Explain Yourself! Rankings Debates & Tar Pits - Fantasy Football Podcast

This episode is brought to you by State Farm. Every football fan is different. Some won't wash their lucky mustard-stained jersey until the season's over. Some insist they can't sit down on third downs and some pick their favorite team because, I don't know, just like football fandom, nobody's life is exactly the same. And that's why State Farm gets to know you, not as a policy number, but as an actual person.

so they can help personalize a coverage plan that's just for you. Whether it's game day or just another Tuesday, State Farm has you covered. This is the story of the one. As a shipping manager, he's running the dock, stocking supplies, and making sure every order goes out on time. And Granger helps him stay prepared. From shipping supplies to PPE to hand tools, he counts on Granger to keep products moving and trucks rolling. So his operation runs smoothly.

No matter the shift. Call 1-800 Granger, click Granger.com or just stop by, Granger, for the ones who get it done. Unless one has an affinity for looking ridiculously foolish, it is wise not to stumble aimlessly into a fantasy football draft. The ultimate draft kit from the fantasy footballers contains all the information you need to avoid the jeers of your enemies.

and to snuff out any glint of hope in their souls. Imagine the gasps those trouser-wearing turnips will emit as you make yet another triumphant draft selection. Imagine their tears forming a formidable puddle as you assemble an unstoppable force. The ultimate draft kit comes bursting at the seams with fantasy goodness. When you enter the draft room, you'll feel as if you were a monstrous beast let loose in a chicken coop.

Head over to Ultimate DraftKit.com today. A fantasy footballer's podcast with your host, Andy Holloway, Jason Moore, and Mike Wright. Welcome in. Horrocious. I'm one with nature, Mike. I mean, that was a, it's a big jump there going from Best Friend of the show, Davey A, right into that, that scrow. That warrior's scream.

Welcome into the show. The fantasy footballers back with you. Mike Wright, Jason Moore, Andy Holloway, Tuesday, May 19th, episode 8806. We give episode numbers now? I chose to. You went to Spitballers Road right there. Here and there we give them. When you started saying the number and you're like 800 and I just thought you were making a number up. You know, like, show 8 billion. That's a legit number. That's.

Probably the right number. Are we going to hit 1,000 this year? Or like, who's done the math on this? It's, you have an hard time with it, Mike? I am confident based on math that we will hit it this year. Yeah. It's going to be one at a time, though. And then we'll get there. That's true. We have a very fun episode today. Some say the best. It's explain yourself. We're looking at our inaugural rankings, some of the...

debates that we've had internally, some of the kind of standout rankings from each of our lists. So we're going to have an opportunity to explain ourselves. And maybe, maybe persuade. I mean, that's part of what we're trying to do. We're trying to persuade you. I'm trying to persuade these two gentlemen and vice versa. So it's going to be a lot of fun. When you spain yourself? Oh, you got sprained. Not with carry on, though, did we?

Not withhold carry-on. I think you've got him this year. Maybe. Just too wait. At the F.F. Ballers on Twitter, YouTube.com slash the fantasy footballers. Subscribe. Click the bell. Follow us wherever. Wherever. Wherever the social media platforms are. We're everywhere.

And appreciate everybody over at jointhefoot.com. We just posted a new update over there about things going on. Very exciting time. Despite all of the kind of tumult around us, we have a lot of great things planned for 2020, planning on upgrading the website. We've got the Ultimate Draft Kit launching on June 1st, which is right around the corner. So you can check that out at Ultimate DraftKit.com. But it's going to be a fun year. All right.

Quick question of the day. Now that you've been through all 32 teams, what was the toughest team for you to stat out to predict, project for 2020? Yeah, I'll hop in here first. For me, it's the Chargers. You have a myriad of different things, both good and bad, happening for this team. I think their offensive line has been majorly improved.

I think their quarterback situation, despite my, you know, bad words towards Philip Rivers on a personal level for what he did to my fantasy team. Because you guys are very, I mean, it's back and forth, back and forth. Yeah, me and Phil, we go back and forth. He likes to talk trash. I like talk trash. He knows that. But, you know, the interceptions for my fantasy team were, I wasn't having that. But the reality is, they were so good for the show. Just for the way. Yeah.

He's a borderline Hall of Famer, and he's a guy that checks down to the running back. So when you look at Justin Herbert coming in a prospect, I wasn't personally too high on. Is he going to start the season? Is he not? Tyrod, who doesn't historically throw the ball to the running back, but the improved offensive line, the great schedule to start the year. There's so many different variables that you can't really, there's no sure way to predict them the way that there are with teams that have more.

congruency. And so to me, that was one of the more difficult teams to stat out. I had to essentially guess how many games I think Tyrod will start. I split the season. I didn't have Herbert starting. And then, you know, divvy up the stats according to having, you know, two thirds of the year with a rookie and a third of the year with Tyrod. And it was just difficult because there's a lot of good weapons there. Echler, Keenan Allen, Hunter Henry, Mike Williams, just some really important fantasy options.

that at the end of the day in my rankings kind of suck. Yeah, they're a tough team to stat out. Keenan Allen I had a hard time with. I mean, we've seen elite wide receivers struggle with transitioning at the quarterback position, and you have to kind of make a determination whether you're buying into that or whether you think one of those other guys is going to be able to get him the ball. So they're difficult, no doubt. Mike, who do you have as your most difficult team to stat out?

