out there and they all mostly all look very typical, very normal, very chandrone, very Don Jackson kind of normal. Okay? The they get the job done. But they're not a special watch brand. They don't make an impact when you wear them. And that's why I want to tell you about our newest find, Original Grain. You can see it on the video right now. These are the first watches that I have ever seen that have this hardwood plus stainless Steel look. This is like a handcrafted exotic hardwood. We're talking about African rosewood, reclaimed American oak. Whiskey barrels.

[Jason Moore]

That's what mine is.

[Mike Wright]

Is that what yours was?

[Jason Moore]

Mine is made from an actual whiskey barrel.

[Andy Holloway]

They are very.

[Mike Wright]

It's really, really cool.

[Jason Moore]

It's amazing.

[Mike Wright]

It's very cool. And they are the most uniquely crafted impact making watches in the world. And Foot clan, you have got to go on the web and just see what we're talking about. So go to originalgrain.com footballers right now they're giving all of you a 15% off discount off your whole purchase. Originalgrain.com for 15% off the entire purchase. Originalgrain.com footballers these are absolutely awesome. Just go check them out. They're very, very cool. I love mine. I love it.

[Jason Moore]

I do as well. And hey, do not forget about SeatGeek. If you are planning on going to any live event, it's not just sporting events, but a live event, a music concert or all of the great games coming up. We're getting close to the fantasy playoffs. Playoffs will be right behind there. You Want to use SeatGeek? I have SeatGeek on my phone. I use the website. SeatGeek is the place to get tickets.

[Mike Wright]

Because it's just so fast, so quick and easy.

[Jason Moore]

And it's so easy, really. First of all, they take tickets from hundreds of different ticketing sites. They pull them all together to one spot so you know you're getting a great deal. You know, sometimes when I go to those like hotel conglomeration sites and you try to use one of those to find the best price, the interface is just awful. But with SeatGeek, the interface is beautiful. Color coordinated. A map of exactly where you want your seats. So that's what we use, that's what we recommend. And they're going to give you $20 back after your first purchase. So here's what you do. Download the free SeatGeek app, go to the settings tab and click add a promo code and enter in footballers and SeatGeek will send you $20 after you've made your first. So download the free SeatGeek app and enter promo code.

[Mike Wright]

Footballers today I would be remiss if I didn't mention one more piece of news that I had forgotten. And we're talking about running backs now. And so it's kind of important that we bring up the ultimate big news. Big, big, big, giant big stud muffin news. You did not see that coming, did you?

[Andy Holloway]

I totally forgot.

[Mike Wright]

Totally forgot.

[Jason Moore]

That's funny.

[Andy Holloway]

Green Bay.

[Mike Wright]

Hey, you know, I just talked about how vanilla Don Jackson is. I mean, Joy Bell. I haven't seen one thing from Don Jackson that makes me think he's not an arena bowl superstar. Joy Bell is expected to be signed today right by the Green Bay Packers.

[Andy Holloway]

That's amazing.

[Mike Wright]

Sometimes things work out really great for the show and for the sound effects. And that's one of.

[Andy Holloway]

I can't wait for that revenge game.

[Mike Wright]

Hey, good news, by the way, Mike Evans is also practicing on Monday.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, that is good news.

[Mike Wright]

Pretty hot.

[Andy Holloway]

How's Doug Martin doing?

[Mike Wright]

He's skipping. Skipping a few years. Latavia. All right, stud muffins at the running back position. Let's fly through these guys. Oh, my goodness. Melvin Gordon, do you know how to play football now?

[Andy Holloway]

Wow.

[Mike Wright]

He said, I'll take that zero touchdown season and raise you about 50.

[Jason Moore]

Remember when he said that he has started slow at every level. He had a hard first year in high school, hard first year in college.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

Hard first year in the NFL. But goodness gracious, he's figured it out.

[Mike Wright]

32 for 196 and 14 for 65, 250. He is matchup proof combined. Yes, he is a matchup proof start. He's an elite top three play. I mean, you're talking David Johnson, Melvin Gordon, Lev Bell, Zeke.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, you have to mention him in that upper echelon now. I agree.

[Mike Wright]

And just his involvement in the passing game is so valuable. He is just. He can take that screen. He gives you everything you want. There are some players like C.J. anderson when he's getting a good workload, who, you know, catch the ball, you know he can run, but breaking that big play isn't really possible. Well, now Melvin Gordon has broken two long runs on like third and fourth and, and must run situations in the past two weeks to win the game for the Chargers.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Speaking of another stud who has won the game by breaking a few important runs off, that was Latavius Murray. Goodness gracious, I love Latavius Murray.

[Mike Wright]

You've got a reason to. 20 for 114 and three against the Broncos. I had a matchup where I needed Latavius to not score 10 points and I would win.

[Jason Moore]

Hey, it's like. It was like the band aid, though.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

I was ripped off and you didn't have to worry about it.

[Mike Wright]

See what I mean? This is. Look, Derek Carr had a great game. He played well against Denver. No touchdowns. No touchdowns for you.

[Andy Holloway]

So you think like maybe the touchdowns are overvalued for fantasy purposes.

[Mike Wright]

Going back to the well there. Well, when you get three 1 yard touchdowns for Murray, it's. Hey, he got it done. His first dive into the end zone. That was risky business.

