The NFL is Back! + NFC South Breakdown - Fantasy Football Podcast

Summary

Fantasy Footballers Podcast Summary Episode: The NFL is Back! + NFC South Breakdown
Release Date: July 25, 2020

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1. NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and Opt-Out Designation

The podcast opens with exciting news regarding the NFL's labor situation. The hosts discuss the unanimous recommendation by the NFLPA executives for the latest CBA proposal, signaling a positive outlook for the upcoming season.

Key Points:

• CBA Approval: The NFLPA has unanimously recommended the NFL's latest CBA proposal, raising expectations for its approval. Once ratified, this paves the way for training camps to commence as scheduled on Tuesday ([10:00]).

• Opt-Out Designation: A significant aspect of the new CBA is the introduction of an opt-out clause for players. This allows players to withdraw from the season within a 10-day window (potentially by August 3rd), either due to medical reasons or personal concerns related to COVID-19. Mike Wright emphasizes, "Players have the option to opt out for medical reasons or because they feel unsafe" ([10:40]).

• Financial Implications: The agreement includes a stipulation where players who choose not to play will receive different stipends based on their reasons for opting out. Notably, Dalvin Cook's holdout is discussed, with ESPN reporting that his holdout is unlikely to extend beyond the first week of training camp due to a $50,000 daily fine for non-reporting ([14:56]).

• Impact on Fantasy Football: Andy Holloway remarks on how player opt-outs introduce additional variables for fantasy football managers, stating, "Whether a medical designation or whether just a player evaluating their own risk...it's just another piece of the puzzle for 2020" ([03:33]).

Notable Quotes:

• Jason Moore: "The players still have to technically vote, but when the executive committee unanimously recommends it, there is an expectation that this is going to happen." ([10:23])
• Andy Holloway: "As fantasy football players, this kind of half of what we do is react, right. To injury news or to roster news and depth charts." ([03:33])

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2. NFC South Division Breakdown

The heart of the episode delves into an in-depth analysis of the NFC South, examining each team's prospects and key players for the upcoming season.

a. New Orleans Saints

The Saints are highlighted as a team with substantial continuity and stability, positioning them as strong Super Bowl contenders.

Key Points:

• Team Continuity: With Drew Brees at quarterback and Sean Payton as head coach, the Saints maintain a consistent core, which is advantageous for both team performance and fantasy football stability ([19:06]).

• Emmanuel Sanders Addition: The acquisition of Emmanuel Sanders from San Francisco bolsters the Saints' receiving corps. Jason Moore praises Sanders, stating, "He still has it...the passing volume for the Saints...has Trey Kwan Smith let people down" ([20:46]).

• Alvin Kamara's Performance: Alvin Kamara is projected to return as a top-tier fantasy running back. While there's some concern regarding his injury history and workload distribution, Jason Moore confidently forecasts, "I fully expect him to have a great season" ([22:35]).

• Defense Strength: The Saints boast a strong defense, ranking fourth in defensive rushing yards per game, which complements their offensive prowess ([27:26]).

Notable Quotes:

• Andy Holloway: "This is the make or break year for Super Bowl for the Saints." ([19:48])
• Jason Moore: "I would go with Alvin Kamara because I like the running back as a tiebreaker." ([22:35])

b. Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons exhibit a turnaround from a rocky start last season to a promising finish, with Matt Ryan at the helm.

Key Points:

• Season Performance: After a dismal 1-7 start, the Falcons rallied to finish 7-9, securing key road victories that saved Dan Quinn’s position as head coach ([31:23]).

• Matt Ryan's Challenges: Despite Matt Ryan’s impressive passing yardage, his red zone efficiency remains a concern, impacting the team's touchdown totals ([32:27]).

• Calvin Ridley Potential: Calvin Ridley is eyed as a breakout candidate. However, uncertainties linger regarding the tight end position with Hayden Hurst’s addition, which may affect Ridley’s targets ([33:35]).

• Running Back Rotation: Todd Gurley's performance is scrutinized, especially his reliance on rushing touchdowns. The discussion underscores the risks associated with drafting Gurley due to his touchdown dependency and potential rotation in the offense ([36:21] - [39:32]).

Notable Quotes:

• Mike Wright: "I think there is there. I think we should like Emmanuel Sanders a little bit more than we do." ([21:53])
• Jason Moore: "He's going to have his up, up games, he's going to have his down games and I'm fine with him." ([30:16])

c. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers have undergone significant changes, notably the addition of Tom Brady, revitalizing their offense.

Key Points:

• Tom Brady Acquisition: Tom Brady joining the Buccaneers injects veteran leadership and quarterback expertise, significantly impacting the team's offensive dynamics ([44:33]).

• Rob Gronkowski's Role: Rob Gronkowski remains a potent tight end option, albeit not at his peak form. The hosts discuss the balance between his high upside and varying fantasy reliability ([51:24]).

• Offensive Line Concerns: Questions surround the Buccaneers' offensive line, particularly with Donovan Smith and rookie Tristan Wirfs. Potential issues in pass protection and the impact on Brady’s performance are highlighted ([44:39] - [45:41]).

• Running Back Options: Ronald Jones emerges as a viable fantasy option despite concerns about his pass protection skills and potential rotation with Tristan Wirfs ([42:36] - [46:48]).

• Wide Receiver Analysis: Mike Evans and Chris Godwin are discussed as ceiling picks, with Jason Moore advocating for the high potential they bring despite some skepticism about target distribution under Brady's system ([47:09] - [50:53]).

Notable Quotes:

• Jason Moore: "He has the probability of being the clear number one in this offense." ([47:37])
• Mike Wright: "If the rushing touchdowns go away for Todd Gurley, you're going to feel real bad you drafted him in the fourth round." ([38:32])

d. Carolina Panthers

The Panthers introduce Teddy Bridgewater as their new quarterback, shifting the team's offensive strategy.

Key Points:

• Teddy Bridgewater's Impact: Bridgewater brings stability to the Panthers' quarterback position. However, his historical performance raises questions about his potential fantasy impact, considering past systems and offensive line issues ([57:08] - [60:05]).

• Matt Rhule's Coaching: New head coach Matt Rhule is tasked with revitalizing the Panthers. The podcast discusses Rhule’s track record and the challenges of implementing a new system in a short offseason ([52:48] - [55:31]).

• Fantasy Implications: The hosts express cautious optimism about the Panthers' offense, emphasizing the importance of players like DJ Moore and Christian McCaffrey while advising a wait-and-see approach for Bridgewater's adaptation ([59:10] - [61:19]).

Notable Quotes:

• Andy Holloway: "If you tell me Sam Bradford is on a team with a really bad defense and a bad offensive line, I'm not excited." ([56:30])
• Jason Moore: "I do think his passing work comes up. I am fine drafting Todd Gurley this year." ([41:22])

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3. Listener Questions

A listener posed a question regarding whether draft picks in one fantasy league should influence picks in other leagues to mitigate risk from potential player injuries.

Discussion Highlights:

• Diversification vs. Preference: Jason Moore emphasizes focusing on leagues that matter most to the manager rather than diversifying across multiple leagues. He states, "If you like Hollywood Brown, I'm going to draft him whenever he's a value" ([07:02]).

• Managerial Strategy: Andy Holloway shares his perspective on fantasy players' greediness for favorite players, illustrating the dilemma of choosing between robust value and diversified safety ([08:17]).

Notable Quotes:

• Jason Moore: "I am not trying to diversify my portfolio... I'm going after the players I like." ([07:02])
• Andy Holloway: "Fantasy players are just greedy about their picks... I would rather make three victory laps, not just one." ([08:17])

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4. Final Announcements and Closing Remarks

Towards the episode's conclusion, the hosts reaffirm the start of the NFL season, express excitement for the upcoming games, and provide reminders about their podcast awards nominations and social media channels. However, these sections are brief and serve as wrap-up points rather than substantial content.