I went with the Rams. They are a complete mystery to me just across the entire team, except we know Jared Goff will be the quarterback, which Jared Goff will we see last years or two years ago, where he looked like he was improving and becoming an actual, like a top 12 fantasy guy. The running back position, who boy, that thing is a mess, but it's also...

You feel like the kid where, you know, back when you had your dino set, where it's just, it's tar. It is just, it's a tar pit. But you know if once you start pulling things out, you're going to have some dinosaur bones, you're going to put them together. You got an awesome new toy. Like, we could see Cam Acres emerge and be an absolute fantasy beast. Do you play with a lot of tar as a kid? You never had the dino sets?

No, I saw Andy's face was right with me and we did not play with the tar. But I get the analogy, right? The offensive line is the tar pit. Look, you guys missed out because I was super into science. I was playing with tar as a kid. Yeah, I wasn't playing with Joe's. I didn't have those. I had dinosaur kits where I was learning about pterodactyl. No, and it serves you at times like this.

Yeah, perfectly. You need a real solid analogy. Go on. You have the problem with the running back position. Then you have the problem with the wide receiver position slash tight ends of the wide receiver for the Rams. It's been an excellent position. Cooper cut Robert Woods should be primed to be absolute fantasy studs with Brandon Cooks being shipped out of town. Like,

They should easily be two top 20, two top 15 wide receivers for fantasy as they have been in the past. But then we saw this five game stretch where the Rams completely renovated their offense. They went to more of a 12 personnel where the tied end was featured. So then you have the problems with Tyler Higby. Can Higby keep that going? Because if he does, he's like a top three tied in. Or does he vanish back to what he has been for four years? The Rams are like...

The outcomes for each individual position is so bipolar for the Rams. So they are my most difficult team to actually stat out. Yeah, and I went with the Patriots because not only do they confuse me, but I don't want anybody. I don't have any Patriot above 28 at their position, and that is the quarter pack.

who's 28th at his position. I don't have anybody, even if I, you see one of these guys dropped to me, obviously Edelman would be the kind of one player that you could look at and say, well, okay, I'll get production, but he has the age variable. It's a defensive team. I, I'm just not excited. I wasn't, I didn't enjoy the process, and I'm not excited about anybody there. Last year you came in with hopes for Nikiel Harry, who knows what he'll be with Stidim.

I don't find myself too excited with New England. It's fair. It's fair. I mean, except people are going to be real mad when Jared Stidham is winning more games than Tom Brady. Real, real mad. Whose people? The public Twitter. You're saying you're putting that on the record. You think he's going to win more games than Tom Brady. Mike's just throwing a hand grenade out there and I'm walking away. Trying to be like, hey, you know, Stidham's going to win more games of Brady.

Yeah, Mike can have that one. That's fine. Because no, no, he won't. I don't think so. I think this is going to be a very interesting year. They might still be able to win because of that defense and game management. But it'll be a battle of, you know, is this Brady? Is this Belichick? I don't think that Jarrett Stedham is going to get it done personally. But let's talk some news.

News and notes from around the league. Nothing that I would say is breaking crucial news to talk about, but some of the more off-season rumory stuff, I'd rather get your reaction than not. So first you had, let's go here. Mike Tomlin, Steelers head coach, comes out, says James Connor is, quote, a featured guy and a proven runner, win healthy.

Conner's another player that I think is difficult to project because we've seen the struggles with health, but we've seen him be exactly that when he's healthy, a featured guy. You look at this team, you look at Mike Tomlin, he prefers a featured guy. Yeah. Last year, Beat reporters were coming out and saying that they believed it was going to be a timeshare.

And I feel like this is something that happens pretty much every year post-love Bell is like, I think it's not going to be the same. But it hasn't been until the hand was completely forced due to injury. And so, you know, this year, once again, people are saying, I think Benny Snell is going to share time with James Connor. I, for the first time, when I was standing out the Steelers, I gave more work to that running back to. But, you know, having Tomlin come out and say that and knowing his history, it is.

You know, if Connor were just healthy for the whole season, I can't imagine that he would not use him the way that he's used every, you know, every lead back he's had on the roster. Well, yeah, and the thing is, is when you stat him out, you have to do what you did, unless you are going to 100% factor, you know, look at Connor and say he's going to be healthy throughout the year because even if he is the featured guy for 10 of the 16 games.

the stats are going to bear out what you're saying. Yeah. So this didn't really change my opinion. I mean, Connor is sitting there and has been sitting there as this potential value because you're betting on a, you know, you could be betting on a healthier season. And a healthier season for Connor, you should at least get another year out of him as a feature guy, right? Yeah, I 100% believe that. And you just like, where's he? I guess we can look it up, but like you don't find three down running backs

in the area that James Connor is currently being drafted. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it'll be interesting in general. We'll talk more about Pittsburgh because unexplain yourself today. We'll be talking about juju so we can debate some of the optimism surrounding Big Ben's return. Big Ben put a big tweet out there today. He got that fresh haircut. He's wanting to explain himself. He wasn't going to cut his hair. You think I'm going to explain myself because Big Ben cut his hair?