December 9, 2025 • 48 mins
It's Fox Sports Radio's official fantasy football podcast! Dan Beyer and Mike Harmon open the show with their thoughts and reactions following the Chargers' big win over the Eagles on Monday Night Football... Is Omarion Hampton the true workhorse going forward, or will it be an even split with Vidal? How concerned should we be about the Eagles offense? Then they move into the rest of Week 14, going through some of their biggest fantasy takeaways from each matchup. Later, Mike shares his top waiver wires adds of the week as we move into Week 15!
Hosts: Dan Beyer, Mike Harmon
Producer: Ian Roddy
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You want experience during your football season, will buckle up,
sweet cheeks. We've got all the experience in the world.
This is I want your flex with Dan Bayer and
Mike Harmon. Mike and Dan break down everything you need
to set your lineups, from position rankings.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
To starts and sits. The guys help you make those
hard decisions.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
And now let's catch your flexod Here's Dan Bayer and
Mike Harmon.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
I don't know if it was good, but it was
exciting and it was fut a way to wrap up
an interesting Week fourteen of the NFL and fantasy football season.
He is Mike Harmon. Hit him up at Swallen Doll.
You can find me on Exit Dan Byer on Fox.
Ian Roddy is our executive producer. Find him at Ian
Roddy Underscore Guys. Chargers in Eagles wrap up Week fourteen
(00:54):
with an overtime thriller, although there wasn't much thrill throughout
the game. Couple of big plays here in there and
then just turnovers galore, but in the end a broken
hand at all justin Herbert and the Chargers get a victory,
but maybe not leading fantasy teams to victory for what
was a really weird night in fantasy football.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Yeah, it might have been one of the strangest games ever.
And then add to that, they had the Monsters Inc.
Second broadcast, which I found my eyes drifting to. So
I'm watching, Hey there's Sully instead of Justin Herbert. Oh
it works out. Now he's running amuck as he finished
as the Chargers leading rusher with sixty six yards. But
you know, field goal kicking contests, some of the crazy
(01:35):
stats that we talk about. Cameron Dicker, the insane duel
turnover play for Jalen Hurts. Over the course of the night,
he finishes with five turnovers. I mean just coming into
the game, he'd had two interceptions through the first thirteen
weeks of the season. Sakwan Barkley runs wild into the
(01:56):
secondary and on the final possession does he see the ball?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
No?
Speaker 4 (02:00):
So just a curious game outside of the kickers. And
I guess the defense is because of all the turnovers.
Yeah Barkley. Aj Brown finished with one hundred receiving yards
and then Justin Herbert because of the sixty six rushing
yards might have gotten you a little bit of love,
but just one thirty nine one in one and if
you get dinged for the sacks, he actually still absorbed
(02:21):
seven sacks despite his heroics.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
But yeah, just a very odd game.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
If you started Omari and Hampton, you were probably satisfied
with the point total. But in the end they really
just leaned on Vidal, and I think that was probably
because Hampton and the shape that he was probably in
and still getting into game shape, and also just came
situation that didn't use him as much at the end
but had the touchdown early. But it's interesting on the
Charger side of things, because now do you have a
(02:48):
split backfield, I think captains you know, well, I shouldn't say.
I think we all know he's the future and the
top talent, but I don't think that with that offensive line,
I don't think you want Justin Herbert being your leading rusher, Mike.
And so when you know, when we're looking at this backfield, now,
Vidal isn't gonna go away now that Omar and Hampton
(03:10):
is back.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
Yeah, I was fearing for Justin Herbert's life every time
he ran. Now you had some overpursuit by the defensive front.
So he found the little gateway to slip out the
back door and find his way. There are a couple
of times as he got towards the sideline like he's
about to get blown up, and you had players pull up, like,
thank god, the last thing he needs to absorb a
(03:32):
couple more hits. But I think you're right. I think
between Videl or Vidal and Hampton, I think we're going
to get an equitable split here because behind that line
a lot of you know, yards before contact is a
very negligible number. So you know, trying to keep him fresh,
keep him right, because you're at nine and four, you're
sitting in the middle of the playoff hunt, still trying
(03:55):
to figure out how to you know, unleash a little
more in your receiving corps.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Tough.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
Philadelphia defense has been strong at points, but you know,
Herbert and that passing attack a little bit disjointed. But
if you can get the run game going, perhaps you
can on cork a little bit of that. So yeah,
I would suspect a split going forward, which gives us
into our RB two flex categories for those guys.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
In week sixteen, maybe it'll be looking for brighter days
with a trip to Dallas to face the Cowboys. But
next week they have the Chiefs, and then in week seventeen,
Championship weekend, they got a home game against the Texans. Yeah,
so yeah, so that'll be interesting defensive matchup. So if
you're the Chargers and looking for daylight, there could be
an opportunity in a couple of weeks. But I think
(04:38):
these two out of the next three with the Chiefs
and Texans could be similar to what we saw on
Monday night between these squads.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
But no, Dan that Houston game, they're actually doing a
Justin Herbert giveaway a bibblehead, which is only appropriate because
he's going to get shake, rattle and rolled by that
defensive front.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I have my cousin is coming into town. My cousin,
so it's my second cousin, but he's in a sophomore
year at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and he's
on winter break, and so he's gonna come out and
it's a flex schedule game and we should find out. Heck,
by the time this years, we may find out. If
that's a Saturday game. I think it very likely will be.
(05:18):
But if the game is on Saturday, I'm going to
take my cousin to the Texans Chargers game in that day. Yes,
it'll be my first NFL game at so far, I
have not been. I went for the National Championship between
TCU and Georgia and that was over by halftime, so
we was out of there in the third quarter. So
the first full NFL game will be hopefully coming up
(05:41):
in a couple of weeks, so that'll be fun. Yeah,
looking for a game too that's gonna be weighing heavily
on the AFC playoff picture. And if we're talking about
the Texans, we might as well talk about what happened
in Kansas City on Sunday night because it was the
same sort of deal. Maybe not even as sloppy as
it was between the Eagles and Chargers, but still you're
(06:03):
trying to find value in a couple of top tier
teams and it's just very difficult right now if you're
talking about the Texans or the Chiefs.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
Yeah, you got your fourteen points and a half ppr
out of Nicocollins, so a little bit of love there,
but otherwise a Gumbawale gets the rushing touchdown, that's not
helping anybody. Stroud with two oh three and one completing
fifty percent of his passes. Woody Marks did have that score,
so okay, we get we get to our thirteen points there.
But you know, Patrick Mahomes has three interceptions. For those
(06:33):
that didn't watch the game, they're like, oh, he was terrible,
Like none of them.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
Were his fault.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Sure, he called tip.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Drills and problems.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
One drifting towards the sideline, good play by the defender. Okay,
so we'll knock him for that one. But he gets
the fifty nine rushing yards, so I guess that got
him back to basics on the interceptions. But just one
hundred and sixty yards on his fourteen of thirty three.
I had him as a cold source, so I take
the victory. But you know, watching that game, it was
(07:03):
very tense, kind of like the Monday Night game, except
we didn't even get the super toe kickers out there
to grind this thing out, Fellas. I mean, it was
just a couple of big plays, but starting and stops
throughout the night to leading to a whole lot of
fantasy disappointment.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, I keep on looking for the opportunity. With CJ.
Stroud now back in the fold and returning from from
his injuries and the wide receiving core that they have
with the Texans, like it's really there for Nico Collins
to be the guy. Yeah, exactly, and Week sixteen Raiders,
(07:44):
So yeah, yes, opportunity presents itself. So for the next
two weeks, you know, maybe not sour as much on
the Texans considering what's ahead. But Sunday night didn't leave
it too much to love from the Houston squad.
Speaker 4 (07:56):
Yeah, Rashie Rise just four for thirty four Kelsey with
a singer catch the tip drill on a ball that
he's caught ninety nine out of one hundred times his
entire life.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Just a difficult night.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
If you played any of the pass catchers now going
up against Houston, this is one of those where we
would have advised, you know, really scoured the roster, look
at your waiver claims, all of those kind of things
to maybe find better because I wasn't expecting I mean,
we weren't expecting fireworks. I think I speak for all
three of us when we talk about what was forty
one or forty one and a half over under for
(08:32):
this game and it played out just an absolute grind
ten nothing at halftime, and it was funny listening to
the to the broadcast trying to find any sign of
life and sliver of hope for the Chiefs, like I
think I got a nine minute Chris Jones infomercial at
one point. But it was just kind of crazy trying
(08:54):
to find anything. It's like, no, no, no, you don't have
to sell it. They're playing terribly, like we can with
our eyes, Patrick Muller. They pull one out, but I
haven't seen it.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
We knew their offensive line was shorthanded and they some weeks.
I'm going to follow Ian's advice on the streaming defenses.
Let's see who we can pick up this past week.
I didn't. I just rolled with the Texans, and I'm
probably gonna roll with the Texans most of the time anyway.
But if there are certain situations where I'm like, Okay,
I'm not necessarily sure about this, you know, let's see
that maybe there's a better option out there. The week
(09:27):
before against the Colts, I ended up playing the Dolphins
defense and it was a better play. But it's crazy
to think that for a game in Kansas City that
the opposing team's defense would be a good option. And
that's what it was for the Houston Texans, and I
think that says something about the Chiefs, by the way.
Not to gloss over it, but Mike mentioned it earlier.
(09:49):
I was in my longtime league. I was up against
a team that had the Chargers defense. Never has happened
before to me in a fantasy game. I know we've
I've seen this in the NFL, but to have the
two turnovers on one play like my opponents. My buddy
got the interception and the fumble recovery on the two
(10:10):
changes of possession, I swear that was a sign from
up above that it wasn't going to be my night.
It ended up being my night where I was able
to hold on and get a victory. But I'm just
like you know, I've seen this play before, but I've
never had it directly affect me, and it did on
Monday night. So another fantasy oddity pops up.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
Yeah, that was one if in my original days and
work in the scenes at Yahoo, I would have been
scripting what the FAQ is going to be FSR or yeah,
it would have been foot Hurts. Just send that one
out on anything Jalen Hurts related for scoring, because yes,
there were two turnovers on the same plan.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
It's there's we would have so many arguments in our
league on how to detayl So if a team say
runs uh a fake you know, a fake field goal
or you know, or something like that, or you know,
and just determining on what is special teams, what is
(11:14):
an actual play? What is offense and defense? There's there's
a couple of situations where teams are like, okay, is
that a return? You know, interceptions on conversions aren't interceptions,
you know, like you know, they shouldn't be counted. People like,
but they're interceptions if you can run it back for
a point, Like there's there's all these things inside of that.
And so then as it happened last on Monday night,
I was like, man, is that gonna happen? Like is
(11:37):
in sure enough on the scoreboard? I n T f
R on the same play. So those things pop up,
and when when you're running team defenses, crazy things can happen.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
My favorite, my favorite stat of the night is that
Jalen Hurts now has three times as many interceptions on
the season as he did coming into the night, which is.
Speaker 4 (11:54):
Just insane, right, I mean two and they four here
plus the fumble. What's always fun in the scoring of
it all is when when you have individual defensive players,
because then you start adding asterisks for tackles and and
you really have to make people understand the scoring nooses
that they've given themselves within their league for trying to
keep track of things. But yeah, for Jalen Hurts pushing
(12:19):
the ball down field, I mean bad things, man. Just
a very difficult night. Chargers defense steps up in a
big way. And again this is you finally got Saquon Barkley.
