Ray_T

in one chat room they were blaming him. my response was.... if the offense put up 30+ points, they have done their job. it is the job of the defense to not give up a pile of points at that point and the defense couldnt answer the bell. Flaccos INT came late in trying to get the team caught up. while the INT isnt good, you kinda know that as an offense you need to take chances if time is running out and you need points, so the odds of an INT happening are greater because the team that is losing needs at that point to take some chances. either way, the Defense was as poor as I've seen in a long time. This team needs to look in the mirror and figure out a way to get that defense playing to a reasonable level. I honestly dont know that you can expect much more from an offense that already has been putting up 35+ points in each of the last 2 games and averaged 40 points a game. and not come away with a win in either game. its pathetic. To be clear, I lay no fault on the offense. (though the line could be better) It is the Defense that really needs to be looked at.

yeah, but throwing a kid into the fire behind a bad o line rarely works out. sometimes a running QB can make up for that some. but thats the exception and not the rule. I still stand by my comments. and the season isnt over yet. there is lots of time for this to turn sour. once teams get some tape on him thats when we will really figure out if hes got what it takes.

good one. he should never have lasted to you, but sometimes people just arent thinking. at the end of the day, with Scatteboo gone, this guy has the whole offense to himself like last year. I expect similar numbers to last season (for the most part) and that likely puts him squarely in RB2 territory. its possible he slips into RB3 territory but without a doubt he should be rostered.

I really have mixed feelings. I do think McLauren earned a good contract. but I have often found there is a letdown after a contract year. there are 2 main reasons (in my opinion) why this happens: 1) the player was all about the money and now that they got paid, they no longer care. this happens sometimes. 2) The player feels the weight (and pressure) of the big money and can sometimes try to do too much and actually sabotage themselves in the process. (most common) on occasion it will also play out differently if the player had to hold out to get a contract....... they dont get to participate in the 2 a days and really dont get all that much work with their teammates. This is especially the case with offensive players. your QB needs to work with their top WR and get on the same page. the RB needs to work with the Line so they know what to expect, how to read their blocks etc. but the QB-WR connection cannot be understated. if they are not on the same page, the productivity just wont be there. in the case of McLauren I think it was a little bit of this and a little bit of #2. he got paid, and when he didnt start strong the weight of the contract put extra pressure on the guy. I think at some point he will put it together. but its hard to say if it will be this year. The holdout also hindered him and may actually be at least 50% of the problem here.

in yardage leagues or standard leagues.... yes for sure. but the sheer volume of pass catching keeeps him as a RB2 in PPR leagues. but the bottom line... if trading Flowers for Kamara, you really REALLY need to be desperate for a RB. I am not actually endorsing this as you can probably get a better RB if trading away Flowers.

agreed. only way this deal works for you is if you have a serious need at RB and a passable RB puts you in a position to win your league. Flowers will be productive for years to come. Kamara.... this may actually be his last or second last year as a productive RB. Dude is 30.

this is especially valid in PPR rules. Standard league its a far harder decision to make

well, I said this earlier. the tools are in the toolbox. but when it comes to playing in the NFL its all about whats in the kids head. you gotta make good decisions, and you need to make them quickly. Not everyone can do that at the NFL level. you have about a second less time to make those decisions than you have at the college level. while that doesnt seem like much, its actually a lot. and the Defenses are more sophisticated and skilled and will throw different looks at you. its a much harder job at the pro level.

well thats the thing. we wont truly know what hes about for another year. teams are gonna find ways to negate him and he as a QB will need to adapt. Every rookie goes through this. and the ones who can adapt to the way the league defends him will inevitably become starters. the ones who cant become backups. we wont truly know the results for a while

just ask Buffalo

Well they did lose. so the Fantasy gods made them pay. (though they were against the pack.... likely they were gonna lose anyway)

well, the tools are in the toolbox. but at the NFL level its more processing speed than it is about skill because everybody (for the most part) in the NFL has skill. I guess we will see. this is the first dud of the year. it could be a sign of things to come, or it could just be a bad game. The eagles are a pretty good defense. so I think it is too early to establish this as a trend, but you can bet on one thing...... whatever the defense was doing against him..... whoever plays him over the next week or two will try to do the same things that gave him a problem. that said, some weaker defenses likely dont have the talent to be able to execute the game plan in the same way. so its not a guarantee that hes headed for harder times. I remember watching a very good defense execute a very good game plan against Lamar a couple of years back and people said a lot of the same. but I saw the game and I felt that only one or two defenses in the NFL had the talent and ability to execute such a game plan. so I did not see that as a sign of things to come. so you kind of need to put it into context. other teams did try to execute that same gameplan vs Lamar with minimal success. but I saw those games and clearly they didnt have the talent to be able to execute in the same way and Lamar was good enough to overcome that with only occasional issues. so I think the bottom line is.... it is likely too early to say for sure one way or another. but I do agree. next game or two, the defense will try to emulate what Philly did against him. it will be interesting to see how that turns out.

I'm in a league where you play multiple teams each week. I would have run the table if Baker put up 15-18 fantasy points instead I get 7.5 points. what was going to be a fantastic week turned into just a good week. I suppose I shouldnt complain but this stiff only seems to have good weeks when he is on my bench.

well, he keeps the defense honest. if they crowd the line, he gets the ball. if they play to stop the pass, Sequon gets the ball. for a game (maybe two) you can get by without him. but teams will quickly adapt to the more run heavy offense. Like it or not.... He is an important part of that.

This is my fault. I started Baker this week. and he only seems to perform well on my bench.