Top 10 TE Ranks, Sleeper Picks, MEGALABOWL OPENS!

Summary

Podcast Summary: Fantasy Footballers - Fantasy Football Podcast
Episode: Top 10 TE Ranks, Sleeper Picks, MEGALABOWL OPENS!
Release Date: August 14, 2019

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Introduction

In this episode of the Fantasy Footballers podcast, hosts Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, and Mike "The Fantasy Hitman" Wright delve deep into the world of fantasy football, focusing on tight end rankings, sleeper picks, and the exciting launch of the MEGALABOWL tournament. The conversation is rich with expert analysis, strategic insights, and engaging banter, making it a must-listen for fantasy football enthusiasts aiming to dominate their leagues.

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Listener League and MEGALABOWL Tournament

The hosts kick off the episode by expressing heartfelt gratitude to their listeners for their overwhelming participation in the listener league. Andy Holloway humorously remarks, “We hate you” (03:32), emphasizing the challenge of selecting winners from a flood of impressive entries. They announce the reopening of the MEGALABOWL, a grand tournament offering a coveted 2020 Listener League spot and a personal invite to join the hosts for Wild Card Saturday.

Key Highlights:

• MEGALABOWL Extension: Previously limited in participant numbers due to high demand, the tournament is now more accessible with nearly 600 entrants already registered. Mike Wright notes, “It is an enormous tournament. Maybe the biggest” (06:51).
• Participation Benefits: Winners not only gain league honors but also enjoy exclusive interactions with the hosts, fostering a strong community spirit among the Foot Clan members.

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Buy or Sell Segment

The Buy or Sell segment is a staple of the podcast, providing actionable advice on whether to acquire or trade specific players based on their performance and potential.

1. Corey Davis – Sell (07:48-10:28)

Andy Holloway opens the discussion with Corey Davis, questioning his ability to outperform his Average Draft Position (ADP) of 906. "I'm selling. I don't think he outperforms it" (09:21) is Andy's decisive take, citing Davis's reduced target share and the Seahawks' run-heavy offensive strategy. Jason Moore concurs, expressing disappointment in Davis's performance trajectory.

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “I'm selling. I don't think he outperforms it.” (09:21)

2. Chris Carson – Buy (10:28-12:10)

Shifting to defenses, Andy highlights Chris Carson's receiving potential, advocating for purchasing him with the expectation of over 30 receptions this season. Despite some debate over setting the reception line at 40, the consensus leans towards buying Carson for his increased opportunities and the Seahawks' improved offensive line.

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “I'm buying. I think he does work.” (10:14)

3. Alshon Jeffery – Sell (12:10-13:10)

Alshon Jeffery is another subject considered for selling, with Andy expressing skepticism about Jeffery surpassing 900 receiving yards. While Jason suggests that Jeffery's yards are close to the threshold despite missing games, the hosts lean towards selling, anticipating that Jeffery won't meet the yardage target due to offensive uncertainties.

Notable Quote:
Jason Moore: “If he’s not getting 900 yards receiving, your prediction of Carson Wentz leading the league in passing yards is not happening.” (13:10)

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News and Notes

The hosts provide a comprehensive update on the latest NFL news, focusing on player injuries, roster changes, and other pertinent developments impacting fantasy football decisions.

1. Andrew Luck’s Injury Concerns (14:03-17:21)

Andy Holloway discusses the ongoing uncertainty surrounding Andrew Luck's ankle injury, referencing Colts GM Chris Ballard’s vague reports and insights from Dr. David Chow. The expectation is that Luck won't be 100% ready for the regular season opener, raising concerns about his mobility and overall performance.

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “There's very little chance that Andrew Luck will be 100% week one of the regular season.” (15:57)

2. Golden Tate’s Suspension (19:40-20:19)

The hosts touch on Golden Tate's four-game suspension, noting Jason Moore’s lack of excitement over the outcome. They discuss the implications for the Eagles' offense and Tate's availability, which is crucial for fantasy managers relying on his production.

Notable Quote:
Jason Moore: “I didn’t think it should have been.” (20:03)

3. Kenyan Drake’s Injury (20:15-47:17)

Kenyan Drake's ongoing injury woes are highlighted, with Andy reporting him being spotted in a walking boot and Jason expressing concerns over his status. The discussion pivots to the uncertainty Drake brings to fantasy rosters and the potential opportunity cost of drafting him.

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “Kenyan Drake was spotted in a walking boot.” (20:17)

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Top 10 Tight End Rankings

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to analyzing the top 10 tight ends, their performance last season, and projections for the upcoming year. The hosts critically assess each player's reliability, potential, and value relative to their draft positions.

1. Travis Kelce – Number One

Travis Kelce remains the gold standard at the tight end position, with consistent high performance and integration into one of the NFL's most potent offenses. Andy underscores Kelce’s unmatched value, stating, “Travis Kelce is the number one tight end in football for the last three years” (28:27).

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “Travis Kelce is the number one tight end in football the last three years.” (28:27)

2. George Kittle – Number Two

George Kittle is lauded for his explosive ability and integral role in the 49ers' offense. Despite concerns about his pass-catching consistency, Mike Wright defends Kittle’s high target volume and physical dominance.

Notable Quote:
Mike Wright: “He is a physical dominant freak.” (38:45)

3. Evan Ingram – Number Four

Evan Ingram is presented as this year's George Kittle, emphasizing his breakout potential and role as a primary target in the Giants' offense. The hosts commend Ingram's athleticism and big-play capability, making him a valuable mid-round pick.

Notable Quote:
Andy Holloway: “Evan Ingram is this year's George Kittle.” (41:27)

4. O.J. Howard – Number Five

O.J. Howard is discussed as a strong contender for top-tier tight end status, provided he remains healthy. His athletic prowess and connection with quarterback Cam Newton position him as a valuable asset, though injury concerns temper some optimism.

Notable Quote:
Mike Wright: “O.J. Howard is the one human that might go up to George Kittle.” (45:06)

5. Hunter Henry – Number Six

Hunter Henry is recognized for his potential boost in target share, especially in the absence of key offensive players. However, his athletic limitations and the high cost of drafting him in the sixth round lead to mixed opinions among the hosts.

Notable Quote:
Jason Moore: “He is one, he is a great player.” (49:18)

6. Vance McDonald – Number Seven

Vance McDonald is evaluated as a high-upside but risky pick due to his injury history and recent trade to the Steelers. The hosts acknowledge his potential to secure a significant target volume but caution about his reliability.

Notable Quote:
Mike Wright: “He's the last guy that is somewhat tempting to me in the middle rounds.” (52:34)

7. Jared Cook – Number Eight

Jared Cook is portrayed as a valuable late-round option, especially in systems where he can secure a prominent role. His consistency and integration into the Saints’ offense make him a dependable choice for fantasy managers.

Notable Quote:
Jason Moore: “Jared Cook could step in and be the third highest targeted player on the team.” (55:49)

8. Eric Ebron – Number Nine & 10. David Njoku – Number Ten

Eric Ebron and David Njoku round out the top ten, though the hosts express indifference towards these picks. Their performances are deemed comparable, with little distinction in fantasy point differences, leading to a lack of enthusiasm for drafting them.

Notable Quote:
Mike Wright: “There is so little difference in my stats between these players.” (56:53)

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Sleeper Picks and Strategy

Beyond the top ten, the hosts discuss potential sleeper tight ends who could outperform their draft positions. They emphasize the importance of flexibility and the ability to pivot to streaming tight ends based on weekly matchups, especially given the consistency challenges at the position.

Key Points:

• Mark Andrews: Highlighted as a promising late-round option due to his integration into the Ravens' offense and potential as a primary target.
• Jordan Reed: Discussed with humor regarding his injury history, though noted for his high ceiling when healthy.

Notable Quote:
Mike Wright: “I'm not picking in Joku. I'm not picking Cook.” (56:53)

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Conclusion

The episode wraps up with final thoughts on tight end strategies, emphasizing the necessity of securing a reliable tight end early or finding value in the middle to late rounds. The hosts encourage listeners to utilize the Ultimate Draft Kit for comprehensive rankings and sleeper picks, reinforcing the podcast’s role as an essential resource for fantasy football success.

