Emteesee

Agreed. Everyone is acting like this is going to be a committee but I don't think so. Everyone was saying the same in 2015 with Chris and David Johnson but he rode CJ until he broke his tibia, even though in limited carries DJ looked like the more dynamic back. Arians likes to have a #1 RB and will ride Williams until he gives him a reason not to. He even tried to make Ellington the feature back....

3) Much more randomness in the NFL and the fantasy player pool is very shallow these days. Its a QB league now. Go-to WRs are very hard to come by. The RB position has become a joke as far as FF is concerned. There are RBs for seemingly every down and situation these days. Sure, ther are a few studs but not nearly as many as there used to be. Its way harder to start a quality team and so much is out of your control. NFL teams used to have a Clear #1 RB, Clear WR's 1 & 2, and a solid TE. Now - its 4-5 random dudes chucked out there in some spread offense. You can thank the Pats for this BS. . Just takes the fun out of it when its such a crapshoot for talent and the talent pool is so damned thin. 4) Football is harder to watch now. Other threads have highlighted many of the reasons but the bottom line is that the ratings are down and the on-field product is crappier than ever. That also takes some of the incentive out of it. IMO. These are two of the main reasons I am contemplating quitting. Been playing since the late 90's, so longer than some and shorter than others. Long enough, however, to remember when quality research actually had some small chance of improving your chances of winning. I took one year off about 3 years ago and didn't miss it a bit so I'm thinking about hanging it up. For the past 5 years or so, my interest has dwindled more each year.

Brandon Marshall is a 32 year old man who was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder five years ago. I get what you're saying; I just don't think it applies in this case.

Are you just going by a generalized belief that "crazy can't help crazy"? Of course they can. This is an inane statement.

Wow, when you put it that way, it really makes sense. It didn't hit me the same way the first time you wrote it. I don't know what the hell I was thinking. I changed my mind. Dude's done, man. Bank it.

Anyone who says a clean and dedicated Gordon, who will be 25 next year, doesn't have a chance to be a top 10 wide receiver has either never seen him play or is bat sh!t crazy. The question is whether or not he will be clean and dedicated. Recent reports look good. Obviously, though, no one knows what he'll do between now and then. Despite the risk, he is worth adding as one of four keepers without question.

I haven't seen a whole lot of love for this guy, but in my league he is 5th in average points per week - just 4 points per week less than Dalton. He has thrown for multiple TD's in every game, his yardage has increased every game, and the Titans coaching staff has hinted that he may start running it more. Why isn't he lauded more often, and what do you think his value is for the rest of the season?

I picked Stafford and Bradford in the draft and have been playing musical QB's all season. I need a QB. League member offered me Mariota for Maclin so I started doing a little research. In our league, he is 5th in average weekly points; his total points are down because of the bye week. He has been consistent, thrown multiple touchdown in every game so far, etc. Why isn't Mariota getting more love, and would any of you pull the trigger on this trade? I'm decent at WR so losing Maclin wouldn't be the end of the world... Will answer in return...

Agree with above post - I would pick up Walker for one week but if I wanted a ROS TE I'd take Barnidge. Just don't like him against Baltimore. Hurns for sure... http://www.fftodayforums.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=449345

I would go with Robinson, Matthews, and Aiken. Hankerson gets about 8 targets a game so he wouldn't be a bad option either. Robinson gets a ton of targets, and Aiken should get a boost from Smith being out. http://www.fftodayforums.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=449345

Agreed that they may dump it off to Bernard against the Seahawks; only GB has done anything against them on the ground. Allen Robinson is a little boom-or-bust also, but the matchup is good this week and he may get 15 targets... http://www.fftodayforums.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=449345

I would pull the trigger on this. Abdullah is going to take awhile to develop (similar to Ellington, I think), and I think Mariota has a chance to outscore Wilson through the rest of the season. http://www.fftodayforums.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=449345

I wouldn't in standard; would at least consider it in PPR. Blount is most likely going to get 15 - 20 touches per game and all of the goal line work. My opinion is Blount outscores Lewis over the course of the season... http://www.fftodayforums.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=449345

I play in a league where you can start two tight ends, so I am constantly evaluating tight ends against wide receivers. Obviously the final stats speak for themselves, but the two stats that separate them the most in general are YPC and endzone targets. WR have an advantage on the former, and some tight ends have an advantage on the latter. I start with targets - for example, this week Eifert got 12 and Reed got 11 - and go from there. A TE is rarely going to break a long one, but if they are getting close to double digit targets consistently (with a couple of them being endzone), and their YPC isn't atrocious, they can be as valuable as a WR 1/2, and more consistently than many of them.

Graham caught 6 of 8 for 51 and a touch against the Rams last week so if Reed gets 11 or so targets again I think he'll be good.

I've never indulged in DFS, but I do think two things: 1. There is no way in hell DFS is more of a skill game than Hold 'Em. I'm not saying more skill in either doesn't lead to more profitably, just that calling the former a skill game and the latter "luck" is ridiculous. 2. The days of legal DFS are numbered. I don't care who's backing it, how big it is, etc. In the long-term, both will be legal. Social change, however, often moves at a generational pace. Expect DFS to be illegal within 5 years.

That's why they drafted his long-term replacement D Johnson, and brought in his short-term replacement C Johnson. If their O-line was worth a damn all of this might even matter. C Johnson will get his shot this year. Bank on it. What he does with it is another matter.