It's only a second hundred yard game of.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
The year path, that's crazy, and he needed a fifty
sixty yard run to be able to catch it in
for him as well.
Speaker 5 (12:40):
Which to your point earlier Mike about the Monsters inc broadcast,
the play of that was incredible where it was just
Mike Wazowski baulting fifty two yards leaving Sully in the dust.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
Either get him in the one on one.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
It's like they were ASKI down the sideline.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
It's incredible.
Speaker 4 (12:58):
They also on that play there was probably the most
obvious should have been holding call on Khloe Mack that
I've ever seen that was not flying as Barkley sprinted past.
So no friends in the Chargers Booth were losing their
minds at they did.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
They had nothing to complain about. Now I just popped
into my mind, did you ever have the issue Mike
in Yahoo? Because I was mentioning field goals and I
remember what it was when someone runs a fake field goal.
I would have guys in my league say that that
should be a special teams like a touchdown.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
No, it becomes an offensive play.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Yeah, and that's that's the point of it. Like it's
it's never like there's there's not a great area in
that scenario, Like that's pretty black and white.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
It's just a differult alignment.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
Yeah, yeah, that's all it is. Yes, those are some
of the the discussions and complaints that we would we
would have long ago about fantasy and and when a
special team unit is out there and what happens.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
And but well, even block kicks the way they're described
on games, right, Oh, there's a block it's like, well,
if it goes past the line of scrimmage, it's not
a block, it's two yard points.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (14:10):
Or it's a missfield goal, it's not it's not actually
a block kick, so you should not get the points. Now,
it might be like some of these online books for
betting that you know, do a oh oopsie kind of
thing where they still give you the points but you
shouldn't by rule.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
That's that's the greatness of fantasy football, all the ins
and outs and when you think something's never going to
happen and ends up happening and people are wondering, how
the hell did this affect my team? And why did
I lose by point eight? Yeah, that's what happens.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Yes, all right, we're going to take a time out.
We're going to look at the rest of Week fourteen, which,
by the way, was a heck of a lot better
points wise as opposed to the two primetime games that
we got some up and down action in the late window. Plus,
we take a look at our report cards on who
hit what's in Week fourteen. It's all coming up next
to here on I Want Your Flex? All right, welcome
(15:10):
back to I Want Your Flex. He's Mike Carmen, I'm
Dan Byer. That's Ian Roddy. Let's get into it, guys, Mike,
what stood out to you in week fourteen?
Speaker 4 (15:17):
Well, I think you know the theme of the last
couple of weeks has been some of these strange bedfellows.
When we get into the running back and wide receiver
positions of who's finding their way to the top for
the sake of the quarterbacks, there's only one that really
stood out, at least for the top five. As we
get to the top ten, there's our guy, Tyler Shuck
making his way. Lamar Jackson still finished as a top
(15:40):
seven play despite the inconsistencies, the inability, the touchdown that
got stolen, I'll say it.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
I think it was a terrible call.
Speaker 4 (15:50):
Yeah, the Isaiah like Isaiah likely back back to back
weeks where he's involved in something chaotic, right, But you
look at Josh Allen putting on the cape once again,
shador and you want to talk about King of Yak, right,
and he can throw the ball the country mile, but
the big players are coming on underneath things where guys
are sprinting to daylight. He finishes as your number two
(16:11):
quarterback over thirty four points. Burrow, Darnold, guys in Stafford
like all guys that we could check the box there,
but then we start, you know, extrapolating, and well, who
were their biggest targets? And for week fourteen, all right
in nikoua fine. Michael Wilson, he's been great. Marvin Harrison
Junior missed again. We've talked about Wilson and Jacoby Brissett.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
Great.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
T Higgins finishes with twenty one. Probably shouldn't have finished
and played as much of the game as he did,
given some of the I would say concussive blows that
he took that might actually have put it back in there. Yeah, protocal,
leaving us wanting. But Christian Watson with a big game, Florne,
going back to that Dallas game, DK Metcalf finally got
(16:56):
off the off the the matt and was involved in
the Pittsburgh offense immediately. Was it a massive game for him, No,
but he actually mattered. You know, when we're looking at
half pprs, he still finishes as upper w R two
for us. So you have some of those kind of
(17:17):
options along the I'm sorry, finished seventh for this week,
the sort you know, the refreshing of some of these pages.
But Tim Patrick finds his way in. It just became
this curiosity of all right, here are number one guys
that just could get pushed to the side, and we're
finding those secondary players stepping up in a big way.
(17:39):
And the running back position. We always expect Attrician at
this point in the year, so much more of the
same in that regard when we start looking at, you know,
the the leaders and the Tony Pollard anybody. I don't
think we've mentioned Tony Pollard in twelve weeks.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
No, I didn't think the Titans were going to score
against the Browns and they put thirty one up and
he had what a buck sixty?
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (18:03):
So you got him at number two, Blake Korum runaway game,
he's number three, and R. J. Harvey's fifth. So I
mean you got three guys that rise above to where
we haven't seen that. Miami game got weird. So Jalen
Wright has himself a big game. But I think it's
just we're at the point where it's healthy bodies, workflow,
(18:25):
and just the uncertainty and it's the worst because well
it's playoff time, so trying to figure out touches and targets,
like we were just talking with the Chargers is a
really difficult proposition.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
You mentioned T Higgins and now with the concussion and
he's in concussion protocol, I doubt that you're going to
see him against the Ravens coming up in week fifteen,
and so that that opens the door with Joe Burrow
being back these last couple of games, the Jamar Chase
hasn't gotten into the end zone, but now you T
(19:00):
Higgins and so Jamar Chase could be a big play
down the stretch for teams that are waiting for him
to break out. But he was. You wouldn't think that
Joe Burrow in those conditions would throw four touchdown passes
and throw for the amount of yards that he did,
but didn't seem to have any problems and finding T
Higgins and Chase Brown being as good as he's been. Yeah,
(19:21):
it'll be interesting to see it with the Bengals now
with really not a lot to play for, but I
think they're gonna play with pride and I still we
think their defense is awful. That's not gonna get any
better in the next four weeks. So it could be
profitable for the Bengals to continue to ride those guys
even if they're out of the playoff.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah, Hendrickson is done right. That was one of the
reports from from early on Monday, that you won't see
him again. But and in the background floated all the
contract stuff, but he's evidently having surgery in the abden
abdominal area.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, Carl muscle.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
Yeah, so we look at that, but you know, Joe
Burrow didn't battle back to to walk away at this point, right,
So we'll see them give it the old college try,
which means they're gonna be a pain in the ass
for the opposing squads, and particularly if they can play
spoiler in the AFC North. That's what they want to do.
Fifty two and a half the total as I look
(20:17):
at it here on my grid.
Speaker 1 (20:19):
Yeah, we can't rule them out of the playoffs just yet,
just a one percent chance, but it's very likely to happen.
The other thing with Hendrickson is you probably want to
get it done sooner rather than later for next year, right, Like.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
There's no that's right.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
Yeah, So it's out of the picture, and they say
six weeks just in case, maybe that one percent comes
out and guess what, the Bengals somehow end up miraculously
winning the division. Everything goes to hell and they make
it in. Then you could say, maybe Trey Hendrickson comes
back at some point. But even if that miracle would happen,
if I'm Trey Hendrickson. I'm probably not trying to come
(20:55):
back and playing any football this year, but I think
it's more just to set up for whoever he's going
to play for in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (21:02):
I remember he got that extra what was it fourteen
million dollars? Yeah, I added for this year and then
you got about a half a season, which again, when
it happened, we talked about it, the three of us, like,
why are you giving him a bunch of money? Your
defense still staks. Yeah, whether he shows up or not,
you have proof of concept.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
It's not good.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
Yeah, it doesn't didn't make any sense. The the in
and out Applis Colts are free falling now, there's not
much to do. There's not much you can do with
Daniel Jones being out for the year. Rightley Leonard's dinged up.
Philip Rivers is going to get a get a tryout.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
Did you not smile about that? Though?
Speaker 4 (21:39):
Come on, you saw Philip rivers name, you saw that report,
you verified that it was a legitimate news source, because
I sure as help did.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
The crazy thing was Doug Gottlieb brought it up on
the show Monday, talking with Tom Tlasco sick. What do
you do? Just go and get an old guy like
Philip Rivers. Yeah, just you know, kind of like a
throwaway sort of thing. And because I think he's you know,
coaching and you know, doing stuff with his family and
blah blah blah. What do you know, Here comes a
here comes a workout. But you got the Seahawks coming
(22:08):
up this weekend. That's what you want to come out
of retirement for.
Speaker 3 (22:11):
When you look at their schedule.
Speaker 5 (22:12):
Tom Brady's gonna get fomo here like he's gonna try
to make a comeback, and Phil up starts looking good.
Speaker 4 (22:19):
That's nice to saying, though you look at their schedule
down the stretch. We chronicled a little bit Smith and
I as this story at Seattle home against San Francisco,
Jacksonville defense has been playing better, and then the final
week of the year on the road at Houston.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
Yeah, I'll stay retired.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Yeah, it's it's it's not easy. And that Texans game
was thought to be maybe a huge one at the
end of the year and it could end up becoming
meaningless because of how this is falling apart. They make
the deal, They give up two first round picks for
Sauce Gardner. They go to Germany and play the Falcons.
They win that overtime game, but DeForrest Buckner doesn't make
the trip because of his neck injury. He was a
(22:59):
big part of that defense. I think that's one of
the reasons why you're seeing them struggle. Then Daniel Jones
has the fracture, and then ultimately now the Achilles on
the other leg, and it just I mean, it's just
completely fallen apart for the Colts. And they even had
their first round picks for the next two years, like
it's I mean, I can't like it's December ninth or tenth,
(23:25):
depending on you know when you're listening to this podcast
and to that Germany game was in early November, and
for it to crumble this quickly in a month and
to have that and not only that, but your future
wasted like for the Colts, no first round pigs, Like man,
just awful. I can't recall anything like it.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
Oh and then you add the sauce Gardener injury.
Speaker 5 (23:52):
Well, I was going to ask you, guys, do you
think it was a mistake to go all in?
Speaker 4 (23:56):
No, I didn't think they needed It's a corner No,
I mean, yeah that I guess we could talk that
side of things, you know, in terms of which position.
But if that's what you decided you needed, then I say,
you push when you can't, right if you're having a
charm season.
Speaker 5 (24:14):
That's what I'm saying, Mike.
Speaker 3 (24:16):
But I agree with you Dan, whether you know the
corner thing might have been the.
Speaker 5 (24:21):
Well, they were one of the Super Bowl favorites by
that point in the season. So like, if it's looking
like you're this is the year for you guys, why
wouldn't you want to push all your cards in And
if cornerback is what you deem your weakest position. With
the Tarvarius Ward thing going on, I know he was
dealing with some stuff, but yeah, I don't know's it's
just such.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
A I'll tell you, I'll tell you why. I'll tell
you why. It's ridiculous because outside of Jamar Chase, when
you look at the playoff picture in the NFC, and
this is why I didn't like it. I didn't like
it within the division, like are you are you bringing
in Sauce Gardner to shut down Nico Collins for the
next couple of years? Is that? Like what this is about?
