NFC North Breakdown, Stack Attack, Chicken Salad

Summary

Fantasy Footballers Podcast Summary: "NFC North Breakdown, Stack Attack, Chicken Salad"

Episode Details:

• Title: NFC North Breakdown, Stack Attack, Chicken Salad
• Hosts: Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright
• Release Date: July 25, 2019

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1. Introduction and Giveaway Announcements

The episode opens with the hosts engaging in their typical banter before diving into the main topics. They mention ongoing giveaways, including a Patrick Mahomes signed jersey, and encourage listeners to support them by voting for the Podcast Awards ([03:12]).

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2. Stack Attack: Drafting Multiple Players from the Same Team

Segment Highlights:

• Raymond's Question: The hosts address a listener’s question about which same-team player stack they anticipate drafting this season ([03:33]).

Jason Moore's Take:

"Every time I'm considering taking them, they are always there. 100% of the time. They're both disrespected. I don't get it. Because they're on one of the best three offenses in the league."

Jason discusses his preference for stacking players like Jared Goff and Robert Woods from the Lions, highlighting their value and potential to win championships together ([03:33]).

Andy Holloway's Preference: Andy expresses hesitation about running back and wide receiver stacks but remains open to early-round combinations like Ty Hilton and Marlon Mack if the draft falls to that point ([04:34]).

Discussion on Bengals Stack: Mike Wright introduces the idea of stacking AJ Green with Joe Mixon from the Bengals, debating the uncertainty of the Bengals' offense and its impact on the stack's reliability ([05:31]).

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3. Cincinnati Bengals News and Analysis

Tyler Boyd's Contract: The hosts discuss Tyler Boyd’s four-year, $43 million extension with the Bengals, praising his decision to secure his future and the Bengals' investment in him ([07:23]).

AJ Green's Future: They debate AJ Green’s potential long-term role and contract, considering his health and performance risks. Andy emphasizes that Green won't settle for a discount, aiming for an elite wide receiver salary ([09:07]).

Julio Jones Injury Concerns: Mike Wright raises concerns about Julio Jones’ foot injury, questioning its impact on his availability and performance, which historically affects his fantasy reliability ([10:09]).

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4. Atlanta Falcons Updates

Quadri Oleson's Role: The recent signing of rookie Quadri Oleson is highlighted as a move to bolster the Falcons' short-yardage and goal-line situations, potentially affecting Devonta Freeman’s usage ([11:42]).

Cooper Kupp's Status: Cooper Kupp is on the active PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) list but is expected to participate in training camp, offering potential fantasy value as a week-one starter ([14:35]).

Fantasy Take: Jason Moore argues that the addition of Oleson is unlikely to significantly divert work from Freeman, maintaining Freeman’s fantasy value unless Oleson proves exceptionally effective ([13:53]).

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5. NFC North Division Breakdown

A. Chicago Bears

Defensive Strength: Last season, the Bears boasted the number one rush defense and seventh in pass defense, setting a strong foundation ([19:15]).

Offensive Outlook:

• Quarterback Mitch Trubisky: Now in his second year under Matt Nagy, Trubisky's development is pivotal. Jason and Mike express skepticism about his potential to become a top-tier QB, despite flashes of brilliance ([28:23]; [28:38]).

• Running Backs: David Montgomery vs. Tariq Cohen:

  • Jason Moore: Prefers Tariq Cohen for his historical efficiency and value at his draft position, cautioning that David Montgomery may not offer the same consistency ([20:52]; [24:42]).
  • Andy Holloway: Shares concerns about Cohen’s regression and the rarity of his previous receiving metrics, potentially impacting his fantasy reliability ([22:47]).
  • Consensus: The hosts lean towards drafting Cohen as a higher-value, albeit riskier, option compared to Montgomery ([26:26]; [27:04]).

Wide Receivers:

• Allen Robinson and Anthony Miller: Discussed as key contributors, with Anthony Miller seen as a late-round sleeper due to his potential growth and current draft price ([31:12]).
• Trey Burton and Alan Robinson: Evaluated as middle-tier options with varying degrees of risk and upside ([29:38]; [32:12]).

Notable Quote:

"Tariq Cohen was still going to play. He's an excellent player. He's great for this offense." – Jason Moore ([21:56])

B. Minnesota Vikings

Team Analysis:

• Dalvin Cook: Central to the Vikings' offense, with high expectations for his fantasy performance provided he remains healthy ([35:01]; [39:28]).
• Wide Receivers Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs: Recognized as a top-tier tandem, but concerns persist about offensive consistency and Thielen's recent performance dips ([40:47]; [40:53]).

Quarterback Kirk Cousins:

• Viewed as a solid to very good QB, enhancing the value of his elite wide receivers ([37:07]; [37:21]).

Dalvin Cook's Injury Proneness: Mike and Andy express concerns about Cook's durability, though they acknowledge his high ceiling if he stays healthy ([39:25]; [39:41]).

Notable Quote:

"The sky is the limit for Dalvin Cook." – Mike Wright ([39:28])

C. Green Bay Packers

Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams:

• Aaron Rodgers: Projected as a top-five QB despite a less efficient previous season, with improvements in his wide receiver corps boosting his fantasy appeal ([42:17]; [44:23]).
• Davante Adams: Remains a key target, with uncertainty surrounding Kenny Golladay’s role and potential improvements from Marquez Valdez Scantling ([41:11]; [44:13]).

Wide Receiver Strategy:

• Geronimo Allison vs. Marquez Valdez Scantling: Jason prefers Valdez Scantling for his explosive potential and physical attributes, whereas Andy supports Geronimo Allison for his veteran experience ([48:35]; [49:38]).

Notable Quote:

"If his wide receiver core has improved, then it's going to be difficult to believe that they'll use Aaron Jones to the degree that fantasy football owners will want out of the backfield." – Mike Wright ([43:12])

D. Detroit Lions

Cam Newton’s Status: Breaking news confirms Cam Newton will not start on the PUP list and is healthy for the season, increasing his fantasy value ([51:07]).

Running Back Kerryon Johnson:

• Jason Moore: Strongly advocates for drafting Kerryon Johnson as a top-15 running back due to his performance last season despite Detroit’s offensive struggles ([56:48]).
• Mike Wright: Acknowledges the potential drop in Johnson’s performance if Detroit continues to struggle offensively but remains optimistic ([57:04]).

Offensive Changes:

• New Offensive Coordinator Darrell Bevell: Expected to implement a run-heavy offense, enhancing the value of Kerryon Johnson and solidifying his fantasy prospects ([54:20]; [55:09]).

Notable Quote:

"There's no world where Kerryon Johnson is not a top 15 back this year." – Jason Moore ([58:19])

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6. Additional Fantasy Tips and Wrap-Up

Fantasy Defenses: The hosts advise against drafting defenses early, citing the unpredictability and variability in fantasy performance. They highlight the rare success of top-graded defenses maintaining their rankings year-over-year ([33:51]).

Rookie Tight Ends and Veterans:

• TJ Hawkins: Viewed as a solid blocker but not a significant fantasy asset unless he surprises.
• Danny Amendola: Recommended as a late-round valuable option for deep or larger leagues due to his consistent target-sharing ([60:19]; [61:24]).

Humorous Segment – Chicken Salad: A light-hearted exchange about chicken and tuna salads serves as a brief comedic interlude, showcasing the hosts' camaraderie and humor ([27:18]).

Final Remarks: Andy announces the signing of Tariq Cohen Bears jerseys available on pristineauction.com, followed by a tease of future episode schedules with increased frequency ([62:06]).

Notable Quote:

"Danny Amendola has been very valuable every year for like a few weeks when he's playing." – Jason Moore ([61:50])

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7. Conclusion

The Fantasy Footballers wrap up the episode with promotional mentions of their partnerships and subscriptions, reinforcing their commitment to providing high-quality fantasy football analysis ([63:12]).

