Dynasty Film Review: Week 8 (Fantasy Football)
The episode opened with a self-inflicted “Cookie Fiasco.” Jason’s attempt at portion-control discipline collapsed when Mike and Andy secretly ordered three dozen cookies right before recording—though Jason battled through the post-lunch insulin spike like a true veteran.
Borg then set the table for the main event: a Year 2 (’25 class) and Year 3 (’24 class) Dynasty review expanding on last week’s Rookie Draft Re-Do. A hot start from Emeka Egbuka triggered market-wide re-evaluations, with Jason highlighting how instant dominance can skew long-term expectations. Betz pointed to Rome Odunze as a similar case study, leading Borg to liken Dynasty market swings to a roller coaster. Jason offered a simple fix: avoid the emotional turbulence, play the long game, and remember Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s multi-year breakout trajectory.
Before diving into the meat of the episode, Borg reminds us of the Ultimate Dashboard and Dynasty Rankings available at jointhefoot.com.
Weekly Rewind
J.J. McCarthy
Betz tipped his cap to McCarthy after an impressive start vs. Houston, going 20-of-28 for 252 yards (71% completion rate, 0 TDs, 0 INTs). Betz and Jason praised his rhythmic timing and velocity throwing outside the numbers, while the threat of his zone-read mobility helped open rushing lanes for Cam Skattebo.
Boasting a favorable stretch ahead (Eagles, Commanders, Jaguars, Colts), McCarthy surfaces as a cheap SuperFlex QB target and potential December playoff streamer in dome games at Detroit and Dallas. On the flip side, McCarthy’s success could make Jaxson Dart a prime buy-low dynasty asset.
Omar Cooper Jr.
After charting every route from Cooper’s recent action, Jason flipped from pre-draft skeptic to fully sold. He praised Cooper’s energy, route discipline, and toughness across alignments—highlighting a 52-yard zone reception and a deep TD bomb, while drawing a minor parallel to Odell Beckham Jr.’s delayed rookie explosion coming off IR.
Borg referenced Coach Curt Cignetti calling out Cooper’s maturity at Indiana preceding his dominant senior campaign. Betz added that a rookie WR jumping straight off IR into elite production is extremely rare, cementing Cooper’s role while pushing Adonai Mitchell down the pecking order.
Omar Cooper Jr. had an outstanding (full) debut. Separated consistently vs. man coverage.
Finished w/ 6 catches for 103 yards & TD with another TD called back pic.twitter.com/ByK4TFenet
— Mike Renner (@mikerenner_) October 19, 2026
Jameson Williams
Borg highlighted J-Mo’s game-breaking speed and noted that he’s run the fewest slant routes of any qualifying WR since 2024. However, increased short-to-intermediate YAC usage kept his aDOT under 12 yards for just the second time this season. Jason pointed to his “Superman” diving TD from the ~6-yard line (clip below). When choosing between J-Mo and Emeka Egbuka in Dynasty, both Jason and Betz preferred Williams for his elite fantasy ceiling, making him a premier WR3/Flex target for contenders.
Jared Goff and Jameson Williams are both pointing to the safety to sell that Williams is an insert blocker. Instead he is running a slide route across the formation. ARSB folding inside the tackle is also a nice addition pic.twitter.com/WL5UuojccD
— Shawn Syed (@SyedSchemes) October 27, 2026
Year 2 Player Check-In (2025 Class)
2025 RB Class
Mike’s bold live-show prediction that the hyped Year 2 RBs (Ashton Jeanty, Omarion Hampton, Cam Skattebo, Quinshon Judkins, TreVeyon Henderson) would disappoint has mostly held, despite strong Week 7 bounce-backs from Judkins and Skattebo.
Is Jeanty struggling on the ground? The metrics say yes—his 3.1 YPC ranks near the bottom of efficiency metrics over a two-year sample, and Jason noted teammate Mike Washington has looked more effective behind the same offensive line. However, Borg expects him to stay fantasy-relevant thanks to a backfield-high 29% target rate per route and goal-line dominance. Dynasty managers will take the 15–30 points per week while waiting for his rushing efficiency to rebound.
Jason heavily criticized Henderson’s recent pass protection, pointing out film where he looked lost and even assisted on sacks against his own QB. Squeezed into a committee with Rhamondre Stevenson and losing work to Corey Kiner, Henderson is a pure hold with his value at rock bottom—leading Jason to question if he would prefer 28-year-old Stevenson long-term.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Borg highlighted Tuten’s steady climb into the low-end RB1/high-end RB2 conversation in Dynasty (Jason ranks him RB15). While Jason expressed concern over his fourth-round draft capital and the threat of future draft replacements, Betz noted Tuten’s career arc mirrors Chase Brown—a Day 3 pick who took over a backfield in Year 2.
