It’s been a frustrating season so far. I wouldn’t care as much if my teams were all terrible, but my Primetime has JSN, Tetairoa McMillan and Davante Adams. I started Woody Marks and RJ Harvey at running back after losing De’Von Achane and Jonathon Brooks. It might have been salvageable. But no, DJ Moore has to put up his second zero in three games.
I sat a worthless Justin Herbert for an even more worthless Daniel Jones. It’s worse when you might have had something. On one of my other teams I sat Kyren Williams. Chuba Hubbard was fine, Aaron Jones was okay, but Cam Skattebo did almost nothing. You just can’t sit 36 points from your fourth-round pick and expect to be there at the end of the year.
So my only move is to detach emotionally, not be upset about fantasy football. I’ll make my moves, set my lineups. but not going to feel bad or have regrets. Too bad, I should have taken Chris Olave instead of pivoting to Achane when he surprisingly fell to me. It’s fantasy football, that’s how it goes sometimes.
I went 3-1 in Circa, pending ATL tonight. The Panthers were one of those teams that felt right and was right in a game that went more or less the way you thought. I had a combo bet lined up at like 125 to 1 on which I nearly pulled the trigger with McMillan at 10 catches for 140 and a score, combined with Bryce Young for 275 and two scores, and Goff for 300, but two scores. Goff threw only one, so I’m glad I saved the $10. That’s the issue with those crazy multi-leg parlays — you can get done in by a small detail even when the game goes almost perfectly.
Jahmyr Gibbs had his first dud, and by dud I mean 17.7 points. The team that gave up 1,000 yards to Kyle Monangai and D’Andre Swift did a good job on Gibbs.
Jameson Williams finally broke out, leading the team with 102 yards, but no TD, Isaac TeSlaa had almost the same line, and Sam LaPorta had 13 targets, eight catches and the TD. ARSB had his second dud, and by that I mean 11 targets and 15.5 points.
Bryce Young passes the eye test for me. That midget moves well in the pocket out of necessity to see what’s going on. McMillan (16-14-192-2) was everywhere, catching everything, but Young was also delivering the ball to him on target and in stride.
Hubbard was so obvious in hindsight, it’s painful I don’t have more shares. Brooks was always a psyop, and Hubbard was the fallback and likely bell cow.
The Colts-Commanders game was bad, but I had the Colts in Circa, and bought them, down 6-0, for 53 cents and also comboed (parlayed) them with the under the moment Marcus Mariota got hurt.
The third stringer, whatever his name is, wasn’t bad. He had the guts to chuck it downfield and on balance acquitted himself well.
Danny Dimes is bad. He salvaged the fantasy day somewhat with the rushing TD, but there’s nothing downfield, he’s not accurate, he holds the ball too long and turns it over.
I lost money on some Josh Downs receptions props. I figured he’d get 10 targets with Keenan Allen and Alec Pierce out, but after catching three passes in the first half, he yielded to LaQuon Treadwell and Ashton Dulin. Never again.
Jonathan Taylor didn’t do much, but somehow finished with two TDs and 95 rushing yards. Oddly he disappeared for a key stretch in the first half, including for a fourth and short, but no one ever mentioned him being hurt.
I should have used the Pats in Circa. It was such an obvious setup.
I didn’t watch much of the game, but I guess Drake Maye righted the ship despite the scrubby receivers and pedestrian play from the backs.
I’ve said it before, but James Cook was not a good first-round pick. Where’s the passing game involvement or the volume? the TDs are nice, but he shares them with Josh Allen.
DJ Less is a season killer. If you’re gonna serve a virtual zero, just be out for the year. You can’t come back the next week and do it again. And late bloomer Keon Coleman (7-6-116-1) looked like the second coming of Davante Adams.
Dalton Kincaid was probably a psyop for which I partially fell. Even if he goes off again, it’ll probably be from the bench. Only the startable fantasy points really count.
Now I remember why I didn’t invest in Garrett Wilson or Breece Hall — they play for the Jets.