(25:00):
Because you have a Patriots team. What stuff on Diggs?
You need to get a corner to stop him in
the postseason. You need a corner to stop Courtland Sutton.
You need one to stop maybe Brian Thomas Junior, like
you know, who hasn't been a factor this year, needed
a corner to stop who Khalil Shakir on the Bills
(25:21):
like it just didn't That position to me was of
no immediate need to have someone who is a lockdown corner.
Considering your your teams that you were competing with in
the AFC. If they wanted to give up two ones
for Quinn Williams, I woant to have made a lot
more sense.
Speaker 4 (25:39):
No no argument whatsoever, no argument whatsoever. But you know,
certainly the early part of the season, the one part
that of the team that was questioned with some regularity
was the secondary. So maybe just in response to that,
and again I don't pretend to know you know, how
they came to that decision, but deciding to push in
(26:02):
yeah Twyn Williams, I'm curious what they got as a
response when they made the ask, sure right, and maybe
they decided, well that's too rich and instead went the
other route. You know, trying to look at what your
schedule was. I ad at least try to shut down
half a field.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
By the way, it started to cut you off because
I was gonna ask you a question. But Sauce was
on the trading block, Like his name was thrown out there, right,
I mean, there's no it has been for the last
like twelve months.
Speaker 5 (26:30):
No. That Like that's the thing though, is like he
it was out of the blue, like he this was
a guy who they just paid him, Like they just
paid him that huge contract, made him the highest paid
corner in football. That was the crazy. Like to me,
it was a complete shock scene that he got traded
when you see the return. And I said it at
the time, like it just felt like way too much
for the Colts to give up. So that's the issue
(26:50):
that I have with it, is that they gave up
so much for it. But in terms of actually trading
for Sauce Gardner, the process is sound enough in my mind,
just because the trade deadlinees is a pro coaching. This
is a position group on our team that we deemed
to be on the weaker side. Let's go and get
one of the best in the league at it. But
he's a guy who doesn't create turnovers. It was always
an overpay.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
That's yeah, at the end of the day, show you're
one hundred percent right. It was this summer. This past
summer he got his contract. But I know for a
fact that there were Jets people who were saying last year,
when you're trying to rebuild, the whole deal is like,
why do we have sauce? Why do we have you know,
a cornerback? And that's just my I'm with you on
the going for it, like because Daniel Jones's contract wasn't
(27:32):
going to be the same this year as it was
going to have to be next year.
Speaker 3 (27:35):
It was a one year, fifteen million dollar deal, right.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
I just think that they went to the wrong spot
and now now he's hurt. So Steven matter. But with
a team that's depleted having good corners, I don't know.
I just I think that I think offenses are too good,
Like just you're the way that you stop an offense
is from your defensive line and getting after the quarterback.
(27:57):
But I've always felt that way.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Well, but that's it, right, quarderback. Someone to protect your
guy and someone to attack. It's the pat system protector
attack or thrower.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (28:08):
Everything else is a bonus, especially if it's you got
to take on this level of cost, and that that's
the larger thing going forward with Sauce is that it
was a four year, one hundred and twenty million dollars deal,
So you've got a lot committed to that side of
the ball. Now you're expecting the continuance of the offenses
to get better, because that's just the way football has
(28:31):
been right to where even if we've got a few
running backs that are all world like a Chan and
what have you, that it is still a throwing league
most of the time.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So I guess. But to your point, yeah, I'd rather
have the attacker, no question.
Speaker 4 (28:47):
I would have gone before his injury and said, all right,
why don't we give up something, even if it's just
a rental for whatever's left of Trey Hendrickson. Right, But
hindsight twenty twenty and now it's all falling apart. When
Daniel Jones crumpled to the field. I don't know that
I've ever outside of you know, bears like Wendell Davis
(29:08):
and things like that, just that audible exhale of uh like,
because it just it was so sad, right, you know,
he's already played on the broken leg and he just
goes down. Yeah, and he immediately slams his helmet and
all of that, Like it was just a horrible moment.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
And he's got to get the other leg fixed. Now,
he's got to get this one. And who's gonna sign
him in the off season. Maybe that's the break that
the Colts get, is that nobody wants Daniel Jones because
of his injury, and they'll be able to sign with
some sort of deal, but there's no guarante he's going
to be ready for twenty twenty six or even be
remotely close to the same quarterback in twenty twenty six. Yeah,
(29:46):
oh yeah, tough times for the Colts. By the way,
just so I don't restate history, I just want to
get this right for the record. So the Jets basically
make a commitment with Garrett Wilson in the office and
then they add Sauce to that. But prior to that,
I know there was trade talk. But then this offseason
in twenty twenty five, it's like, Kay, Aaron Glenn's here.
(30:09):
We locked up Garrett Wilson, we locked up Sauce Gardner
we're ready to go, and then the next thing you know,
Sauce is out the door. Is that a good summary
ian of what happened?
Speaker 3 (30:17):
Yeah, I'd say so.
Speaker 5 (30:18):
I mean even even myself last season, before before we
even knew who the next coach of the Jets was
going to be, we're in that interim stage with Jeff Ulbrich.
I was kinda I know, among Jets Twitter and stuff,
there were some conversations had just like, you know, at
what point do you think, like, okay, just take what
you can get with the assets that you have. But
but I think the majority of fans wanted to keep
(30:40):
him around, just because in general, that's how fans are.
Speaker 3 (30:43):
You know, you just want a star on your team.
Speaker 5 (30:45):
Exactly, you want stars. You wanted to stick around homegrown guys.
Speaker 1 (30:49):
And there was the commitment to Wilson as well, because
there was some question about whether he was going to
be there or not.
Speaker 5 (30:53):
Yeah, I just I would not trade him ever. He's
just the best. He's the kind of guy you want
in that locker.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Yeah, absolutely, And they committed to both of those guys
in twenty twenty five. So I just hate it when
people miss state history and then don't correct it. So
I wasn't entirely right, and I'm glad that Ian said
what he said about the contract, but I knew that
there was at some point the Jets were on one
side and then they ended up being on the other,
and then they were back on that other side. Anyway,
(31:20):
speaking of the other side, we will come back on
the other side. We'll do our report cards plus anything
else that stuck out from a Week fourteen. We'll also
have our MIDWEK episode. We'll dive into more of what
is happening in the National Football League as well. It's
all coming up next to here and I want your flex.
It'll be a report card time in a sec. Plus
Mike's got some waiver wire pickups for you if you're
(31:42):
heading into the postseason or like me in my longtime
league where we only have ten guys who have one
more week of the regular season left to go and
then our two week playoff. But let's wrap and put
up the bow on. Wrap the bow, wrap the package.
Whatever the Christmas time feeling you want to say, Ian, Roddy,
what stood out to you in Week fourteen.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
One thing that stood out to me is Lamar Jackson.
I kind of the overroaching thought that he just can't
be healthy. And I know I'm not alone in that,
but he just.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
He can't be.
Speaker 5 (32:13):
He can't be because if Lamar is healthy, like John
Harbaugh has been saying this whole time, like he's insistent
that Lamar is healthy, I'm concerned going forward about Lamar
because if he really is healthy and this is what
he looks like, he's about to turn twenty nine, he's
approaching that dreaded thirty, you know. And I get that
he's a quarterback and they generally tend to last longer,
but with his style, who knows how long? Like, we
(32:33):
just don't know. With such an unprecedented style of quarterback.
He's the best running quarterback in NFL history, you know,
so don't We don't know when the fall off is
going to happen with his athleticism. So I'm not saying
that it is necessarily happening right now, but I'm starting
to at least have, you know, back of my head
some concerns like is this kind of when it starts
to come, because he looks bad right now. He's not
(32:56):
making guys miss at the same level. His pocket presence
is worse it's it's ugly.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
I thought him getting sacked. We talked about Mike reference
the likely catch that wasn't There was the Rogers deflected
ball that should have been Baltimore's and ended up Pittsburgh.
But on the Ravens last play from scrimmage, Lamar got
sacked and it was just like, you know, they didn't
even get the throw off. And I thought that that
(33:21):
was very fitting unlike him, Yes, exactly, like who catches
him in that situation, Not that he was going to
run the ball, but just to elude pressure to be
able to get some sort of throw off for them
to try to win the game. And he couldn't do that.
That was Yes, that was not good. And it's not
like the Steelers are the old Steel Curtain, I mean,
to have the issues that he had against them. They'll
(33:44):
have their games every now and then. But yeah, you're right,
something is off of Yeah, with five.
Speaker 4 (33:48):
Straight weeks under sixty percent completion percentage, I talk about
the sacks to this week, but hurried and not able
to get to the end. He did have his highest
rushing total in a while at forty three and a touchdown.
You had the Mark Andrews intercepting, well he didn't catch it,
but taking the would be standing touchdown from DeAndre Hopkins,
(34:13):
and there was a lot of gesturing anger Lamar on
the sideline, a bunch of instances where he was getting
and chewing guys out, which we had Jason lock and
Ford does work there out of Baltimore. He said, that
is not the Lamar Jackson that you're used to, like
it's normally a very up, uplifting guy. So the frustrations
(34:35):
are there, and he estimates he's playing at a little
over sixty percent. Wow, like he's everything that's been reported.
The ankle got his footstepped on, like he's basically the
wacky doctors game operation. That's my assessment of what talking
to people back in Baltimore. It's like one injury after
the next, which has hampered him. The offensive lines not
(34:56):
as good as it's been. Derrick Henry is a bit
of a diminished guy in terms of being able to
rely on him and then being betrayed by everybody except
for Zay Flowers in the receiving corps, even if Mark
Andrews did get that new contract. So it's a lot
of stuff piling up. But your concerns are warranted because
that running element. It's like when Cam Newton hit that
(35:17):
point right when that was what made him superman and
he called himself superman and then he became a guy.
Speaker 5 (35:24):
I don't know how old he was at the time,
but I would have to assume it was somewhere around close.
Speaker 1 (35:31):
The other thing with with the Ravens is they could
use a year where they have a top ten pick.
So why going through all of this to win a
division when you're not going to make it through the
conference is you know, just surprising to me. You know,
they could They really could use some retooling on defense.
(35:55):
It was some retooling on the offensive line. So to
play Lamar and try to map out these games and
try to get what you can and trying to win
a few down the stretch. I know you can't hunt
on the season, but if he is sixty percent, maybe
it's better off of Baltimore just kind of all right,
let's just let's get ready for twenty twenty six because
(36:15):
it's just not there. They're not beating any of the
teams that are in the playoff picture ahead of them.
They got a trip to Green Bay coming up later
on this season. So yeah, it's tough, tough, uh, tough
driving for the Baltimore rates.
Speaker 4 (36:27):
What is part of that thing? I don't know what
it's like. I hope to get there, but to where
you never bought them out right. It's like Pittsburgh in
that same boat of yeah, they're always slightly above the
five hundred or maybe you know a few wins above,
you know, the ten wins seasons, eleven win season, whatever,
but you never bought them out to where you just
(36:48):
have a hard reset where you have to look at
and take it down to brass tacks. Ian and I
we've watched that happen with our team every year.
Speaker 5 (36:58):
It's like, what are they gonna do? I don't know,
new rock Bottom. There's a rock at your bottom, beneath
every rock.
Speaker 4 (37:03):
Bottom, that's it, right, how many layers in the rings
towards hell can we get to?
