Fantasy football strategy, rankings, and podcasts

The fantasy playoffs are in full swing, and hopefully your team is still alive and kicking. If you didn’t make it this far, you can commiserate with Mike and figure out what to do next. For the rest of us, we have to replace our Daltons, Blounts and Yeldons and move on to week 15.

Philip Rivers stands out this week as a bounce back prospect in 2 QB leagues. If only for pride, the Chargers should be able to take care of business at home against Miami, a team that can’t get much right at all.

The flipside of that same coin, or game, if you will, is Ryan Tannehill. Up against one of the worst passing defenses in the league last week, he only managed 236 yds and 1 TD. Keep him on your bench if you have any hopes of playing in week 16.

Danny Woodhead is a sneaky flex start this week, based on the terrible Miami rushing defense. Woodhead should be able to gain at least 100 yards from scrimmage and will find the end zone against a bad Dolphins defense.

Shaun Draughn is a guy who keeps finding himself high up in the ECR (expert consensus rankings), but doesn’t produce much at all. In a great matchup last week in Cleveland, he had a measly 43 rush yards. Keep him on the bench this week against the Bengals.

My numbers say that you should start a guy like Travis Benjamin this week as a low-end WR3, but I’m just going to remind everyone that that game will have Manziel facing the Seahawks defense in Seattle. Don’t bother starting any Browns unless you have to. Stick to your guns and the guys who got you there!

Make sure that John Brown finds his way into your lineup. He’s fully healthy again and the Cardinals defense has been one of the most consistent in the league all year. It doesn’t hurt that they play the Eagles this week, the team that gives up the most points to opposing WR’s.

You've made it to the championship game (or consolation for 3rd place), congratulations! This week, it's (of course) very important to get it right, so make sure you stop by our Injury report to see who won't be playing this week, and our Waiver Wire Pickups to see who needs to take their place. Good luck in week 16!

If you're still struggling to fill in for Andy Dalton, check and see if Eli Manning is an option. His matchup this week is going to be easier going than last week's game against Carolina, and he still put up good numbers there.

Matt Stafford is a very risky QB1 play (I'd save him for 2 QB leagues), partly due to the disappearance of his star wide-out Calvin Johnson. The last two games have seen just two receptions for Megatron, and that's the boost that Stafford is missing from moving into top 10 territory.

Danny Woodhead is coming off of a huge week, and now sits alone atop the depth chart in San Diego. Coming off of a short week, he's one of the few truly healthy offensive weapons for the Chargers. Look for him to get a lot of touches this week, he's an RB2.

Alfred Blue, despite nice words from his coach and a 100+ yard performance last week, is a candidate to spend the week on your bench. Going up against Tennessee, a team that has a solid running defense, Blue will likely struggle. His previous performance against them of a whopping 7.2 points doesn't instill a lot of confidence.

Travis Benjamin, now free of the Seattle defense, should be able to reconnect with his buddy Johnny Football. The KC defense has stiffened up a bit in past weeks, but they're still not immune to giving up big games. Benjamin will be on the upside of his WR3 tag this week.

Tyler Lockett has had a good run, but one of the few teams that gives up fewer points to opposing WR's (other than the Seahawks) is St. Louis. Lockett's yardage numbers are never gaudy, and he's very touchdown dependent. Consider your other options this week and loose elsewhere in a game that could wind up being rather low scoring.

The time for drafting and sleepers and value picks and auctions have all past, it's now time for real football to be played! Week 1 starts on Thursday night with the matchup between the Panthers and Broncos in the mile-high city. Make sure you also check out our podcast where Dave and Jason break down all the Week 1 matchups.

Listen to the Fantasy Football Podcast, 9/6/16: Week 1 Preview

As far as this week's rankings go, it's Week 1, so it's probably going to be the biggest crapshoot of the year. You are likely going to have very few decisions to make on Sunday - this is a good thing. Go with the guys you drafted high and be patient. If you are interested in a few guys we're high on, look for Kirk Cousins to do well against Pittsburg, Danny Woodhead to get some nice garbage points in KC and Larry Fitzgerald to shine on a team that is 3-deep at wideout.

Well, it was fun while it lasted! This was a tough week of injuries around the league. Incredibly tough on the Chargers. 2 weeks, 2 ACLs. Hopefully, you avoided most of the injury bug that is going around and good luck in week 3.

Quarterback

Josh McCown – Shoulder injury- Multiple week absence

Rough loss for the Browns who showed some life in the first half of the game. Cody Kessler is the next man up and will make the start this weekend. Bump down for all Browns players. Expect to see lots of pressure from Miami to force the Rookie to make some plays. Hopefully, McCown can make his way back by week 5 for Josh Gordon’s return.

Jimmy Garoppolo – Shoulder- Questionable

To my surprise, Jimmy participated in walk trough’s Tuesday morning but I would not expect him to start this week. Rookie Jacoby Brissett will get the nod. I would like to say this hurts everyone on the Patriots, but with Bill Belichick anything is possible.