Closing Remarks: Andy Holloway: “Our rankings projections for each and every tight end in the Ultimate Draft kit give me a sleeper tight end that did not make the top 10 consensus that you'll take a look at.” (57:59)

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Notable Quotes Summary

• Andy Holloway (09:21): “I'm selling. I don't think he outperforms it.”
• Andy Holloway (10:14): “I'm buying. I think he does work.”
• Jason Moore (13:10): “If he’s not getting 900 yards receiving, your prediction of Carson Wentz leading the league in passing yards is not happening.”
• Andy Holloway (15:57): “There's very little chance that Andrew Luck will be 100% week one of the regular season.”
• Mike Wright (38:45): “He is a physical dominant freak.”
• Andy Holloway (28:27): “Travis Kelce is the number one tight end in football the last three years.”
• Mike Wright (45:06): “O.J. Howard is the one human that might go up to George Kittle.”
• Andy Holloway (41:27): “Evan Ingram is this year's George Kittle.”
• Mike Wright (56:53): “There is so little difference in my stats between these players.”

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Final Thoughts

This episode of the Fantasy Footballers podcast provides a thorough analysis of tight end rankings and strategic insights into player acquisition and drafting. With expert opinions backed by statistical analysis and a keen understanding of the evolving NFL landscape, listeners are well-equipped to make informed decisions for their fantasy football teams. The introduction of the MEGALABOWL tournament adds an exciting competitive edge, further engaging the dedicated Foot Clan community.

For more detailed rankings, sleeper picks, and draft strategies, listeners are encouraged to explore the Ultimate Draft Kit available at ultimate draftkit.com.

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Disclaimer: The opinions and strategies discussed in this summary reflect the views expressed by the podcast hosts and are intended for informational purposes. Fantasy football outcomes can be unpredictable, and listeners should conduct their own research before making draft decisions.

Transcript

[Andy Holloway]

Hey, Foot clan. You're getting ready for your drafts and you've heard us talk about the Ultimate Draft Kit. Here's what's important. You choose a site with a proven track record of winning. We are the only site with multiple experts in the top 10 for in season and top 10 for draft rankings, including a number three overall draft and number five overall in season finish in 2017 and 2018. Check out the Ultimate Draft Kit. You're going to get the best information to get you ready for your draft. Always updated, ready to go atultimatedraftkit.com and you can also, you know, do a little bit more than just upgrade your fantasy team. We're proud to partner with St. Jude this year. A dollar of every Ultimate Draft kit sold will go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to support its mission of finding cures and saving children. Learn more @ultimate draft kit.com and we.

[Jason Moore]

Have a message from NHTSA, everybody. If you think drunk driving is no big deal, you couldn't be more wrong. You could get in a crash, people could get hurt or killed. You could get arrested, incur huge legal expenses or even lose your job. So next time you plan on drinking, make sure you plan ahead. Designate a sober driver or use a ride service to get home safely. Drive sober or get pulled over.

[Mike Wright]

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

[Andy Holloway]

Welcome in another day in the neighborhood. Mike's hair looking good today.

[Jason Moore]

Today, every day, just the day.

[Andy Holloway]

Mike.

[Mike Wright]

How can you tell who he is? Is it because he's holding up a sign that says Mike?

[Jason Moore]

Every day, Brooks reminds us, you know, we got new people coming in. It's that time of the season. It's fantasy football. Not everybody is as insane as we are.

[Andy Holloway]

You've got your name tag on, but.

[Jason Moore]

I want people to know that Mike is over here. Oh, Jason's showing up.

[Mike Wright]

Here I am.

[Jason Moore]

Look. Now who's stupid? Andy. That's it. What a dumb name. Number one, Andy.

[Andy Holloway]

Mike and Jason, the fantasy footballers welcoming you in to another episode. It's Wednesday, August 14th. We got the top 10 quarterbacks on the show today. Some huge announcements. We have buy or sell.

[Mike Wright]

We even are going to talk tight ends as well.

[Jason Moore]

What did I say?

[Mike Wright]

Quarterbacks. Which we did do the last two episodes. So if you want quarterbacks, good news. Already did it.

[Andy Holloway]

This is where I check the news and notes. I see Andrew Luck's name in there and I see Case Keenum's name. We are Talking quarterbacks.

[Mike Wright]

Jason, I apologize.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, man.

[Jason Moore]

Can't wait to talk. Case Kingdom and Daniel Jones, everybody just.

[Andy Holloway]

Turned off their podcast.

[Mike Wright]

Click.

[Andy Holloway]

No, it's a jam packed show. We're excited to have you in with us. If you're brand new to the fantasy footballers, we're a five.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, I raised my name.

[Andy Holloway]

A week podcast and we're happy to have you with us. We're going to help you win your league, going to help you approach things the right way in your draft.

[Mike Wright]

Going to have fun doing it.

[Andy Holloway]

No doubt about it. I think we need to hit a couple of things before we hit buy and sell. Is that okay with you guys?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, they're pretty big. Pretty big things.

[Andy Holloway]

There's a really, really big one. First, I'll preface it. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. Also, we hate you.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, man.

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay.

[Mike Wright]

Foot clan. They're breaking our hearts because.

[Andy Holloway]

Thank you. I said it like 10 times because that's the real sentiment. All the listener league entries, videos, stories, poems, pictures, diatribes, whatever you want to call it.

[Mike Wright]

Events.

[Andy Holloway]

Unbelievable. So that's all the thank yous.

[Mike Wright]

Sandwiches.

[Andy Holloway]

The I hate you is that we do have a finite amount of listener league spots to bestow upon people. It is an arduous process. I should have said thank you for food. There was food that showed up at the studio. We obviously had it tested by Brooks first to make sure it was safe to eat.

[Mike Wright]

He is no longer with us.

[Jason Moore]

So really not a thank you to that guy.

[Mike Wright]

Right?

[Andy Holloway]

Well, thank you to Brooks in that case.

[Jason Moore]

We'll never forget you, Brooks.

[Andy Holloway]

Your memory will live on. But we hate you at the same time because they're too good. And we had look and we had to choose.

[Mike Wright]

Only a few people had the option to make the cut. And there are so many absolutely worthy listener league submissions that unfortunately did not get in that it breaks our heart. You guys put in so much work, energy, effort. You guys and gals are amazing out there. Your personalities, your passion, it's just awesome. So genuine. Thank you from the bottom of our heart.

[Andy Holloway]

But we emailed.

[Mike Wright]

We did. We emailed the winners. So check your email, check your spam if you haven't seen it, however you can. If you're like, I don't have, man, I did all that work. I didn't get in or I didn't even do work because I don't have that. That's that passion that, that, you know, I. I didn't.

[Andy Holloway]

Maybe I didn't want to do work.

[Mike Wright]

Maybe. I don't know. How to.

[Andy Holloway]

Maybe I'm busy.

[Mike Wright]

Make a music video. You can get in next year's listener league just by playing fantasy football. The Megala bowl is here again. The 2019 Megala Bowl.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, you. You chickened out on your modulation, bro. You had some room to go up.

[Mike Wright]

You were leaning back. I thought I was hurting your ears.

[Andy Holloway]

If you missed out on getting into the listener league, if you like fantasy football, if you want to play in a tournament against other Foot Clan members, this year's winner of the Megalobol, which is now open, this year's winner not only gets the honor of being the Megalobol champion, but you also win a coveted 2020 Listener League spot, plus a personal invite from the three of us to join us for wild card Saturday. So if you win the league, you've got the personal invite. Come tour the studio, sit in on a show, watch the games with us, and you win a listener league spot. Now, the Megalobol was huge last year, Jay.

[Mike Wright]

It was awesome and huge, but.

[Andy Holloway]

Awesome and huge. But it was limited last year because we simply couldn't manage the amount of people that wanted to be in it. But that has been remedied.

[Mike Wright]

Thank you, sleeper.

[Andy Holloway]

So everybody that is a supporter of this [e-mail] you can go right now. Jointhefoot.com when you're a patron, you can click the link, enter the tournament. There are almost 600. We just posted this link. There's already almost 600 people in there. It is an enormous tournament. Maybe the biggest. What did you say? Awesome and hugest of all time.

[Mike Wright]

That's right. It's a mega list.

[Jason Moore]

That's for sure.

[Mike Wright]

Not to mention, like, okay, there's going to be one winner. But a lot of people have created great relationships from joining these leagues of fellow Foot Clan members. So it's just a great time playing fantasy. You want another league. The [e-mail] is where you want to go.