Speaker 3 (37:09):
But for these teams, they've never done it.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Yeah, And I think that my team, the Seahawks, are
the perfect example of why the Ravens need a reset.
You make a make a good trade, right, you trade
Russell Wilson, you move him off. Maybe there's maybe there's
trade Baltimore can make, right, sure, get some younger talent
in there. You have to, you have to hit in
the draft. But the the reset isn't like, isn't guaranteed
(37:37):
where you're going to be three and fourteen or four
and thirteen, especially with today's NFL, like and there's a
way to do it. And the problem that like Seattle had,
which I think is the problem that Baltimore is probably having,
is your clothes you're not and so you're making all
these additions that you think are going to put you
over the hunk, just slowly taking you away from the
(38:01):
ultimate prize. And Pete Carroll was that way, Like Pete
Carroll always wanted to compete, compete, compete, and when he
ultimately was let go and John Schneider was able to
run more of the roster without Pete Carroll saying I
want this guy, I want that guy, it wasn't as
much of a rebuild as you would have. So that's
why I think could really help in Baltimore is right now, like, yeah,
(38:22):
they're missing out on the playoffs and are just two
years removed from you know what an AFC Championship game
where they thought that they you know, were on their
way to the super Bowl. But you're a lot further
away from the super Bowl than you realize. If you
keep on making moves.
Speaker 4 (38:34):
Like that, Can you get John Schneider to go talk
to the folks in Raiderland?
Speaker 3 (38:40):
Now you probably did jump off this ship.
Speaker 1 (38:46):
Sure you know the way they weren't loyal to their quarterback,
right they said to not only Russell Wilson with Gino
smancon he made some tough decisions there. Sure you made
a get a questionable trade at the time with the
Giants to bring in Leonard Williams. But you show Leonard
Williams what your building's like. He's then become the anchor
of that defensive line, you know, Sprinkle in a couple
of other pieces, and what do you know, it's not
(39:08):
as bad as you know, what you could have had. So, yeah,
things can turn around. Maybe the Ravens should take note,
but we shall see. Still a lot to play for
in twenty twenty five, especially in fantasy football. Mike, Let's
get your waiver wire and then we'll wrap it up
with some report cards at the end, because yeah, they're
(39:29):
a doozy this week.
Speaker 3 (39:30):
We'll just put it that way exactly. We already talked
about CJ. Stroud.
Speaker 4 (39:33):
Opportunity there, Yoshavash, because we assume that no T. Higgins
available for you there. Marcus Mariota will be back under center,
one would presume for Washington as Jaden Daniels leaves once again,
opportunity against the Giants defense this time out. As we
look at that, you got Jade reed. His share will
(39:56):
continue to grow as he gets healthy again. The Packers,
I'm deploying a lot of guys and while he's not
a start this week against Denver, it's more just a
long term put it away. We've watched what the Packers
offense was able to do against the Bears. We have
these stupid ass and I'll say it sandwich games coming
up for a lot of teams. Right, Packers played Denver
(40:17):
this week, then they play the Bears again. So again,
Ben don't break, They'll move the ball, and you saw
the deep ball work very well.
Speaker 3 (40:24):
There.
Speaker 4 (40:25):
You've got Bryant of the Denver Broncos over the last
three weeks, twelve catches on seventeen targets. So getting a
little bit of love there. So we look at the
tight end position, Barner nineteen catches over the last four
theo Johnson with an opportunity against the Washington secondary. So
getting a little deeper as we go through stuff. We
(40:48):
talked a little bit about Devin Neil a bit in
terms of what his workload has been, still available in
a lot of leagues, Folks just reticent to go anywhere
near and he players. And we talk about Shuck going
up against Carolina. Maybe not the most obvious of plays,
but for fantasy purposes, he's been strong since taking over
the start. And how about want a blast from the past.
(41:11):
We laughed about Philip Rivers and wax poetic. What about
Kirk Cousins against a really bad Tampa Bay secondary?
Speaker 3 (41:21):
How about that?
Speaker 4 (41:21):
Will we talk about because no bye weeks, but we've
got injuries, you might have to be forced to go.
Maybe you had Daniel Jones in a super flex, maybe
you had one of these other guys, you know, because
the quarterback is generally going to be your play if
you can find one, sir, Now, do I trust Kirk?
I gotta wait till later in the week to see
if Drake London's gonna get himself back up off the mat.
(41:43):
But certainly I look desperation and sometimes just playing defense
to add a guy to your bench so it doesn't
come back to beat you.
Speaker 1 (41:54):
Absolutely the Yeah, Drake London has been a missing piece
that would help the situation. The Buccaneers like you. We're
gonna get to your report card in a second, because
I know he Tyler Shuck was one of your ninjas
this week and he catched in. He is a villain
of mine and Ian Roddy is Ian. Do you want
to go first on how the streaming defenses went?
Speaker 5 (42:16):
Yeah, yeah, I'll go first. So, uh yeah, So Tyler
Shuck and the Saints they played against the Tampa Bay Bucks.
The Bucks were one of my streaming defenses this week.
They actually were the best play of the three that
I gave you, guys. That says a lot here because uh,
Tampa Bay. They got you seven fantasy points.
Speaker 3 (42:32):
That was it.
Speaker 5 (42:32):
You know, it's a meager outing, not terrible, not a
week lose, not bad. Actually, yeah, that was the best
of the three. Got you seven points. They allowed twenty
four points to Tyler Shuck. He scored two rushing touchdowns.
That was part of why he was so good for fantasy.
He did throw an interception and they sacked him three times.
But like Mike said, Shuck's been slowly getting better and better,
so so the Bucks did not play as the defense
(42:54):
didn't play as well as I expected them to there
because Shuck just keeps getting better.
Speaker 4 (42:58):
Three of his last four starts teen, eighteen point four
and twenty two point three.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
Yeah, quietly. Next up the Washington Commanders. They got you
three fantasy points here. They allowed thirty one points to
the Vikings and they got four sacks as well on
JJ McCarthy. But man giving up thirty one points to McCarthy,
I just did not see that coming. So yeah, only
got you three points there, but hey, if not for
those four sacks, it would have been a negative outing,
(43:22):
so they at least salvaged it. And then lastly, the
Baltimore Ravens, as we've talked about them extensively here, I
recommended them zero fantasy points. They didn't lose your points,
so we'll take a small win there. But now it
was just just a goosegg from the Ravens defense. Twenty
seven points allowed and that was it.
Speaker 1 (43:40):
Well, at least Ian's streaming defense has provided a little
sunshine because they gave you three options for a survivor
pool and went oh to three everybody crapped out on me.
Buccaneers were a popular pick by many, and it was
my pick that I went with the pool. And yeah,
we got Tyler Shukd, that's for sure, although I would
almost say like we got a Mecca who could in
(44:00):
a way, we got Baker Mayfield in a way, we
got Chris Godwin in a way. They all had opportunities
to make plays and didn't cash in and ended up
ultimately losing a night wet, soggy Sunday afternoon in Florida.
So the Saints get the win and knocked out a
ton of entries in survivor pools, the Big Circle one,
(44:21):
and know the Buccaneers were a top pick. In mind,
we had eighty one entries left. I think fifty five
of us picked the Buccaneers. So that was probably a
bad choice by me, knowing that there would be a
lot of people picking the Buccaneers, kind of want to
go in the opposite direction. The opposite direction I would
have gone would probably have been the Browns. I as
I mentioned earlier in the podcast, Guys, I don't think
Tennessee was going to score. I thought this would be
(44:43):
a Miles Garrett. I mean it was so much a
Miles Garrett game that we were talking about him getting
five sacks and breaking the record against dam Ward.
Speaker 4 (44:49):
Right eight dollars to go to the game to watch
him break the record.
Speaker 3 (44:54):
Instead, it's like, what the hell's Tony Pollard doing.
Speaker 5 (44:57):
Yeah, Garrett didn't even get five pressures?
Speaker 1 (45:00):
Yeah right, it's crazy thirty one twenty nine and the
bron still had a chance at the end, but Judkins,
you know, messes up the two point conversion and then
I should have been on the other side. Now, not
that I thought that Brady Cook was going to see
action for the Jets, but that is what happened against
the Dolphins and the Dolphins cruise past New York. I
just thought if Torod Taylor was playing in that game,
thought maybe weather could have been a factor with the
(45:21):
Dolphins in town. But I was zero to three and
deserve my fate. I did get the points of Palooza, correct,
but that's just thanks to the Rams, because they put
forty five up on the Cardinals and ended up having
the second highest point total this week behind that Bill's Bengals.
That was even in a snowstorm. They still put up
seventy three points. But that's my report card for the week.
Speaker 4 (45:42):
Just an insane week of football, no question about it.
Topsy Turvy take the victory on Shuck for that. In
terms of the Ninjas, Saquon who we put down there
because it was the well what do we do with
Saquon Barkley at this point? He ended up finishing sixth
for the week. Te Higgins was a big play for us,
(46:03):
but missus on Bam Knight and Tarad Taylor actually had
minus point eight. He was minus for the day. Fellas
dk Metcalf was in the cold source made me look stupid.
We did have Mconkey, so we'll take the push on
that one. Devantae Adams streak ended, so a win there.
(46:24):
Marx was on the cold source screwed me with that
to touchdown justin. Herbert gets points for toughness, but outside
his rushing yards didn't give you a whole lot, so
he was middling. Caleb was middling against Green Bay and
Patrick Mahomes terrible against Houston, so we'll take some victories there. Quarterbacks,
we had three of our top five worked out well.
Speaker 3 (46:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (46:46):
The first three guys Alan Burrow staff are great. Four
and five were Baker and Jalen.
Speaker 1 (46:51):
Hurts take the sixty percent. That's it. Yes, in a.
Speaker 4 (46:57):
Lot of places, that's actually passing grade more with the
scales that we've added to things. A Chen and Chase
Brown got me into the winning winners circle there in
the running backs, they tied for seventh. Josh Jacobs finishes
his back end number one, and then Taylor Cook absolute
disasters wide receivers. We take the wins off Puka and
(47:20):
JSN because they never steer me wrong. Aj Brown solid
game but no touchdown and a half PPR leads you
to a sixteenth place finish. Nico Collins fourteenth, and then
Rashie Rice all the way down at number forty eight.
Speaker 1 (47:35):
Well, that's you nailed on Michael Wilson, so that was
a hit. Jacoby Myers on one of your hot plays
was a gut in the end zone.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
So he's had a good run.
Speaker 1 (47:44):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely has. So I see many more stars
than the merits on Mike Harmon's report card for a week.
Speaker 3 (47:53):
You're two kind, two kind, I'm a harsh grater.
Speaker 1 (47:58):
Well, well, we'll see how the rest of the NFL
grades out over these final four weeks. We've got a
bunch to get to it's playoff time. There's so much
at Steak and fantasy football. That's why we're gonna be
here for you with more episodes leading you all the
way to the end of the regular season. Week fourteen
was a dandy and now we're done with the buys.
(48:19):
We're ready to go. We're about to hit the home stretch.
There'll be our MIDWEK episode and then of course on Friday,
Michaelavis rankings for a Week fifteen and so much more
so until then. For Ian Roddy and Mike Carmon, I'm
Dan Beyer. We'll talk to you next time, and I
want your flex
Ladies and gentlemen.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You want experience during your football season, will buckle up,
sweet cheeks. We've got all the experience in the world.
