The Fantasy Footballers Podcast Recap for Week 13
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Monday – Monday Punday, Studs & Duds, Injury Tilt
Andy and Mike are here sans Jason this Monday. Hopefully, the FootClan enjoyed their dinner butter over the long weekend and have recovered enough to get sophisticated. After Monday Punday, the guys fall into a heartbreaking discussion about the plethora of big-name injuries that we saw this weekend. Andy leaves you with the thought that you can do everything right, but luck is always in the equation, unfortunately.
News
Ahead of Week 12, we learned AJ Brown is going on IR, and the Titans just cannot catch a break. Dalvin Cook dislocated his shoulder, and we will know more soon. D’Andre Swift is day to day, and Darren Waller also went down. Deebo is now a searchable topic on groinindex.com. Logan Thomas should be activated to play tonight.
Studs
Starting with the QB studs. Josh Allen indeed was excellent and finished with a monster game. Aaron Rodgers and his angry little piggy were great; Dak had a bounce-back week, and even though he was hurting, Matt Stafford had a solid game. On to RBs, and apologies to anyone playing against Lenny Fournette. He is now the RB6 on the year. Joe Mixon continues his solid finishes, and Cordarrelle Patterson was back and scored twice on the ground. Elijah Mitchell dominated in San Francisco. Austin Ekeler, Javonte Williams, and Josh Jacobs were all successful, while Dontre Hilliard looked great, heading into a bye. Jaylon Waddle starts us off with the WRs, and he has a great fantasy playoff schedule moving forward. The WR7 on the year Adam Thielen had two more touchdowns, and OBJ finally scored one himself. Kendrick Bourne looked great, Tee Higgins went off (probably on your bench), and Deebo continues to get it done. TE studs start with Baby Hands Jack Doyle. Dawson Knox, Gronk, and Mark Andrews all also had great games. The Doctor was working on the holiday as well.
Duds
On to the more depressing segment of the show. Cam Newton looked bad. Very bad. Lamar Jackson had his worst career fantasy performance, and Mike wept. Tom Brady and Jalen Hurts were also duds this week. Some usually great RBs had rough days, including Najee Harris and Nick Chubb. Aaron Jones probably should not have been active, and Saquon was also disappointing. Not a great week for Rhamondre, and he has a rough matchup next week. Ja’Marr Chase highlights the WR duds, and Andy wonders if we are getting a slow down here. Kenny Golladay was bad – you can be done with him. Pitty City did not have a stellar game but looks to rebuild next week against Houston. DeVonta Smith and Mike Evans had terrible games, helped by bad QBs performances. There was very little Conking this week as well. TEs, in general, were bad this Sunday.
Tuesday – Monday Night Recap, Where There’s Smoke, Waivers, Streamers, Big Shimmy Returns
Big Shimmy returns, and the guys “celebrate” with the news that Christian McCaffrey will finish the season on the IR, then jump into discussing last night’s game.
Monday Night Recap
Mike, an unabashed Arizona Cardinals fan, took great joy in watching the Seattle Seahawks implosion last night. Antonio Gibson had a great game, and Smooches scored two TDs and exited with a scary potential injury. Russell Wilson still does not look right on the other side of the ball, and Metcalf only had one reception. The Seattle RB room also was inefficient. Going forward, Jason says you still start Metcalf and just have to hope Wilson gets better.
Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire
Today the guys are tackling the Patriots’ passing attack. Andy asks us how we feel about this passing game from a fantasy standpoint and Jason says the passing game is fire if we are talking about NFL. However, we are talking about fantasy, and can you consistently get enough points to be confident to plug these players into your lineup? Jason says no. These guys are not consistent enough, and there are better options out there.
News
Dalvin Cook will miss at least the next two weeks, missing out on a juicy Detroit matchup. Deebo is now on groinindex.com and is looking to be out for 1-2 weeks. D’Andre Swift is day to day with a shoulder injury, and Darren Waller is week to week. You should make other plans. The Saints are making a QB change, and we will see Taysom Hill moving forward. CeeDee Lamb and Amari Cooper should be good to go for Dallas this week.
In Week 13, we are sending four teams on a bye, and most leagues are two weeks out from the fantasy playoffs, so lots of waiver work is coming. The guys start with WRs. TY Hilton is facing Houston, so TY Houston might appear and be usable if needed. Van Jefferson and OBJ are options, and with Deebo out, Brandon Aiuyk and Juwan Jennings are possible fill-ins. Other options – Kendrick Bourne, MVS, and Desean Jackson. On to the RBs. Alexander Mattison is the big name here, with a great matchup. Chuba Hubbard and Amer Abdullah are also players to look at. Jason likes Sony Michel for the Rams, and Andy brings up Matt Breida for the Bills. Jamal Williams also might get the start over Swift this week. Boston Scott is another potential pickup with a great fantasy matchup. Dontrell Hilliard and Devonta Foreman, who are now on a bye, had a great week as well if you have room to pick up someone without starting them. The TE landscape is sparse. Zach Ertz coming out of a bye is worth a look, and Logan Thomas could help you through the playoff run. Andy says most of all the other TEs are not worth a look.