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Key Takeaways:

• Stacking Strategy: Valuable when drafting high-upside, undervalued players from the same team.
• NFC North Insights:
  • Bears: Focus on Trubisky’s development and RB depth with Montgomery and Cohen.
  • Vikings: Dalvin Cook’s health is paramount, with Thielen and Diggs as reliable WRs.
  • Packers: Aaron Rodgers remains a top QB with Davante Adams as a key WR.
  • Lions: Kerryon Johnson is a high-value RB despite offensive uncertainties, bolstered by Cam Newton’s readiness.
• Fantasy Draft Tips: Prioritize high-efficiency RBs and reliable WRs, avoid early defense picks, and consider late-round sleepers like Anthony Miller and Danny Amendola for deeper leagues.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Jason Moore on Stacking:

  "Every time I'm considering taking them, they are always there. 100% of the time. They're both disrespected." ([03:33])

• Mike Wright on Dalvin Cook:

  "The sky is the limit for Dalvin Cook." ([39:28])

• Jason Moore on Kerryon Johnson:

  "There's no world where Kerryon Johnson is not a top 15 back this year." ([58:19])

• Jason Moore on Danny Amendola:

  "Danny Amendola has been very valuable every year for like a few weeks when he's playing." ([61:50])

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the key discussions, insights, and strategic advice provided by the Fantasy Footballers in their July 25, 2019 episode. Whether you're preparing for your fantasy draft or looking to optimize your current roster, the insights shared offer valuable guidance for navigating the complexities of the NFC North and beyond.

Transcript

[Andy Holloway]

Hey, Foot Clan, thanks for joining us. It's draft season and that means it's time to head over to ultimate draftkit.com it's the only tool you need this offseason. This draft season, we've been spending months and months getting it ready. And you know what? We're going to keep getting it ready because we spend the entire offseason updating this bad boy. Video profiles, our rankings, risk ratings, the one and only reception perception from Matt Harmon. Tons and tons of research. Goodness. Check it out now@ultimate draftkit.com hi, this.

[Mike Wright]

Is Kyle Rudolph and you're listening to.

[Andy Holloway]

The Fantasy Footballers Podcast.

[Jason Moore]

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

[Mike Wright]

Oh, welcome in. It's Thursday, July 25, and we've got a great show for you. This is the Fantasy Footballers Podcast. Mike the Fantasy Hitman Wright is here and present and accounted for.

[Andy Holloway]

It's my name. Do not wear it out.

[Mike Wright]

Jason. Jason Moore is here.

[Jason Moore]

Do not drag my name through the mud of those jokes over there.

[Mike Wright]

I think we have one of these.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, yes, Right.

[Mike Wright]

So Mike went with the don't wear.

[Jason Moore]

It out, don't wear it out joke.

[Mike Wright]

I remember every once in a while we need to.

[Andy Holloway]

Don't wear it out. I believe I said do not.

[Mike Wright]

We need to review that joke.

[Andy Holloway]

I am far too eloquent for your contractions.

[Mike Wright]

On the YouTube, he got a, I believe a one. A total of one point for that.

[Andy Holloway]

That's weird. I wasn't even going for a score. But I'll get you.

[Mike Wright]

And that's what hurts. You really should be trying harder. This is.

[Andy Holloway]

You want me to try harder?

[Mike Wright]

You've opened up the G. No, I'm Andy Holloway. You can follow Mike at FF Hitman.

[Andy Holloway]

Chris Farley right there.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, yeah, down by the river. You can follow Mike @FF Hitman on Twitter Jason. FFL. I'm @andy Holloway and the show is at the Fantasy. Oh, no. The FF Ballers. They don't give you that many characters on Twitter, but we welcome you in. We've got the NFC north on the show today. We'll be breaking down that division. Got a great quick question, some news to talk about. A lot more is happening day by day. Teams getting into camp, injury situations, the active PUP list. We want to get you primed and ready for your fantasy football season. We're excited, we're happy you're here and we're very excited to be giving away a Patrick Mahomes Signed jersey courtesy of Pristine Auction. You can get in on that. The giveaway ends at the end of July, about a week Left. And that's FootClangiveAway.com youm can support us over there by voting at the Podcast Awards. We're going for a fourth consecutive win.

[Andy Holloway]

The Quattro.

[Mike Wright]

The Quattro, as we call it. And there are other ways you can enter footclaimgiveaway.com let's start with this quick question. This comes in from Raymond. Which same team player stack do you see yourself drafting the most this season?

[Jason Moore]

This one is really easy for me because every. Almost every mock I do, every real draft I do, there are two guys from the same team that I am madly in love with. As far as value, I think every time I'm considering taking them, they are always there. 100% of the time. They're both disrespected. I don't get it. Because they're on one of the best three offenses in the league. They were top options last year, but Robert woods and Jared Goff are great values this year. Yeah, I'm scooping them up everywhere. I will probably have a team with that stack. Yeah, I'll probably win the championship.

[Mike Wright]

Okay. I mean, that one makes sense. I mean, both high end options. You went quarterback, wide receiver.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Are there running back wide receiver stacks that you see yourself getting into? Like, I don't know, maybe you spend a late first on Deandre Hopkins, snag a little Lamar Miller value later in the draft, as I've been known to do in a mock draft.

[Andy Holloway]

I prefer to get away from that one. But like, if we're just Aaron Jones and MBS team Geronimo over here for life. So I wouldn't be doing that stack. If we're talking, you know, high end wide receivers and a running back where I'm actually okay with that combo. And these are both early picks, so I'll just confine my answer to that. I would say Ty Hilton and Marlon Mack.

[Jason Moore]

I would be.

[Andy Holloway]

If the draft fell to a certain point where I end up with both those players. I'm good with that stack.

[Mike Wright]

Now, there would be a train of thought here. We talked about the Bengals on the last episode. I said, you know, getting A.J. green in the fourth, if you were so lucky, top of the fourth is stealing. But Joe Mixon and A.J. green on an offense that you're uncertain about, you know, is that a stack you're comfortable with because of the value Joe Mixon and the late first A.J. green and the.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, if you believe what what you believe on AJ Green, which is that he is great and healthy, he's going to be awesome, then I wouldn't worry about the team itself. You can look back to last season. Saquon Barkley and Odell Beckham Jr were a great stack today. Good example from a terrible offense. If the players are great and the value is there, you don't need to be afraid. I'm not quite as bullish on AJ Green this year as you are, so I probably would avoid that. But if you are correct in AJ Green still being a dominant top 10 type wide receiver, then the value is there. And I think a lot gets made of you want the wide receiver receiving or the quarterback receiving option stacked because you double up on your touchdown. It's fun and it is fun. But you can also make an argument for a running back wide receiver stack from a consistency standpoint. While they won't score a touchdown on the same play, you'll have a much more even baseline through the year. You know, assuming you've got two really good options.

[Mike Wright]

I wonder if the Bengals offense and the Giants offense. That comparison, I think that that's a good one. I think that that's one that could be indicative of what you see. There were still, you know, Eli Manning had a lot of yardage last year. I mean that's what you got out of that offense. It wasn't the best offense in football, but you had huge fantasy stars because everything ran through those two guys. I could see that happening in Cincinnati.

[Andy Holloway]

Light a light version of it though, because Joe Mixon is not Saquon and AJ Green at this point is not Odo Beckham.

[Mike Wright]

Dalton's probably more capable of giving you big echelon games than Eli bounces out a little bit. All right, we have some Bengals news. Let's get into it.

[Jason Moore]

News and notes from around the league presented by Sleeper.

[Mike Wright]

Tyler Boyd was signed to a four year, $43 million extension by the Bengals. Congratulations through 2023. Mike, you said this in the studio yesterday. Tyler Boyd decided not to bet on himself and he took this contract. Probably a smart move considering some things worked in his advantage last year. I know you guys have illustrated that Boyd was good with Green. You still have a very small sample of elite performances by Boyd with Green. So I think this was the right move by Tyler Boyd and they lock up a young man that that's getting better.

[Jason Moore]

It's probably a good move from both parties. Tyler Boyd gets his and the Bengals are. This is not that much. It sounds I mean, obviously $43 million, it's a lot of quiche.

[Andy Holloway]

I would accept that.

[Mike Wright]

I think it's less than Sterling Shepherd's deal.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

I mean, and just above Tyler Lockett Steel.

[Jason Moore]

So it's not an extravagant deal, too. And as when you lock a guy up early, it's one of those things where every time it happens, you think, oh, no, they're paying so much. But as the season goes and larger contracts loom, locking up players early from a franchise standpoint is actually. Usually you're not getting the reset market later. So I think it's a good move. Both sides, the question now is they're saying, okay, we're going to shift to AJ Green and get a contract done there. Is that just lip service? Do you. You know what I mean? Does this get in the way of saying, let's pay AJ Green a long term big deal?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think it gets in the way. I would think it helps if it makes sure that the team is cohesive. If it's AJ Green and Boyd once again running through another contract cycle, that's only a positive thing for A.J. green because he. Boyd is good.