Notable Quotes:

• Andy Holloway: "We're going to have football. We're going to have football in 2020." ([61:30])
• Mike Wright: "Follow our social media accounts on Twitter @theFFBallers, on Instagram at Fantasy Footballers." ([62:16])

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Conclusion

This episode of the Fantasy Footballers podcast offers a comprehensive preview of the 2020 NFL season, focusing on the new CBA, potential player opt-outs, and an extensive analysis of the NFC South. The hosts provide valuable insights into player performances, team strategies, and their implications for fantasy football managers, all supplemented with engaging discussions and notable commentary. Whether you're a seasoned fantasy player or new to the game, this episode equips you with the knowledge to navigate the upcoming fantasy season effectively.

Transcript

[Mike Wright]

Foot Clan football is back. And that means your fantasy draft is back. It is quickly approaching. You got to get ready the Ultimate Draft Kit. You can grab it right now. We're updating this thing all offseason. 100 plus player profiles, our full projections, sleepers, breakouts, bus. It's a good time. Look, it's a big party always happening in. The Ultimate Draft Kit comes with a free app. Look, just. Just head over there real quick. Ultimate Draft Kit.com.

[Jason Moore]

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

[Andy Holloway]

Ah, welcome. Fantasy Footballers Podcast. So excited to be with you. The flip. The Flip Clan. That's what I was gonna say.

[Mike Wright]

That's.

[Andy Holloway]

That's not the right phrase. The Foot clan has got to be excited right now because some football is gonna happen.

[Mike Wright]

We're just gonna keep going with it.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know. We're recording this show on Friday just minutes after some big time news about the NFL and the NFL pa and we're hyped. We're excited. There's a lot going on and thankfully it looks like football is going to happen.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, you know, I've been watching videos of all of the teams and how they've set things up. I mean, it's just, to me, it's a done deal. It's here. I'm super ready. Next week, training camps start. I am, I am beyond excited. And this today's show is awesome because, you know, a lot of. I love the divisional previews. I think they're one of my favorite shows of the year. But not every division is fun to talk about, from team one to team four. You know, the end of some of these shows when we're going through, you know, the order of wins. Last year you're like, ah, we got to talk about this irrelevant team. But today, I mean, every team is fantasy hotness.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it's going to be fun. Mike, you doing well?

[Mike Wright]

Oh, I'm doing as well as could be, my friend.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, we're talking NFC south on the show today. You heard Mike at the top remind you about the Ultimate Draft kit. Bunch of ranking adjustments in there today. We'll catch you up on what's going on with the NFL PA and the players and the opt out situation. But you could have a lot of drama for fantasy football rankings and the way drafts are going to look in the next 10 days because some players may opt out of the season. And that's happened in every major sports league that has resumed playing. And so I expect it to happen here. Whether a medical designation or whether just a player evaluating their own risk or the family exposure, that's going to happen. So it's going to be another wrinkle. I mean, as fantasy football players, this kind of half of what we do is react, right. To injury news or to roster news and depth charts. And I mean it's just another piece of the puzzle for 2020. But I'm excited that we get the chance to do that.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And the beautiful part is for everybody playing fantasy and worrying about, oh, what if this player doesn't play. The nice thing is we don't have to necessarily react when it comes to these things. There's a 10 day window, so we're going to be able to or we don't have to project. We can react. We can actually look at what happens, make our adjustments before fantasy drafts and it's going to be an awesome season.

[Andy Holloway]

A reminder to everybody out there, if you're looking for a great league to be a part of, we facilitate that each and every year. So if you have struggled to find other dedicated owners for your league, you can go to footclan leagues.com if you're a member of the Foot Clan. There's 7,500 plus of you out there looking for leagues. Dynasty Keeper, auction, local online, whatever the case may be. It's a great time to get involved right now because we're going to have football.

[Jason Moore]

Don't forget about like literally the best league, the largest league in the world that if they're at join the Foot, they have access to the the Megala Bowl. Oh, it's going to be bigger than ever this year. We're not signing people up yet, but it's a little teaser.

[Andy Holloway]

If we were signing people up, you wouldn't have just settled for a slight growl. No, you would have gone into a much more ferocious, much more megali Mega. We appreciate everybody supporting the podcast. Make sure you subscribe on Apple podcasts on Spotify, maybe you're ad free on Stitcher Premium. We appreciate you listening in. One small announcement before we get to the quick question and that is that we are looking for now it's two, right, Jason? Is that what we're looking at?

[Jason Moore]

Well, we don't put ourselves into a box. We will stay water. But yes, this is a never put.

[Mike Wright]

Us in a box. How dare you.

[Jason Moore]

You say it's a little announcement but I know I get hit up all the time. When are you guys looking to add writers? Well, this is our announcement right now. We are looking to add a couple of qualified writers to the team to bring in to become part of the Fantasy Footballers organization, write some articles. We're looking for people who can find things that help the Foot Clan win championships and who know the show. I mean, that's why we're announcing it here. We're not posting it on social media. We want people who know the Foot Clan to help the Foot Clan.

[Andy Holloway]

It is very exciting and you, you know, not to put too much pressure on the applicants out there. By the way, you can go to FootClanHelp.com to apply to be a writer with the Fantasy Footballers, but it is a tight knit group and we are very particular about those selections and getting the right people on board that are going to bring value to those that browse the website and ultimately that informs the show too, because a lot of the research that our writers work on, you know, we're taking some of that information into the podcast and then taking credit for it and taking credit.

[Jason Moore]

Thank you, Mike, for Are you smarter than us? Make us [e-mail] all right, quick question.

[Andy Holloway]

Of the day before we get into the news and the divisional breakdowns. So it comes in from a Foot Clan supporter. He says, do you let draft picks in one league influence your picks in other leagues? For example, do you avoid having the same players in multiple leagues so an injury bust doesn't hurt you across all of your leagues? So it's a good question. What do you think?

[Jason Moore]

I mean, this is a matter when it comes to my main leagues, right? I think when we first started doing this podcast a long time ago, we got into a bunch of leagues. Maybe this applied a little bit more and then we dialed it back. I wanted to make sure that the leagues I'm in, I care about. We've got three or four major leagues we're in and then a couple that we do together. And in those leagues, because I really care about them, I am not trying to diversify my portfolio. I'm going after the players I like. If I like Hollywood Brown, I'm going to draft him whenever he's a value. I'm not going to sit there on the, you know, when I'm on the clock and be like, well, I've already got one share, so I'll pivot somewhere else. Now, if you're doing DFS or best ball in Mass, you know, if you're, if you're doing 100 best ball leagues, that's where you're taking this more as portfolio.

[Andy Holloway]

It's just, it's a Look into the psyche of the fantasy player though, because this is like I'm asking myself the question with AJ Green. I think the values there as an 8th round pick, it's like, do you want to find one chest full of gold or three chests full of gold? Like I, I think fantasy players are just greedy about their picks. I mean, I'm greedy about the guys I like. I would rather make three victory laps, not just one.

[Jason Moore]

Maybe this is just has to do with how confident we are because like, if you're not sure, if you're like, you know, you look at that and you say, do I want three chests of gold? When I hear AJ Green, I think like, oh, do you? Do you want three empty chests? And so if you're not confident in your own takes or the players you love, then maybe that's where you diversify so that you, you know, you win some and you lose some.

[Mike Wright]

I'll have players every year that are, must draft players in all my leagues if I, if, if I can help it. But then I do like grabbing other players more so because I want, like, I want to expand the fun of the players that I'm rooting for on a weekly basis. And that's why I, we, like, we try to keep the leagues smaller so I don't have the situation where everything is good and everything is terrible at the exact same time. But I still want more players that like, I'm happy that they scored a touchdown.