I like David Johnson long-term but I don't think this is his year. Even if Ellington doesn't get injured, I think Chris Johnson will become the feature back in Arizona for (at least) most of this season. I think it's the situation more than anything - Ellington is an injury risk and has shown he's better as a change-of-pace then a feature back. David Johnson is a rookie, and as someone referred to earlier, he is known to try and elude defenders with speed and agility instead of power (I assume this is why some people have decided he's not "tough"). His pass protection ability has also been called into question in the past. I agree that David Johnson has a great chance at becoming a feature back in the NFL, but it won't be until the latter part of this season or next year. I think Arians gives the kid some time to improve where he needs to improve, lets Ellington return to more of a change-of-pace role, and leans on the newly-enlightened Chris Johnson, who apparently has found a new work ethic and humbler attitude. Just my take. I've been known to be wrong once or twice. I think it was once.

For this week it depends, at least in part, on the DB's. Edelman draws McClain in the slot which is a great matchup for him. Thompkins usually lines up left so should draw Trufant which is also good. Dobson will get stuck with Samuel - see Wallace last week. This is the way it looks like it should play out, but I'm going to take a look to see if I can find definitive info on who's covering who on Sunday morning. Depends also on how healthy Gronk is. If he's healthy enough to catch 20 balls, my guess is they give him 20 targets but I don't think he is. Boston Herald doesn't think so either but who knows. I'm going to monitor that also obviously. Long term, just watching the games, I like Dobson. I just think he fits more into what they need - a vertical threat - rather than what Thompkins brings to the table - a potentially solid possession guy.

Five years, but there are obviously some major differences this season, and none of them are that he's no longer 6'5", 250 lbs, 4.5 40, 40 inch vert. The reasons for optimism have been hashed and rehashed so I'll leave them be. If he was still in Tenn and it was the same old sleeper talk, I'd agree. It's a whole different ball game this year, though. Two last round flyers I like: Brice Butler, OAK: 6'3", 215, 40 in the 4.3's They raved about him from the start, he moved quickly up the depth chart, highlight reel catch after catch, then nothing. No news. He's got a hamstring injury but says he could play. Rumors start about the Raiders trying to shop Moore around... Tyler Eifert, CIN Everyone knows him obviously, but same M.O. with preseason - initial raves and press onslaught, team-wide praise, glowing reports, then nothing. He's got a wrist injury but says he could play. Bengals are going to use a lot of two TE sets this year... The first year I noticed this pattern was with Boldin (Cards) in 2003. The latest example is Morris from last year. Hyped as hell during initial practices and the start of preseason, and then the team shut up about him and he didn't play Week 4. Needless to say, he was on my team. Could be nothing, of course. To paraphrase a line from a favorite movie, "I'm as full of sh*t as anyone else", but paying attention to this pattern has served me well at times over the years with flyers.

This is the first I heard of Thompkins when I was doing some pre-(NFL)draft research: http://mattwaldmanrsp.com/2013/02/21/reads-listens-views-2222013/ I kept my eye on him after reading that...

Yup. Last year, Redskins RB's ran 360 times, 93% with Morris (also Royster, Helu). The Packers ran 308 times with Benson, Starks, Green, and Grant. So no, there was no single viable fantasy RB on the Packers last year. But IF Lacy gets the same proportion of last year's Packer's carries as Morris did of the Redskins, he'll carry the ball about 287 times this season. Factor in that they may add to that since they actually have a back they like, and I feel safe with Lacy. Also, I think the Pack is geting a bit of an unfair rep for being pass-first - they were 16th in the league last year for rushing attempts. And when you look at the above numbers, Washington RB's ran the ball an average of 3.25 more times per game than GB. That's all.

I started researching Butler about a month ago. After watching him in the preseason, I drafted him as a flier. Recently, I've been unable to find any information about him, specifically the injury and/or where they're thinking of sticking him on the depth chart. Unless you believe everything sb nation says, it seems likely he'll wind up 3rd WR, which is pretty good for a guy that started out on the third team offense. I've seen his name on a couple of sleeper lists in this forum but not much else. Any info on him?

Wilson got benched in the first game because of a fumble and a missed block, but stayed in the doghouse because he didn't have the first clue how to pass protect against the blitz. It was the right move to make when 1) RB in question is your #2 on the depth chart, and 2) your #1 RB is regarded by many to be one of the best blockers to play at that position in years. Bradshaw got injured the next game - no way were they going to put Wilson back in there at that point. But I never got the feeling it was a demotion to #3; it seemed more like a strategic move to give him a chance to learn to block, and they were basically forced to trust him more as the year went on. I'd argue he responded well. He still has some things to learn, but I think Coughlin had more positive than negative things to say about his development in pass protection late last year and this preseason. I'm high on him this year because: 1. I think he'll be the consistent 1st and 2nd down back and that will be enough for high RB2 numbers 2. His burst from 1st to 5th gear is ridiculous. It's not his 40 time, which allows him to stay gone, it's the burst to the secondary that's crazy 3. Bradshaw took the time to teach him to block last year and you could see his blocking improve the last 4 weeks of last season 4. I don't think there's much danger of the doghouse this year. He's a MUCH better blocker than he was a full year ago. There's a difference between a missed block being the norm and being an anamoly. You don't get benched for weeks for an anamoly, and I think he's there now. And of course I'd take S. Jax over him.

No love for Thompkins? The Pats look bush league for sure and Amendola is out but 6 for 93 in the first half on 7 targets?