[Andy Holloway]

The Megalobol will be open to join until 8pm on Wednesday, September 4th. Again, go to JoinTheFoot.com Become a supporter of the show, enter the league. Bing, bang, boom. You get a lot of tournament cool.

[Jason Moore]

Stuff, too, like extra show every single week, updates on Sunday. I mean, there's. There's tons of stuff happening over there.

[Andy Holloway]

Jointhefoot.com all right, without further ado, let's get into our quick question of this Wednesday.

[Mike Wright]

Buy or sell, presented by Pristine Auction.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, buy or sell time, guys. We're doing it again because it's Wednesday, Titans wide. Receiver Corey Davis will outperform his current average draft position of 906.

[Jason Moore]

So this is.

[Andy Holloway]

Sorry, it's not a race.

[Jason Moore]

I felt like I was on a game show.

[Andy Holloway]

But sometimes with Corey Davis, it may feel like a race to sell. That is the wide receiver 42. That is. That is a long way down the list, Mike. But will. Will he outperform Wide receiver 42? Okay. He's still selling. Last year, 65 receptions, 891 yards, four touchdowns.

[Mike Wright]

Every time that Mike says sell, I get worried that I am not going to be allowed to then also select sell, which would be my choice. I realize wide receiver 42 is very low, should be easy to beat, but Corey Davis had all the opportunity in the world last year.

[Jason Moore]

Let me. Let me illustrate that with a point. Who had a higher target share, Jarvis Landry or Corey Davis?

[Mike Wright]

Corey Davis.

[Jason Moore]

Jarvis Landry. I got you. I had to say over the trick question to emphasize this. Adam Thielen or Corey Davis? Remember how many targets Adam Thielen was getting?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jason Moore]

It's Corey Davis. Who had higher targets here, Corey Davis or Antonio Brown?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know if he's trying to trick us again.

[Mike Wright]

No. Corey Davis.

[Andy Holloway]

That's. That's the problem with Corey Davis.

[Jason Moore]

It's not more targets. We're just talking market share, but percentage of team targets. Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm selling. I'm selling. I don't think he outperforms it. Adam Humphries is a target hound. They want to run the football with Derek Henry Delaney.

[Jason Moore]

Walker was not there.

[Andy Holloway]

They added A.J.

[Mike Wright]

Brown, and they're a team that wants to run the ball. So, yeah, Corey Davis. I am no longer. I don't think I ever was a.

[Jason Moore]

Huge believer, but I was, and I'm really disappointed.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. I think he's a good player. I just think he's in a bad situation. You put him on a different team. Higher pass volume. I think he does work.

[Jason Moore]

It's hard to get higher.

[Andy Holloway]

It's only his third season. He's coming into as well.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

I saw Brooks entering year three, the year three narrative.

[Jason Moore]

Brooks has the dynasty.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't. I don't know. I just think we're getting used to our expectations for wide outs. The problem is the performance he had last year with the market share that he had. What was his fantasy finish? I can have that in 2018.

[Jason Moore]

He was the wide receiver 28.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean, he could definitely finish inside 42. I'm still selling it. Humphreys is going to soak up targets. Walker, Brown, the market share goes down. The team wants to run the football. I'm selling.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. I mean, if he finishes the wide receiver 36, he outperformed it. But I'm still selling because there are other guys at where he's going that I think have a higher chance to finish better than Corey Davis.

[Andy Holloway]

Seahawks running back Chris Carson will have at least 30 receptions this season. There's been a lot of hype about Chris Carson having the best hands on the team, and they want his targets to be at least in the 50 range.

[Mike Wright]

Okay?

[Andy Holloway]

So last year he had 20 receptions for 163 yards on 25 targets in 14 games. I'm buying. I'm buying. No more Doug Baldwin. A lot of talk about involving Carson and Rashad Penny. And let's not forget Mike Davis. Quite a few vacated targets. Mike Davis leaving. I'm buying Chris CARSON More than 30 receptions.

[Mike Wright]

I definitely think he's more than 30 receptions. I mean, he was on pace last year for 23 receptions once he got the start in Week 3. You know, if you remember those first two weeks, he wasn't that involved. So, yeah, a slight tick up, Mike Davis being gone. I'm rising a lot on Chris Carson.

[Jason Moore]

I'm buying that the line was set too low because I think 30 is like 30 is not a ton.

[Mike Wright]

40.

[Jason Moore]

If you would put the line at 40, it would be much harder.

[Andy Holloway]

And here's what. Watch this. The line is now 40.

[Mike Wright]

I would sell. I think he's going to be in the 30s.

[Jason Moore]

I would also sell.

[Mike Wright]

And I will say this to your point, Mike. 40 is the number at which, I mean arbitrarily set, but that's the number where I view a running back as being heavily involved in the passing game.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, you got. Let's do one more. Let me see. Let me see. Eagles wide receiver Alshon Jeffrey will top 900 yards receiving for the first time since 2014.

[Jason Moore]

Yes. Bye.

[Mike Wright]

Sell.

[Andy Holloway]

Well, let's.

[Jason Moore]

You're going to.

[Andy Holloway]

You're going to sell 2019, Mike. 2014 was a while ago, okay? But it has been a number of years since he's done it, so I think it's a fair.

[Jason Moore]

Alshawn Jeffrey played in 13 games last year. How many yards did Alshon Jeffrey have?

[Mike Wright]

843. Yeah, just a guess.

[Jason Moore]

That's very, very close to 900. With missing three games.

[Mike Wright]

That is. That is very fair. But I think that the additions on this team of Miles Sanders catching the ball out of the backfield, J.J. arcega, Whiteside DeSean Jackson, Dallas Goddard, 2 yeah, I mean, it's one of those things where that's not. That's not an outlandish line.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm going to sell it. I don't think he gets 900. I think he may score a bunch, but I don't think he gets 900 yards receiving.

[Jason Moore]

If he doesn't get 900 yards receiving, your prediction of Carson Wentz leading the league in passing yards is not happening.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't agree with that.

[Jason Moore]

I do.

[Andy Holloway]

I think if he doesn't get 900 yards receiving, he will have done what he's done the last five years, which is not get to that point. And Carson Wentz was just fine with Alshon Jeffrey not getting to that point in two seasons ago. So I don't think he needs the yardage. He may be 12 touchdowns.

[Jason Moore]

You're saying Alshon's for fantasy value?

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Why?

[Mike Wright]

Sure.

[Andy Holloway]

For fantasy value or for Carson's fantasy value? Carson, in my opinion, doesn't need Alshon to go for 1100 yards on so many other guys.

[Jason Moore]

I'm talking 900 yards, E. That's an easy buy for me.

[Andy Holloway]

Okay, so, Jason, you are a seller.

[Mike Wright]

I'm a seller.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. That's buy or sell from Pristine Auction. Check them [e-mail] let's get into the news.

[Mike Wright]

News and notes from around the league presented by Sleeper.

[Andy Holloway]

Everybody wants to talk about Andrew Luck. Also. Nobody wants to talk about Andrew Luck.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, I'm tired of it.

[Andy Holloway]

Colts general manager Chris Ballard came out, said the ankle needs to be addressed. Yesterday it was a small little bone being reported by a man who doesn't know medicine. Jim Ursay. The latest report tested the ankle yesterday, saw a specialist high ankle ish up by the calf. Ballard, ankle ish. This is what if you make fun of this show for below the shin comments. How dare you. The last two days, small little bone, high ankle ish. Jason, you are a medical genius.

[Mike Wright]

I got my doctorate at Harvard.

[Jason Moore]

How are you feeling today? I don't know. A little ankle ish.

[Andy Holloway]

Here's the thing. Ballard didn't guarantee he'd be ready for week one. We spoke to Dr. David Chow briefly at profootball. Doc, if you don't follow him, you should follow him. He's one of the most trustworthy injury experts in the game. Here's what he said to us. There's very little chance that Andrew luck will be 100% week one of the regular season. He's not suggesting that he won't play, but the report right now is that, look, there's not a clear diagnosis. They've said no surgery, it's going to be rehab. So the good news according to David Chow, it's his lead leg. It's not the push off leg. He can still play quarterback. But how mobile will Andrew Luck be which is a part of his game? And if he plays at 85 or 90%, what does that mean? So medically we do know that he won't be 100%. That's what David Chow said.