[Andy Holloway]

That was. That was not a practical thing to do. It worked out, though.

[Mike Wright]

All right. We know about Zeke. You're not benching Zeke. So, hey, congrats. You. He had a great week.

[Jason Moore]

Frank Gore.

[Mike Wright]

Frank Gore, another great week. Looked good.

[Jason Moore]

He was almost my rising star this week. He is.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, but, dude, he's looked. He's a setting sun is what he is, but he just never sets.

[Jason Moore]

That's the thing. He's just kind of stuck at noon and he's going to stay there for a while.

[Mike Wright]

He is. Hey, he's back. Mark Ingram, start of the week. Mark Ingram.

[Andy Holloway]

We were, we were full tilting over.

[Mike Wright]

I tweeted we made that. I cannot handle this. Mark Ingram benching. And then, and then he wasn't bench.

[Jason Moore]

He couldn't either. He's like, I will not be benched.

[Mike Wright]

15 for 158 and a touchdown. Now, the nice thing is, is no matter who you started, you were happy because Tim Hightower had 23 carries and scored. These guys are the number two and number eight running backs on the week, right now, start your running backs against the 49ers is a recommendation.

[Jason Moore]

Hey, does anybody know who gets to play the 49ers next?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, go ahead and share that with the listeners.

[Jason Moore]

David Johnson.

[Mike Wright]

Whoo.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, my goodness. That's gonna be.

[Andy Holloway]

If you have David Johnson. Are you considering the fact of just benching the rest of the rest of.

[Mike Wright]

Your team just to see if he can win the whole week?

[Jason Moore]

Let's do this.

[Mike Wright]

You never know what happens in fantasy football, I tell you. But it looks, it looks good coming off the buy too, right? Yeah, man, stop. Young man, nice team to face after the buy, I'll tell you that. All right, Jay Ajayi, what do you guys think? He keeps delivering.

[Jason Moore]

You know, it was a very slow start, too. He had that really, really super late, like 26 yard run, but he's done that in three games now. We're super duper late. I mean, you're. You're talking. The game is over and he's like, I can get a huge chunk of yards.

[Mike Wright]

He still scored early, though.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, he did.

[Mike Wright]

And let me ask you this now. I mean, when you. When you get a guy off of waivers like J. Ajayi, and he looks to be bell cow worthy, right? 24 carries. They won the game again. Third straight time he's had a monster game. This is do you buy in rest of season for on Jay Ajayi and does that give you the flexibility to now trade another piece of the puzzle. Let's say you've got a DeMarco Murray, David Johnson and Jay Ajayi. Can you go flip demarco because maybe the value on demarco is higher than it is on a Jay. Do you feel confident enough as Jay being your number two the rest of the way?

[Jason Moore]

I do. I buy in. I think he is legit. He's got a good upcoming schedule. San Die LA's all right then San Francisco. So he's got some good games in there. That being said, I think his value right now after this game against the jets is going to be as high as just about anyone. Maybe not as high as a DeMarco Murray, but because his value is this high, he's probably still the guy I would, I would actually look to trade for a great value only because playoff schedule. I know he had that decent game right here against the jets, but he faces the jets again. He also faces Arizona Cardinals.

[Mike Wright]

Just really hard to fight that temptation with all these kind of players. Because what happens is, and I noticed this on the show is we have guys, Matt Ryan, jai other player, Melvin Gordon. Right. Petition to trade Melvin Gordon. You know, it's easier to hold a guy if they've done it in years past. For instance, Eddie Lacy, pretend he's healthy. Pretend Eddie Lacy has three games like JI just had. Even after two years, a year and a half of failure. It would be so much easier for us to not think trade high on Eddie Lacy because his pedigree has proven he can do it.

[Andy Holloway]

It's like Doug Martin last year.

[Mike Wright]

Okay. And if he had three good games, you'd buy into the fact that he's elite. Yeah, it's so much harder to not. I'm just saying sometimes you need to keep these guys. Sometimes you need to say Matt Ryan is my quarterback rest of the season. This is his year. Right. Like this is going to be. This is his Cam Newton year from last year.

[Jason Moore]

I completely agree and I actually do buy into jj. I'm not necessarily recommending to anybody that right now you should go and sell him. But in the situation you described, my point is more that I think his value is so high right now that it's almost to DeMarco Murray's.

[Mike Wright]

But that's the question. Would you go trade him for DeMarco because could you end up disappointed in that situation?

[Jason Moore]

Well, DeMarco first week of the playoffs plays Denver. So that's a great matchup.

[Andy Holloway]

You can run on Denver.

[Mike Wright]

No, you can a reminder, too. DeMarco has a buy the week before.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, he does. Week 13. So a lot of people are in.

[Mike Wright]

Playoffs in week 13.

[Jason Moore]

You check your league settings and this is really important if you're a DeMarco owner, you need to check your league settings to see when playoffs start because your trade deadline's probably coming up. And if you start your playoffs in week 13, you must trade him because you can't have a bye week in the playoffs. And you know, that's just tomfoolery.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Dejuan Harris, 10 for 59 and then 5 for 83 and a touchdown through the air. Looked great. Looked so much better than Mike Davis. Looks so much better than Sean Drone, the big salad. Matt Forte did it again because. Can't stop him.

[Jason Moore]

Tried and true.