[Jason Moore]

More skin in the game.

[Andy Holloway]

I know for a fact Mike will have Antonio Gibson in every league. Like something like that is such a low cost investment late in a draft that that's not going to hurt you necessarily. Maybe not as late in drafts as Mike would like. If he keeps talking about the league of records.

[Jason Moore]

Too many leagues he plays in too many leagues without Sandy, he's not getting Antonio Gibson in our leagues.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. I don't know what I'm more addicted to, having great players on my roster or hearing Mike scream in pain when I take one of the players. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, that look. That feels good. That's fuel.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't care who you are, that feels good. All right, let's get into the news.

[Jason Moore]

News and notes from around the league.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, the big news is what we, we said at the top. The nflpa, their executives, as of this recording have unanimously recommended the latest CBA proposal made by the NFL. The, the players still have to technically vote, but when, you know, when the executive committee unanimously recommends it, there is a, there's an expectation that this is going to happen.

[Mike Wright]

Pretty. Pretty good.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. So that would mean training camp opens as scheduled on Tuesday. There are a few, I guess, caveats to this deal worth bringing up. What do you guys think the kind of headline is the opt out designation?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, the headline for me is the opt out, which they've said it's 10 days or. I've also seen August 3rd posted. So like, I mean, I wasn't sure when the 10 days started, so. But I have seen the date August 3rd as the opt out. You kind of alluded to it. Andy. There's going to be, as far as we know right now, two tiers that you can opt out. One, the player themselves. If they have a medical condition that puts them at risk. If they were to contract Covid so they can opt out and they're going to get some type of stipend. We don't have the information what that is yet. And then the players who just, they want out because they no question sitting well with them, they're not feeling safe. What, whatever the reason is, a player may opt out and they'll be at a different stipend. But that's, that's the big one. Because you are right that someone's going to opt out. That we are not expecting. There will be some top tier NFL players who opt out. I haven't heard, I don't many big names. I think DeMarcus Lawrence was the largest name that I've heard floated as a possible opt out. But other than that, I don't know who they're going to be yet.

[Andy Holloway]

Just sharing my opinion. I don't think there'll be a lot. I really don't.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, but there'll be a few.

[Andy Holloway]

I think there'll be a few. Yeah. The NFL, the careers, the time period that players have to play, I think there'll be few.

[Jason Moore]

You get a few years in the NFL unless you're Tom Brady and you play for two decades. But yeah, I mean, I think most players will play. And then the other big headlining piece to me is that 2020 will be agreed upon that it's a no play, no pay. So if games were to get canceled, the players would not get money. What that means to me is that it is going to take a lot to get any games canceled. I mean, they're playing a season this year. I'm stoked about it.

[Andy Holloway]

And then there was some information. Just about when you're looking at ensuring some of your top tier running backs, one name that has not come up has been whoever would back up Todd Gurley. In Atlanta. There was a quote about Brian Hill that some players in the Atlanta organization thought that Brian Hill should have had an opportunity to be the lead back in Atlanta. That's good information for fantasy owners that are looking to ensure the Todd, like, independent of a Covid season where Todd Gulley has come out. It was before these agreements took place, so I don't put too much into what he said, but he said, look, that at the time, he wasn't feeling great about the safety plan, and he was prepared for the situation where he might have to sit out. He's an injury risk. And here you have a situation on a good offense that you could say, who's the guy behind him? Is it Edo Smith? Is it Quadray Olson? And maybe it is Brian Hill.

[Jason Moore]

In fact, yeah, I mean, I was excited to see this quote when we were in the Scotty Fishbowl. I know Mike was bringing Brian Hill's name up late, but I was worried because there's Edo Smith and Quadray Olison. I think Brian Hill is the most talented of the three. That's who I. If I was the coach, I would give him the shot. But it seemed like last year, the next man up was Ito, which made no sense.

[Mike Wright]

Who didn't? We have a Brian Hill week. We did have.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, we absolutely did.

[Mike Wright]

Where it was. He was the waiver pickup. And.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, him and Mike. Him and Mike Boone went out for some froyo after they let every fantasy owner down.

[Jason Moore]

Whoops.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. I mean, I feel like you had those two. And then who was the running back in Detroit? I know that they rotated through a few, but.

[Jason Moore]

What? Scarborough?

[Andy Holloway]

No, the other Johnson. Oh, who was before.

[Jason Moore]

Because it was Ty Johnson.

[Andy Holloway]

There you go. Yeah, he's in that group of. Oh, no. Like the waiver wire, money was spent, and you got jack squat. All right, here's some other news. We've been following the Dalvin Cook situation. This is. You know, we don't know for certain right now, but ESPN is reporting that they do not expect Dalvin Cook's holdout to last beyond the first week of training camp. It's based on the new CBA, which mandates a $50,000 fine per day for a player that does not report.

[Jason Moore]

That's a lot of money. That's. That's no smooth. That's not, you know, oh, 5,000, 50,000 a day. You miss a week, and that's a quarter million dollars. You're not wanting to hold out if your goal is more money.

[Andy Holloway]

And so I was feeling pretty positive about Cook in general, but they could come to an agreement or he could just show up. And then we did have some news that Tua is feeling. Feeling all right, ready to go, according to an interview with USA Today. Does that news matter to you, hearing it from Tua himself?

[Jason Moore]

Nope, nope, not at all. I mean, it's one of those things.

[Andy Holloway]

Where it doesn't matter to me either.

[Jason Moore]

Why the three most difficult we're here.

[Mike Wright]

To give the news.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, the three most difficult positions for rookies are quarterback, offensive line and tight end. Those just have so much to learn. And the fact that he's coming off of the injuries, coming off and doesn't have that expectation the way Burrow does to be a week one starter. I think it would just be insane to throw a rookie quarterback with this shortened camp experience out on the field week one. So I'm not worried about him saying, my health is good.

[Andy Holloway]

Normally Ryan Fitzpatrick goes with the route of he throws that rookie out there after a couple of weeks of of performances that you're like, wait, maybe he's.

[Mike Wright]

Just like a real generous dude.

[Jason Moore]

What if it comes out after his career is like, oh yeah, but I wanted to get in, so that's why I threw five picks.

[Andy Holloway]

He would do that.

[Jason Moore]

He would. He's a nice guy.

[Andy Holloway]

Him and Josh McCown would do that. All right, we're going to get into the divisional breakdowns. Before we do, I want to thank today's sponsor, wgu. You won't stop working until you reach your goals, and neither will wgu. That's why they've created an online university for people whose ambition never rests. WGU's innovative competency based learning model was designed specifically to fit the lives of busy adults that are nonprofit, offering online bachelor's and master's degrees in business, IT education and nursing. And you can move through the material you already know. Spend time learning what you don't, which means you know, the faster you demonstrate what you know, the faster you finish their programs. It's about half the cost of most other online universities, so you can graduate with far less debt or none at all. Get your $65 application fee waived at WGU. EDU Fantasy Footballers. That's WGU EDU Fantasy Footballers and Foot Glenn.

[Jason Moore]

We want to make sure that you are prepped for this season and the Ultimate Draft Kit is the place to be prepped. And look, I know a lot of people listening right now. They already have the Ultimate Draft Kit. They're ready to go. But there are some new features coming out to our website. These new player profiles we're about to launch are awesome and you will get special access. Do things on that with Ultimate Draft Kit. It's just included. We're just including it. With that, this season is going to be different than ever. You are going to want the information from the Ultimate Draft Kit this year more than ever. So check it out atultimatedraftkit.com if you want all of our stats, all of our blurbs, all of our projections, video profile breakdowns, everything you need for 2020 get you through this crazy year@ultimate draft kit.com let's get divisional.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, we are continuing our divisional breakdowns, the fantasy football questions, answers for each and every team and we're in the NFC south today. Beginning with the New Orleans saints last year, 13 and 3. They've gone 71 on the road in back to back seasons. Pretty impressive. I think. You know, any NFL fan out there looks at the Saints as that team right on the edge of, you know, super bowl contention the last several years.