[Jason Moore]

He's a. He's a great.

[Mike Wright]

He is a good player.

[Andy Holloway]

He's a good wide receiver. He's not elite. He's not getting paid like an elite wide receiver. But when we were talking about this, it was okay. Well, Boyd has kind of accepted who he is, where he falls in the pecking order. He's not going to take a gamble on health. He's just going to get paid, which is a crap ton of money. Enough money that he should be able to live on forever.

[Mike Wright]

Well, Marvin Jones could have stayed in Cincinnati and taken wide receiver 2, 3 money.

[Jason Moore]

Right?

[Mike Wright]

He chose to bet on himself and he chose to go sign a bigger deal and try to be the guy. That's not what Ty the boy did.

[Jason Moore]

Right?

[Andy Holloway]

And speaking to AJ Green, Green is not going to take that type of a deal. AJ Green is not going to take a hometown discount at this point of his career. He's going to try and get paid as if he is a healthy, elite wide receiver. One of those things is still true in my opinion. He's elite, but the health is definitely a big risk for a franchise to go in and say, okay, we're locked you in. You're our wide receiver one now for four years, and your body seems to be falling apart.

[Mike Wright]

All right, let's transition to another elite wide receiver then, because it's not smooth sailing for the rest of the upper echelon wideouts. Right now, Hopkins is on the active pup Julio Jones, 10 to 14 days away from being cleared to practice with a foot injury. This one's actively affecting Julio Jones right now. Unless that foot is also petitioning for a contract extension for the next 10 to 14 days. But you know, Tyree Kill has the. He's one of the upper echelon drafted wideouts. He's got things hanging over him. There's some problems in confidence for some of these wideouts with the foot injuries that have happened to Julio and to A.J. green over the past couple of years. Does this concern you about Julio? This is the first we've heard that he's going to miss extended time due to the foot. Not the first in his career.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

But as of right now, it's part.

[Andy Holloway]

Of the game with Julio Jones. If you're. If you're new to fantasy, welcome. Welcome to the Julio Jones party where every single week you watch him hobble down the field, you watch him hobble off the field, you rip your hair out screaming, why is Julio not on the field? And then he ends the game with 120 yards because he's just an absolute monster.

[Mike Wright]

Okay.

[Jason Moore]

I just want that.

[Andy Holloway]

It's part of. It's part of owning Julio Jones in fantasy football is. Is knowing that your stomach is always going to be a little rumbly.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And because of his history with that, I think they'll still sign him that large long term contract. I think it's coming soon.

[Mike Wright]

All right. We need to talk Falcons with this story as well. 5th Round Rookie Quadri Oleson. Yesterday it was reported he's going to help pick up some of the slack in short yardage situations. You have a backfield with Oleson, Devonta Freeman and Edo Smith. If we've seen this history of Freeman not necessarily holding up like.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

The last two years. Correct.

[Mike Wright]

In the past couple of years. And this team has been content to kind of share the load. Is there a potential for fantasy owners to be surprised and disappointed in Freeman's output this year because of the utilization of some of these complimentary backs? You know, they drafted Ito. This regime drafted Ito. They like him. Say what you will about what's on the field. I said this the other day. We don't look through the same lens that the coaches look through. The coaches look through a different lens than fantasy owners. What is your concern about if Olson does take carries inside the two? Let's just hype. Let's say he takes half of those. How does that change Your view of Devonta Freeman, if that becomes a reality.

[Andy Holloway]

If he actually did that, it would be a large concern because part of Freeman's upside is that he's a double digit rushing, touchdown type of a guy. I look at this as more of an indictment on Ito personally and it would, it would be shocking to me that if you know what you have in Freeman and he's paid to, he's paid to be a number one running back and then you just decide, okay, this fifth round rookie, we're going to give him this goal line job even though he has no NFL experience and we know that Freeman is incredible in these particular situations, it would shock me if he's getting goal line.

[Jason Moore]

Part of our job here is to sift through news and decide what is actionable, what's real, what's fluff, what's, you know, a headline that matters. When I look at the actual article and see, you know, the context, they were so bad at running the ball last year that was obviously without Devonta Freeman and they're talking about this rookie, what are they going to say other than he's going to help us get the ball in on the goal line like that? I don't think that this is actually going to siphon work away from Devonta Freeman at the goal. And I don't view this as a.

[Mike Wright]

Red flag if somehow, for what it's worth, Olson's humongous. He's 622-25. When you talk about Ito, Ito's what he's 591-94. So if you did want to give the ball to a Latavius Murray esque type of runner around the goal line, which sometimes teams just want to do. Olson at least fits the physical build, but he prove himself and look, that's the analysis I wanted. Do you think it's fluff or not? Spencer Ware's on the active pup. Marquise Lee coming off the knee injury is on the active PUP list. Cooper cup will avoid it. That's big news. Cooper cup avoiding the active pup to open training camp. Feeling good.

[Andy Holloway]

That's interesting.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I mean he was doing some individual drills through ota, you know, and now the fact that he's coming into camp not on the PUP says he is at a place where preseason presumably he'll be a full, full go. They're still going to take it light with him right now they've got him on a schedule, but it's what you want to see because we've been interpreting the length of time for his injury as Cooper cup could be someone that gets off to a slower start, kind of gets his footing better in the second half of the year. But if he's ahead of the game, you know, maybe you move him up a little bit and you're more confident in drafting him as a week one play.

[Mike Wright]

Like you're doing with Emmanuel Sanders.

[Jason Moore]

No.

[Mike Wright]

Avoided the active pup.

[Jason Moore]

Correct.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, so we'll see on both those.

[Jason Moore]

I've seen too many players come back from ACLS and be just fine right away. You've seen that the next year, I mean.

[Mike Wright]

Okay. Yeah, I think it's significant. I think it's significant that both players avoid it. I think it's significant that they're on the field. Check out the sleeper app. Not just the best breaking news, but the best platform. I saw that they're working on some mascot stuff. Yeah. But they're. They're focusing a bunch of developing work on night mode.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Night mode, dark mode.

[Andy Holloway]

They.

[Mike Wright]

That's all the rage, man. Yes. You should see me, my dark mode. You turn the lights off, I get real scary.

[Andy Holloway]

I can only imagine.

[Mike Wright]

I know we don't like to lean on dreaming as a prognostication method. Other than Jason.

[Andy Holloway]

Jason loves to do it.

[Mike Wright]

I had a dream last night, guys.

[Jason Moore]

Oh.

[Mike Wright]

Checking the fantasy scores from week one.

[Jason Moore]

Just remember, his nickname is the Reaper. Let's hear who's about to go down.

[Mike Wright]

Andy, you're not gonna like it now that you set that up.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, no.

[Mike Wright]

Week one, number one running back, most fantasy points. My dream last night was Todd Gurley.

[Andy Holloway]

Of course I can.

[Mike Wright]

Todd Gurley, the number one. He comes out, sets the world on fire.

[Jason Moore]

As the dynasty owner of Todd Gurley. I do not appreciate the Reaper sharing good news on Todd Gurley.

[Mike Wright]

You might trade him by then. We'll see. Hey, we're going to get into the NFC north breakdown momentarily. We do want to thank today's sponsor. You've heard of them, they're all over NFL, all over reporting right now. And that is the Athletic. In fact, I just posted about three or four days ago, great article on Josh Allen that was released on the Athletic. Shows a bunch of his analysis on his arm strength, his mobility, what he actually did in the offense. Incredible content. The Athletic, if you don't know about them, they're a subscription based publisher. Smarter sports coverage for die hard fans. And their model is very simple. You don't get ads, you don't get pop ups and you don't get autoplay videos. The coverage goes beyond game recap, smarter analysis. You guys Joke about me being a newspaper type of guy, right? I love getting the newspaper as a kid going and reading the sports stories. The closest thing we have to that level of, you know, newspaper journalism, but up to date and local and with your favorite team is the Athletic. And they have a team of talented writers. They're adding more and more coverage every day. And you can subscribe with a special discount from us. Go to theathletic.comfootballers for 40% off a yearly subscription. That means it's just $2.99 a month. So if you want some sports coverage, go to theathletic.com footballers.