[Mike Wright]

Tried and true. Tim Hightower, we talked about it. And demarco Murray pieced together a good game in the end because he scored late and ended up with about 20 fantasy points.

[Jason Moore]

So, yeah, he did it. I mean, you want to talk about matchup proof?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

That was a really bad game for him. If you watched, he did not look.

[Mike Wright]

No, he was like 10 for 37 to start that game and he ended.

[Jason Moore]

Up being pretty, pretty good.

[Mike Wright]

All right. As he does wide receivers with big performances this week. You know, Mike Evans had the monster game and he is also one of our favorites for down the stretch. He did practice today after the concussion and so Mike Evans looking nice down, down the stretch. Now Michael Thomas for the Saints, five for 73, two touchdowns. That's all I'm going to say right now because we're going to talk about him momentarily. Jason's going to elaborate on Michael Thomas's performance when we get into our rising star picks this week. Rashad Matthews had a big game. Six for 63, two touchdowns. I care. Zero. I don't care at all. I could care.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

I couldn't even care less because you know who had a big game last week?

[Andy Holloway]

Kendall. Right?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Kendall. Right. Had a big game. Right. I mean, this is. Who knows, right? This was a situation where I would not. He'll get picked up and he won't be picked up by me, let's put it that way.

[Jason Moore]

Sure. I will say this. I actually believe in the talent of Rashad Matthews quite a bit. I think he is very good wide receiver. But I agree with you in this team, week to week starting for fantasy football purposes, it's not going to matter. You're not going to guess them right.

[Mike Wright]

Julio Jones, he's pretty good. You're starting him next week. 8 for 111 and a touchdown this week. Mike Wallace did that whole run, really fast thing. Four for 124 and a touchdown, including a 95 yard bomb.

[Andy Holloway]

Did you see his. Well, not a bomb. A 95 yard.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, 95 yard screen and run.

[Andy Holloway]

Did you see his quote?

[Mike Wright]

Can't wait to find out.

[Andy Holloway]

He. They were playing press coverage on the. On the five.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

And he felt very disrespected so he decided to. He decided he was going to take it to the house.

[Mike Wright]

All right.

[Jason Moore]

Well, that's a good decision.

[Mike Wright]

You know, to be honest with you, still, I'd rather have Smith senior rest of season than I would Wallace.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, for sure. I mean, if you look at 4 for 124 and you take out 95 yard, you know, the rest of the game he was what, three for 30?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I mean it's nice, but it's a D Jack circle.

[Andy Holloway]

That's what he gives you. He gives you either that three or four for. For 50 yards. I will say that he goes humongous.

[Mike Wright]

That's a demoralizer for your fantasy opponent because they're like kind of, hey, cool, I get to face Mike Wallace. He's not that. Oh no, no, no, no. Step out of bounds please. All right. Golden Tate. Man, I was impressed with the Lions at the end of that game. Getting into overtime was amazing. Prater, those kicks the football those last.

[Jason Moore]

How much time did he have? Like 17 seconds.

[Mike Wright]

17 seconds after they noted to touch back with no timeouts, he threw a pass to get him within a 58 yard field goal and down and spiked the ball. And then Prater comes in, boots it through and then they march all the way down on Minnesota and score.

[Jason Moore]

I heard a stat on Mike and Mike about Matt Prater. Matt Prater, in his career within the last minute of a game, has had 23 opportunities to kick game tying or game winning field goals and he is 23 for 23.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, I mean that's what you need in a kicker. You need Stone.

[Mike Wright]

He's had a great year. If you remember, he had kind of. Well, I guess he's missed one. He's missed a kick in each of the last two weeks.

[Jason Moore]

So they weren't to tie the game.

[Mike Wright]

He's like, no, they clearly weren't because.

[Andy Holloway]

He wants to set up the time.

[Mike Wright]

But definitely a boom boom moment for. For him. So let's talk back about the running the wide receivers Here, Golden Tate, do you, you know, does he need to be owned at this point?

[Jason Moore]

Oh, he should be owned. Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

He should have been owned two weeks ago.

[Mike Wright]

So you bought in, though, to a resurgence.

[Jason Moore]

Well, you see the problem with Marvin Jones as well. I mean, this is kind of coming into the season playing out a little bit more where we didn't know, is it going to be Marvin Jones, is it going to be Golden Tate? The first few weeks we had our answer, it was Marvin Jones. Now it's flipped to the other side where Marvin Jones, I think in this game had like a catch for 5 yards.

[Mike Wright]

Eric Ebron looked great, too. Eric Ebron, he's had a career high.

[Jason Moore]

In yardage, has been legit, and that was after the previous week of being very important to that offense. So you certainly need to look at him. But I think when it comes to Golden Tate, Marvin Jones, they both should be owned. I'm not confident to start either right now.

[Mike Wright]

Jordy Nelson, 7 for 94 and a touchdown, an impressive touchdown at that. This is the game we thought he'd have this week. We said Indianapolis was a nice matchup. I pumped the brakes on him towards the end of the season with a lot of fear, but because the matchups and what's going on in Green Bay, they lost again. I'm still hesitant to buy into Nelson as a top 12 guy rest of season. And I think if you can get top 12 value, I would personally trade him. I know you guys probably sit on the other side of that one.

[Jason Moore]

No.