The Bears were more true to form with Tyson Bagent — Rome Odunze (7-6-94-0), Luther Burden (6-4-63-0) and Colston Loveland (9-6-57-0) were the featured pass catchers in the offense. Monangai went bananas on 30 carries before hurting his thumb, while D’Andre Swift found himself in the Blake Corum role.
I had the Jags +2.5 in Circa, and that was good enough by one yard. If the Bengals convert that fourth down and score, they definitely would have gone for two and, if successful, would have won 25-22.
What’s up with Parker Washington having three targets, one catch and seven yards? I thought he was everyone’s obvious breakout guy? It’s funny, Jeff Erickson and I made a bet on the podcast last week, he had Washington and I had Rashee Rice, rest of season.
The Jaguars spread the ball around so much, it’s like the Bills. Hope you got some Strange Sunday.
The injuries this year are out of control. It’s worse than ever. Ja’Marr Chase was nearly decapitated, and of course it happened in the first quarter.
Tee Higgins had a big day, but now he’s hurt too with an adductor injury. The league is becoming a joke.
I didn’t even realize Burrow had 428 yards until I checked just now. Crazy. I guess they couldn’t run it at all, and game flow conspired for him to have 54 attempts. Maybe he hits 500 if Chase were healthy.
The Giants game was amazing except for the rushing yardage prop bets on lost on Jeremyiah Love who seemed to hurt his ankle at one point either late first half or early second, but either way Tyler Allgeier’s carcass was on the field way too much. I thought we were done with that after last week’s breakout, but I saw an interview with Love after the game saying they are going to spell him to keep him fresh.
The Giants pass defense was great. Trey McBride had 31 yards on 12 targets. That’s not even a good rate for rushing attempts. Two weeks ago I mocked anyone who, like me, drafted Brock Bowers a round ahead of McBride, but no one’s mocking that now.
I’ll still mock people for taking Marvin Harrison ahead of Michael Wilson. That was retarded.
Jameis Winston had two insanely stupid picks, but also delivered some quality downfield throws, a couple of which were while he was on the move. I don’t know how they can win with him, but if they beat the Redskins with whatshisname they’ll be 4-1.
Malik Nabers (7-6-112-1) is a top-five real life receiver, but he’s playing through a shoulder injury and without his QB. I hope he can gut it out, but I’m dubious.
Isaiah Likely (12-7-66-0) had a modest day, but Winston looks for him constantly. Malachi Fields made a couple plays and looks like a player to me.
Skattebo ran hard, but it was tough going, and he wasn’t involved much in the passing game.
For the second straight week, the Giants held on against an NFL doormat who were knocking on the door for the win inside the five yard line. The score only looks lopsided because the game ended on an epic pick-six.
Arvell Reese (nine tackles, one pick) looked like LT out there, flying around and hitting everyone.
As a Giants fan, and someone who bought 300 shares of the Giants to win the division at just under 10 cents, I was happy to see the Eagles collapse. It’s hard to lose up 10 in the fourth quarter with the ball on your opponents’ five yard line, but they managed it.
Kyren Williams (16-80-2, 13-10-67-0) has really left Corum in the dust the last two weeks.
Puka Nacua (12-9-125-0, 1 rushing TD) was more or less himself at least for this week. Davante Adams (9-4-32-0) got the targets, but not the production.
Jalen Hurts had 93 passing yards on 27 attempts, took four sacks and lost a fumble.
Like DJ Less, Saquon Barkley exited early for the second time this year, this time with a hamstring injury. I don’t have any shares, but he’s more of a killer than OJ. Apparently, Jeep Bigsby got hurt too, so people might be in the market for a running back of below average pigmentation this week.
Not sure why they bothered to play the GB-TB game.
Lamar Jackson is hurt yet again. It’s like half the league. At least he had the decency to rack up some fantasy points for you.
Zay Flowers went bananas again even in a more run-friendly game script. He’s the only game in town, though he might be playing it with Tyler Huntley for a while.
The Titans finally dispensed with wasting targets on Calvin Ridley, Eric Ayomanor and that Dike. You could see it last week against the Giants, Carnell Tate (12-9-145-0) starting to heat up.
