Fantasy football strategy, rankings, and podcasts

So this week brings with it the trade deadline for the 2021 NFL season, several important injuries (and some players returning to practice from previous injuries), and a ton of news and updates from around the league. Your hosts Jason and Dave will be discussing all of the important news stories of the week and their fantasy impact, answering some lineup questions, making a bet or two, and going over the (Jay) cutlist. You can't afford to miss this one as we enter the second half of the fantasy season!

This video/podcast will go live at 9pm CT on Wednesday, November 3, 2021 - it will also be available on all major podcast channels and remain available on YouTube for later review and comments. Join us live and add your comments/questions to the show!

This video features the songs and artists listed below, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license: - Various original music by David Biggs

Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes to get notifications whenever we release a new episode. We also broadcast the shows live on our YouTube channel Wednesday nights at 9pm CT. Feel free to browse over and join in the discussion in the chat room and subscribe to the drinkfive channel for updates!

It has just been chaos lately in the NFL (what's new, right?) with the injuries, criminal cases, mental health issues, and other surprises that are affecting players' fantasy production and value. But there is one way to sort through all the madness to find the pearls of wisdom and possible plays for your week 10 matchups - join your hosts Jason and Dave as they cycle through some player trends and take a look at targets in the passing game as an indicator of future performance. Only a few weeks left now until the playoff teams are decided... make sure to put in the work to get there!

This video/podcast will go live at 9pm CT on Wednesday, November 3, 2021 - it will also be available on all major podcast channels and remain available on YouTube for later review and comments. Join us live and add your comments/questions to the show!

This video features the songs and artists listed below, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial license: - Various original music by David Biggs

Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes to get notifications whenever we release a new episode. We also broadcast the shows live on our YouTube channel Wednesday nights at 9pm CT. Feel free to browse over and join in the discussion in the chat room and subscribe to the drinkfive channel for updates!

Around the NFL

Injuries:

Tyrod Taylor (BUF) – missed week 6 with an MCL sprain. Not guaranteed to start in week 7 but as he almost started last week according to some sources, he should be back soon. With both Percy Harvin (hip, may be out for a significant period of time) and Sammy Watkins (ankle sprain, could play next week but it’s an early game in London) possibly out, Taylor is in trouble even if he gets back on the field this week.

Emmanuel Sanders (DEN) – we started the season under the impression that Sanders’ role would diminish a little in the Broncos offense, but he has been performing at a high level this year, and is the 5^th most targeted wide receivers, with 65 targets in 2015. Unfortunately, he sprained his AC joint last week, which can be a lingering injury. Thankfully, the Broncos have a bye in week 7 and we’ll have to wait and see if Sanders can get healthy leading up to week 8.

Marcus Mariota (TEN) – a grade 2 MCL injury could have Mariota sidelined for up to 3-4 weeks, so it’s very unlikely that he starts this week. Zach Mettenberger may be the Titans’ QB for a little while. If so, that doesn’t really hurt Kendall Wright and Delanie Walker.

Jeremy Maclin (KC) – A nasty looking hit resulted in a concussion for Maclin, and he is currently moving through the league’s protocol. After the loss of star RB Jamaal Charles for the season, the Chiefs may choose to play it safe and hold Maclin out a week. Make sure to watch for updates on this.

Top Performers for Week 6

QB - Matthew Stafford 405 Passing Yards, 4 Passing TD's, 37 Rushing Yards, 1 INT, 33 Fantasy Points

QB - Philip Rivers 503 Passing Yards, 2 TD's, 28 Fantasy Points

QB - Andrew Luck 312 Passing Yards, 3 Passing TD's, 35 Rushing Yards, 27 Fantasy Points

RB - Devonta Freeman 13 Carries for 100 Yards, 8 Catches for 56 Yards, 2 Total TD's, 27 Fantasy Points

RB - Chris Ivory 20 Carries for 146 Yards and 1 TD, 3 Catches for 50 Yards, 25 Fantasy Points

RB - James Starks 10 Carries for 112 Yards, 1 Catches for 5 Yards, 2 Total TD's 23 Fantasy Points

WR - DeAndre Hopkins 15 Targets, 10 Receptions for 148 Yards and 2 TD's, 26 Fantasy Points

WR - Martavis Bryant 8 Targets, 6 Receptions for 137 Yards and 2 TD's, 25 Fantasy Points

WR - Calvin Johnson 9 Targets, 6 Receptions for 166 Yards and 1 TD, 22 Fantasy Points

TE - Greg Olsen 11 Targets, 7 Receptions for 131 Yards and 1 TD, 19 Fantasy Points

TE - Benjamin Watson 12 Targets, 10 Receptions for 127 Yards and 1 TD, 18 Fantasy Points

TE - Gary Barnidge 9 Targets, 3 Receptions for 39 Yards and 2 TD's, 15 Fantasy Points

Player Transaction Trends (Yahoo)

ADD – Blake Bortles, 13k leagues. Duh! Surprised to see he was still not owned in so many leagues.. even against BUF this week, Bortles should perform well.