[Mike Wright]

Yes or no?

[Jason Moore]

I would be willing. Again, we're close enough now where the playoff schedule matters to me quite a bit for certain players, your average player, whatever. But when you have guys like, you know, like Mike Evans, who gets to play New Orleans twice, that matters to me. Or for Jordy. Jordy has just a horrendous passing schedule. Let me look this up here to remind myself. But Jordy Nelson starting in week 13, if your playoffs start in 13, it's Houston, not a great matchup. Then Seattle, great passing D. Chicago's been a pretty good passing D. Although they got.

[Mike Wright]

They've been a great defense.

[Jason Moore]

They did get carved up by Aaron Rodgers already once. But then week 16, so you got Seattle in 14 and then Minnesota in 16. It just is not boding too well. And we've seen a couple complete stinker games. In fact, the Chicago game where Aaron Rodgers carved up the Bears. Jordan Nelson had one catch for nine yards in that game.

[Mike Wright]

All right, Antonio Brown came back from the dead. Mike. Mike couldn't handle it like Mike really can't handle. Antonio Brown doesn't have like 900,000 points every week.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, I couldn't handle just watching the game for three quarters. You're thinking, would you say, Mike Ben.

[Mike Wright]

Was setting football back 50 years?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Mike Tomlin, you got to put Landry Jones in. It was. It was horrendous. Big Ben was just awful. I mean, he's missing guys. He had. He had at least three or four opportunities to. Sammy Coates just sailed the ball, missed him completely. He had the one where Sammy. Of course, the one target that Sammy Coates was on was on point. Coates dropped it. But just. It was a brutal, brutal performance for Big Ben. Let the. Their game plan was, okay, we'll let Le'Veon Bell take us to victory. And the Ravens said, no, no, you will not. Because Le'Veon Bell got held in check for the most part. And then Big Ben, it was all that garbage. You're down 21 to zero. And then big Ben finally was able to get it loose.

[Mike Wright]

I had read a stat about Big Ben on the game coming off of an injury and how bad his stat lines were whenever he's returning from these injuries. And it caused me to move him down on Sunday after seeing that stat line because I was worried. We had talked about the divisional matchup in on the road is just bad. So, you know, he did piece it back together, though, with 264 and a touchdown, so. And he ran for one. So all of that. All of that being said, he pieced it back together for Antonio Brown, Allen Robinson, 7 for 76 and a touchdown. And then Tyrell Williams, 6 for 65 and a touchdown. Is Williams the best guy to own there? I think so. Wide receiver wise, right? Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

I was hoping for Dontrell Inman to have a game, and he's. His style was actually very comparable.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, it was six for Ty Williams. Seven, I think. But two more yards, no touchdown.

[Mike Wright]

All right, tight ends, real quick. Jason Whitten, Antonio Gates, Cleveland Brown alert. Whitten, 8 for 134 and a touchdown. Whitten is the number one wide receiver for the. The Cowboys, right?

[Andy Holloway]

Nope, nope. The number one wide receiver had himself a pretty good game.

[Mike Wright]

Talking about beasles.

[Andy Holloway]

The Cole Beasley 6 for 56 and a Hoosh down.

[Mike Wright]

Well, we'll talk about Des soon enough. Antonio Gates five for 75 and a touchdown. Hunter Henry did not play. Gates still doing it. And then Vance McDonald had the monster game. What do you think about Zach Ertz finally getting Getting into the action. 8 for 97. Is he somebody that because of the tag and this stat line you might buy this week?

[Andy Holloway]

Nope.

[Mike Wright]

All right, I thought I'd ask Fool.

[Andy Holloway]

Me once, fool me twice situation here with Zach Ertz.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, okay.

[Jason Moore]

Now, who was in the DFS segment? Chris Meaney. Who did he. Didn't he nail a tight end this week?

[Andy Holloway]

He certainly did. But now that you're putting me on the spot, I can't remember who it was. Someone we had the Twitter was very happy with it.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Lance Kendricks.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes. There it is. Yes. Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

Shout out to Lance Kendricks and Chris Meaney.

[Mike Wright]

Kendricks also had that terrible drop, right?

[Andy Holloway]

Sure did.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, I mean, I just believe the.

[Mike Wright]

Worst drop you ever played, it was.

[Jason Moore]

Like playing catch in a backyard and you're about six yards away from the person and you just throw a nice. He didn't. It wasn't a rocket pass. This was just a hey, you're open, let me just toss the ball to you. And he's like, I don't know how to catch.

[Mike Wright]

What did he say again?

[Jason Moore]

I don't know how to catch.

[Andy Holloway]

I'll throw out. Complimentary. They weren't a full stomach, but Stefan Diggs monster game. And I just want to point out Eli Rogers, Darius Hayward Bay supplanted the terrible Marcus Wheaton. We have finally put this to rest. But Eli Rogers had himself a game and now if Hayward Bay is going to miss some time, Eli Rogers could be back and play for fantasy.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, Marcus Wheaton's not so good.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes.

[Jason Moore]

Justice Raising Canes Rising Stars of the Week.

[Mike Wright]

Ah, it's time for the Raising Canes Rising Stars of the week. We each pick a guy that we were impressed with this past week and think has long term value that you need to be thinking about as a fantasy owner. Mike, long term value here. Why don't you give us your name for raising Kane's rising star.