[Mike Wright]

Instead of Vikings problem.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, yeah, they did. And what do we have the one year, I'm sorry, Saints, we'll change the rules so you can throw a challenge flag on pass interference. Oh no, that was terrible. We'll take it back.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. But the nice thing is the Saints as an organization have a lot of continuity, offense and defense. They are returning the core of this team. And in this type of an off season, when you have a veteran team led by the same head coach for a long time, same quarterback, all the main pieces are there. I think it gives the Saints a huge leg up on a lot of the league. This is the make or break year for super bowl for the Saints.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I mean we talked about the Kansas City Chiefs in that continuity. It feels like the Saints are that NFC roster that is together. They have, you know, that element of quarterback, head coach, offensive coordinator. You don't have something new. You're learning. Obviously. Drew Brees, one of the best in the game. The big addition this offseason was Emmanuel Sanders, wide receiver coming over to New Orleans from San Francisco. No more Ted Gann. Teddy Bridgewater is now the quarterback in Carolina. But when you look at Emmanuel Sanders, let's start there. We've talked about him at times. I really like what he brings to Drew Brees more than, you know, my attitude at I have to have Emmanuel Sanders on my roster. I think there's obviously a price that I'd like to pay for him, but it's late in drafts. Right now he's the wide receiver 41 off the board. How do you guys feel about what he brings to this offense?

[Mike Wright]

I really like Sanders. I think that he still has it, which to me was, you know, a bit of a miracle for him to come off of that injury. Meanwhile, his, you know, his teammate, former teammate, demarius Thomas, same injury, is out of the league now. So he still has it. And I took a look back because we're all. I think we're all a bit jaded right now. One, the passing volume for the Saints over the past couple of years has been coming down, but the last two years it's been Trey Kwan Smith as really the wide receiver too. And he has let people down in a pretty big way, you know, including, I think the Saints organization. He's not the player that they hoped he would become. And if you look at the past 11 seasons, even including the Traquan Smith past two years, the wide receiver too, for Drew Brees and the Saints, he's been a top 30 fantasy wide receiver in eight of 11 years, but not the last two because Traqua Smith has been that guy. So I think there is there. I think we should like Emmanuel Sanders a little bit more than we do.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I mean, the top 30 number tells you that if that came to fruition, obviously Sanders is well below that in draft capital. Traquan Smith felt more like the wide receiver. Two by result, not by design. You know, a piece of the puzzle beyond Michael Thomas. But Michael Thomas dominated so much of that offense. I think one of the other big question marks about this team is what Alvin Camara are you going to get right this season? He's the RB4 off the board. So I think the consensus is that he'll be back and be one of the most effective fantasy running backs in football. You guys both feel that way? Do you. Do you feel like there'll be a return to the touchdown totals, at least in part from a couple of years ago? Because, you know, last year was a struggle.

[Jason Moore]

I absolutely think Alvin Camara is going to be a tip top back. I mean, that's someone that when you take at the fourth spot in the draft, it's ironic because really when you're at that fourth or fifth spot, the two players that you're usually deciding on, our teammates here between Alvin Camara and Michael Thomas in your first round saying, do I want that running back or wide receiver? I would go with Alvin Camara because I like the running back as a tiebreaker. And the truth is, Alvin Camara has been great. This offense is great. They have no new competition against him. And last season he was dominating. He didn't get as many touchdowns early in the season. And then he got injured with the same injury that Saquon Barkley had. It took time to get back. But I remember the first couple games of last year, just watching how dominant he is. He gets to the edge. He makes people miss. I see no reason on film or with any transaction that the team has made to say that Alvin Camara wouldn't be a top option. And I'm glad we get to talk about him today because he's, he's really been. There's always the top three, right? You're always talking about Christian McCaffrey, Saquon Barkley and Zeke. And then we're talking about the back of the first. We're talking do you go Josh Jacobs or Dalvin Cook if he slips or Kenya Drake. But Alvin Kamara sitting here and probably Derek Henry is near here as well, where you're saying he just doesn't get a lot of press right now. But he's still being drafted there and I fully expect him to have a great season.

[Andy Holloway]

I think the one thing that Alvin Camara has that is different than those top three guys is that a little bit of insecurity about what you're going to get around the goal line because Latavius Murray was pretty good last year. Alvin camara went from 34, 10 zone rushes to 14 in a span of 2018-2019. Yes, there was some injury concerns and yes, you're going to get the receiving totals from Camara. But I do want you know, when you look at what the top 10 backs bring you, Camara does bring a question mark as to whether he gets that work. And that's just something you have to accept with what he brings a little bit.

[Mike Wright]

I took a. I was looking at those numbers too, Andy. And where Camara's big year in 2018, he had 13 carries inside the five. Like the really, really valuable carries, 13 of them. Mark Ingram had 12 that year. So like that's crap though. You got 25 carries last year. Camara only had eight. Now he was injured. So I mean, if he doesn't miss a few, miss those games, perhaps he's right back up to the 13. But what's wild to me is Latavius Murray had four. That that's it. So between the two starting running backs, you only had 12 carries inside the five compared to 25 two years ago. It was. And I mean I was look trying to look at this from Every single angle I could find. You know, Drew Brees, his red zone attempts were very, very close. At least what he was pacing last year. You know, 2019 to 2018. The Saints offense was only six yards a game better in 2018. They just. They just didn't score as many points. And I think that that's just one of those flows of the NFL. So I really, really like Camara. Where he's going in the draft.

[Andy Holloway]

It is. It's difficult for me to shake that quote from last off season.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I get you.

[Andy Holloway]

Which was Sean Payton talking about Alvin Camara being soft. It was not, you know, on record anywhere. But that quote combined with Latavius Murray being brought in and then Camara following that quote up with getting hurt. And so that component of whether he can stay healthy, to me, is still a variable in his projections. I am at the lowest of the three of us, so that's why I bring up at least a wart in my mind. I've met RB7, so, oh, wow. I'm, you know, severely disrespecting him. I hate him.

[Jason Moore]

He did, you know, it's one of those things because the touchdowns did come and the injury happened. I don't think you realize how good he was last season. You know, 18 touches per game. And that's including the games where he got injured, including week 17 where I think he was like 40% snap share, 18 touches a game for a guy that's as efficient as Alvin Camara is going to be great.

[Andy Holloway]

Now, I know we like to look, and maybe we're going to stay on the Saints longer than I thought, but I know we like to look at rebounds and the fact that they were, you know, number one in rushing touchdowns for two consecutive years before dropping to 20 last year. And like, some of these numbers are going to return to the norm. But I know when we've talked about the Chiefs, you guys have been quick to bring up the defense, and the defense in New Orleans is stout. It is good. That was something that took a huge step forward last year. Fourth in the league in defensive rushing yards per game given up. It's one of those things where.

[Mike Wright]

Because you had to throw on them.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, because. Yeah, you had to throw on them. But I'm saying if their defense is top notch. Is. Is the reason for some of those numbers coming down last year less about just ebbs and flows and more about the defense?

[Jason Moore]

No, because the. It wasn't total offensive numbers. It was a shift from running to passing. It was Drew Brees throwing for 7% touchdown rate. And Michael Thomas getting every single ball that's ever been thrown caught.

[Mike Wright]

So he caught the most passes.

