Dynasty Analysis
Let’s do something different this week. Instead of breaking down every game on the main slate, I’ll be focusing on five games in particular that I believe offer the best game environments and stacking opportunities. As you read, please note that the player names in bold are what I consider my “core” players or guys that I’m sliding into a large percentage of my lineups. Oh, and if you’re new to DFS, you should check out my DFS Tips and Tricks article here.
In this weekly article, I’m going to look ahead to the following week. I’ll point out a few players below 40% owned on ESPN who have strong matchups next week that you can pick up ahead of time to beat the waiver run. I’ll also try and get ahead of breakouts that could happen in the current week, as predicting breakouts is the best way to save your FAAB budget. Pittman is my only must-add for the week. He only had three catches for 66 yards and a touchdown in Week 11, but he’s seen heavy action since he returned in Week 8. I believe that Pittman has clearly passed T.Y. Hilton as the Colts’ top receiver, and he has excellent matchups in Week 13 against the Texans and Week 14 against the Raiders. Add Pittman to your team now and ride him to and through your playoffs.
On a mucky, wet Sunday afternoon in Cleveland, the Browns defense stood tall against the Carson Wentz led Eagles offense. Over four quarters, the Cleveland defense scored a touchdown, racked up five sacks, produced a safety, secured two interceptions, and recovered a fumble. IDP players of the day include Olivier Vernon, Sione Takitaki, and Denzel Ward.
We are only a week or two away from the playoffs depending on your league. We’ve witnessed lots of splash weeks from this rookie class along with plenty of flops. Counting on rookies on a week to week basis is a gamble but can often pay off. I have monitored the ebb and flow of this rookie class and I hope to have you prepared to make an informed start or sit situation come playoff time. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let’s see how some of the rookies fared this past weekend.
In this weekly piece, I will bring you some risers and fallers from a dynasty lens. Whether it’s injuries, performance, or value, I want to discuss how players have moved around. Based on the week’s events, I’ll give some advice on how to act on the market’s movement, whether it’s buying, selling, or holding.
I won’t limit myself to talking about any specific players or teams because I want to have the freedom to discuss whatever is most relevant. Also, of course, there are more risers and fallers than those I’m listing. However, it’s impossible to cover every single one of them, as dynasty values change weekly for many players. With that said, let’s jump into the risers first, followed by the fallers.
Last week, I told you to start the wrong Saints’ QB. I won’t be making that mistake twice. In his first start, Taysom Hill proved he’s at least somewhat competent as a passer. He completed 18 of 23 passes for 233 yards, and at least 1 of those incompletions was a drop. With his high rushing floor, Hill should be startable in most matchups until Drew Brees returns.
The Cowboys come into this contest relatively healthy, of course, excluding Dak Prescott, who’s out for the season. Ezekiel Elliott continues to log limited practices with a hamstring issue, but he’s not on the game’s final injury report. Elliott looked better last week, as he took 21 carries for 103 yards for his first 100-yard game this season. Hopefully, Elliott continues his upward trend this week, although he’s a hard sell for me in dynasty leagues no matter what.
Happy Thanksgiving! What an amazing holiday this is. All I’m thinking about is mashed potatoes. I always make the mashed potatoes for Thanksgiving, no matter how many people are attending (I wish everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving). I do this because I need the mashed potatoes to be perfect on Thanksgiving. The mashed potatoes are the glue that binds the perfect Thanksgiving bite together. You take some turkey (dark meat for me, please), some stuffing, some gravy and add it to your mashed potatoes and you get the ultimate culinary delight. Nothing better than that.
This week’s dynasty sleeper is former Ravens’ and current Jets’ practice squad player Jaleel Scott. If you happen to know the name, you would know the measurables with Jaleel who is an absolute unit. At 6’5, 218lbs, he is a huge target with good speed for his size running a 4.56 40-yard dash. Scott has tons of potential, so let’s get into it.
Brady has been better than expected for fantasy managers this year standing as the sixth overall quarterback through the last three weeks. Heading into the playoffs with him at the helm wouldn’t be the worst option, but looking past this season I am unsure if Brady returns. If the Bucs somehow manage to find their way to winning a championship, I can almost guarantee he rides off into the sunset with the trophy leaving Tampa to figure out another option because what they have behind him is nothing to be excited about.
Of course, Jonathan Taylor dominated the running back touches this week, just as the Colts claimed that Nyheim Hines would see the most touches. Taylor had 22 carries for 90 yards, and he caught four passes for 24 yards. I also know that Taylor had multiple plays called back for holding, including a touchdown. Overall, I’m happy with what we saw from Taylor this week, and I hope he can build on this momentum moving forward to regain his status as a high-end dynasty RB1.
A second consecutive negative week, but at least we bounced back with our in-depth picks. We went 2-1 and were a half-point away from going 3-0 on the week. We’ll look to bounce back this week in force. I’m admittedly taking some risks this week on my in-depth picks, siding with two teams that are tied for the second-worst ATS record in the league. Still, I think there’s great value to be had in this full slate on NFL action, so let’s get to it!