[Jason Moore]

That's a pretty good deal. And hey, look, if you are getting your league together, either a new one or you want to celebrate last year's champion, go to fantasychamps.com use the promo code BALLERS to save 10%. Fantasy Champs has awesome trophies. You can customize it. Really cool. Championship belts to rub into the faces of all the other losers.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, not music. Like if you actually take this steel belt and rub it on someone's face.

[Jason Moore]

You can shape it. It's assault. Yes, it's assault. But I like. I'm not saying you should do that because it's assault.

[Andy Holloway]

We're not saying you shouldn't do it.

[Jason Moore]

But we're saying you could, you could do that. But if you're going to do it, you do [e-mail] and then, and then, look, I'm just saying their championship rings, they're gigantic. And so like if you were getting in a fight, look, that's assault. But if you're wearing those rings, you're going to. The champ is going to win that fight. I'm just saying. Fancychamps.com promo code ballers Protect yourself.

[Andy Holloway]

Protect yourself.

[Jason Moore]

Let's get divisional.

[Mike Wright]

All right. The NFC North. Last year, the Bears, oh, they Lew it up 12 and 4 with that incredible defense. Yeah, we'll talk about the Bears today. They were great. The Vikings, 8, 7 and 1. The Packers 6, 9 and 1. The Lions 6 and 10. We'll start with the Bears. Jay Grizz, obviously, he will weigh in. Huge fan as well as well as he can. Last year, this was a team that everything was predicated on the number one rush defense in football, number seven pass defense. They were just a dominating, incredible defense that set the table for everything they did. We need to talk through the offensive fantasy options and what we believe about the bears going into 2019. Mitch Trubisky, the one thing I want to bring up real quick, on him is simply the fact that this is his second year with Matt Nagy, Right. This is his second opportunity in that offense. I want people to remember that because, you know, sometimes it's year three for Mitch Trubisky, right?

[Andy Holloway]

That is correct. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

But second year in a new offense with offensive coordinator Matt Mark Helfrich, David Montgomery, Tariq Cohen, Mike Davis, the running backs, Allen Robinson, Anthony Miller, Taylor Gabriel, significant whiteouts there. And then Trey Burton last year, very hyped. Could be a post hype sleeper in fantasy this season. Right? Now let's start with the running backs. David Montgomery. Ooh. Is being drafted at 402. Tariq Cohen.

[Andy Holloway]

Stop.

[Mike Wright]

Tariq Cohen's being drafted at 5:12, 512. I want to bring up Tariq Cohen because a lot of time and effort and energy has been given to looking at David opportunity and the chance he has in this offense. So I want to talk about Tree Cohen. I tweeted something the other day. He was number one in football in yards from scrimmage, per touch, 6.9 ahead of everybody else. Very dynamic player. Had a good Fantasy Football Week 63% of the time. From weeks four through 13, he was the RB12 in football. I'm just curious where you're at with Tariq Cohen because, you know, he's a great player. I don't know if he could have done anything more with the opportunity he had last year. So I don't see any reason why the team doesn't want to utilize him in the same fashion. And that equated to a very nice finish. I have him at RB21. Mike, you've got him all the way down at 31. Jason, you're splitting the difference here at RB26.

[Andy Holloway]

So here's the. Here's my concern for Tariq Cohen. Number one regression is just. It's coming for Tariq Cohen. Naturally, even if they utilize in the same way, since the year 2000, there are only eight instances where a running back has had 70 or more receptions and cleared 10 yards per reception. So what he did last year in the passing game was actually on a historic level. And that's where he gets his entire value. Now, if you look back the first three games when the Chicago Bears were trying their best to turn Jordan Howard into a three down skill set running back where they actually gave him some targets in those first three weeks. Here's Tariq Cohen's passing line or receiving line. 2.7 targets per game, 16 receiving yards per game.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, he. It was all Howard.

[Andy Holloway]

It was all Howard all the time. And that's my concern for Cohen is that they've paid up for David Montgomery because he has the three down skill set. Tariq Cohen was still, he's still going to play. He's an excellent player. He's great for this offense. But if he turns, if a lot of that passing work or even part of that passing work gets transferred over to David Montgomery, then I think people are going to be very disappointed that they spent the fifth round pick on Tariq Cohen. He won't be nearly as consistent as he was last year.

[Mike Wright]

Go ahead.

[Jason Moore]

That's the take that I'm on as well. I worry about Tariq Cohen because I do believe they want a back in Matt Nagy's system that can be a three down back. They showed it and then they paid up heavily in the draft to get their guy. So I worry that Tariq Cohen's going away. However, one thing that's worth bringing up a little bit, I know the Bears defense, they're very good, but some of what they did from a turnover margin, things like that, they're not sustainable from last year. You lose Vic Fangio as a defensive coordinator and you replace it with Chuck Pagano who is a defensive mind.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure.

[Jason Moore]

That I never had good defensive team.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. I don't have any concerns about this.

[Jason Moore]

My point is just they won. I mean, they were a 12 win team. They were in game, you know, winning game scripts.

[Mike Wright]

They didn't want to lose Vic Fangio.

[Jason Moore]

And so my point is if maybe, you know, they are in more losing situations, that bodes well for Tariq Cohen in that sense. But for the most part I, if you're asking would I rather have at the high price of an early fourth round David Montgomery or the cheaper price of almost the sixth round for Tariq Cohen? I'm still going my opportunity and I'll.

[Mike Wright]

Go the other direction. I think Cohen's the better value in that situation. And Mike, a couple counterpoints just to bring up to kind of help people make their decisions about the backfield. One, Jordan Howard was not a slouch in terms of offensive snaps and participation in this offense. You already had an offense last year where he had 250 carries. In fact, his 3,370 yards is in the top five over the last three years. He's just been, it's crazy when you let a guy go that's been that effective on the ground. Obviously it's about a fit for this team. He had 20 receptions last year. So. Yes. Does David Montgomery maybe eat in does he catch 30, 35 passes in his rookie season? They brought in Mike Davis, who was on the field for over 120 touches last year in Seattle. The reason they bring in these guys and they move on from a Howard is for fit. Obviously, it's not just production on the ground. It's for fit. The Bears were one of the least efficient teams when they ran multiple back sets, and that's something they want to do in that kind of an option shotgun offense. They want multiple backs on the field. So when Tariq Cohen is highly effective and he's going to still be on the field in multiple back sets and Jordan Howard did have a huge touch count. I mean, 270 touches is a lot. Those would be kind of some of the reasons I believe Tariq Owen will continue doing what he's doing and give you better value than maybe. And let's say the first you think Montgomery, is he going to be that guy the first four weeks of the season? Maybe there's huge opportunity for somebody to get max value out of Tariq Cohen over the first four to six weeks as Montgomery acclimates to this system. That's some of the things that I'm thinking about as a. As I contemplate drafting a bear.

[Jason Moore]

It's definitely worth bringing up. I do believe Montgomery comes out as a near workhorse from week one.

[Andy Holloway]

And Tariq Cohen went from 6.7 yards per reception to 10.2. I mean, that's. That's a massive, massive jump. And maybe he's somewhere in between those two. Maybe it's not as bad as 6.7, but you're going to need him to be an incredibly efficient receiver out of the backfield. And I have my last point here is if you look at Pro Football Reference, they. They in fact give you the nicknames of these players and there's been an addition to Tariq Cohen and no, no, it is not Jason's abomination.

[Mike Wright]

It's not the dinosaur Hunter.

[Andy Holloway]

But it actually. Well, Jason's might be better because he's been called the Human Joystick before. I've heard that one, but there's a new one. Let me see if this affects your fantasy rankings or not. Chicken salad.

[Mike Wright]

Chicken salad.

[Jason Moore]

What?

[Andy Holloway]

Exactly. He's on Pro Football Reference listed as the Human Joystick.

[Mike Wright]

Do you guys like chicken salad? No.

[Jason Moore]

Turok the Dinosaur Hunter sounding pretty good right about now. Yes and no. Chicken salad is terrible. Chicken on a salad's fine. Chicken salad is like, why not?

[Mike Wright]

Why Chicken salad or tuna salad?