This is I want your flex with Dan Bayer and
Mike Harmon. Mike and Dan break down everything you need
to set your lineups, from position rankings.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
To starts and sits. The guys help you make those
hard decisions.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
And now let's catch your flexod Here's Dan Bayer and
Mike Harmon.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
I don't know if it was good, but it was
exciting and it was fut a way to wrap up
an interesting Week fourteen of the NFL and fantasy football season.
He is Mike Harmon. Hit him up at Swallen Doll.
You can find me on Exit Dan Byer on Fox.
Ian Roddy is our executive producer. Find him at Ian
Roddy Underscore Guys. Chargers in Eagles wrap up Week fourteen
(00:54):
with an overtime thriller, although there wasn't much thrill throughout
the game. Couple of big plays here in there and
then just turnovers galore, but in the end a broken
hand at all justin Herbert and the Chargers get a victory,
but maybe not leading fantasy teams to victory for what
was a really weird night in fantasy football.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Yeah, it might have been one of the strangest games ever.
And then add to that, they had the Monsters Inc.
Second broadcast, which I found my eyes drifting to. So
I'm watching, Hey there's Sully instead of Justin Herbert. Oh
it works out. Now he's running amuck as he finished
as the Chargers leading rusher with sixty six yards. But
you know, field goal kicking contests, some of the crazy
(01:35):
stats that we talk about. Cameron Dicker, the insane duel
turnover play for Jalen Hurts. Over the course of the night,
he finishes with five turnovers. I mean just coming into
the game, he'd had two interceptions through the first thirteen
weeks of the season. Sakwan Barkley runs wild into the
(01:56):
secondary and on the final possession does he see the ball?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
No?
Speaker 4 (02:00):
So just a curious game outside of the kickers. And
I guess the defense is because of all the turnovers.
Yeah Barkley. Aj Brown finished with one hundred receiving yards
and then Justin Herbert because of the sixty six rushing
yards might have gotten you a little bit of love,
but just one thirty nine one in one and if
you get dinged for the sacks, he actually still absorbed
(02:21):
seven sacks despite his heroics.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
But yeah, just a very odd game.
Speaker 1 (02:26):
If you started Omari and Hampton, you were probably satisfied
with the point total. But in the end they really
just leaned on Vidal, and I think that was probably
because Hampton and the shape that he was probably in
and still getting into game shape, and also just came
situation that didn't use him as much at the end
but had the touchdown early. But it's interesting on the
Charger side of things, because now do you have a
(02:48):
split backfield, I think captains you know, well, I shouldn't say.
I think we all know he's the future and the
top talent, but I don't think that with that offensive line,
I don't think you want Justin Herbert being your leading rusher, Mike.
And so when you know, when we're looking at this backfield, now,
Vidal isn't gonna go away now that Omar and Hampton
(03:10):
is back.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
Yeah, I was fearing for Justin Herbert's life every time
he ran. Now you had some overpursuit by the defensive front.
So he found the little gateway to slip out the
back door and find his way. There are a couple
of times as he got towards the sideline like he's
about to get blown up, and you had players pull up, like,
thank god, the last thing he needs to absorb a
(03:32):
couple more hits. But I think you're right. I think
between Videl or Vidal and Hampton, I think we're going
to get an equitable split here because behind that line
a lot of you know, yards before contact is a
very negligible number. So you know, trying to keep him fresh,
keep him right, because you're at nine and four, you're
sitting in the middle of the playoff hunt, still trying
(03:55):
to figure out how to you know, unleash a little
more in your receiving corps.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Tough.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
Philadelphia defense has been strong at points, but you know,
Herbert and that passing attack a little bit disjointed. But
if you can get the run game going, perhaps you
can on cork a little bit of that. So yeah,
I would suspect a split going forward, which gives us
into our RB two flex categories for those guys.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
In week sixteen, maybe it'll be looking for brighter days
with a trip to Dallas to face the Cowboys. But
next week they have the Chiefs, and then in week seventeen,
Championship weekend, they got a home game against the Texans. Yeah,
so yeah, so that'll be interesting defensive matchup. So if
you're the Chargers and looking for daylight, there could be
an opportunity in a couple of weeks. But I think
(04:38):
these two out of the next three with the Chiefs
and Texans could be similar to what we saw on
Monday night between these squads.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
But no, Dan that Houston game, they're actually doing a
Justin Herbert giveaway a bibblehead, which is only appropriate because
he's going to get shake, rattle and rolled by that
defensive front.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I have my cousin is coming into town. My cousin,
so it's my second cousin, but he's in a sophomore
year at the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and he's
on winter break, and so he's gonna come out and
it's a flex schedule game and we should find out. Heck,
by the time this years, we may find out. If
that's a Saturday game. I think it very likely will be.
(05:18):
But if the game is on Saturday, I'm going to
take my cousin to the Texans Chargers game in that day. Yes,
it'll be my first NFL game at so far, I
have not been. I went for the National Championship between
TCU and Georgia and that was over by halftime, so
we was out of there in the third quarter. So
the first full NFL game will be hopefully coming up
(05:41):
in a couple of weeks, so that'll be fun. Yeah,
looking for a game too that's gonna be weighing heavily
on the AFC playoff picture. And if we're talking about
the Texans, we might as well talk about what happened
in Kansas City on Sunday night because it was the
same sort of deal. Maybe not even as sloppy as
it was between the Eagles and Chargers, but still you're
(06:03):
trying to find value in a couple of top tier
teams and it's just very difficult right now if you're
talking about the Texans or the Chiefs.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
Yeah, you got your fourteen points and a half ppr
out of Nicocollins, so a little bit of love there,
but otherwise a Gumbawale gets the rushing touchdown, that's not
helping anybody. Stroud with two oh three and one completing
fifty percent of his passes. Woody Marks did have that score,
so okay, we get we get to our thirteen points there.
But you know, Patrick Mahomes has three interceptions. For those
(06:33):
that didn't watch the game, they're like, oh, he was terrible,
Like none of them.
Speaker 3 (06:36):
Were his fault.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
Sure, he called tip.
Speaker 3 (06:41):
Drills and problems.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
One drifting towards the sideline, good play by the defender. Okay,
so we'll knock him for that one. But he gets
the fifty nine rushing yards, so I guess that got
him back to basics on the interceptions. But just one
hundred and sixty yards on his fourteen of thirty three.
I had him as a cold source, so I take
the victory. But you know, watching that game, it was
(07:03):
very tense, kind of like the Monday Night game, except
we didn't even get the super toe kickers out there
to grind this thing out, Fellas. I mean, it was
just a couple of big plays, but starting and stops
throughout the night to leading to a whole lot of
fantasy disappointment.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, I keep on looking for the opportunity. With CJ.
Stroud now back in the fold and returning from from
his injuries and the wide receiving core that they have
with the Texans, like it's really there for Nico Collins
to be the guy. Yeah, exactly, and Week sixteen Raiders,
(07:44):
So yeah, yes, opportunity presents itself. So for the next
two weeks, you know, maybe not sour as much on
the Texans considering what's ahead. But Sunday night didn't leave
it too much to love from the Houston squad.
Speaker 4 (07:56):
Yeah, Rashie Rise just four for thirty four Kelsey with
a singer catch the tip drill on a ball that
he's caught ninety nine out of one hundred times his
entire life.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Just a difficult night.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
If you played any of the pass catchers now going
up against Houston, this is one of those where we
would have advised, you know, really scoured the roster, look
at your waiver claims, all of those kind of things
to maybe find better because I wasn't expecting I mean,
we weren't expecting fireworks. I think I speak for all
three of us when we talk about what was forty
one or forty one and a half over under for
(08:32):
this game and it played out just an absolute grind
ten nothing at halftime, and it was funny listening to
the to the broadcast trying to find any sign of
life and sliver of hope for the Chiefs, like I
think I got a nine minute Chris Jones infomercial at
one point. But it was just kind of crazy trying
(08:54):
to find anything. It's like, no, no, no, you don't have
to sell it. They're playing terribly, like we can with
our eyes, Patrick Muller. They pull one out, but I
haven't seen it.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
We knew their offensive line was shorthanded and they some weeks.
I'm going to follow Ian's advice on the streaming defenses.
Let's see who we can pick up this past week.
I didn't. I just rolled with the Texans, and I'm
probably gonna roll with the Texans most of the time anyway.
But if there are certain situations where I'm like, Okay,
I'm not necessarily sure about this, you know, let's see
that maybe there's a better option out there. The week
(09:27):
before against the Colts, I ended up playing the Dolphins
defense and it was a better play. But it's crazy
to think that for a game in Kansas City that
the opposing team's defense would be a good option. And
that's what it was for the Houston Texans, and I
think that says something about the Chiefs, by the way.
Not to gloss over it, but Mike mentioned it earlier.
(09:49):
I was in my longtime league. I was up against
a team that had the Chargers defense. Never has happened
before to me in a fantasy game. I know we've
I've seen this in the NFL, but to have the
two turnovers on one play like my opponents. My buddy
got the interception and the fumble recovery on the two
(10:10):
changes of possession, I swear that was a sign from
up above that it wasn't going to be my night.
It ended up being my night where I was able
to hold on and get a victory. But I'm just
like you know, I've seen this play before, but I've
never had it directly affect me, and it did on
Monday night. So another fantasy oddity pops up.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
Yeah, that was one if in my original days and
work in the scenes at Yahoo, I would have been
scripting what the FAQ is going to be FSR or yeah,
it would have been foot Hurts. Just send that one
out on anything Jalen Hurts related for scoring, because yes,
there were two turnovers on the same plan.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
It's there's we would have so many arguments in our
league on how to detayl So if a team say
runs uh a fake you know, a fake field goal
or you know, or something like that, or you know,
and just determining on what is special teams, what is
(11:14):
an actual play? What is offense and defense? There's there's
a couple of situations where teams are like, okay, is
that a return? You know, interceptions on conversions aren't interceptions,
you know, like you know, they shouldn't be counted. People like,
but they're interceptions if you can run it back for
a point, Like there's there's all these things inside of that.
And so then as it happened last on Monday night,
I was like, man, is that gonna happen? Like is
(11:37):
in sure enough on the scoreboard? I n T f
R on the same play. So those things pop up,
and when when you're running team defenses, crazy things can happen.
Speaker 5 (11:46):
My favorite, my favorite stat of the night is that
Jalen Hurts now has three times as many interceptions on
the season as he did coming into the night, which is.
Speaker 4 (11:54):
Just insane, right, I mean two and they four here
plus the fumble. What's always fun in the scoring of
it all is when when you have individual defensive players,
because then you start adding asterisks for tackles and and
you really have to make people understand the scoring nooses
that they've given themselves within their league for trying to
keep track of things. But yeah, for Jalen Hurts pushing
(12:19):
the ball down field, I mean bad things, man. Just
a very difficult night. Chargers defense steps up in a
big way. And again this is you finally got Saquon Barkley.
It's only a second hundred yard game of.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
The year path, that's crazy, and he needed a fifty
sixty yard run to be able to catch it in
for him as well.
Speaker 5 (12:40):
Which to your point earlier Mike about the Monsters inc broadcast,
the play of that was incredible where it was just
Mike Wazowski baulting fifty two yards leaving Sully in the dust.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
Either get him in the one on one.