[Andy Holloway]

And this is definitely thinking long term because he didn't necessarily wow. This weekend he didn't blow any doors off. That's Paul Perkins.

[Mike Wright]

Okay.

[Andy Holloway]

Came out over the weekend that some beat reporters said change of plans. We think that Paul Perkins is actually going to get far more involved coming out of the bi week. And what's kind of nice for fantasy players for us to evaluate at least box score analyzing here. Paul Perkins and Rashad Jennings had almost equal work. By almost, I mean identical 11 carries. Both Paul Perkins out produced him three receptions each. Paul Perkins out produced him not by a ton, but Paul Perkins, his snap percentage was up he was around 34%. He just. You the changing.

[Mike Wright]

You can do something with 11 carries and three catches.

[Andy Holloway]

The changing of the guard is coming for the New York Giants. They have zero. They have zero running game. And you got to start looking at the rookie who. Who is in just. Just the eyeball test. Paul Perkins is the more explosive guy.

[Jason Moore]

So this is early. You were waking up early and seeing the sun rise here.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes, right.

[Jason Moore]

This is like you got the rising. The rising stars. This is. It's peeking over the corner now.

[Mike Wright]

Would you rather have Perkins or Kenneth Dixon rest in season?

[Andy Holloway]

I consider Dixon as well, because that's a very similar situation.

[Mike Wright]

Dixon had nine carries. He's got Cleveland at home next week.

[Andy Holloway]

Where the doors, like I said, were not blown open by these guys. But you can see the team starting to shift the rotation.

[Jason Moore]

I would go with Dixon in that.

[Andy Holloway]

Because I probably would.

[Jason Moore]

I think the Baltimore Ravens are a better running team than the New York Giants.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Okay. So my rising star this week, I'm going to go with the heart ring himself.

[Andy Holloway]

The OG. Oh, the OG Darren Sproul, the number two running back.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, the number two running back in Philly that got 80% of the snaps. Listen, Sprouls was actually effective in this game, even though he didn't, you know, he didn't score 13 for 57 on the ground 80% of the snaps. Matthews got eight snaps, Smallwood got two. Look, it's time to stop kidding around here. Darren Sprouls is the number one running back for the Philadelphia Eagles. That's the story. And so if he's the number one running back and you recognize it before your league mates do, then you have an opportunity to take advantage of that to make some trades to little guys.

[Jason Moore]

And old guys never get the respect that they deserve. This is a little old guy. So, yeah, he will not get the respect from league mates that, you know, he'll be like a package throw in on a trip.

[Andy Holloway]

Did you know that Darren Sprols has played over 80% of snaps twice in his career the last two weeks?

[Jason Moore]

Wow.

[Andy Holloway]

While Doug Peterson sits on his throne and declares, well, we got to get Ryan Matthews and he's our number one. We got to get him involved. So I'm going to give him eight snaps.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And I think I said last week that I would not play Ryan Matthews, but I'm going to go ahead with.

[Andy Holloway]

And unless you're in a touchdown only.

[Jason Moore]

League, my friends, since I am taking the anchor spot here, I will have the best raising canes rising star. And that is Mr. Number One Wide Receiver for the New Orleans Saints.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

Michael Thomas.

[Mike Wright]

You know, I really trust what you say, Jason. Thank you. Because.

[Jason Moore]

Because I'm verified.

[Mike Wright]

You're verified.

[Jason Moore]

So Michael Thomas, look, he has really been the best, I think the best rookie wide receiver out there this year. You want to know? You know, every year someone comes out and performs well, this is going to be the guy we talk so much about, Mike Evans, because his playoff schedule, two times in the playoffs he gets to face New Orleans.

[Mike Wright]

Well, it goes the other way.

[Jason Moore]

Tampa Bay does not have a good defense either. And those games are going to be high scoring games. So you want to know who have Drew Brees a lot cheaper, a lot cheaper than Mike Evans is Michael Thomas. So Michael Thomas has been great. I went back to see like, well, how's he been finishing, right? Because so far this week, Monday night hasn't happened. But he's the number two wide receiver this week. And last week he had a down week. He was 44th, wasn't terrible, but wasn't the best. The week before that, 14th best wide receiver. The week before that, the 9th, the 22nd before that, the 16th before that. So while he is about tied with Brandon Cooks and total fantasy points, I would much rather start Michael Thomas and have a more secure, consistent road home. You know, look, he is the number one wide receiver there and he's filling the role of the New Orleans Saints all time leading pass catcher that just retired and he's coming in and he's Marcus Colston. Marcus Colston. And he's doing it better. So I am really rising on Michael Thomas. I think he's a weekly must play.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. This is the week that confirmed that to me because my worry with Thomas was that during his productive weeks, it was touchdown dependency, not touchdown predictability.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

And so now you've moved into the point where this is, this is more Decker than it is Wallace. Right? Where you're doing something where you're a first read, you're a goal line read. Now you're a deep threat and you're a big strong young buck. Right. You're not some old guy that's getting production. So I'm all in on Thomas.

[Jason Moore]

Last thing I'll say on Michael Thomas. I agree. He is leading the New Orleans Saints in receiving touchdowns, which are not always predictable. He is also leading in receptions.

[Mike Wright]

Sure.

