Week 15 Buy or Sell + Playoff Strategy, Almost Football Time - Fantasy Football Podcast for 12/16

option to replace Dalvin Cook should you somehow make it through and withstand the victory, so to speak, of a Dalvin Cook injury. You're playing like Damien Harris or Duke Johnson. I mean, those are the types of players. I would imagine you'd be choosing between that or a starting Alexander Madison. I would drop Madison. I would let him go. I would drop Madison as well, and here's why. Because.

Andy, Andy illustrated it perfectly. You're not playing Madison this week. He's not of value. If Dalvin Cook gets injured on the first play, Madison is still irrelevant for you this week, and you probably lose the game, losing, you know, getting a zero from Dalvin Cook. The following week, should Dalvin Cook get you through the whole game and get injured on the last play of the game? So now this is the best situation where I held on to Alexander Madison.

Are you going to start Alexander Madison against New Orleans in the championship week? One of the best defenses against the run. He's not an obvious must start just because he's replacing Dalvin Cook. So that's your- They use Mike Boone. They'd be annoying. Maribula. So it's one of those where I think you are better served at this point. Now that we are to the week we are in, assuming that you have a week 16 championship, week 17 against Detroit.

That would change things. But if it's a week 16 championship, I'm letting Alexander Madison go in order if I can make a worthy transaction to block someone, pick up a defense, do something important. You can win your week blocking your opponent from a defense. Can also lose your week. Yeah. Thanks, Mike. Thanks, Mike. We did a little bit of a rehash this morning of things that transpired this past weekend. One of them being that I...

paid one fab. I had one fab dollar. Mike had none to pick up DeAndre Washington, who was starting for Miami. I got the instant dap from Mike. He sent me a note. He said, hey, nice job on the block. Because Mike was searching for some options. He had an injured Antonio Gibson and DJ Moore, and he was not, believe it or not, not confident in Miles Sanders. Oh, I believe it. I was not. If you got Washington, would you have played him over Miles Sanders? I bet you would. I cannot say for sure.

You wanted to. But it was at least going to be part of the thought process. And if you had got him, then there's that kind of one of the reasons why I liked Washington more was the vested, you know, it's like the bias of signing somebody. You spend your fab on them. You pick them up that morning. It's like, oh, well, I blocked Mike, but is this valuable now? Right. Oh, the butterfly effect, man. Oh, my gosh. Because I was going to spend five fab dollar to block.

my opponent from getting Dandre Washington, but I couldn't because ESPN did not have Christian McCaffrey listed as out, so I couldn't move him and open up the roster spot. So you got him instead of me, which means Mike didn't get him, which means Miles Sanders plays, which means you're out of the playoffs. There has to be, look, people play fantasy football, right? There's a lot of them. There has to be a, like, psychiatrist office where someone walks in.

And they lay down on the couch. And the psychiatrist thinks they're about to hear about a marital issue or about a work issue. Growing up with their childhood. Childhood issue, daddy issues, whatever. And the first word out of that person's mouth is a start-sit decision that they made this past week. There has to be someone somewhere because I know I'm going through it right now. Is the show over yet? No, I'm just kidding. I'm kidding. All right. We're moving on.

YouTube question. I said there be some 2021 questions. Here is one from Tyler Nicholson over on YouTube. Is there a slam dunk pick for number one overall in fantasy leagues next year? It's funny because we kind of brought this up. Slam dunk, I don't know. It'll be Dalvin Cook and Christian McCaffrey related. And in that case, what I thought about earlier, and Jason, I'm going to give you the chance to just weigh in with your opinion too, obviously.

I don't know if every McCaffrey question was answered that did exist before the season, which was new head coach, new quarterback, new offense, new situation. Now, we did see him for a game. Three. Did we see him for three games? Yeah, he's been in three games and he was unfathomably awesome. He only came back for one during the back half of the year, right? Correct. Okay. And he was obviously, like you said, he was incredible. So maybe those questions have been answered. And we've seen Mike Davis.

In the meantime, a journeyman backup who's had a ton of fantasy production. To me, Christian McAfford is a clear cut one. Here's his fantasy finishes, Andy. Week one, the RB2. Yeah. Week two, he played 64% of the snaps. Scott Hurt, finishes the running back six on the week. Comes back against the Kansas City Chiefs is the running back two. Well, I think Delvin Cook is it's fair to put him in the conversation. Yeah, I agree. Because of his explosiveness.

the same type of utility in the passing game. I get it. It's ironic that the knock against Cook is his injuries. Well, and it's still going to be, that's still a dialogue point for Christian McCaffrey to me is, is you came into the year saying maybe they want to reduce the load. Now, they didn't do it and he was great in those games. But he was hurt all year. Three injuries, quad, shoulder, knee. They have to manage Christian McCaffrey if you pay him that amount of money, don't they?

