AFC East Dynasty Check-In
@DFF_JoeMem back with the fourth installment in the Dynasty Divisional Nuggets AFC East series! The fantasy regular season has most likely ended, but if you are in a dynasty league, the fun never stops. There is always something you can be doing to make your team better, even if you didn’t make the playoffs. Let’s dive into the AFC East and take stock of the players you need to know of!
New York Jets
This is normally the part of the article where I lose all my readers…because who wants to hear the rantings of a 26-year-old Jets’ fan for two-to-three giant paragraphs? I don’t know, maybe you do. I only have one small thing to say about the Jets this time. They almost blew it. Greg Williams is the savior of New York for letting the Raiders win on the last play of the game. I hate myself for even saying it. What kind of fan roots for what once would be considered a heartbreaking loss? Jets’ fans everywhere, that’s who. Why? How? Because that’s where we are. Rooting for infamy. Rooting for imperfect perfection. Rooting for 0-16.
QB: Trevor Lawrence, Sam Darnold
“Slingin’ Sammy” won’t be around New York for long. He came into the league with youth and talent. Luckily, he’s still pretty young, and some NFL team will be knocking down the Jets’ door for his services and upside come 2021. He’s probably worth less now due to the uncertainty of the team he’ll play for next year. I don’t particularly like betting on players that haven’t shown they can be successful after three years of starting, but Darnold might be the exception due to the complete lack of help given to him during his tenure with the Jets. There are still truthers out there.
RB: Frank Gore, La’Mical Perine, Ty Johnson, Josh Adams
Welp, Perine had a shot and looked fantasy relevant for a minute. Then he headed to IR. Despite Ty Johnson rushing for over 100 yards against the Raiders last week, Perine is still the only running back I really want long-term on this team. He’s a raw runner, but his route running is crisp and his hands are good. Most importantly, he’s the only one I’m sure of that will be on the roster next year when Lawrence and a new head coach and offensive coordinator come around.
WR: Jamison Crowder, Breshad Perriman, Denzel Mims
Mims won’t jump at you when you look at the box score, but he’s been able to be a consistent target in an utterly deplorable offensive system. He was always a long-term play and a value pick taken by Douglas in a series of draft picks that seemed to be looking more towards developing around 2022, but he looks like he could take another step in 2021. He’s a hot buy this late in the season and in the offseason. Perriman and Crowder offer inconsistent value and are both in the last year of their contracts. If I had to roster one, I’d pick Crowder. There are a few slot receivers on the market this year coming from high-powered offenses (Pittsburgh, Tampa Bay) and Crowder fits the mold of cheap replacement. He’ll take a huge value dip after the season and I’ll be looking to buy.
TE: Ryan Griffin, Chris Herndon
No.
Buffalo Bills
The future AFC East Champion Buffalo Bills; has a weird ring to it. This team has officially broken out in my eyes. They were good last year, but Josh Allen and the addition of Stefon Diggs has done wonders for this offense. There’s fantasy value all over here right now.
QB: Josh Allen
I think Josh Allen has made this simple. Hopefully, you are not in one, or several, fantasy football leagues with people from Buffalo, NY like I am because Josh Allen is here to stay. He’s clearly a top ten dynasty fantasy quarterback. His rushing upside, his receiving weapons, and even a defense that has been a huge letdown to the fan base all add up to fantasy gold. Go get him if you still can because he’s going to be around for a while.
RB: Zack Moss, Devin Singletary
The running back position is one sore spot for fantasy. Both Moss and Singletary are capable NFL backs that will continue to eat at each other’s value for the next two years, not to mention they also have to compete with Josh Allen near the goal line. I’d probably look to acquire whoever is cheaper in the offseason in case there’s an injury that opens up some real fantasy value.
WR: Stefon Diggs, John Brown, Gabriel Davis, Cole Beasley
Stefon Diggs is a fantastic NFL player: great for fantasy teams. John Brown is a good NFL player: injured and getting old…time might be up for any consistent fantasy value. Gabriel Davis is a rookie trending upward. The Brown injury opened up some playing time and this kid looks like he’s going to be sticking in the lineup next year. It’s a risky move to invest a lot given the depth of the 2021 WR class, but Davis looks like one of the more attainable rookie WRs from the 2020 class with upside. Cole Beasley is a pretty good player, but it’s not fun starting him and you wish all of his targets went elsewhere.
TE: Dawson Knox
He’s still a very raw player. Hopefully, no one was counting on him to take a step forward…he’s a taxi squad player.