DROP – Sam Bradford, 9k leagues. Bradford is our QB, says Chip Kelly. Well, things are improving slowly over there but Bradford’s performance is still sub-par.

ADD – Stefon Diggs, 24k leagues. Wow, looks like a breakout here.. 19 targets for over 200 yards in the last 2 games.

ADD – Brandon LaFell, 9k leagues. Will he play this week? That’s up for grabs.. but if he does he’ll immediately be a WR2 and a stud in PPR.

ADD – Christine Michael, 12k leagues. So many sources close to the team are saying that Michael will get his chance this next few weeks to show he can be the starter in Dallas.

DROP – Charcandrick West, 10k leagues. Whoops. Looks like Jamaal Charles can’t be replaced so easily. A committee will likely form in KC.

Each week, there are hundreds if not thousands of news articles, opinion pieces, injury reports, and more written about the NFL. It's my hope to try and sort out some of these and bring to the top the most relevant and interesting headlines that you can use to set your weekly fantasy lineup with confidence. Want to send me questions/comments/suggestions? I can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

- Kirk Cousins was a top fantasy football QB over the last half of the 2015 season. Looks like he's trying to duplicate that effort again. At 349 passing yards per game with an 8:1 TD:INT ratio, Cousins is making it happen. For most fantasy leagues it's past the trade deadline, but if you're a Cousins owner you should be starting him until he proves otherwise.

- Thomas Rawls was on waiver wire lists everywhere last week. Finally healthy and ready to resume his role on the Seattle offense, he was picked up in most leagues where he was not already owned. It was assumed that he would slowly take carries away from rookie C.J. Prosise, but after Prosise suffered a scapula injury and Seattle dropped their black sheep former starting RB Christine Michael, Rawls is thrust once again into the spotlight (where he performed so well last season). I would expect more of the same this season.. Rawls may take a few lucky teams to the championship.

- Andrew Luck may not start this week as he's in the league's concussion protocol. What will this do the offensive gems from the Colts like Moncrief, Hilton and Allen? From my perspective, it gives them a bit of a hit. If Luck does miss Week 12, Scott Tolzein will start and his impact is not very clear (limited sample size) but it's a definite downgrade from Luck. On the plus side, this may actually be a boost to Frank Gore, who the Colts will likely lean on.

- A.J. Green went down early in the Bengals' game, clutching his leg in obvious pain. After what was feared to be a severely torn hamstring, the latest news is that it was just a strain (partial tear) which should only keep him sidelined for a few weeks instead of the rest of the season. But with all of the injuries to other Bengals' players as well - is it worth it to even bring him back in what could be a lost season? My fantasy teams would sure love to have him back out on the field!

- Stefon Diggs did not practice on Tuesday and that should be a concern to both his owners and also to those who may have or be picking up Adam Thielen from the waiver wire. He went for 65 yards and a touchdown this past week and has been productive in general but much more so when Stefon Diggs has been out (Week 5 vs. HOU - 127 yards and a touchdown). In other news, do the Vikings turn it back around at the end of the season? They play Detroit this week to determine the King in the North.

- David Johnson has 30 less receiving yards than DeAndre Hopkins. Yep. That's a thing.

- Jordan Howard has been a welcome surprise from a Bears' offense that has otherwise been blown up from both injury and general lack of talent and coaching ability (that last one is questionable, but there is still a strong possibility that there are changes made there). He's rushed for over 100 yards on average these past 3 games. Now with Cutler and Miller out (in addition to Jeffery), will his production go up, or down? I think we'll see some kind of rotation there going forward which may not be a great thing for fantasy owners.

- LeSean McCoy dislocated his thumb and the medical staff was unable to pop it back in for McCoy to go back out in the game last week - signs point to him starting this week but injuries like this one can sometimes cause players to be limited or held out. Mike Gillislee again becomes a good flex play regardless of whether or not McCoy plays in Week 12.

- Giovani Bernard tore his ACL at the end of the game last week, which puts Jeremy Hill in the forefront of a team that no longer has its major offensive assets available. What are the odds that Hill's fantasy production increases? Pretty good.

- Ryan Mathews and Darren Sproles both suffered injuries last week (knee and ribs, respectively), which allowed for rookie RB Wendell Smallwood to step into the driver's seat. He performed fairly well, running for 48 yards and catching 4 passes for 31 yards. Smallwood will have a role this week regardless of whether or not Sproles suits up, as Mathews' MCL will likely leave him sidelined.

- Jay Cutler suffered a torn labrum in the game on Sunday, which may land him on IR. The Bears' quarterback situation does not lead to any fantasy relevance, but this will curb any thoughts of playing Bears' offensive options besides Jordan Howard.

- T.J. Yeldon went down with an ankle injury, which should cement Chris Ivory as the lead back in Jacksonville.. that should lead to more fantasy points, but it certainly wasn't a great omen when Ivory fumbled just after Yeldon exited the game. Yikes!