Players To Pick Up Before The Fantasy Playoffs || Fantasy Football 2025

Summary

---

Footballguys Fantasy Football Show (Dec 9, 2025)

Episode: "Players To Pick Up Before The Fantasy Playoffs || Fantasy Football 2025"

Hosts: Alfredo Brown & Dave Kluge

---

Episode Overview

This playoff-focused episode is all about waiver wire pickups and strategic roster moves for the fantasy football postseason. Hosts Alfredo Brown and Dave Kluge break down top adds and discuss how to maximize your roster entering the critical weeks. The conversation includes thoughtful debates on backup RB strategy, emerging WRs, defenses to stream (and stash), and the shocking (and comical) late-breaking news of Philip Rivers’ NFL return. As always, the show mixes deep analysis with playful banter, callbacks, and pop culture laughs.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. [03:37] Fantasy Playoffs: The Home Stretch

• The Playoffs Begin: The fantasy playoffs are here (Week 15). The hosts congratulate surviving managers and joke that surely all their listeners made the cut.
  • "I like to think that everybody watching this show has made it to the playoffs." – Dave [04:08]
• They encourage even non-playoff teams to keep listening—if only for entertainment or schadenfreude.

2. [04:44] "Too Heavily Rostered" RBs—Should You Check Your Wire?

• Some RBs are too widely rostered for standard waiver columns, but worth a quick check:
  • Blake Corum, Chris Rodriguez, Bam Knight, Devin Singletary
• Rankings (if available):
  1. Blake Corum
  2. Chris Rodriguez
  3. Bam Knight
  4. Devin Singletary

Notable Analysis:

• Corum: “If Kyron Williams has to miss a game for whatever reason, I think Blake Corum without Kyron Williams would be a better fantasy asset than Kyron Williams currently is with Blake Corum.” – Dave [06:07]

• Backup RB Philosophy: Dave emphasizes always stashing high-upside backups as injuries regularly shake up workloads.
  "I do like backup running backs because workloads change all the time. Injuries happen. And that's why, like, I preach this all the time. Just stash these guys." – Dave [06:52]

• Bam Knight: “If I need…someone to start and someone who still has some upside…I’m actually gonna go with Bam Knight here…top 18 RB in three of the last four weeks.” – Alfredo [07:24]

---

3. [09:03] News: Philip Rivers NFL Comeback?!

• The Colts are (actually) bringing in 44-year-old Philip Rivers for a workout—sparking incredulity and Marvel-movie jokes.
  • "Philip Rivers, who is older than Tom Brady… older than Joe Flacco…" – Alfredo [08:37]

Memorable Banter:

• “Can you guess how many Marvel movies have been released since Philip Rivers last played?” [09:26]
• They riff on failed Marvel trivia and Rivers’ status as a literal NFL grandfather.
• [44:43] Emergency update at episode’s end: “Philip Rivers officially signed with the Colts!”

---

4. [11:49] Main Event – Waiver Wire Targets for Week 15

Waiver prospects are grouped by tiers based on consensus rankings and roster percentage (available in at least 60%+ leagues).

Tier 1: Priority Pickups

• Jalen Wright (RB, Miami) – 96% available
  • Massive opportunity if Devon Achane misses time; explosive and fits the offense. But may split with Ollie Gordon if Achane plays.
    • "Jalen Wright...could be one of these guys that you're wishing you picked up. Even though Devon Achane said he was healthy and it's a Monday night game so you want to have the insurance." – Alfredo [12:53]
    • "This was the Jalen Wright show. He completely took off..." – Dave [13:26]
• Luther Burden (WR, Chicago) – 63% available
  • Saw a significant snap increase due to Roma Odunze injury; top-36 WR two of last three weeks. Bears offense still “not pretty.”
    • “I think Roma Odunze might miss another week, maybe even a couple more weeks...the only way for Luther Burden's foot to heal up is to take some time to rest it...” – Dave [16:36]
    • DJ Moore vs Luther Burden: “Looks like I have Luther Burden ahead of DJ Moore...Not a good season for DJ Moore drafters.” – Dave [18:05]

Tier 2: Viable Week Starters/Streamers

• Isaiah Likely (TE, Baltimore) – 87% available

  • Quality matchup against Cincinnati (most fantasy points allowed to TEs), multiple usable weeks; risky ROS.
    • “If he does well in this matchup, you could bench in the next week and then put him back...” – Dave [20:08]

• Jack Besh (WR, Raiders) – 95% available

  • Snap spike, target leader last week, but crowded/ineffective offense; more a desperation/deep-league play.

• Darius Slayton (WR, Giants)

  • Known commodity: boom/bust WR3/flex with decent schedule; possibly higher weekly ceiling than Besh but both are thin starts.

Tier 3: Deep Plays / Handcuff Bench Stashes

• Dylan Sampson (RB, Browns) – 88% available
  • Receiving upside in negative scripts; younger, big-play potential but only a deep league desperation start.
• Samaje Perine (RB, Bengals) – 88% available
  • Safe handcuff with “garage-door” (limited upside) running style but useful if injuries hit; likely the first-in if starter is out. Good goal-line/third down profile.

Tier 4: Extreme Depth

• Ryan Flournoy (WR, Cowboys), Jalen Coker (WR, Panthers)
  • Flournoy only relevant if CeeDee is out; Coker is a “seven WR lineup” desperation start in a brutal Carolina passing game.
  • “This is the Jeff Bell tier because I know he loves both of these guys…” – Alfredo [33:43]
  • If you’re adding from here: “...you might be trending towards a first-round exit.” – Dave [35:18]

---

5. [35:30+] Sneaky Strategies – Defense & ROS Play

Streaming and Stashing Defenses

• Approach: At this stage, benches should be mostly “injury-away RBs” plus defenses. Stash defenses NOW for future matchups to avoid waivers/week-of scrambles.

  • “If you have one of those plug-and-play defenses…try to find where that weak spot is and see if you can get a better streamer for each of these next three weeks.” – Dave [38:49]

• Streaming D Picks:

  • 49ers (Titans, then Colts in Week 16; preferred for two-week use)
  • Jaguars (Jets)
  • Bears (vs Browns; cautious optimism despite Browns’ recent big week)

• Stash for Week 16:

  • Saints (Jets in W16)
  • Cardinals (Falcons)
  • Giants (Vikings)
  • Cowboys (Chargers, then Commanders)

• Don’t be afraid to carry multiple DSTs & get ahead for playoff rounds.