[Jason Moore]

And if he's not mobile, I mean what are now, what's the increased odds of him getting beat up more increase and making the injury worse?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know.

[Mike Wright]

Well their offensive line is improved. That's helpful.

[Jason Moore]

But you still have to be able to move around and protect yourself. If you, if you have to be a statue in the pocket then you either need to make sure that ball gets out right away.

[Andy Holloway]

If you listen, if you listen to Frank Reich talk about this issue, he makes the point of saying, look, Andrew Locke is a freak intellectually and physically. If he can get out on the field, he doesn't need much time and he will progress much faster than you expect. We saw that last year, people freaking out about not throwing a hail Mary in week one. They didn't freak out the rest of the season when he was the number whatever quarterback, top five fantasy quarterback. So where's your confidence level? Will you. I know we don't draft the Andrew Lux of the world very often. Maybe now you can.

[Mike Wright]

Now. I mean I am exactly what I said yesterday. If Andrew Luck drops into that ninth or tenth round, I might take him pair him with a Josh Allen late so that I've got protection for the beginning of the season. I'm fine with that. Other than other than getting him near the double digit rounds like he's off my board at current adp. No chance would I take away a wide receiver running back that I could get, you know in the sixth or seventh round to draft a guy that might not be there.

[Jason Moore]

He is dropping he on on fantasy Football Calculator. On August 5th he was going at the back of the 4th and now he's going at the back of the 5th.

[Andy Holloway]

Is that, would you call that a small little drop?

[Mike Wright]

That is way too high still. Yeah, way too high.

[Jason Moore]

It's a big small ankle ish drop.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. I mean you started to get into top of the seventh round with the news we have today I would be taking my shots on Andrew Luck knowing that if he plays you got a top five guy. But yeah, it freaks Me out, man. I should. I sent Ty Hilton. Dynasty trades out yesterday.

[Jason Moore]

Oh, dying.

[Andy Holloway]

What Dynasty. Yeah, Well, I mean, I'm planning to win this year and if I can swap Ty Hilton for another guy I believe in, that doesn't have the variable. That's how I approach it. But he's still on my team. So. Redskins coach Jay Gruden said Darius guy still hasn't been fully cleared to play. It's not happening for Darius guys this year. This is why we not the way you want it.

[Mike Wright]

We've said early in the off season, in the middle of the off season and now he's not the back that you want to trust. There's just been this timeline for his recovery. If he's just not going to magically overnight be at 100%. So Adrian Peterson right now I think is a value. Darius guy is still up in the air with all the injury issues.

[Andy Holloway]

Even if he was 100%, there's no guarantee of the workload he gets with Peterson and Thompson. And the offense is not one that I'm a fan of. If Darius guys was in this boat on the existing Kansas City Chiefs roster, I'd be looking a little bit differently at the possibilities, but it's not a lot of upside. Case Keenum looks like the front runner.

[Jason Moore]

To start point in Case.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, so there you go. Redskins quarterback Case Keenum.

[Jason Moore]

Cool.

[Mike Wright]

I think this is, you know, a little bit of an indictment on where Dwayne Haskins is at right now. I know Andy and I weren't Giant fans of his potential coming out of college, but, you know, I've been wrong before.

[Andy Holloway]

A lot to be determined. Antonio Brown arrived at training camp with his agent.

[Jason Moore]

I like that he came with his agent, but this is great news for like, Brown's back, he's going to play. And if you bought the dip, that's what congratulations.

[Andy Holloway]

Golden Tate lost his appeal. Jason for the four game suspension, we.

[Jason Moore]

Go to you for a live reaction.

[Andy Holloway]

I know how Jason was. He hadn't said a word for a while and he was just hoping, hoping, hoping he could come on here and gloat.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, I would have gloated. But of course this was obvious and everyone could see from the beginning that Golden Tate suspension would be upheld. I don't think it should have been.

[Andy Holloway]

You just wanted to believe. You just wanted to believe that one of these guys was gonna. I wanted tell the truth. Yes.

[Mike Wright]

Shame on me.

[Andy Holloway]

Kenyon Drake was spotted in a walking boot.

[Jason Moore]

Oh.

[Andy Holloway]

Left practice early yesterday. Walking boot to start practice today. This has been part of the problem for Kenyan Drake. Getting a little banged up. Not gonna help him establish himself as a one.

[Mike Wright]

No. Gives an opportunity for the Bellagio.

[Jason Moore]

Yes. Mr. Caleb Bellage.

[Mike Wright]

Right now, Kalen Balaj seems to be the better value out of these two guys in fantasy drafts as Kenyan Drake still is going way ahead of him. You know, I'm not extremely concerned about this until we find out specifics on what it is.

[Andy Holloway]

That's. Yeah, that, that's the way people should approach it. I haven't moved him until. But if, you know, if he's in a boot again tomorrow, we'll evaluate tomorrow. That was today's news and notes brought to you as always by Sleeper, where the Megalobol is also hosted, where it swims. Where the Megalo bowl swims. Okay, I can get behind that. All right. We've got Jason can't. We've got top 10 tight end rankings, some sleeper tight end picks on the way. Before we get into it, we want to thank the sponsors that support this podcast. Look, you know how challenging hiring is. Before we did this podcast, we worked for a gaming company. Always looking to hire qualified candidates. Would spend forever trying to do it to find qualified applicants. Still not always ending up with the right hiring situation that we wanted. Look, there's one place that you can go where hiring is simple, fast and smart. And that's the key thing right there. Smart. A place where growing businesses connect to qualified candidates. And that place is ZipRecruiter.com footballers. They send your job to over a hundred of the web's leading job boards. So there's the smart part. They don't stop there. And with their powerful matching technology, they scan thousands of resumes to find people with the right experience. And then they invite those people to apply for your job. So they're pursuing that in a smart way for you. They're so effective that 4 out of 5 employees who post on ZipRecruiter get a quality candidate through the site in their first day. Right now, our listeners can try ZipRecruiter for free at this exclusive web address. ZipRecruiter.com Footballers that's ZipRecruiter.com FootballerZipRecruiter.com FootballerZipRecruiter the smart way to hire.

[Mike Wright]

And we also want to thank CBS Sports HQ helping sponsor today's episode. Sports tv. Nowadays, man, just full of bickering and made up drama, the fake yelling at each other, all of that stuff. But CBS Sports hq, they're here to change that. CBS Sports HQ is A network that streams 24. 7 to bring you top tier sports coverage without any of the yelling or fake debates. They'll even bring you all the latest news, the highlights, the previews, the recaps, the from around the sports world every day. Best of all, it's free. It's not free for a week or free for a month. If you have some sort of cable special package, it's totally free. You don't even need a login. You just open the CBS Sports app and watch anytime from anywhere on your phone or at your home or at work. Don't get fired. Apple tv, Roku Fire tv. It couldn't be easier. Download the CBS Sports app and watch CBS Sports HQ today. Tight ends.

[Andy Holloway]

You know, we do this show every day of the week and it still feels like there's too much going on right now. There's just all the camp reports and injuries and preseason games. Like it's exciting, but there's just so much happening.

[Mike Wright]

Let's double our shows now.

[Andy Holloway]

Jason, two hours a show now. Stop.

[Mike Wright]

I just want to let Jason know I was in.

[Andy Holloway]

Jason can do an exclusive secondary show. Medical advice only. It's the below the Shin podcast. I'm feeling wristy, high ankle ish. All right, top 10 tight end rankings, plus some sleeper tight end picks on the show today. Interesting. We've got the same chart that we had yesterday. Yesterday we were looking at where quarterbacks finished in reality relative to their average draft position going into 2018. There was one quarterback that outperformed their average draft position. His name was Andrew Luck. There was one that was the same. Kirk Cousins average draft position was nine, finished nine. The rest, you were probably disappointed in your selection. You're probably happy with the Sean Watson because you drafted him at 2. He finished 5. When you look at the tight end position last year, Gronk was the number one tight end off the board.

[Jason Moore]

Now these, and then these are points per game finish. We're talking.

[Andy Holloway]

That's correct. Gronk was the tight end. One off the board, finished at 8. Kelsey and Ertz, you were happy. He was the tight end. Two finished number one. Zach Ertz was the tight end. Three finished number two. We'll talk about them today.