My one loss in Circa was with the Texans. Thinking a team is desperate or due often backfires. The Cowboys would’ve been 1-3 had they lost — everyone’s desperate in the NFL.
What happened to Houston’s defense? CeeDee Lion (21-17-189-1) annihilated them, though plodder Javonte Williams had three TDs to Lamb’s one.
George Pickens is a poor man’s Jameson Williams. People like the idea of George Pickens, but when Lamb is healthy, he’s Amon Ra St. Brown with more deep speed.
David Montgomery was another crazy psyop. Washed up old high-mileage back going to a weak offense with poor blocking?
I had Nico Collins (8-7-118-2) on my Do Not Draft List, and he had a nice game off the two-week hamstring hiatus. Just keep in mind it was against a bottom-five pass defense, and he still saw only eight targets. But maybe CJ Stroud will have throw more now that his defense seems to have collapsed.
Ollie Gordon (9-100-1) was worth it for one game.
Kyler Murray only had eyes for TJ Hockenson (13-13-119-0), a player I liked, but unfortunately dropped for Darren Waller this week in the Steak League.
The Raiders gave it a good shot, but got killed by a muffed kickoff that put the Chiefs up two scores late.
Kenneth Walker didn’t have that great a game, but you look up, and he had 177 yards and two TDs, thanks to a 76-yard run where he surprisingly got caught from behind and a 22-yard TD run right after the muffed kick.
My only good team this year is the 14-team QB-flex RotoWire Dynasty league where I have Walker, Jonathan Taylor, Derrick Henry, Zay Flowers, CeeDee Lamb, Patrick Mahomes and Matthew Stafford among others. It’s odd having all the good players in the league on the team you care least about, but better than nothing.
I have Rashee Rice in one league, and actually drafted and dropped Tyquan Thornton in another. I guess Xavier Worthless, who I also have in that Dynasty League despite every effort to trade him, will actually get some work.
Brock Bowers played through an illness, but after missing two games due to a surprise injury ahead of the season, maybe he could just keep it to himself next time. And who needs Bowers when Michael Mayer gets you the same stat line anyway?
Kirk Cousins is still himself after a couple injury-plagued years in the wilderness. If the Raiders don’t collapse, he should keep the job all year.
Ashton Jeanty (15-58-0, 8-6-68-0) might not be great, but he does not appear to have a usage problem.
RJ Harvey (7-25-0, 10-10-68-0) doesn’t look good to me, but the Broncos like him, and that’s all that matters.
Pat Bryant is a player, but now he’s probably out a month with an ankle sprain because half the league is injured at all times. Patrick Surtain, arguably the best corner in the game, is also out.
It’s hard to trust Jaylen Waddle enough to start him, which is a problem for a guy you took in the third round.
Brock Purdy is probably the league MVP through four games, but you know the voters would pick Patrick Mahomes.
Christian McCaffrey might not be good anymore, but he gets 16 fantasy points in his sleep. Mike Evans (8-5-76-0) played effectively through the rib injury.
I drafted Emanuel Wilson (21-81-1, 4-3-39-1) in one league too, but dropped him after Week 1 when he didn’t get much work. There’s no value in drafting guys with that pattern of production because you’re not holding third stringers for more than a week. He could get pushed aside by Zach Charbonnet at some point, but Charbonnet is coming back from a serious injury and isn’t that great to begin with. Maybe Jadarian Price comes back in a month too, but he’s no lock to have a big role either. Wilson could have value all year.
JSN (6-5-76-0) came back to earth, but you want your first-round WR’s duds to be 12.6 points. Plus the Chargers drag you into the mud with them.
The only silver lining from the Chargers is I have a few shares of Kimani Vidal, none of Omarion Hampton, and it’s starting to look like a committee.
Never draft a Ladd to play in a man’s game.
Justin Herbert showed toughness playing through some big hits, but at this rate, he’s not going to survive the season. And even if he did, he might not want to with that receiving corps.