[Jason Moore]

Tuna salad.

[Andy Holloway]

Tuna salad.

[Mike Wright]

Too many variables for both of those situations. I worry about the mayonnaise situation and all. Like salads brought. Yeah, like situation.

[Andy Holloway]

Like there's not enough.

[Mike Wright]

What? Not enough.

[Andy Holloway]

More mayonnaise.

[Mike Wright]

People don't keep track of the expiration on their mayonnaise very closely.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, if it's an outdoor picnic. No, I'm not taking it. I mean, taking the risk.

[Mike Wright]

That's the quickest way to learn.

[Jason Moore]

Restroom in Arizona.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I think we should. We need to linger and talk about Mitch Trubisky and these wide receivers and even Trey Burton. Can Mitch Trubisky take another step forward? You know, he had windows of elite play last year. Most of them brought forward to belittle Jason.

[Jason Moore]

He was feast or famine last season. Who Mitchell Trubisky is, is a gargantuan question mark. We, we had a live stream yesterday, Andy, after you had to leave that, we were asked what?

[Mike Wright]

After I was asked to leave?

[Jason Moore]

After we had you escorted out of the building, we were asked what quarterback outside of the top 12 has a chance to be like a top three quarterback? And when it came to Mitch Trubisky, he's such a question mark. Because I don't believe that Mike or myself thinks that Mitchell Trubisky is actually going to be a great quarterback. I still don't believe that that's true. But it is his second year with Nagy. You did see unbelievable flashes. He only had one year as a starter in college. He's got the weapons, he's got the coach, he's young. I mean, the could be if he were to take a step forward.

[Mike Wright]

The two players that you guys have disagreed most with me in draft evaluation are Mitch Trubisky and Josh Allen.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

So Trubisky has to take a step forward this year. Bears fans are as on the fence as we are the rational ones with, you know, not the bearish colored glasses on. This is a huge year for Mr. Bisky, but it is another year where he gets to. And if you go listen to what it's like around camp, it's moving from installing an offense to not thinking and naturally running an offense. Another player that I think can contribute to Trubisky's potential success this year is second round draft pick Anthony Miller from a season ago.

[Andy Holloway]

He's good.

[Mike Wright]

Anthony Miller. Question marks abound. Oh, you know, the seven touchdowns, is that a fluke? Here's what people don't remember about Anthony Miller and one of the reasons I acquired him in our Dynasty league this past week. Anthony Miller injured His shoulder in their game against the Cardinals in September of last season. He played through a separated shoulder the duration of the year produced and then had surgery in the offseason.

[Jason Moore]

You could even see it on certain plays. You could see how hurt he was through the year with that shoulder. If you were watching the Bears games.

[Mike Wright]

Absolutely. So I think Anthony Miller is somebody being a little. Mike, do you have his ADP by chance? Can you look that up for me?

[Jason Moore]

I've got it.

[Mike Wright]

So you look at Alan Robinson, you look at Anthony Miller. Maybe pull both of those up.

[Jason Moore]

Anthony Miller is at the back of the 11th round, 135th player.

[Mike Wright]

Sure. It's a sneaky situation there. Now again, different lens for us. We're looking to find the next big thing on Chicago for fantasy owners. They like Taylor Gabriel, they like using him in the offense. He will be a piece of the puzzle along with Robinson, Burton and these other. So if the offense doesn't take a step forward, you could get lost in kind of a sea of just okay. Across the whole gamut.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

Of wideouts.

[Jason Moore]

And that's how I find myself drafting. I pretty much don't want Trey Burton or Alan Robinson, maybe Anthony Miller because he is so cheap. I'm willing to take a shot on because the way that I view the Bears is either they're going to be a very, very good offense and you're going to just want pieces of this team or they're going to disappoint across the board. So I would take the cheap options later in the draft like Anthony Miller over a more expensive option like Alan Robinson.

[Andy Holloway]

And why I like Anthony Miller at that draft price is because what we're talking about the high powered offense but not a lot of wider what they're right now. Anthony Miller is the wide receiver two on that team. Not a ton of wide receiver twos have the ability or the depth chart to literally play themselves to becoming the number one guy on that team like Alan Robinson. I still believe that he's a good.

[Mike Wright]

Wide receiver but he may be capped at this point.

[Andy Holloway]

It's tough when when the 1414 touchdowns was so many years ago and we're still only seeing brief flashes from Alan Robinson that he is still that guy and Anthony Miller was a high draft pick. He's got a great burst score. He could take Alan Robinson's job as the number one target for number one wide receiving target from Trubisky.

[Jason Moore]

Let me ask you to this question.

[Mike Wright]

Get in a dynasty right now.

[Jason Moore]

Yes. In dynasty a great the future because Alan Robinson they could pretty much move on and save a ton of money after this season. Dynasty. Anthony Miller is great, but for this season redraft, you're in your draft, you're at the middle of the back of the 11th round. Here are the three wide receivers going in that range. Who would you take? James Washington, Anthony Miller and Devin Funches.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I would take Anthony Miller.

[Andy Holloway]

Miller.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I would as well.

[Mike Wright]

It'd be interesting. You know, you might know really quickly about Washington to start the year. Might know really quickly about Funches involvement to start the year. Yeah, I would take Miller in that group. Also, for what it's worth, for those out there that are just desperate and dying to draft the defense early, over the last 10 years, only one overall number one fantasy defense has gone on to finish in the top five the next year. So only one time has that happened. That's not to say, look, I believe in this defense to be great, yes, but you just don't invest in fantasy defenses because there's, you know, their schedules change and there's variables and there's just.

[Jason Moore]

Too many different the Jacksonville Jaguars were as locked and loaded as a guaranteed phenomenal defense as you can find in the last decade. They were a game changer and everyone drafted them early last year and they disappointed. They were still good. It was still. But for fantasy purposes, touchdowns didn't happen to fall their way.

[Mike Wright]

One injury too.

[Jason Moore]

And nobody was happy that drafted Jacksonville early last year. And again I bring up the fact that they lost one of the best defensive minds and replaced him with a.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, with a dude.

[Jason Moore]

With a dude.

[Mike Wright]

All right. The Vikings 8, 7 and 1 last season, start the 2019 year on the road against arms are at home against Atlanta. This is a team that looks fairly similar to last year. Dalvin Cook being drafted in the second round, Thielen in the third, Diggs in the fourth. Where do you guys want to turn when we start talking about the Vikings? I guess yesterday on our livestream, Mike, you alluded to the fact that this is a complicated situation to diagnose when it comes to projecting their offense, how effective cousins Thielen and Diggs, their high paid offensive weapons will be and what this offense wants to do.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it's. They are a very confusing team to me when it comes to the past catchers and Kirk Cousins because Mike Zimmer is the head coach so he's the captain of the ship and he's a hard nose defensive type of a guy. They had brought in John DeFilippo to run their offense last Year Zimmer didn't like how pass heavy they were and felt like it wasn't working. I mean it was. DeFilippo got fired with about three weeks left in the season. So people are in the industry. Okay, well we have the new, the, the new OC calling the shots for those three games. But it's hard to actually really extrapolate what happened in those final games because they were one. It's a small sample and you know, it's, it's hard to go off a small sample. But that small sample is very skewed because those final three games were Miami where they absolutely blew them out and both Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray had monster games. The next week was against Detroit who was. At the end of the season. Detroit was, had just kind of fallen apart. They blew him out and then they ran into Chicago who was the best defense in the league. So it's, it's really hard to draw an analysis from those three weeks because yeah, the passing attempts went way down. Like Stefan Diggs targets were nearly non existent those final three games. It was 7, 6 and 10. He never surpassed 50 yards, but he scored in all three of them. Meanwhile, you had Adam Thielen's second half collapse compared to his first half.

[Mike Wright]

Those three games you talked about are part of that second half exactly as well.

[Andy Holloway]

It's very difficult for me to gauge what to do with these wide receivers because they are, they are probably the best tandem in all of football. When Adam Thielen and Stefan Diggs are near top level wide receivers and. No, I take that. But they are top level wide receivers and Kirk Cousins is a good to somewhere between good and great quarterback.

[Jason Moore]

Good to good quarterback.

[Andy Holloway]

Good to great. I will put him at good degree. I think Kirk Cousins is very good and he was certainly up against it with that offensive line.

