(Note: I won’t be doing the game recaps again. Just some Week 1 fun because I missed football. I won’t have the time or the energy, and honestly I will be indifferent to most of these teams.)
Ravens @ Chiefs
To everyone but Max, you’re all fools for passing on Lamar Jackson in the second round. You’re probably fools if you passed on him in the first round, too. He is back to providing QB + RB numbers all in one slot. He is on the war path. The Ravens ran some awesome designed runs for him, and he was hitting that scramble button with aplomb. Other than that, all of our assumptions about these teams seem to be proving correct. The Ravens’ pecking order, in order, is Henry, Flowers, Andrews, Likely, everyone else. The Chiefs bracketed (i.e., doubled) Mark Andrews, which most teams just can’t do. Andrews is fine. But Likely is effectively the second WR. Patrick Mahomes is a god, but the Ravens’ defense is still elite. Cameron might never bench Xavier Worthy again, and Pacheco and Rashee are everyweek starters. Coleman should be worried about Travis Kelce. The Chiefs just don’t need him this year like they have the last two years, and he’s just not the threat he was before that. Kyle Hamilton was tasked with taking him out of the game, and so Hamilton racked up no stats when the Chiefs just said, whatever, we’ll go somewhere else with the ball. Hamilton is still an elite IDP. Trent McDuffie is still very good. You can safely cut him, you can safely stream him. He’s not going to be an elite IDP. Note: Lamar and Likely were a tippy toe away from finishing with 43 and 30 points, respectively. I’m sad about not getting any of it in my starting lineup. I assure you, Isaiah Likely is very much on the trade block. I am taking offers and (be warned) not even slightly willing to sell low.
Packers vs. Eagles in Sao Paulo
Jordan Love sprained his MCL, which is technically good news. He should miss a month-ish, maybe 3-4 weeks out of the lineup and 1-2 weeks the ramp back up to being good at football. This should also give his calf time to get right, though idk whether those issues compaund at all (n.b.: the reported timeline is 3-6 weeks). Either way, it’s Baker Mayfield (or Aaron Rodgers, blegh) thime for Evan. Josh Jacobs looked washed for half the game then broke off a couple of truly good runs. He’s fine. He’s going to get even more work with Malik Willis/Sean Clifford at QB. Jayden Reed stock is now so high that even Spencer and Max are tapping out. Christian Watson scored a TD, and Romeo Doubs got an endzone target, and Jayden Reed scored literally nine of his points on one juke move, so I’m still pretty convinced it’s anyone’s week in that corps. Dontayvion Wicks is better left in our free agent pool for now, as is Luke Musgrave. Tucker Kraft is interesting (96% of snaps) but ultimately still the fourth option (at best) in the passing game, led by Malik Willis or Sean Clifford. The Eagles looked good against a defense that I’m starting to believe is just not that good. The Packers’ D has been getting exploited for playing too conservative for a few years, then the Eagles exploited their newfound aggressiveness in Sao Paulo. Reverse a couple unforced errors by the Eagles’ O, and suddenly they win this game by like 15. OC Kellen Moore was prepared for this game, and I’m willing to believe anyone who drafted an Eagle got a nice value, especially Sean getting Saquon. Fuck. IDPs Zack Baun and Reed Blankenship are relevant again for Philly, and Rashan Gary and KeiSean Nixon are relevant for Green Bay. Quay Walker is boom/bust from play to play, and I would be afraid to play him against a team running the ball fewer than 25-30 times per game. The Eagles’ pass-rush will continue to be an ensemble situation (but even without the two sacks, Zack Baun would have had 13 tackles). The sack numbers don’t tell the story. All night, Jordan Love was throwing off-platform with d-linemen in his face. The Packers’ line is just whatever, but let’s be honest, most lines are just whatever. The reason the NFL will eventually be a 7-on-7 league is as simple as mommas don’t let their babies grow up to be linemen anymore. I guess we want the Packers’ kicker now? Well, when Love returns. The Packers are still a great offense, but they are not capable of repeating last year’s historic TD efficiency, so that means more kicks. I of course have to mention that AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith can, in fact, be started together. They were used very effectively in their different roles, and the main difference in their scores was just the TD. AJ Brown is the better bet to score TDs, yes, but Smith feels like the trusted chain-mover. In any other league, Brown is the obvious choice, but those first downs added up for DeVonta. Dallas Goedert can be ignored completely. He’s a distant fourth option, and that’s only if Jalen Hurts’ legs aren’t the fourth option. No team outside of the 2023 49ers has delivered a consistent fourth option, and Goedert is not Kittle.