[Jason Moore]

And he is also leading in targets.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, that's. And they love him. They love him. You can tell. Those were the raising Canes, rising stars of the week. Don't forget the game day. It tastes better with raising canes, tailgates full of that fresh 24 hour marinated hand battered chicken fingers and that fresh brewed sweet tea that you just want to pour all over yourself when you win. When you win.

[Andy Holloway]

And Twitter foot clan. People keep sending me the snapshots. They're like, thank you for pointing me to raising kings. This has changed my Life.

[Mike Wright]

So visit raisingkings.com to find your nearest location. Let's move on.

[Jason Moore]

Hooped in his big boy pants.

[Mike Wright]

Well, this is the kind of dichotomy you have between real life and fantasy. Sometimes Andrew Lucky ends up in the poop section.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

With 23 for 36.

[Jason Moore]

He was very good.

[Mike Wright]

281 and one. Won a big game but had two interceptions and that, you know, that hurt minus four right there. Cam Newton won as well and he had another struggling non efficient. Really just a bad fantasy day. He's won two weeks in a row and he hasn't done anything for fantasy. The question that we got asked a lot last week by listeners that wrote into the show was, hey, is he no better than a streaming option now? And how is that possible?

[Andy Holloway]

Oh man.

[Mike Wright]

I mean look at last year, right? Cam Newton, Russell Wilson were championship winning.

[Jason Moore]

Fantasy quarterbacks, but they were also guys that you could have in certain leagues found on the waivers at the midpoint because they both sucked.

[Mike Wright]

So wait, do you think Cam Newton is a top eight quarterback rest of season?

[Jason Moore]

I do.

[Mike Wright]

Do you believe he's top five?

[Jason Moore]

I would put him very close to that. I would really put him about five or six rest of season.

[Mike Wright]

So you would go buy him if he's.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, yeah, I would.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think I would.

[Mike Wright]

I don't think I would either.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm not getting.

[Mike Wright]

Maybe that's because I've already been burned on buying Russell Wilson for like three different weeks.

[Andy Holloway]

But if I have Cam Newton, I'm not actively looking to get rid of him. If some, if a package comes where I can get some value.

[Mike Wright]

Sure.

[Andy Holloway]

But if I have them, I'm just going to write him out. I'm saying if I do not own Cam Newton, I'm not trying to acquire him.

[Mike Wright]

The two biggest disappointments for me at the running back position this week were by far Chuck Hendrick West.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

And Devonte Booker.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Both of those guys had what looked like juicy matchups. They looked like they had the backfield to themselves and instead we saw very bad performances. Specifically Booker. 10 for 22 and everywhere else.

[Andy Holloway]

I want a. I will give a shout out here. Raider nation. I doubted the Oakland Raiders this weekend against the Broncos and that. Well, I've doubted them because of their defense but that their defense was spectacular for almost that entire game. Shutting down devontae Booker, I mean it was.

[Mike Wright]

That Capri Bibs touchdown was insane. Yeah, that was awesome. I mean I'm just giving Bibs credit for that.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure. Like I said, not the whole game, but as a whole, the Raiders were very impressive.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Booker moving forward though, I think we had like talked about him saying, hey, look, opportunity, talent. What we had seen on tape was awesome. Is this anomalous? Do you start rolling back out there?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, you got to roll him out. I think it's the shoulder injury has to be hampering him and Char west.

[Mike Wright]

Showed why he is at the bottom of the rotation here.

[Andy Holloway]

Come on, char west.

[Mike Wright]

13 for 39, three for 35. Through the air.

[Andy Holloway]

I believed in you.

[Mike Wright]

You know, not having Alex Smith I think probably hurt the way that they use the running backs there.

[Andy Holloway]

Nick Foles.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Doesn't help things.

[Mike Wright]

I would expect Spencer wear back but you need to pay attention. Don't just drop Char west right now because we'll see if Spencer where can get back on the field. They are talking about Jamal Charles. Guys, big news might be available week 17.

[Jason Moore]

Ooh. For those who unfortunately have to play into week 17 for your the fantasy.

[Andy Holloway]

The guy coming off the IR you're like, yep, throw him in.

[Mike Wright]

You know, another huge I'm in the championship doesn't get more disappointing than Isaiah Crowell this week. He couldn't garbage time his way too much of anything. Unless you're maybe we're in a PPR league. He had 4 for 63, but he basically didn't even run. So cruel. Asiata, McKinnon and Gurley. You know, Gurley was all right but that's like the best he's been in a while.

[Andy Holloway]

Gurley is Todd Gurley.

[Mike Wright]

This case keenum denial situation too. They're gonna keep him in there. I mean either Jared Goff's really bad or I read somebody. Somebody left us a five star review on itunes. Thank you by the way. But it said you had to get over our unfair bias of Jeff Fisher.

[Jason Moore]

Jeff Fisher's last five seasons. I believe this is off the top of the dome, but I believe I am correct at this point in the last five seasons it is 3 and 5. 3 and 5. 3 and 5, 4 and 4, 3 and 5.

[Mike Wright]

That's what he's been through the eight game mark.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I believe that is the last five seasons.

[Mike Wright]

Is that what you would define as progress?

[Jason Moore]

It's tried and true. Steady hand.

[Mike Wright]

Steady, steady Eddie.