Streamers
Defenses to consider streaming are the Colts, the Vikings, and the Cardinals. The Dolphins are also a great option. Remember to look ahead to possibly stash a defense. QB streamers to look at this week are Carson Wentz, Tua, and Taysom Hill in a Thursday game.
Wednesday – Buy or Sell, Mailbag, Thursday Night Breakdown
Jason welcomes us into December and the start of Christmas for the rest of us! After discussing Megalabowl playoffs, Andy, Mike, and Jason jump into Buy/Sell.
Buy/Sell
Is Lamar Jackson a top 5 QB against Pittsburgh this week? Jason and Andy are selling this stat; Pittsburgh defense, even without TJ Watt, can still put up a decent game. Mike is buying. Next, is David Montgomery a top 15RB this week? Jason sees talent and opportunity for him, but he is selling this with a tough matchup against Arizona. On to a WR – buy or Sell Hunter Renfrow as a top 20 WR against The Washington Football Team? With Darren Waller dealing with a potential injury and a still good matchup against the Washington defense, Andy sees Renfrow PPRing his way to that stat.
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News
Daniel Jones is dealing with a neck strain and is unlikely to play this week against Miami. It might be Mike Glennon time. Sean Payton has yet to name his starting QB for the Thursday game, and Kareem Hunt is likely to be fine for Cleveland. Some big names and potential injury situations are being monitored, especially the Kyler and DeAndre Hopkins duo. Make sure to tune into Matthew Betz and his injury blitz podcast!
Mailbag
The guys dive into the mailbag, starting with a question about Aaron Jones versus AJ Dillon. Jason sees more opportunities heading Jones’ way following the well-placed bye week. Next up is the gross decision of David Johnson or Alex Collins. Begrudgingly, Mike says that the PPR bump should give you a couple more points with David Johnson. Next up is a listener inquiring about Hunter Renfrow versus Tyler Lockett. The guys say that no answer is incorrect here, and it depends on the quality of your other WR. Zack Ertz or Logan Thomas rest of season is the next topic. Andy is more comfortable with Ertz, as he is a member of a higher-powered offense. Other questions centered on if Saquon will ever be elite again, Jaylen Waddle or Amari Cooper rest of season, and most importantly, can you have #dinnerbutter at breakfast.
Thursday Night Breakdown
Dallas heads to New Orleans to take on the Saints this Thursday. Dak should get some of his receiving options back but could still be without Amari Cooper. The Saints are also getting reinforcements – Ingram should play, and Kamara is a strong possibility as well. Taysom Hill could be a good start for the Saints, but Andy is concerned about starting any New Orleans WRs. If Zeke practices in full, Mike is starting him.
Thursday – Never Not Working, Fantasy Forecast, Starts of the Week, Boom Boom Kicker
It is (classic) football time! The guys jump right in.
Never Not Working
Today is a tease for some of Andy, Mike, and Jason’s big shows that hit post-season. One of the fan faves is the consistency show, or as Mike called it, “The Tyler Lockett” episode. This episode addresses whether certain players really contributed to you winning games or did they just look like they did. Jonathan Taylor is highly consistent, hitting the threshold of success about 90% of the time. On the other side of the scale is Mike Williams. He hits the threshold a mere 35% of the time. Andy brings up a few names to discuss, the first being Josh Allen. Allen is the QB1 at present but has only hit the back-to-back top 12 performance threshold one time. Conversely, players such as Melvin Gordon, Darrell Henderson, and Josh Jacobs have only busted one time. Make sure to check out the consistency metrics on the website to make future educated decisions.
News
Taysom Hill will start the game tonight, Alvin Kamara is out, and Mark Ingram is back. Jason cautions you against starting Hill with the Saints also missing a couple of tackles. Amari Cooper will be limited post-Covid. Antonio Brown is reported to miss the next two weeks, and D’Andre Swift might miss multiple weeks. The Muth returned to practice.
