The NFL is Back! + NFC South Breakdown - Fantasy Football Podcast

You know, 18 touches per game, and that's including the games where he got injured, including Week 17, where I think he was like 40% snap share. 18 touches a game for a guy that's as efficient as Alvin Camara is going to be great. Now, I know we like to look, and maybe we're going to stay on the Saints longer than I thought, but I know we like to look at rebounds. And the fact that they were, you know, number one in rushing touchdowns for two consecutive years before dropping to 20 last year.

Like some of these numbers are going to return to the norm. But I know when we've talked about the chiefs, you guys have been quick to bring up the defense. And the defense in New Orleans is stout. It is good. That was something that took a huge step forward last year. Fourth in the league and defensive rushing yards per game given up. It's one of those things where... Because you had to throw on them. Well, yeah, you had to throw on them. But I'm saying if their defense is top-notch, is the reason for some of those numbers coming down last year less about...

just ebbs and flows and more about the defense? No, because it wasn't total offensive numbers. It was a shift from running to passing. It was Drew Breeze throwing for 7% touchdown rate and Michael Thomas getting every single ball that's ever been thrown.

caught. He caught the most pastes in a single season. He stole 35 of Alvin Kamara's receptions from him. Right. So I don't, I don't think this is that, you know, we were, we were talking about this on the last episode. I brought up the fact that the saints still want to, they want to score.

40 points every game, even with the great defense. They're not trying to slow the game down and win a defensive and, you know, running game. That's why Alvin Kamara is not going to get 300 touches on the ground. He's going to be closer to 200, but they will air it out. And I think, you know, we've, we've said this before. This is the only narrative street thing here for the, for the Saints, but Breeze wants some records, and he's close to some records. And Alvin Kamara in the passing game is going to help him get there.

Jared Kuk. Jerkirk. Average 4.6 targets per game last year. Lead all tight ends and yards per reception at 16.4. That's kind of a Jared Cook thing to do. 21% of his receptions were touchdowns. Talk about the efficiency of Drew Brees when he went to Jared Kuk. I'm sure that'll happen again. Yeah. Oh, it could. It really could.

I mean, when you have an offense like this and a hyper-efficient quarterback that picks his spots, it could happen. I mean, Cook is a big play tight-in. That's one of those prerequisites that I like for my tight-in position is not just looking at the two-yard reception around the goal line, but the seam route that Breeze has been able to dominate with his tight-in for his entire career. I like that possibility where you can have a guy catch too long.

bomb touchdown passes it tied in on his only two targets. So I think the question mark is you're probably sacrificing some volume with Cook, but the touchdowns could easily be there again. Yeah, they could be there. But I'm out. I've discussed how I'm not really drafting Jared Cook. I'm not paying that middle round for him because it's that the platform that he's standing on of fantasy value, that thing is just barely balanced where.

If the wind blows a direction, like he's going to be brutal for your fantasy team. So I'm just not paying up. And then with the addition of an actual good wide receiver two for the team, it could be trouble for Cook. I do think his volume will be low. And that's what you're saying, Mike. It's a little bit scary to have someone that is so touchdown dependent. But.

The reality is almost every tight end that you're going to draft outside of, you know, the top three or four guys are pretty much touchdown dependent. So I am going to take the one who has Drew Brees, has a great offense, has a history of scoring touchdowns, and did it last year. And did it last year. But I, I mean, you're right. He is not a week in, week out. You plug it in your lineup and you're just happy with your tight end every week. He's going to have his up games. He's going to have his down games. And, uh,

But I'm fine with him. And the nice thing is he's not really a middle round tight end. He's actually in the drafts that I've been in. I don't know what his ADP is. But I've ended up drafting him several times around the ninth round. And I'm happy to. Interesting. I've had him in Brees, that combination. Like you're talking about 9th, 10th round, managing to get both guys. Let's talk about the Atlanta Falcons last year, 7 and 9. It was a rough start. We didn't know if Dan Quinn would make it through the season.

Somehow he did. They went, what, one and seven before the buy week? That's correct. But went six and two in the second half, had road wins against New Orleans in San Francisco, turned it around to the point where Dan Quinn is still the head coach of this franchise. And, you know, it's a good offense. Passing yards per game. You know, you know, Matt Ryan's going to air it out. Yes. 294 passing yards per game, 29 touchdowns. When you look at,

This upcoming season, what are the big question marks for you guys around Atlanta's offense and projecting, you know, you don't have to say much about players like Julio Jones. But he's good. Which, you know, he's a good player. Yeah. Right. Still struggles with the touchdown totals on a consistent basis. And in part, that's because Matt Ryan struggles with throwing the football in the red zone. You look at sharp analytics this past year, 29th in red zone passing efficiency. I mean, he just.

Time and time again, he finds a way to throw interceptions in the end zone. He will throw the yards, though. I mean, you know, over 4,000 yards. Yes, exactly. You know, he's always over 4,000 yards. He's closer now to 5,000 yards than 4,000 over, you know, most of the last few years. So the passing offense is going to work. I think the three questions are Todd Gurley, Calvin Ridley, and Haydenhurst. Can they go, you know,

They've got the range of outcome where they can all be really good fantasy options. I don't expect this defense to be good. They're in a division that's going to score the ball a lot. Their schedule is bad, which could be good for the offense actually having to score more points. If you want to win, it's going to be on the offensive side of the ball. So, you know, let's start with Calvin Ridley. He's someone that at the beginning of the offseason, I had him in my top 12. I saw the breakout coming.