[Jason Moore]

I will allow good to very good. I will not allow good to.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, I accept your compromise. Good to very good.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I mean look, you need to take a wider perspective like this show. How dare you. You great to very great.

[Mike Wright]

Thank you.

[Jason Moore]

You got to take a wider perspective with them like Mike's bringing up. You can't just look at. Okay, they changed their offensive coordinator. Small sample. Now we know exactly what's going to happen. Here's what we do know. They have paid Adam Thielen. They just kept Thielen and Stefan Diggs a lot of money and they're very good. This is a good offense. They've made some slight improvements to the offensive line and we do Know that they want to run the ball more. They have lost Latavius Murray, replaced him.

[Mike Wright]

With a guy, can't find him anywhere.

[Jason Moore]

Whose name is Alexander Madison. Oh, and you know, the word on the down low from some of our Minnesota sources is that one of the biggest changes is that goal line belongs to Dalvin Cook. When it comes to Dalvin Cook, Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, I am personally in, in and in. I like them. I think they're all going to be great fantasy options this year, barring injury. It should be a good team that's experienced. They don't have a lot of change. And when you don't have a lot of change, you don't get a lot of publicity. You don't get a lot of the conversation. So you don't get that.

[Mike Wright]

No, it's all been negative. I mean, all the news about them. You have fantasy reactions to Thielen's collapse, fantasy reactions to transitioning offense. Oh, no, you're not going to pass the ball enough. I think they want to be balanced, and I think if goal line goes to Dalvin Cook, you're going to have a top five running back. That's what's going to happen. It's definitely the RB6 from weeks 12 through 16 last year. If Latavius Murray, who, look, he's being brought in to play that role in New Orleans, if Dalvin Cook can stay healthy, this offense, you know, the majority opinion out there is that they're a top five offense in football. So can they go out and do it? They were 30th in rushing yards last year. That's not going to do.

[Jason Moore]

That's not very good.

[Mike Wright]

But they're going to. They want to be balanced. They're a middle to better defense. And I think the sky is the limit for Dalvin Cook. I really do.

[Andy Holloway]

I completely agree. The sky is the limit, but also his.

[Mike Wright]

His body.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's. I mean, yeah, the body is. The limit for Dalvin Cook is you are in. It's hard not to label Dalvin Cook as injury prone. And I don't like labeling guys that.

[Jason Moore]

But them knees, though.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, Yeah. I mean, you're injury prone until you're not in football.

[Jason Moore]

So Dalvin Cook, they're right next to each other. You're worried about injury. Obviously, we know the upside of Gurley.

[Andy Holloway]

I would take Gurley.

[Jason Moore]

You would take Gurley over Cook?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. I just did this in our mock. I took Cook in the first round, put the crown on his head, took Gurley in the Second round. But no, I mean he. No seasons for Dalvin Cook. Over 133 attempts, which was last year, but he's been a 4.7 a carry guy, 40 receptions in 2018. His skill set where people need to remember Dalvin Cook because who's going to catch the ball out of the backfield in this offense?

[Andy Holloway]

Dalvin.

[Mike Wright]

It's just Dalvin. Stay healthy, my friend.

[Jason Moore]

Stay healthy.

[Andy Holloway]

But if he's not, Alexander Madison is going to be very interesting and just.

[Mike Wright]

Throwing this out there before we move on to the packers right now. Mike, you have digs above Thielen. Jason, you have Thielen above Diggs and I have Thielen two spots above Diggs. So every year we get to weigh in on the digs Thielen thing for the remainder of our natural life.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, I can't wait.

[Jason Moore]

It has every year turned out to be Thielen and it will continue to turn out to be Thielen.

[Mike Wright]

Obviously that's my rank, right?

[Jason Moore]

Well, our.

[Mike Wright]

Yes, of course. All right. The Packers. This is a difficult team to talk about when it comes to fantasy expectations outside of probably one player. The Packers 6, 9 and 1.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, you're that you're.

[Andy Holloway]

You're down on Rogers.

[Mike Wright]

I'm not down on Rogers. I believe in Rogers. But expectation wise, efficiency wise, what the offense looks like. Will he be upper echelon? It's been a little while since he's. He's turned on the jets for a.

[Andy Holloway]

Full season a year.

[Mike Wright]

Well, he's been. He hasn't been healthy.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure.

[Mike Wright]

So if you mix, you mix the replacing of head coach Mike McCarthy for Matt LaFleur. He had I believe his least efficient touchdown year last year. You've been banged up multiple years in a row and he's finding himself in that situation. I think there, there are question marks. There are more question marks around Rogers than Devonte Adams. Do you disagree?

[Jason Moore]

There are definitely more from fantasy perspective. Devonte Adams. The only question around Devonte Adams is should he be the number one wide receiver or should he just be a top three wide receiver? Like that's the biggest question with Aaron Rodgers. Obviously was injured in 2017, healthy for 2018 and he finishes the quarterback six, which was not a payoff of the.

[Mike Wright]

Draft price nor the second most pass plays in the league, which is not something normal for Aaron Rodgers.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

Finishes sixth, lowest touchdown rate of his career, 4.2%. And this was interesting storyline. Aaron Rodgers last 49 games played, he's 24, 24 1. That's his record. So changes Happening in Green Bay. Let's try to wade through them. Devonte Adams locked and loaded. Aaron Rodgers, we know he's. We all have him projected to be a top five quarterback and we're not telling you to draft him early. So I stared him down in the late fifth of our mock. Didn't take him. Probably some players with higher upside than Aaron Rodgers.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I mean for draft price, you mean.

[Mike Wright]

Correct.

[Jason Moore]

If we're talking about Aaron Rodgers, he finishes the quarterback six. Last year he had a much less efficient year than he usually has. However, he was dealing with Devonte Adams, a decrepit Jimmy Graham and rookies and you know what I mean? Like he didn't have. I think that the decrepit.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, put that on the my.

[Jason Moore]

But it's true.

[Mike Wright]

Put that on the list of things I don't want.

[Jason Moore]

Don't want to be described as.

[Mike Wright]

I don't want to be labeled as this year.

[Jason Moore]

I think you're going to. You've already had a lot of conversation in and around the building about getting Aaron Jones the ball in the passing game more which he is so good at. That's going to be helpful. From, from everything we can tell, Marquez, Valdez, Scantling has taken a step up. He appears to be the number two on the outside. Geronimo is going to the slot which I think is better at this point. So I believe Aaron Rodgers has a better wide receiving core and a better all around team going forward. I really like what they did this whole off season from a personnel standpoint. So if 6 was kind of the floor for Rogers, I can't see him not being a top end quarterback this season. And for the first time pretty much ever, other than when he's injured, he's not being drafted. I mean, you know his, his average draft price right now is.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know, it's usually where Mahomes is going right now.

[Jason Moore]

Right. So Rogers is in the middle of the fifth right now behind Andrew Luck and behind Pat Mahomes.

[Mike Wright]

If his wide receiver core has improved, then it's going to be difficult to believe that they'll use Aaron Jones to the degree that fantasy football owners will want out of the backfield over the last five years. Green Bay is the second lowest in the league at targeting the running backs out of the backfield. And I think that's just. I think that's a result of Aaron Rodgers. Aaron Rodgers is a player that extends plays. Yeah, he'd rather chops are downfield at all times now. Presumably MVs in year two and a healthy Geronimo Allison. He should have more wide receivers open downfield. And even the decrepit Jimmy Graham helps Rodgers more than he does fantasy owners. So I don't know if I buy that Jones will be as heavily utilized in the passing game as we would want him to be. But the beauty of Aaron Jones is he is a hyper efficient player. So if he's on the field and does receive targets and carries, he has proven to be the most efficient running back in football. So get him out there a little bit more. Let him do his thing, his Jamal Charles thing. And I think you have a good season from Aaron Jones and he will.

[Andy Holloway]

Have to do that again. I mean, he's obviously doing it, but because the reports coming out of Green Bay are still talking about spreading the backfield around, there is no been no inkling that they're going, I've made up.

[Mike Wright]

A word that is a new word, whatever.

[Andy Holloway]

There has been no hint, no whispers from the bushes from the Green Bay camp that they're going to feature Aaron Jones, which.