Andy Dalton – Ankle – Played through injury

Was injured in the second half vs the Steelers and played through. Was limping after the game and will most likely be limited in practice this week. He will be good to go vs Denver on Sunday.

Jay Cutler- Ligament Damage right Thumb – Possibly out for weeks

Smoking Jay looks like he will be missing some time which leaves the door open for Hoyer the Destroyer. I do not see this hurting any of the fantasy options (what little there are) in Chicago. I expect Hoyer to pepper Jeffery with targets and the Bears will continue to be a below average team.

Running Backs

Danny Woodhead – Torn ACL- Out for the Season

Our favorite gym rat Danny is out for the year. Huge loss for owners in PPR and those zero RB drafters. Melvin Gordon will see 3 down duties and I expect Woodhead's passing targets to get spread around that offense. Melvin is trending up to RB1 play now and Tyrell Williams and Travis Benjamin will see more targets.

Jonathan Stewart – Hamstring – Left game and out at least a week or two

Stewart was forced out of the third drive of the game with a Hamstring issue. This left the ground game to Fozzy Whittaker who rushed for 100 yards after getting the nod. Whittaker will be a hot add this week but I expect a timeshare of Fozzy and Cameron Artis-Payne until Stewart is back.

Adrian Peterson – Torn Meniscus – Unknown timetable

I am sure we have all seen the highlights of AP being helped through a bar to the locker room in Minnesota’s new state of the art stadium. There are a lot of conflicting reports on the timetable for return so we are sitting in wait and see mode. McKinnon will be the hot add this week but do not sleep on the TD vulture Matt Asiata. I expect McKinnon to continue his role of change of pace back and the Vikings using Asiata in the red zone and between the tackles until AP is back.

Doug Martin – Hamstring – Unknown Timetable

Martin suffered a “slight tweak” and will be getting an MRI Tuesday. He seems unlikely to suit up against the Rams but good news for owners is the injury does not appear to be too serious. Charles Simms will get the nod and a heavy workload on Sunday. If he is available pick him up, especially in PPR where even with Martin he is a borderline flex play.

Ameer Abdullah – Foot – Unknown Timetable

He left Sundays game with a foot injury. X-Rays came back negative, but Abdullah is visiting with the famous foot doctor, Robert Anderson. Not a good sign that they are seeking additional help here. Theo Riddick and Dwayne Washington will step into a timeshare here. Riddick may be owned but Washington is a guy to keep an eye on after showing some flashes of greatness in the preseason.

Arian Foster – Groin-  Unknown Timetable

According to sources, it is unlikely Foster will play this week but is just dealing with a groin strain. Regardless, this should not come as much of a surprise to owners. It wasn’t a matter of “if” Foster would get hurt, it is “when” will he go down. Look for some combination of Ajayi, Drake, and Pead in the backfield this weekend.

Thomas Rawls – Leg Contusion- Should be good to go

Thomas Rawls exited the game after a poor performance and was replaced by Christine Michael (Who looked explosive). Rawls will be good to go vs the 49ers this weekend but expect a timeshare with Michael who has been the most effective rusher for the Seahawks through 2 weeks.

Rashad Jennings – Hand – Should be good to go

Jennings only played 34 snaps this weekend against New Orleans due to the injury but he should be able to wrap this up and get out there for week 3 against Washington. 

Wide Receivers

Donte Moncrief – Concussion/ Shoulder – Unknown Timetable

Originally taken out of the game for a possible concussion, it was later determined that a shoulder injury kept Moncrief out of the game. He had an MRI on Monday but no news has been released on the results. If he misses time, Phillip Dorsett becomes a must-add in all formats.

Julio Jones – Ankle – Julio doing Julio things

Julio owners should know the drill. He is going to get hit, he is going to look like a 70-year-old man getting up, then he is going to run a deep post and score a touchdown. Julio will be fine.

Brandon Marshall – MCL – Might take a week off

After what looked to be a gruesome knee injury, Marshall came back into the game Thursday. He is unsure if he will play this week and it is a situation to monitor. Can’t question his toughness after coming back on the field after that play.

Doug Baldwin – Knee – Day to Day

MRI results came back negative and Baldwin said, “I’m good”. The only issue is I am not sure that offense is good. Regardless of his playing time hopefully you have other options available while we wait for Wilson to get the offense moving

Tight End

Virgil Green – Strained Right Calf – Day to Day

After leaving the stadium in a walking boot, it seems Green missed serious injury and should be in the lineup on Sunday.

Eric Ebron – Concussion - Good to go

Eric Ebron left the game Sunday but then returned late. He will be good to go against the Packers and is turning into a sneaky TE1.

Photo credits - http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/17583949/minnesota-vikings-running-back-adrian-peterson-suffers-right-knee-injury

http://celebcafe.org/danny-woodhead-out-for-season-with-torn-acl-7293/