---

6. [41:43] “Start Your Studs” vs. Hot Hands (Playoff Philosophy)

• Now is the time to play players with the best current form and matchups—not simply the most drafted/star names.
  • “Don’t be afraid to bench Justin Jefferson for a Michael Wilson or a Christian Watson...You’ve got to play who’s playing well and who has good matchups right now.” – Dave [41:14]

---

7. [43:00+] NFL Realities, Injuries & Tanking Talk

• Extended conversation about Jaden Daniels, Commanders, and the risk/reward of playing injured franchise QBs when the season is lost.
• “Just shut him down. This is your franchise quarterback. Turn your sights to 2026. It’s okay.”—Dave [43:31]
• Comic riff: “Meanwhile, Kyler Murray’s flopped down in a bean bag chair somewhere just playing Modern Warfare.” – Dave [44:08]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On backup RB strategy: “Find someone that loves you as much as Dave Kluge loves backup running backs…” – Alfredo [06:26]
• On playoff benches: “My entire bench is going to be injury-away running backs, defenses and special teams. That’s all I really care about at this point.” – Dave [35:51]
• On the late-stage waiver wire: “We know like the Slayton thing, it’s going to be three catches for 67 yards and a touchdown or three catches for 13 yards and nothing like. Right. We kind of get it.” – Alfredo [27:59]
• Philip Rivers Marvel joke: “Can you guess how many Marvel movies have been released since Philip Rivers last played?” – Alfredo [09:26]
• On playoff luck: “It takes a lot of skill to get into the fantasy playoffs. ...luck kind of takes over from here on out. So, you know, just hope for the best.” – Dave [39:08]
• On ‘start your studs’ mantra: “I don’t think that is true this time of year. ...You have to not be afraid of…making that bad call. That’s how you got here—was not doing the safe thing week in and week out.” – Alfredo [42:13]
• On oddly young grandparents: "My grandma was a grandma at like 33 years old. There's some families that start young." – Dave [45:54]

---

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |----------------------------------------|--------------| | Playoff Intro & Listener Banter | 03:37-04:44 | | Backup RBs to Check (Corum…Singletary) | 04:44-08:34 | | Philip Rivers “Comeback” Announcement | 08:34-11:21 | | Waiver Wire Tiers & Top Adds | 11:49-35:23 | | Deep League Desperation Tier | 33:39-35:23 | | Defense Streaming & Stashing | 35:30-40:45 | | Playoff Start/Sit Philosophy | 41:43-42:14 | | NFL Tanking/Injury Rant | 43:00-44:41 | | Breaking: Rivers Signs w/ Colts | 44:42-45:42 |

---

Flow & Tone

The episode is expert-level advice delivered with a strong mix of humor, pop culture, and self-deprecation. The show exemplifies Footballguys’ trademark banter—lively, relatable, and detailed—making it as fun as it is actionable for fantasy managers facing tough calls at the business end of the season.

---

Bottom Line for Listeners

All the key names for late-season waivers—broken down by likelihood of availability, role, and upside for your playoff push. Don't stick blindly to preseason stars. Secure insurance RBs, prioritize flexible streaming defenses, and play who is hot—luck and opportunism now outweigh season-long dogma. And if nothing else, remember to check your wire—maybe even for a 44-year-old grandpa QB or that sneaky fourth-string wideout.

---

Transcript

[A]

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try [e-mail] Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. Guys, thanks for helping me carry my Christmas tree.

[B]

Zoe, this thing weighs a ton. Drew Ski, live with your legs, man. Santa. Santa, did you get my letter? He's talking to you, Bridges.

[A]

I'm not. Of course he did. Right, Santa, you know my elf Drew Ski here.

[B]

He handles the nice list and elf. I'm six' three. What everyone wants is iPhone 17 and at T Mobile you can get it on them. That center stage front camera is amazing for group selfies, right, Mrs. Claus?

[A]

I'm Mrs. Claus much younger sister and.

[B]

AT T mobile, there's no trade in needed when you switch. So you can keep your old phone.

[A]

Or give it as a gift.

[B]

And the best part, you can make.

[A]

The switch to T mobile from your phone in just 15 minutes.

[B]

Nice. My side of the tree is slipping. Kimber. The holidays are better. AT T Mobile switch in just 15 minutes and get iPhone 17 on us with no trade in needed. And now T mobile is available in US cellular stores with 24 monthly bill credits for well qualified customers plus tax.

[A]

And $35 device connection charge credit engine.

[B]

Balance due if you pay off earlier. Cancel Financing Agreement 256 gates. $830 eligible for in a new line. $100 plus a month plan with auto.

[A]

Pay plus taxes fees required.

[B]

Check out 15 minutes or less per line. Visit t mobile.com there's something I was eating. Oh, yesterday I had cheesecake. And as I was eating cheesecake, every bite of cheesecake was just ending up in my mustache. And and then it was a bananas foster cheesecake, so it had caramel over the top. And as I'm sitting here just like trying to brush caramel and cheesecake out of my mustache, I'm just like, what am I doing? This is disgusting.

[A]

This is a good move though. A banana's foster cheesecake. Where is this? Is this something that. Was this something Emily made?

[B]

No. So Emily, my wife, she got her wisdom teeth pulled yesterday and there was a little taphouse next door. So I went full Dale Cooper and got pie and coffee. Was my lunch yesterday as I was getting some writing done. So yeah, you know, it was right next door to the dentist office. I was able to hang out when she came out. But yeah, pie and pie and Coffee.

[A]

You do you do that often?

[B]

No, no.

[A]

By the way, not me Googling who Dale Cooper is.

[B]

As you were telling that story, Twin Peaks.

[A]

No, sorry. Ah.

[B]

If Joey writes.

I want to say 93, maybe 95, 97.

[A]

I mean, yeah. I mean, it's pretty reasonable. It is like, I'm surprised you've seen it. It's a TV series. No.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. It's like the start of prestige tv. Like, if there was like one show that you had to say, like, started prestige tv, I think it would be Twin Peaks.

[A]

But I was three.

[B]

Yeah. You could still go back and watch it. We have streaming services.

[A]

True. It is allowed. It is allowed. I've seen Star wars and Back to the Future.

[B]

It's a Wonderful Life came out like 80 years before I was born and I still rock that one.

[A]

Have you been to the Twin Peaks restaurant? It's nothing like the series.

[B]

Oh, boy. Yeah, there was a. I had a co worker once that loved going there and I was just like. And the first time we went there, I didn't know what it was.

[A]

Come on.

[B]

Yeah. And then I was just like, this is weird. And then like the next week he's like, so you want to go to Twin Peaks again? And I was like, no, dude. Like, you can have fun.

[A]

It's terrible.

[B]

It's disgusting.

[A]

The food's awful. Like, as soon as a friend's like, yeah, man, let's go to Twin Peaks, I'm like, so you're having a rough week at home, eh?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

It's week 15 and the fantasy football playoffs are finally here. I know there's not many of you still left, but hopefully those of you that have been watching and listening to this show, you guys are still in it. What?

[B]

Anybody watching this show is.

Been watching the show. I've had so many people DM me saying, like, I. I don't know if you saw. We got. We got tagged in a tweet this morning saying you guys were the best thing that happened to me this offseason. I hope none of my league mates find you.

[A]

We're getting everybody just feel bad for them that we were the best thing to happen to them all off season.

[B]

Sorry to totally blow up your spot here. I just get some better summer plans, dude. I like to think that everybody watching this show has made it to the playoffs. So congratulations on making it. Welcome to the fantasy playoffs.

[A]

You see, I'm a glass half full kind of guy because I like to imagine that even the people who didn't make the fantasy playoffs due to Bad luck. Still watch because they just want to hang.