[Jason Moore]

It doesn't matter.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Jason Moore]

It doesn't matter. Here's why. Let's say they keep it as a timeshare. There were times last year where Aaron Jones was rocking for fantasy top 12 through several weak stretches as a running back. Let's say they keep him in that same timeshare. But instead of Green bay being the 32nd out of 32 teams in rushing attempts with 333 as a team, they, they are actually a little bit more balanced, which is also what the. What, you know, has been discussed. Last year they just didn't run the ball. If you're telling me that they're middle of the pack and they're up at 415 carries, I mean, you're talking about almost 100 more carries to split up. So, yeah, maybe he's in a timeshare. But there will by necessity be more volume for Aaron Jones this year, even if he doesn't become the workhorse. So I do like Aaron Jones.

[Mike Wright]

I definitely like Aaron Jones and I hope that that is the case. I believe that he will have a lot more work. He's a great player. I mean, only 133 attempts last year turned that into 729 rushing yards, which is pretty incredible. And he only played, you know, the 12 games. I think we, if I'm honest, I think that we're sifting through these wide receivers day by day. Outside of Devonte Adams, it looks like we're kind of polar opposite in rankings. Mike, you said you are.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm Team Geronimo.

[Mike Wright]

You're Team Geronimo. Now you. You clearly had to have wavered for a period of time on Team Geronimo. There was a little stretch there. There was. Your knees were buckling a little bit.

[Andy Holloway]

Not really knees buckling, but like the sensation that I did. Just three quick revolutions. So some butterflies.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

We knew the equilibrium was a little bit off, but we settled back and we're. And I'm still with Allison and even with him moving into the slot, I don't. It doesn't bother me at all that. Okay, in two wide receiver sets, it's going to be Adams and Marquez. It's not going to be a lot of two wide receiver sets. Aaron Rodgers wants his wide receivers out there and this, this little nugget here. Per good friend of the show Scott Barrett, who says Rogers career targets. He has gone to the slot wide receiver with 25.6% of his attempts. Fourth most that Aaron Rodgers likes to target the guy to the slot. And his passer rating to slot wide receivers is 111.6, aka the best. So.

[Mike Wright]

But he. That could also be read as Aaron Rodgers pass it to Randall Cobb. Blank amount of time.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure. But I think that Geronimo Allison is actually a. Is a better wide receiver than Marquez.

[Jason Moore]

Okay, then Marquez.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

If you had said better than Randall Cabo would have smacked you in his heyday, that is. I mean we don't have anything proven out of.

[Andy Holloway]

Randall Cobb is no longer there. And so I, I think Allison's the second best wide receiver on the team.

[Mike Wright]

The packers ran three wide 78% of the time, second highest in the league behind the Rams. I don't know how much I can. You can project it because the floor coming in, new camp, new new offense. That's. Yeah, that's part of the problem to me. Allison hasn't proven himself. MBS hasn't proven himself. So you are taking a level of risk at banking on. You can spin the outside stats. You can spin the inside stats. I think you are literally taking your pick.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes, I agree with that.

[Mike Wright]

And the truth is it could be both.

[Jason Moore]

It could absolutely be.

[Mike Wright]

And that could be the problem.

[Jason Moore]

Aaron. No, I don't think that would be a problem. I think if both step forward. We've seen Aaron Rodgers support three wide receivers before when it was James Jones, Devontae Adams and Jordy Nelson. Now I'm not saying that that's going to happen. I'm saying that that could possibly happen. But while I've got Geronimo Allison definitely leading in targets and you know, and receptions over Marquez. I do think that for fantasy purposes, the more valuable role is going to be that outside role and it fits Marquez. The reason why I'm saying get out of here. With Geronimo being better than Marquez Valdez scaling, I think sure. As maybe as a route runner, as, you know, just a. Just a jack of all trades. Veteran wide receiver. Yes, he's a little better. But Marquez Valdez Scantling is one, is a pretty good receiver coming into his second year. But two, he is a physical freak. He's 6 4, 206 pounds, ran a 43 7. So now they're finally getting him on the outside with blazing speed. He's an Aaron Rodgers as a quarterback. I see. Like if I'm going to take my shot on a guy who's just going to explode, I don't think it's going to be Geronimo.

[Mike Wright]

Give me Jarvis Landry in the slot over Geronimo Allison in the slot this year.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Mike Wright]

All right. The Lions. We're talking about the Detroit Lions.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Tough division.

[Jason Moore]

Yes. Everyone's favorite. My favorite. Ninja's favorite. Everyone's favorite. Your favorite.

[Mike Wright]

You know, there were some rumors yesterday. As we get into it, I do have some breaking news. I guess I should push the button. Yeah. Breaking news, very big. Cam Newton will not start on the active pup. He's healthy, he's ready to go. Oh, man, that's good news.

[Andy Holloway]

That is fantastic news.

[Mike Wright]

Good news just. Bro. Cam Newton ready to go for 2019.

[Andy Holloway]

Scoop them up late while you can.

[Jason Moore]

I love Cam Newton's value this year.

[Mike Wright]

Some booty scooping.

[Jason Moore]

We saw this, sir. We love it. Hold on. Wait.

[Andy Holloway]

We gotta hold on.

[Mike Wright]

No, he's giving me a good score on this one.

[Andy Holloway]

Gonna rate him on that.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, that was booty scooping.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

I like it.

[Andy Holloway]

Come on.

[Mike Wright]

I got an 8. But anyways, back to. Back to the Lions. Back to carry on Johnson. Some rumors that Theo Riddick might not even make this roster.

[Jason Moore]

Rumors were started by me.

[Andy Holloway]

What?

[Mike Wright]

No, look, he's been one of the least effective third down running backs. Now we've always been kind of as fantasy owners. Look, he's on the field, he gets targeted. You pay attention. But he's not been very effective. Kerryon Johnson has a better like one carry on Johnson backfield target is not worth the same as one theoretic target. Riddick has a hard time taking the. He can, he can. He can make the reception.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

Just can't.

[Andy Holloway]

It's got Good hands, do stuff with the reception.

[Mike Wright]

That's been the problem. And so carry on's more valuable in that capacity. They brought in C.J. anderson as an offseason addition and they brought in Danny Amendola who can function as a short yardage.

[Andy Holloway]

Yes, he can.

[Mike Wright]

Pepper him with target type of guy. There may not be a need for Theo Riddick and I think they save over $3 million if they were to cut him. Now, I'm not saying they will, but.

[Jason Moore]

Let'S get it going, people.

[Mike Wright]

But let's get it going because he'll sign somewhere.

[Jason Moore]

We're not. We're not. Look, he's.

[Mike Wright]

You're saying he'll be fine.

[Jason Moore]

He'll be fine. Let's start the field rig getting cut.

[Mike Wright]

Train because you want carrying Johnson to catch 50 plus passes. You want Kerryon Johnson to stay healthy. And look, this could be a great year for them. They're going to need to improve on offense. 20th and passing yards per game, 23rd in rushing yards per game, 25th in points per game. Matt Patricia's mark on this offense hasn't been great. Well, and he wants something that they couldn't do.

[Andy Holloway]

To be fair to Matt Patricia, I mean the. All the reports that came out, you know, pretty late, like we had no inkling to this during the season, but the reports of Stafford playing through small fractures in his back. And this was in Stafford's worst year in a long time by a mile. So the math checks out that Stafford all of a sudden goes from being a very efficient game manager to just a bad quarterback. Maybe he really was dealing with this injury. Not maybe was, but. But was. And it was severely impacting his play. So it wouldn't shock me to see Stafford turn things around rapidly. That doesn't mean I want him for my fantasy team. But for Detroit it could be.

[Jason Moore]

What it means is Detroit's offense will just be better than it was last year, which isn't very difficult because they weren't very good last year.

[Andy Holloway]

Right.

[Jason Moore]

They bring in a new offensive coordinator, Darrell Bevel. If you don't remember Darrell Bevel replacing Jim Bob Cooter, he was from the Seattle Seahawks.

[Andy Holloway]

This is a very, very large change.

[Jason Moore]

This is jbc, very large change. This is. And this is a Matt Patricia type of guy. They want to run the ball the way that Seattle wants to run the ball. They want to run the ball like it was 1988 and it's your dad's football. But that's great news. Categories was invented for Kerryon Johnson because they're Going to run. Yes, it is by Parker Brothers. Very good. That one will make sense in a couple weeks. Anyways. The thing is is they are going to run the ball far more than they did last year. And if you look at what Kerryon Johnson did last season, okay, he didn't get really a large volume of carries until week three. They came out and were like garrett Blunt's our guy. And so I don't know why they did that but eventually they were. Man, this carry on Johnson guy is good.