Speaker 5 (12:54):
It's like they were ASKI down the sideline.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
It's incredible.
Speaker 4 (12:58):
They also on that play there was probably the most
obvious should have been holding call on Khloe Mack that
I've ever seen that was not flying as Barkley sprinted past.
So no friends in the Chargers Booth were losing their
minds at they did.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
They had nothing to complain about. Now I just popped
into my mind, did you ever have the issue Mike
in Yahoo? Because I was mentioning field goals and I
remember what it was when someone runs a fake field goal.
I would have guys in my league say that that
should be a special teams like a touchdown.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
No, it becomes an offensive play.
Speaker 1 (13:38):
Yeah, and that's that's the point of it. Like it's
it's never like there's there's not a great area in
that scenario, Like that's pretty black and white.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
It's just a differult alignment.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
Yeah, yeah, that's all it is. Yes, those are some
of the the discussions and complaints that we would we
would have long ago about fantasy and and when a
special team unit is out there and what happens.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
And but well, even block kicks the way they're described
on games, right, Oh, there's a block it's like, well,
if it goes past the line of scrimmage, it's not
a block, it's two yard points.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (14:10):
Or it's a missfield goal, it's not it's not actually
a block kick, so you should not get the points. Now,
it might be like some of these online books for
betting that you know, do a oh oopsie kind of
thing where they still give you the points but you
shouldn't by rule.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
That's that's the greatness of fantasy football, all the ins
and outs and when you think something's never going to
happen and ends up happening and people are wondering, how
the hell did this affect my team? And why did
I lose by point eight? Yeah, that's what happens.
Speaker 3 (14:43):
That's it.
Speaker 1 (14:44):
Yes, all right, we're going to take a time out.
We're going to look at the rest of Week fourteen, which,
by the way, was a heck of a lot better
points wise as opposed to the two primetime games that
we got some up and down action in the late window. Plus,
we take a look at our report cards on who
hit what's in Week fourteen. It's all coming up next
to here on I Want Your Flex? All right, welcome
(15:10):
back to I Want Your Flex. He's Mike Carmen, I'm
Dan Byer. That's Ian Roddy. Let's get into it, guys, Mike,
what stood out to you in week fourteen?
Speaker 4 (15:17):
Well, I think you know the theme of the last
couple of weeks has been some of these strange bedfellows.
When we get into the running back and wide receiver
positions of who's finding their way to the top for
the sake of the quarterbacks, there's only one that really
stood out, at least for the top five. As we
get to the top ten, there's our guy, Tyler Shuck
making his way. Lamar Jackson still finished as a top
(15:40):
seven play despite the inconsistencies, the inability, the touchdown that
got stolen, I'll say it.
Speaker 3 (15:48):
I think it was a terrible call.
Speaker 4 (15:50):
Yeah, the Isaiah like Isaiah likely back back to back
weeks where he's involved in something chaotic, right, But you
look at Josh Allen putting on the cape once again,
shador and you want to talk about King of Yak, right,
and he can throw the ball the country mile, but
the big players are coming on underneath things where guys
are sprinting to daylight. He finishes as your number two
(16:11):
quarterback over thirty four points. Burrow, Darnold, guys in Stafford
like all guys that we could check the box there,
but then we start, you know, extrapolating, and well, who
were their biggest targets? And for week fourteen, all right
in nikoua fine. Michael Wilson, he's been great. Marvin Harrison
Junior missed again. We've talked about Wilson and Jacoby Brissett.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
Great.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
T Higgins finishes with twenty one. Probably shouldn't have finished
and played as much of the game as he did,
given some of the I would say concussive blows that
he took that might actually have put it back in there. Yeah, protocal,
leaving us wanting. But Christian Watson with a big game, Florne,
going back to that Dallas game, DK Metcalf finally got
(16:56):
off the off the the matt and was involved in
the Pittsburgh offense immediately. Was it a massive game for him, No,
but he actually mattered. You know, when we're looking at
half pprs, he still finishes as upper w R two
for us. So you have some of those kind of
(17:17):
options along the I'm sorry, finished seventh for this week,
the sort you know, the refreshing of some of these pages.
But Tim Patrick finds his way in. It just became
this curiosity of all right, here are number one guys
that just could get pushed to the side, and we're
finding those secondary players stepping up in a big way.
(17:39):
And the running back position. We always expect Attrician at
this point in the year, so much more of the
same in that regard when we start looking at, you know,
the the leaders and the Tony Pollard anybody. I don't
think we've mentioned Tony Pollard in twelve weeks.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
No, I didn't think the Titans were going to score
against the Browns and they put thirty one up and
he had what a buck sixty?
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (18:03):
So you got him at number two, Blake Korum runaway game,
he's number three, and R. J. Harvey's fifth. So I
mean you got three guys that rise above to where
we haven't seen that. Miami game got weird. So Jalen
Wright has himself a big game. But I think it's
just we're at the point where it's healthy bodies, workflow,
(18:25):
and just the uncertainty and it's the worst because well
it's playoff time, so trying to figure out touches and targets,
like we were just talking with the Chargers is a
really difficult proposition.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
You mentioned T Higgins and now with the concussion and
he's in concussion protocol, I doubt that you're going to
see him against the Ravens coming up in week fifteen,
and so that that opens the door with Joe Burrow
being back these last couple of games, the Jamar Chase
hasn't gotten into the end zone, but now you T
(19:00):
Higgins and so Jamar Chase could be a big play
down the stretch for teams that are waiting for him
to break out. But he was. You wouldn't think that
Joe Burrow in those conditions would throw four touchdown passes
and throw for the amount of yards that he did,
but didn't seem to have any problems and finding T
Higgins and Chase Brown being as good as he's been. Yeah,
(19:21):
it'll be interesting to see it with the Bengals now
with really not a lot to play for, but I
think they're gonna play with pride and I still we
think their defense is awful. That's not gonna get any
better in the next four weeks. So it could be
profitable for the Bengals to continue to ride those guys
even if they're out of the playoff.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah, Hendrickson is done right. That was one of the
reports from from early on Monday, that you won't see
him again. But and in the background floated all the
contract stuff, but he's evidently having surgery in the abden
abdominal area.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, Carl muscle.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
Yeah, so we look at that, but you know, Joe
Burrow didn't battle back to to walk away at this point, right,
So we'll see them give it the old college try,
which means they're gonna be a pain in the ass
for the opposing squads, and particularly if they can play
spoiler in the AFC North. That's what they want to do.
Fifty two and a half the total as I look
(20:17):
at it here on my grid.
Speaker 1 (20:19):
Yeah, we can't rule them out of the playoffs just yet,
just a one percent chance, but it's very likely to happen.
The other thing with Hendrickson is you probably want to
get it done sooner rather than later for next year, right, Like.
Speaker 3 (20:33):
There's no that's right.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
Yeah, So it's out of the picture, and they say
six weeks just in case, maybe that one percent comes
out and guess what, the Bengals somehow end up miraculously
winning the division. Everything goes to hell and they make
it in. Then you could say, maybe Trey Hendrickson comes
back at some point. But even if that miracle would happen,
if I'm Trey Hendrickson. I'm probably not trying to come
(20:55):
back and playing any football this year, but I think
it's more just to set up for whoever he's going
to play for in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (21:02):
I remember he got that extra what was it fourteen
million dollars? Yeah, I added for this year and then
you got about a half a season, which again, when
it happened, we talked about it, the three of us, like,
why are you giving him a bunch of money? Your
defense still staks. Yeah, whether he shows up or not,
you have proof of concept.
Speaker 3 (21:20):
It's not good.
Speaker 1 (21:20):
Yeah, it doesn't didn't make any sense. The the in
and out Applis Colts are free falling now, there's not
much to do. There's not much you can do with
Daniel Jones being out for the year. Rightley Leonard's dinged up.
Philip Rivers is going to get a get a tryout.
Speaker 3 (21:37):
Did you not smile about that? Though?
Speaker 4 (21:39):
Come on, you saw Philip rivers name, you saw that report,
you verified that it was a legitimate news source, because
I sure as help did.
Speaker 1 (21:47):
The crazy thing was Doug Gottlieb brought it up on
the show Monday, talking with Tom Tlasco sick. What do
you do? Just go and get an old guy like
Philip Rivers. Yeah, just you know, kind of like a
throwaway sort of thing. And because I think he's you know,
coaching and you know, doing stuff with his family and
blah blah blah. What do you know, Here comes a
here comes a workout. But you got the Seahawks coming
(22:08):
up this weekend. That's what you want to come out
of retirement for.
Speaker 3 (22:11):
When you look at their schedule.
Speaker 5 (22:12):
Tom Brady's gonna get fomo here like he's gonna try
to make a comeback, and Phil up starts looking good.
Speaker 4 (22:19):
That's nice to saying, though you look at their schedule
down the stretch. We chronicled a little bit Smith and
I as this story at Seattle home against San Francisco,
Jacksonville defense has been playing better, and then the final
week of the year on the road at Houston.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
Yeah, I'll stay retired.
Speaker 1 (22:37):
Yeah, it's it's it's not easy. And that Texans game
was thought to be maybe a huge one at the
end of the year and it could end up becoming
meaningless because of how this is falling apart. They make
the deal, They give up two first round picks for
Sauce Gardner. They go to Germany and play the Falcons.
They win that overtime game, but DeForrest Buckner doesn't make
the trip because of his neck injury. He was a
(22:59):
big part of that defense. I think that's one of
the reasons why you're seeing them struggle. Then Daniel Jones
has the fracture, and then ultimately now the Achilles on
the other leg, and it just I mean, it's just
completely fallen apart for the Colts. And they even had
their first round picks for the next two years, like
it's I mean, I can't like it's December ninth or tenth,
(23:25):
depending on you know when you're listening to this podcast
and to that Germany game was in early November, and
for it to crumble this quickly in a month and
to have that and not only that, but your future
wasted like for the Colts, no first round pigs, Like man,
just awful. I can't recall anything like it.
Speaker 4 (23:47):
Oh and then you add the sauce Gardener injury.
Speaker 5 (23:52):
Well, I was going to ask you, guys, do you
think it was a mistake to go all in?
Speaker 4 (23:56):
No, I didn't think they needed It's a corner No,
I mean, yeah that I guess we could talk that
side of things, you know, in terms of which position.
But if that's what you decided you needed, then I say,
you push when you can't, right if you're having a
charm season.
Speaker 5 (24:14):
That's what I'm saying, Mike.
Speaker 3 (24:16):
But I agree with you Dan, whether you know the
corner thing might have been the.
Speaker 5 (24:21):
Well, they were one of the Super Bowl favorites by
that point in the season. So like, if it's looking
like you're this is the year for you guys, why
wouldn't you want to push all your cards in And
if cornerback is what you deem your weakest position. With
the Tarvarius Ward thing going on, I know he was
dealing with some stuff, but yeah, I don't know's it's
just such.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
A I'll tell you, I'll tell you why. I'll tell
you why. It's ridiculous because outside of Jamar Chase, when
you look at the playoff picture in the NFC, and
this is why I didn't like it. I didn't like
it within the division, like are you are you bringing
in Sauce Gardner to shut down Nico Collins for the
next couple of years? Is that? Like what this is about?
(25:00):
Because you have a Patriots team. What stuff on Diggs?
You need to get a corner to stop him in
the postseason. You need a corner to stop Courtland Sutton.