Fantasy Forecast
We start with the Bucs heading to Atlanta to play the Falcons. Andy does not think that the Falcons can do enough on offense to keep up with Tampa Bay. You start Tom Brady, who has a history of torching the Falcons. It is a full go for every Buc. Atlanta-wise, Pitts is a possibility, and you are starting Cordarrelle Patterson. Next up, the Cardinals are back from a bye and head east to play the Bears. Arizona-wise, the band should be back together, and the Bears will have trouble keeping up. You could start Montgomery and Mooney and move on. If Kyler is back, you play him. James Connor, Zack Ertz, and Hopkins, if he is back, are also starts. The Chargers play the Bengals in one of the higher over/unders of the week. Joe Mixon is always in and you are keeping Ja’Marr Chase in your lineup. You are starting your usual Chargers and you also can Cook by the book this week. The next matchup is the Dalvin Cook– less Vikings versus the Lions. Captain Kirk is a great start, as well as Alexander Mattison, Thielen, and Jefferson. On the Detroit side, Jammal Williams is a solid RB2 this week. Andy and Jason also like Josh Reynolds and TJ Hockenson. Finally, the New York Football Giants fly down south to play the Miami Dolphins in a very low over/under. Jaylen Waddle is a must-start for Miami. Start Saquon for the Giants but lower your expectations. As per usual, do not start Kenny Golladay.
Starts of the Week
On to the starts of the week. Mike likes Derek Carr, Myles Gaskin, DeVonta Smith, and Logan Thomas. Andy is starting Tom Brady, Alexander Mattison, and The Muth. Finally, Jason likes Kirk Cousins, CEH, and Chase Claypool. The show ends today with the classic Jason’s Boom Boom Kicker.
Friday – Thursday Night Recap, Fantasy Forecast, Fantasy Faceoff & Wheel of Shame
Thursday Night Recap
The biggest takeaway from last night’s game was Taysom Hill. With his rushing upside, he is always a fantasy-relevant QB. Keep an eye on the extent of his finger injury. The Tony Pollard and Zeke conversation continues, with Zeke having a truly average game. The Saints run defense looked great, but Andy is still worried about Zeke. CeeDee Lamb looked sensational.
News
Antonio Brown is suspended for three games for violating the league’s Covid protocol, and Jason is ok with dropping him. James Robinson was limited on Thursday, so keep an eye out. Melvin Gordon has a 50/50 chance to play, and Josh Jacobs was again limited in practice.
Fantasy Forecast
After celebrating the FootClan this Friday, Andy, Mike, and Jason tackle the second half of the fantasy forecast. First up is the Eagles at the Jets. As Andy mentions, this game has slow and ugly written all over it. This is an excellent matchup for any Philly RB, but it is hard to know who will play with the injuries. Head back to the Jalen Hurts well, and Smith and Goedert are both starts of the week. On the other side of the ball, Andy is landing all Jets. The Colts take on the Texans in the next match. Jason loves most all of the Colts, including Carson Wentz. Resist chasing Baby Hands Jack Doyle. Brandin Cooks is your only Texan to start, but he has missed multiple games with an illness, so be wary. The Football Team heads west to take on the Raiders in a terrifying matchup for Josh Jacobs in Mike’s eyes. Jason highly suggests pivoting if you have a better option. You can flex Hunter Renfrow and send in the Carr. Darren Waller is still not practicing, so you might be visiting the island of Dr. Moreau this Sunday. On the Washington side, you start your Gibson and McLaurin, and JD McKissic is still in concussion protocol. The Jags play the Rams next, and you start all your main Rams. If OBJ sits, Van Jefferson is also a good start and if Henderson does not play, consider Sony Michel. Jason cannot trust any Jacksonville receivers and James O’Shaughnessy is a desperation TE play. A big AFC battle is up next with the Ravens at the Steelers. You start Najee, Diontae, and Jason’s start of the week, Chase Claypool. As per usual, the Muth also could be Luth. If Lamar shows up, you could have a great fantasy battle here. Start Freeman, Brown, and Andrews as well on the Ravens side. The 49ers take on the Seahawks in a huge NFC battle. Do not touch anyone in the Seattle RB room; Russ is not even simmering anymore, and Metcalf and Lockett seem to be the only options. Elijah Mitchell should dominate for San Francisco. Without Deebo, Brandon Aiuyk and George Kittle should carry the load. The Sunday night game sees the Broncos head to Arrowhead to battle the Chiefs. Start your usual Chiefs, and if Melvin Gordon is out, we could see a massive Javante Williams game. No Broncos WRs should be in your lineups and Noah Fant is a stretch. Finally, the Pats play this Bills on Monday Night and expect some nasty weather. Seriously consider Josh Allen if you have another option, and any pass-catcher not with the last name of Diggs is out. Jason is in on the New England RBs.
Fantasy Faceoff & Wheel of Shame
The guys reveal their DraftKings lineups to end the show, and Jason spins the Wheel of Shame.
Jason had to spin the *Wheel of Shame* during this week's Fantasy Faceoff segment presented by @DraftKings!
Watch the full segment with our Week 13 #DFS lineups: https://t.co/kMtvEtPJtz
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— Fantasy Footballers (@TheFFBallers) December 3, 2021