Projection for Packers without Love: if it’s Willis, the Packers should just steal plays from the Ravens’ tape against the Chiefs. They should run more two-TE sets, and if I were sorting the passing options, I would sort by who is the easiest to complete a pass to. Reed is the best at getting open, Watson has the largest catch radius, and Kraft will be the biggest dude closest to the line of scrimmage. Doubs and Wicks and Musgrave are totally worthless in my book until Love returns. I would rather have the backup RB (currently Emanuel Wilson, with MarShawn Lloyd capable of stealing that spot at any moment). You can’t afford to waste a roster spot this early in the year. You have to go get some guys who might actually crack your starting lineup if the need arises.
Vikings @ Giants
As I predicted before the season started, the Giants’ entire front office and coaching staff are getting fired this season. If you don’t have Malik Nabers, you don’t have anything.
The Vikings are what we thought they were. The offense runs through Aaron Jones and Justin Jefferson. Don’t make any other assumptions until they play a real team. Defensively, keep an eye on Van Ginkel. He has a knack for making huge plays.
Jordan Addison entered the game with an ankle injury and left the game early with an ankle injury. Allegedly not the same ankle. Jalen Nailor caught a TD and might be worth a stash. He’s fast, and he showed some rapport with Darnold in preseason. This offense just works. I wouldn’t be confident in the pieces behind Jefferson or Jones, but I would prefer them over similar depth pieces on at least ten other offenses.
Panthers @ Saints
Why did we (read: I) think the Panthers would be any good to start the year? Too many changing parts in the offseason, too little proof that the returning pieces were bringing any juice. I still think it will be okay by midseason, but I don’t feel great abut having two Panthers clogging up bench spots until then. Games like this, you just have to ignore the numbers and see what happens next week.
The Saints new offense looks pretty scary, but again, it’s just not easy to know what will stick when they play a different team (that now has film) next week. I’d be willing to stash Derek Carr if I were a completely different person. I’m still rolling with Taysom (despite him finishing third in Saints’ TE scoring), and I’m fairly convinced Shaheed’s output is repeatable. Olave, well, this is why he was a polarizing figure in the pre-draft process this season. He’s good, but he doesn’t fit this offense. Alvin Kamara getting CMC-caliber work feels real. Alontae Taylor hit his ceiling in this one, but he was a great IDP last year, so he should be on your radar.
Panthers’ RB Raheem Blackshear was the ultimate KR scam with 20 fantasy points despite zero offensive snaps.
The Panthers’ best defensive player (DT Derrick Brown) is probably going to miss the rest of the season, so yeah, they suck. They will tear this whole thing down to the studs and suck for another three years minimum, maybe forever. Maybe they will suck forever.
Jags @ Fins
Trevor Lawrence is overrated. I can’t keep pretending he’s some generational talent. His QB class is an abject disaster. My guess is Miami did a solid job taking away the middle of the field because Engram and Kirk combined for two catches on eight targets. The Miami pass-rush is worth targeting for IDPs, which means the Miami secondary is worth targeting for IDPs. Miami’s top scorers on offense and defense were both arrested before the game. I don’t know what to make of that other than it’s an extremely odd detail. Waddle was concussed in this one.
The Jags are probably fine for fantasy. Not hopeless but not any better than they were last year. Glad I got Brian Thomas Jr. because he seems like their best player already. Worth noting Etienne had a negative-eight-point swing on a fumble in the endzone and would have had 20 FP had he just squeezed the thing. How many feet are in a mile? Also worth noting that Travon Walker led Jags’ IDPs in FP.