[Andy Holloway]

He stole 35 of Alvin Camara's receptions from out of his hands.

[Jason Moore]

I don't, I don't think this is, you know, we were, we were talking about this on the last episode. I brought up the fact that the Saints still want to, they want to score 40 points every game. Even with their great defense, they're not trying to slow the game down and win a defensive and, you know, running game. That's why Alvin Camara is not going to get 300 touches on the ground. He's going to be closer to 200. But they will air it out. And I think, you know, we've, we've said this before. This is the only narrative street thing here for the, for the Saints. But Breeze wants some records and he's close to some records and Alvin Camara in the passing game is going to help him get there.

[Andy Holloway]

Jared Kuk. Jared Kuk averaged 4.6 targets per game last year. Led all tight ends and yards per reception at 16.4. That's kind of a Jared Cook thing to do. 21% of his receptions were touchdowns. Talk about the efficiency of Drew Brees when he went to Jared Kuk.

[Jason Moore]

I'm sure that'll happen again.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, it could. It really could. I mean, when you have an offense like this and a hyper, efficient quarterback that picks his spots, it could, it could happen. I mean, Cook is a big play tight end. That's one of those prerequisites that I like for my tight end position is not just looking at the two yard reception around the goal line, but the seam route that Breeze has been able to dominate with with his tight end for his entire career. I like that, that possibility where you can have a guy catch two long bomb touchdown passes at tight end on his only two targets. So I think the question mark is you're probably sacrificing some volume with Cook, but the, the touchdowns could easily be there again.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, they could be there, but I, I'm out. I've just discussed how I'm not really drafting Jared Cook. I'm not paying that middle round for him because I, it's that the, the platform that he's standing on, a fantasy value, that thing is just barely balanced where if the wind blows a direction like he's going to be brutal for your fantasy team. So I'm just not paying up. And then with the addition of an actual good wide receiver too, for the team it could be trouble for Cook.

[Jason Moore]

I do think his volume will be low and that's what you're saying. Mike, it's a little bit scary to have someone that is so touchdown dependent. But the reality is almost every tight end that you're going to draft outside of, you know, the top three or four guys are pretty much touchdown dependent. So I am going to take the one who has. Drew Brees, has a great offense, has a history of scores and did it last year. But I, I mean, you're right, he is not a week in, week out. You plug it in your lineup and you're just happy with your tight end. Every week he's going to have his up, up games, he's going to have his down games and. But I'm, I'm fine with him. And the nice thing is he's not really a middle round tight end. He's actually in the drafts that I've been in. I don't know what his ADP is, but I've ended up drafting him several times around the ninth round and I'm happy to.

[Mike Wright]

Interesting.

[Andy Holloway]

I've had him in breeze that combination like you're talking about 9th, 10th round, managing to get both guys. Let's talk about the Atlanta Falcons last year, 7 and 9. It was a rough start. We didn't know if Dan Quinn would make it through the season.

[Mike Wright]

Somehow.

[Andy Holloway]

Somehow he did. They went what, one and seven before the bye week?

[Jason Moore]

That's correct.

[Andy Holloway]

But went six and two in the second half. Had road wins against New Orleans and San Francisco. Turned it around to the point where Dan Quinn is still the head coach of this franchise and you know, it's a good offense, passing yards per game, you know, you know he's. Matt Ryan's going to air it out.

[Mike Wright]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

294 passing yards per game, 29 touchdowns. When you look at this upcoming season, what are the big question marks for you guys around Atlanta's offense and projecting? You know, you don't have to say much about players like Julio Jones, but he's good, which is, you know, he's a good player. Yeah, right. Still struggles with the touchdown totals on a consistent basis. And in part that's because Matt Ryan struggles with throwing the football in the red zone. You look at sharp analytics this past year, 29th in red zone passing efficiency. I mean, he just time and time again he finds a way to throw interceptions in the end zone.

[Jason Moore]

He will throw the yards though. I mean.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

You know, over 4,000 yards. Yes, exactly. You know, he's always over 4,000 yards. He's closer now to 5,000 yards than 4,000 over, you know, most of the last few years. So the passing offense is going to work. I think the three questions are Todd Gurley, Calvin Ridley and Hayden Hurst, can they go? You know, they've got the range of outcome where they can all be really good fantasy options. I don't expect this defense to be good. They're in a division that's going to score the ball a lot. Their schedule is bad, which could be good for the offense actually having to, you know, score more points. If you want to win, it's going to be on the offensive side of the ball. So, you know, let's start with Calvin Ridley. He's someone that at the beginning of the off season I had him in my top 12. I saw the breakout coming. I, you know, and since then I've cooled a little bit. I went deeper into the splits when Hayden Hurst, or, I'm sorry, when Hooper was out. And that's really when Ridley took advantage and while.

[Andy Holloway]

Good thing they got rid of Hooper then, huh?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, but Hayden Hurst is coming in. It's very different when you've got a guy that gets injured and there isn't a replacement versus Hearst is not going to fill the entirety of Hooper shoes. But they're planning on him being on the field having, you know, targets. This is a team that has thrown the ball to the tight end a lot. So, you know, to me I see Calvin Ridley, decent breakout, but more Like Wide Receiver 16, Wide Receiver 2, Wide.

[Andy Holloway]

Receiver 16 is where he's being drafted for what it's worth. 63 for 866 and 7. Last year only played 13 games.

[Mike Wright]

And he's tough because before the, the Muhammad Sanu trade He was about 53 yards a game and then, you know, six receptions, 82 yards a game for the next six games before he went down with his own injury. But you're right, Jay, of the Austin Hooper injury and couple games where it took Hooper to reestablish himself in the offense, those also coincided with the Calvin Ridley breakout. So it's, it's tough to know what to believe about Calvin Ridley, like which side will happen. But they're like the Falcons in between Tony Gonzalez and Austin Hooper. We actually have a four year gap of Atlanta really struggling to use the tight end position. You had the toy Lolo years. Yeah, the toy Lolo years, the Jacob Tammy years and then Austin Hooper's first two years in the league. Yes, it was really nothing. So Ken Hayden Hurst, he's Got the draft capital. I mean, he. He should be able to handle that, but there's still a very large question of can he handle that? It's another. This is a player changing teams, which is not necessarily the best thing as we've seen in the past. So I still believe more in the Calvin Ridley breakout than him. Not.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I side that direction, too. Although, yeah, I think Hearst will be involved. Mohammed Sanu is obviously gone. Russell Gage never gets talked about, despite the fact he. This is shocking. He actually led the Falcons wide receivers in red zone targets last year.

[Jason Moore]

That's because the red zone maybe stop.

[Mike Wright]

Throwing at Russell Gage.

[Jason Moore]

Red zone targets don't mean a lot coming from Atlanta.

[Andy Holloway]

If I were Julio Jones, I would cut that stat out and paste it on Matt Ryan's locker. I would walk over and say, look. Look what I just found. If it ever happens again, I'm going to slap you.

[Jason Moore]

Well, he's going to get slapped because it's happened for a decade. I'm sure it's going to continue to happen.

[Mike Wright]

All right, and as we move over to Todd Gurley, guys, I have prepared a fun little short game.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, dear goodness.

[Jason Moore]

I don't think I'm going to like this game.

[Mike Wright]

Ready? This game is called Todd Gurley or David Montgomery. Ready for this game?

[Jason Moore]

Oh, I'm not ready.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm excited about this game.

[Mike Wright]

All right, fellas, for your first question last year, who had more rushing attempts, David Montgomery or Todd Gurley?

[Jason Moore]

Todd Gurley.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I'll go with Gurley.

[Mike Wright]

The answer is David Montgomery with 242 to 223.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Over having.

[Mike Wright]

Having said that, who had more rushing yards, David Montgomery or Todd Gurley?