[Mike Wright]

Otherwise, well, and you, yeah, you big ew. You have, you know, Jimmy Graham at 4, finishing 21st, Greg Olsen at 5, finishing 15th. And again, these are points per game. So it's not just, oh, they got injured, it's just, no, they stunk. And so here's the reality. If you remember last season, there was the big three. And then garbage, right? It was, it was, it was. Do you want Gronk, Kelsey and Ertz? And then it was a tear break off of a cliff. You know, the same one that the. You're running down the river and there's a waterfall at the end. It's that cliff. That's what it was last year. And you saw that that came true this year, I would say. Do you guys agree that there's kind of a secondary, there's a big three, but then there's this little middle tier sliver of a couple of guys that I think are more interesting than they were last year. And then the cliff. Then the cliff.

[Andy Holloway]

I hope you're right about that. I hope we're right about that. I hope there is that secondary tier and it's not a mirage. That's what I hope.

[Jason Moore]

Well, the nice thing about the middle tier this year, it's not the. You're not trying to get the value from the older guys, which you still can. But it's tough to give up a middle round pick. You know, Jimmy Graham, Greg Olson, these are older guys for the NFL. They aren't the up and coming tight ends. And this year, those guys going in the middle, those are the up and coming tight ends of, of O.J. howard, Evan Ingram and Hunter Henry, all young guys who still have room to grow.

[Andy Holloway]

I think that I am taking the tight end approach of if I don't get the five, any of the five at the right draft.

[Jason Moore]

So who's your six that is left out?

[Andy Holloway]

I'm guessing Howard and yeah, Hunter Henry is the one that's left out. Ingram and Howard are in that category and then the top three. But you know, Scott Barrett tweeted about this. I heard it on a podcast a couple weeks ago. The tight end scoring, specifically the middle tight end 6 through 12, it is disintegrated over the last couple of years. It's the lowest that the tight end 6 through 12 has scored in the last 10 years. It's not a place where you're finding value.

[Jason Moore]

Well, the NFL is changing. Like the tight end used to be the safety blanket. If no one was open, I knew that the tight end was there and I could check it down to him. Now they check it down to the running back. So if you look at running back.

[Andy Holloway]

Reception, shout out to Dennis Pitta, famous check down master.

[Jason Moore]

As the running back receptions go up, you can see the tight end receptions going down.

[Andy Holloway]

So there's only one ball. You have that same five kind of view.

[Mike Wright]

I have the exact same five. While I do like Hunter Henry and even Vance McDonald a little bit. You know, they're two guys that I'm not sure how much more I like them than some of the just I can take with my last round pick guys. Because I. We'll talk about that at the end of the show. Some of those super late guys that I'd be okay leaving the draft with and I would. I think if I don't get one of those top five, I'm leaving with one of the guys we talked about at the end of the show.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. Travis Kelsey is the number one tight end in football the last three years. He's 1, 2, 1. He's a guaranteed. He's guaranteed production at the position. He has the MVP throwing him the football. He's got one of the best offenses in football. He had 150 targets last year, 1300 plus yards and 10 touchdowns.

[Mike Wright]

He broke the NFL record for yardage at the tight end position for about an hour.

[Andy Holloway]

And then George Kittle's like, I'll take that, but you're pretty good. Anyways, so last year he only had one game that qualified as a bust, and that was week one when people were like, oh, no, oh, Patrick Mahomes, he's no Alex Smith.

[Jason Moore]

Just. It was not that he's not an Alex or that he's not better than Alex Smith, but we didn't. We had no clue what Patrick Mahomes tendencies would be with the tight end. Yeah, I mean, I raised my hand as guilty like that. That rattled my nerves.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, it did. And then he rattled off the rest of the entire season, which was unbelievable. So we don't need to say much about Kelsey other than you have to talk very firmly the number one tight end.

[Jason Moore]

But are you willing to pay that second round pick to take a tight end who. It's a onesie position. Yes, you should theoretically be dominant at that. But also last year, theoretically you should have been dominant taking Rob Gronkowski in the second round as well.

[Andy Holloway]

It just feels different than that though. He's played 16, 15, 16 games last three years. Actually, the two years before he played 16 as well. I haven't taken him.

[Jason Moore]

Okay.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know why. I probably should. Jason, do you. Have you taken him in many of your mocks in the second round?

[Mike Wright]

If. Yeah, I mean, I think he's a worthy pick there. The reality is onesie positions we usually try to avoid go late stack running backs and wide receivers. But there's just such a huge gap between the depth that you have at quarterback, where it's like I, you know, there's 22 quarterbacks I actually like, there are three tight ends that I actually like and then there's two that I'm like maybe and that's it. I don't want to, you know, if I can get value on one of the top three, I'm going to take them.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, I think it makes sense. Especially if those middling finishes that, you know, tight end six through 12, that's the guys that finished in that spot and they still have the lowest scoring than they've had over the last 10 years. So there's a big point gap.

[Mike Wright]

We bring up the fact that, you know, Trey Burton finished as the Titans 7 last year, which is like, oh yay. But that was terrible. I mean, Trey Burton was trash. Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

Because he was 13 in actual points per game. He just happened to be there.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

Zach Ertz is our consensus 2. I'm very tempted to flip flop him and George Kittle right now. Ertz is 2 Kittles 3. I'm probably going to change that very soon. But this is the way the stats broke out right now. But last year was such an outlier season for Zach Ertz, which you say, wait, he's a really good player. Of course he is. He's an amazing player. He still. We were just talking about Ashton Jeffrey, 900 yards. Jeffrey was hurt. Desean Jackson wasn't there. There are reasons to believe that the 156 targets for Zach Ertz are not going to approach that total.

[Jason Moore]

Mike Wallace, who was brought in to be the deep threat for the team last year, missed essentially the entire season. And the. Zach Ertz is great, but will he return value on the pick? Will he be that much of a difference maker like we believe Travis Kelsey will be? You look at Zachary's game log once, I mean at the beginning of the season, it was double digit targets in all but two games through week nine. He was, he was just an absolute vacuum for targets. After that they make a trade, they bring Golden Tate in and Golden Tate is there for seven games. And in that time, Zach Hurts went double digit targets only twice. He was on a pace of eight targets a game, which is still outstanding for a tight end. But he only scored three times in that time period as well. Is that production enough to make you spend. Where is he going? Is he a fourth round pick right now or is he a third round?

[Andy Holloway]

I don't have. Let me see the 83 right now. Yeah, 309.

[Jason Moore]

I've just. I'm not, I'm not paying it and.

[Mike Wright]

I will and I will pay that because you know, you talk about that.

[Andy Holloway]

So will you pay it for 74 receptions for 824 yards and eight touchdowns.

[Mike Wright]

If he gets 128 targets, which would be the what you said if he was getting eight targets a game, the fewer targets. And that's about where I've got him. I think he will return value in the sense that I don't have to play the game. You know, it's like it will return.

[Andy Holloway]

Value to you as a fantasy owner.

[Mike Wright]

Right.

[Andy Holloway]

To remove that variable from your life.

[Mike Wright]

Because the issue is sometimes that hurts. I think that I am dad gun good enough at finding wide receivers and running backs in the middle rounds that are going to outperform their, you know, their situation. I'm better at that than I am finding a tight end in round eight or nine or seven. That's going to outperform it. So yes, you do lose something taking that tight end. You do. And I don't think Zach Ertz has as good a season as he had last year. In fact, he's my number three. I do have Kittle higher than Zach Ertz this year in half point PPR leagues. There should be a target regression coming for him. But target regression down to the 120s is still going to be a very known commodity at a position that is so difficult to succeed with on a week to week basis.

[Andy Holloway]

I think that's a pretty compelling angle for Zach Ertz there because the price, it's 309. It's really not reflective of people expecting 116 receptions in 11, 63 and 8, is it? I would imagine if you were expecting that he'd go higher, he'd be in the Kelsey draft range. It's compelling to say, hey sure, I can play roulette, I can go for a late round guy but I don't want to. Isn't that part of fantasy? Yeah, absolutely. What you want to deal with on a weekly basis.