This is how the Dolphins roll. We like them for spike weeks, for ceilings, not for week-to-week consistency or floor. Keep starting them. (Not so fast, Cameron.) Tua threw for 338 yards but just one TD. Anyone with Dolphins just hold.
Texans @ Colts
Oh, division games, how little we can learn from you. But man, Anthony Richardson is that dude. He ran with power, he hit deep shots, he missed deep shots, but he’s a real threat to be QB1 for the year. It’s Allen, Lamar, AR, and then everyone else. Get a piece of the Colts’ offense while you can.
Texans looked like the Texans: shared the ball, pounded the rock. Whatever we thought of the 49ers and Packers last year, we need to view the Texans and Saints through that lens for now. In other words, get you some Texans, get you some Saints.
Defense: DeForest Buckner continues to waste away in our free agency despite being a top-5 interior pass-rusher. (I mean, I’m not picking him up.) Three Colts DBs scored double-digit points, while the LBs did not do very well, which, combined with the 30 carries for Joe Mixon, is probably a sign that the Texans’ line bullied the Colts undersized front-seven.
Pats @ Cats
Joey and the Pussy Cats. Garbage franchise. Garbage showing in week one, at home, against everybody’s pick to be the worst team in the AFC. This is now the worst team in the AFC until further notice. I want no part of this offense, but I am grateful I plucked Logan Wilson out of free agency after the draft. Unlike the Panthers, this is not the kind of bad we can just ignore. This team was already skidding off the tracks. This is a red flag.
This Rhamondre Stevenson game feels like… not a fluke, but not the norm. The Pats coaches said this is what they want to do on offense, and I believe them. The issue is the defense being able to hold up like this against offenses who actually practiced together during the offseason. He needs a minimum 20 carries to hit that 100-yard mark, and that feels… wishful. I am starting Chuba Hubbard. I would lick shit off a brick to wishcast Rhamondre every week. The rest of the Pats’ offense is utter trash. On defense, keep an eye on Keion White, Ja’Whuan Bentley, and Kyle Dugger.
Dax Hill looked like he was going to change roles this season, but the fantasy points suggest he’s back for another strong IDP season. Germaine Pratt is a tackle-monster but rarely adds any money stats.
Titans @ Bears
The Titans suck. They jumped out to a 17-0 lead and then spent the rest of the game getting smoked. DeAndre Hopkins, playing through a torn meniscus, caught his only target for eight yards. Eight. Yards. In my starting lineup. Fuck. Tony Pollard is the starter. The Bears’ defense is very, very good. But also maybe the Titans’ offense was cooked after the got through their scripted plays. A team scoring zero points in a half should concern you. Doesn’t matter which half, doesn’t matt against whom. Zero points in a half is bad, bad football. And it’s not like they missed a kick. They didn’t even get into field goal range. The defense was pretty good, maybe even really good. Harold Landry is fantasy relevant again.
The Bears did not score an offensive TD. They did get the ball inside the 10-yard line near the end of the first half, and they settled for a field goal. I didn’t watch the game, and I don’t know why this happened. I know the offensive line played poorly, and I know Keenan Allen limped off the field at one point. His poor feet just cannot handle the extra weight. If I were able to draft any Bears, I would be concerned. Instead I am relieved I don’t have to be patient with this one. The line could improve, but the players aren’t very good, so I don’t have much faith. TJ Edwards picked up where he left off last year, and Jaquan Brisker should be on your radar. Darrell Taylor, who was a splashy edge rusher in Seattle before getting traded to the Bears like two weeks ago, he’s intriguing but not worth starting until we see it again.
Cards @ Bills
The Cardinals jumped out to an early lead and looked like they would be in control of this game, but Josh Allen woke up and there was no chance after that. Arizona was able to get whatever they wanted in the run game, but they couldn’t get anything going when they needed to throw and that Bills’ pass-rush knew it. Greg Rousseau had three sacks and should probably be on your watch list if not your roster. He’s huge and fast, and it’s breakout time for the former first-rounder.