2025 WRs & TEs
Golden transformed from an inefficient rookie with a low snap share (53%) into a full-time alpha (84%). While drops and pass interference penalties persist, his market price has peaked into the top-15 Dynasty WR tier. The Ballers advised against buying high if you missed the offseason discount window. Betz noted that the savvy move was buying him early at a discount, banking on his development as circumstances shifted in his favor.
Tyler Warren vs. Colston Loveland
Through 1.5 seasons, both TEs share nearly identical targets per route run, fantasy points per route run, and red-zone targets. Borg leans toward Loveland, who was targeted on a massive 41% of his routes last week, giving him the Dynasty edge based on team trajectory. Betz also favors Loveland due to his situation and superior offensive infrastructure.
Year 3 Player Check-In (2024 Class)
2024 QBs
Drake Maye vs. Caleb Williams:
Betz has this as a coin flip, but Jason prefers Drake Maye over Caleb Williams in Dynasty by one spot (ranking them as QB2 and QB3 overall in startups, behind only Josh Allen). Maye has been the #1 overall fantasy QB over the past month and offers more consistent rushing production.
Nix has become an asset nobody in Dynasty wants to touch, though his rushing upside provides a floor (despite tough upcoming matchups like Kansas City).
2024 RBs
This class was made up of names like Trey Benson, Jonathon Brooks, and Marshawn Lloyd, causing Borg to largely skip them in the discussion. Only Blake Corum and Bucky Irving have been productive.
Will Bucky get an extension and maintain his RB1 value? Borg notes Bucky’s usage is RB1-like with 80% of the snaps and 30% of the team’s total work. Jason has no doubts about his RB1 dynasty status if indeed the contract comes. Betz doubts the Bucs will do anything before sometime into his last year on his rookie deal in 2027.
2024 WRs
As Borg enters this discussion, he asks the question, ” When do we throw out draft capital?”
BTJ’s dynasty market value and price have shifted dramatically, but Borg mentioned “he doesn’t know, the team doesn’t know” what his value is. Jason was critical of the Jaguars’ handling of Thomas, stating that the Jags will regret not trading him earlier in the off-season, missing out on a massive return. Rational trade destinations include the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs. However, they are not convinced trading for Brian Thomas Jr. will fix anything.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The undrafted free agent has climbed so high in Dynasty rankings that some draft boards place him ahead of Rome Odunze, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Brian Thomas Jr. Betz views Coker as a true focal point of the offense. Jason postulates that the question of tossing out draft capital is a player-to-player consideration. For players like Marv or BTJ, it’s time to move on. Players like Puka Nacua, Parker Washington, and Coker force managers to forget about draft capital through their play.
Betz pointed out that Odunze has under a 20% target share in 5 of 7 games this season and struggles to earn targets against zone coverage compared to Luther Burden III. Borg defended Odunze, cautioning dynasty managers not to completely write off top-10 draft capital yet. Odunze is still a focal point in deep/contested situations and isn’t an “outright bust” like other recent early picks. When asked if they would trade Rome Odunze for a late 2027 first-round pick, Betz leaned toward taking the first-round pick, while Jason chose to keep Odunze as a solid Dynasty WR4/Flex asset with upside.
Week 7 Film Deep Dive
Chase Brown
Samaje Perine out-carried Brown 14 to 13 just before the bye, and that surely has spooked some into considering a trade. There is a little bit of concern about his volume, but is this an indictment of Brown’s rushing ability? I don’t think so.
Within the total context of Brown’s career status, this is not unreasonable. He is in his age-26 season, and the threat of Cincinnati drafting a RB has felt real for every one of the last three drafts! All Brown managers have been hearing a full Halloween-spirited “Get Out!” in their heads. But Chase Brown survived and persisted to deliver points to fantasy managers.
The idea of trading Brown for an undisclosed target came up in a discussion between me and some other Fantasy Footballers writers. As a biased Brown manager myself, I defended the hold:
- Good RB on a good offense
- Involved in the passing game
- His historical performance
- Surviving as the primary back across multiple drafts
The process of mounting this defense sparked doubt worth a film study.
On the surface, ~10 fantasy points is alarming, especially for a week-to-week staple in your lineups. But this is exactly why we go beyond the box score.