[Jason Moore]

But also part of that is your opportunity cost of paying that price for George or for Ertz or Kittle because they're going back to back and those guys that you could miss in that in the time that it's actually your pick once the turn has come around. David Montgomery, Josh Jacobs, Stefan Diggs, Chris Carson, Julian Edelman.

[Andy Holloway]

I mean, ah, now I know why I didn't drive Zach Ertz in any of my mock drafts.

[Jason Moore]

Exactly. It all comes down to the opportunity cost. But if you, if you want to play like Jason and be a little baby about your tight end.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, my God.

[Mike Wright]

Then that's what you're going to do. You're going to take one of the top three.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah, he wants the. He wants the easy route with the tight end position. He will set it and forget it.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah. You know, I want to just get.

[Andy Holloway]

Goddard, too, and flex Goddard out.

[Mike Wright]

I want to have my, you know, fantasy roster at every position be an advantage over the opponent. When it comes to quarterbacks, I'm. I'm confident that I can have an advantage over my opponent. Streaming, meaning playing a guy off of waivers based on the matchup. Over the last couple seasons, it has not been as easy to stream the tight end position, to actually look at the matchup and go, this team's bad against tight end. I'm going to roll with this guy. And sometimes it works, but a lot of times it doesn't. I just believe in our ability at running back and wide receiver to patch that hole. Easier than patching the hole.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. And you're right, Mike. Once Tate was there filling that role, the target share went significantly down for Zachary. It's over that period of time. Dallas Goddard's banged up right now, should be back for the regular season. It'll be interesting to see how your thoughts on Goddard. Jason, Congeal with your. Your hope for Ertz, because you will be. Here's a. Remember I told you I can see the future?

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Andy Holloway]

Sometimes. When? Whenever it goes my way, those are the times. There will be plenty of plays where Zachary's owners jump out of their couch, put their fist in the air and go, yeah. Oh, no, that's Goddard. Now what were they catching that touchdown.

[Mike Wright]

Now what were they doing inside of their couch? That's the real question. If they're going to jump out of the couch.

[Jason Moore]

You don't sit inside your couch.

[Mike Wright]

I sit on, idiot.

[Andy Holloway]

Mike and I both sit in our couches.

[Jason Moore]

Have I been doing it wrong, Dummy.

[Andy Holloway]

All right. George Kittle. You called him a little baby and then we ganged up on him like we sit in our couches when he pointed out I'm the dummy. Stupid comment. Oh, man, you're. You're. We did praise your medical advice, though, today. Oh, keep that in mind. Number three, George Kittle. Last year, 136 targets, 1377 yards and five touchdowns. George Kittle was exhilarating to own on my fantasy team part because I got him off of waiver wire. This year, you got to pay the 3.

[Jason Moore]

Pay the iron price.

[Mike Wright]

They are back to back if you want Kittle, if you want Ertz. They're both at the very back of the third and they're back to back in picks. So you just, you're taking either the leftover which right now would be Kittle on in average or you're choosing to take Kittle over Ertz.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't think you can stop what George Kittle does best in the NFL. I don't believe he can. I don't believe that teams are going to approach. It's not like they weren't trying to stop them last year. But I don't think you get to go into this year and say this year no big place to George Kittle. You don't have the available people to cover a player that can do what he did. 20 receptions of 20 plus yards. That is the most among tight ends. It was tied with Robert woods for 8th most among all past catchers. He is too valuable of a weapon on a team that needs weapons.

[Mike Wright]

He is a physical dominant freak. We're talking a 90th percentile spark athlete, £250, runs a 4, a 2, a.

[Andy Holloway]

4, 522 baby, a 2, 2 20.

[Mike Wright]

He's a Tesla. Yeah, I mean look, there were a lot of things, Model G that happened there were a lot of things that happened last year to allow him to break in.

[Andy Holloway]

Sorry, sorry.

[Jason Moore]

We must break in here. I don't mind it.

[Mike Wright]

You like the model G. I don't.

[Jason Moore]

Mind it at all.

[Andy Holloway]

I tried, I tried.

[Mike Wright]

All right. Yeah, I'll allow it.

[Jason Moore]

Running a two, two.

[Mike Wright]

So, you know, obviously a lot of things happened to allow him to break the NFL record that aren't necessarily going to happen. There will be. I still believe in Dante Pettis as having the ability to step up and you bring in two other rookies, but he has the ability. It's what Andy's saying. Like you don't just break it because other guys went down. You don't break the all time NFL record. He's great. And what has convinced me recently is, you know, I've been because of Dante Pettis and all the news coming out, Andy and I both really high on Pettis and then stuff starts looking bad. Is it motivational? Is it real? But among all of the research I've been doing on Pettis, the one thing that keeps sticking out to me from all the beat reporters, including not opinion but actually tracked targets through training camp is that George Kittle is the clear number one target for this team. Whatever you believe in Pettis or Debo or Jalen Hurd. It is Kittle who is the centerpiece of the offense. That's what I become convinced of. So barring injury, I do think he's going to be great and I'm willing. Just like with Zach Ertz, obviously I've got him ahead of Zach Ertz. I'm willing to take him there.

[Andy Holloway]

Do you have any concern at all? Just throwing it out there? We haven't seen Kittle do it with Jimmy G.

[Jason Moore]

No, no, that's where I was.

[Mike Wright]

That was part of my issue was we haven't seen that.

[Jason Moore]

But when I think Garoppolo is a good quarterback.

[Mike Wright]

I believe Garoppolo is a good quarterback but maybe he doesn't target the tight end as much as heavily rely on he better. But that's where the targets through training camp. He's so far ahead of everyone else in the target volume through training camp that it just shows. Oh, he is the number one guy.

[Andy Holloway]

Yeah. Evan Ingram. Evan Ingram. Evan Ingram, yes. Number four tight end, consensus rankings. I have drafted Evan Ingram more than any player in any mock draft that I have done. He's going at the 5:11. I think I've probably drafted him in the sixth round in the majority of the mocks where I have taken him. Evan Ingram is this year's George Kittle.

[Jason Moore]

I don't mind it.

[Andy Holloway]

There aren't great passing options. Odell Beckham Jr. Is gone. You obviously have Saquon out of the backfield. Sterling Shepard is banged up. Cody Latimer is a has, was, maybe never has never been. And you know, especially the first four weeks of the season, Ingram has the camp buzz you need. He was a player that last season ended on a high Note. Had a 16 game pace of 65 receptions for 839 yards on 93 targets. And again, another one of those athletic hybrid freaks that can make big plays happen. One big play from George Kittle, one big play from Evan Ingram changes your entire week as a fantasy owner. So I love the value of Evan Ingram.

[Mike Wright]

If you're in a PPR league. I like him a lot more. I don't expect him to be a touchdown monster. You know, we're now into the tier where we're talking about Evan Ingram, O.J. howard and then possibly Hunter Henry. And when you talk about the breakout, the okay, someone's going to break into that top three, either become the clear fourth or beat one of those top three, I think you're going to need touchdowns. But in those middle to late rounds, if he drops into the sixth round in A full PPR league. I think he's, he's just too important to the offense. You know, there's a lot of quality tight ends. Like, the difference to me between Evan Ingram and Hunter Henry is that Evan Ingram could very well lead that team in targets, whereas Hunter Henry has no chance whatsoever. So if you're in a ppr, I'm a big fan of.

[Andy Holloway]

If you touch. If you said buy, sell. Evan Ingram leads the team in receptions, I would probably sell it. If you said leads the team in yards, I might buy it.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, that makes sense.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. And he's. Evan Ingram has been awesome. When Odo Beckham has been off the field, he has shown the ability to step up. When Beckham is off the field, he's up to nearly eight targets a game, almost 60 receiving yards a game. And he has the big play ability that not many tight ends have. He was a first round pick. This is only his third season. I think that, I think Evan Ingram's upside is. I agree with you, Andy. His upside is he's this year, George. This year's George Kittle, although he's not free or late in drafts, needs to stay healthy. Yeah.

[Andy Holloway]

Needs to get rid of the drop problem that he's had on and off throughout his career. How much does seeing Daniel Jones, even in a small sample size in the preseason, Mike, affect your, affect your view of. If Daniel Jones has to come in, I mean, does it. That's been a concern, right. Like we've seen, we've seen Eli Manning willing to go to Evan Ingram. Does the offense turn to a halt if he's switched out for Daniel Jones? Jason said, yes, it hurts him. I think in the middle of that.