The Bills ran the ball early and often, and they used their backs a lot in the passing game (22% of Josh Allen’s attempts went to RBs). Keon Coleman led the Bills’ pass-catchers in targets with… five. The Bills are not necessarily changing their stripes, though. Their offensive coordinator just did his fucking homework on this one. Arizona is weak sauce up front and strong in the secondary. So I wouldn’t read much into the Bills’ offensive usage or the Cardinals’ IDP stats. But I would suggest that this is instructive for teams facing the Cardinals. Their rushing offense is elite and their rush defense is trash. If you don’t focus on ball-control, you might not get the ball again for a while. Marvin Harrison Jr. put up a fucking dud of a game while Greg Dortch and Trey McBride racked up a bunch of short targets. Again, the Cards’ line was completely overwhelmed by the Bills’ (on both sides of the ball). I would expect some intentional over-targeting of Harrison soon. Kyler Murray did everything he could, but there’s only so much you can do when you’re 5’9” and your line is letting the biggest dudes right through to you. Anecdotally, I think Murray had 18 passes batted at the line.
James Conner is a bell-cow back, and the Cardinals use Benson to spell him for a few carries and Demarcado as the passing-downs guy. Basically this offense is super gross unless you have Kyler or Conner. And that’s intentional. This team has no interest running up the score. They want to control the ball and keep their (trash) defense as fresh as possible.
Trivia: the first player to score a TD on the NFL’s new “dynamic” kickoff was DeeJay Dallas, who was also a top-15 RB in our league scoring.
Steelers @ Falcons
The Steelers scored 18 points and won. Worse, their kicker scored every single one of them. There was functionally no offense in this game. The Falcons’ leading receiver was gadget-guy Ray-Ray McCloud. Drake London, Darnell Mooney, and Kyle Pitts combined for just four more yards than McCloud (who only had 52). Bijan was awesome. Kirk Cousins was ass. The Falcons’ defense didn’t let Justin Fields beat them, so that’s something. There wasn’t much pop from the IDPs on either side except for TJ Watt, who had a strip-sack stolen from him by a meaningless penalty, otherwise he’d have had over 20 FP.
You might see Fields’ 15 FP, 50 rushing yards, zero INTs and think he had an okay game. He did not. He held onto the ball too long and allowed a pretty mediocre pass-rush get home way too often.
The thing about this “McVay” offense is it should theoretically work right away if run correctly, which is why you should worry if you’re counting on Falcons or Panthers this year (and why you should hold out some hope for your Titans).
Raiders @ Chargers
This game was awful. It was 7-3 Raiders after the first quarter, then it was 9-7 Chargers heading into the 4th. The Chargers ran away with it when they finally let JK Dobbins eat. This will be a “hot hand” running game for the Chargers, but the best bet is on Dobbins. He looked fast, he looked mean, he has much better vision for rushing lanes than Edwards, who ran into his own lineman and fell down at one point. At 230 pounds, that just doesn’t happen unless you don’t see it coming. Nothing significant to note for the Chargers’ passing game. They didn’t throw much, and they spread it around pretty evenly. McConkey led in targets but not significantly. The Raiders have a good defense, so I wouldn’t be willing to drop any Chargers if you drafted them.
The Raiders’ offense wasn’t terrible. I mean, it was, but they had a lot of good plays. They just also turned the ball over. At one point, Minshew tried to throw a pass, the ball slipped out of his hand, and it almost went forward, but instead it went sideways, and the spin he put on it caused it to go just slightly backward, and then of course that’s a fumble, and the Chargers jumped on it. So while it was bad, it wasn’t the scheme that was bad, it was Minshew doing a couple dumb things, which I guess counts, but there’s some optimism that exact goofiness won’t happen again. I’m optimistic the Raiders can play ball-control and succeed in future games. The defense is good.
IDP watch: Joey Bosa and Robert Spillane are startable now, and Junior Colson’s time is coming.
Worth mentioning: Brock Bowers led the Raiders in targets, and the Raiders split their backfield between Zamir White and Alexander Mattison, which, yuck. Cameron Dicker should probably be someone’s starting kicker going forward (maybe mine, since Dan Carlson beefed it).