[Andy Holloway]

They don't want things too hot. They don't want him too cold. Right middle.

[Mike Wright]

I'm not biased towards him. I'm biased towards failing. And he's failed for five straight years. And now you have a situation where they either drafted the wrong guy or they didn't draft the wrong guy, but they don't want to go see it. I mean, it's like Treadwell finally got on the field, by the way, and it was like you had to have a new offensive coordinator come in to put your first round talent on the field.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, everyone who passed on Dak Prescott drafted the wrong guy.

[Mike Wright]

I agree with that. And, and Ezekiel, for those three teams that passed on him. Wait, did he go. He went for right, yeah. Elliott.

[Andy Holloway]

Look, I think Elliott's a tremendous talent, but Elliott, on a team that does not have the Dallas Cowboys offensive line, does he? Would he look similar to Todd Gurley right now?

[Mike Wright]

It's a fair question.

[Andy Holloway]

We'll never know.

[Mike Wright]

No, it's a very fair question. All right, wide receivers. We talked about the aforementioned Marvin Jones Jr. He had a junior stat line. 1 for 5 in a game where, you know, how does that happen? Xavier Rhodes.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I mean, it's.

[Mike Wright]

He caused a couple of penalties on Rhodes, including one that moved him down the field. But you don't get fantasy points for penalties. So Marvin Jones, I think I'll bounce back. This is not the normal for him. But not, not a good. Dez Bryant, 1 for 19.

[Jason Moore]

That might be the most disappointing wide receiver of the week.

[Mike Wright]

They just didn't need him.

[Jason Moore]

No, they sure did.

[Mike Wright]

It reminded me of those games last year where like Kansas City would blow out a team 35 to 3 at the end of the year and Macklin would have two catches.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, because that's what Macklin does.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Michael Crabtree, I don't think people expected a ton from him against Denver, but he did not give you a ton. Two for 27. Willie Snead, you know, we talked about Michael Thomas.

[Andy Holloway]

Thomas is in that role.

[Mike Wright]

Snead is at best third on that team. I mean, you can't rely on third, even with Drew Brees. And maybe, you know, some weeks it's going to be Fleener. I think Fleener had a better stat line than this. So Demarius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, they both gave you. They gave you the minimum.

[Jason Moore]

And Brandon Marshall now for a couple weeks has not been good.

[Mike Wright]

And what's Crazy is he needs Eric Decker. I think it's true.

[Jason Moore]

You think that that's the cause?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I think you need. He needs somebody else. I mean, he draws pass interference penalties like nobody's business. By the way, I need to bring this up. I know we don't have a ton of time. I want to know your opinion on this. The Saints were on the 10 yard line before the half and their own.

[Jason Moore]

Or seconds left.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, there were. There were. Well, at this point, there were 10 seconds. Okay. And they got up to the line.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, I totally know where you're going.

[Mike Wright]

Yes. Okay. So the Saints had the ball and they snapped it with one shot at the end zone. I think it must have been predetermined that all 49ers DBs grabbed all of the wide receivers and held them and they were penalized for a holding call. Not pass interference in the end zone or anything like that because it was just on the line of scrimmage. They grabbed them all, including the tight ends. They grabbed the linebacker, grabbed the tight end.

[Andy Holloway]

They were.

[Mike Wright]

They grabbed them. Six seconds went off the clock. Penalty put them five yards closer.

[Jason Moore]

So they were closer.

[Mike Wright]

They couldn't run another play because we're four seconds left. So they forced him into the field goal. This is like the hack a shack in football. I can't see a way around doing this in the future.

[Jason Moore]

I feel like there has to be a kind of the reverse runoff situation.

[Mike Wright]

Like an untimed play or something.

[Jason Moore]

Exactly. On plays like that.

[Mike Wright]

But there isn't.

[Jason Moore]

No, no, no.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm saying for the future you could do.

[Jason Moore]

You could. I think it would be very simple in the future for the rules committee to put something in where if you are within the last 30 seconds or whatever, a defensive penalty, like what's the clock, man? That's what I'm saying.

[Mike Wright]

Can't mess with the clock like that.

[Jason Moore]

What do you mean? You do a 10 second runoff on the other side.

[Mike Wright]

But it's. This is like messing with the clock.

[Jason Moore]

For the exact reason, because strategy.

[Mike Wright]

Here's the thing though. You, you. The problem is this, is that in the runoff situation you have a dead clock and then you do a 10 second runoff. In this situation, the play takes place. So do you let that time come off the clock and then maybe you wait 10 seconds to hold and then you put what, 10 seconds back on?

[Jason Moore]

I'm just saying, I'm saying that play, you go, you go back, you put the time back on the clock. If it's a. If it's a penalty, then you put the time back to what it was at the beginning of that play.

[Mike Wright]

I understand your reasoning for it. I just don't think it's. I think that what you're saying sounds simple and I think that's the hardest thing in the world that I would ever see implemented in the refs have.

[Andy Holloway]

A hard enough time as it is.

[Mike Wright]

But I'm not really trying to figure out a solution. I just wanted to bring it to mind because it seems like the thing you would want to do.

[Jason Moore]

It was the best defense I've seen the 49ers play because they couldn't give up a touchdown all year. Is the hug defense some other honorable poopers?

[Mike Wright]

I'm going to go through them very quickly. You guys tell me whether it's temporary. Lev Bell, temporary Terrence west concerning this.