[B]

Just see Hate watching. You see, Dave, I can't believe these.

[A]

No, not hate watching.

[B]

Florido.

What?

[A]

No, it's not a hate watch.

[B]

It is week 14.

[A]

No, this is good.

[B]

We are three minutes in and completely off the rails.

[A]

There we go. There we go. Welcome in everybody to the football guys fantasy football show. I'm Alfredo Brown. Join as always. Got Dave Kluge with me. We are gonna be talking about the week waiver wire. We also have a couple other things that we want to chat about here. First of all, Dave, there are going to be some names on here that did not make the cut because they're just too heavily rostered and it felt necessary to still talk about them because people are going to see these names all over every single waiver wire column. They're going to be in waiver wire rankings and who knows, there's still plenty of leagues that people are in, even 12 team leagues where these players are available. So some running backs that are just way too heavily rostered. Bam Knight, Blake Corum, Chris Rodriguez, Devin Singletary. These four running backs, what order would you prioritize them if they happen to be available in your league?

[B]

Blake Corum would be the number one, Chris Rodriguez number two. Then Bam Knight and then Devin Singletary and Blake Horum. We've been talking about this guy since last off season. Just saying that, like, if his opportunity arises, he is going to be very good. And Kyron Williams just doesn't miss games like the dude is in Ironman. But we saw last week Blake Orum still was able to get more touches. Granted, it was a blowout and we're not going to see that every single week week, but we saw what he can do with a big workload. This guy was the engine that powered Michigan's national championship winning team. He is a very, very good prospect. He also had that knee injury that ended his 2022 season. I think it took him a couple years to kind of get his explosiveness back, but he is such a good running back. I don't think that we're going to see more of what we saw last week, like Blake Corum being the lead back. But if Kyron Williams has to miss a game for whatever reason, I think Blake Corum without Kyron Williams would be a better fantasy asset than Kyron Williams currently is with Blake Orum.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, we've said that before. Also, guys, you know, find someone that loves you as much as Dave Kluge loves backup running backs. Blake Corum, Zach Charbonnet. Who else? Who else is on your Taj Spears? Who else is on your list? Kyle, just make. If you could just fantasy team without these other stupid positions like wide receiver and tight end and quarterback. And we don't even need RB1s. We just. We give us RB3s and we'll be happy.

[B]

Taj Brooks still got time to break out. It can happen any week here. Yeah, but yeah, I, I do like backup running backs because workloads change all the time. Injuries happen. And that's why, like, I preach this all the time. Just stash these guys. I mean, I was talking about Blake Horm this preseason. Couldn't believe that he didn't move up out of round 20. And I mean, I, I briefly was going back and forth with Sean Corner yesterday, and he said the worst thing about Blake Corum is that Kyron Williams hasn't been injured throughout his career. And I think that succinctly covers it. Like, if the opportunity for Blake Orm, he will be a top five running back.

[A]

Yeah, I think out of all these guys, the one with the most upside is Blake Corum. I think that if I need. If I'm looking at all four of these players on the waiver wire, I need someone to start and someone who still has some upside. I'm actually gonna go with Bam Knight here. He's. He's been a top 18 running back in fantasy in three of the last four weeks. He is the primary back in this offense. An offense that's having to throw a lot of defense that's not very good. You got Atlanta this week and then you've got Cincinnati the week after. So there are some really good matchups for Bam Knight. But yeah, I think it's. It's just. It's more philosophical stuff. Like Blake Corum gives you the higher upside. If you just want to stash a player, you have a bye week. Go for it. You need a win. Need a running back. Something happened to you. I don't know what kind of league you're in. Bam Knight's available. Cool. Then I'd say it's Chris Rodriguez and then Devin Singletary all the way at the bottom.

[B]

I think I like Chris Rodriguez a little bit more than Bam Knight just because now we've got Amari Damarcato back at practice and we don't know if he is going to come in and like you right now with Bam Knight and Michael Carter, it's been a pretty easy to read backfield. But once Player 3 enters the game and then we've got De Mercado in the mix, then it could get a little bit hairy. But we're still looking at a three headed committee in Washington anyway, so. I mean, it's two sides of the same coin.

[A]

Yeah, it's all. It's all the same guys. It's week 15. Every running back is the same person. They're all just one amalgamation. Dave, we got some really interesting news. I promise everybody, we're going to get into the waiver wire right here for week 15. The players who did make the cut. But we got some really interesting news. The Indianapolis Colts are bringing in Philip Rivers, the grandfather, Philip Rivers, for a workout. Philip Rivers, who is older than Tom Brady when he played his last snap. Philip Rivers, older than Joe Flacco. Philip Rivers, Dave, is who the Colts are looking at. I know there's a familiarity with Shane Steichen here. Can you guess? Dave, this is. I really want to do this with you. Can you guess how many Marvel movies have been released since Philip Rivers last played?

Do you want some help as to when he last played?

[B]

It was 20. 21, I believe.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Yeah. I don't. 47.

[A]

47. I don't know.

[B]

It seems like there's.

[A]

Every week.

[B]

I don't know.

There's a lot of new Marvel movies, right?

[A]

Yeah, yeah, but I don't even know that. Like, I don't even know that if entire.

[B]

Wait, there's like a new Marvel movie every month, right? I. I wouldn't.

[A]

There's totally. All right, 47. I don't even think a 24 is a studio. It's had 47 movies come out since that time. 47. Insane.

[B]

Right?

[A]

Well, now you said a number so big that what I'm gonna say doesn't even say 14. 14 Marvel movies have released since Philip last played football. Yeah, yeah, it was somewhere. It was Price is Right rules, man. You totally overplayed it. Okay, Ken, how many of these can you actually name?

[B]

Oh.

There'S Avengers.

Right? There was a new Avengers movie.

[A]

Actually, no. Actually, no.

There's Superman.

[B]

Okay. Morbius.

[A]

Nope. Technically a Sony movie.

[B]

There had to have been at least like. No, we've had this Indiana Jones. We've had the Spider Man. I know Spider man isn't actually Marvel.

[A]

It is.

[B]

Oh, all right. Spider Man.

[A]

It is now.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

It is now. Yep. Spider man, no Way Home is one of them. You got one.

[B]

All right.

[A]

Can you get any more? Ah.

[B]

Isn't there like a civil war or something? There was one about a civil war.

[A]

What about us. There's Captain America, Civil War. But that was like, that was like nine years ago.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

It'S not going well. It's not going well. Let us know in the comments if you can list any of these movies. By the way, 14 Marvel movies.

[B]

I saw Hammond on Friday.

[A]

Beautiful. There we are.

[B]

Now we're back. Devastatingly beautiful. I. I cried the entire last hour of the movie. My wife and I cried on the ride home. And then we woke up Saturday morning, started talking about the movie and cried again. If you want to watch a movie that will, like, rock you to your core, Hamnet is, is lovely.

[A]

Good. I don't want to be rocked to my core.

[B]

All right, we're going to lose 47 Marvel movies. Let's talk about some weird stuff here.