[Jason Moore]

David Montgomery.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, man, it must be.

[Jason Moore]

You wouldn't. You wouldn't bring it up if it wasn't David Montgomery.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, go ahead, Mike.

[Mike Wright]

The answer is David Montgomery with 889 rushing yards. We got to keep it going, though. Who had more receptions, Todd Gurley or David Montgomery?

[Jason Moore]

That one actually is easiest. David Montgomery. They didn't use Todd Gurley in the.

[Andy Holloway]

Passing game last year, stupid.

[Mike Wright]

It was Todd Gurley. I had to throw you off the set of the game way.

[Jason Moore]

What? They barely passed the ball.

[Mike Wright]

Todd Gurley had 31 receptions. Monty had 25. All right, those high value carries, more carries inside the five yard line. Who had more, David Montgomery or Todd Gurley?

[Jason Moore]

Feel like I'm going to get this wrong. I'm going Gurley.

[Andy Holloway]

I'll go with Monty.

[Mike Wright]

The answer is David Montgomery, who had 18. He had the third most at the position. All right, well, we only got two more questions, fellas. I haven't been keeping track.

[Jason Moore]

Ask who had more touchdowns. I know.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't even like participating because I just want to be on Mike's side.

[Mike Wright]

Who had more yards from scrimmage? Yards from scrimmage? Just overall total yards. David Montgomery or Todd Gurley?

[Jason Moore]

David Montgomery.

[Mike Wright]

The answer is David Montgomery. Just. I mean, it's only 10. He only had 10 more yards from scrimmage than Todd Gurley. And here is the whole point of me bringing this up. Who had more fantasy points?

[Andy Holloway]

David Montgomery?

[Jason Moore]

Gurley.

[Mike Wright]

Todd Gurley had nearly.

[Andy Holloway]

Touchdowns.

[Mike Wright]

Touchdowns, nearly 50 more points. So my point in bringing this up, think about how you felt about David Montgomery's production last year. He was out producing Todd Gurley in yardage and carries and like barely behind him in receptions. Todd Gurley's entire season was built on the back of rushing touchdowns. And now he is changing teams. Is that going to happen? I think not. If the rushing touchdowns go away for Todd Gurley, you're going to feel real bad you drafted him in the fourth round.

[Andy Holloway]

Can I add one more question?

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Who do I have ranked higher in my running back rankings? David Montgomery or Todd Gurley?

[Mike Wright]

Oh, this. If it's David Montgomery, that has to just feel like you're just.

[Andy Holloway]

It's David Montgomery.

[Mike Wright]

That's how Gurley guy like you called for the resurgence of Todd Gurley. So.

[Andy Holloway]

Are you speaking to Jason?

[Mike Wright]

No, I'm talking to you, Andy. Like the year where.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

When Todd Gargly came back to life, you were.

[Andy Holloway]

You're saying it hurts me because of the year when he came back to life? Yes. After Jeff. Yeah. That was a long time ago. In a galaxy far, far away.

[Jason Moore]

Dear Mike, here is why I got the question wrong on receptions. Because Todd Gurley only had 31 receptions and the two years prior, 64 and 59. Would you say that Todd Gurley is a very good receiving back?

[Mike Wright]

Yes. What's wild about this? Jason, I don't know if you have this stat in front of you. Todd Gurley was tied for the fourth most routes run at the running back position. He had 391 routes.

[Jason Moore]

That's.

[Mike Wright]

He's tied with Le'Veon Bell. Lev Bell had 66 receptions. Like what happened? Why were they not throwing the ball? The girly. Is there something we don't know?

[Jason Moore]

It was. It was super weird or were they dumb?

[Mike Wright]

I don't know.

[Jason Moore]

I don't think that. That. That's the question this year. Right. You're you, you've got Devonta Freeman who has always been a pass catching running back who has exited. He was even less efficient than Todd Gurley was this last year. He was putrid. And so now Todd Gurley comes in. If he's better than Devonta Freeman on the ground and actually has the passing work, does that make up for the lack of touchdowns? I believe it does because there, you know, there's no team in the entire NFL with more vacated targets. Vacated targets tend to go to the running back position. You have a running back who can catch the ball, a quarterback who passes to the running back. So while I don't think he's going to be a touchdown machine for Atlanta, I do think his passing work comes up. I am fine drafting Todd Gurley this year, but apparently at where where he's being drafted, apparently I am on an island.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, I just think that there's not going to be just Todd Gurley on the field. I've said that for the last two months. I don't think that they're going to bring Todd Gurley in and give him every down. I think you're going to be disappointed in Atlanta with the rotation and Gurley will be on the field, no doubt. But I'm worried about the rotation there and you know, I think the, if you threw in front of your statement what Atlanta does with Devonta Freeman, you know, if Gurley gets the majority of the running back work, I don't see any reason why he shouldn't be productive and outperform where I have him ranked and where I expect him to be. I just don't have the confidence that that's what they brought him in to do. And it's because Dan Quinn has used, he has befuddled us with his rotations in the past.

[Mike Wright]

So and just speaking to the draft and like in best ball ADP like Todd Gurley right now is sandwiched between Leonard Fournette, Melvin Gordon, Lev Bell, Chris Carson. You know, not that I love all of those players, but I definitely would rather have Chris Carson on my team. I'd rather have Levy on Bell on my team. I'd rather have four net. So I just, I don't know if there will be a team where I draft Todd Gurley.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, let's talk about the do you have Melvin Gordon hired in Gurley? Jason?

[Jason Moore]

I do have Melvin Gordon higher than.

[Andy Holloway]

Girly so I know you like Gordon. I was curious how close they were Tampa bay last year. 7 and 9. They had a bunch of one score games. We talked about that on the previous show with the NFC North. They were three and six in those one score games. I think that was. Those are the kind of games that Bruce Arians turns into a tomato. I think we know whose fault without question, James Winston. Think about this number in your head. He threw an interception on 7.3% of his attempts. Holy crap. So you were just waiting for the next one to land and that's why he's not a starting quarterback despite throwing 5,000 yards and Tampa being the number one team in football in passing yards per game. It's a testament to Bruce Arians and what he continues to do when he comes to whether it's Andrew Luck in Indianapolis, whether it's Arizona or here in Tampa Bay last year in his first first season. But here we are. You have a huge addition. His name's Tom Brady. You have another one at tight end, Rob Gronkowski. Say goodbye to Jameis, said goodbye to Peyton Barber and spent a first round draft pick on Tristan Wurfs offensive lineman trying to protect Tom Brady. Donovan Smith's one of the two players that have come out and said they are considering he's the offensive tackle in Tampa and he's considering skipping the year that he'll be a name to watch. But they also had Keyshawn Vaughn in the third round running back to accompany Jason's my guy.

[Jason Moore]

Don't do that.

[Andy Holloway]

Ronald Jones.

[Jason Moore]

Don't. You can't. Can't assign. Can't assign that I am warming on Ronald Jones.

[Andy Holloway]

Let me just ask you a question. Would you put the hate blockers on when you announce it? Would that be.

[Jason Moore]

I would have to. I'm legally obligated if that happened. I don't. I. So here's, you know, here's why he's not going to be a my guy but he. I like him for fantasy this year where he's being drafted. Ronald Jones is as a complete backup and he's a starter. And my worry though is he did he did have, you know, some pass protection issues last year. That's a huge thing for Bruce Arians. It's even bigger now with Tom Brady. Now is that to say that a rookie coming in is going to be better at it than, you know, two years of on field experience. No. But should Ronald Jones come out and whiff a couple times and get Tom Brady sacked, he will be yanked. So you know, I wouldn't be able to make Ronald Jones of my guy. But I do think he is a value right now in drafts, especially if you're like a 0 RB drafter and you're drafting your running backs late. He's a starter that's going super late for an offense. That's good.