This weekly article is focused on identifying players who are owned in less than 40% of redraft leagues. These players are going to help your team win this week and every week to come! We are looking for guys you should be able to plug into your starting lineup without hesitation. I’m honestly not sure how many times Frank Gore has made his way on my waiver wire article but much like his long and unending career, he simply won’t go away. Gore scored his first rushing touchdown of the season in the loss to the Chargers, finally pushing him over double-digit fantasy points in a single week. He’s received 10+ carries all but twice this year and is a must-own at this point with the considerable number of injuries and COVID related absences league-wide.
Our luck with injuries among fantasy-relevant IDPs could not last. The grim reality of NFL football conspired with the worsening pandemic to thin out the pool of impact players for our lineups. These factors together with a season-low 13 games this past weekend make this a particularly challenging week to mine the waiver wire for quality options for the rest of the season.
In this streaming article, I will provide you the best weekly options to stream quarterback, tight end, and D/ST. In each section, I’ll break down two streamers in detail, both of which will be under 50% owned, according to ESPN’s ownership percentage at the time of writing. Playing the matchups is a crucial feature of redraft fantasy football, and especially in a crazy 2020 season, active fantasy owners will have a massive advantage.
This week and every week going forward we’ll bring you several recommendations for players you should add to your dynasty rosters. We’ll mainly be targeting lower-owned guys who should be available in all but the deepest leagues.
Rogers has been waiver wire surfing the last few weeks after putting up a goose egg in Week 8 and going on bye the following week. But, dropping him was clearly a mistake. He’s scored 14+ fantasy points in three of the last five weeks (one being a bye week) and continues to feast on a high target share and opportunity while the team lacks pass-catching talent.
Alright, Jonathan Taylor, this is your last chance to impress me. Unlike some of the situations I discussed in the early games article, I don’t blame the coaching staff for Taylor’s struggles. Taylor is playing poorly, and Nyheim Hines looks like the better running back. The Packers are weak against the run but strong against the pass, so I hope Taylor can finally break out.
I love writing these storyline pieces. I will go through the games and discuss one dynasty-relevant storyline per team that I’m excited to see. Usually, I’ll split the games into two sets, covering the early games in one story and the later games in another. Also, I’ll do a special spotlight on the Thursday night game from time to time, as that’s a midweek contest. I like to go into more detail for that game, just for a change of pace.
What a fun story, I almost have to latch on! Following the injury to Drew Brees, Taysom Hill was named the starting quarterback for the Saints’ Week 11 game against the Falcons. Even before Hill was named the starting quarterback, he was garnering significant red zone looks. He is fourth on the team with 14 and has had six in the past two weeks. Now that he’s taking a majority of the snaps, it stands to reason that he’ll see even more action in the red zone. You’re getting plus money on this one too, making it an attractive player prop for this week.
Most of the games this week project to be low-scoring, but some of them will undoubtedly become shootouts. In this article, I’ll be breaking down all eleven matchups on the main slate, sharing my thoughts on player prices* and stacking opportunities. As you read, please note that the player names in bold are what I consider my “core” players or guys that I’m sliding into a large percentage of my lineups. Oh, and if you’re new to DFS, you should check out my DFS Tips and Tricks article here.
*All player prices referenced are from FanDuel.
In this weekly article, I’m going to look ahead to the following week. I’ll point out a few players below 40% owned on ESPN who have strong matchups next week that you can pick up ahead of time to beat the waiver run. I’ll also try and get ahead of breakouts that could happen in the current week, as predicting breakouts is the best way to save your FAAB budget. Since most of these additions will occur on the weekend, I’ll exclude any players from the Thursday night game, as you won’t be able to add them to your rosters. This season more than any other, it’s essential to remain active and stay ahead of your league mates.
Shooters shoot and I’ve taken my fair share, and today I will admit to an airball I took. Giving dynasty advice is essentially just making an educated guess, but we still need to admit when we’re wrong. I still like my process and trust my rookie evaluation process, but I’m ready to admit I have swung and missed. I’ll dive right into my miss and touch on some other rookies below.
WHAT WE LEARNED THIS WEEK Vegas baby! After relinquishing an average of 32 points per game through their first six games, the Raiders’ defense has tightened up significantly over their last three showings. Since the start of November, Las Vegas has given up less than 15 points per game. On Sunday, the unit intercepted Drew […]
Russell Wilson was on fire through the Seahawks’ first five games. He had thrown 19 touchdowns compared to three interceptions, and he was on pace for 4,800 passing yards. The Seahawks had also won all five of those contests, placing them as one of the league’s best teams. However, since the Seahawks’ Week 6 bye, Wilson hasn’t been the same player over the last four games. The Seahawks have lost three of those four games, and Wilson has suddenly become a turnover machine. He’s lost three fumbles and thrown seven interceptions, including three interceptions in his last game versus the Cardinals. I would love to see Wilson right the ship this week, but I might have to drop him slightly in my dynasty quarterback rankings if he doesn’t.
In this weekly piece, I will bring you some risers and fallers from a dynasty lens. Whether it’s injuries, performance, or value, I want to discuss how players have moved around. Based on the week’s events, I’ll give some advice on how to act on the market’s movement, whether it’s buying, selling, or holding. I won’t limit myself to talking about any specific players or teams because I want to have the freedom to discuss whatever is most relevant. Also, of course, there are more risers and fallers than those I’m listing. However, it’s impossible to cover every single one of them, as dynasty values change weekly for many players. With that said, let’s jump into the risers first, followed by the fallers.