You need one to stop maybe Brian Thomas Junior, like
you know, who hasn't been a factor this year, needed
a corner to stop who Khalil Shakir on the Bills
(25:21):
like it just didn't That position to me was of
no immediate need to have someone who is a lockdown corner.
Considering your your teams that you were competing with in
the AFC. If they wanted to give up two ones
for Quinn Williams, I woant to have made a lot
more sense.
Speaker 4 (25:39):
No no argument whatsoever, no argument whatsoever. But you know,
certainly the early part of the season, the one part
that of the team that was questioned with some regularity
was the secondary. So maybe just in response to that,
and again I don't pretend to know you know, how
they came to that decision, but deciding to push in
(26:02):
yeah Twyn Williams, I'm curious what they got as a
response when they made the ask, sure right, and maybe
they decided, well that's too rich and instead went the
other route. You know, trying to look at what your
schedule was. I ad at least try to shut down
half a field.
Speaker 1 (26:19):
By the way, it started to cut you off because
I was gonna ask you a question. But Sauce was
on the trading block, Like his name was thrown out there, right,
I mean, there's no it has been for the last
like twelve months.
Speaker 5 (26:30):
No. That Like that's the thing though, is like he
it was out of the blue, like he this was
a guy who they just paid him, Like they just
paid him that huge contract, made him the highest paid
corner in football. That was the crazy. Like to me,
it was a complete shock scene that he got traded
when you see the return. And I said it at
the time, like it just felt like way too much
for the Colts to give up. So that's the issue
(26:50):
that I have with it, is that they gave up
so much for it. But in terms of actually trading
for Sauce Gardner, the process is sound enough in my mind,
just because the trade deadlinees is a pro coaching. This
is a position group on our team that we deemed
to be on the weaker side. Let's go and get
one of the best in the league at it. But
he's a guy who doesn't create turnovers. It was always
an overpay.
Speaker 1 (27:09):
That's yeah, at the end of the day, show you're
one hundred percent right. It was this summer. This past
summer he got his contract. But I know for a
fact that there were Jets people who were saying last year,
when you're trying to rebuild, the whole deal is like,
why do we have sauce? Why do we have you know,
a cornerback? And that's just my I'm with you on
the going for it, like because Daniel Jones's contract wasn't
(27:32):
going to be the same this year as it was
going to have to be next year.
Speaker 3 (27:35):
It was a one year, fifteen million dollar deal, right.
Speaker 1 (27:37):
I just think that they went to the wrong spot
and now now he's hurt. So Steven matter. But with
a team that's depleted having good corners, I don't know.
I just I think that I think offenses are too good,
Like just you're the way that you stop an offense
is from your defensive line and getting after the quarterback.
(27:57):
But I've always felt that way.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Well, but that's it, right, quarderback. Someone to protect your
guy and someone to attack. It's the pat system protector
attack or thrower.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
That's it.
Speaker 4 (28:08):
Everything else is a bonus, especially if it's you got
to take on this level of cost, and that that's
the larger thing going forward with Sauce is that it
was a four year, one hundred and twenty million dollars deal,
So you've got a lot committed to that side of
the ball. Now you're expecting the continuance of the offenses
to get better, because that's just the way football has
(28:31):
been right to where even if we've got a few
running backs that are all world like a Chan and
what have you, that it is still a throwing league
most of the time.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So I guess. But to your point, yeah, I'd rather
have the attacker, no question.
Speaker 4 (28:47):
I would have gone before his injury and said, all right,
why don't we give up something, even if it's just
a rental for whatever's left of Trey Hendrickson. Right, But
hindsight twenty twenty and now it's all falling apart. When
Daniel Jones crumpled to the field. I don't know that
I've ever outside of you know, bears like Wendell Davis
(29:08):
and things like that, just that audible exhale of uh like,
because it just it was so sad, right, you know,
he's already played on the broken leg and he just
goes down. Yeah, and he immediately slams his helmet and
all of that, Like it was just a horrible moment.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
And he's got to get the other leg fixed. Now,
he's got to get this one. And who's gonna sign
him in the off season. Maybe that's the break that
the Colts get, is that nobody wants Daniel Jones because
of his injury, and they'll be able to sign with
some sort of deal, but there's no guarante he's going
to be ready for twenty twenty six or even be
remotely close to the same quarterback in twenty twenty six. Yeah,
(29:46):
oh yeah, tough times for the Colts. By the way,
just so I don't restate history, I just want to
get this right for the record. So the Jets basically
make a commitment with Garrett Wilson in the office and
then they add Sauce to that. But prior to that,
I know there was trade talk. But then this offseason
in twenty twenty five, it's like, Kay, Aaron Glenn's here.
(30:09):
We locked up Garrett Wilson, we locked up Sauce Gardner
we're ready to go, and then the next thing you know,
Sauce is out the door. Is that a good summary
ian of what happened?
Speaker 3 (30:17):
Yeah, I'd say so.
Speaker 5 (30:18):
I mean even even myself last season, before before we
even knew who the next coach of the Jets was
going to be, we're in that interim stage with Jeff Ulbrich.
I was kinda I know, among Jets Twitter and stuff,
there were some conversations had just like, you know, at
what point do you think, like, okay, just take what
you can get with the assets that you have. But
but I think the majority of fans wanted to keep
(30:40):
him around, just because in general, that's how fans are.
Speaker 3 (30:43):
You know, you just want a star on your team.
Speaker 5 (30:45):
Exactly, you want stars. You wanted to stick around homegrown guys.
Speaker 1 (30:49):
And there was the commitment to Wilson as well, because
there was some question about whether he was going to
be there or not.
Speaker 5 (30:53):
Yeah, I just I would not trade him ever. He's
just the best. He's the kind of guy you want
in that locker.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Yeah, absolutely, And they committed to both of those guys
in twenty twenty five. So I just hate it when
people miss state history and then don't correct it. So
I wasn't entirely right, and I'm glad that Ian said
what he said about the contract, but I knew that
there was at some point the Jets were on one
side and then they ended up being on the other,
and then they were back on that other side. Anyway,
(31:20):
speaking of the other side, we will come back on
the other side. We'll do our report cards plus anything
else that stuck out from a Week fourteen. We'll also
have our MIDWEK episode. We'll dive into more of what
is happening in the National Football League as well. It's
all coming up next to here and I want your flex.
It'll be a report card time in a sec. Plus
Mike's got some waiver wire pickups for you if you're
(31:42):
heading into the postseason or like me in my longtime
league where we only have ten guys who have one
more week of the regular season left to go and
then our two week playoff. But let's wrap and put
up the bow on. Wrap the bow, wrap the package.
Whatever the Christmas time feeling you want to say, Ian, Roddy,
what stood out to you in Week fourteen.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
One thing that stood out to me is Lamar Jackson.
I kind of the overroaching thought that he just can't
be healthy. And I know I'm not alone in that,
but he just.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
He can't be.
Speaker 5 (32:13):
He can't be because if Lamar is healthy, like John
Harbaugh has been saying this whole time, like he's insistent
that Lamar is healthy, I'm concerned going forward about Lamar
because if he really is healthy and this is what
he looks like, he's about to turn twenty nine, he's
approaching that dreaded thirty, you know. And I get that
he's a quarterback and they generally tend to last longer,
but with his style, who knows how long? Like, we
(32:33):
just don't know. With such an unprecedented style of quarterback.
He's the best running quarterback in NFL history, you know,
so don't We don't know when the fall off is
going to happen with his athleticism. So I'm not saying
that it is necessarily happening right now, but I'm starting
to at least have, you know, back of my head
some concerns like is this kind of when it starts
to come, because he looks bad right now. He's not
(32:56):
making guys miss at the same level. His pocket presence
is worse it's it's ugly.
Speaker 1 (33:01):
I thought him getting sacked. We talked about Mike reference
the likely catch that wasn't There was the Rogers deflected
ball that should have been Baltimore's and ended up Pittsburgh.
But on the Ravens last play from scrimmage, Lamar got
sacked and it was just like, you know, they didn't
even get the throw off. And I thought that that
(33:21):
was very fitting unlike him, Yes, exactly, like who catches
him in that situation, Not that he was going to
run the ball, but just to elude pressure to be
able to get some sort of throw off for them
to try to win the game. And he couldn't do that.
That was Yes, that was not good. And it's not
like the Steelers are the old Steel Curtain, I mean,
to have the issues that he had against them. They'll
(33:44):
have their games every now and then. But yeah, you're right,
something is off of Yeah, with five.
Speaker 4 (33:48):
Straight weeks under sixty percent completion percentage, I talk about
the sacks to this week, but hurried and not able
to get to the end. He did have his highest
rushing total in a while at forty three and a touchdown.
You had the Mark Andrews intercepting, well he didn't catch it,
but taking the would be standing touchdown from DeAndre Hopkins,
(34:13):
and there was a lot of gesturing anger Lamar on
the sideline, a bunch of instances where he was getting
and chewing guys out, which we had Jason lock and
Ford does work there out of Baltimore. He said, that
is not the Lamar Jackson that you're used to, like
it's normally a very up, uplifting guy. So the frustrations
(34:35):
are there, and he estimates he's playing at a little
over sixty percent. Wow, like he's everything that's been reported.
The ankle got his footstepped on, like he's basically the
wacky doctors game operation. That's my assessment of what talking
to people back in Baltimore. It's like one injury after
the next, which has hampered him. The offensive lines not
(34:56):
as good as it's been. Derrick Henry is a bit
of a diminished guy in terms of being able to
rely on him and then being betrayed by everybody except
for Zay Flowers in the receiving corps, even if Mark
Andrews did get that new contract. So it's a lot
of stuff piling up. But your concerns are warranted because
that running element. It's like when Cam Newton hit that
(35:17):
point right when that was what made him superman and
he called himself superman and then he became a guy.
Speaker 5 (35:24):
I don't know how old he was at the time,
but I would have to assume it was somewhere around close.
Speaker 1 (35:31):
The other thing with with the Ravens is they could
use a year where they have a top ten pick.
So why going through all of this to win a
division when you're not going to make it through the
conference is you know, just surprising to me. You know,
they could They really could use some retooling on defense.
(35:55):
It was some retooling on the offensive line. So to
play Lamar and try to map out these games and
try to get what you can and trying to win
a few down the stretch. I know you can't hunt
on the season, but if he is sixty percent, maybe
it's better off of Baltimore just kind of all right,
let's just let's get ready for twenty twenty six because
(36:15):
it's just not there. They're not beating any of the
teams that are in the playoff picture ahead of them.
They got a trip to Green Bay coming up later
on this season. So yeah, it's tough, tough, uh, tough
driving for the Baltimore rates.
Speaker 4 (36:27):
What is part of that thing? I don't know what
it's like. I hope to get there, but to where
you never bought them out right. It's like Pittsburgh in
that same boat of yeah, they're always slightly above the
five hundred or maybe you know a few wins above,
you know, the ten wins seasons, eleven win season, whatever,
but you never bought them out to where you just
(36:48):
have a hard reset where you have to look at
and take it down to brass tacks. Ian and I
we've watched that happen with our team every year.
Speaker 5 (36:58):
It's like, what are they gonna do? I don't know,
new rock Bottom. There's a rock at your bottom, beneath
every rock.
Speaker 4 (37:03):
Bottom, that's it, right, how many layers in the rings
towards hell can we get to?