[A]

By the way, thumbs up this video comment down below and then you know what you do after you like this video. If you're watching on your mobile, it'll slide over and you can then hype the video because hyping the video is important for us. Helps get this in front of more eyes so we can, you know, preach the gospel of Philip Rivers here. All right, let's jump into the waiver wire targets for week 15. Dave, these are going to be players that are available in at least 60% of leagues or more like we do every week. We take the waiver wire pickups that you guys can make, we rank them, put them into consensus rankings and then break them down into tiers. So tier number one, we've got Jalen Wright and Luther Burden. So let's talk about Jaylen Wright here, who we have at the top. He's available in 96% of leagues. This was a big week last week with Devon H.N. leaving the game due to a rib injury. Mike McDaniel said he could have returned, but we were up in this game. There was no reason to bring him back. I'd say this, even if there is a role for Jalen Wright next week, 24 carries seems highly unlikely versus Pittsburgh. But I will also say there is a, a very high probability that smaller frame player like Devon Hn, a player who they want to get the ball to. A lot of a team that's trying to run the ball. If he goes in, he gets hurt again, he has to leave. Jalen Wright could be one of these guys that you're wishing you picked up. Even though Devon H. Chance said he was healthy and it's a Monday night game so you want to have the insurance.

[B]

You know, it was funny last week, like throughout all the different shows that I do throughout the week, I kept asking people the same question. Who is the handcuff to roster in Miami? Was it Ali Gordon or Jalen Wright? You and I talked about that on the handcuff show. I talked with Jeff Bell about that on the Dynasty show. I talked with. With Sam Wagman about it on the launch pad. Like, because you look at it, the touches have been split pretty much 50, 50 between Jalen Wright and Ollie Gordon since Jalen Wright came back. And we had a long discussion about, like, who this backup was last week. And I think we both said kind of the same thing, and so did Jeff and so did Sam. Everyone was like, you know, if Achan gets hurt, it's probably just going to be a split between both of these guys, and you don't want either of them. We all couldn't have been more wrong. Like, this was the Jalen Wright show. He completely took off. Now, I don't know if this is just them saying, like, hey, we've had this guy in the roster for two years and have never really gotten an ext to look at him. We're up two, three scores right now. Let's just feed him and see what he can do. I don't know. With a week to reset if, like, for whatever. First of all, it sounds like Tobani hn is going to play, but, like, if he couldn't play, maybe then they'd go back to the drawing board and devise more of a split backfield right now. But Jalen Wright, like, this is a guy with big speed and he was able to rip off some big plays. He looked good.

[A]

He does a lot more of the things that Devon H. Exactly. Like, he can get around the edge. He can. He can hit the zone run scheme pretty well. Like, that's a lot of what he did at Tennessee. The problem is at Tennessee, you're go. Yeah, he's okay. He's gotten better in the NFL. He's gotten better in the NFL. He wasn't great at it in Tennessee, but, like, the problem is at Tennessee, you're going up against four and five man boxes because the offense is so spread out. Miami's a perfect offense for him to be in because it is going to be so spread out, but they're doing some different things over there. The run blocking's gotten a lot better. I. A part of me still wonders if this is a hot hand approach because Ollie Gordon was not playing very well.

But, you know, Jalen Wright does fill in the divine hn role. He's more of the square peg, square hole type deal. If we're talking about Devoni Chan being out, which makes sense. All right. Anything else you want to add there for Jalen Wright or we want to go to the next.

[B]

No, we can. We can go to Luther Burden, who you and I have flip flopped. I prefer Jalen Wright this week. You prefer Luther Burden. But these are the clear one and two. I think, like, if you're setting waivers this week.

[A]

Yeah, I think both these guys come with caveats. Right. Like with Jalen Wright, it's. It's okay. Is Devoni Chan's probably gonna be back and there's a potential split with Ali Gord. With Luther Burden, it's. Well, he did get his season high 71% snapshare, but there was no Roma Dun. Roma dun has got a stress fracture in his foot. He's been. He's been said dayto day, more like week to week, maybe. You know, we'll see. He was ruled out kind of early this last week. I'll let you talk about that more because I know you're very plugged into the to the Bears talk right now. But Luther Burton, he's been a top 36 wide receiver the two of the last three weeks. Bears have been passing the ball a bit more, but it hasn't been pretty. Dave. Like, there was a moment watching that game where I think we got to like Caleb being one of eight or one of nine. Like, it was just a horrendous moment. As I was watching, I was like, this is not good for my fantasy team where I had to start in multiple places against my own advice. Cool. Great.

[B]

Then he looked like Superman in the second half. I mean, like just completely turn it on. Had these drives that were unbelievable. And then of course, we forget that because of the terrible decision he made on the final throw of the game. And you know, I know exactly what happened there. And I don't know how much Leaf's like comes out of the Chicago circle, but the game winning throw that he had against Philadelphia two weeks ago was the same exact play. And I don't know if you heard Ben Johnson had a comment after last week's game, after that one against Philadelphia, he goes, you know, he had DeAndre Swift wide open in the flat, but he decided to call game and hit Cole Comet for that touchdown in the backside. That is exactly like. I know that was ringing in Caleb Williams head as he was running this. The same exact play. DeAndre Swift is wide open. DJ Moore was wide open. He could have just ran for the first down, but I know he heard that. BEN johnson SOUNDBITE Just like, you know, he decided to call game and went forward again. And, you know, Nixon is a pretty good quarterback, so he came down with that interception. It was frustrating either way. LUTHER Burden, I, I think Roma Dunze might miss another week, maybe even a couple more weeks. It seems like it like the I think the Bears have playoff aspirations and they want to be as healthy as possible going into the playoffs. And the only way for Luther Burden's foot to heal up is to take some time to rest it. And we've seen, like, we see this often, like, players trying to play through injury and just not being good. Like, we saw it for an entire month with Brock Bowers, we saw it with Drake London early in the season playing through that shoulder injury. And I think that's what we've seen with Luther Burden since the buy him just playing through this injury, not looking like his old self. So I think he might rest up for a little while. I mean, Burden, the ball gets spread around thin in that Chicago offense. So, you know, it's, it'll take some, some gumption to get him in your lineup, but the upside is undeniable.

[A]

Well, like, that's why Colston Loveland wasn't on this list. The ball gets spread around. He has been noticed and he is rostered in too many leagues. I will ask this, Dave, let's put some, some value to it. Luther Burden or DJ Moore, who would you rather be starting next week?

[B]

That is a good question. And you know, I actually just finished my rest of season rankings today. Looks like I have Luther Burton ahead of DJ Moore. I mean, there it is. Yeah. Just there it is. Yeah. Not, not a good season for DJ.

[A]

More drafters.

Inversely, you know, decent value right now for Loser Burden. If, like, if you're looking at them over there in the waiver wire, you're wondering if you should get them. Well, if, if you'd want to start someone like DJ Moore, there's a Burden there.

[B]

And here I'll say this, I wouldn't.

[A]

Say much better, but better start.