[Andy Holloway]

It is a testament to your analysis that you have pivoted your willingness to take Ronald Jones. And I'm just saying this is like introspection moment here. Like we spend all of our time on this show telling our listenership to stay water, pay attention to what's happening, pay attention to draft price. But it is so entertaining to bring up over and over again.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I hate it, but I love it.

[Andy Holloway]

I hate it, but I love it.

[Jason Moore]

And it sucks because Keisha Vaughn was a guy that both Mike and myself. I don't know how you felt, Andy, but I know we had conversations pre the NFL draft.

[Andy Holloway]

We adore him.

[Jason Moore]

That was one of the guys before the draft that I had. I had him ranked. I think he was my number four running back pre draft. And my only thing was I didn't think someone was going to take him high enough to matter. And he was. He was drafted with good enough capital here by the Buccaneers to maybe get a shot at relevance.

[Andy Holloway]

But right now you think that Ronald Jones will have more fantasy worthy weeks than Keyshawn Vaughn in this upcoming 2020 season? I do, Mike.

[Mike Wright]

Yes. I do as well.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, let's talk about, by the way, Ronald Jones going at RB32 right now. So yeah, that could be a great opportunity in a Brady offense if he gets it, which we expect. Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, one of the best teams in football. Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

And not a lot to say about these guys. I guess we need to talk about Mike Evans because. Well, it's just Jason has him ranked the lowest. Like I'm, I'm in, I'm in with Tom Brady. I'm in with the plant man I think him with in the Bruce Arian system. There's going to be fantasy points flowing throughout the team. Jason, you're a bit more skeptical that Mike Evans. Mr. I have not had fewer than 1,000 yards in my entire career. You have him not performing as well.

[Jason Moore]

I am not skeptical in the slightest. Where I've got him ranked right now is disgusting. At wide receiver 19. That's just how the stats fell. When it comes to not only Mike Evans but the other 18 wide receivers who have stated out ahead. I would have zero qualms being at a draft looking staring down Mike Evans even as my wide receiver one and saying he has every tool capable to be great this season. I think, you know, because of the Bruce Arian system, the utilization of the slot and Tom Brady's propensity to utilize a slot wide receiver and Julian Edelman or Wes Welker. Chris Godwin has the probability of being the clear number one in this offense. But it's not a foregone conclusion that Mike Evans, who's just a beast of a wide receiver, always had 1,000 yards, is great now as a quarterback, hopefully upgrade going to Tom Brady could have a wonderful season. I'm not anti Mike Evans in the slightest but the fact that there are those two great wide receivers, that's why you look at rankings and you say, well you know, some people might say we're anti Gronk.

[Mike Wright]

Gronk used to be the I'm pretty anti Gronk.

[Jason Moore]

He used to be the number 1 or the 1B on the offense. He is at best the distant third in an offense now splitting with another tight end. So yeah, I have no qualms with Chris Godwin or Mike Evans.

[Andy Holloway]

There is the aspect of we'll find out to this offense in terms of the receiving targets. We don't know who Tom Brady's going to prefer. We don't know how much the system will look like last year's and I don't I maybe you guys can remember off the top of your head. I don't remember the last down the field Patriot wide receiver under Brady that had a monster fantasy.

[Mike Wright]

Randy Moss, Brandon Cooks, I mean Randy, that's pretty well.

[Andy Holloway]

So it's it's been a little bit of a while since that happened. That is not to take anything away from Mike Evans, but when you talk about Chris Godwin, all of us have it. Well, no, Mike doesn't but Jason and I have him ranked outside of where he's being drafted. He's the wide receiver six it's really a ceiling pick with Chris Godwin right now in fantasy drafts. Whereas Evans, the value on him seems. Yeah, I mean for both guys it's really a ceiling pick. I mean they're both in the top 10 average draft.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And here are some worries. You brought it up earlier. Donovan Smith the left tackle and Tristan Wurfs a rookie that is a very difficult position to have. No preseason, no OTAs truncated. You know they're going to be out there being like what's the snap count? So if he's missing those two pieces or if Tristan Worf takes a while as a rookie to be good and this offensive line isn't what you hope it is then. And Brady is no spring chicken. It could get it could get ugly. I trust Brady as the goat to yell at his offensive line and coach him up enough. But it's, it's not without risk. This isn't a guarantee that Chris Godwin is great and Mike Evans is great.

[Andy Holloway]

This was a good offensive line last season. Ranked seventh by Pro Football Focus. They're ranked 13th going into the season. They did draft Tristan Wurfs. There are some question marks. Obviously Brady can't move around, but he's going to have a lot of targets. I am the highest on Rob Gronkowski of the three of us. It has inched forward in recent weeks. You talked about Jared Cook earlier in the show about, you know, once you get beyond the first two or three tight ends, the volume type of players.

[Mike Wright]

Sure.

[Andy Holloway]

You're looking at touchdowns and probability of touchdowns and Gronkowski has that capability. And you know, three weeks into the season, everybody could be staring at Rob Gronkowski, who's got five touchdowns on the season and going, well, I missed that. So I just think that that's a possibility and I like the upside and I can see the path. But he's not the same Gronk and people need to remember that.

[Mike Wright]

Yep, agreed.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, he hasn't played a full season since 2011. That's, that's quite a while.

[Mike Wright]

Is there? I mean, there's got to be a few 15 game seasons where he.

[Jason Moore]

I'm sure there. It's just a stat I like.

[Andy Holloway]

It's just a hot step. It was like probably when Randy Moss was still playing the Carolina Panthers at 5 and 11 last year. They will round out this divisional breakdown and they bring in a brand new quarterback. Goodbye Cam Newton. Hello Teddy Bridgewater who was, you know, very admirable in his filling in for Drew Brees last year. The Cam Newton and Greg Olson, that tandem is. They're both gone. Robbie Anderson comes in from years and years of disappointing us. Potential versus output in New York and you get a new head coach. I mean, there's just a lot of change here. Matt Rule. Matt Ja Rule.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Murder. I mean, he's, he's coming off a really college career.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. With zero counts of murder, by the way, on his criminal record. Replacing Ron Rivera. Great head coach at Baylor bringing in a new system which, I mean, it's, it's interesting because when you look at what the landscape is for this off season, you know, Jason just talked about it, it's a very truncated time period. You don't even get to go out. And like I remember last season when Cliff Kingsbury In Arizona came out in the preseason, it was like he showed a little bit, but not a lot. And he tried to work some systems in and it still took the team. Look at Arizona as the template here. You know, it took the team a while to figure out that system and get to where they were changing those offensive numbers and running more plays. And so it concerns me from a predictability standpoint for Carolina to be in the division that they're in. I think we would all agree that, you know, the other. I mean, do you have them at the bottom or do you have Atlanta at the bottom? I mean, I think they're at the bottom.

[Jason Moore]

I have care about the bottom. They're deep. No defense has more turnover than the Panthers. They literally drafted their defense this year. Their entire draft was on the defensive side of the ball. I love that they project to have a poor defense. And when you look at Matt Rule, he's. He has turned two different college programs completely around from losers to absolute winners. But both programs, the first year that he was there, they stunk. It took him two years to turn him around and they gave him a long term contract. They're talking about building this the right way. They drafted a whole bunch of defensive guys. I think they're worried about getting the offensive continuity for fantasy. I actually this is like the, my, the team I'm most excited about that I think is also going to be terrible in the NFL that I can remember because you have Joe Brady who was, you know, the offensive coordinator for LSU last year, but prior to that he was working with the Saints for a couple of years with Sean Payton and he was there when Teddy Bridgewater was there. That's not a coincidence. Why Bridgewater is here. So there is a little bit of at least experience in working together and I'm sure some of the same systems will be implemented. And you know, when you look at having not a great offensive line and a terrible defense and a really accurate short throwing quarterback, I love Christian McCaffrey, I love DJ Moore. Those pieces I want on my fantasy teams.