[Jason Moore]

Question, it is a red flag for Evan Ingram. But at the same time he's just. He is a great player. According to the NFL next gen stats, no player averaged a greater separation on their routes run than Evan Ingram. As, as in he would get the most open. So as long as Daniel Jones is looking for him, Angram is going to be open.

[Andy Holloway]

OG Howard at number five.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, this is the guy. He's my number four. I am.

[Andy Holloway]

You say he's so good, he's number four.

[Mike Wright]

You say that Evan Ingram is this year's George Kittle. That's how I see O.J. howard, a true breakout into like the ability to be a second round pick next year.

[Andy Holloway]

Because out of a couch type of.

[Mike Wright]

Explosion explode out of that couch, say, why was I in here? And who is that giant beast of a man? O.J. howard is the one Human that, you know, might. He goes up to George Kittle and George Kittle's looking up and going like, I'm a little scared of you. O.J. howard is 66251, ran a 45 1, and he has a quarterback that targets tight ends like crazy. Cameron Brait was a really good fantasy tight end. Even though Cameron Brait is just an average talent, you lose Adam Humphries and DeSean Jackson from the offense and in the meantime, coming into year three, the only thing you've ever seen from Evan Ingram is complete dominance on the field.

[Jason Moore]

You mean O.J. howard?

[Mike Wright]

O.J. howard.

[Jason Moore]

Is that a little Freudian slip? Because you love Ingram.

[Mike Wright]

It was the only two tight ends with a higher percentage. Actually, the only one, if we're saying more than one game played last year. Travis Kelsey had a higher rate of top 12 finishes and then it was O.J. howard. That's it. I mean, he's. He's never been on the field and not been good.

[Andy Holloway]

Cameron Bray is still an American football tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Had six touchdowns for them last year.

[Jason Moore]

I think they were all in like the first four games.

[Andy Holloway]

Any concerns with the time losing the occasional touchdown to Cameron Brait?

[Jason Moore]

Not at this. Well, the occasional touchdown, yes, but that'll happen to everyone.

[Andy Holloway]

Sure.

[Jason Moore]

But the concern back when Howard was first coming into the league of Cameron Braid, he was the. Brait was the established tight end. He will run as the number one tight end. That change has happened.

[Andy Holloway]

It's now Howard update on Kenyan Drake in a walking boot. Head coach Brian Flores says the injury will, quote, be a while. Oh, but said the team hopeful ready for opener.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, you're doubling up in your Bellagio if you've taken him late.

[Jason Moore]

Wow, you mean double down.

[Mike Wright]

No, I meant doubling up. You're. You've just doubled your money.

[Andy Holloway]

It could knock Kenyan Drake's ADP down, down, down. So if you believe that he can earn that spot at some point in the season, could make him a steal.

[Mike Wright]

Now, this is going to be one of those heart versus mine because I have always been a believer and if he drops, I want to take him. But this year I'm trying to not buy the injury. Dip and learn from last, you know, last year's mistakes.

[Jason Moore]

That's a tough one. It's.

[Andy Holloway]

It is.

[Jason Moore]

I'm traveling back, but a point that I really wanted to emphasize about Evan Ingram. With Golden Tate missing those first four games, I think Angerman I think will be good season long, but in particular those first four games, he could be he could be like a top two tight end over those four games.

[Andy Holloway]

Some injury notes on O.J. howard. He's been banged up and you need to pay attention to that aspect of drafting O.J. howard. Season cut short last year. Ankle foot injuries. Matt Betts from the Ultimate Draft Kit. Number one predictor of future foot and ankle injuries is the prior issues that he has. It's the ankle ish area in that ankley, ankley spot. Hunter Henry at 6, Vance McDonald at 7 in our top 10 tight end rankings. Henry, you know, not a lot of talk buzz around Henry. Probably at no fault of his own other than enough.

[Jason Moore]

I mean, he's going in the sixth round. That's, that's true for a player who didn't play last year. Where we, in fantasy football, we tend to have very short memories. That's pretty solid buzz.

[Andy Holloway]

There has been, you know, when Travis Kelsey's career began, we were only saying what if, what if Travis Kelsey could play a full season and be healthy, what would happen? There's a little bit of that with Hunter Henry because when you look at the depth chart, pass catchers, what's going on, you're kind of like, okay, either Mike Williams is having the biggest year of his life or Hunter Henry is going to contribute to this offense in a big way.

[Jason Moore]

Yes. And I believe in Hunter Henry. I don't, I don't like the draft cost of having to be all in on him because I considered having to pay a six round pick for him is going all in. But he, of the players we're talking about, he does have a chance to finish in that top five, that, that top four as well because he's one. He is a great player. We've already talked about a quarterback who throws to the tight end position. Philip Rivers had a historical career throwing to Antonio Gates, who was also gone. Antonio Gates was a bit of the problem for Hunter Henry early on in his career. But Henry is one of those, also one of those athletic monsters and he has the ability to be a great, a great fantasy tight end.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, Hunt, see that's one of my issues is actually the athletic. He came out as one of the top two guys and so you kind of, you view him as a hyper athlete, but at the tight end position he's actually not. He was, you know, a slow runner. Spark score. That's not very high and that's actually.

[Jason Moore]

Kind of254.7 at 665-25047 is athletic enough for me.

[Mike Wright]

Well, he's 15th percentile in Spark, so I, you know, the thing is, is he's not going to be the number one target, right? Like Zach Ertz is not. Zach Ertz is not the most hyper athlete. Like, he's not the Kiddle, the O.J. howard. You know those guys. So that's what you need, right? He's a, he's a talented route runner. He's great at catching the ball. Hunter Henry is not a bad player at all. But he's not going to be the one there, right? He's probably not going to be the second target there.

[Jason Moore]

He might be the two he could.

[Mike Wright]

But I think Mike Williams. I think most people would say Mike Williams is going to have more targets than Hunter Henry. He's one of these middle round guys that I'm probably just avoiding. He could break out. I'm avoiding him because I'm spinning this middle round pick for a guy that I don't think is going to be a weekly starter at the point I'm streaming.

[Andy Holloway]

I would feel better about Hunter Henry if I thought that this Chargers defense wasn't really good, to be honest, if I thought Phil Rivers was doing that comeback routine on a regular basis. And the, the script we've seen with Antonio gates catching 15 yard passes over and over and over again in the middle of the field. Safety blanket for Philip Rivers, that tight end position, it's definitely interesting, but you're paying a lot for Hunter Henry.

[Jason Moore]

Do we. Are we in agreement that Hunter Henry does get a nice boost if Melvin Gordon is not there?

[Mike Wright]

Yeah.

[Jason Moore]

From a target perspective.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know.

[Jason Moore]

Okay.

[Andy Holloway]

I don't know. 95th percentile, spark score. Vance McDonald at number seven. I don't know what to do with him. I take him because he's going 8th round sometimes. Right now he's the tight end. 8 off the board, 710 average draft position, lot of opportunity. Vacated targets, really hasn't been able to stay healthy. Drops the football, obviously. Jettison from San Francisco into Pittsburgh. Great opportunity, but I'm willing, I'm willing to take him, see what happens, but I'm willing to pivot off of him quickly if it doesn't look like he's going to be heavily involved.

[Mike Wright]

Yeah, I agree. He is the last guy that is somewhat tempting to me in the middle rounds. He, you know, he's going behind guys like Hunter Henry in the draft, but I've got him finishing ahead because the vacated targets. The fact that, the fact that you've got Jesse James gone, obviously all the Antonio Brown targets vacated and we've seen Vance McDonald completely dominate?

[Jason Moore]

Yes.

[Mike Wright]

He's just a huge injury risk. He's never been able to really stay healthy. I mean, he dominated back for San Francisco. We loved them at times and then every time we were like, oh, yeah, look at this crazy athlete, Vance McDonald, who's going to dominate injured. Oh, he's back. He's going to dominate injured. And then it's like, oh, he traded, traded to the Steelers kind of late in a year or late in the, in the camp and then didn't get involved. Now is his opportunity. Now is like a true breakout potential. I think it could happen. I'm willing to take a shot at that. Because you have a freak with the target vacated situation where he should be able to soak up a lot of work.