Broncos @ Seahawks
Weird fucking game. Geno Smith threw an interception on either the first or second play of the game. The Broncos defense scored two safeties. Bo Nix’s feet are fucking wild. They do not stop moving, for better or worse. I want no part of this Denver offense.
The Seahawks’ defense looks ready to roll already. When you subtract the extra four points and extra possessions off safeties, the extra three points off the first-play interception, the Seahawks D only allowed 13 points today. While that’s some favorable math, that’s what I believe happened. As far as IDPs, Julian Love and Devon Witherspoon are already starting in our league, and Tyrel Dodson should be on our radars.
The Broncos’ defense looked good early and they scored those safeties, but in the second half, they were pretty terrible. Even in the first half, they allowed Geno to scramble 34 yards down the middle of the field for a TD. How are there 34 yards of open space down the middle of the field on a passing play? What? This defense sucks. I still like Singleton as an IDP, but otherwise I’m out. (Worth noting Jonathon Cooper had two sacks and Baron Browning was close, but the Seahawks’ line is so, so bad. If anything, target DLs going against the Seahawks.)
Kennedy, you can drop Nix and Franklin. You tried something. It didn’t work out. Don’t hurt yourself any longer.
Cowboys @ Browns
Another weird game. The score suggests the Cowboys looked good, and the Browns looked bad. In reality, the Browns’ offense looked broken, and Brandon Aubrey hit two 50s and two 40s. There was a moment at the end of the first half where the Cowboys considered sending Aubrey out to attempt a 71-yarder. If you know anything about field goal kicking, you know conditions would have to be perfect, and if you know anything about Cleveland, you know that city will never have perfect kicking conditions. But yeah, the Cowboys scored two touchdowns on offense, KaVontae Turpin returned a punt for a TD, and Aubrey knocked in four field goals. The Browns’ offense didn’t do shit until the middle of the third quarter, and their second TD was true garbage time: down 33-10 inside the final two minutes. Brian liked it.
If the Cowboys’ defense is legit (give it another week), then we should be interested in DeMarvion Overshown (if only for the name), Eric Kendricks, and DeMarcus Lawrence. Status quo for the Browns.
‘Ders @ Bucs
God what a fucking game. Not since Ryan Fitzpatrick have we seen such offensive dominance. Baker Mayfield scored 40 FP to lead all players. All. Players. The Bucs’ top three WRs scored, including two beauts from Mike Evans. Chris Godwin was dominant in the Cooper Kupp role, and Jalen McMillan was inches away from like 40 more yards on the day. He’s a baller. We’re fucking stacked. Rachaad White and Bucky Irving were solid because the offensive line was rock-solid.
Now, the ‘Ders are just not ready for primetime. If you told me they didn’t pass the ball at all, I would believe you. None of their passes went more than five yards downfield. They ran this fun little double-pass play with Luke McCaffrey, but it was so hopeless that rather than even complete the throwback to Daniels, he just tucked it and ran. The ‘Ders run game and screen game were real, real good. Jayden Daniels was real, real fast. There is fantasy value here, just not for anybody but Daniels, Robinson, and Ekeler. I drafted McLaurin in my other league and am sad, sad, sad about it.
IDP watch: Bobby. Time. Otherwise, pretty barfy for Washington. On the Bucs’ side, Jordan Whitehead led the team in tackles, and the defense as a whole looked fucking fast. They overran the play a bunch of times, letting Daniels leak out for a bunch of huge runs, but against Goff next week, buddy, I feel good.
Being a Bucs fan feels really good right now. The NFC South looked awful. Like, sure, the Saints scored 47, but that was against another NFC South team, one that might be completely broken. By the time the Bucs play the Saints in Week 6, we should have enough tape to expose their weakness (the offensive line).
Rams @ Lions
Super fun game. Disappointing the Rams lost three linemen and Puka, but they went back to the Kupp well and he delivered a huge game. Bucs’ castoff Tyler Johnson is worth an add if Puka misses time. He operated as the third WR behind Kupp and Demarcus Robinson, and Stafford showed trust in him. But let’s be serious, the same way the Vikings’ offense runs through Jefferson and Jones, this offense runs through Kupp and Kyren. My Blake Corum stock is in the toilet. He wasn’t even actually the kick returner, as had been reported earlier this week. The only silver lining of starting Chuba Hubbard is that the only other RB I considered starting was Blake Corum. I suck at this game.