[B]

I have Jaden Reed ahead of both of them. You know, he just misses the cut for the waiver wire show we're talking about with roster ship. But if Jaden Reed is available and Luther Burden is available, I'd go for Jaden Reed before I'd go for Luther Burton.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. There's just, there's too many. You get to the point where you're kind of Eating the scraps like there's not many. And the Luther Burden thing has taken weeks and weeks and weeks. He went from 90 to 80 to 70 to 63. Now it's just slowly but surely. All right, let's go to the next tier. We got three players in this one. We've got Isaiah Likely, tight end for the Baltimore Ravens, Jack Besh, wide receiver for the Las Vegas Raiders, and Darius Slayton, wide receiver for the New York Giants. Dave, let's start with Isaiah Likely here. He's available in 87 of leagues going up against Cincy, who's giving up the most fantasy points to tight ends. Likely's had 12 and a half, exactly 12 and a half PPR points and six targets in back to back games. They have been kind of unconventional the, the games and the production. He's had touchdowns that he has dropped at the very last moment. I don't know that we can explain. Expect him to continue to put up these kind of numbers because he's still splitting time with Mark Andrews. It's not like Andrews is gone. But the Ravens offense just kind of looks weird and Likely looks really like the only one that. I don't want to say the only one that's putting up numbers, but he seems to be a reliable option for.

[B]

Lamar and we finally had to bounce back in from Zay Flowers. Zay Flowers looked good in this matchup. Yeah, I mean, Lamar Jackson kind of looked like himself. Like he's not back to full blown. Lamar Jackson took a minute.

[A]

It was, it was a slow start for him too.

[B]

Right. But you know, we got the rushing touchdown. We saw a little bit more passing volume. So I like to see it. It seems like the Ravens are at least trending in the right direction here. I talked about Isaiah likely is a pickup in my article a couple of weeks ago saying like, you know, this matchup against Cincinnati is great and if he does well in this matchup, you could bench in the next week and then put him back in your matchup again in the first round of the fantasy playoffs. And I think even looking at the raw production doesn't tell the whole story because he had that weird fumble out the back of the end zone on a big catch and run against Cincinnati. Like if he scores a touchdown there instead of a fumble, that is an eight point swing to his fantasy production. So yeah, I think Likely, you know, not crazy about starting him just like a plug and play option through the fantasy playoffs. I think you can rely on him this week. If he does well this week. I think there's going to be a lot of temptation to get him in those Week 16 lineups, and I think that's where I'd have a little bit of pause, but I think for like a Week 15 spot start against Cincinnati, that's just a great matchup for likely.

[A]

Yeah. And we're. We're at the point where we're not being bothered by bye weeks anymore, but there are still plenty of tight ends that are dealing with injuries. And let's say you've been streaming and you had someone like a Zach Ertz or something like that, now he's gone. You're. You're having to make adjustments here and there.

[B]

Let me put you on the spot for a second, Alfredo. And, you know, we. We try to look ahead as much as we can in the playoffs. I think, like, if you're just taking it one week at a time, you're going to get outworked by your league mates. Like, you should be trying to map out your path all the way through to week 17. So when I am looking at.

Week 16, the Bengals play the Dolphins, is that a Darren Waller or Greg Dulcich or maybe both? Like, who do you prefer right now? Because we saw dual sitch was still pretty involved. Like, he and Darren Waller ran the same amount of snaps last week. When we're looking at that matchup against Cincinnati in Week 16, is Waller the guy you want to stash? Or are we saying, like, hey, maybe dual stage, even if you're desperate? Like, we can't overstate how bad the Bengals have been against tight ends. Like, I think if you're in a deep league where people are rostering multiple tight ends, like, dual sitch isn't a crazy player to stash for that matchup.

[A]

No. And I almost wanted to say that I don't want to have to start either of them, which I don't. But if I am desperate enough and I am looking at these guys, it's honestly an either or type scenario here. I would say that Dulcich is more likely to see a little bit more volume. Like, that's what we have seen with Waller being the guy that's available in the red zone. But it also depends, man. Like, we might see a different Dolphins offense here. Like, if Devon Achan is out, like. Like, how do they change things up, right? Do they keep giving us the same thing? Dulce looked really good running after the catch in this last game.

[B]

Like, he.

[A]

He was, I want to say, like, three yards off from scoring a really long touchdown. He got himself A block. He looked great running down field. These are two guys. I. I hate to just like, kind of waffle on this, but I'd say that Dulcich maybe gives you a little more targets. Waller gives you the bigger upside with the touchdown.

[B]

So funny. You know when you and I first started doing shows together, like, before we even had this show, the football guys fantasy football show. I'd go on the pretend gm, you'd come on the launchpad, and I felt like Greg Dulcich get brought up on, like every single show that you and I used to do back in the day. And here we are four years later, still spreading the word of Greg Dulcich.

[A]

Look at us. What a guy.

[B]

Studies show that 100% of everybody in.

[A]

The world wants to curl up indoors and do nothing because it's so darn cold out there. That's why many people are turning to Boss Bombas, whose pillowy plush slippers and warm merino wool socks have been said to be the most comfortable in the history of feet. Bombas products have been found to boost coziness by up to 1 million percent. Okay, enough fake statistics. But could Bombas socks and slippers really be the Cure? Go to bombas.com audio and use code audio for 20% off your first purchase. That's B O-M-B-A-.com and use code audio.

[B]

AI agents are everywhere, automating tasks and making decisions at machine speed. But agents make mistakes. Just one rogue agent can do big damage before you even notice. Rubrik Agent Cloud is the only platform that helps you monitor agents, set guardrails, and rewind mistakes so you can unleash agents, not risk. Accelerate your AI [e-mail]. that's R U B-R-I-K.com all right, let's go.

[A]

We got two more players in this tier, both wide receivers, both not highly rostered. One of them is my baby boy, Jack Besh. He's available in 95% of leagues. We may have finally seen the breakout here, Dave. Season high, 82% snapshare. There was no Dante Thornton, which does, I guess, sort of change things. Besh has been a guy. I've thought Besh is better. He has the higher draft capital. We now see some production to go with that. Led the team in targets. Led the team in receptions. Six targets, six receptions there in week 14. The Raiders have been second in pass rate over the last three games. Like, this is a team that not only wants to pass the ball, but just needs to pass the ball. They can't run. They have not been able to do anything there. That offensive line has not been great. The defense has not been able to stop anyone. The problem is we have no idea what to expect from Jack Besh going forward. It's a tough remaining strength of schedule. I love the player and normally I would say I like the situation of a team that's going to have to pass, but I wonder how limited the upside becomes with a guy like Besh.

[B]

100. Yeah. And like, you know, again, you know, just to go back to my rest of season rankings article, I, I put him at wide receiver 81, which like, you know, if a guy is moving up into that area in like week 10, it's like, all right, this is an exciting guy. Let me pick him up and stash him and kind of see how this develops. But like, we don't have time to wait. Like, you're not getting Besh in your lineups this week. I think he'd need like a huge blow up spot this week to warrant consideration going into week 16. I can't ignore the change in usage though. I mean, he was averaging 1.1 targets per game through the first three months of the season and now he's got nine targets over the last two weeks. He's becoming a full time player. I think getting Jacoby Myers out of there opened up opportunity for him to step in and be the wide receiver too behind Trey Tucker. But when you look at a bad offense, like there's no way around it. Geno Smith has been terrible this year. And then Brock Bowers getting the biggest slice of pie, Trey Tucker getting his. Like, do we really want the third option on a bad offense? Like, I understand there's some excitement here, but I just, I don't see many situations. We're getting Jack Besh in lineups.