Well, we say they do, and then they never need, they never do. But the injuries have stacked up this year. I also think that some of these missed games this season have been because of the situation of the schedule, because of the situation of the team and the fact that they're playing for the future and they don't want to rush him back. They want him at full strength next year versus getting back in week 15 against a, you know, an irrelevant game. So I think that's, that's.

Part of the games he's missed, I think he's missed at least three games this season, where if they were in the runnings, fighting for a playoff spot, he would have played. So really next year, you're looking at Cook, McCaffrey, you're looking at the potential for who else? I mean, Camer. I would throw out of Camara. Barclay's going to be in the top five discussion again, isn't he? Probably, yeah. And Camara, depending on the quarterback situation for the Saints. And then Derek Henry. Yeah.

Yeah, and probably you're going to start hearing Jonathan Taylor come up in the first round. If the end of this year's... First round, yeah, not number one overall, but I agree. No, but probably ahead of like the ZEK category, maybe. Maybe, maybe. That's kind of fun to ruminate when you've been knocked out by Mike. All right.

YouTube, do I start Brandon Ayyuk or Justin Jefferson in a PPR league? Oh, me, oh my. Justin Jefferson or Brandon Ayuk. Jefferson has a tough matchup against Chicago. They are fourth on the year. Brandon Ayuk is all alone. Now, you don't know the quarterback. They have talked about looking at different quarterback situations, but he's got the best matchup in football against Dallas.

I think is Brandon Ayyuk this week, as much as I love Justin Jefferson. Jefferson was 10 targets, 8 for 135 the last time they played the Chicago Bears, and that was in Chicago. So it's not that Justin Jefferson can't get it done. Why do you have to bring that up, man? 16 targets for Brandon Ayyuk. 16 targets this past week without Debo Samuel against Dallas. The whole, and I know.

Shanahan built his entire offense around one target. He does it, and he's come out and said he does it. He'll build 85% of the game plan around Brandon Ayyuk. I have them back to back in my rankings, and I think I would go Brandon Ayuk, who we will also talk about on Thursday. Let me just bring this up. Let me, because maybe we don't think about it because Debo coming back with Debo coming back.

The last five games for Brandon Ayuk that he's played, he's been a top 12 wide receiver three of those times. The two weeks that he did not make the top 12, he was 16th and 20th. You will not go wrong with Brandon Ayup. Jefferson's volume at many times this year and the game plan for Minnesota is Dalvin Cook. You can have four target games for Justin Jefferson. You can have three reception games for him. But it hurts me to say bench him. But I'm going to go Brandon Ayut. Ayuk has been incredible. Ayukin.

Thank you. Haddogan. Oh, we've got it. Yeah. Yeah. All right. Let's go with this question from Laura because I love it. My husband and I made it into the semifinals this week and are up against one another. Oh, no. I'm one of those people that's been streaming quarterbacks. Jalen Hertz or Philip Rivers this week.

Both of them were the streaming quarterbacks from yesterday. Yeah. The show. They are both excellent plays. Jalen Hertz against Arizona. P. River are going to be up against the Houston Texans with T.Y. Houston probably doing his magical act again. I'm going to take Philip Rivers. Man. You've got one game of game film now for Jalen Hertz.

It matters. It really does. I'm going to take P. River. This is brutal. I think that hurts. The probability that Jalen Hertz has a bad game is lower than Philip Rivers. I think Hertz is safer. I think his floor is safer. I think the ceiling is safer on Hertz than Rivers just because Rivers doesn't ever have a ceiling.

If he finishes as a quarterback one, it's like usually the quarterback 10. His great games this year have been that way. He's, you know, he's, he's been playing great football. I love Rivers this week. His last five weeks are the quarterback 13, 10, 10, 17, 15. All good performances. All right. All right. I'm going to switch. But it's, it's tough. It's the playoffs. I'm going to switch because I, I feel like Jalen Hertz, if it goes right, is what Jason's saying. He could give you top five.

Philip Rivers going right is number 10. I'm changing to upside in the playoffs. I'm going to change to. I want you to. I'm just happy I was able to talk someone off of Philip Rivers. Take that. Philip. I feel like that you have like an LLC just for that. Like you have your own side business and all you do is consult.

people out of Philip Rivers after what happened. Are you considering starting Philip Rivers? I want to see that. The infomercial that would be spectacular. What's funny is I think Philip Rivers is a very good play this week. I think people out there that are going to start him, that's not bad. That's not a negative. Yeah, but you know who's a great play this week, Jonathan Taylor against Houston? Yeah. I mean, he may have 30 carries.

And the defense is so good for Indianapolis, this game could be over quick. I mean, look here, you saw it two weeks ago. Two weeks ago, Philip Rivers went out and was excellent against this Houston Texans team. 285 and two touchdowns have finished as the quarterback 17. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. All right. That'll do it for today's show. A reminder for all of you supporting the show at join the foot.com.

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