[Andy Holloway]

And legary Blunt was like worst in league of yards per touch.

[Mike Wright]

Can I throw one thing in because I want you to go talk. I want you to talk about carry on until your heart's content.

[Jason Moore]

I'm so excited.

[Mike Wright]

But you need to look at that situation that happened last year and again refocus the lens we look at. Not the same lens as the coaches. Yes, Carry on is as tangibly better visually better, practically better. Everything that you see on film and know about him, he is better than legarrett Blunt. Legarre Blunt was the single least efficient player at yards before contact last year. He took the mantle, he took the trophy. It didn't matter that he was that bad. I'm just pointing it out there not as an anti carry on this year as a template for other teams. Might not put their amazing incredible rookie in a position to succeed from day one.

[Jason Moore]

I sure and I don't believe carry on is the workhorse bell cow back. I think they brought in CJ Anderson to give him work. If Theo Riddick is involved he will still get some work. But look at last season with a putrid offense that I think will get slightly better this season and the worst running back in football and LeGarrett Blunt who is stopping drives, stopping first downs, taking away touchdown opportunities because of that you had from week three three until Kerryon got Johnson. Carry on got Johnson. Kerryon Johnson got injured in week 10. He was on pace already with LeGarrett blunt there with the bad offense for 210 attempts, 1162 yards. He was already a top 15 running back during that stretch and he wasn't the starter. Now he comes into this off season. He is the guy.

[Mike Wright]

No debate.

[Jason Moore]

There's no debate. Kerry Johnson's the one from camp on and he was already a top 15 running back in fantasy for putrid Detroit Lions last year. Yes, there's no world, there is no world where Kerryon Johnson is not a top 15 back this year.

[Mike Wright]

There is a world.

[Jason Moore]

There's not.

[Mike Wright]

Yes there is injury the world. No, the world is. He doesn't score enough and he's in a division that faces the Vikings and the Bears defense twice and they're a bad offense and they're the worst team in the division and that hurts Kerryon Johnson. That's the world. He doesn't get the passing game work that we want and they're a bad team. So I think that there is an. That's a possible outcome. I concede all the value of Kerryon. He's incredible. He should be great. We saw what happened last year on a bad offense in Arizona with David.

[Jason Moore]

Johnson when he was top 10 back.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, he was a top 10 back.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Mike Wright]

But he was projected to be the number one back. Are you projecting carry on as a number one back?

[Jason Moore]

No, that's my point.

[Mike Wright]

Okay, so where are you projecting him?

[Jason Moore]

My point?

[Andy Holloway]

15.

[Jason Moore]

Top 15. That's what I'm saying.

[Mike Wright]

But if David Johnson can go from being a projected number one down to 10 at the position because of an offense, then a top 15 projected guy can drop because of an offense. That's all I'm saying. I'm not. I'm not saying it will happen. I'm saying that there is a world where they're not. They're one of the five worst teams.

[Jason Moore]

In football and they were last year when he was a top 15 option, as you know when. During that entire stretch of the season. That's what I'm saying. And right now he is the 19th running back off the board in almost the fourth round, the 311. So I'm saying take your shot. You're going to be happy.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I lean more on the side with Jason.

[Mike Wright]

Of course, I like carry on Johnson. You asked the question what is the potential of him being outside that range? I think it exists when you're on a bad team. Matthew Stafford, we talked about him. Kenny G. Marvin Jones. If this is not going to be the passing offense that it has been in the past as the. As you both just, you know, made your case that it won't be. I'm. I'm scared of Kenny Golladay for two reasons. One, passing volume coming down and two, Marvin Jones being healthy and a good player. A player that, you know, one week it could be a Marvin Jones week. One week it can be a Kenny G week. I didn't see. He didn't. How do I put this? He just didn't much like Corland. Sutton didn't show up and show out as often as I would have wanted him to do.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, he had massive opportunity to say, that's my point. To plant his flag and say I am the undisputed alpha wide receiver one of this team. Because Marvin Jones missed essentially the entire second half of the season.

[Mike Wright]

We have Marvin Jones in our ultimate draft kit as a draft value.

[Jason Moore]

Well, I mean it's not out of the realm of possibility. Not that it's probable, but it's not out of the realm of a realistic outcome that Marvin Jones actually finishes higher than Kenny Golladay on the year. I think it's just a matter of where the touchdowns fall.

[Mike Wright]

God, is the fourth one is being.

[Jason Moore]

Drafted the fourth round one is being drafted in double that in the eighth round. I mean, yeah, the value is on the Marvin Jones side.

[Mike Wright]

Any expectations for Rookie tight end T.J. hawkinson in year one?

[Andy Holloway]

No, no.

[Jason Moore]

They want to run the ball.

[Mike Wright]

What about near 8?

[Jason Moore]

Oh yeah. Look, TJ Hawkinson I think is going to be a good player. Rookie tight ends are not where you want to go. And if you want to take a shot at a rookie wide receiver, you need to take a shot at a guy who is pretty much exclusively a pass catcher a la Evan Ingram.

[Mike Wright]

I think you meant tight end, right?

[Jason Moore]

Yes, tight end. You want to take it as a. You want a pass catching rookie incoming titan. TJ Hawkins is a great block run blocker.

[Mike Wright]

I like that he's out on the ball. I like that he's out there. He'll be out there for every snap. That's what I think. I think Hawkinson will be on the field the majority of the year. I like that. But you know, I'm not taking any fantasy shares of him unless he surprises us. Right.

[Andy Holloway]

And it's. I won't focus on it too long. But Danny Amendola does carry incredibly late round PPR value.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Given. Given the way that Stafford has played football his entire career. You look back to how great Golden Tate was because he was a target monster. When Golden Tate left, there was this huge hole and the offense suffered. They ended up bringing in Bruce Ellington off of the street and they said, okay, Bruce, you're going to play. And what did he do his first week? Nine targets.

[Mike Wright]

Nine targets.

[Andy Holloway]

No, to a guy off of the street. Nine targets followed by seven, followed by ten.

[Jason Moore]

Danny Amendola. I know, but is a valuable name to know if you're in a 16 team league. If you're in a super deep league where you're going near the bottom and you're like, man, I don't know who to draft. Look for Danny Amendola in those leagues.

[Mike Wright]

10 seasons of football. He's been relevant for fantasy one time a long, long time ago. He's like talking about Eli Rogers to me. 14, 16 team PPR leagues. I just don't. Do you think he can catch more than.

[Jason Moore]

It's not a season number. It's not a season number because Danny.

[Mike Wright]

Amendola, you're saying a week to week.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Name a guy in the right match.

[Jason Moore]

Over the last 10 years. Danny Amendola has been very valuable every year for like a few weeks when he's playing.

[Mike Wright]

Sure. I don't disagree with that. You're right. Ellington last year I started him in a league because you just tried to soak up targets. Marvin Jones coming back running.

[Jason Moore]

Now let's talk about Zach Zinner.

[Mike Wright]

I let's, let's not and say we did. How about that?

[Jason Moore]

All right.

[Mike Wright]

I think that's it. Oh my gosh.

[Andy Holloway]

We did it.

[Mike Wright]

I think we did it. All right. Tariq Cohen signed Bears jerseys yesterday. $46.68 on pristineauction.com Be sure to head over there. Browse their hundreds of daily sports memorabilia auctions. All the autographs authenticated. A great company, one we've been partnering with for a really long time and they do great work and you can get some steals. So check it [e-mail] impress your friends. Yes, impress them. That is it for today's episode of the show. Back with a Saturday episode. And there will be five days a week coming August. That's exciting.

[Andy Holloway]

I think it's next week, but either way we'll still see you Saturday. Goodbye.

[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.

[Mike Wright]

Hey folk clan. Subscribe to the Athletic today and enjoy coverage that goes beyond game recaps to provide smarter analysis. No ads, no pop ups, no autoplay videos. All your national and local coverage from some great writers go to theathletic.comfootballers for 40% off. A yearly subscription comes out to $2.99 a month. Theathletic.comfootballers.