[A]

Yeah, this would have to be. You're in a very desperate situation where you're starting three wide receivers, you're starting two flexes. You have a lot of injuries that have just decimated your team. And this is the last, you know, a couple of the last players left on the waiver wire because I, I think the other guy here who's in this tier as well, I'd put them around the same. I think I prefer the other guy and that's how I have him ranked. It's Darius Slayton, wide receiver for the Giants. I know we've, we've done this song and dance before with him, but we've had some decent results with, with he and, and Jackson dart 11 plus PPR points in his last three games with Jackson Dart. This week they're going up Against Washington Commanders 10th Most Fantasy Points allowed to wide receivers. And then week 17 they go up against the Raiders the ninth most fantasy points allowed to wide receiver. So I think it's a good spot to start this week, but it potentially becomes a guy that you can start, you know, a couple weeks from now if you do make your championship.

[B]

Yeah. And I think, you know, we, we know exactly who Darius Slayton is. Like we're not sitting here uncovering something with a guy like Jack Beyer. She's a rookie. Like we know exactly who Darius Slayton is. Like he has his boom games, he has his bus games. Like he can always score that 60 yard touchdown. You know, he's a deep threat here, but just like Jack Bash, he's the third option. Like Theo Johnson has emerged as a primary weapon in this offense. And then you got Wandale Robinson getting. And with Darius Slayton, you're just hoping that he can catch a big play for a touchdown. But you know, I'd say the, the upside with Slayton on any given week is probably higher than the upside with Besh. I think with Besh you're getting a little bit more security, but they're both pretty sketchy. Pretty sketchy starts.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, we know like the Slayton thing, it's going to be three catches for 67 yards and a touchdown or three catches for 13 yards and nothing like. Right. We kind of, we kind of get it. I would favor Slayton here. One, because the schedule is a little bit better. The quarterback is better, the offensive environment is a little bit better at the moment. Not the team is a whole lot better. But I, I think I would favor him there. Let's go to the next tier next year where we got a couple of running backs, a couple of backup running backs. We've got Dylan Sampson, running back for the Cleveland Browns, available in 88 of leagues. And Samashi Piran, running back for the Cincinnati Bengals, also available in 88 of leagues.

[B]

Leagues.

[A]

Dave, we have each of these flip flopped. You've got Dylan Sampson higher than Smashy Piran, I've got Smashy Piran higher than Dylan Sampson. But I'm going to be totally honest, I see them both the exact same pretty much right now.

[B]

Yeah. And I think I prefer Sampson just because like, he is young and has some big play upside. But I think Samaj ap Ryan, like you could block a hole for him as big as a garage door and he's going to take off through that hole, then he's going to get chased down 12 yards later. I think that's kind of the downside is like, there's potential for volume with Samaj A.P. ryan, but I don't know what the upside is unless he's scoring multiple touchdowns. And I also think if something were to happen to Chase Brown, I think we'd probably see a little bit of Taj Brooks where I think Dylan Sampson, like, his pass catching upside gives him a little bit of standalone value in PBR leagues. Not a guy that you're like desperate to get into your lineup, but like, if you are desperate and you really need somebody this week at that, you know, second flex spot or if you're in a league that requires three running backs or something like that, I think there is some appealing PPR value with Dylan Sampson. There's some big play value there as well. Well, the Browns just as a whole looked better last week than they've looked all season. So, you know, Shador Sanders is at least like moving this ball down the field. That's good to see. So I think there's a little bit of upside with Dylan Sampson, but again, you know, like doing waivers early in the season. I, I just said this, but like, you know, there's hope and you want to stash these guys and see what they become. And we just don't really have that time here. So, like, if you're picking up Dylan Sampson and getting him in your lineup, you're probably pretty desperate. And I'd question how you even got into the playoffs if that's what you're doing right now.

[A]

Right? Yeah. Like, so the way I look at it is Dylan Sampson is probably more valuable as a spot start this week, whereas Samajp Ryan, in my opinion, is the more valuable handcuff the insurance policy to have here. And that's. That's why like I. I had the same thought process as you is like, how valuable is Dylan Sampson really at this point? Like, how down bad do I have to be at the running back spot to be starting him? I also like started to look at it is yeah, he gets the six targets, five receptions this last week. But. But so much of it was the way that the game script was going because the Browns would get down by a lot of points, need to pass a ton and that's when the Dylan Sampson usage was hat would happen and then they'd even out and they'd start running the ball again with Quinn, Sean Judkins, then they'd go down 3,117 in the fourth, and they're like, okay, let's get Dylan Sampson some. Some catches here. So, yeah, I mean, it's the Browns, like, they could just be losing every game and need to use Dylan Sampson a bunch. The usage has also been a little incorrect, consistent. So, like with. With P Rine, the way I look at it is there's always going to be the touchdown upside that's there kind of the way we looked at, you know, like a Kareem Hunt or an Isaiah Pacheco. Yeah, yeah. Like, it's. It's not great. Don't get me wrong. It's not great, but it's a decent offense, and there's going to be passing down availability for him as a good pass blocker. He's got goal line upside. The matchups I like, too. You got Baltimore, Miami, Arizona over the next three weeks. So. So I think it's if for me, personally, if it's handcuff and upside you're looking for, I think it's P. Ryan. If it's someone to start this week and get you, you know, a solid 8 to 10 PPR points, Dylan Sampson, I think, is your guy.

[B]

And while we're talking about the Browns backfield real quickly, you remember, like, the longest time, like, Nick Chubb looking like one of the best running backs in football, but in fantasy, it never worked out because he just wasn't getting targets in Stefanski's offense. I really worry that that's where we are with Quinn. Sean Judkins, like, the talent is undeniable, but he's the per game RB26 since week five. Over that time, he's got 10 passes. Jerome Ford, Dylan Sampson have combined for 33 receptions. So this kind of stinks. Like, he. He looks awesome. Like, he looks like maybe one of the best rookie running backs out there. But just this role is so frustrating for Fantasy that if he's not ripping off big plays, he's just not performing in fantasy.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, he was never really that big of a pass catcher coming out like he could do it, right. Like, one of his big issues was pass blocking, and he got better throughout his career. The problem is the Browns have guys that are so good at being out there on passing downs. But I think I look at it this way, is if I'm gonna do the half glass full thing again. Wherever you drafted Quinn Sean Judkins, you're just happy you're getting anything. He's a guy you could start every single week, and then we Keep seeing they're, they're bringing him in for the goal line packages and that. Oh, did you see that really stupid two point conversion attempt?

[B]

I did, yeah. Yeah.