Jared Goff did not outscore Patrick Mahomes, but he did come within one point. The Lions didn’t need to throw, and so they didn’t really throw the ball. Goff hit a deep shot to Jameson Williams, but otherwise the Lions leaned on the run game. The Monty-Gibbs combo paid off nicely for Kennedy in Week 1, but when you throw in Amon-Ra, he got an average 13 FP per Lion, which is just okay. It’s competitive for sure, but it’s probably not worth three of your first five picks. But if you get the win anyway, what does it even matter. Back to the TE pack, Sam LaPorta, you are no longer in the elite TE conversation.
IDP watch: Aidan Hutchinson and Brian Branch have fully arrived, and Alex Anzalone continues to Dangerfield it up. Do not, under any circumstances, buy into any Rams except for Jared Verse, and only then it’s because you root for Florida State.
(Speaking of college allegiances, totally unrelated to this game, Coleman fumbled the bag not just taking his Irish boi Brandon Aubrey over Justin Tucker. Just be a homer, dude.)
Jets @ 49ers
Okay, it was probably stupid to think this game would any other way than it did. The 49ers are coming off a Super Bowl appearance, and the Jets are the Jets. Any hope we had of Rodgers magically turning this team into a contender should be done. Maybe they’ll get there, but they’re not there now. It also doesn’t really matter. The Jets are fine on offense. Nothing special, not a dumpster fire. The defense is still very good. The 49ers are just a top-3 team in the league.
Oliver’s not going to want to read this, but the 49ers’ offensive pieces are going to be just fine despite ceding all their points to Jordan Mason and Jake Moody on Monday night. This Jordan Mason thing is going to be pretty frustrating; I say this from the vantage point of having both on a roster in my other league. The 49ers have zero incentive to play CMC, like, at all if Mason can give the Jets defense this kind of work. Obviously, the 49ers will play CMC eventually, but they’re in no hurry. They would have to lose a couple games to feel any pressure whatsoever.
Per Jacob Gibbs on Twitter:
Pre-snap motion rate on pass plays in Week 1:
88% - Saints win
83% - Lions win
77% - Chiefs win
73% - Packers loss
69% - Rams loss to Lions
69% - Cowboys win
68% - Dolphins win
64% - Vikings win
61% - Buccaneers win
58% - Texans win
(Note: these numbers do not include the Jets or 49ers, but the 49ers should rank pretty high. Jets not so much.)
Lowest pre-snap motion rate on pass plays in Week 1:
12% - Browns loss
21% - Broncos loss
23% - Panthers loss
28% - Bengals loss
29% - Titans loss
33% - Colts loss
34% - Cardinals loss
35% - Commanders loss
Like the man says, “Adapt or die.” The Colts and Cards can get away with it because they run so well, but look what happened to them when they needed to pass while playing from behind late in the game. Early returns would suggest the Browns, Broncos, and Panthers are offenses to avoid this season. There is still time to adjust (the Packers did last year), but these teams (the bottom three just mentioned) spent all summer not fucking implementing this stuff enough, so they are behind and they don’t have the QB juice to make up ground.
Blitz and Chitz 187
Jackpot. Highest scoring QB not named Baker Mayfield, highest scoring WR actually in a lineup, three top-12 RBs, highest scoring DB in a lineup, and a top-10 LB. And Amari Cooper was inches away from having another 10 FP tacked on. And 24 from Jameson Williams on the bench. It is good for the league for Max to keep posting these numbers, not just because he’s outscoring Sean but because Max is one of five teams without a Mortydome championship, and I would like everyone to have their name on that trophy by 2030. That’s my dream for the league, and that’s going to take some serious upheaval in these next seven seasons.