Not a big statistical day for Chase Brown with 11 carries for 39 yards and 4 catches for 19 yards, but there were signs of life with the elusiveness today. pic.twitter.com/DGcY61yYju
— Bengals & Brews (@BengalsBrews) October 25, 2026
Despite getting only 11 carries and four receptions in Week 7, he maintained an 81% success rate. He hasn’t lost speed, vision (see below), change of direction (see above), nor the trust of the OC. Game flow was the real culprit.
I thought Chase Brown played solid yesterday 🤷🏻‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/VYhwTvxJtJ
— Bengals & Brews (@BengalsBrews) October 26, 2026
Baltimore went into halftime up 13-0. With only 30 minutes to play, and Joe Burrow‘s affinity for the pass, you would expect Brown’s second-half carries to be far fewer than his first. Instead, the game plan flipped and Brown got more than double the carries he received in the first half.
This should be an interesting ‘lesson learned’ by the Bengals: run the ball! Chase Brown‘s success rate is the key to staying on/ahead of schedule.
Back to the trade consideration, contenders should hold, with caveats. If an offer nets you a good younger RB on a good offense on a growth trajectory, consider the trade. Rebuilders should SELL, SELL, SELL, because Chase Brown cannot Matrix-dodge those draft bullets forever.
J.J. McCarthy
Every fantasy season features a backup capitalizing on an injury, and what initially looked like a desperate trade for J.J. McCarthy is rapidly proving skeptics wrong. McCarthy delivered a scoreless yet impressive performance against Houston. Since taking over as the Giants’ QB, he has posted a 90+ passer rating while averaging over 250 passing yards per game—fueling Malik Nabers to 15.9 YPR and driving Malachi Fields (4-83-0) to a career day. Head coach John Harbaugh’s gamble looks brilliant with New York sitting atop the NFC East.
This past summer, I wrote about McCarthy as a liability to Justin Jefferson‘s bounce-back case. His tape and data were riddled with reckless gunslinger traits. Now, the film shows a totally different QB.
A “change of scenery” is proving to be far more than a clichĂ©. Playing with house money and no expectations, McCarthy outmaneuvered DeMeco Ryans’ defense. When pressured, he completed 7-of-10 passes for 100 yards to Malik Nabers, Isaiah Likely, and Malachi Fields—posting a 70.0% completion rate under duress and a 74.3 PFF passing grade (8th-best in Week 7).
McCarthy’s Week 7 film showcased poise, field vision, and high-level ball placement. He consistently manipulated defenders with his eyes—holding the safety before dropping a 42-yard dime to Malik Nabers on a Cover 1 corner route, then freezing coverage again to hit Malachi Fields on a 47-yard out against Cover 2. His pocket presence was equally sharp: stepping up against a nickel blitz to connect with Nabers on a 17-yard dig. Working out of 13 personnel off play-action, he bypassed a double-covered Isaiah Likely to hit TE Thomas Fidone on a leak-out drag for 29 yards. Layered throws and precise placement across a wide target distribution were on full display.
As good as McCarthy was on Sunday, there are still some warts and 'gunslinger' tendencies, but the risk seems a bit more measured. pic.twitter.com/bUVZDtNCz8
— Vernon Meighan (@FFB_Vern) October 28, 2026
The misses were mostly forgivable context plays: a safe end-zone shot where only the 6’4″ Fields could reach it, an overthrow on the run after resetting in a chaotic pocket, and an accurate corner route that Mooney simply failed to toe-tap. His lone clear error was missing a wide-open Isaiah Likely on a deep post from a clean pocket—a turnover-worthy lapse—alongside one overthrown deep shot to Nabers against Stingley in 1v1 coverage. Overall, the flashes of processing and arm talent remain undeniable.
One game doesn’t exonerate McCarthy’s rocky Minnesota tenure, but every breakout trend begins somewhere. He is not a finished product, but his accelerated processing, improved accuracy, and controlled risk-taking mark a strong start to a rare second chance. The question now: how do we leverage this in Dynasty?
Even if McCarthy delivers a full Cinderella run, the clock will strike midnight. The Giants are not moving off Jaxson Dart long-term—even if McCarthy captures the pinnacle of success (see Nick Foles).
Looking ahead to 2027, McCarthy’s fantasy value hinges on a trade. But will another franchise fork over draft capital instead of selecting a rookie? If traded, he enters a new offense with full defensive game plans built around his tape and no more “house money” protection. The play is clear: capitalize on the hype and sell at the first opportunity before your league’s trade deadline.