[A]

So Quintean Judkins, for those of you who did not see it, it's essentially like a reverse end around here where Quintean Judkins lines up as the wildcat quarterback, goes off to his right and then just forgets that he's supposed to pitch the ball to the receiver that's coming around and he tries to do it late and then just realizes, ah, there's nothing here. Starts running around and then throws the ball all the way across the field and it almost gets picked. Horrible execution on that. But the silver lining I'm taking from it is they keep putting him in for touchdown upside. So I'm with you, though. I'm with you, though. All right, let's go to the final tier here. We got two more players and these are, boy, you probably just lost your week if just, you know, start prepping for next year.

[B]

Everybody in there, team leagues out there that's looking for stuff, spot start.

[A]

But you know, we love everybody and we don't judge. We listen and we don't judge. Dave, we got Ryan Flournoy, wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys, 98 available, and Jalen Coker, 92 available. And man, you know what, I'm gonna call this the Jeff Bell tier because I know he loves both of these guys. These have been guys that he's talked about before as prospects. So welcome to the Jeff Bell tier, everybody. Dave, Florida, I think, only has value if CD Lamb is going to be out. If CD Lamb is in, Flournoy is just not rosterable. And Jalen Coker, I don't. Dude, I just don't have any faith in the Bryce Young passing attack right now. But I guess if you need a seventh receiver in your, you know, seven wide receiver lineup, Jalen Coker's the guy. Yeah, I guess.

[B]

Yeah. And I mean, like Flournoy. Sure. I guess, like, we can say that he has some value of CD Lambs out, had that big game, you know, had another random big game against the.

[A]

Jets, but like, tough matchup this week, too. Yeah, yeah, Vikings.

[B]

And if you look at those other games that CD Lamb missed, 21 yards, 14 yards, 30 yards, like so. Yeah, like he's capable of a big week if CD Lam isn't out there, but he's also capable of doing nothing. So, I mean, just a very, very risky start if you're here. Like, you know, we Couldn't do a waiver show with seven players. We had to, had to force some other names in here.

[A]

I love that we just made this tier so we can tell you that you suck if you're having to pick these guys up or you're going to.

[B]

To lose, to be honest. Jalen Wright, Luther Burden, Isaiah likely if you're hurting at tight end and besides that, if you're looking at these other guys, we're going to assume you're in some really, really deep leagues or you might be trending towards a first round exit.

[A]

Jack Best, baby, let's do it. All right. We. Yeah, let's talk about some, some defenses.

[B]

I will take defenses over the last six guys that we just talked about.

[A]

Yeah. So are, are you a. How many defenses do you like to stash? Because I genuinely will look at the league settings, see how many I can hold and try to hold whatever the max is. 4, 5, whatever. I'm not going to use them all, but I am going to keep them away from my opponents.

[B]

Yeah, I think like three is the most I'll go with because I still do like to have some of those injury away running backs but like at this point in the season, my entire bench is going to be injury away running backs, defenses and special teams. Like that's all I really care about at this point. And you know, I, I think trying to look ahead like we were talking about, you know, looking at that week matchup against the Bengals, trying to plan for one of those potential tight ends, it just makes so much more sense to do it that way because if you're trying to bid for all of the same players that everybody else is bidding for on any given week, you know, you run the risk of not getting that guy spending fab. So you can just get ahead of it now. And I wrote about this briefly in my article this week, but yeah, there's just like you look at week 16, there are a lot of really good matchups. The Bills face against the Browns, the Saints go against the jets, the 49ers face against the Colts. Those are all plus matchups on readily available defenses. So don't wait until after this week and then bid for one of those and end up losing out to your opponent and not getting the defense you want. Just get them now and like don't have to deal with that down the road.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. Let's take a look at some of the defense that you can stream here in week 15. We have three that are listed here, some defenses in week 15 that you can stream here. The 49ers, they're going up against the Titans. They also get the Indianapolis Colts the next week. I think that would be my preference here is the Niners because you're going to get two good weeks out of them. Other teams, take a look at Jacksonville Jaguars going up against the jets, who.

Got no idea who they're going to be starting at quarterback. We'll see how that goes.

[B]

And then, I mean, like, I, I almost wonder.

[A]

And he got hurt.

[B]

I know, too.

[A]

Yeah, like I'm.

[B]

Riley Leonard got hurt too. Like we're down to like all of these emergency quarterbacks getting hurt. Justin Fields, I don't know if his surgery was major, I think, or his injury was major. I think that was just kind of a hey, you know, you don't have to play this week sort of injury. I think if Tyrod Taylor can't play, they'll probably go back to Fields, but who knows, right?

[A]

Yeah, it's, it's, it's not pretty. But the Jaguars defense has been really good anyway. So even if Tyrod Taylor is in, like, I'm good starting the Jaguars defense and then Dave, the Bears going up against the Browns, I know that the Browns had themselves a good week, but I also don't want to over play that hand. Like they did go up against the team with the worst record in the NFL, the Tennessee Titans. So what happens when they go up against a better defense, a more aggressive defense like the Chicago Taco Bears.

[B]

Right. Yeah. And yeah, I think, you know, the Jaguars and Bears are rostered in a lot of leagues already, but if they're available, I think the major thing you want to look for too, just to get like a little, you know, theoretical about this, is like, look at if you have one of those plug and play defenses, like if you've got the Houston Texans, if you've got the Detroit Lions, if you've got the Denver Broncos, one of these teams that have been really good for you, like, you know, this week the Broncos face the Packers. The packers score a lot of points and they don't turn the ball over that much. So that doesn't mean you have to drop the packers, drop that wide drop Jack Bash that you've been holding on to for the last couple of weeks.

[A]

Whoa, you've gone too far.

[B]

Pick up one of these defenses that you could stream instead. And I think that's the main thing. Like, you know, there are some plug and play. The Patriots have been a great defense, but they have some tough matchups. Well, just try to find out where that weak spot is and see if you can get a better streamer for each of these next three weeks.

[A]

I won't drop Jack Besh. I won't do it. I'm just like, I won't start him either, but I'm gonna hold him just out.

[B]

I just had to talk about dropping one of the guys that we just recommended picking up on the way show because there are three weeks left and nothing matters. And it's, you know, it takes a lot of skill to get into the fantasy playoffs. We've been doing this long enough to know that luck kind of takes over from here on out. So, you know, just hope for the best.

[A]

I like your. I like your. Whose Line is It Anyways? Welcome to the Fates playoffs where the points don't matters and everything's made up.

[B]

Exactly. Yeah.

[A]

Yes. Okay, so we talked about some defenses you could stream this week, but there are some that if you have a first round buy because obviously you've been watching or listening to this show, so you're doing great. You're one seed. You don't have to worry about this week. But if you want to stash a defense for the following week, we've got some names for you. The Saints defense is going to have the jets in week 16. They've been much better as of late and also it's been some nice, nice scheduling for them. Going up against some bad opponents. Cardinals defense going up against the Falcons. Kirk Cousin has basically just been. Been a sack machine sitting back there, hasn't been able to score many points. New York Giants going up against the Vikings. Depends on what quarterback we get. Do we get J.J. mcCarthy? Do we get nine? Dave?

[B]

No, I don't know.

[A]

Has nine arrived?