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins are one game back of the division lead. They have handed the team over to rookie QB; wait a minute. THE DOLPHINS ARE ONE GAME BACK OF THE DIVISION LEAD??? This was supposed to be a transition year, a year to groom rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Yet here we are with four games left in the season, looking at a probable playoff Dolphins team. 2020, am I right?
QB: Tua Tagovailoa
Tagovailoa has not been great as a fantasy quarterback as a rookie. Hopes were certainly higher with games against the Jets and Bengals on the schedule, but he has only one 20+ point game and it was in Week 9 against the Cardinals. He’s a rookie, but it’s disappointing, to say the least when we’ve seen other rookie quarterbacks light it up to start the year.
RB: Myles Gaskin, Matt Breida, Salvon Ahmed
Myles Gaskins looks like a great fit in this Dolphins offense, resuming his impressive level of play after coming off of IR this past week. As long as he’s healthy, Ahmed and Breida won’t be getting any snaps and Breida doesn’t seem worth rostering anymore regardless of Gaskin’s health. I’m still not convinced that Gaskin is going to be the guy next year, but he’s good for a playoff run as a contender.
WR: DeVante Parker, Preston Williams
I’ll repeat what I said last month, “Tua time means inconsistent results for the top two wide receivers in Miami.” The big difference this time around is that for the second time in two years, Preston Williams finds himself on season-ending IR. What once was a promising rookie, has now turned into a frustrating hold for dynasty rosters everywhere. Parker has seen more consistent targets since Williams went down, but he hasn’t done much with them, reaching double-digit points in three out of the past six games. He’s been a disappointment this year after finishing top ten last year and he has a difficult playoff stretch awaiting him with games against New England and Kansas City.
TE: Mike Gesicki
Two months ago I got excited about Gesicki being a top ten tight end in fantasy. I also got excited that he was the only tight end in the AFC East that I wanted to talk about. His next four finishes:13.6, 0, 1.3, 6.7. Whoops. Now to the last four games: 6, 8.3, 11.5, 23.8. Alright! He’s back! Well, sort of…it’s clear that Gesicki is a talented player. However, he got fantasy players excited last year when he got hot down the stretch. What are two things in common between this stretch and the one last year? An injury to Preston Williams. I’m just not sure he is going to demand enough targets each game as the third option in that offense for fantasy managers to be happy. I’ll be looking to move Gesicki in the offseason for a better tight end.
New England Patriots
If you want to have fun playing fantasy football, just don’t roster any New England Patriots. There isn’t a position that’s safe from the way Bill Belichick coaches this team. It’s a defensive battle and everyone is left guessing what players will be utilized week-to-week. You’ve been warned.
QB: Cam Newton
I’ve touted Newton as a low floor, low ceiling play this year. That’s never been truer than over the past four weeks. He’s thrown less than 20 times in three of the past four games, and that includes throwing for under 120 yards as well. He’s saved himself with six touchdowns, but 25, 3, and 24 points in good matchups do not make me feel good about playing him. Cam Newton could gain value in the offseason if he leaves the Patriots. Until then, he’s not someone I’m starting unless it’s the last option.
RB: Damien Harris, Sony Michel, James White, Rex Burkhead
Last month, I said this, “Burkhead and White are unpredictable. Don’t start them ever. Michel and Harris can put up points on the ground, but they lack touchdown upside with Newton being the goalline back and they are both consistently injured. Pass on this backfield.” Burkhead and White had two great games over the past four weeks and two games under five points, all because of random touchdown luck. Harris is still looking like the best runner in the backfield, but he is capped with Newton as the quarterback and Burkhead and White taking the passing down work. Michel is just getting back on the field after an injury and we’ll see how much he ends up cutting out of Harris’ workload.
WR: Julian Edelman, N’Keal Harry, Jakobi Meyers, Damiere Byrd
The Patriots don’t have a receiver in the top 60. Edelman has not played since Week 7. Harry is awful. Meyers is interesting, and if I had to pick someone from this group, it’d still be him despite being a victim of Newton’s meager pass attempts. Byrd is a nice flier if the matchup is right for the deep ball, but he’s more inconsistent than Meyers.
TE: Pass
“New England drafted two tight ends, but neither did anything of note in week one. Tight ends usually don’t break out in year one so don’t expect much from either this year. Devin Asiasi and Dalton Keene have a long way to go.” – Me 12 weeks ago.
“Me 8 weeks ago – Pass.”
“Me 4 weeks ago – Pass.”
Me today – Pass.
Those were my AFC East Divisional Nuggets! Hope you enjoyed it! Hit me up @DFF_JoeMem on Twitter to let me know what you think about the AFC East. Be sure to sign up for the DFF monthly subscription so you can have access to my Dynasty Rankings and always be one step ahead of the competition!