KB Meeseeks 172
Jake Moody, baby! 27 glorious points, and Kennedy didn’t need one of them. Moody could have missed every kick, and Kennedy still would have survived. The Stroud-Collins stack proved worth a 10th Round pick and both keeper spots, shocker. The Gibbs-Montgomery split somehow made Amon-Ra the odd man out. And Rhamondre Stevenson led the team (minus Moody) in points. Focus on Bobby Time and forget about Mark Andrews. Most TEs were trash this week. But every week, the price of Isaiah Likely goes up.
Season 3 163
While it’s a nice total, most of it came from Saquon, your kicker, and your IDPs. Puka is out until Week 7, you have two weak QBs, and your kicker and IDPs will have their ups and downs. I’M NOT AFRAID OF YOU. I am afraid of Rashid Shaheed if the kick return scam becomes a season-long rule. No way we do this permanently. But if Sean wins, he gets three rules, so I’m starting to feel like I sold my majority stake in this league.
Fart 157
Yeah, about what I expected based on Coleman’s draft, but the details were slightly more surprising. Wouldn’t have expected just five points from Kelce despite him playing 89% of snaps. Wouldn’t have expected just two points from Hamilton or for Tucker to miss a 50-yard FG attempt. Danielle Hunter was underwhelming, but pass-rushers will do that from time to time. I would assume Coleman averages close to this many points per week and the individual numbers just cycle to different players.
Teeny tiny tony 145
Pollard delivered. Not to the extent that Kupp and Aubrey delivered, but spending an 8th Round pick on your third best player is pretty solid work. Mostert was disappointing, but you just slide Worthy in and never think about it unless Achane misses time. The issue here is QB, maybe TE, too. Dak played against a good defense, but he plays against good defenses five of the next seven weeks (and has his bye in there, so that makes one good matchup from now until Week 9). Rodgers’ schedule isn’t much better. Kirk Cousins, welcome home.
ノ(ಠ_ಠノ) 132
The theme is get you a kicker that can drill 50-yarders. (Not so fast, Justin Tucker.) Spencer’s top three (Josh Allen, Chase McLaughlin, Roquan Smith) combined for more than half of their total points, BUT JK Dobbins took hold of the Chargers’ job, so there’s your cavalry. If Dalton Kincaid bounces back, you go back to having no holes in your lineup.
Melee Schmelee 131
I hope we all learned a valuable lesson about disrespecting the melee. I’m sure Brian won’t spend any time thinking about how starting Jayden Daniels over Tua would have given him an easy win this week. Definitely won’t tilt over benching Jayden Reed, who scored more than all of his other WRs combined (almost doubled up their combined total, in fact).
Hugh Jackman 125
Gotta say, you probably should’ve stuck with Abradolf Lincler for at least one game. You needed that extra bit of villainy to give you an edge. The Kyren Williams trade proved pretty powerful, netting you 16 points in your flex spot, and the Saints’ new offense gives you some hope that Olave will be able to make huge plays when they need him to (again, we’re throwing out that whole game except for the part where the offensive scheme is the type that’s dominating the league right now). I warned you about Thibodeaux. I warned you.
Pickle Rick’s Pickleball 125
Even if Evan had started Baker, he would have only scored 142. The real problem is that his IDPs combined for 17.5 FP. Six from Swift was bad, and obviously Marvin Harrison’s dud hurts, but failure across the board at IDP makes it impossible to compete. Evan can probably let it ride with everyone but Ernie. Next week’s matchups are more promising, and IDP scores tend to vary. The good news is you don’t need Jordan Love. That Baker-Godwin stack is life. And even if you’re worried about rolling out Swift and Harrison next week, you should have confidence in Moss and DeVonta.
Haven’t Learned 123
I was pretty pleased with my team except for the whole Hubbard/Hopkins fiasco. Not only did they completely stink up my lineup, but I traded for them. I went way out of my way to squeeze them onto my team, and now I will probably end up cutting them. Sadly, I don’t have the balls to bench Hubbard, let alone cut him. But Hopkins and his torn knee can kick rocks. I’ll just start two TEs if I have to.
Ghostface killers 108
Change the name, change the luck.
Chasin a Win 107
Ibid, your honor.