Speaker 3 (37:09):
But for these teams, they've never done it.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Yeah, And I think that my team, the Seahawks, are
the perfect example of why the Ravens need a reset.
You make a make a good trade, right, you trade
Russell Wilson, you move him off. Maybe there's maybe there's
trade Baltimore can make, right, sure, get some younger talent
in there. You have to, you have to hit in
the draft. But the the reset isn't like, isn't guaranteed
(37:37):
where you're going to be three and fourteen or four
and thirteen, especially with today's NFL, like and there's a
way to do it. And the problem that like Seattle had,
which I think is the problem that Baltimore is probably having,
is your clothes you're not and so you're making all
these additions that you think are going to put you
over the hunk, just slowly taking you away from the
(38:01):
ultimate prize. And Pete Carroll was that way, Like Pete
Carroll always wanted to compete, compete, compete, and when he
ultimately was let go and John Schneider was able to
run more of the roster without Pete Carroll saying I
want this guy, I want that guy, it wasn't as
much of a rebuild as you would have. So that's
why I think could really help in Baltimore is right now, like, yeah,
(38:22):
they're missing out on the playoffs and are just two
years removed from you know what an AFC Championship game
where they thought that they you know, were on their
way to the super Bowl. But you're a lot further
away from the super Bowl than you realize. If you
keep on making moves.
Speaker 4 (38:34):
Like that, Can you get John Schneider to go talk
to the folks in Raiderland?
Speaker 3 (38:40):
Now you probably did jump off this ship.
Speaker 1 (38:46):
Sure you know the way they weren't loyal to their quarterback,
right they said to not only Russell Wilson with Gino
smancon he made some tough decisions there. Sure you made
a get a questionable trade at the time with the
Giants to bring in Leonard Williams. But you show Leonard
Williams what your building's like. He's then become the anchor
of that defensive line, you know, Sprinkle in a couple
of other pieces, and what do you know, it's not
(39:08):
as bad as you know, what you could have had. So, yeah,
things can turn around. Maybe the Ravens should take note,
but we shall see. Still a lot to play for
in twenty twenty five, especially in fantasy football. Mike, Let's
get your waiver wire and then we'll wrap it up
with some report cards at the end, because yeah, they're
(39:29):
a doozy this week.
Speaker 3 (39:30):
We'll just put it that way exactly. We already talked
about CJ. Stroud.
Speaker 4 (39:33):
Opportunity there, Yoshavash, because we assume that no T. Higgins
available for you there. Marcus Mariota will be back under center,
one would presume for Washington as Jaden Daniels leaves once again,
opportunity against the Giants defense this time out. As we
look at that, you got Jade reed. His share will
(39:56):
continue to grow as he gets healthy again. The Packers,
I'm deploying a lot of guys and while he's not
a start this week against Denver, it's more just a
long term put it away. We've watched what the Packers
offense was able to do against the Bears. We have
these stupid ass and I'll say it sandwich games coming
up for a lot of teams. Right, Packers played Denver
(40:17):
this week, then they play the Bears again. So again,
Ben don't break, They'll move the ball, and you saw
the deep ball work very well.
Speaker 3 (40:24):
There.
Speaker 4 (40:25):
You've got Bryant of the Denver Broncos over the last
three weeks, twelve catches on seventeen targets. So getting a
little bit of love there. So we look at the
tight end position, Barner nineteen catches over the last four
theo Johnson with an opportunity against the Washington secondary. So
getting a little deeper as we go through stuff. We
(40:48):
talked a little bit about Devin Neil a bit in
terms of what his workload has been, still available in
a lot of leagues, Folks just reticent to go anywhere
near and he players. And we talk about Shuck going
up against Carolina. Maybe not the most obvious of plays,
but for fantasy purposes, he's been strong since taking over
the start. And how about want a blast from the past.
(41:11):
We laughed about Philip Rivers and wax poetic. What about
Kirk Cousins against a really bad Tampa Bay secondary?
Speaker 3 (41:21):
How about that?
Speaker 4 (41:21):
Will we talk about because no bye weeks, but we've
got injuries, you might have to be forced to go.
Maybe you had Daniel Jones in a super flex, maybe
you had one of these other guys, you know, because
the quarterback is generally going to be your play if
you can find one, sir, Now, do I trust Kirk?
I gotta wait till later in the week to see
if Drake London's gonna get himself back up off the mat.
(41:43):
But certainly I look desperation and sometimes just playing defense
to add a guy to your bench so it doesn't
come back to beat you.
Speaker 1 (41:54):
Absolutely the Yeah, Drake London has been a missing piece
that would help the situation. The Buccaneers like you. We're
gonna get to your report card in a second, because
I know he Tyler Shuck was one of your ninjas
this week and he catched in. He is a villain
of mine and Ian Roddy is Ian. Do you want
to go first on how the streaming defenses went?
Speaker 5 (42:16):
Yeah, yeah, I'll go first. So, uh yeah, So Tyler
Shuck and the Saints they played against the Tampa Bay Bucks.
The Bucks were one of my streaming defenses this week.
They actually were the best play of the three that
I gave you, guys. That says a lot here because uh,
Tampa Bay. They got you seven fantasy points.
Speaker 3 (42:32):
That was it.
Speaker 5 (42:32):
You know, it's a meager outing, not terrible, not a
week lose, not bad. Actually, yeah, that was the best
of the three. Got you seven points. They allowed twenty
four points to Tyler Shuck. He scored two rushing touchdowns.
That was part of why he was so good for fantasy.
He did throw an interception and they sacked him three times.
But like Mike said, Shuck's been slowly getting better and better,
so so the Bucks did not play as the defense
(42:54):
didn't play as well as I expected them to there
because Shuck just keeps getting better.
Speaker 4 (42:58):
Three of his last four starts teen, eighteen point four
and twenty two point three.
Speaker 5 (43:02):
Yeah, quietly. Next up the Washington Commanders. They got you
three fantasy points here. They allowed thirty one points to
the Vikings and they got four sacks as well on
JJ McCarthy. But man giving up thirty one points to McCarthy,
I just did not see that coming. So yeah, only
got you three points there, but hey, if not for
those four sacks, it would have been a negative outing,
(43:22):
so they at least salvaged it. And then lastly, the
Baltimore Ravens, as we've talked about them extensively here, I
recommended them zero fantasy points. They didn't lose your points,
so we'll take a small win there. But now it
was just just a goosegg from the Ravens defense. Twenty
seven points allowed and that was it.
Speaker 1 (43:40):
Well, at least Ian's streaming defense has provided a little
sunshine because they gave you three options for a survivor
pool and went oh to three everybody crapped out on me.
Buccaneers were a popular pick by many, and it was
my pick that I went with the pool. And yeah,
we got Tyler Shukd, that's for sure, although I would
almost say like we got a Mecca who could in
(44:00):
a way, we got Baker Mayfield in a way, we
got Chris Godwin in a way. They all had opportunities
to make plays and didn't cash in and ended up
ultimately losing a night wet, soggy Sunday afternoon in Florida.
So the Saints get the win and knocked out a
ton of entries in survivor pools, the Big Circle one,
(44:21):
and know the Buccaneers were a top pick. In mind,
we had eighty one entries left. I think fifty five
of us picked the Buccaneers. So that was probably a
bad choice by me, knowing that there would be a
lot of people picking the Buccaneers, kind of want to
go in the opposite direction. The opposite direction I would
have gone would probably have been the Browns. I as
I mentioned earlier in the podcast, Guys, I don't think
Tennessee was going to score. I thought this would be
(44:43):
a Miles Garrett. I mean it was so much a
Miles Garrett game that we were talking about him getting
five sacks and breaking the record against dam Ward.
Speaker 4 (44:49):
Right eight dollars to go to the game to watch
him break the record.
Speaker 3 (44:54):
Instead, it's like, what the hell's Tony Pollard doing.
Speaker 5 (44:57):
Yeah, Garrett didn't even get five pressures?
Speaker 1 (45:00):
Yeah right, it's crazy thirty one twenty nine and the
bron still had a chance at the end, but Judkins,
you know, messes up the two point conversion and then
I should have been on the other side. Now, not
that I thought that Brady Cook was going to see
action for the Jets, but that is what happened against
the Dolphins and the Dolphins cruise past New York. I
just thought if Torod Taylor was playing in that game,
thought maybe weather could have been a factor with the
(45:21):
Dolphins in town. But I was zero to three and
deserve my fate. I did get the points of Palooza, correct,
but that's just thanks to the Rams, because they put
forty five up on the Cardinals and ended up having
the second highest point total this week behind that Bill's Bengals.
That was even in a snowstorm. They still put up
seventy three points. But that's my report card for the week.
Speaker 4 (45:42):
Just an insane week of football, no question about it.
Topsy Turvy take the victory on Shuck for that. In
terms of the Ninjas, Saquon who we put down there
because it was the well what do we do with
Saquon Barkley at this point? He ended up finishing sixth
for the week. Te Higgins was a big play for us,
(46:03):
but missus on Bam Knight and Tarad Taylor actually had
minus point eight. He was minus for the day. Fellas
dk Metcalf was in the cold source made me look stupid.
We did have Mconkey, so we'll take the push on
that one. Devantae Adams streak ended, so a win there.
(46:24):
Marx was on the cold source screwed me with that
to touchdown justin. Herbert gets points for toughness, but outside
his rushing yards didn't give you a whole lot, so
he was middling. Caleb was middling against Green Bay and
Patrick Mahomes terrible against Houston, so we'll take some victories there. Quarterbacks,
we had three of our top five worked out well.
Speaker 3 (46:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (46:46):
The first three guys Alan Burrow staff are great. Four
and five were Baker and Jalen.
Speaker 1 (46:51):
Hurts take the sixty percent. That's it. Yes, in a.
Speaker 4 (46:57):
Lot of places, that's actually passing grade more with the
scales that we've added to things. A Chen and Chase
Brown got me into the winning winners circle there in
the running backs, they tied for seventh. Josh Jacobs finishes
his back end number one, and then Taylor Cook absolute
disasters wide receivers. We take the wins off Puka and
(47:20):
JSN because they never steer me wrong. Aj Brown solid
game but no touchdown and a half PPR leads you
to a sixteenth place finish. Nico Collins fourteenth, and then
Rashie Rice all the way down at number forty eight.
Speaker 1 (47:35):
Well, that's you nailed on Michael Wilson, so that was
a hit. Jacoby Myers on one of your hot plays
was a gut in the end zone.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
So he's had a good run.
Speaker 1 (47:44):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely has. So I see many more stars
than the merits on Mike Harmon's report card for a week.
Speaker 3 (47:53):
You're two kind, two kind, I'm a harsh grater.
Speaker 1 (47:58):
Well, well, we'll see how the rest of the NFL
grades out over these final four weeks. We've got a
bunch to get to it's playoff time. There's so much
at Steak and fantasy football. That's why we're gonna be
here for you with more episodes leading you all the
way to the end of the regular season. Week fourteen
was a dandy and now we're done with the buys.
(48:19):
We're ready to go. We're about to hit the home stretch.
There'll be our MIDWEK episode and then of course on Friday,
Michaelavis rankings for a Week fifteen and so much more
so until then. For Ian Roddy and Mike Carmon, I'm
Dan Beyer. We'll talk to you next time, and I
want your flex
Hosts And Creators
Rich Davis
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