You know, and since then, I've cooled a little bit. I went deeper into the splits when Hayden Hurst, or I'm sorry, when Hooper was out, and that's really when Ridley took advantage. And while... Good thing they got rid of Hooper then, huh? Yeah, but Hayden Hurst is coming in. It's very different when you've got a guy that gets injured and there isn't a replacement versus...

Hearst is not going to fill the entirety of Hooper's shoes, but they're planning on him being on the field, having, you know, targets. This is a team that has thrown the ball to the tight end a lot. So, you know, to me, I see Calvin Ridley decent breakout, but more like wide receiver 16, wide receiver 2. Wide receiver 16 is where he's being drafted for what it's worth. 63 for 866 and 7 last year, only played 13 games. And he's tough because before the,

the Mohammed's the new trade. He was about 53 yards a game. And then, you know, six receptions, 82 yards a game for the next six games before he went down with his own injury. But you're right, Jay. The Austin Hooper injury and a couple games where it took Hooper to reestablish himself in the offense, those also coincided with the Calvin Ridley breakout. So it's tough to know what to believe.

about Calvin Ridley, like which side will happen. But they're like the, the Falcons in between Tony Gonzalez and Austin Hooper, we actually have a four-year gap of Atlanta really struggling to use the tight-end position. You had the Toilolo years. The Toy Lolo years. The Jacob Tammy years. And then Austin Hooper's first two years in the league. Yes. It was really nothing. So Ken Hayden Hurst, he's got the draft capital. I mean, he.

He should be able to handle that. But there's still a very large question of can he handle that? It's another situation of a, this is a player changing teams, which is not necessarily the best thing as we've seen in the past. So I still believe more in the Calvin Ridley breakout than him not. Yeah, I side that direction too, although, yeah, I think Hearst will be involved. Muhammad Sunu is obviously gone. Russell Gage never gets talked about.

despite the fact he, this is shocking, he actually led the Falcons wide receivers in red zone targets last year. That's because the Red zone targets don't. Maybe you should stop throwing at Russell Gage. Red zone targets don't mean a lot coming from Atlanta. If I were Julio Jones, I would cut that stat out and paste it on Matt Ryan's locker. I would walk over and say, look what I just found. If this ever happens again, I'm going to slap you.

Well, he's going to get slapped because it's, it's happened for a decade. I'm sure it's going to continue to happen. All right. And as we move over to Todd Gurley, guys, I have prepared a fun little short game. Oh, dear goodness. Do do do do do do do do do. I don't think I'm going to like this game. Ready? This game is called Todd Gurley or David Montgomery. You ready for this game? Oh, I'm not ready. I'm excited about this game. All right, fellas.

For your first question, last year, who had more rushing attempts? David Montgomery or Todd Gurley? Todd Gurley. Yeah, I'll go with Gurley. The answer is David Montgomery with 242 to 223. All right. Okay. Now having said that, who had more rushing yards? David Montgomery or Todd Gurley. David Montgomery. Oh, man, it must be. You wouldn't bring it up if it wasn't David Montgomery. Yeah, go ahead, Mike.

The answer is David Montgomery with 889 rushing yards. We got to keep it going, though. Who had more receptions? Todd Gurley or David Montgomery. That one actually is easiest. David Montgomery. They didn't use Todd Gurley in the passing game last year. That sounds stupid. It was Todd Gurley. I had to throw you off the center of the game. No way. What? They barely passed the ball. Todd Gurley had 31 receptions. Monty had.

25. All right. Those high value carries. More carries inside the five yard line. Who had more? David Montgomery or Todd Gurley. I feel like I'm going to get this wrong. I'm going girly. I'll go with Monty. The answer is David Montgomery, who had 18. He had the third most at the position.

All right. We only got two more questions, fellas. Oh, great. I haven't been keeping track. Ask who had more touchdowns. I know that. I don't even like participating because I just want to be on Mike's side. Who had more yards from scrimmage? Yards from scrimmage. Just overall total yards, David Montgomery or Todd Gurley. David Montgomery. The answer is David Montgomery. Just, I mean, it's only 10.

He only had 10 more yards from scrimmage than Todd Gurley. And here is the whole point of me bringing this up. Who had more fantasy points? David Montgomery. Todd Gurley. Todd Gurley had nearly. For touchdowns. Touchdowns. Nearly 50 more points. So my point in bringing this up, think about how you felt about David Montgomery's production last year. He was outproducing.

Todd Gurley in yardage and carries and like barely behind him in receptions. Todd Gurley's entire season was built on the back of rushing touchdowns and now he is changing teams. Is that going to happen? I think not. If the rushing touchdowns go away for Todd Gurley, you're going to feel real bad. You drafted him in the fourth round. Can I add one more question? Yes.

Who do I have ranked higher in my running back rankings? David Montgomery or Todd Gurley? Yes. Oh, this, if it's David Montgomery, that that has to just feel like you're just... It's David Montgomery. That is correct. You were the Todd Gurley guy. Like, you called for the resurgence of Todd Gurley. So are you speaking to Jason? I'm talking. No, I'm talking to you, Andy. Like the year where... Yeah.

When Todd Gurley came back to life, you were all... You're saying it hurts me because of the year when he came back to life. Yes. After Jeff Fisher. Yeah, that was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, dear Mike. Here is why I got the question wrong on receptions. Because Todd Gurley only had 31 receptions. And the two years prior, 64 and 59, would you say that Todd Gurley is a very good receiving back?