[B]

I don't, I don't. I mean, he does have a nice schedule and shout out Joey Wright. I heard him talking about this on the late round podcast the other day that, like, it's been terrible for J.J. mcCarthy, but Joey recommended him as a pick before last week, saying, hey, that schedule really opens up a little bit. And J.J. mcCarthy got him in a lot of, a lot of best ball rosters. You know, he was a guy that I drafted pretty aggressively. It's been tough sledding so far this year, but he does kind of have a nice playoff schedule where J.J. mcCarthy might, you know, change the discourse about him going into this off season.

[A]

It's the most fantasy football thing ever where Jalen Hurts gets you two turnovers in a single play and you're like, maybe I can't Start him. But you know who I could start? J.J. mcCarthy. The guy who had been a walking turnover for like five straight weeks.

[B]

I, I mean, I'm just going to keep gassing up people on staff for good calls. But like our Sigmund Bloom was saying before this weekend, he said, pick up Shador Sanders and start him. If you've got Justin Herbert, like, this is where we are. Like, sometimes you have to look at the matchups and like when you're looking over, you know, expected 17 games, you can expect the variance to smooth things out. But like right now we know who's doing well and we know who isn't. And like, like, don't be afraid to bench Justin Jefferson for a Michael Wilson or a Christian Watson or one of these guys that's been red hot right now because we don't have time to wait for situations to play out. Like, you got to play who's playing well and who has good matchups right now.

[A]

Yeah, I would say this too. Like, there's the old moniker of start your studs. I don't think that is true this time of year. Like, I think there is a very reasonable way that you can not start your best, best players. But for example, it can also backfire. Like we would have said, don't start Justin Jefferson. That happens to be the week where J.J. mcCarthy is playing better. You know, like there's, there's a lot of these things. But I think you have to not be afraid of, you know, making that bad call. Like, that's how you got here, was not doing the safe thing week in and week out. That's how you made the fantasy play.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

By the way, two more defenses on here. I haven't listened yet. Giants have the Vikings and, and Raiders, I did mention them, but then the Cowboys last team, they have the Chargers and then Commanders, which Dave is you so thoughtfully pointed out the Jaden Daniels lists commanders. Most likely we are assuming here, Dan.

[B]

Quinn said that he expects Jaden Daniels to return and we had a little.

[A]

Stop doing this. Stop it. Don't RG3 him.

[B]

We had a conversation about this in base camp and I said if anybody can figure out whether a team is going to do do the right thing or what they're like want to do. Like that's how you sell fantasy football right there. Because like if teams always did the right thing, this would be a solved game. The right thing shut Jaden Daniels down. Like, what are you doing here?

[A]

I don't care the optics.

[B]

Like not even just Jaden Daniels injury, but like this has just been a cursed season. Austin Eckler, Marshawn Lattimore, Zach Ertz, all season ending injuries, no time. McClure the entire season. Terry McClure missed almost the entire season. We all saw in a primetime game, like arms aren't supposed to bend that way. And then he like comes back what feels like kind of rushed and then we see him get blown up and re injured his elbow. Just shut him down. Like we're not going to judge you. Like just shut him down. This is your franchise quarterback. Like turn your sights to 2026. It's okay.

[A]

There's so much of this talk that ends up being like, well, you know, you can't get a competitor out of the game and you guys wouldn't understand it because you're not, you know, on the field and you're not playing, playing. Yeah, but at the same time, we can't talk out of both sides of our mouth. Like how many players also remind us all the time that it's a business, right? Whether it's contracts, free agency, minutes played, targets earned, all these things, it's okay. Like we can treat it as both. You can be a competitor, but also be reasonable. Give yourself some context. Jaden Daniels should not play at the rest of the season. If the, if the commanders are mathematically eliminated, he has no reason to be playing. And further the this injury competitors, you.

[B]

Want to get them out there. Meanwhile, Kyler Murray's flopped down in a bean bag chair somewhere just playing Modern Warfare.

[A]

Bold of you to assume it's a beanbag chair. I'd say it's one of the gamer chairs, the ones that rock back and forth.

All right, that's going to do it for us. We, we went through the Week 15 waiver wire players, the defenses to stash players to grab for this week and, and then some of those that didn't quite make the cut as well. So make sure to go check your waiver wires everybody. And then after that go and check and see, see who was dropped in your leagues. Also go just drop a grenade in your league's group chat.

[B]

Breaking news.

[A]

Oh yeah, breaking news.

[B]

Philip Rivers officially signed with the Colts. There it is. Officially official. Has.

[A]

There it is, everybody.

[B]

I just love the way Adam Schefter laid this out. 44 year old Philip Rivers, who has not played in the NFL since the 2020 Covid season, is signing with the Colts.

Just so much unnecessary information in there. But yeah, it's, it's pretty crazy. This is where we are. I'm kind of disappointed, actually. I really wanted to see a Tyler Warren, Jonathan Taylor speed option for an entire game.

[A]

Should have been. It should have been.

[B]

Sorry.

[A]

Freaking January 9, 2021 was the last time Philip Rivers started an NFL game. That was a very normal time in American history for everybody.

[B]

He was a candidate for the hall of fame this year. Now they have to pull his name.

[A]

I know they have to pull his.

[B]

Name off the bat. Like.

Could he.

[A]

Is it also. Is he the first grandpa to ever start an NFL game?

[B]

No. No.

[A]

I mean, I can't find grandfather.

[B]

I'm sure there's a lot of Grant. I mean, different families are different. You know, I don't want to, like, air out my whole family history, but my, my grandma was a grandma at like 33 years old. Like, there's some. Some families that start young. Yeah.

[A]

What?

[B]

Yeah, you. You can do the math.

[A]

Yes, I'm mathing.

[B]

Yeah. 16.

[A]

Yeah. I think it's about time we go to the. I think we got to go to the next episode. All right. This has been great. This has been great. Everybody go. Go hug your. Your grandfathers and grandmothers. Yeah. Yeah, we'll. We'll see. See you next episode.

As always, I want to thank everybody for watching and listening all the way through. For myself, for Dave, and all the grandparents out there. We'll see you next time. Adios.

Does your child dread going to school every day? It's time to try Oregon Charter Academy.

[B]

Our online school offers interactive learning and a safe environment with a dynamic and responsive curriculum. Providing your student with support to thrive will bring you relief knowing you found just what your child needs. Don't wait. Enroll today@oregon charter.org and see the difference it makes for your child. Oregon Charter Academy what learning should be.

[A]

Marketing is hard, but I'll tell you a little secret. It doesn't have to be. Let me point something out. You're listening to a podcast right now and it's great.

[B]

You love the host. You seek it out and download it.

[A]

You listen to it while driving, working out, cooking, even going to the bathroom. Podcasts are a pretty close companion. And this is a podcast ad. Did I get your attention? You can reach great listeners like yourself with podcast advertising from Libsyn Ads. Choose from hundreds of top podcasts offering host endorsements or run a pre produced ad like this one across thousands of shows. To reach your target audience in their favorite podcasts with Libsyn ads, go to Libsynads.com that's L I B S Y N ads.com today.