[Andy Holloway]

Didn't go over 50 yards from week six on. Didn't catch more than four passes from week six on.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah, Vance McDonald is. You can't look at last year's production because this is why we like Vance is this is a completely different team. Antonio Brown, the number one target of that team is gone. And like Jason said, Jesse James. So the, the other player at, at the position who can take Vance McDonald off the field is gone. And there's the talk out of camp. They have no idea who the wide receiver two is. The drumbeat is definitely for Dante Moncrief, but it could still end up being James Washington. They don't know. But Vance, we do know that Vance McDonald's when he catches the ball because he drops it sometimes, but when he.

[Andy Holloway]

Catches the ball, some dirty deeds, he.

[Jason Moore]

He steals souls and he is an incredible guy out in space. So that's, that's why he is here. Because the opportunity is so, is so insane. But the draft price has risen with that. When, when I really, really liked Vance McDonald, he was a, he was a double digit guy.

[Andy Holloway]

I'm going to write him a letter. I'm going to tell him to steal three fewer souls this year if that can keep him healthy and on the field. It's because sometimes Shang Tsung, you run violently.

[Jason Moore]

Yes, he does.

[Andy Holloway]

Jared Cook at 8, Eric Ebron at 9, David Njoku at 10. Rounding out the rankings, we've talked a lot about middle round performances. Taking your shot. I'll take my shot on Jared Cook. Sure.

[Jason Moore]

Yeah. Jared Cook going behind Vance McDonald. That, that makes it hard to go in, go all in on Vance McDonald because it's the same situation for the Saints, I guess, a little bit different because you have Michael Thomas and Alva Camara. But beyond those two guys, Jared Cook could step in and be the third highest targeted player on the team. The target volume four for New Orleans, yes, it keeps coming down and down and down, but Drew Brees is still an excellent quarterback.

[Andy Holloway]

Is this a move up to 11? Jason? I know on the show the other day you were making some notes and one of them had cooked with an up arrow.

[Mike Wright]

I believe it is an up. I've changed him up to 11. But the truth for me, and I hate to say this but like this whole now that we're into this tier of players you mentioned in Joku and Joku is my 7, my tight end 7 and Jared Cook is my tight end 11. There is so little difference in my stats between these players. The actual fantasy point difference between the next, you know, five guys from Njoku down is just completely irrelevant. It's take a five sided die and throw it. There's no difference to me between any of them and I'm not picking any of them in my craft.

[Andy Holloway]

I want to see that die.

[Mike Wright]

I'm not.

[Andy Holloway]

I want to see that, that five sider. I want to see that five sided die. I'm picturing it in my brain right now.

[Mike Wright]

I will google but you know, I'm not picking any of them.

[Andy Holloway]

Oh, it's weird looking.

[Jason Moore]

It's real weird.

[Mike Wright]

I'm not picking in Joku. I'm not picking Cook. You know, once, once I'm past once I'm personally past Vance McDonald, I'm going around if I had to take a shot like right now the rankings say that I'm lower on Cook, but at least with Cook, we've seen him number.

[Andy Holloway]

Five last year, right?

[Mike Wright]

We've seen him do it. He is an athlete, he's on a good offense. So there are reasons that I think you could, you know, see him come through this year. But I just, I'm not. I mean that's the thing. The reality is you're listening to this podcast to know who should I draft, who should I avoid. Personally, I'm not drafting any of this tier of guys. I'm waiting until the end of my draft to if I don't get one of those good tight ends, I'm just getting a late guy and I'm going to stream the position, see all of.

[Andy Holloway]

Our rankings projections for each and every tight end in the Ultimate Draft kit or ultimate draftkit.com give me a sleeper tight end that did not make the top 10 consensus that you'll take a look at. Take your shot at be willing to pivot stream if they don't Work out.

[Jason Moore]

I'm contractually obligated at this point, but of course, it's Jordan reed, the Rule 86, baby.

[Andy Holloway]

Look, he will not die.

[Jason Moore]

He will not be. I mean, he gets really hurt, but he won't die. He will remove flesh wound, he will remove bones from his toes if that's what it takes to play football. All reports out of Washington. If they're talking about pass catchers, it's about Jordan Reed. It's about. Jordan Reed is healthy. Jordan Reed looks great. He has. Jordan Reed hasn't come into a training camp healthy and I think three or four seasons.

[Andy Holloway]

Can I have fun with you for a minute?

[Jason Moore]

Of course.

[Andy Holloway]

Injuries since 2013. You have to let me. You have to let me do this.

[Jason Moore]

The podcast can only go on so long, Andy.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, fair enough.

[Jason Moore]

But go ahead.

[Andy Holloway]

Quadriceps strain, hip contusion, concussion, thumb sprain, hamstring sprain, hamstring strain, quadracept strain, concussion, shoulder contusion, ankle sprain, thumb contusion, concussion, shoulder strain, rib contusion, hamstring tear, toe sprain.

[Jason Moore]

He likes football and his body doesn't like it.

[Mike Wright]

I didn't hear any rib problems though, so I think, I think he's okay.

[Andy Holloway]

Rib contusion, week two.

[Mike Wright]

Oh, I missed it. I missed it. I'm out. I'm out.

[Andy Holloway]

On all reports of all time is that Jordan Reed is awesome when he's healthy, but that list is laughable. I'll throw the Wallerus out there. Darren Waller.

[Jason Moore]

I like that we're making fun of my Jordan Reed pick because he gets hurt. Darren Waller actually is hurt.

[Andy Holloway]

He is as active as he's been since suffering his shoulders sprain. And that's all you need to know. Here's the thing. He's a spark freak. He, he's an athletic freak and he's stepping into a role that saw 68 receptions, 896 yards and six touchdowns, which was Jared Cook last year. And he's free if you want to take the shot on him. Free?

[Jason Moore]

Yeah.

[Mike Wright]

My late round guy that I really like is Mark Andrews, wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens. He.

[Andy Holloway]

Wide receiver. I wasn't sure if that was on purpose.

[Mike Wright]

Well, it wasn't on purpose, but it is also true. He is basically a wide receiver for them. He was only on the field for around, on average about 35% of snaps last year as a rookie, which is very common for rookie tight ends. This is why we, you don't draft rookie tight ends like we tell everybody, you know, who's not on our list right now. Noah Fanton, T.J. hawkinson.

[Andy Holloway]

Who?

[Jason Moore]

Noah?

[Mike Wright]

Who Noah. Fantastic.

[Jason Moore]

Thank you.

[Mike Wright]

You're welcome. We hope they're not, they're not on this list because it's so incredibly rare for a rookie tight end to get a snap percentage that is meaningful enough to be good for fantasy. It's really like Evan Ingram has done it Gronk years before. That's it. End of list.

[Jason Moore]

How dare you forget the name of Jeremy Shockey.

[Mike Wright]

Well, I didn't know how far back I had to go here, Mike. Mike Ditka was so good at tight end.

[Jason Moore]

No, but Mike, he actually was.

[Mike Wright]

Well, sure, that's statute of limitations here. Mark Andrews last year as a rookie with only 35% snap percentage was actually really good. Once Lamar Jackson came, he was on a 700 yard pace, which would have been second only to Jeremy Shockey in a rookie yardage season. Now he comes into year two. They've built the system around that. Early indications are that he has been the number one target for Lamar Jackson. I think his target or his snap percentage can go way up. And Mark Andrews is a beast. I really like him. I think he could be one of those guys.

[Jason Moore]

I think we all like Mark Andrews.

[Andy Holloway]

All right, that is it for today's episode of the Fantasy Footballers podcast. Thank you for subscribing listening before we.

[Jason Moore]

Close out because I had to find out, is there a five sided dice, five sided die. And one of the first thing that shows up is a, is a Reddit thread. Are five sided dice fair?

[Andy Holloway]

Are they fair?

[Jason Moore]

So there's a problem with your five sided die, Jay. They're not fair.

[Andy Holloway]

We want to thank today's studio sponsor, Pristine Auction. Evan Ingram signed jersey yesterday. $49 signed jersey. Is there one on the wall right now? Yeah, there's one on the wall right now. Pristineauction.com to check that out. And again, jointhefoot.com to be a part of this year's Megalobol tournament with all the foot clan. Who comes out on top? We'll find out soon. See you tomorrow.

[Jason Moore]

Goodbye.

[Mike Wright]

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.