[Andy Holloway]

I didn't want to interrupt you in the middle of that because you bring up some very good points, but I'm going to interrupt right now because we.

[Mike Wright]

Were waiting for this breaking news.

[Andy Holloway]

The NFLPA player reps approved the NFL's proposal on their conference call. The deal is done. Let's play some football.

[Mike Wright]

Let's go. Let's go.

[Andy Holloway]

That is Ian Rapaport, by the way, reporting. That is, that's great news. I have a smile on my face. Yes, I, I agreed with all the parts of what you were saying about them struggling. I didn't agree with the fact I don't like crafting the narrative around, you know, this is Teddy Bridgewater's first team. I don't.

[Mike Wright]

Not his first team.

[Jason Moore]

No.

[Mike Wright]

This is 22 and 12, man.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay. All right. This is okay. This would be the first time that he was fantasy relevant based on all of these things that you're painting. If you tell me Sam Bradford is on a team with a really bad defense and a bad offensive line, I'm not excited. If you tell me Alex Smith's on a team with a bad defense and a bad offensive line, I'm not excited. I need to see it first. This is a prove it to me policy. With Teddy Bridgewater, you give me a bunch of short throws and sacks. I'm not that excited with Teddy Bridgewater. That's my concern. I know you love DJ Moore. He'll be heavily targeted. No reason not to. Christian McCaffrey. I don't care what narrative you can create. You have to draft him first. In fantasy leagues, those two players, you know, I think you guys have really made your case for DJ Moore. I've watched the film. He's going to be best friends with Teddy Bridgewater. They're going to be skipping down the yellow brick road together.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

But beyond that, and with Teddy Bridgewater in particular, I have my question marks. I'll just leave it at that. And then, you know, Mike, I don't, I don't know what stands out to you on this team. If you have any bold predictions for Carolina.

[Mike Wright]

Well, I had a couple things when I was researching, you know, Teddy Bridgewater that stood out.

[Jason Moore]

Is.

[Mike Wright]

Was interesting to me. So last year, Teddy Bridgewater, in his stint as the Saints starter, just over 7% of his attempts were deep passes, but he had a 57% adjusted completion percentage. Very. He was good when he went deep. It was good show that last year Drew Brees only went deep 8.2% of the time, like so. And I bring that up as, yes, we have a larger sample of Teddy Bridgewater not going deep, but perhaps that was just. That was the philosophy of the offense last year for the Saints. Neither of the starting quarterbacks were really going deep at a huge clip. Meanwhile, we've. We've had Matt Rule talk about the deep pass is going to be a larger part of this offense. We have again, if you want to go with the. I have to see it first. I'm just projecting of what this team could possibly Be and one other name I want to bring up.

[Andy Holloway]

Post type Sleeperville.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. Well, no, actually not Curtis Samuel. I want to bring up Ian Thomas, the starting tight end now for the Carolina Panthers who he's averaged six targets a game in games where Greg Olson has not been there. Hot stat from the Saints. Jared Cook was active for four starts with Teddy Bridgewater. Jared Cook was a top six tight end in two of those four games. So it's not impossible that Teddy Bridgewater finds himself another friend in Ian Thomas. I think we need to bring him up as a one of those late round flyers where you just, you, if you punt the position, maybe you take a shot for Ian Thomas.

[Jason Moore]

I put him right with, you know, Jonu Smith. Johnny Smith and Ian Thomas are in very similar situations. The veterans leaving and can they step up and fill that void?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Carolina is just one of those teams that between the difficulty of the division not seeing what Matt Rule is going to bring to the table. You talked about Teddy Bridgewater sample size. I will call that Teddy Bridgewater's career thus far. For me it's a prove it thing. I do love the. I mean he's got weapons on paper that should be able to equip him for fantasy production. So maybe these are some guys that you're targeting even if they struggle a little bit with, you know, on the road against Tampa, on the road against the Chargers facing Arizona. You go out of the gate, you're learning a system, you're playing some difficult teams. Maybe you project some of these guys to get it together in the second half.

[Mike Wright]

And you have, you're going from Kyle Allen who was ranked 35th in passer rating last year, to Teddy Bridgewater who was 11th. It wasn't a full season, but he is much better, he has a much better quarterback than Kyle Allen.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And I think that's a good note to end on because I have no lack of respect for Teddy Bridgewater and his ability to run an offense. I mean he did that competently in Minnesota. He just did it in a way that wasn't at that time, you know, that wasn't going to help your fantasy team.

[Jason Moore]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

But he's got everybody around him to do it. Curtis Samuel was one of the strangest situations last year.

[Mike Wright]

The Curtis Samuel got Kyle Allen big time, man.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, that's a good way to put it. I mean he led the NFL on routes, run. He was on the field constantly. 67 of 107 targets were catchable.

[Mike Wright]

That's ridiculous.

[Andy Holloway]

You can't hold that against Curtis Samuel at all? No, because I have never caught any passes that were not catchable. Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

So the nice thing is with Robbie Anderson coming in, while Curtis Samuel can be a deep threat and obviously was thrown to a lot deep last year, I don't think he's going to be pigeonholed into being a, you know, run. Run deep every single time. I think they'll use him in the intermediate routes. I think he can excel there too. But the only guy I'm confident in is DJ Moore. So I love DJ Moore, I love cmc, and then I'm just going to take a wait and see approach with the rest of the offense.

[Andy Holloway]

When I see 40 targets that were uncatchable, it makes me wonder how many other targets didn't even get counted as targets for him. They were just so outside the bounds that they counted as targets for other people they didn't know.

[Mike Wright]

Hold on, was that a target or did he throw the ball away?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Who was that? One?

[Mike Wright]

I don't know.

[Andy Holloway]

But yeah. Guys, we're going to have football. We're going to have football in 2020. It's been a wild, a wild road. But, hey, get, get ready to go. I mean, this past week with all this news breaking, we set our, we set our draft date in league of record and we. And we made our rules, adjustments and we did a lot of that stuff that maybe we would have done just a little bit earlier. But just like you guys out there, maybe you were waiting to just kind of have that jolt of energy for the NFL season and it's here and we're going to have football and it might not look exactly like it did in years past, but we're going to have it. And having watched some baseball yesterday, just live sports, man, I'm looking forward to it.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, absolutely. I have two quick notes before we get out of here. Look, it's almost the end of the month. FootClan Vote.com we are up for the Podcast Awards. If you could just take a second, go over there, nominate us for the People's choice and for sports and, you know, throw spitballers in there for best comedy. Make sure you check the box that you could even.

[Andy Holloway]

You could even listen to footballers too. Well, if you want to.

[Mike Wright]

I'm just assuming that people do. And make sure you check the box that says you would like to vote and hopefully you'll be able to vote and lock that up for the fantasy footballers and the spitballers. And two, you want to talk about hype for football, Follow our social media accounts on Twitter, @ the FF Ballers, on Instagram, at Fantasy Footballers. We got some stuff planned for next week and you will not want to miss notifications, so make sure you are following us.

[Andy Holloway]

That is a spectacular reminder, Mike. Well done.

[Mike Wright]

Thank you.

[Andy Holloway]

We're going to go live a bunch next week. That's what he's trying to. It was a secret.

[Mike Wright]

Look, there's. And we got a lot of Todd Gurley or David Montgomery coming up.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, my God, is that a weekly event?

[Mike Wright]

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 ffballers and Foot Clan.

[Andy Holloway]

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