[Andy Holloway]

Is back to what we were concerned about for Terence west when he was blowing up was if will he have back to back bad games and he has indeed done that.

[Mike Wright]

Quincy and Nunois.

[Andy Holloway]

Nunois who he is. He's a wide receiver. 3.

[Jason Moore]

I'm not too worried.

[Mike Wright]

All right. I think. I think we're good for right now. So let's, let's move on. Let's answer a couple questions.

[Jason Moore]

Mailbag, Mailbag.

[Mike Wright]

All right, if you have a question. Oh, sorry, Mike. I'm sorry. Was that actually you?

[Andy Holloway]

The world will never know.

[Mike Wright]

Is that a verified scream? I don't know.

[Andy Holloway]

Let me check.

[Mike Wright]

Verified.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm checking.

[Mike Wright]

Tell me.

[Andy Holloway]

Moving on.

[Mike Wright]

All right, if you have a Twitter.

[Jason Moore]

Account on the way, if you have.

[Mike Wright]

A question for the show, Visit the website thefantasyfootballers.com Click that, click that questions button on the top. And you can also dial our voicemail hotline, 302464. TFFB.

[Jason Moore]

Can I just say, look, I know.

[Mike Wright]

Sorry.

[Jason Moore]

There are many people in, I mean, the whitest variety of jobs that listen to the show, whether you're, you know, driving around the school bus or whether you're in a high law firm, if you are listening and you are from Twitter, please don't verify them. Never let him get verified.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, my goodness. I will say this will only get better with time.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, if they don't verify him for.

[Mike Wright]

Like a couple weeks, I mean, you.

[Jason Moore]

Start to give it a month. Give it a month. Twitter.

[Andy Holloway]

All questions tweeted at me. I'm just going to start tagging you guys.

[Mike Wright]

Well, it makes sense. We have better answers. All right, Buffalo running back question. Need four points tonight on Monday Night Football. One point per reception. Do I start McCoy or Gillesley McCoy. I do, too.

[Andy Holloway]

If McCoy is active, that's who you play.

[Mike Wright]

Michael Thomas. Trade question 7 and 2. Breeze owner looking ahead to playoff matchups. They start in week 13. What do you guys think about trading Alan Robinson and his brutal schedule for Michael Thomas?

[Andy Holloway]

Do it.

[Jason Moore]

I would get more back because you probably can, but I would rather have Michael Thomas.

[Mike Wright]

What if you can't?

[Andy Holloway]

If you can only one for one. I would.

[Jason Moore]

Then I do it. I would. I would do it. I'd rather have Michael Thomas.

[Mike Wright]

That's a great question. In light of what we talked about today, this question is titled IFRT is handsome.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, this one's for you, Mike.

[Mike Wright]

It's from Scott in Phoenix. Eifert is handsome. If you harken back to the show 300 Memories. Sell Alan Robinson with him producing this week or hold on to him at the hopes of better days ahead.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know that anyone's gonna buy him.

[Mike Wright]

You know, he's gonna be okay. People not gonna be terrible because they changed the O coordinator. He gets enough targets. I'm telling you, he's not gonna be terrible. Even last week when he was quote, unquote terrible, it was 10 points.

[Jason Moore]

And you will certainly find buyers for him after he puts up. You know, he was in the stud.

[Mike Wright]

Muffler, but do you want to sell him?

[Jason Moore]

I would probably take advantage of being able to sell him, but I would. You know, I'm not. I'm not wanting to get rid of him. I don't. Because I completely agree with you. He's going to have fine games. He's going to be all right. I'm not looking to unload him, but if I can take advantage of a good week and do something that is beneficial for my team, I most certainly would.

[Mike Wright]

All right, this one from Tyler in Austin at Sego, Minnesota.

[Andy Holloway]

Bonjour.

[Mike Wright]

Nah, he's still the United States, Mike at Sego.

[Andy Holloway]

Are we sure?

[Mike Wright]

I'm not positive. Should I trade Jay Ajayi and Julian Edelman for Doug Martin and DeAndre Hopkins to prepare for the playoffs?

[Jason Moore]

No, I don't think so.

[Mike Wright]

I wouldn't.

[Jason Moore]

Doug Martin is just so scary right now. You're talking about almost the entire season where he has not been able to get over a hamstring issue. And when he comes back, he hurts it again and still is not practicing as of today.

[Mike Wright]

All right, that's it for today's show. Thanks for listening. Remember, there's a lot of watch brands out there, but none of them make the impact that Original Grain watches do. You guys have got to go check these stunning watches. The wood, they're head turners. They are really, really awesome and I admittedly have never been a watch guy but these are flat out very, very sturdy. I mean I've worn this a ton of times. I wore this to church. I love wearing this thing. It is, they get a lot of looks well but it's not like the kind of like pretentious horrible looks. It's like the finely crafted. I love the wood. That's just so awesome. So check them out. OriginalGrain.com footballers they give you 15% off. That's OriginalGrain.com footballers. Thank you for listening supporting the show. We'll be back tomorrow with more fantasy action coming your way.

[Andy Holloway]

Waiver wires shout out to fantasyjocks.com with.

[Mike Wright]

The promo co footballer. Also, goodbye from the two verified guys.

[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 FFballers.